Chapter 31 Scumbags Abound: Qin Weijin doesn't seem like a host, he seems more like...
The person in the photo looked very familiar. Mo Ningzhi had met him twice in person. Once was in the hallway when he stumbled upon a secret breakup, and the other time was at Qin Weijin's doorstep. Neither encounter was particularly dignified.
He knew that Qin Weijin and Yang Lian had a secret, intimate relationship, so close that they could even exchange addresses. However, Qin Weijin seemed to have lost interest and had been very cold towards Yang Lian lately.
Mo Ningzhi stared at the photo for a while, then looked away without revealing her emotions.
"Does Director Hou have any other candidates?" Qin Weijin asked.
"Yes, there are, but Yang Lian's image is the most fitting." After Hou Qing finished speaking, he noticed that Qin Weijin's attitude wasn't very enthusiastic. "What's wrong? Is there a problem with her?"
The filming process hadn't been going smoothly lately, and Hou Qing was genuinely worried about bringing in another troublemaker. That's why he didn't directly approach Yang Lian's agent to sign the contract, but instead turned to Qin Weijin instead.
Qin Weijin was silent for a few seconds, then said only, "As far as I know, her schedule is very full for the second half of the year, so she probably doesn't have the extra energy to work on another film set."
“It’s alright. She auditioned for the film crew before and said that as long as she can join the crew, her schedule can be adjusted, as long as she’s a good person.” Hou Qing breathed a sigh of relief. “In that case, I’ll have my assistant contact them to sign the contract.”
Now that things have come to this, Qin can't say anything more to Jin.
"What are you looking at?" Hou Qing stepped back and glanced behind him. It was empty, except for the wind and the scorching sun that could melt a person. There was nothing that could make Qin Weijin show such a lost and dejected expression.
The assistant who had been glaring fiercely at the photo just moments before had vanished without a trace. Perhaps he was extremely jealous, Qin Weijin withdrew his gaze and said in a low voice, "I didn't see anything."
Hou Qing glanced at his listless appearance and immediately understood: "You must have had an emotional outburst just now. You probably haven't recovered yet. I told you to rest for two hours. Why did you rush over here now? Okay, you can rest for a while. I'll go and get busy. I'll have someone bring you some iced drinks later. This weather is too hot, at least 43 degrees... How can anyone take pictures like this?"
Hou Qing left, babbling on and on. Qin Weijin heard a rustling sound behind him, his eyebrows twitched, and he turned around with some delight, "You..."
It was Xiao Guo who arrived, holding a coconut shell in his hand: "Brother Jin, this is coconut milk jelly that Yu Yu made herself. It was just taken out of the refrigerator to cool you down."
"What about Mo Ningzhi?"
“He’s with Yu Yu,” Xiao Guo said. “I just don’t know what happened, he seems a little unhappy.”
Qin Weijin felt a mix of emotions upon hearing this, finding it difficult to describe whether he was happy to have confirmed Mo Ningzhi's feelings or worried about the misunderstanding that hadn't been cleared up. It wasn't until his fingertips touched something slightly cool that he slowly came back to his senses.
"Brother Jin?" Xiao Guo called out cautiously.
Qin Weijin took the iced drink, took a sip, and the coldness of the beverage seemed to freeze right into his heart. He only ate a little before putting it down.
...
Mo Ningzhi was indeed unhappy.
This negative emotion came suddenly and overwhelmingly. When he tried to delve into the origin of this emotion, the other person was like a mischievous cat, sneaking into his heart, unraveling it like a ball of yarn, making a mess of it, and then suddenly disappearing, leaving him no way to catch it.
Mo Ningzhi had never felt such unusual emotions before, so he was a little flustered. He felt that he was hallucinating from exhaustion. His intuition told him that he needed to stay away from Qin Weijin for a while, so he drifted out of the film set in a daze and saw Zhang Yuyu setting up a table by the car and making cold drinks by herself.
Mo Ningzhi hesitated for a moment before going over to help.
Zhang Yuyu is a very skillful girl. Qin Weijin has a wide range of allergies, so she was probably worried that he might accidentally eat something he shouldn't. Many snacks had to go through her hands, and she would carefully check and taste them before giving them to Qin Weijin. The big star is a privileged person in public, but he is not troublesome at all in his daily life. He eats whatever he is given, and Qin Weijin himself has not raised any objections. However, this girl has become picky about food.
