Chapter 89: Light Bulb

“…”

There was silence for a long moment.

Chen Xiyu said, "Life on the set is boring to begin with. He even got injured while moving things a few days ago. It's normal for him not to want to come."

Wade saw that she was in a low mood these days, but he was not one to comfort others. He patted Shen Xiyu's shoulder and walked away, leaving her some time alone.

It’s not that Shen Xiyu was unhappy, but he just had a subtle sense of loss.

She should calm down and think carefully about the future of their relationship.

Give an explanation to myself and Liang Qi, and also to the past years.

This time filming away from the city might be a great opportunity.

*

Baiba Township is located in a low-lying area, and years of drought have subtly altered the physical fitness of its residents. Shen Xiyu felt dry eyes and thirst upon arriving. A native of southern China, she has since lived in Luocheng, a city located in the north but less prone to extreme weather. Therefore, she is particularly sensitive to excessive drought.

This feeling reminded her of her trip to a small border country in the east many years ago.

Wade and the relevant staff had already arranged all matters in advance. To be fair, during this production, Shen Xiyu saw that Wade had really grown into a qualified director in recent years. In the past few years, whenever Shen Xiyu worked with him, there were many things that she, as a screenwriter, should not have worried about. But Wade was not good at anything else except filming seriously, so she had to do it herself. At that time, Shen Xiyu was really overwhelmed.

Xu Wei also came this time. Normally, as a producer, he shouldn't have to follow along, but he is a restless person and loves to worry, so he decided to follow the group and hang out for a while.

Seeing him constantly looking at his watch, Shen Xiyu casually asked, "What's the urgent matter?"

"Boss Liang is almost here. He came here without his assistant. I sent someone to pick him up. He should be here by now."

Mr. Liang?

The Mr. Liang that Xu Wei mentioned could only be one person.

Xu Wei looked at her stunned expression and asked, "Didn't you know he was coming?"

In fact, Shen Xiyu didn't want to say too much about the two of them in the crew, but Xu Wei asked her about it, and she couldn't just brush it off.

"Now I know."

Xu Wei's face wrinkled into a ball, "Did you have a fight?"

"I went to find Xiao Tian to help her rehearse." Shen Xiyu pulled Tian out as well, made up an excuse and ran away.

Xu Wei looked at the woman's hurriedly leaving back and shook his head. There are always many troubles when young people fall in love.

It was half past nine in the evening, four hours had passed since they arrived at this place.

"Liang Qi hasn't arrived yet?"

Xu Wei was also very anxious. "They said the tire had a blowout and it was stuck on the road. When I asked again, the signal was bad and I couldn't hear anything."

"It's almost ten o'clock now. Has the crew contacted a car here?" Although Shen Xiyu was anxious, he still understood that it was most important to solve the problem first.

"Should we go look for them?" Xu Wei hesitated. "We can't locate them now. It's already dark. If we can't find them, it'll be bad enough. If we lose a few more people, we'll be doomed."

"If they can reach a place without signal, they must have already passed the county town and reached the countryside. There are few branching roads here, and they are all narrow dirt roads that have not been repaired. It is certain that we will meet them." Shen Xiyu made a decision, "Can the driver who brought us here this afternoon make another trip? I will go with him."

"You're a girl," Xu Wei disagreed. "This is a village after all. The security system isn't as comprehensive as in the city. What if something goes wrong?"

"Don't worry." Shen Xiyu looked at the dark sky, with a string in her heart always tense. She couldn't feel at ease without seeing Liang Qi.

"I'll go with you. I can contact the people who're going to pick him up." Xu Wei was genuinely anxious, but he also felt like he'd handled things terribly today. Liang Qi was an investor, and he'd come all the way with the crew, and his own people hadn't even gotten him to safety before he was abandoned en route. What kind of a deal was that? More broadly, it was a problem with the entire crew's attitude. If Liang Qi really took it personally, he'd be done with it.

Shen Xiyu was in no mood to ponder his little thoughts, but Xu Wei was old and in poor health, and he had been on a long flight today. They usually quarreled over contracts and scripts, but it was not logical for him, a producer, to go through such a matter. Out of emotion, Shen Xiyu was also embarrassed to let an elder go.

Besides... Liang Qi was most likely here for him, and Shen Xiyu couldn't just sit here and wait.

"Stop arguing." Wade had walked behind the two of them without them noticing when. "I'll go with Xi Yu."

Shen Xiyu cast a grateful look towards Wade.

Seeing her like this, Wade felt a little uncomfortable, but he didn't say much.

The shadows of the trees moving backwards frame by frame along the way made Shen Xiyu feel like he was escaping from the end of the world.

She leaned back in the seat, and no one in the car spoke. Xu Wei couldn't persuade them, so in the end, Shen Xiyu and Wade went together, with a local villager as the driver. The locals were familiar with the road conditions and were easier to find.

Originally, Wade planned to bring his assistant, but Shen Xiyu took into consideration that there were two staff members who were going to pick up Liang Qi. The car was not big, and it would be bad if there were not enough seats, so it would be better to bring fewer people.

