Chapter 32: Aluo, two Aluos.

Xie Yanzhi wanted to record Xie Ran's growth trajectory, so she always had the habit of taking photos of her. There is a cabinet at home that is specifically used to store her photo albums.

Every photo album is like a time box. Once opened, the moments frozen on the photo paper come to life.

Xie Ran would go to her grandmother's house during the winter and summer vacations, so her grandmother appears in many photos. When Xie Yanzhi saw her mother's face again, her nose felt sore and she felt a little sad.

Xie Ran's grandmother died of illness and it has been seven or eight years since she passed away. Every time Xie Ran thinks of her, he always feels that she is still alive. Only when I went back and saw her portrait and the incense burning in front of it did I suddenly realize that she had been gone for a long time.

When grandma passed away, the one who cried the most sadly was Xie Ran. Her tears never stopped from morning to night. It was the first time she had experienced separation from life and death, and she couldn't accept it. Xie Yanzhi had to take care of her mother's funeral. All her emotions were gradually taken away in the tedious and complicated rituals and processes, and finally left a corner in her heart that would mold when it rained.

Gao Luo said softly: "Grandma is now seven years old, one and a half years older than me."

Xie Yanzhi looked at her daughter and said softly, "Yes, you can call her sister."

She continued to flip through the pages and finally found a photo of Xie Ran when he was eight years old.

The photo was taken in a tea garden, not the tea garden in Shencheng, but in my hometown of Liucheng.

There are two people in the photo, Xie Ran and a little boy.

They sat beside a low stone bridge, with a stream flowing at their feet and a large area of ​​shrub tea trees surrounding them. Xie Ran was holding an ice cream in her hand and the boy was sitting next to her. The picture freezes in the photo, where Xie Ran scoops a spoonful of ice cream and hands it to the boy's mouth.

Xie Yanzhi pointed at the boy and said, "This is Xia Mushi."

Gao Luo flipped through the photos, and only this one photo showed this boy.

She looked at her mother suspiciously: "Are you sure?"

Xie Yanzhi said with certainty: "Sure!"

"It's been eighteen years, and I don't even remember it. How do you remember it?"

“Everyone’s memories are different.”

Xie Yanzhi told Gao Luo that Xia Mushi had changed his name and his original name was Xia Mushi. The reason why she still remembers it after all these years is because of this name.

Xie Ran's grandmother is Yurong, and she has a sworn sister named Sujuan. The two have a very good relationship. Although they are thousands of miles apart after they each started their own families, they often talk on the phone and make plans to travel together.

One day Sujuan told Yurong that her daughter was getting a divorce and her little grandson was crying every day. So Yurong suggested taking her grandson to live with her, and then sending the child back after Sujuan had comforted her daughter.

Sujuan's daughter is called Shiwen, and she had a very good relationship with her husband when they got married. The husband's surname was Xia, so when the child was born, he was named Xia Mushi.

At that time, this name was a testimony to the sweet relationship between the two and a deep expression of love from the man to the woman. Later, the two divorced and the name became a joke.

On the first day that Xia Mushi was brought back by Yurong, everyone in the surrounding area knew his name and the origin of the name.

Later we learned that the boy's parents finally divorced, and the boy's father changed his name from Mu to Mu. This incident and this name spread more thoroughly.

Science has proven that gossip can prompt the brain to produce endogenous opioid peptides, which can help people feel happy. So many people’s brains cannot remember boring knowledge, but they are very good at remembering gossip.

Xie Yanzhi said: "I never laughed at him. I can remember it because this name is so memorable. If you don't believe me, go back and ask those people. They will definitely remember Xia Mushi too."

"Then why don't I remember it?" Gao Luo said, "I have a good memory."

"First of all," Xie Yanzhi corrected her, "You have to know yourself. You are not good at remembering people."

Xie Ran has shown her talent in socializing since she was young, and she has a good grasp of the ways of the world. No matter whether it is relatives or neighbors, everyone who has met her praises her. But most of the time, she just goes for the appearance but not the heart. She wouldn't make a special effort to remember someone she had only met once or twice, so she would forget about them the moment she turned around.

"The second point is that you didn't remember it because I didn't tell you about his name."

Xie Yanzhi wanted to protect her daughter's innocence and was determined not to let the dirty things between adults "pollute" her pure heart, so she never told her about it.

Gao Luo was speechless after hearing this.

After Xie Yanzhi finished her gossip, she looked back at the photo and said, "I didn't expect this kid to be so good-looking when he grows up. It's also a coincidence that you actually met him on the show. Maybe he remembers you, otherwise he would take such good care of you."