She became dissatisfied with the refreshing iced drinks available on the market. Two months ago, she and her driver, Xiao Liu, installed a fairly large refrigerator in the car and stuffed it with drinks and fruits so they could easily make some thirst-quenching beverages in their spare time.
Ningzhi, do you eat mangoes?
Mo Ningzhi was using a tool to pry open the top of the coconut, somewhat lost in thought, and the blade almost missed its target. "...What?"
Zhang Yuyu held out a box of yellow fruit pieces. "I wanted to ask you, do you want some mango chunks?"
"Oh, food."
"What's wrong?" Zhang Yuyu was very perceptive of other people's emotions. "Did something happen? You seem very down."
"No, I guess I didn't sleep well." Mo Ningzhi pried open a coconut in a few quick movements, and clear juice with a fresh and fragrant aroma overflowed out.
He seemed too preoccupied, not like he was alright. Although Zhang Yuyu was worried, she considerately didn't press him for details, because Mo Ningzhi didn't seem like someone who could easily confide in others and share his innermost thoughts.
Unexpectedly, only half a minute later, she suddenly heard Mo Ningzhi speak up, saying something rambling: "I just heard Director Hou say that the crew is short of actors for a role and they want to sign a star named Yang Lian."
Zhang Yuyu jumped to her feet: "What?"
She was so excited that she almost knocked over the shaky folding table. Mo Ningzhi quickly caught it, and the table full of fresh fruits was saved from damage. "Be careful."
"I'm so surprised." Zhang Yuyu glanced at the film set in the distance, then sat down again. "Are you sure? Are you really going to invite Yang Lian?"
Mo Ningzhi nodded and asked calmly, "Why are you surprised?"
“You haven’t been here long, so you don’t know, but Yang Lian’s relationship with our Brother Jin is very special.”
Mo Ningzhi nodded slightly, thinking to herself, "I not only know that the two of them have a close relationship, but I also personally witnessed their secret breakup."
“But I don’t know the specifics. Xiao Guo and I were both newly recruited assistants after Brother Jin’s comeback. Yang Lian started showing up every now and then when we joined the company,” Zhang Yuyu said.
Oh, so Qin Weijin's relationship with Yang Lian began five years ago.
Five years of love and hate, how unforgettable.
Mo Ningzhi suddenly didn't want to listen to other people's love stories anymore, but Zhang Yuyu had already started talking and couldn't stop for a moment. "Since you're spending every day with Brother Jin now, I'll tell you some things in advance. Don't have too much contact with Yang Lian. In particular, don't reveal Brother Jin's whereabouts and address to her. She used to always subtly probe Brother Jin's private affairs, and sometimes she would even barge into Brother Jin's house without any reason, almost causing a stir on social media... Since she's coming to the film set, we all need to be careful. Brother Zhan will probably talk to you about this kind of thing after he finds out. I shouldn't say too many bad things about her now, otherwise it would seem like I'm being petty."
“She’s Qin Weijin’s…” Mo Ningzhi frowned, lowered his voice, and thought of a word, “Ex-girlfriend?”
"no."
"..." Zhang Yuyu's sudden decisiveness surprised Mo Ningzhi: "How did you know?"
“Just guessing,” Zhang Yuyu said confidently. “Based on international conventions, Jin’s attitude towards Yang Lian is to keep his distance. This doesn’t fit the normal breakup process. If they broke up peacefully, Jin wouldn’t need to avoid her every time. If they broke up after a fight, their meeting should have been a huge fight. But neither of them did. So it’s clear that they have no emotional ties.”
Mo Ningzhi felt that this set of theories might not even work on a child. "Have you ever been in a relationship?"
Zhang Yuyu replied bluntly, "No."
"May I ask where this theory comes from...?"
She was terrifyingly self-righteous: "You've never watched TV shows or movies, have you? I've verified this theory many times, it can't be wrong."
"..."
You'd be a fool to believe that.
However, Zhang Yuyu's words were quite pertinent: Qin Weijin's attitude towards Yang Lian was indeed one of respectful distance. Logically speaking, if Qin Weijin and Yang Lian had truly been secretly involved for five years, their relationship shouldn't have been so blatantly concealed after their breakup.
