Chapter 5

The scene I talked about yesterday, where Li Ze bids farewell to Xie Huaixi, was a night scene. She had to pretend to be asleep, and the main focus of her performance was on Luo Mingxiu.

The makeup artist removed Shen Li's makeup, let her hair down, and sprayed some water on her forehead to wet it.

Then she went into the side room, lay down on the bed and closed her eyes. The spotlight shone on her, making her fair face as bright as the moon.

"Action!"

"No, Father, Mother, no..." In her sleep, Xie Huaixi frowned, biting her lip and struggling. Fine beads of sweat covered her forehead. She wanted to wake up, but she couldn't lift her heavy eyelids. She was trapped in the vortex of nightmares, and her body grew heavier and heavier.

Until she felt a cool hand touch her forehead and loosen her grip on the mattress.

"Miss, I'm sorry." Li Ze leaned over and covered her with the quilt again, then sat on the edge of the bed watching her until Xie Huaixi's breathing gradually calmed down and her brows relaxed.

"This is the best we can do. The Imperial Dragon Guard's pawns are already lying in ambush all around us. Someone has to be sent to deal with them."

"That person can only be me. I'm already too deeply entangled. I've done my duty to protect Miss until now. From now on, I'll entrust the journey to Master Bai and Miss Mu. Master Bai's martial arts are not as weak as they seem; he will surely protect Miss for me."

After she finished speaking, a tear fell and soaked the bedding, followed by suppressed sobs.

"Cut!" Director Liu's loud voice pulled everyone back to reality. Shen Li opened her eyes and saw that the person in front of her still had tears in his eyes. She pointed to his chin to remind him. Luo Mingxiu reached out and wiped away the tears to prevent them from sliding down his neck.

As if he hadn't quite snapped out of character, he asked Shen Li, somewhat bewildered, "How was my performance?"

“I closed my eyes,” Shen Li glanced at him, then turned to Director Liu and teased, “Director Liu, how was the performance? Someone wants to give me some praise.”

"No..." Luo Mingxiu blushed and turned around, looking at Director Liu with a blank expression, at a loss for words.

Director Liu looked at him for a while, then let out a hearty laugh, "Look how scared little Luo is, thinking I'm going to yell at him? I'm not that scary."

He walked over and patted Luo Mingxiu on the shoulder: "You've improved so much since the audition. What can I say? I was worried, but now it seems you've figured out Li Ze's psychology."

"Thank you, Director." Luo Mingxiu finished discussing today's scenes with Director Liu. As he left the filming room, his gaze swept over the bustling crowd after work, searching for that figure. Not there.

"Stop looking, Teacher Shen and her assistant have already left." Director Liu walked by carrying a thermos, his expression knowing but saying nothing. "You should go back too."

Luo Mingxiu nodded, looking dejected.

How could his sister, who knew nothing about him, understand that the praise he wanted most came from her?

The filming proceeded smoothly. The day before the costume fitting, Shen Li saw Fang Wei's missed call after finishing work and called him back.

"Hey, honey, I've already called Mom and Dad about delaying our plans to get pregnant. Everything is up to you. Let's not have any more cold wars, okay? I've finished my research trip here, and my flight to H City is tomorrow morning. I'll come see you at the film set when I get there."

"Then come early. I plan to take Mingxiu home after work tomorrow."

The person on the other end said incredulously, "Are you out of your mind? Luo Mingxiu was just fostered by you when he was a child, we're not related by blood."

You treat him like a younger brother, but he might not be truly sincere towards you. Otherwise, why would he disappear for so long without contacting you? His return this time is clearly an attempt to use your resources as an actor.

"He's really stupid. He should have come to me when he was just playing a minor role."

Fang Wei remained silent for a long time, so long that Shen Li thought he had forgotten to hang up.

However, just as she was about to end the call, a voice came from the phone again: "We've both been too busy lately, which has affected our communication. Let's talk again when we meet tomorrow. I'll book a restaurant, just the two of us, and have a meal together."

She didn't need to guess what he would do: order flowers, book restaurants, go on dates, coax her, and the argument would be over.

Then the next time, it was the same thing: buying flowers, having dinner, or watching a movie. Fang Wei didn't realize that she could accept this when they used to argue over trivial things.

This time, however, he was two-faced, completely blaming her for his initial decision not to have a child. He kept it a secret from his family and even lied to her, saying his family understood. She was unjustly scolded by her mother-in-law and wanted to give him a chance to apologize and resolve the situation.

She wanted them to take some time to go back, admit their mistakes in front of the elderly couple, discuss their thoughts openly, and make plans for having children in the future.

Instead of casually mentioning over the phone that he had told his parents and that they should take her word for it, he was being perfunctory. She didn't receive a sincere apology, and his parents only temporarily suppressed the issue.

After waiting for a reply, the person on the other end finally noticed that something was wrong with her and asked, "Are you still angry?"

"I've already told my parents I'm delaying trying to conceive, what more do they want from me?"

"I don't want anything. I've been deceived by you for so long, and I've been scolded by your mother. I don't expect an apology, but at least you should handle things properly, okay? Let's find some time to go to your parents' place and talk, otherwise I can't concentrate on our date." Shen Li's tone was icy.

I was utterly disappointed. Why did things become so exhausting between them?

"Is this really necessary?" Fang Wei's tone changed. "What are we going to talk about when we get back? Do you want me and my mother to kneel down in front of you and apologize? When did you become such a big fuss over nothing?"

Shen Li couldn't help but yell, "Don't you know how big a mistake you made? No matter what, you expect me to understand! I'll put up with it!"

I just want to go back and discuss our future plans. What are you afraid of? You haven't told your family the truth at all, and you're afraid I'll expose your image as an obedient and filial son!

There was silence on the other end again. Sure enough, she had hit the nail on the head. Shen Li felt incredibly powerless for a moment. She squatted down, and the grievances in her heart turned into tears.

It wasn't her who changed, it was Fang Wei. The gentle and refined man who always thought of her was long gone. What was she still hoping for? Had she been wearing the filter of first love for too long and didn't have the courage to face this broken reality riddled with holes?

"Let's get a divorce." As Shen Li said these words, her chest felt as if it were being pierced.