Chapter 7 A heart broken twice. ...

One minute before the official filming, Sun Ying rushed to the scene and thanked Jiang Nuanyu repeatedly as soon as she saw her: "Thank you, thank you so much."

"It's fine," Jiang Nuanyu said. "Everything is going smoothly on set, and we'll start filming soon."

Sun Ying took off her rain-soaked coat, looked around, and greeted everyone: "Before we start filming, let me formally introduce our photographer for today—Shi Youning, photographer Shi."

Shi Youning smiled and glanced at everyone: "Hello everyone. Nice to meet you all. I hope we can work well together."

It definitely has a distinct Hong Kong accent.

Sun Ying specifically introduced Jiang Nuanyu to Shi Youning: "This is also a senior editor at the magazine, Editor Jiang."

"Hello, Editor Jiang." Shi Youning politely extended her hand.

“Hello, Photographer Shi.” Jiang Nuanyu shook hands with him. “I am Jiang Nuanyu.”

Shi Youning was tall. When Jiang Nuanyu looked up and met her eyes at close range, a sudden thought struck her, and she finally remembered where they had met before.

Shi Youning clearly had no recollection of this, withdrew her hand, and said, "If all goes well, we may cooperate in the future."

“Yes, yes.” Jiang Nuanyu forced a smile as if on cue. “...Looking forward to cooperating.”

Shi Youning smiled and turned to continue filming.

Jiang Nuanyu, however, could not remain calm.

She took several deep breaths, trying her best to hide her possible unease, but felt that no air was going into her lungs.

She had only come to the scene to help out in an emergency. After saying goodbye, she told Sun Ying that she needed to go back to the office first.

Sun Ying didn't think much of it and thanked her again before leaving.

Now that the morning rush hour is over, it's a bit easier to hail a taxi.

On the way back to the magazine office, Jiang Nuanyu leaned against the back seat of the taxi, unsure whether to cry or laugh.

The night she first met Liang Qi, she clung to Ye Ji, both timid and brave, waiting at the entrance of Tangwan. She did manage to catch him, but to her surprise, Liang Qi, who had been alone all night, was now accompanied by a girl intimately linking arms with him.

Perhaps it was because her gaze was too direct, but as they passed each other, the girl glanced at her.

Just now in the shed, the moment their eyes met, the temperament in Shi Youning's eyes was almost identical to that of the girl from back then. Jiang Nuanyu immediately recalled it, and along with it, the desperate and broken state of mind she had felt back then also came flooding back.

Outside the car window, the rain was still falling. Inside, the lingering scent of the previous passenger's perfume was heavy and stuffy.

She lowered the car window a little, and a breeze carrying cool rain blew in, damp yet refreshing.

She breathed in the cool air, trying to calm herself.

She thought that after so many years, Liang Qi and Shi Youning might not still have the same relationship as they did back then.

*

When Jiang Nuanyu returned to the magazine office, it was already noon. Most of her colleagues had gone to lunch, and there were only a few people scattered around the office area.

It was a gloomy, rainy day outside, but the air conditioning in the office building didn't seem to be used to the weather and was rather cold.

Jiang Nuanyu went to her workstation, turned on her computer, and went to get a cup of hot water. She picked up the thermos but found it was already full.

When you unscrew the lid, steam is still rising from the rim of the cup.

She was puzzled for two seconds, then realized that Feng Shasha had probably answered the call for her. Feeling a warmth in her heart, she sat back down and started working.

Her inbox was mostly filled with daily progress confirmations and brand public relations replies. She browsed them one by one, replied, marked them for filing, and added the matters that needed to be followed up to her schedule.

Just as she was busy, Feng Shasha and He Anqi came in one after the other. Their eyes lit up when they saw her.

"Nuanyu, you're back! Wait a moment!"

He Anqi jogged over to get a folder and notebook from her workstation, flipping through them as she reported: "The content of the August issue was basically ready before we went to Menghe Island. I also checked the few pictures that needed to be replaced this morning, and they're all OK."

Jiang Nuanyu nodded: "Send it to print on Friday, and then confirm the content of the other columns again before Wednesday."

“Okay,” He Anqi continued. “Also, I followed up with the artist’s interview in the September issue with his assistant. They said that the artist’s schedule for most of this month is abroad, so they can’t finalize a specific date yet, but promised to give a clear reply within a week.”

“Okay.” Jiang Nuanyu pondered for a moment, then looked up. “You can judge his attitude at that time. If it is still ambiguous, just change it to an online interview to avoid back and forth changes.”

“Okay.” He Anqi lowered her head and wrote it down in her notebook.

Jiang Nuanyu tapped her fingers lightly on the table and continued, "Didn't you compile the latest lookbooks from various brands before? I see that some brands have already started pre-sales. You can start categorizing the relevant elements and keywords. I'll see if I can work with Editor Sun to plan a trend report, or at least a quick overview, so that it doesn't overlap with their special features."

"clear."

"Okay, that's all for now."

“Okay.” He Anqi nodded in agreement and turned back to her workstation.

Jiang Nuanyu then turned to Feng Shasha, who had just arrived, and raised the thermos on the table: "Thanks."

Feng Shasha laughed: "It was just a small thing."

Jiang Nuanyu said, "The other day at the resort, I asked you to come back and write a fragrance article that's suitable for autumn. Do you have any ideas yet?"

Feng Shasha was taken aback: "Oh, oh, oh! I was just about to start."

Jiang Nuanyu looked at her and smiled: "You've already forgotten, haven't you?"