To put it more narrowly, if we assume that one of them is at fault, then when they meet, one of them will inevitably avoid confrontation because of their guilty conscience. However, Qin Weijin's behavior is one of annoyance, helplessness, and indulgence that is unspeakable yet has to be tolerated.
After much thought, Mo Ningzhi could only come to one conclusion.
— Qin Weijin and Yang Lian did have a romantic entanglement. Whether their relationship was confirmed is still pending. In this relationship, Qin Weijin was unusually passive. After their undignified separation, Qin Weijin probably had some leverage over Yang Lian, which forced her to lead him by the nose.
But no matter what assumptions are made, the central theme remains the same: the two had a past emotional entanglement. Mo Ningzhi felt that this was probably the truth.
Mo Ningzhi suddenly felt a bit unmotivated and didn't want to go to work. But Zhang Yuyu had just finished a phone call while he was lost in thought, and turned around to say, "Ningzhi, Brother Jin said he's treating us to dinner tonight. Actually, Brother Jin treats everyone once after they join the company, but he's been too busy lately, so he'll probably make it up to you."
The unmotivated assistant didn't want to have dinner with the scumbag, but Zhang Yuyu spoke of it so solemnly, as if it were a tradition for every assistant when they joined the company, so he couldn't very well refuse.
Just as I was thinking of an excuse, the phone rang.
Mo Ningzhi finally found a less abrupt excuse, got up and walked away to answer the phone. When he answered, his tone was a little urgent: "Hello."
"Hmm? Why did you answer so quickly this time?" Mo Tingzhou was quite unaccustomed to his son's change, and after rustling around for a while, he asked, "Ningzhi? Is that you?"
"..." Mo Ningzhi frowned and glanced at the screen, thinking that he might as well go to a scumbag party. "What for?"
When he spoke again, his tone became stiff.
Mo Tingzhou breathed a sigh of relief; this was more like his son's tone, more like it. "I already know about your brother's matter..."
Mo Ningzhi said in a defiant tone, "I don't have a brother."
“...Okay, I’ve heard about Zhou Yaozheng’s situation. He really messed up this time. Dad has already disciplined him, and he won’t bother you again.”
Mo Tingzhou sighed, his expression neither one of disappointment nor relief. In any case, after he sighed, a thought suddenly occurred to Mo Ningzhi: "Was Zhou Yaozheng's election defeat one of your tactics?"
"What nonsense are you spouting, you brat?" Mo Tingzhou shouted, "Over the years, your brother... Zhou Yaozheng has been very filial to me. I've long considered him as half a son. There's no messy power struggle in our family. I won't give him what's yours, and the benefits he fought for should be his. I'm not so ambitious anymore, and I don't crave real power. The money I've earned over the years is enough for you to live on for ten lifetimes. There's no need for any underhanded tricks."
"Then why did he lose the election?"
“It’s because the project he was in charge of ran into problems locally, and it conflicted with the new policies…” Mo Tingzhou finished speaking intermittently, only to realize that Mo Ningzhi was not interested in these things, so he said unhappily, “Forget it, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you, and even if you did, you wouldn’t care.”
Mo Ningzhi was even more unhappy than him: "Then why did you call me? I'm hanging up."
"No!" The old man's voice cracked with anxiety. "Something's wrong. I'll send you an address. Let's have dinner together tonight."
"I'm not coming."
"..." Mo Tingzhou cursed his unfilial son, "Your brother is meeting his girlfriend's parents tonight, and our two families are having dinner together. It's not appropriate for you not to be there."
Mo Ningzhi was about to refuse when she suddenly remembered the information Li Yan had found out. She paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed, "Aren't you afraid I'll ruin everything at the dinner table? If I want to, Zhou Yaozheng's marriage won't go through."
Mo Tingzhou: "..."
I almost forgot that my son is a little devil.
Having run away from home for half a year and still not been coaxed back, the old man Mo, seemingly forgetting his son's terrible temper, said weakly, "You dare?"
"You'll see if I dare."
"..." Mo Tingzhou lost all his composure: "Ningzhi, it wasn't easy for your brother to get married again. As the old saying goes, it's better to tear down ten temples than to break up one marriage. Don't you understand this principle?"
"don't know."
"It diminishes your merit!"
"I have no merit."
"..." Mo Tingzhou was so angry that he lost his mind and blurted out, "Do you want to disappoint your Aunt Zhou? She has been preparing for this family banquet for a long time."
