Chapter 1
Just before filming was about to begin, Shen Li received devastating news: the second male lead in her new drama had been involved in a scandal.
Because he was playing a highly skilled bodyguard, he joined the film crew a month ago for martial arts training. Now that the training is complete, he has been exposed for soliciting prostitutes.
Overnight, it topped the trending searches, and clicking on it led to a police announcement in blue, effectively silencing and blocking the site.
The new drama "Detective Xie Huaixi" is the first S-level project after she and her agent established Qingli. From script selection to audition and casting, she was on tenterhooks every step of the way, not wanting to make any mistakes.
But things don't always go as planned; sometimes, what you fear most is exactly what happens.
"Try to look on the bright side. At least it wasn't exposed after the camera was turned on, so it didn't cause any more damage." That's what her agent comforted her on the phone.
Shen Li felt that she was too calm. After inquiring, she learned that after the incident, the director team had almost immediately found a replacement. The actress was currently auditioning, and the director would give them the actress's information after the audition.
Knowing this, her tense nerves finally relaxed. She lay down on the soft sofa and suddenly remembered what her husband had said to her during an argument before the project was even finalized:
You go to great lengths to want everything, but in the end you get nothing.
Is this a curse? How vicious!
Her husband has never supported her starting a film and television company, simply because he feels that she will be busier as she embarks on a new chapter in her life, and doing so would go against his and his family's current plan to have children.
A cell phone rang beside her. Shen Li looked at the name on the screen, and her head started to throb again. It was just like her wishful thinking had come true.
After the call connected, the first thing they asked about was the trending topic. On the surface, they seemed concerned, but in reality, they were testing whether she had calmed down.
"...Then after I finish my research trip, can I visit the film set?" The other person spoke softly and gently, with that familiar ingratiating tone that always appeared after an argument.
"Whatever you want," Shen Li said calmly as she hung up the phone.
This incident serves as another warning to her. In the three years of their marriage, only the first year was harmonious; since then, it has been filled with daily arguments and accumulating conflicts.
She didn't know when it started, but her husband was no longer as caring as he used to be. Hidden beneath his gentle exterior was a selfish and self-serving face.
Golden sunlight streamed in through the cracks in the bedroom window. The automatic curtains opened, revealing a clear blue sky outside—a delightful day.
But she had no heart to appreciate it; her heart was filled with sorrow.
She wants a divorce.
She was startled when the idea came to her, yet she also felt comfortable. All her worries, like countless intricate lines, finally converged at the exit, waiting for her to make a decision.
I should have realized that as time goes by, all that's left in a relationship is constant adjustment, and now even that adjustment is about to collapse.
My phone kept vibrating, bombarding me with messages.
Fang Wei: Still angry? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to force you.
Fang Wei: It's just that we're thirty now, and our parents are pressuring us a lot. I was also annoyed, so I said those hurtful things in a moment of anger.
Fang Wei: I know you had the idea of trying to conceive two years ago, but I was too busy with work and didn't seize the opportunity. Now that Qingli is in her prime, I shouldn't be asking you to compromise for me.
Fang Wei: Once I explain the situation to my parents, they will understand.
Looking at these messages, Shen Li felt a chill and suffocation rising in her heart.
She sneered and opened the voice message: "It's been two years, Fang Wei. Why didn't you say anything when you were too busy with your company and refused to try for a baby?"
If it weren't for my mother's accusatory phone call, I wouldn't have known you were lying to both sides, using my busy filming schedule as an excuse. You knew perfectly well that I was on break after winning an award and had only taken on one film.
Now that you've settled down, you've completely ignored my projects and suddenly want to start trying to conceive. It's like you're just treating me like a breeding machine. You haven't told the family the truth for so long; ask yourself honestly, were you just trying to slowly convince me?
After a barrage of angry words, there was no further response from the other end.
It's always like this: he gets to the point and then back off, without a sincere apology, without resolving the conflict, or making any plans for the future. Actually, if you think about it carefully, every time they argue, he tries to appease her if he can, and if he can't, he drags it out until she calms down, constantly testing her limits.
A wet tear trickled down her face. Shen Li raised her hand to catch the falling tear, got up to get a tissue, but tripped over the blanket and fell to the ground.
She didn't stand up immediately; tears streamed down her face in an instant.
