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Li Zhiyu turned his head and also saw Cheng Mi.
Three people, three different emotions, but one thing in common: all three were equally frank.
Li Zhiyu spoke ill of Cheng Mi without a hint of guilt even when she heard him face-to-face. He still leaned against the single bar like a young master, playing with the broken cigarette in his fingers.
Si Tingyan, in the dim darkness, had his hidden, tightly woven web that had silently grown and entangled her limbs, exposed to the bright daylight.
But he showed no fear or embarrassment. His secret had been discovered, and there was no explanation or concealment. He let the surging dark currents in his eyes tightly bind and suffocate her.
Cheng Mi met his gaze, equally composed and calm.
She hadn’t been swallowed by the overwhelming waves, and that relaxed air about her remained.
She suddenly recalled two weeks ago when she was punished with running laps for not wearing her school ID upon entering the school gate. Si Tingyan had asked her a question: if she wasn’t afraid.
At that time, Cheng Mi didn’t understand what those words meant, but now she did.
She stood before Si Tingyan, wearing his school uniform jacket, zipped up tightly to the top, the sleeves casually bunched at her arms.
The mark below her ear faintly glowed red above the collar.
Si Tingyan asked her: “You heard everything?”
Cheng Mi didn’t deny it; she nodded, emphasizing: “Everything.”
Si Tingyan looked at her. After a moment, his cold, thin lips moved: “Three seconds.”
Cheng Mi said: “Three seconds for what?”
“Come to my side.”
Cheng Mi stood in place, leisurely asking: “Why?”
She looked at Si Tingyan: “Why should I go to you, and not you come to me?”
Silence followed her words.
Then, Cheng Mi watched Si Tingyan walk towards her.
She remained still, watching him until he stopped in front of her.
Cheng Mi didn’t step back or lean away even an inch. As their distance closed, the difference in their heights became more apparent. Her gaze moved slightly upward to his face.
The sky was dim, but Si Tingyan’s face was the only bright spot, very pale, yet not delicate, not detracting from the sharp handsomeness of his features.
Yet it wasn’t so sharp as to have harsh angles; his curves were smooth and beautiful, without a single excess.
It was a face that made Cheng Mi’s heart pound.
She asked Si Tingyan: “Are you afraid I’ll run away?”
Si Tingyan, however, said: “You’re afraid of hamsters.”
The moment he said it, Cheng Mi was a little surprised. She didn’t know how Si Tingyan knew this.
Cheng Mi was terrified of hamsters. So much so that even if she accidentally saw one on her phone, she’d feel a chill.
It’s hard for people not to be instinctively serious about things they fear. She asked: “How do you know?”
Si Tingyan didn’t answer her question: “I’ll put it in your room.”
His eyes seemed touched by the damp air, dark and shining.
Cheng Mi stared at him, knowing he wasn’t lying. He was genuinely threatening her.
If she dared to leave, he might actually do it.
But Cheng Mi was surprisingly not afraid.
Not afraid of him, standing right in front of her.
She asked Si Tingyan: “Would you really? Use that to scare me.”
Si Tingyan said: “You can choose.”
“Don’t leave, and I won’t touch you.”
Cheng Mi kept looking into his eyes: “You seem to underestimate yourself, Si Tingyan.”
She paused for a second, then said with a slow, smiling voice: “Why would I leave?”
“I can’t stop liking you.”
Si Tingyan looked at her.
Cheng Mi drowned in his gaze: “But this isn’t how you love someone.”
She leaned closer to his face, lightly kissed him, and smiled: “I’ll teach you tonight when I get back.”
“Of course, you can teach me too.”
A single kiss set fire to the entire field, breaking the shackles of the underworld.
Flocks of birds darkened the sky, and she plunged herself into this fiery earth. After the tongue of fire swept across the land, everything turned to ashes, and a red rose bloomed from the kiss.
Thousands of birds were terrified.
Just as Si Tingyan’s stepmother and birth father had both accused him of not being normal when he was young.
If he were to break free from his cage and take a look, any person would react like his parents, watching him with cold indifference, or with fear and unease.