"Hehe..." Feng Shasha rubbed her hands together, embarrassed to admit, "No, not really."

Jiang Nuanyu didn't delve into it further, but simply suggested: "Amber, woody, tobacco, or specific floral or incense notes, choose one or a combination, a single brand or multiple brands, it's all fine. Style is up to you, two pages."

Feng Shasha immediately agreed: "Okay! I'll get started right away."

After explaining all that, Jiang Nuanyu's gaze fell on the next task on her schedule—writing an interview with Liang Qi, CEO of Yunjing.

She stared at the words, her fingers digging into the edge of the table, but she didn't move for a long time.

Feng Shasha suddenly turned back: "Jiang Jiang, what's the latest I can give you that manuscript you mentioned earlier?"

Jiang Nuanyu didn't even think about it: "Okay."

"..." Feng Shasha reacted for two seconds, "Huh?"

Jiang Nuanyu snapped out of her daze and looked up at her: "Oh... before I leave work tomorrow."

Seeing that Feng Shasha was still standing there, she added, "Is time tight? Then let's do it before work the day after tomorrow."

“It’s not a big deal…” Feng Shasha pursed her lips, feeling that she was acting a little strange. She wanted to ask her something, but in the end she just nodded. “…Then I’ll go write it.”

"Um."

After Feng Shasha walked away, Jiang Nuanyu sighed and patted her head to focus.

She opened the previously prepared interview transcript and outline, and tried to start writing it down.

However, she was more concerned and uneasy about her recent meeting with Shi Youning than she had imagined.

In her past work, no matter what situation arose, once she decided to start, she could always get into the zone quickly.

But today, even after nearly ten minutes of opening the document, she still couldn't focus. Images of Liang Qi and Shi Youning flashed through her mind.

She closed her eyes, propped her forehead up, sat quietly for a moment, and then decisively closed the manuscript window.

She quietly postponed this task on her schedule to the "tomorrow" column.

...Running away is shameful, but it's useful. Right?

*

That afternoon, Jiang Nuanyu finished writing two research proposals.

She had been thinking about these two topics for quite some time, and the preliminary preparations were almost complete. All she needed to do was organize the content into a clear and well-organized report, and then bring it up at the topic selection meeting for the October issue. If it passed the meeting smoothly, she could start to move forward with the project.

After finishing this task, she glanced at the time; it wasn't even five o'clock yet.

Just as I was putting my phone back, the screen lit up; it was a restaurant reservation message from Ye Ji.

Jiang Nuanyu opened her eyes and then remembered that she had a dinner appointment with Ye Ji that evening.

The two had originally planned to meet yesterday, but Ye Ji had something come up and stood them up, so they rescheduled for tonight.

She had an appointment that evening, so she didn't do any more major work. She just tidied up some miscellaneous tasks, replaced a new sticker on the transparent inner layer of her computer case, and left work when the time came.

The restaurant Ye Ji booked was located in the CBD where the magazine office was situated, less than a ten-minute taxi ride away.

The restaurant is nestled on the corner of the ground floor of an office building where every inch of land is precious. Both sides are high and transparent floor-to-ceiling windows, with almost no superfluous decorations.

As you push open the door, soft jazz music drifts in.

A uniformed waiter approached her and led her to her reserved seat. Upon learning that she wasn't going to order anything, the waiter poured her water before politely leaving.

The restaurant wasn't crowded yet. Jiang Nuanyu's seat was in the middle, and the tables were spaced far apart, making it feel particularly spacious and open. Although it wasn't far from her company, this was her first time here. A quick glance revealed that almost every table in the window row had a reservation sign.

Outside the window, the rain that had fallen all day had just stopped. It was already evening when the sun finally had a chance to peek out from behind the dark clouds.

The brick pavement in front of the office building, washed clean by the constant rain, now gleamed under the setting sun.

Jiang Nuanyu looked out the window for a while, then checked the messages in the work group. The waiter refilled her water twice, but Ye Ji still hadn't arrived.

She was scrolling through her phone idly, about to open a chat window to ask what was going on, when Ye Ji's message came first, saying that there was a traffic jam on the road and he would be there soon.

Jiang Nuanyu casually replied with an emoji, put her phone back in her bag, and got up to go to the bathroom.

She had only taken a few steps when she looked up and her gaze met that familiar figure.

She could always spot Liang Qi in a crowd at a glance, and this time was no exception. However, the surprise and joy she felt upon seeing him lasted for less than a second before disappearing.

The person next to Liang Qi is Shi Youning.

The two walked side by side, both exuding an air of aloofness, and they seemed quite well-matched.

The three of them exchanged glances briefly, though they were separated by a short distance.

Jiang Nuanyu suddenly froze.

The scene before her eyes seemed to be within reason, yet it still surprised her.

The two people opposite her slowly stopped. Shi Youning recognized her, raised an eyebrow, and was about to greet her. Jiang Nuanyu guiltily avoided his gaze, hastily lifted her foot, and went around to the other side.

Shi Youning followed her back and looked over, her brows furrowed slightly, her eyes filled with doubt—she had just seen her on set that morning, and she seemed to be a very proper and polite person, so why did she just leave like that in the evening?

She shook her head, turned to Liang Qi, and said, "It's nothing, just a colleague." Then she smiled slightly, "I booked a window seat."

Liang Qi turned his gaze away from the direction Jiang Nuanyu had left and nodded slightly to Shi Youning.

A note from the author:

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