Chapter 57

Pei Kuang was stunned for a few seconds, not expecting the little girl to be quite good at retorting.

But he didn't know how to respond for a moment.

Song Anan knew she was a little impulsive.

But when she thought about how he had said earlier that if she were in a relationship, he could check on her, she felt stifled.

This guy really treated her as his niece, and was even more enthusiastic about this than Song Linchuan.

But as soon as she spoke, she regretted it.

Suddenly bringing up their CP out of nowhere, this topic was more or less a little ambiguous.

Especially when she couldn't help but think of the things fans had posted in the "Anxin Peiban" CP super-topic.

Would he think it was weird that she looked at these things? Would he find out her hidden thoughts that couldn't stand the light of day?

Would he...

Song Anan suddenly felt a little flustered, she didn't even dare raise her head.

But what followed was a deep sense of powerlessness.

Song Anan also knew she was being silly, but the source of this silliness, she was clearer than anyone.

She had thought before that if she suppressed some emotions, they would slowly fade over time.

But why was it that two years had passed, and she hadn't made any progress at all?

What was this called, a crush?

Song Anan had never thought of herself as the type of person to have a crush. She had always felt that if you like someone, you should let them know.

No matter the result, at least be frank and open about it, but now she had become so calculating.

Maybe it was because so much time had passed that she had lost her original courage.

Or maybe it was because she knew her feelings would only cause him distress.

Sensing Song Anan's bad mood, Pei Kuang straightened up and tentatively asked, "Angry?"

Silent for a few seconds.

Song Anan shook her head, her voice muffled: "No."

She paused, then added, "I just don't like being wronged."

Wronged?

Pei Kuang carefully pondered over this word.

Was she talking about the CP with Jing Fan, or with him?

It seemed like she felt more wronged with him.

Song Anan thought for a moment, and still felt like she needed to make amends: "But when I think of Linchuan, I feel like I'm not one to talk."

Pei Kuang raised his eyebrows,

What did this have to do with Song Linchuan?

Song Anan stared at him for a few seconds, "It seems you have more CP fans with him."

Pei Kuang: "......"

After dinner, the two strolled around campus again to help digestion.

Seeing it was getting late, Song Anan went to the parking shed to ride her electric scooter over. Pei Kuang once again curled up in the back seat, and the two leisurely headed back.

After parking the electric scooter in the hospital parking shed again, the two entered the small neighborhood next door through a side door.

After returning to the room, Pei Kuang took a change of clothes into the bathroom. After taking a quick shower, he casually dried his hair before coming out.

It was indeed getting late, he habitually walked to the desk and picked up the small bottle on it, ready to twist it open, when Song Anan's words suddenly flashed through his mind.

- Have you adjusted your schedule?

- Sleeping pills are best taken as little as possible, drink some milk to help sleep.

Pei Kuang hesitated for a few seconds before putting the bottle back in its original place.

He pondered for a moment before wandering into the downstairs kitchen. As he had guessed, the production team had not prepared milk, the fridge was full of sponsored beverages.

He would make do for today, he thought, and buy a few bottles to keep around tomorrow when he went out.

After returning to the room again, he didn't take the sleeping pills but went straight to bed.

Since he wasn't sleepy, Pei Kuang didn't force himself to sleep either, resting his hands under his head as he unconsciously reviewed the events of the evening.

He could feel that Song Anan had been in a bad mood for the latter half of the night. Although she tried her best to act more relaxed, she was ultimately not very good at pretending.

Pei Kuang's eyebrows furrowed slightly. Did she feel he was meddling too much and it made her uncomfortable?

That was probably it. No one liked being controlled, especially a young girl her age.

Thinking of this, Pei Kuang sat up and took his phone next to him. After opening the familiar chat window, he hesitated for a moment before typing out a message.

"Sorry about tonight. I don't have much experience interacting with loved ones, so I may not grasp the boundaries well. Don't mind it."

After editing, Pei Kuang stared at the screen for a good while, hesitating whether to send it or not, but eventually just deleted it.

Nevermind, it seemed like he was trying to gain sympathy.

The young girl was softhearted to begin with. Doing this would only make her feel more guilty.

He should be more mindful from now on.

Pei Kuang turned off the screen and was about to put down his phone when he suddenly recalled something.

He was quite surprised that Song Anan actually knew many people shipped their CP. Based on his understanding of her, she rarely paid attention to online entertainment news, and didn't care about unimportant matters like this at all.

He didn't expect her to even know they had many CP fans! Pei Kuang unlocked his phone again and directly opened Weibo, entering "Anxin Peiban" in the super-topic search box.

He had been told this CP name by Li Dong a few days ago. Come to think of it, he hadn't gone in to take a look yet.

He also didn't know what those CP fans were saying, and what the young girl saw online that made her feel so wronged.