But Cheng Mi didn’t.
Only she felt no fear, and no pity.
Instead, she kissed Si Tingyan with wild abandon.
They were wild together, they destroyed together.
Li Zhiyu probably left, perhaps realizing that there was no one who could make Si Tingyan change his mind once he set his sights on something.
Cheng Mi didn’t pay attention either.
Si Tingyan asked her: “Where are you going?”
Cheng Mi said: “To meet a director. I’ll be back after dinner.”
She smiled at Si Tingyan: “But I don’t know for how long. I’ll come find you when I get back.”
________________________________________
Si Tingyan still had to go back to his competition class, so Cheng Mi took the bus home alone.
At lunchtime, Li Chu sent her another text message, this time relaying chat records. Li Shen’s studio asked for Cheng Mi’s phone number, and she gave it to them.
Not long after, a message came from an unfamiliar number.
It was from Li Shen’s studio, informing her that besides Li Shen, several other well-known directors and agents would also be present at the meeting, and that she should dress up a bit before going.
Makeup and attire were sometimes a sign of respect in certain situations.
Cheng Mi was wearing her school uniform, so she went home to put on makeup and change clothes.
She had a good base; she was striking even without makeup, so she only symbolically applied a light layer of makeup, then changed into a dress and put on heels.
The hotel address given by Li Shen’s studio was not close to home. It was a famous five-star hotel in Fengxun.
Cheng Mi took a taxi there. It wasn’t completely dark yet when she arrived, but the lights were already coming on.
There were attendants at the entrance, who were polite and enthusiastic, courteously leading Cheng Mi to the door of a private room on the fifth floor and pushing it open.
Inside the private room, a magnificent chandelier hung from the ceiling. A round table with a turntable stood in the center, its glass surface empty except for a teapot.
Li Shen sat at the table, looking at the menu, with a waiter standing beside him.
Hearing the sound, he looked up.
It was a familiar face, with deep-set eyes, and wrinkles around the corners of his eyes left by time. When he smiled, he seemed very approachable.
Perhaps because he wasn’t accompanied by the smell of alcohol, he appeared gentler than last time.
Li Shen smiled at her: “You’re here?”
Cheng Mi greeted him.
Li Shen pulled out a chair beside him: “Quite punctual. That’s a good quality for a young person. Look at the other veterans, not one of them has shown up yet.”
Cheng Mi went and sat down.
Li Shen ordered another dish from the menu, then closed it and handed it to the waiter beside him.
The waiter quickly closed the door and left.
Li Shen seemed to enjoy wearing a white shirt. He wore one last time too, with elegant cufflinks and sleeves rolled up to his forearms. He didn’t look sloppy; instead, his demeanor and experience made him appear refined and graceful, with no sense of distance.
He said: “Our meeting last night was too rushed, I didn’t get a chance to say hello.”
“No, it was my fault for not greeting you first.”
Li Shen poured her a cup of tea: “Why be so polite?”
“Last night, I sent someone to look for you, but you had already left. In the end, I asked your boss about you. When I first entered, I heard you singing,” Li Shen put down the teapot and admired, “You sing well.”
Cheng Mi replied: “Just a dabbler.”
Li Shen’s attitude was friendly: “Although I’m not in music, I can tell if something sounds good or not. But I’m not here to talk to you about music this time. I want to ask if you’re interested in developing a career as an actress. If you’re interested in giving it a try, I can give you an entry-level opportunity.”
Cheng Mi honestly stated: “I’ve considered it, but music comes before acting.”
“Oh?” Li Shen raised an eyebrow slightly, “Your overall image and conditions are practically tailor-made for acting. It’s not that doing music is bad, but relatively speaking, acting offers much more prospects. The path of music isn’t easy.”
“Mhm, I know.”
“But it’s not impossible to adjust. Many celebrities now act and sing. If you’re so interested in music, and you really decide to join me, I’ll introduce you to some music producers to collaborate with. It won’t be difficult, so don’t worry about that.”
