Starlight Has No Past
Chapter 34 Part 2
There were a few makeup artists and actors whom Ye Qiao didn’t recognize inside. Xu Yinshan’s assistant was sitting at the seat where Ye Qiao had set her bag. Ye Qiao asked her whether she had seen her bag. The assistant acted as if she was surprised and pretended to look around for her: “I haven’t seen it. Keep looking. Are you sure it’s not somewhere else in the room?”
Ye Qiao patiently told her that the bag was missing. Zhao Mo came over to help her search the room and asked Ye Qiao: “You went to the bathroom earlier, is it possible that you left it there?”
Ye Qiao thought about it for a second and turned to go to the bathroom.
Jars and bottles were strewn over the countertop in the bathroom, some having fallen to the floor. Ye Qiao’s white bag was wide open and flopped over in the corner of the counter. Everything inside the bag had been emptied out. Ye Qiao threw all the scattered lipsticks, moisturizers, makeup kits, and pens into the trash can. Then she checked the money, id cards, and credit cards inside her wallet. They were all there and still intact. She stuffed them all into her pocket and also threw the wallet into the trash can.
After she finished cleaning the items outside of her bag, she checked the inside. There was nothing left inside except an envelope.
Ye Qiao walked out of the bathroom, tearing off the seal on the envelope.
Inside the envelope was a stack of photographs. With each step she made with her high heels on the shining floor, she switched to another picture. There were pictures of her and Zhou Tingsheng in the garage of the airport, on the highway, coming and going into their apartments…… The angle of each picture seemed to be purposely making the situation as suggestive as possible. She could almost see the sensational headlines on the tabloids.
Who would take these pictures intentionally? Xu Yinshan?
Halfway through the hallway, she’d already gone through all the photos. Ye Qiao threw them into a nearby trash can.
The pictures dropped to the bottom of the trash can with a thud. Ye Qiao looked up and saw the male figure in all of the pictures standing in the hallway.
Ye Qiao paused for a moment. She thought he would at least stay in the audition room till the end of all the auditions, even if he was just pretending. She expected that he’d at least show some superficial interest.
Zhou Tingsheng glanced at the trash can: “What did you just throw away?”
“It’s nothing.” She prepared to move forward.
Zhou Tingsheng blocked her way: “Why didn’t you answer your phone?”
Ye Qiao stood still: “I lost my phone.”
Zhou Tingsheng was relieved: “Stolen?”
She smiled: “Thrown away.”
He frowned again: “Why?”
Ye Qiao pushed him aside and walked forward, eyebrows raised: “Not because of you.”
Though her tone wasn’t friendly, her answer was a positive one. That still didn’t make Zhou Tingsheng happy. He seemed to believe at the bottom of his heart that he had to be the reason for Ye Qiao’s happiness or sadness. Even if she got angry to the point that she threw her cell phone away, it had to be because of him, not someone else. Zhou Tingsheng followed her into the elevator and pushed the floor for the underground parking lot. Ye Qiao gave him a look and pushed floor 11 instead.
The tips of Zhou Tingsheng’s eyebrows moved ever slightly: “Are you really this heartless?”
Ye Qiao had both of her hands in her pockets and amusedly asked: “It’s the Mid Autumn Festival. Doesn’t Mr. Zhou have family to go back to for the celebration?”
Zhou Tingsheng immediately replied: “No.” Then he smiled at her: “I just have one moon to chase after.”
Ye Qiao couldn’t hold it anymore and burst out chuckling. Then she changed her tone of voice: “Too bad that I have family that I have to be with.”
That was an irrefutable excuse. Zhou Tingsheng gathered his eyebrows: “To be with whom?” He remembered that Ye Qiao didn’t have a good relationship with her family.
Ye Qiao couldn’t help but giggle: “My grandma.” She was actually still debating whether to go or not, but the words just came out of her mouth. So now she planned to spend the night at her grandmother’s.
The elevator reached the lobby. Ye Qiao stepped out with one foot when she was suddenly lifted into the air as an arm circled her waist from behind and pulled her back into the elevator. There were several people waiting for the elevator outside. Zhou Tingsheng tightly held Ye Qiao right next to him despite the surprised gazes of the people outside. Only a female janitor entered the elevator, pushing a water tank, and stood face to face with both of them. They had limited space inside the elevator now. Ye Qiao was afraid to get her windbreaker dirty by touching the dirty water if she tried to struggle to break free. She angrily said: “This is kidnapping.”
Zhou Tingsheng treated the accusation as a compliment. Soon the elevator reached the underground garage. He carried Ye Qiao out of the elevator under the suspicious eyes of the janitor. He turned to the janitor and said: “I’m just playing along with her.” Ye Qiao heard him, let him carry her to the car, and fasten the seat belt for her. Then she gazed at him gloomily.
Translated by Team DHH at http://dhh-workshop.blogspot.com.
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