"How can he remember me? It's been so many years, and I'm a child now." Gao Luo concluded: "He must have had some dealings with my uncle, and he's taking care of his niece for his uncle's sake."

"That's fine. It's always good to have more acquaintances on the show." Xie Yanzhi suddenly thought of something and said, "Since he is a relative, let's invite him to our house for dinner some other day."

"Ah? No need for that. I can do it myself. You don't have to ask him to take care of me." Gao Luo guessed that Xie Yanzhi wanted to ask Xia Mushi to take care of herself on the show.

Gao Luo felt that there was no need to do this as she could take care of herself.

Moreover, Gao Luo personally thought that it was a bit far-fetched to count Xia Mushi as a relative. At most, he was a friend's child.

"Yes." Xie Yanzhi said, "He helped you so much on the show. Even if it's not for the things that happen later, you should still thank him this time."

She was talking about the elimination vote he cast for Jun during the final voting session of the second episode.

After knowing that he was Su Juan's grandson, Xie Yanzhi understood that Xia Mushi's vote was entirely for A Luo. Otherwise, as a newcomer in the entertainment industry, why would he offend his seniors?

If someone has paid for you, you should of course show your appreciation.

Gao Luo said, "But it's exhausting to promise a favor to an elder you don't know well. If you rashly invite him to your house for dinner, it might be a burden to him."

Gao Luo's words made Xie Yanzhi hesitate.

She herself was once a young person and knows that young people don't like dealing with their elders because of the generation gap and secondly, their status is not equal. When the elders preach, the younger ones cannot refute.

"You have a point."

Hearing Xie Yanzhi say this, Gao Luo thought she had given up the idea of ​​inviting him home for dinner, but she suddenly changed the subject: "But I still have to say it."

She doesn't care what the other party thinks, she has to express her sincerity and gratitude.

After hearing what Xie Yanzhi said, Gao Luo had no choice but to agree.

Xie Yanzhi was very quick in execution. He said he wanted to invite people to dinner and called them on the spot. The other party was very honest and agreed, and came to my door the next day.

It’s time for dinner, Xia Shi brought Xiaonian along.

Xie Yanzhi exchanged pleasantries with him, then asked Gao Luo to call someone.

Gao Luo called him sweetly, "Cousin."

Xia Shi seemed to be surprised and was suddenly stunned. The next moment, there was a smile in the corners of his eyes and eyebrows. He reached out and touched her head: "A Luo knows everything?"

"Yes, my uncle told me."

Xiao Nian opened his mouth in surprise: "Are you my brother's sister too?"

"Yes." Gao Luo replied: "Xiao Nian should call me sister."

"In that case..." Xiaonian counted on his fingers: "I will have eight sisters."

Now it was Gao Luo's turn to be surprised: "...So many?"

"Um!"

"Only two are my biological sisters, the others are relatives." Xia Shi explained.

Xie Yanzhi came over and asked, "Do your parents have four children?"

Xia Shi smiled but said nothing. Later, when Xiaonian went to A'luo's room to play and was not present, he explained the situation of their family.

Xia Jun was married three times. Xia Mushi’s mother Shi Wen was his first wife, and they had only one son, Xia Mushi. Two years after the divorce, Xia Jun remarried and had a daughter with his then-wife. A few years later he divorced again, and then a few years later he met his current wife and had a daughter and a son. The son is Xiaonian.

So Xiaonian actually has only two biological sisters, and the others are children of relatives and friends of both his parents.

After hearing this, Xie Yanzhi didn't dare to say anything. He just thought silently in his heart that he had thought that their Xie family and Gao family were the most prosperous families, but he didn't expect that there were even more prosperous families.

At the same time, she felt that Xia Shi was too pitiful. The father seemed to have never thought about the child and even made him take care of his half-brother and sister.

Xie Yanzhi couldn't help but sigh and put a few more dishes into Xia Shi's bowl. She said, "Your grandmother and A'luo's grandmother have a good relationship. You can treat this as your own home. If you need anything, you can tell us. Don't be polite to us."

Xia Shi smiled and replied, "Yeah."

Xiaonian was reading a picture book in Gao Luo's room. After a while, he started to tour Gao Luo's room.

He saw a photo of a strange woman on her desk and asked her who she was.

That was a photo taken when Xie Ran was 20 years old and went on a trip with his parents.

"She's my sister." Gao Luo said.

"You have a sister too?"

"Well, this is the only one I have."

Xiao Nian seemed to have discovered some secret, and went out to find Xia Shi with the photo: "Brother, look, A Luo also has a sister."