After chatting for a while, he clearly seemed more like an elder than a senior colleague.
Before the other seniors arrived, he cautioned her: “The people who will be joining us for dinner later are all famous seniors. You should actively greet them. I’ll introduce you to them so you can establish good relationships.”
________________________________________
Not long after, as the waiter brought in the dishes, people started arriving one after another.
There were many familiar faces, all prominent figures.
Listening to Li Shen chat with them, Cheng Mi learned that there was an event in Fengxun these past two days, and everyone present was invited. Li Shen was also among them. He had a lot of influence, and people were eager to organize gatherings for him; there was no such thing as being unable to invite him.
That’s why there were so many faces Cheng Mi could name.
As a junior, she interacted with all these people through Li Shen’s introduction.
Cheng Mi was simply too outstanding; her face was her best calling card.
One senior asked her to help pass the teapot, calling her by her name very smoothly. This meant he had already remembered her face and name.
Cheng Mi didn’t talk much; she only spoke when asked.
When everyone had had a round of drinks, the private room door was pushed open.
Everyone was engrossed in their lively toasting and didn’t notice the entrance at first. Cheng Mi was the first to look at the door.
A woman with an elegant demeanor, wearing a gray-brown woolen coat, with her hair loosely tied back and a small, curled strand of hair by her left cheek.
Her features were delicate, exuding a calm and refined air, and her demeanor suggested she was a particularly successful woman in her career.
Cheng Mi’s fingertips, resting on the rim of her small wine glass, lightly tapped.
Her gaze was too prominent, and the woman immediately caught it, meeting her eyes.
Then, after a slight pause, her gaze lingered on Cheng Mi’s face for a while.
The drinking and pleasantries quickly led to the woman being noticed. Everyone began to tease: “Oh, our great agent Jiang has arrived! Come sit down, come sit down, the wine is almost gone!”
“We specifically saved the seat next to Director Li for you. You and Director Li have a collaboration for the next project, so it’ll be convenient to chat.”
“I have to thank you all. I really do have something to discuss with Director Li.” The woman smiled.
Li Shen, beside Cheng Mi, also joked: “If you’re late, you have to penalize yourself with three drinks!”
The woman sat in another seat next to Li Shen: “Our Director Li has always been considerate to women; he never forces women to drink.”
This statement alone showed that the woman’s position was unusual.
In the current workplace environment, women were completely disadvantaged, with gender discrimination and harassment rampant and overtly common.
Those in power were at the top, and those below dared not resist in the slightest, enduring both alcohol and harassment for the sake of their livelihoods.
Anyone daring to speak to Li Shen like that was clearly no longer constrained by power and status.
Although their words sounded like jokes.
Li Shen, after hearing the woman, also laughed: “Yes, this gathering is for everyone to drink to their heart’s content, no penalties. Why would I penalize you? Besides, if I got you drunk, and your big movie star gets unhappy and drops the next project, I’d be finished.”
“Director Li is too modest,” the woman said, “Qi Sheng has always considered it an honor to be in your films.”
Qi Sheng, who earned the title of Best Actor at a young age ten years ago, an actor with strong acting skills, was a major actor personally nurtured by Li Shen.
It was at this point that Li Shen called Cheng Mi’s name, introducing her: “This is Jiang Mingzhou, CEO of Qiming Pictures. You’ve probably heard of her. She’s also actor Qi Sheng’s agent and trusted assistant.”
Others helping her build connections was a good intention.
Cheng Mi curved her lips and greeted Jiang Mingzhou.
Li Shen then introduced her to Jiang Mingzhou: “This is a young talent I’m bringing under my wing, Cheng Mi. She’s excellent in both appearance and singing. I’m preparing to lead her into the entertainment industry.”
As Li Shen introduced her, Jiang Mingzhou’s gaze remained on Cheng Mi’s face. She listened very seriously, not ignoring or disrespecting her simply because she was an unremarkable junior.
After Li Shen finished speaking, a gentle and charming smile graced Jiang Mingzhou’s lips. She extended her hand to Cheng Mi: “Hello, Cheng Mi.”