I don’t know how long they’ve been driving, but the longer it goes on, the more anxious Shen Xiyu becomes.

…

"It seems like there's a high beam in front!" Wade had good eyesight and saw a bright spot from a long distance away.

The car got closer and closer, and the light became closer and closer, turning into a dazzling light.

The first person Shen Xiyu saw was Liang Qi, who was squatting. His long black sleeves were rolled up to his arms, and his black hair on his forehead was gathered to the top of his head, with only a few wet strands left.

Seeing Shen Xiyu and their car approaching, Liang Qi was dazzled by the headlights. He frowned and raised his hands to shield his eyes.

His hands were covered in dust and his face was rubbed with it.

The other two waved at them, "We have a flat tire, so we can't get through for now!"

They thought it was a passing vehicle.

"Stop, Xiao Li." Shen Xiyu patted the driver's seat.

She and Wade opened the car doors from two directions and got out.

"Chen Zuo, Director Wei!" The two men became excited instantly after seeing them clearly.

"How did it become like this?" Wade was a little angry. If they hadn't been lucky enough to find them along the road today, who knows what a sleepless night it would be tonight. "How could you pick someone up like this?"

Shen Xiyu walked straight towards Liang Qi who was squatting next to the tire, blocking out the voices of the others.

The man was changing a tire and didn't notice her approach.

"Liang Qi." Shen Xiyu's voice trembled a little. She didn't like to show her emotions in public, but she didn't dare to imagine what would happen if she didn't find them tonight. What if Liang Qi was really in danger in such a place?

The man heard the sound and turned his head, revealing clear muscle lines on the side of his neck.

"Why are you here?" Liang Qi stood up and wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand.

Noticing that Shen Xiyu was a little jealous, he was a little at a loss. He had endured so many days without contact and had missed her very much. Now that they suddenly met in this situation, Liang Qi couldn't help but feel a little emotional.

This was not the time or place to be in a bad mood, Shen Xiyu quickly adjusted his mood, "What's going on now?"

"I got a flat tire on the road." Liang Qi looked at the tools at his feet and felt a headache. He hadn't changed a tire himself in years, so he was unfamiliar with it and stumbled over it. "It's almost done."

"It shouldn't take so long, right?" The journey that originally took two or three hours was stretched to about six hours.

"Um..." The staff behind Shen Xiyu said with a guilty look, "I didn't understand the road conditions well and took a side road. I'm really sorry, Shen Zuo, Mr. Liang."

He was the staff member who drove to pick up Liang Qi. Shen Xiyu remembered that he was a new staff member who had just arrived.

Wade had just scolded the two of them, and Shen Xiyu also understood that it was useless to say more. The most important thing now was to fix the car. If it really didn't work, he would take the people back first.

"Do you need help?" Wade said this to Liang Qi.

The man then realized that he had also come, which was beyond his expectations.

"No need, it's almost done. You guys wait by the roadside." There was only a little finishing work left, so there was no need for another person to get involved.

Wade didn't insist and went to the side to smoke. The long drive made him feel a little dizzy.

Seeing that Shen Xiyu and Liang Qi were facing each other without talking, the two stagehands also walked aside.

Shen Xiyu raised his hand and wiped the dust off Liang Qi's face with the tip of his thumb.

"This place is too dirty." There was yellow soil and a pile of tools on the ground. "Wait for me over there."

“…”

"He has a good temper." Wade looked at Liang Qi who was changing a tire alone not far away.

In fact, Chen Xiyu also vaguely felt that Liang Qi no longer had the creepy feeling that he had when they first met.

However, she still felt that Liang Qi didn't reprimand the two junior executives harshly because he felt they were not his subordinates. If they were Liang Qi's own employees, he would definitely not have this attitude.

As a boss, Liang Qi is still very ruthless.

"Where did you find these two stagehands?" Shen Xiyu looked at the two people chatting beside the car with some dissatisfaction.

"They're college students working part-time, I guess." Wade followed her gaze and glanced at them. "They're a bit tactless."

As a director, Wade even knew to ask his financial backers if they needed help. But the two of them not only got lost while leading the investors, but also left them behind along the way. In the end, it was Liang Qi who repaired the car.

"But being silly is pretty cute." Wade was a little amused. "What do you think?"

Shen Xiyu didn't really want to comment.

Liang Qi was right, the tire was repaired quickly.

"I'll drive." Liang Qi washed his hands with bottled water on the side of the road. "You lead the way."

"Mr. Liang, I, I'll open it."

Liang Qi glanced for the source of the sound and found it was the driver who had just led him astray.

"Forget it, I'll do it myself."

Wade didn't feel something was wrong until he got into Liang Qi's car. Shen Xiyu was in the passenger seat, Liang Qi was in the driver's seat, and he...

"I'm going to that car."

He also didn't want to take the initiative to light the way for the two of them at night.

In short, I don't want to be a light bulb.