QKYJ - 6

If it were any other woman, what kind of psychological activity would she have at this moment? Shen Zhi didn’t know. What she did know was that she instantly perceived danger.

She said, “What do you want to do?”

Unceremonious, full of alertness.

Shen He said, “What if this drama gets good ratings?”

His words sounded contradictory at first.

But Shen Zhi said, “I’m just the second female lead.”

Shen He replied, “Don’t you want to play the female lead? Don’t you want to choose your own scripts? I feel like things aren’t going smoothly for you.”

That sports car, which hadn’t been smashed by a meteor shower, hovered around the film studio all along.

“It’s you who’s not doing so well, isn’t it?” Shen Zhi, whose sore spot had been touched, was slightly annoyed but forced a smile, turning the tables. He wasn’t the type to care about others for no reason; acting out of character only exposed himself.

She was relentlessly pursued by a wealthy second-generation heir she had no interest in, fleeing helplessly off course. He, under the arrangement of an agent with different philosophies, kept taking on low-risk and unchallenging roles.

They both fell silent.

Shen Zhi finished her last bite of mala tang. She said, “My opinion of you hasn’t changed since we were students.” She then turned and left.

Shen He looked at the winning information on his ice cream bar and unhurriedly replied, “That’s good then.”

________________________________________

When she returned, Ding Yaocai had arrived.

She briefed the assistant on something, then found Shen Zhi, gently holding the back of a chair and exuding a big sister aura: “How are you doing? Getting used to it?”

Shen Zhi didn’t make a sound.

Ding Yaocai continued, “The boss of that young girl playing the female lead has invested another large sum of money. With such good momentum, you need to seize the opportunity and snatch the limelight that belongs to you.”

Shen Zhi nodded.

“We also need to create some buzz… You’ve been with the company for so long, now is the time to win. You can’t slack off when it’s time to steal the show,” Ding Yaocai said, diligently using her phone. “I genuinely wish you well.”

At that time, the marketing environment for celebrities was not as complex as it later became.

But it already had its basic form.

Shen Zhi said nothing.

She already had some popularity, but on set, especially in a crew with an actress like the female lead, she was mostly in a passive position. Simply because the female lead wanted to attend a fashion show on the weekend, they had to adjust the filming schedule.

Such an outrageous thing made everyone gasp.

She was too lazy to go out and was preparing to catch up on sleep when her phone suddenly vibrated.

Unexpectedly, the message was from her cousin Lan Qiao’s boyfriend.

They had met several times at dinner parties before.

He had also exchanged pleasantries with her once afterward.

Shen Zhi and Lan Qiao’s relationship was basically the same as Harry Potter and his cousin’s model. One lived as a dependent, and the other worried about being usurped. So one always carried the air of a host, while the other kept her eyes down and learned to practice great forbearance.

Lan Qiao was a model student in the eyes of adults, always ranking in the top ten in every exam.

Shen Zhi, however, wasn’t very good at studying, but she was genuinely beautiful and often became a popular figure.

Appearance, however, was precisely one of Lan Qiao’s weaknesses.

This led to the unstoppable deterioration of their already delicate relationship.

Whenever Lan Qiao threw a tantrum, Shen Zhi would always remember the kindness of her aunt and uncle for taking her in all these years. She would shut up if she could, and stop if she could.

But that didn’t mean she would care about Lan Qiao’s romantic life.

________________________________________

At first, Lan Qiao’s boyfriend would just chat with her occasionally.

Later, he started sending her good morning and good night messages non-stop.

Shen Zhi had encountered this type of person many times. But he was, after all, her future cousin-in-law, and also from out of town, so there might be regional differences. She always suspected she was misunderstanding. It couldn’t be, right? After all, not many people would try to hit on their girlfriend’s older sister, who was also an active actress.

How low would one’s moral bottom line have to be?

However, recently he started frequently asking to meet.

At first, he even said it was to discuss Lan Qiao.

Shen Zhi felt that whatever happened to Lan Qiao had nothing to do with her.

So later, this person started saying ambiguous things directly.

How many such situations had Shen Zhi seen? Probably enough to allow her to continue doing what she needed to do as if nothing were amiss. She took a screenshot and sent it to Lan Qiao.

Lan Qiao immediately called her.

In the first call, Lan Qiao immediately burst into curses.

Shen Zhi directly put the phone aside.

Anyway, she had already reported what needed to be reported.

The call ended at some point.

When it rang again, Lan Qiao seemed to have regained her composure, but in reality, she had decided to vent her last round of negative emotions.

“Give me your address,” she said.

Shen Zhi paused, put down her script, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

“I’m sending your things to you,” Lan Qiao said. “I want you to leave our house, immediately.”

Shen Zhi silently said, “Are Auntie and Uncle there?”

She guessed they weren’t, otherwise Lan Qiao wouldn’t be so impulsive.

So Shen Zhi continued: “Don’t send them over. Just throw them away. Anyway, I always carry important things with me.”

Considering her cousin’s position, she added, “Don’t look for boyfriends in the trash can.”

The phone was slammed down violently.

She wondered if the other side had thrown their phone again.

________________________________________

That evening, Ding Yaocai treated her to dinner, and Shen Zhi reluctantly put on makeup and went.