"Get out of here, you dead blanket, dead bed, dead closet, dead sofa, dead chandelier, dead floor..."
With a sob in her voice, she cursed everything in the bedroom, feeling that she had vented all her negative emotions before getting up to go to the bathroom to wash away her tear stains.
Lately, bad things seem to be coming her in bulk. Even if something good happened, she wouldn't cry like this.
For as long as the online mockery of her new film's casting lasted, she remained dejected in her room.
Three days later, her agent came to her door and finally rescued her from the bed.
"The phone was off, and the doorbell didn't ring, so I had to ask Fang Wei for the password..." Cheng Qingqing said as she turned on the room light. When the light came on, she was stunned.
On the table were instant noodles, leftover sausages, and an empty protein bar box; on the floor were tissues, chip bags, and clothes strewn about...
The place was a complete mess.
“I don’t remember taking on any post-apocalyptic roles,” Cheng Qingqing said as she started cleaning. She noticed the script and loose pages at the foot of the bed, bent down and picked them up. “Since you’re thinking about the script, it seems there aren’t any major problems.”
"Go wash up and get ready quickly, I need to talk to you."
Shen Li's voice was a little hoarse as she asked, "Has the second male lead been decided?"
“The documents have been sent,” Cheng Qingqing paused in her action of opening the door, and said hesitantly, “I’m going to throw out the trash, you… we can talk when you’re ready.”
After washing up, Chen Li filled two glasses of water at the water dispenser, shuffled to the sofa in her slippers, and handed one glass to Cheng Qingqing: "Go ahead and say it."
"Someone you would never guess." Cheng Qingqing took out her tablet.
"Who?" Shen Li asked with interest, rubbing her reddened eyelids as she looked at the screen.
That one glance froze her in place, and the sounds around her rushed in like waves.
"Luo Mingxiu".
Shen Li's hand trembled involuntarily, and Cheng Qingqing noticed it and suddenly laughed.
"How's it going to be an interview with Ms. Shen, whose mouth has been blessed? Last week she dragged me to a private screening at the cinema, and while we watched the movie, we talked about the actors' acting skills, and she even said that the brat definitely wouldn't have the guts to come see you. Well, it seems she was summoned from the depths of her soul, and he actually came."
Shen Li said indifferently, "So what if he's here? I haven't even settled accounts with him yet. He disappeared for four years and cut off all contact completely."
Cheng Qingqing: "Settle the score privately. Your younger brother has acted in martial arts dramas before, so his action scenes shouldn't be too bad. Look at the audition clips that Director Liu sent out. Anyway, I feel he's quite suitable for this role."
Shen Li clicked into Director Liu's chat box and played the video. In the video, Luo Mingxiu was wearing a simple black short-sleeved shirt and ripped jeans, with a refreshing short haircut and a few strands of hair falling on his forehead.
After he finished tidying up, he looked at the camera, and almost instantly his aura changed. As he delivered his lines, his eyes seemed to pierce through the screen, which was astonishing.
Whether it's because of acting or because he's changed over the past four years, the gentleness of his youth is gone from his brows, replaced by coldness.
Putting everything else aside, when she saw this face on the big screen in the cinema before, she felt that it was quite suitable for the role of a guard in her new movie.
"How is it?" Cheng Qingqing asked.
Shen Li's eyes flickered, and she pouted, "The image is suitable, the acting is so-so, there's room for improvement."
Her saying that proves her acting skills are decent. Cheng Qingqing knows Shen Li well; she won't say a word to people she doesn't like and will simply pass them over.
"I remember you and this younger brother used to be quite close, how come you haven't been in contact for four years?"
Faced with Cheng Qingqing's question, Shen Li was unable to answer, because she didn't know either.
Luo Mingxiu's mother had worked as a nanny in her family for many years and had a good relationship with her parents. When she was in her second year of high school, Luo Mingxiu was brought to her home and lived with them as their godson.
Later, I heard that Aunt Luo was going to change careers. After Luo Mingxiu took the college entrance examination, he resigned and left the Shen family with his people.
After that, I lost contact with them.
Shen Li knew that Luo Mingxiu had scored high marks and was admitted to C University of Science and Technology. She knew that he and his mother must be living in C City, but she had never gone to see them. Her younger brother was an adult and had his own decisions. She was afraid that if she interfered too much, she would get an answer that he did not want to have anything to do with the Shen family anymore.
