QKYJ - 27

Quarreling and being sarcastic with each other was a common occurrence for them.

Once upon a time, if he praised her for having a good memory in front of others, he was actually complaining that she liked to bring up old grudges and was overly calculating. If she said he had a straightforward temper in front of others, she was actually calling him too neurotic and capricious.

If he smiled at her with a look of doting love, the next thing he said would definitely be, “You seem to have gained weight.” If she gently and tenderly took his arm, what she said next would surely be, “Did you get taller?”

Even if they were chatting happily and intimately in front of a crowd, the content would absolutely be them cursing each other out.

After all, not everyone could marry their nemesis without any complaints.

But life was like a steel rod. Over time, it was worn down and turned into a needle that meticulously wove through life.

Shen Zhi would sometimes wonder when she had started to get used to Shen He. Was it during their life as a couple, which was for the purpose of balancing hormones and ensuring the body’s regular and efficient operation, or was it in the intentional pretense they created in front of the camera?

Or was it because of the meals he cooked for her in his spare time? The occasional eye contact they made when they were rehearsing their lines? Or was it the quiet and ethereal mornings when one of them got up early and the other stayed up late, and they just happened to drink a cup of hot water together in the living room?

Shen He and Shen Zhi were both happy to quickly move past any hardships or unpleasantness they encountered. The reason was that they both knew that no matter whether the problem was solved or not, they wouldn’t separate.

However, something might have changed today.

It was just that neither of them had the courage to be the first to confront it.

One day, Shen Zhi had just finished her morning scenes. When she walked over to the monitor, she saw Shen He standing behind the director like a god, and the atmosphere of the entire set was much more subdued.

He had come to visit the set, and she had to respond.

Without much thought, a warm demeanor, like a conditioned reflex, filled her lungs and came out as she breathed.

She smiled and handed him the water bottle in her hand, then joked with the people around her, “Is he scaring people again? Don’t pay him any mind.”

He just smiled and took her hand, asking, “Have you eaten?”

The two of them went to find a place to eat nearby.

The assistant was about to try to stop them or go with them, but as she walked up, Shen He raised his hand and shooed her away like a child: “Xiaodong, go play by yourself.”

Then he pulled Shen Zhi into the car and drove away.

The assistant was left standing there, almost grinding her teeth: “...But my name is Xiaoqiu.”

There was nowhere to eat nearby.

Shen He pulled Shen Zhi out of the car, pulled her into the restaurant, pulled her to ask what they had to eat, pulled her back to the car to get his phone, and then pulled her back into the restaurant to find a seat.

Shen Zhi was pulled out of the car by Shen He, pulled by him into the restaurant, pulled by him to ask what they had to eat, pulled by him back to the car to get his phone, and then pulled to a seat in the restaurant.

She let him do whatever he wanted. She didn’t actively cooperate at all, but she didn’t resist either.

It was a casual stir-fry restaurant, full of the smell of cooking. There was no one else in the restaurant.

Shen He and Shen Zhi sat across from each other.

Even though they had made a lot of money over the years, Shen He and Shen Zhi had never thought too highly of themselves. They still lived an ordinary, unremarkable life, with no interest in climbing the social ladder. The only change they made was to ensure their personal privacy.

Shen He and Shen Zhi had no intention of taking care of each other.

They washed their own utensils, served their own rice, and picked out their own dishes.

They ate quietly. When it was time for them to get a second serving of rice, someone spoke up.

Shen Zhi said, “That’s your responsibility.”

Shen He didn’t say a word and didn’t even slow down.

“Don’t fool around with other people,” Shen Zhi said. “That’s your responsibility.”

Shen He’s expression didn’t change at all. He looked at her calmly: “You’re right.”

When he said those four words, he was looking at her. Shen Zhi was very familiar with that look. He was completely rational, he was not interested in anything, and his blood was running cold. She was the same.

They both filled their stomachs.

When they walked out of the restaurant, they smiled and greeted the owner. They walked to the car, laughing and talking, giving the impression that they had a good relationship. In the future, a quick search on social media would once again lead to positive public sentiment.

They returned to the set and resumed work. Shen Zhi said, “You can go back if you have something to do.”

The afternoon sun was uncharacteristically gloomy. A dim orange-red light fell, sinking like a sunset. Shen He stood with his back to the sun, glowing and looking exceptionally beautiful.

He smiled, shook his head, and didn’t say anything.

That day, Shen He stayed on the set until Shen Zhi was done working.

He didn’t bother her easily, because he was afraid of affecting her work and making her break character. So he just waited silently.

During this time, the character Shen Zhi was playing was at a low point in her life.

She needed to portray a desperate woman in a slump.

The director repeatedly emphasized, “You’re all alone now,” and Shen Zhi constantly told herself, “I’m all alone now.”

In order to get into character, she was alone for a long time.

The director said, “OK,” and Shen Zhi repeatedly watched the filmed scene. In the end, she still said, “I don’t think it’s good enough.”

During the discussion, there was a brief silence. The director said, “You don’t have to be so strict with yourself. I think it’s already good enough. We can edit it later—”

Shen Zhi also considered it again.

In the end, she said, “It’s still not good.”

She had made up her mind, and her attitude immediately became firm. The director didn’t want to argue anymore. When he turned around, he happened to see Shen He, so he naturally asked for help: “Mr. Shen He, what do you think? I think it’s pretty good, right?”

He was desperate.

It was just a shame that this was a completely wrong choice.

When it came to being difficult, Shen He was ten, a hundred, a thousand times more so than Shen Zhi.

