MY - 10

The car exited the highway, and Tong Yun frowned after hearing Jiang Xi’s words, her voice still calm: “Lu Nandu is taken?”

After a few seconds, she added: “No, everyone in the industry knows Lu Nandu is still single.”

“If you’re asking which female celebrity he’s close to, then yes, Xu Yanran.”

Jiang Xi glanced at her.

Tong Yun caught her gaze in the rearview mirror and smiled: “So it was Xu Yanran after all.”

Jiang Xi fell silent.

The car slowed down after exiting the highway. Tong Yun said: “What, finally starting to care?”

Jiang Xi’s gaze was indifferent from the passenger seat; she couldn’t be bothered to answer.

Tong Yun said: “It’s rare for you to care about something like this. No matter how many times I told you before, you never remembered.”

Jiang Xi coldly said: “You’re overthinking it.”

Tong Yun looked straight ahead and said: “You’re probably the one overthinking. Lu Nandu and Xu Yanran are not in a romantic relationship.”

Jiang Xi turned her head to look out the window. The city was bustling and lively, with neon lights everywhere.

Tong Yun didn’t care if she was listening and proceeded to explain: “Everyone in the industry knows Xu Yanran likes Young Master Zhuo from Dongheng Group; it’s practically an open secret.” She casually turned a corner. “Xu Yanran and Young Master Zhuo have been childhood sweethearts. They’re both in the same circle as Lu Nandu.”

In high society families, the relationships between children often mirrored those of their parents.

“Xu Yanran is considered like a little sister in their circle, since she’s younger. Everyone takes care of her.”

Jiang Xi didn’t know why Tong Yun knew so much.

Tong Yun saw her looking over, knowing what she was thinking: “There are countless people in the entertainment industry watching these wealthy scions, just hoping to form some connection someday.”

This phenomenon was common in the industry; everyone wanted to climb the social ladder and gain fame effortlessly, regardless of gender.

Jiang Xi remained silent.

Tong Yun told her: “You should read some entertainment gossip now and then, don’t be so unsociable.”

Jiang Xi indeed hadn’t expected the truth to be this way, nor had she realized that her calmness of the past half month was all based on a misunderstanding.

Now that Tong Yun had clarified, she felt annoyed instead.

Jiang Xi felt a bit tired. She rested one hand on the car window, not bringing up the topic again: “I’m hungry. Let’s find a place to eat.”

________________________________________

Beijing.

Xu Yanran, sitting in the back seat, asked Lu Nandu beside her: “Why didn’t Zhuo Pei come to pick me up?”

Lu Nandu didn’t look at her, instead flipping through this month’s work summaries of the company’s senior staff: “You’ll have to ask him.”

Xu Yanran was a little intimidated by Lu Nandu, so she pouted and started talking to the good-tempered Qin Jin in the front passenger seat.

A while ago, both Lu Nandu and Zhuo Pei had gone to Jiangcheng for business. Xu Yanran knew Zhuo Pei was coming and insisted he come to pick her up.

At that time, Lu Nandu was with Jiang Xi at the hospital, and Zhuo Pei bombarded him with several calls.

Zhuo Pei knew he was going to see Director Chen Meng and asked him to help pick up Xu Yanran.

Lu Nandu asked him why he didn’t go himself.

Zhuo Pei said that if he went, the girl would become overly proud.

Lu Nandu said he wouldn’t go.

Zhuo Pei coaxed him, saying that Xu Yanran was his sister, after all.

That was true. Lu Nandu, Shen Zexiao, and Zhuo Pei were good friends, and Xu Yanran was also a part of their group, often following the “brothers.”

Finally, Lu Nandu agreed to Zhuo Pei’s request. After taking Jiang Xi back, he would pick up Xu Yanran on the way.

...

During evening rush hour, traffic was heavy, and it took more time than usual to reach the club.

Zhuo Pei and Shen Zexiao were playing pool in the private room, drinking and chatting idly.

As soon as Xu Yanran entered the room, she called out Zhuo Pei’s name.

Shen Zexiao wasn’t pleased. He put down his pool cue and laughed playfully: “What’s wrong with you, girl? You only see Zhuo Pei. Where did you put me and your Brother Nandu? Your Brother Nandu even picked you up at the airport and brought you back.”

Xu Yanran immediately smiled sweetly and called out “Brother Zexiao.”

Shen Zexiao laughed: “Alright, I’ll let you off the hook.”

Zhuo Pei also laughed, telling Shen Zexiao: “Why are you getting so agitated here? I should be the one. She calls you two ‘brother,’ but calls me by my full name.”

He looked at Xu Yanran: “Call me ‘ge’.”

Xu Yanran: “No.”

Zhuo Pei gave a helpless smile: “No manners.” He then stepped towards Lu Nandu.

Xu Yanran followed behind him, asking if he was happy to see her after not seeing her for over two months on his business trip.

Shen Zexiao had already sat on the sofa and chimed in: “Of course he’s happy.”

Zhuo Pei kicked Shen Zexiao: “Don’t listen to his nonsense.”

Then he said to Xu Yanran: “It’s seven o’clock now. You’ll have to fly back for filming in a few hours. What’s all this trouble for?”