Cheng Mi reached out her hand, shaking it: “Hello.”
The conversation at the dinner table then continued lively, mostly about entertainment industry matters, discussing TV dramas, movies, and actors.
For instance, Jiang Mingzhou and Li Shen were discussing a certain resource. Li Shen showed great interest, but that resource was in Jiang Mingzhou’s hands, and she was very tight-lipped about it.
The dinner passed in a blink.
Cheng Mi didn’t eat much, but she drank quite a bit, feeling the alcohol.
She had tried to drink as little as possible, but some seniors, after Li Shen introduced her to them, would politely offer a drink.
Cheng Mi would then symbolically take a small sip.
But the drink on the table was baijiu, with a much higher alcohol content. Cheng Mi’s alcohol tolerance wasn’t particularly strong, just normal, so after a few drinks, she felt a little dizzy.
After the dinner party, Cheng Mi’s phone had several new numbers of famous directors and celebrities.
The gathering dispersed close to eleven o’clock.
These famous directors and celebrities were staying upstairs. They didn’t even need to go downstairs, just stumbled into the elevator and went up.
Cheng Mi wanted to take a taxi back. Li Shen said he had prepared a room for her upstairs.
These people were usually very busy, only recently having these two days free, so everyone was definitely enjoying themselves. He had anticipated the dinner party would end late tonight, so he had prepared a room for Cheng Mi in advance.
“Besides, you’re a girl. If you took a car back home now, it would probably be past midnight, and this area isn’t very safe recently.”
Cheng Mi’s head felt heavy from the alcohol, and her thoughts were a bit hazy, but she still retained the ability to think.
If she didn’t realize by now, there would truly be a problem.
Earlier at the dinner table, she had only thought she couldn’t hold her liquor, but now, that faint bit of clarity she retained was struggling to tell her something.
Something was wrong with all of this.
When had she ever drunk to the point of being disoriented and weak all over? Cheng Mi even felt like she couldn’t stand steadily.
But she still forced herself to hold on. She had to leave this place immediately.
Although she thought this in her heart and her body was extremely uncomfortable, her eyes and the corners of her lips didn’t betray any emotion.
“No need, I’ll be careful,” she didn’t make any rash moves, smiling at Li Shen, “I’m leaving now, we’ll talk next time.”
With that, she turned around, forcing herself to stay conscious, and reached into her bag to press three buttons.
The person behind her didn’t follow, watching like it was a show, unhurriedly.
Cheng Mi then realized she barely had the strength to take a step.
The next second, a sharp pain shot through her head, and her vision completely blackened as she fainted.
________________________________________
When Cheng Mi regained consciousness, everything was black.
Something hot fell on her eyelids; it was light, but she didn’t even have the strength to lift her eyelids.
She struggled hard not to let her consciousness sink into chaos. Her eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she opened her eyes.
Her vision gradually expanded from a narrow slit.
A figure went from blurry to clear.
Under the soft, intoxicating light, Li Shen sat on a chair against the opposite wall, with one leg crossed, the top two buttons of his white shirt collar undone.
Leaning back in the chair, his eyes deep and distant, he stared at her.
Quietly, like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.
The venom seeped into the air, touching Cheng Mi’s skin.
Cheng Mi instantly sobered up. When she tried to get up, her limbs were limp and weak. She wasn’t used to this state, and her arm couldn’t support her, so she fell back onto the bed.
Li Shen, watching her try to get up and leave, remained motionless, watching her futile attempts. He spoke slowly: “How are you? Do you have any strength in your body?”
Cheng Mi’s breath mingled with the bedclothes as she looked at him: “When did you drug my drink?”
Even before she fell unconscious, she had already sensed that something was wrong.
Now, waking up, it was probably some time after the drug’s effects had worn off. Her head didn’t hurt as much as before, and she was more lucid. A quick thought told her where the problem lay.
“Hmm?” Li Shen didn’t try to defend himself at all: “Does it matter?”
Li Shen finally made a move. His leather shoes landed on the carpet as he stood up: “Cheng Mi, this isn’t your fault; this stuff just is what it is.”