The photo was taken at the beach, Gao Luo was playing with a bubble machine in her hand. She was wearing a light yellow suspender skirt. The wind blew up the hem of her skirt, and bubbles flew around her, reflecting colorful light in the sunlight.

This is a photo taken by Xie Yanzhi. Xie Ran likes it very much. He feels that he is back to the environment at that time as soon as he sees it, and can even smell the sunshine and sea water.

Every time I read it, I feel better, so I printed it out and put it in my room.

Xia Shi looked at the photo for a long time, so long that Gao Luo thought he was going to fall asleep.

Just as I was about to take the photo away, I suddenly heard him ask, "Is Xie Ran not at home?"

Gao Luo's family was stunned at the same time. After a while, Xie Yanzhi said with a guilty conscience: "She went abroad for vacation. Do you... know that the person in the photo is called Xie Ran?"

"Yes, I met her when we were kids." Xia Shi looked at Gao Luo and said with a smile, "Her nickname is also A'Luo, right?"

Gao Luo was stunned by his question and thought that this guy had such a good memory!

Xiao Nian interrupted and said, "What? A'Luo's sister is also called A'Luo? Doesn't that mean there are two A'Luos?"

Gao Luo didn't dare to respond, and neither did her parents.

Only Xia Shi answered Xiaonian.

He smiled and pointed at Gao Luo: "Yes, this is Luo." Then he pointed at the photo: "This one is also Luo."

For a moment, Gao Luo felt that Xia Shi had discovered something, but the thought only flashed through her mind.

How is that possible? If she didn't confess voluntarily, her parents would never have thought that the five-and-a-half-year-old herself and Xie Ran were the same person.

When they left, Gao Luo's family saw Xia Shi and his family off, and Xie Yanzhi even enthusiastically told him to "come often when you have time."

Xia Shi smiled and replied: "Okay, I will."

After he left, Xie Yanzhi praised him, "This kid is really good, handsome and sensible. Xiaonian is also good, and he brought a gift for A'Luo. But why did he say it was a birthday gift? A'Luo, your birthday is still several months away."

Xia Shi came to visit and brought a gift. Xiaonian also brought some, saying it was a birthday gift for Gao Luo.

Gao Luo smiled sheepishly: "There was a small misunderstanding."

Xie Yanzhi did not watch the live broadcast that night, so she didn’t know what happened.

Gao Luo explained it to her, but at the end, she received a slap from her mother: "Why are you lying to a kid?"

"I didn't do it on purpose. Besides, it's not a big deal. I won't accept his gift twice. I will also prepare a gift for him on his birthday."

"Is this about the gift? Be careful or he'll make trouble with you if he finds out!"

"It's okay, I will coax him." Gao Luo was very confident.

She is so eloquent that it is easy for her to coax adults, so coaxing children should be a piece of cake.

*

After Wen Cheng returned, he couldn't contact Guan Liu. On the third day, he asked her agent and found out that she was abroad attending a new product launch of the brand she endorsed. She would be back in five days and asked him not to call her again in the next few days.

Wen Cheng had no choice but to do as he was told, because once before, Guan Liu was also running a promotion abroad, and he wanted to give her a surprise, so he flew to see her himself, but she ended up getting furious.

Guan Liu hates others acting on their own, and also hates others not doing things according to his wishes.

"Wonderful Holiday" was obtained with the help of Guan Liu's connections. Now that he has messed things up, Guan Liu's anger is an inevitable result, and Wen Cheng has already expected it.

Five days later, Guan Liu returned to China.

Although Guan Liu and Wen Cheng have a child, they have not obtained a marriage certificate and do not live together. They can only be considered a couple. When the child was born, the two agreed that Jun would live with Wen Cheng and be raised by Wen Cheng.

Jun is very attached to his mother, but Guan Liu is busy with her career, so she doesn't have much time to spend with her children.

After this meeting, Guan Liu first accompanied him for a meal, and then asked her agent to accompany him to the next room to play, because she had something to say to Wen Cheng alone.

Wen Cheng was prepared to be scolded, and he also prepared in his mind how to explain to her and make her calm down.

But Guan Liu didn't tell him about the variety show, she brought up another topic.

"Chen Ruoqing has a notebook in his hand. He originally wanted to leave it to you, but now he has changed his mind."

Guan Liu's tone was calm, but Wen Cheng knew that beneath that calm tone was a surging anger that he was trying hard to suppress.

Chen Ruoqing is the chairman of China Film Group and also the party secretary of China Film Group. He holds a pivotal position in the Chinese film industry.

Guan Liu came into contact with Huaying Group because of the movie "The Crow" and worked hard to get Chen Ruoqing's connection, and then introduced Wen Cheng to him at his own movie celebration party.