Xu Yanran was completely unashamed: “I wanted to come see you.”

Zhuo Pei was always amiable. Hearing this, he glanced at her: “Don’t talk nonsense like that.”

Shen Zexiao messed around beside them: “She’s definitely going to say ‘I’m not talking nonsense’ next.”

Xu Yanran was guessed correctly and choked, then immediately threw a cushion at him.

After a while, she said to Zhuo Pei again: “Last time in Jiangcheng, you were in meetings all night, and I stayed there all night but couldn’t see you. I even got scolded by my manager after I went back.”

Zhuo Pei opened a bottle of wine and glanced at her: “Then why did you still come?”

Xu Yanran: “We haven’t seen each other in over two months.” Xu Yanran had no scenes that afternoon, so she immediately bought a plane ticket to come over.

Zhuo Pei looked away, realizing it was futile to stop her, and simply fell silent.

Xu Yanran then asked Zhuo Pei again: “You told me to pick you up at the airport this afternoon, why didn’t you go? It was the same last time in Jiangcheng.”

Lu Nandu still remembered Zhuo Pei constantly calling and bothering him at the hospital last time, so upon hearing Xu Yanran ask Zhuo Pei why he didn’t pick her up, he retaliated: “His eyes aren’t good. He said it was inconvenient for him to drive and pick you up, and he’d be more heartbroken if something happened to you.”

Shen Zexiao burst out laughing.

Zhuo Pei was attacked from both sides, completely losing his temper, and laughed. He poured wine for Lu Nandu: “Brother, I apologize, brother, please drink.”

Lu Nandu let him off, but Shen Zexiao didn’t: “Yanran, it’ll be dawn when you go back. Zhuo Pei’s eyesight will be good during the day, he’ll take you back.”

Zhuo Pei smiled helplessly: “Stop messing around.”

________________________________________

After dinner, Tong Yun dropped Jiang Xi back at the hotel and then left.

Tong Yun hadn’t asked much about her work this time, simply came to visit for a bit.

Jiang Xi returned to the hotel relatively early. With nothing to do, she leaned back on the sofa and looked at tomorrow’s crew call sheet.

The room was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Twenty minutes later, Jiang Xi closed her eyes, the hand holding the call sheet dropping.

She hadn’t absorbed a single word. She quietly let out a breath.

After a long while, Jiang Xi opened her eyes, tossed the call sheet aside, and got up to go into the bathroom.

After showering, Jiang Xi wore nothing on her body; it felt empty. She walked straight to the table, picked up the cigarette pack, and took out a cigarette.

The lights were off in the room, the curtains half-drawn, revealing distant mountains and nearby trees outside the window.

Jiang Xi’s head was slightly lowered, a speck of crimson held between her fingers, and a puff of white smoke escaped her lips.

She had always thought she lived clearly, but in the end, her joys and sorrows were held in someone else’s hand.

Jiang Xi frowned; she disliked this feeling.

She hadn’t even finished one cigarette when she snuffed it out in the ashtray.

...

The next day, getting up early for makeup, Xu Yanran was already in the makeup room. Yesterday, she was still at Beijing airport, and today she was back with the crew.

Xu Yanran saw Jiang Xi in the mirror: “Sister Jiang Xi.”

Jiang Xi smiled: “Morning.”

The makeup artist was helping Xu Yanran cover her dark circles. It was at this moment that Xu Yanran’s manager entered the room, her voice preceding her.

“Xu Yanran!”

Xu Yanran was halfway through a yawn when she heard the voice and her shoulders slumped.

The manager had already walked in: “Xu Yanran, what have I told you? Are you just letting it go in one ear and out the other?”

Xu Yanran knew she was in the wrong and kept silent.

Although the manager was usually strict with Xu Yanran, she actually indulged her a lot, turning a blind eye to her mistakes and only nagging her a bit when she made them.

But this time, the manager was truly angry: “Am I too lenient with you? Giving you too much space and time? What did you tell me last time, that you wouldn’t run out to see anyone again?”

Xu Yanran also knew that her manager-sister was angry and remained silent.

“You’re getting more and more capable, aren’t you? This time you just bought a plane ticket and flew over,” the manager put her hands on her hips. “You finally had half a day off, and what did you do? You spent ten hours on a plane.”

Seeing Xu Yanran not speaking, the manager continued: “Xu Yanran, you’re not a child anymore. You need to understand the pros and cons of things. You managed to rush back today and not delay work, but what about in the future? Can you guarantee that you’ll be on time every time and not delay other people’s work?”

In the makeup room, besides Jiang Xi and Xu Yanran, there were only two makeup artists, all silent as mice. Jiang Xi’s makeup artist quietly applied her makeup.

Xu Yanran’s manager continued to scold her: “And your condition. I told you last time that maintaining good condition is also part of your job. How can your condition be good if you keep running around like that?”

Xu Yanran was very quiet, not talking back to anger her manager.

The manager’s anger slowly subsided, her tone cool: “You’re old enough to know what you should and shouldn’t do. I’ll let it go this time, but be careful next time.” After saying that, she probably found her annoying and didn’t want to stay, so she turned and left the makeup room.