In the elevator, she leaned against the wall, gazing upward, lost in thought. Ding Yaocai noticed her weariness and couldn’t help but say, “Don’t be so hard on yourself. The director said you’re doing quite well, aren’t you?”

Shen Zhi remained silent.

Ding Yaocai fiddled with her phone for a bit, then was suddenly startled by an idea of her own. She scrutinized the actress under her, who was no longer a young girl, and finally voiced her doubt: “You haven’t fallen in love, have you?”

Shen Zhi remained completely still.

She suddenly said, “Sister Ding.”

“You’d better not scare me.”

“I probably won’t fall in love anymore,” Shen Zhi muttered, gazing at the elevator ceiling.

Just then, the elevator doors opened. Shen Zhi was the first to straighten up, holding the door open with her hand, politely inviting her agent to go first as usual.

For some reason, Ding Yaocai’s heart began to feel uneasy.

She had been in the business for a long time, having managed many artists, and Shen Zhi was definitely one of the more unique ones.

She looked gentle, generous, and sensible, but once she had her own ideas, even a white horse carrying a prince couldn’t pull her back.

Perhaps, this step, she had taken wrongly.

Ding Yaocai thought to herself.

________________________________________

As soon as she walked into the private room, Shen Zhi saw a face she didn’t want to see.

The person who had been driving his luxury sports car around the set for days appeared before her, holding flowers, smiling, and extending his arms, only making the atmosphere more awkward.

Shen Zhi used a great deal of effort to suppress any expression other than a smile.

No matter how much she said, “We’re not compatible,” she would only get the reply, “I’m willing to understand you.”

Refusal was useless.

Acceptance was impossible.

She could only deal with it.

The food was cooked by a top chef with exquisite ingredients, nutritious and delicious, yet she found it hard to swallow.

After the dinner, Shen Zhi declined the offer of a ride and didn’t get into Ding Yaocai’s car.

“I want to take a walk by myself,” she said.

Ding Yaocai said, “You’ll be photographed.”

“It’s okay, it’s just a short walk. I won’t do anything strange,” Shen Zhi said.

And she’s not famous enough yet.

This sentence was swallowed back.

If she just wanted to earn enough to eat, she already had enough now.

But if she didn’t climb higher, there would be endless difficulties, and no one could guarantee the future.

“He… is a very good person. He doesn’t have the bad habits of those young masters; maybe you two could try,” Ding Yaocai said.

Shen Zhi remained silent.

Even Ding Yaocai couldn’t help but feel she was pushing too hard, so she bit the bullet and cut her losses in time: “Or just say you have a partner.”

A lie was also one solution.

Provided it could be kept secret.

In the company, they saw each other all the time, and whether she had a boyfriend could be seen at a glance.

Shen Zhi’s heart was filled with complex worries.

She walked in the dark night, car lights briefly flashing on the road beside her from time to time. As she walked, she gradually noticed a light shining beside her for too long.

Shen Zhi turned around and saw a Japanese car that looked like it had been dragged out of a junkyard fifteen minutes ago.

Blinding light came at her, and Shen Zhi adjusted to the brightness, seeing Shen He in the driver’s seat, one hand on the steering wheel, the other propping up his chin.

________________________________________

In fact, that day, Shen Zhi also forgot how Shen He convinced her to get into his car.

Perhaps she was too tired from walking, or maybe he forced her in some way—Shen He could be a bit unscrupulous at times to achieve his goals.

He said he was just driving around and happened to run into her. She believed him, after all, there was no pressing reason for them to meet.

She got into the car, he adjusted the rearview mirror, and then asked her, “Are you hungry?”

Shen Zhi looked over in confusion.

“You look tired,” Shen He said, already pulling a pizza box from the back seat. “Want some?”

She was clearly lost in worries about the future, but to him, it was about hunger. The most shameful thing was that she had no appetite earlier, but now she actually felt a little hungry.

They were old classmates, and once upon a time, they had secretly brought takeout to the practice room to eat. Back then, they had many unspoken habits. For example, boys should take more care of girls, and physical contact didn’t mean much. Because of their studies, everyone often gathered, appearing harmonious to other departments. Whoever ordered takeout, everyone got a share.

Shen Zhi didn’t stand on ceremony, lifted the lid, and ate the cold pizza.

“Why is it thick crust? Thin crust is better, right?” she complained.

Shen He countered, “You don’t understand the true essence of pizza.”

Eating unhealthy junk food over her calorie limit, sitting in a dilapidated car, Shen Zhi couldn’t help but feel sad about her current state of degradation.

However, she was soon interrupted.

Shen He said, “It’s alright, isn’t it?”

He was asking about the pizza.

Shen Zhi said, “It’s alright.”

She was also answering about the pizza.

Then Shen He said, “Do you like me?”

Shen Zhi suddenly paused, pizza crust crumbs still clinging around her lips. Suspicious and flustered, she looked at him, wanting to say, “What the hell are you thinking?”, and preparing to reply, “How could I?”, but only managed to blurt out a “No.”

He said, “I don’t like you either.”

This situation at this moment was incredible and inexplicable.

“So,” but, Shen He said, “Don’t you think we’re very suitable for marriage?”