Chapter 63 Not everyone can have it...

It was the same man he had seen at the banquet last time. He stretched out his long arm and pulled He Jinping into his arms. "Why didn't you let anyone follow us?"

They were intimately acquainted, oblivious to others, without any restraint.

The well-tailored suit he wore added to his refined and gentle demeanor. But for some reason, Sheng Yi always felt that beneath this facade, there was something unknown.

After he appeared, He Jinping's smile disappeared, and she nestled obediently in his arms, letting him lead her to the car.

Sheng Yi watched them leave, then thought that she hadn't had a chance to arrange a next meeting, and wondered if He Jinping would contact her again after this incident.

Before she could figure it out, in her daze, the man came back.

He was tall, and even just looking at him from there carried a sense of looking down on him.

She wasn't unaware of the person's identity, but given her position, it was difficult for her to know more. And as the sole intermediary, He Jinping clearly had no intention of introducing them to each other.

Just as she was hesitating whether to greet him or turn around, she saw the other person nod slightly at her. As if thinking of something, a genuine gentleness appeared on his refined exterior.

"If it's convenient, Miss Sheng, you can make more appointments with her in the future."

Both of them knew perfectly well who "she" referred to. Just moments before, Sheng Yi had been pondering this matter, so when he brought it up himself, she naturally had no objections.

She nodded without hesitation, "I will."

It was clear that she was genuinely happy; there was no feigned shyness or carefully concealed flattery.

Sheng Yi felt that the person in front of her seemed to have something else to say, but after waiting for a while, he didn't say anything more. This seemed to create a strange disconnect between the person's condescending attitude and his words.

Could it be that she's mistaken?

The man's next words, however, froze her in place. He apologized to her, saying, "I've caused Miss Sheng a lot of inconvenience lately."

Recently? What does he mean?

Perhaps her surprise was too obvious, because the other party didn't let her guess any further, "The contract from a few days ago."

“There were two candidates at the time, one of whom—” As he spoke, he looked at her, and the subtle pause gave Sheng Yi a strange intuition.

Sure enough, he continued, "It is indeed Miss Sheng."

These were things Hongjie had never told her. She thought the comfort she received was just basic courtesy between friends.

So, she was already on the scales of judgment? Then, who added weight to her side?

At this moment, in this place, some answers need no further questioning. Sheng Yi glanced at the quietly closed car door not far away, a mixture of warmth and bitterness welling up in his heart.

The man spoke to her in the same calm tone: "Miss Sheng, there's no need to belittle yourself. In this industry, talent, luck, timing... all are indispensable."

He paused for a moment, a strange hesitation creeping into his voice, "But not everyone can have good luck, Miss Sheng, what do you think?"

"Thank you for telling me all this." Sheng Yi took a deep breath, realizing she still didn't know how to address him.

My surname is Chen.

"Thank you, Mr. Shen."

About ten minutes after He Jinping and the others left, Lao Qian finally appeared in front of Sheng Yi in his beat-up little car. "I just filled up with gas, and then I got stuck in traffic nearby."

Seeing Sheng Yi's dazed look, he couldn't help but speak in a fatherly tone: "Who were you drinking with in the middle of the night? You're a public figure now, be more careful."

He'd had a few too many drinks and been out in the wind for a while, and his brain was starting to feel a bit foggy again. Hearing the buzzing in his ear, Sheng Yi interrupted, "I know, thanks for your hard work."

"Wow, why are you being so sweet-talking all of a sudden today?"

Sheng Yi: "..."

After sitting slumped for a while, Sheng Yi remembered something else and asked him, "That trending topic from a couple of days ago, it must have cost a lot of money to take it down, right?"

Old Qian's smile hadn't even faded yet, unsure whether to continue smiling or not. He glanced at the woman beside him and said in a low voice, "It's alright."

It's hard to say which deity intervened, but he was already prepared to grit his teeth and settle things. After several rounds of bargaining, just as he was about to make a decision, the trending topic plummeted like it was being parachuted down.

He stared at it for a while longer, and there was no doubt that someone had used the "power of money" first. When he searched again a day later, all the relevant content had been deleted.

The situation escalated to that point, which would have already alerted the brand, and it's highly likely that the brand intervened. However, he didn't intend to tell Sheng Yi about it.

"Not bad... I guess?" Sheng Yi glanced over indifferently, her eyes not very clear.

Old Qian felt uncomfortable under her gaze, so he quickly cleared his throat and brought up another matter, "Did you read the script I gave you last time? When can you give me an answer?"

Sheng Yi hesitated for a moment before replying: "I'm still looking at it. I'll let you know in a couple of days."

After the historical drama that aired at the beginning of the year finished, many more scripts were submitted. The studio staff screened them beforehand, and in the end, only two projects were handed to her.

She played the female lead in one urban drama filmed in the city; she also played the third female lead in a movie, a minor role, but as a key link connecting the main storyline, she had her share of memorable moments.

When he handed it over, Lao Qian told her that he preferred that particular drama. Several of his roles last year received good market feedback, but countless other fleeting stars have emerged before. Whether they can keep up with the trend depends heavily on their current choices.

Of all her projects, the one that looks best right now is the second female lead in that fantasy drama. Now she's taking on a modern female lead role, which isn't a repetition of the same theme. And if it goes well, the female lead will definitely earn more than the supporting female lead.