After the manager left, Xu Yanran finally let out a sigh of relief. The makeup artist came over to continue her makeup.

Despite being scolded like that, Xu Yanran’s mood was not affected at all. When she left the makeup room, she even asked Jiang Xi if she wanted to eat hotpot together for lunch.

________________________________________

The two stood under an outdoor umbrella, waiting to film. Jiang Xi casually asked: “Aren’t you tired?”

Xu Yanran said: “It’s alright, I slept on the plane, just a bit of dark circles.”

After a few more idle chats, Xu Yanran asked: “Sister Jiang Xi, if you want to see someone, would you go no matter how busy or far away you are?”

Jiang Xi was flipping through her script. Hearing this, she looked up, meeting Xu Yanran’s gaze: “Want the truth?”

Xu Yanran: “Of course, the truth.”

Jiang Xi lowered her gaze and chuckled: “No.”

Xu Yanran looked a little dejected.

Seeing her like that, Jiang Xi asked her again: “Would you change your mind because of other people’s opinions?”

Xu Yanran shook her head: “Of course not. Although many people say I’m insensible, my manager says so, my mom says so, and he says the same, but I don’t feel like I did anything wrong. I just wanted to go see someone.”

Xu Yanran’s innocent and pure demeanor was rare.

Jiang Xi looked into the distance: “Hmm, you’re not wrong.”

Xu Yanran seemed to have heard someone say this for the first time, and she beamed: “Really?”

Jiang Xi retracted her gaze, looking at her and smiling: “So you didn’t listen to what your manager told you?”

Xu Yanran rubbed her nose: “Well, some things you shouldn’t listen to, right?”

Jiang Xi laughed.

________________________________________

Jiang Xi forgot about eating hotpot with Xu Yanran.

She finished her scenes earlier than Xu Yanran. It was lunchtime, and the crew was distributing meal boxes.

Jiang Xi didn’t have much appetite, and the food in the meal box wasn’t great, so she ate a few bites and then put it aside.

Later, Xu Yanran finished filming and came to the hotel to find her. Only then did Jiang Xi remember her promise to eat hotpot with her.

Although she had eaten lunch, there was nothing else to do, so Jiang Xi put on her jacket and went out with Xu Yanran.

Xu Yanran loved spicy food and ordered two spicy hotpots, along with a huge amount of meat.

Xu Yanran talked a lot while eating, chattering incessantly.

Jiang Xi spoke little, mostly listening to her with a smile.

As they chatted, Xu Yanran’s phone, placed beside her, rang. She picked it up; it was a video call.

Xu Yanran muttered to herself about why he was calling at this time while answering.

The call was on speaker, and a lazy male voice came through: “Did you arrive safely this morning?”

Xu Yanran bit her chopsticks: “If I hadn’t arrived safely, how could I be sitting here?”

The man on the other end seemed to chuckle.

Jiang Xi inadvertently turned her head and noticed Xu Yanran’s eyes light up. She then asked the person on the phone: “Brother Zexiao, is Zhuo Pei there too?”

Shen Zexiao chuckled and started talking nonsense: “Yeah, he told me to make this video call.”

Beside him, Zhuo Pei cursed him with a laugh, then stood up from the sofa and left.

Xu Yanran saw this and pouted: “He clearly didn’t tell you to call.”

Shen Zexiao comforted her: “It’s fine. There’s plenty of time. The days are long. Are you afraid he won’t call you in the future?”

Xu Yanran was easily appeased and immediately brightened up.

Shen Zexiao then asked Xu Yanran what she was doing.

Xu Yanran turned the camera, showing Shen Zexiao the hotpot: “Eating hotpot.”

Shen Zexiao: “Oh, looks quite hearty.”

Jiang Xi had long since stopped listening to what they were saying, leisurely eating hotpot by herself, watching the bustling traffic outside the window.

Until Xu Yanran turned the camera towards her and introduced her to the person on the other end: “This is Jiang Xi, my friend from the crew.”

Jiang Xi snapped back to attention and turned her head.

Shen Zexiao on the other side of the screen also saw her.

Xu Yanran asked him: “Pretty?”

Shen Zexiao’s mouth was exceptionally glib: “How could your friend not be pretty?”

After saying that, he looked up for a moment, then looked back at the screen, smiling: “Yanran, your Brother Nandu is back in the office. Want to video call him?”

Before he finished speaking, he had already turned the camera to the other side.

Lu Nandu seemed to have just finished a meeting, casually tossing his suit jacket onto the nearby sofa.

He had just finished handling business, a trace of impatience creasing his brow. He slightly tilted his chin, unbuttoning a shirt button: “Why are you here?”

Jiang Xi heard Shen Zexiao reply: “What, not allowed to come? Are you hiding someone in your CEO’s office?”

The man was still vaguely like his old self. He kicked Shen Zexiao, swearing with a laugh: “Get lost.”

Shen Zexiao on the other end seemed to remind him: “Yanran is video calling you.”

The man casually glanced over upon hearing this.

Jiang Xi didn’t dodge. Their eyes suddenly met.