Cheng Mi stared at him intensely.
Li Shen slowly walked closer. Beneath his rolled-up shirt sleeves, veins bulged on his forearms. He bent down unhurriedly, propping himself beside her face, his gaze wandering over her features.
“But none of that matters anymore. What matters is what happens next, with you beneath me.”
His tone was not much different from usual, with a slight smile: “Cheng Mi, I’m very curious.”
Cheng Mi felt a wave of disgust.
She hadn’t imagined that a person could go to such lengths to disguise himself and put on a show for so long, from contacting her under the guise of studio collaboration to dispel her doubts, to feigning the role of a kind senior and elder before dinner, and then fostering connections for her at the dinner table.
All this effort and time, just for such a twisted curiosity.
She had underestimated perverts.
Cheng Mi looked at Li Shen: “Did you arrive at the hotel earlier than them?”
That’s why she was the only one with Li Shen in the private room.
And it was precisely this timing that gave Li Shen the opportunity to lower Cheng Mi’s guard. Later, when there were more people drinking, she wasn’t as wary.
Li Shen smiled, reaching out to touch her face: “Clever.”
Cheng Mi couldn’t lift her hand. Feeling nauseous, she bit hard into the web of his hand: “Get lost.”
Li Shen, however, showed no anger: “Very good.”
He grabbed her chin: “Cheng Mi, do you know that this only makes me more excited?”
“Do you know why I’ve been waiting for you to wake up?” Li Shen glanced at his watch. “Two hours of waiting.”
He said: “Because I don’t want to screw a dead person.”
Li Shen stood up, unbuttoned his shirt, and raw desire surged deep in his eyes, crawling from Cheng Mi’s face to her feet.
Cheng Mi’s stomach churned violently.
Li Shen leaned forward slightly, and she remained motionless.
This surprised Li Shen somewhat. He took off his belt: “Why aren’t you resisting?”
He leaned down, and the belt touched her, then went around her neck.
Cheng Mi’s eyes showed no shock at this.
Instead, it was Li Shen who was surprised: “What? You play this too?”
“Oh, no, that’s not right,” Li Shen smiled, “I went to the clear bar’s second floor last time, you must have seen me. Cheng Mi, so why aren’t you afraid of me?”
“Do you think the studio contacting you makes it very reliable, or do you think with so many people just now, I wouldn’t dare touch you?”
Cheng Mi’s eyes were cold: “This is about mutual consent. Who would be as shameless as you?”
“That’s true,” Li Shen said, and with a pull of his hand, the front of Cheng Mi’s dress was disheveled.
He said: “I am shameless.”
Cheng Mi made no move.
Li Shen raised an eyebrow: “Do you want it now?”
Cheng Mi endured, not replying to him.
Li Shen had already made his move, kneeling by her side and leaning over: “With me, I can give you any resources you want in the future. What I said at the dinner table, I’ll deliver.”
It was at this moment that Cheng Mi, with a surge of suppressed anger, used all her strength to lift her right leg and fiercely kick Li Shen.
Li Shen was caught off guard, cried out in pain, and was pushed away by Cheng Mi.
Cheng Mi originally had little strength, but she endured, got out of bed, and casually grabbed the high heel from the floor, dashing towards the door.
But Li Shen quickly caught up, rare profanities spilling from his mouth as he grabbed Cheng Mi’s hair from behind: “Do you want to die, Cheng Mi?”
The disparity in strength between men and women was vast. Cheng Mi was instantly pulled back by him and thrown onto the bed.
Li Shen completely covered her, his knees on either side of her.
Cheng Mi’s hand was also free at this moment, and she fiercely brought the tightly clutched high heel down on Li Shen’s head.
Without fear or hesitation, and without thinking about any consequences.
At this moment, she only wanted to kill Li Shen.
As the sharp heel slammed into the corner of Li Shen’s eye, Cheng Mi had a moment of trance, returning to a bloody instant from her past.
Li Shen had just dragged her back and, in the chaos, hadn’t noticed she was still holding the high heel.