As for that movie, in Lao Qian's words, the filming location was definitely not as comfortable as in S City. The director had previously made several films that were critically acclaimed but not commercially successful, but he was also overly meticulous about details. In short, the time and effort required to film this supporting actress was no less than that for the lead actress.

Sheng Yi had already read both notebooks in her spare time, but she also knew that at this crucial moment, every choice needed to be carefully considered.

My head is spinning, I'll talk about it tomorrow.

After taking a shower, Sheng Yi didn't fall asleep until the early hours of the morning. The next day, she woke up on time as usual. She was so happy yesterday that her forehead was still slightly sore.

She sighed deeply, lingered in bed for another two minutes, then sat up. She had a meeting with the brand in the east of the city in the morning, and the afternoon shoot was in the west; there was simply no time for her to stay in bed.

The meeting, originally scheduled for one hour, was still going on and on after an hour. Sheng Yi struggled to suppress her inner protests, while maintaining a gentle smile on her face at all times.

I didn't have much of an appetite when I left home this morning, and now I'm getting my comeuppance.

She secretly took out her phone and sent a message to Jingjing. Suddenly, Wen Shili's chat window popped up.

My hand moved faster than my brain; before I could even see what he had sent, I had already turned off my phone screen.

Looking up, she saw the person who had just spoken still talking fluently, while someone else was looking down, seemingly taking notes intently. The girl sitting opposite her looked to be about the same age. Their eyes met, and the other person gave a slight smile. Despite it being a polite and courteous greeting, Sheng Yi felt guilty. She forced a smile, then turned her head away, pretending to listen attentively to what was going on.

After finishing her meal and getting back in her car, she finally had time to check her phone again; more than two hours had passed since his last message.

Sheng Yi looked closely and realized the scene was clearly S City Airport. Had he returned? Just two days ago, when they contacted each other, he had said it wouldn't be that soon.

Wen Shili was used to her replying to messages only after she finished her work, and didn't mind. "Yeah, on my way home. Want to have dinner together tonight?"

Uh, Sheng Yi looked at the words that popped up on the screen. He contacted her as soon as he got back, and they should have met, but unfortunately, "It'll probably be very late today, let's do it another day."

Fu Xiaodan knew that she finished work early today, and the two had already made an appointment to have the meal they had previously shared.

Actually, given her relationship with Fu Xiaodan, bringing one more person wouldn't have been a problem. Initially, they planned to invite her and Cao Jun together, but Cao Jun went on a business trip abroad and hadn't confirmed when he would return. She also wasn't sure if she would be available afterward, so they decided to split up.

But putting aside the fact that Fu Xiaodan is unaware of her relationship with Wen Shili, given Wen Shili's status, his presence might actually prevent everyone from fully enjoying themselves. However, since he's already back, Cao Jun should have returned with him, right?

When the car arrived at the photography base, Fu Xiaodan replied to the message, "Same place as always. Cao Jun said it's OK. Just go there after you're done shooting."

After spring arrived, the days seemed to grow much longer. When Sheng Yi came out of the photography studio, he could still see the bright colors on the horizon, and the bare branches by the roadside, after the baptism of winter, also shook themselves up again.

The filming location and the dining area were in opposite directions. After the car entered the city, it was rush hour, and what should have been a short walk took more than ten minutes due to traffic congestion.

When Sheng Yi arrived, the other three had already been there for a while, and the atmosphere at the table was quite lively. Of course, it was mainly Fu Xiaodan and Cao Jun who were doing the talking.

Liang Hui remained shy, answering only with a few words. Seeing this, Sheng Yi and Cao Jun couldn't help but tease him. Later, Liang Hui and Cao Jun drank one glass of wine after another. Fu Xiaodan poured her some, and Sheng Yi covered the rim of her glass, pointing to her forehead, "My head still hurts."

Fu Xiaodan sat with her, and the two chatted for a while. In the middle of the conversation, the waiter brought another round of drinks. Sheng Yi lowered her eyes, and it seemed that they would not be leaving anytime soon.

Suddenly, Fu Xiaodan, who was standing next to her, spoke up: "Isn't this the wrong wine?"

Liang Hui and Cao Jun, who were both tipsy, exclaimed, "Huh?"

Fu Xiaodan asked her boyfriend, "Did you order this?"

Liang Hui cleared his mind, examined the bottle, and shook his head. Sheng Yi finally connected the wine with a certain number in his mind.

The waiter confirmed again: "Room 302, Mr. Cao."

Mr. Cao? There is one here. Cao Jun drank quite a bit tonight; you can't tell from his complexion, but judging from his reaction, he's probably drunk.

He hesitated for a moment before nodding, "Ah, yes, it's me." Then he grinned at Fu Xiaodan, "An engagement gift."

After the meal, the two were so drunk they were completely out of their minds. Fu Xiaodan hailed a taxi for Liang Hui and Cao Jun, while she went back with Sheng Yi.

The car pulled up downstairs, and the two chatted and laughed as they walked out. Sheng Yi responded while unconsciously glancing around. The night was quiet, without a single extra ripple.

Sheng Yi quietly breathed a sigh of relief and followed Fu Xiaodan upstairs.