Chen Ruoqing had a notebook in his hand. He told Guan Liu that after the filming of Wen Cheng's variety show was finished, they could have dinner together.

However, after the variety show ended, Wen Cheng was suddenly "returned" by the program team, and was criticized by the official media for being a big shot, bullying ordinary people, and reaping what he sowed.

The State Administration of Radio, Film and Television clearly stated in the variety show rectification notice issued eight years ago that ordinary people should be the protagonists of the programs and should not be treated as foils or backgrounds for stars.

Wen Cheng blatantly condoned the young guests bullying ordinary people on the show, and he himself was equally arrogant. The official media’s criticism by name shows their attitude towards the matter, and the industry has to take it seriously.

So Chen Ruoqing never mentioned the dinner date again.

Guan Liu put in so much effort, but all of it went up in smoke just because he got angry with a kid on a variety show.

Wen Cheng finally realized the seriousness of the matter and finally understood why Guan Liu made such a fuss this time.

He said hastily: "I can explain it clearly to Mr. Chen, and I can also apologize to Gao Luo and Gao Shule."

Guan Liu looked at him quietly, with undisguised contempt in his eyes: "I think you should take a break for a while and let Chen Cong take over your job."

Chen Cong is an artist from the same company as Wen Cheng. The two have very similar looks and positioning, and originally the competition was fierce. However, after Wen Cheng won three gold awards in a row last year, the gap was finally widened. As a result, Shen Cong became increasingly depressed and demoralized.

Wen Cheng was extremely reluctant to hear that she asked Chen Cong to replace him in the variety show shooting.

Originally, he was still struggling with whether or not to continue filming the variety show "Wonderful Holiday". According to what Shen Siyan said, if Jun went to apologize to Gao Luo, he might be able to get her forgiveness and get permission from the program team.

But he couldn't save face.

Now after hearing what Guan Liu said, face and reputation are no longer important.

"I can continue filming, Liu Liu, please give me another chance."

Guan Liu raised his eyelids to look at him and said coldly: "I don't want to say it a second time."

After Guan Liu finished talking about this, he left. Jun ran back from the next room and found that his mother was gone. He sat down on the ground and burst into tears.

Wen Cheng was annoyed by his crying, so he picked up the water cup on the table and threw it to the ground.

With a "bang", the glass was broken into pieces. Jun was frightened by him, her mouth opened blankly, her cry was strangled in her throat, she dared not move.

The nanny heard the noise and rushed over, and heard Wen Cheng yelling over there: "How dare you cry! Your mother is angry because of you!"

The nanny quickly came forward to help Jun up from the ground, first checking if he had any injuries, and then accused Wen Cheng: "Mr. Wen, why are you so angry with the child? You scared him."

"What does it have to do with you! Get out! Take him with you!"

Wen Cheng was furious and told the two of them to get out.

The nanny immediately shut up and pulled Jun away.

Wen Cheng locked himself in the room. After a whole day and night, he finally calmed down a little.

He realized that it was wrong for him to lose his temper with Jun, but he couldn't control himself. Because he thought that if it weren't for him, none of this would have happened, his reputation would not have collapsed, Guan Liu would not have been angry, and Chen Ruoqing would not have changed his mind.

Wen Cheng felt that this was a warning that his career was going downhill, but he had just won three Best Actor awards, so why was he going downhill?

Wen Cheng was unwilling to give up, so he found his agent and asked him to think of a solution.

The agent was helpless: "What can I do? You've been named, and now everyone is avoiding you. It's no use for you to worry now, so why not take this time to have a good rest. When the storm is over, you can think of a way to clear your name. Anyway, there are so many gossips in the entertainment industry every day, and everyone will forget about you soon."

The agent meant to take a cold approach and wait until the storm has died down before making any move.

Wen Cheng now gets annoyed when he hears the word "rest": "I don't want to rest! I want to go film a variety show! You are my agent, you have to think of a solution for me!"

The agent was exhausted: "You know you're anxious now, but what were you doing during the filming? Didn't I remind you when the first episode was over? You came back for the second episode, so isn't this the result of your own doing?"

After the first episode of "Wonderful Holiday" ended, Wen Cheng's reputation had already shown a trend of declining and his popularity among passers-by collapsed. His agent reminded him of this, but he didn't care, because Guan Liu introduced him to new connections at the movie celebration party, all of whom were bigwigs in the circle. There was really no need to take the negative comments of a few passers-by to heart.

Wen Cheng is now speechless due to his agent's questions.