Curious, Pei Kuang started scrolling through the super-topic.

Half an hour later, he lost himself laughing at the absurdity.

What was all this stuff?

Aside from the various photoshops, compiled videos and fanfictions, some people even used his and Song Anan's photos to generate a picture that was supposedly their future child.

This...

He was at a loss for words for a moment.

The child did look quite good, but if it were their child, it should be...

When he realized what he was thinking about, Pei Kuang couldn't help but cover his forehead.

He casually tossed his phone aside, and directly turned off the light switch before lying flat on the bed.

In the darkness, the sounds of him tossing and turning could be heard.

After a long while, he inexplicably laughed out loud.

He really was crazy...

After that night out for dinner, Song Anan was even more careful around Pei Kuang, afraid he would notice something.

However, fortunately the two rarely interacted on the show, and work really was busy enough that she didn't have much energy to overthink things.

She could only take some time to sort out the already tangled mess of emotions in her heart, just before going to sleep after a tiring day.

And so days passed uneventfully, and the show recordings soon reached the final stages.

On the last day of filming, the observation team finally met the interns on the show.

The eight original interns had gone through several rounds of assessments, some leaving and some joining, and by the end of the show only five remained.

Song Anan and Jing Fan were both kept until the very end.

Along with the six guests on the observation team, there were a total of twelve people.

The director arranged for them all to have hotpot together that day, gathering all the guests in one place.

As for this arrangement, the live studio audience was very much looking forward to it.

After all, this was the first meeting between the [Anjing CP] and [Anxin Peiban CP], just thinking about it was exciting.

【OMG! Love rivals meet, this will be an intense showdown, looking forward to it.jpg】

【What love rivals, the above comment is inappropriate. This is clearly meeting the in-laws!】

【Come to think of it, I'm kind of looking forward to seeing Pei Kuang's evil mother-in-law face】

When the interns arrived, the host and several celebrity guests on the observation team were already waiting in the studio.

As soon as they appeared, Pei Kuang, who had been sitting there bored and spacing out, was the first to get up and greet them.

【Whoa! After watching the show for so long, this is the first time I've seen Pei Kuang take the initiative】

【I know right, he's usually practically limp in his seat, but he reacted pretty quickly this time】

【Ahhhhhhh, Pei Kuang I advise you not to be so obvious, sob sob sob, this ship is killing me】

After walking over, Pei Kuang greeted the other interns before smiling and nodding lightly at Song Anan.

At this time, the others had also come over. After exchanging greetings, the host signaled for everyone to take their seats.

With over a dozen people around a long table, Pei Kuang naturally sat on the other side of Song Anan, while Jing Fan sat on her other side.

This was the first time the three of them were on screen together. Jing Fan was quite handsome, but compared to Pei Kuang he was clearly inferior in looks.

It had to be said, [Anxin Peiban CP] had a slight edge in visuals.

【Our [Anjing CP] mainly relies on intellectual attraction, not appearances, alright?】

【Haha, the above comment is obviously trying to cover up their insecurity. Self-contradiction much? 】

【My god, what kind of chaotic showdown is this, I love it, I love it!】

【Wait, can someone tell me what exactly you all are getting excited about? Whether it's Pei Kuang or Jing Fan, they both seem to be behaving pretty normally? Where's this intense showdown coming from?】

【Brother above, it's clear you don't understand. This is called gaining the upper hand without fighting. Use your imagination, 'kay?】

It wasn't just the online audience getting gossip-hungry over this situation, the people present were also itching to stir things up.

But everyone was still restrained for the most part, aside from occasionally mischievously glancing at the three, no one really said anything.

Song Anan felt a little awkward with everyone looking at them. She wasn't stupid either, and could vaguely guess what they were thinking.

It was one thing for Jing Fan to sit next to her since they were both intern guests, it made sense for them to sit together.

But Song Anan didn't expect that Pei Kuang would sit right beside her.

Although when she thought about it carefully, they did know each other to begin with, so sitting together was normal too.

Maybe it was a guilty conscience, but Song Anan still felt a little uncomfortable.

And it wasn't just the guests who were gossiping about this scene.

But everyone was still keeping it in check. Other than the occasional teasing glances at the three, no one really said anything.

Song Anan felt a little awkward being stared at by everyone. She wasn't stupid either, and could vaguely guess what they were thinking.

It was one thing for Jing Fan to sit next to her since they were both intern guests. It made sense for them to sit together.

But Song Anan didn't expect Pei Kuang to sit right beside her.

Although when she thought about it carefully, they did know each other already, so sitting together was normal too.

Maybe it was a guilty conscience, but Song Anan still felt a little uncomfortable.

After everyone was seated, each person had a small hotpot in front of them. They all started eating while chatting.