If he wasn’t spoken to first, Shen He wouldn’t say anything. But since they had asked for his opinion, he wasn’t going to be polite.

“It’s pretty average,” he said.

The director was speechless.

Worried about their relationship as a couple, he looked back and didn’t find any dissatisfaction on Shen Zhi’s face.

In fact, it wasn’t that she had no thoughts at all. It was just that they had clashed so many times that these kinds of small arguments were commonplace.

Shen Zhi smiled.

Shen He added, “It’s very average. To be honest, it’s below her standard.”

Shen Zhi lowered her head, but her smile slowly grew.

“She knows herself very well. If she says it can be better, then it definitely can,” Shen He said, walking toward Shen Zhi. He walked up to her and reached out to straighten the hairpin in her hair.

At this point, the director could only agree. But Shen He said, “I’m going to leave now. See you at home.”

“Mhm,” Shen Zhi replied. “See you at home.”

The problem had been swept under the rug again.

Like a book page being turned by the wind, nothing was taken away, and nothing was changed. It had simply passed.

It had only passed for now.

Sun Mengjia was not invited.

She had to personally take care of everything for her company and hoped to get through the crisis with a sponsorship. The person she was negotiating with happened to have this kind of party, so she went.

“Speaking of which, you and she seem to have gone to the same school?” the other person said.

Sun Mengjia hugged her arms, a hint of suspicion in her expression: “Who?”

After she arrived, she found out.

In the opulent afternoon tea restaurant, Zhang Qingyue was truly the center of attention. She was surrounded by a circle of chattering birds. They were all dressed fashionably and looked arrogant, and they were discussing topics that lacked a sense of real life.

“So when do you plan to make your comeback?” someone asked.

In fact, this was a topic that Zhang Qingyue really liked right now.

She had found a suitable company to sign with, and at the same time, she was looking for a comeback role that would make her the center of attention and prove her commercial value.

Thanks to all kinds of people, she had received many scripts.

However, there wasn’t a perfect one that met her requirements yet.

But it was only a matter of time.

“I’m so excited.”

“It’s definitely going to go smoothly.”

“Will you still have time to hang out with us then?”

Everyone was talking one after another.

Zhang Qingyue smiled beautifully and said generously, “Of course I will.”

There was a time when Sun Mengjia couldn’t get enough of these kinds of gatherings. Praising others, being praised by others, making friends, and talking about food, drinks, travel, and fashion. She was immersed in it all day long.

Did they really care about her? Not necessarily. Maybe they just wanted to watch the show, see people make fools of themselves, and then have new gossip to talk about.

The current Sun Mengjia had already gone through this process.

Sun Mengjia had married into a wealthy family at a young age. It was her second marriage, and she was also surrounded by many people at the time. She wasn’t foolish enough to think she had made it. She tried her best to deal with them, both pleasing them and being wary of them, just hoping to get into the circle.

And she did.

However, that kind of relationship was completely hopeless. On the surface, they were on your side, but in reality, they were waiting for you to become a laughingstock. Everyone was like this. She had also laughed at others, and in the end, she had nothing to say when she was laughed at.

So everything became very boring.

She only felt dull and bored. Since she couldn’t join the conversation anyway, she just waited for it to end. She knew what they would say, she could guess what they were thinking, and she could even predict the outcome—to maintain their facade, the main character would always leave early, in a way that would create an effective buzz.

Sure enough, it didn’t take long for Zhang Qingyue to sit up and look around.

“Is it getting a little late? I should probably go back,” she said.

A mournful sound came from the crowd.

“Are you leaving already?” someone said.

Who knows how much of that was sincere.

“Is someone picking you up?” another person asked.

Zhang Qingyue said, “I’ll see if my friend can come. I didn’t expect it to be this early—”

“Why don’t you call one of your admirers? You have so many fans. Haven’t you always been like this?” said the woman sitting closest to her.

Zhang Qingyue immediately turned into a blooming flower bud, smiling and hitting her playfully: “I don’t have any admirers. I’m already like this.”

Another person said, “Then I’ll give you a ride?”

Zhang Qingyue shook her head, looked at her phone, and said with a slight smile, “You can keep hanging out if you want. I’ll just trouble my junior.” With that, she had already made a call, and the volume wasn’t turned down too low.

The surroundings suddenly became a little quiet.

Following her lead, a few people who knew how to read the room started listening carefully, afraid of missing any clues.

Zhang Qingyue said, “Hello? Shen He, are you busy?”

The person on the other end of the line didn’t hesitate much.

He said, “Is something wrong?” His tone was neither contemptuous nor impatient.

“My friend is busy right now. Can I ask you to come pick me up? I’m so sorry, I really...” Her voice trailed off, and it was unclear what she was going to say next.

In just a few seconds, Shen He seemed to have finished considering it.

He made a quick judgment and said, “Mhm, here’s the thing, Senior. I’m busy right now, so I’ll have my assistant come. Give me the address. There’s a lot of traffic at this time, so please don’t rush, just wait patiently.”

Zhang Qingyue liked it when people acted like knights protecting a princess.

Because that was enough to prove that her charm had never faded.

After hanging up, she looked composed and calm, and said amidst envious glances, “Shen He and his wife are very good friends. They both take good care of me.”

How many meanings could be packed into one sentence? No one could say. All in all, the humming bees of praise were almost overwhelming her.

Shen He put down his phone and looked at the contact list for a long time.

Sensing something was wrong, Xi Xi couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong?”

He slowly put the phone screen down.

“That woman,” Shen He said, his face no longer showing any extra emotion. “Her self-esteem is so excessive it’s pathetic.”