"If you don't want to take a break, that's fine. Here's a script. Take it and take a look." The agent took out a movie script and gave it to him.

Wen Cheng had seen that script before, but he looked down on it at that time because it was handed to him by Shunwen Media. The other party revealed that the female lead will be chosen from within their company, and it is likely to be Shen Siyan.

Chen Siyan is a newcomer and has only shot some short videos for the Internet, and has not done any serious film or television work. She wanted to use his status as a triple-Award winner to pave the way for her right after her debut. This was a great plan.

It was normal for Wen Cheng to look down on it. His agent had read the script and the content was okay, but he didn't want to take it because the other party was just short of having the five words "I want to use you" written on his face, which was really ugly.

But in this situation, there won’t be any other good scripts handed to him for a while, so his agent asked him to take a look at it first and think about it himself.

As an artist, your ability still speaks for itself. As long as you don't commit any illegal acts and as long as you are strong enough, the audience will not care whether you are a good or bad person.

Wen Cheng looked at the script and asked one last time: "Is it true that the variety show can't be filmed?"

The agent clearly replied: "It can't be filmed."

“Okay…” Wen Cheng took a step back: “Then can you not let Shen Cong take over from me?”

"This is the company's decision. Shen Cong is not under my control, so I can't make the decision."

Wen Cheng did not give up. He went to see the company's boss himself, and the reply he got was that he had no right to interfere in the company's decisions.

In the end, Shen Cong took over from him and participated in the filming of the third episode of "Wonderful Holiday".

The filming location for the third episode was chosen on an island abroad.

The guests set off in batches.

On the day of departure, Gao Luo met Ning Heng in the VIP lounge of the airport and realized that they were the first group of guests to depart.

Gao Luo felt resentful and asked Ning Heng why he put them in the first group, letting her "go to work" earlier and work a few more days than others.

Ning Heng turned around and asked her, "I was also on the mountain on your birthday, why did you only invite Duanduan and Jinqi and not me?"

When Ning Heng was editing the video, he found out that Gao Luo had her birthday that night and had even invited staff members to attend.

Gao Luo felt that he was being unreasonable: "I have a good relationship with them, but with you..."

"How about with me?"

Ning Heng gave Gao Luo a warning look. Gao Luo knew what was happening and smiled, "...I'll definitely call you next time."

He's a director, you can't talk nonsense. One guest leaves after each episode of this show. Who knows who will leave in the next episode.

Gao Luo laughed and complained inwardly: This director has so many things to do. It's my freedom to invite anyone to my birthday party, but he has to control this.

Then she saw Ning Heng take out a bag from his suitcase and handed it to her.

"What?" Gao Luo asked.

"Open it and take a look."

Gao Luo opened it and looked, "Slippers?"

Ning Heng emphasized: "These are not ordinary slippers, but ergonomic slippers that are both supportive and comfortable."

Although Gao Luo felt that the slippers were a strange gift, she still had to thank someone for giving her a gift.

"Thank you." Gao Luo said.

"You're welcome." Ning Heng replied: "My birthday is on the 18th in two months."

Gao Luo was stunned and asked, "What are you doing?" Why did he suddenly announce his birthday?

Ning Heng frowned: "What are you talking about?"

Gao Shule, who was standing next to her, showed her EQ for the first time and said to Gao Luo, "These slippers are a birthday gift from the director. Remember to return the gift when the time comes."

Ning Heng gave Gao Shule an appreciative look.

Gao Luo handed the bag back: "...I don't want it anymore."

Ning Heng shook his index finger and said with a smiling face: "No way."

Gao Luo gritted her teeth, angry but not daring to say anything.

When they were about to board the plane, Ning Heng came over again and said to Gao Luo, "Let me ask you a question."

Having just dug a "trap" for herself, Gao Luo was on high alert this time, "What?"

"At the end of last month, did you attend the celebration party for "The Crow Hides Crime"?"

Gao Luo was shocked when she heard this question suddenly, but she soon remembered that Wen Cheng was no longer participating in the filming of the show, so she said frankly: "Well, I participated."

"Who took you there?"

"I won't tell you."

"I know it even if you don't tell me. It's Meng Zhang."

Gao Luo was a little surprised to hear Ning Heng say Meng Zhang's name accurately.

"So, what is your relationship with Meng Zhang? Father and daughter?"

"I won't tell you." Gao Luo said.

Ning Heng stared at Gao Luo, observing her facial expression carefully. He saw that her eyebrows, which had been raised in surprise just now, quickly fell back to their original position, and he knew that he must have guessed wrong.

Since she is not President Tingfeng’s daughter, who could she be? Ning Heng couldn't figure it out.