Compared to the interns' restraint, the observation team guests were much more relaxed. Under the host's lead, the topics mostly revolved around the show, like points they were curious about or interested in during filming that they could now discuss.

Gradually, the atmosphere started to get lively.

However, in occasions like this, Song Anan seldom talked much. Ever since she came in, except for occasionally whispering with Pei Kuang, she spent most of the time listening quietly.

After all, she was not an artist and did not care about the number of cameras on her.

But no matter if it was the online audience or the people present now, the one they were most interested in was still Song Anan.

According to the script given by the director team, they had already asked all the questions they were supposed to. Next was free time.

"Auntie, don't people around you often praise you for being pretty?"

The one who asked this question was Lin Qiwen from the Observer Team. She was a singer.

From the start of the show, she had taken quite a liking to Song Anan, for a simple reason - she was a looks fanatic.

And Song Anan's appearance completely matched her aesthetic standards.

Hearing Lin Qiwen's words, Song Anan's first reaction was confusion.

Apart from not expecting her to initiate a conversation, it was also because of how she addressed her as "Auntie". During this show recording, everyone had called her by name.

So she took a moment to react.

But after collecting herself, Song Anan seriously recalled and shook her head, answering: "No."

Lin Qiwen was surprised and widened her eyes to ask: "How is that possible?"

In her opinion, with Song Anan's face, she would be considered one of the best in the entertainment industry, let alone among ordinary people.

It was unbelievable that she was not often praised for her looks.

Song Anan replied earnestly: "Really, they don't."

She hesitated for a moment, then added: "But they usually say I'm cute."

Whether it was her family, schoolmates, colleagues at the hospital, they didn't seem to have ever said she was pretty. Instead, they often said she was cute.

Although Song Anan had never felt that about herself.

Lin Qiwen was immediately charmed by Song Anan's serious manner. She seemed to understand why people around her called her cute.

"Do you think you are cute then?" she asked.

Song Anan decisively shook her head: "I don't think so."

【Oh my gosh, how is this not cute with such a contrasting gap?!】

【Auntie is such an adorable little cutie without realizing it!】

Hearing her reply, Lin Qiwen laughed and continued asking: "Then do you think you are pretty?"

Song Anan hesitated briefly, "I guess I'm a little pretty."

Lin Qiwen was stunned for a moment, seemingly not expecting her answer at all.

Shouldn't she be more modest?

Her mind went blank and she blurted out: "How did you discover that you were a little pretty then?"

Song Anan was puzzled, "I realized it when I looked in the mirror."

【I'm dying, realized it by looking in the mirror, how amusing!】

【Ahhh, Auntie is just too funny!】

【I can't stop laughing, why are Song Anan's answers always so unexpected?】

【Haha, didn't expect that right? Our main point is honesty!】

【Song Anan: I do have aesthetics, you know.】

【But gotta say, Auntie's aesthetics bar is set quite high since she only considers herself a little pretty?】

【Yeah...feels like Auntie has some aesthetics but not a lot】

【Quite curious who she finds very pretty】

Everyone present was amused by Song Anan's candid replies, especially Pei Kuang beside her.

He turned to look at her, thinking to himself that she was definitely more than just a little pretty.

The host came out to smooth things over with a smile. "Teacher Lin, the angle of your question is quite unique."

Normally, who would ask someone "How did you discover you were pretty?" This was a little silly.

At this point, Lin Qiwen also couldn't help but hold her forehead.

She didn't know what thought process she had earlier either.

"Auntie, your 'a little pretty' standard is not low," Lin Qiwen teased.

"In your opinion, who do you consider very pretty then?"

This was indeed a question on many people's minds. Everyone turned to look over.

Song Anan blinked and looked at Lin Qiwen to reply: "I think you are very pretty."

After speaking, she suddenly recalled something and added: "I'm being truthful, not just polite."

【Hilarious, so Song Anan knows what netizens say about her! She even knows the "being polite" meme from three years ago!】

【Let me ask, did I miss out on something? What's the "being polite" meme about? Can someone explain?】

【It was the jokes netizens made about Auntie when she appeared on a previous show. You can search online to find out more!】

【Let me briefly explain to everyone! One of Auntie's "being polite" principles: When someone compliments me, I compliment them back politely!】

【Speaking of which, Lin Qiwen does have the glamorous beauty of a thick-eyebrowed beauty】

Having received a compliment, Lin Qiwen naturally bloomed with joy. She felt even more that Song Anan was adorable.

She couldn't help teasing her more, "Apart from me, who else do you find very pretty?"

Song Anan was startled, and subconsciously turned to look at Pei Kuang.

Pei Kuang was putting beef rolls into Song Anan's hot pot. Noticing her gaze, he was taken aback.

"What's wrong?" He didn't react immediately.

Song Anan pursed her lips. "Nothing..."