"..." The smile that had just appeared on Mo Ningzhi's lips suddenly faded.
It seems like everyone in this world knows that Zhou Suiyin is the best weapon to control him.
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. Old Man Mo seemed to realize he had spoken rashly and cautiously began, "Um, son..."
Mo Ningzhi hung up the phone immediately.
In the time it takes to make a phone call, his initial displeasure escalated into a multitude of grievances, like a powder keg ready to explode at the slightest touch.
The explosive barrel, hissing and floating, drifted towards the film set. Ling Mo had just finished filming a scene, which went exceptionally smoothly. Hou Qing's face gradually lit up with joy. As soon as he left the camera's view, he couldn't wait to come to Mo Ningzhi's side. "I told you you were interfering with me. Look, without you glaring at me like that, my filming went exceptionally smoothly."
Mo Ningzhi lifted her eyelids and said coolly, "You can't film just because someone's watching? You seem pretty smug about it?"
Ling Mo's expression changed. "I didn't. What nonsense are you talking about?"
Mo Ningzhi suddenly smiled, even her eyelashes curved, "Then I'm sorry, I'll be appearing in various corners of the film crew quite often, and you'll probably be getting some celebratory nicknames soon."
Ling Mo frowned: "What?"
"For example... NG Little Prince?"
"..."
It was better to let Mo Ningzhi vent his anger than to drive Ling Mo away. However, his emotions were calmer than before. He let out a deep breath and endured the pain to finish his work.
They worked until 7 p.m. before happily wrapping up their work.
Qin Weijin quietly urged the makeup artist to hurry up and remove her makeup. After changing his clothes, he went out and saw Mo Ningzhi still packing her things outside. He breathed a sigh of relief. Mo Ningzhi was too good at hiding. He was worried that she would disappear again in a flash.
"Brother Jin, are you all packed? Shall we go?" Xiao Guo walked over with his bag on his back.
"Hmm." Qin Weijin glanced at Mo Ningzhi, who had her back to him and remained unmoved, her whole body filled with resistance and non-cooperation. "You go to the car first."
Xiao Guo didn't suspect anything and turned to leave.
Mo Ningzhi sensed familiar footsteps approaching from behind, her eyelashes fluttered, but she wasn't in the mood to speak.
Qin Weijin waited a few seconds, and when no one started the conversation, he took the initiative to say, "Those things don't need to be packed up; we can still use them tomorrow."
Mo Ningzhi paused for a moment, then obediently withdrew her hand. "Okay, then I'll head back now."
"Aren't you going to eat?"
"No, thank you." Mo Ningzhi turned around, gave a polite smile, but her expression was somewhat distant: "You guys eat, I have something to do tonight."
Qin Weijin's mind was filled with the image of Mo Ningzhi avoiding him. Given that this person had a history of ignoring people, he subconsciously asked, "What is it?"
Mo Ningzhi finally stopped and looked up at him seriously. "It's after get off work hours now. Does Brother Jin have to pry into his employees' private matters? Even if I'm going on a blind date, does he still ask?"
Qin Weijin felt as if he had been pricked by a bunch of thorns that were neither hard nor soft. It didn't hurt, but it was a subtle, persistent pain. It made Qin Weijin feel like he was chasing after someone to collect a debt, rather than hosting a dinner party.
Qin Weijin felt as if his rationality had crumbled after that stab. In the face of Mo Ningzhi’s rare cold words, he almost dazedly said, “You can come back to us after you’ve finished your business.”
Mo Ningzhi felt that the powder keg he had just suppressed was starting to sputter and spark again. He felt that Qin Weijin really was as the haters in the group said: two-faced, playing with women in private, a complete scumbag, and pretending to be harmless in front of his assistants. He was simply a two-faced person with no bottom line.
"What kind of banquet is Brother Jin inviting?" Mo Ningzhi curled her lips, took two steps closer, and tilted her head back, staring straight ahead, "You really want me to go? Is it a trap or a free meal? Will I get fired if I don't go?"
Qin for Jin: "..."
Oh no, it seems he's really angered someone.
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Author's Note: I forgot to send out my leave request yesterday, and when I woke up, the sky was falling! I'll write a little more in this chapter. Goodnight, goodnight. It's been a while since I did a giveaway, so I'll be giving away 40 small red envelopes in this chapter. Sorry about that!
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