But when she stopped paying attention to him and her memories of him faded, he came back.
She only found out he was filming when his new movie, which he starred in, became a huge hit not long ago. She didn't understand what Luo Mingxiu was thinking. Being admitted to a top university after the college entrance examination was a completely different path from becoming an actor in the entertainment industry.
Looking back, aside from studying, he never showed the slightest interest in acting, yet now he has truly stood before her.
Has she grown up? Does she not understand him anymore, or has she never understood him at all?
In the afternoon, the director informed them that filming was scheduled to begin the next day. Shen Li and her assistant took a flight to H City and settled into an apartment they had rented in advance near Hengdian.
As dusk fell, she lay on her large bed in the bedroom, scrolling through Weibo after taking a shower.
The official Weibo account has changed the actor from Luo Mingxiu to Luo Mingxiu.
The original IP, coupled with Shen Li's starring role, already attracted a lot of attention. Any slight movement would trigger a wave of people to rush to investigate.
So in less than half an hour, Luo Mingxiu gained tens of thousands of followers on Weibo, and the news that he played the second male lead in Shen Li's new drama became a trending topic.
[Holy crap, he's been replaced by Luo Mingxiu, the male lead Qiao Yunfei from the currently showing youth diary!]
[Another newcomer, and he looks much more handsome than the previous one. Is there any gossip about him?]
[Didn't find any gossip, but found out this guy graduated from USTC (China University of Science and Technology of China), a top student from a 985 university!]
[Really? Wow.]
[Really, I'm his junior; he's on the school's wall of fame.]
[As expected, handsome and academically gifted men can't escape the entertainment industry. It's a quick way to make money, and with good looks, you don't have to work hard. Who wouldn't want an easy path?]
[Don't say that upstairs. Our Brother Luo only recently had his first starring role released. Before that, he was always playing minor roles. The road ahead is long and arduous. You can't survive in any industry without hard work.]
After reading through the comments, Shen Li became even more curious about Luo Mingxiu's decision to act. If he was going to take this path, why didn't he come to her sooner? She had been acting for so many years and had achieved quite a bit of success; why didn't she make use of her existing connections?
A new message popped up in the WeChat group chat for the film crew. Shen Li clicked on it and happened to see Director Liu inviting newcomers to join.
The second female lead spoke first: Welcome, welcome, @一颗梨, Teacher Shen, your loyal bodyguard has arrived.
Shen Li typed to correct her: It's Xie Huaixi's.
Immediately afterward, Luo Mingxiu greeted her from behind: "Hello, teachers." The group members politely chimed in, and then things returned to normal.
Shen Li exited the app and noticed a red dot at the bottom of the screen: "Shoo!" requesting to add her as a friend.
A subtle feeling welled up inside her, and she unconsciously curled her lips into a smile as she tapped the "accept" button.
Luo Mingxiu's nickname hasn't changed; it's still the character "咻," a homophone of his name "修." His profile picture is also the same—the one he took when he first started using WeChat, showing himself making hand shadows of a puppy in the light.
Four years ago, his profile picture turned gray one day, indicating that his account had been deleted.
Now, he's back in her contact list, alive and well.
Xiu: Hello, Teacher Shen.
A polite greeting came from the other end, but Shen Li pretended not to see it. However, she habitually changed the friend's nickname to her name, then placed her phone on the bedside table, lay down, and pulled the blanket over herself.
What's this brat up to? Pretending not to know me?
She's not replying; she's going to sleep.
Shen Li closed her eyes, wrapped herself in the blanket, and rolled over. A moment later, she rolled back over, got up, picked up her phone, and saw that the chat window showed the other person was typing.
She leaned against the edge of the bed and waited. A minute later, the other party was still typing.
"As expected, he can't even utter a fart." Shen Li chuckled and scolded, typed "hmm" into the chat box, sent it, put her phone back on the bedside table, plugged it in to charge, and went to sleep peacefully.
I don't know how much time passed, but in my drowsy state, I heard noises coming from the next room, the intermittent sounds disturbing my sweet dreams.
"Keep your voice down!" Shen Li shouted, her voice booming as if she were talking in her sleep. The noise disappeared instantly, her brows relaxed, and she fell into a deeper sleep.
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