He was caught off guard and outmaneuvered.
The moment the high heel slammed down, Li Shen’s face was a bloody mess under Cheng Mi’s hand.
A drop of blood dripped down, landing on Cheng Mi’s face.
But Li Shen was completely unmoved, veins bulging on his forehead.
His palm rose, ready to slap Cheng Mi’s face.
In such a moment of rage, one’s focus can waver. Li Shen didn’t guard against the mistake he had just made with Cheng Mi a moment ago.
Cheng Mi lifted her leg again, and this time, even though it wasn’t as powerful as the last, two consecutive kicks made Li Shen stumble to the side in pain.
She quickly crawled off the bed, this time unimpeded.
Cheng Mi ran to the room door near the entrance. Li Shen had already gotten off the bed, his face distorted, about to rush over and grab her.
Cheng Mi pulled out the room card from the wall and touched it to the doorknob.
There was a smear of blood on her face, and Li Shen’s figure, rushing closer, was reflected in her eyes.
The door didn’t open.
Cheng Mi touched the room card again.
The door lock clicked, her fingers didn’t even tremble, and she pressed the doorknob.
The heavy room door slammed against the wall with a loud bang.
Cheng Mi ran out the door.
The hallway was empty, illuminated only by a row of bright overhead lights.
Behind her, Li Shen had already followed her out of the room. Seeing this scene, a perversely extreme smile spread across his face.
This floor was entirely occupied by the people from the dinner party. Cheng Mi remembered them mentioning it at the table.
Now, this entire floor consisted of people he knew. In their industry, they often ran into each other, and Li Shen still wanted to make a living in this circle, so nothing was more important than his reputation.
Cheng Mi stepped back, looking at him, without hesitation. She raised her hand and slammed the heel of her high heel onto the door on her right.
The sharp heel almost broke through the door panel, the sound deafening.
She calmly retreated, much calmer now than she had been in the room, her eyes returning to their usual composure.
She watched Li Shen, who was gradually approaching.
Then, she unhurriedly slammed the heel of her other high heel onto another door: “Let’s see if your skin is thick enough, or if I’m lucky.”
And then, moving backward, she forcefully slammed each door one by one.
The piercing sounds seemed to tear through the night.
At this moment, a door not far ahead clicked open.
The prominent agent Jiang Mingzhou appeared behind the door, wearing a black, tight-fitting, high-necked thin sweater, her hair still in a bun.
Jiang Mingzhou’s eyes immediately met Cheng Mi’s, then she saw Li Shen.
Seeing her expression, Cheng Mi instantly understood. These insiders probably all knew what kind of person Li Shen was. There was no shock on her face, just the calm of familiarity.
Li Shen, completely disregarding his reputation, ignored Jiang Mingzhou and walked towards Cheng Mi with blood on his face.
More and more people opened their room doors, but no one intervened.
Cheng Mi didn’t panic, staring intently at Li Shen.
It was at this moment that a figure suddenly appeared around the corner.
Cheng Mi’s gaze was drawn, and she instinctively looked there.
She paused, her expression momentarily showing a flaw, a brief bewilderment.
Si Tingyan didn’t look at her.
Li Shen seemed to notice something and was about to turn around, but it was too late.
Like a gust of wind, Si Tingyan, with a flick of his hand, smashed a wine bottle onto Li Shen’s head.
Glass shattered into pieces, fine, glittering shards splashing onto Si Tingyan’s left cheek, like sharp blades hitting his face, piercing a tiny red spot.
The sound of shattering glass echoed, and the whole world seemed to collapse.
Li Shen fell, and gasps of surprise erupted in the hallway. Footsteps, screams, the world instantly filled with panic.
Cheng Mi looked at Si Tingyan.
Si Tingyan also looked at her, stepping over Li Shen’s bloodstains.
A high heel lay crooked in the middle of the hallway; it was Cheng Mi’s. Si Tingyan picked it up.
Cheng Mi stood motionless, watching him.
His face was devoid of color, as if he was enduring some intense pain, and he walked towards her.
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