Cohabitation
Zhou Qishen stood there with a tall stature, his white shirt unbuttoned, a grey suit jacket draped over his arm. He looked carefree and even spoke lazily: "Can you please stop calling me Mr. Zhou? It sounds strange."
"Ah?" Jiang Xiao's smile froze, and a few question marks appeared above her head. She hesitated for a moment, "What should I call you then?"
A vague guess arose in her mind: Could it be that he wanted her to continue calling him hubby? After all, they have obtained the marriage certificate and are a legal couple, so it seems nothing wrong to call him husband and wife.
But before, she had to flatter him and call him husband all the time in order to survive acting. Thinking about it now, she felt extremely embarrassed. Now that everything has been said and back to reality, she admits that she can't easily call him husband.
Zhou Qishen took in her troubled look and realized that she had misunderstood his meaning. He stared at her for a long time with great interest, and then raised his eyebrows slightly: "Be more casual, you can just call me by my name."
Jiang Xiao heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing this, but at the same time, she felt ashamed for her wrong guess. She smiled and nodded and said, "Okay, then I'll call you Zhou, Zhou Qishen from now on..."
Perhaps she was too nervous, and she stuttered when she spoke. The ending of her voice was a bit hoarse and helpless, which sounded awkward.
Zhou Qishen didn't seem to mind someone saying his name so unpleasantly. Instead, he curled his lips, and the upward arc was very beautiful: "Then I will call you Xiaoxiao from now on."
After he finished speaking, he patiently whispered her name twice: "Xiaoxiao, Xiaoxiao..."
His thin lips were slightly parted, a faint red, and he spoke each word with an extremely serious tone, as if he was trying hard to adapt to this new name.
After a moment, Zhou Qishen turned his head and looked into her eyes, staring straight into hers, and repeated in a low voice: "Xiaoxiao."
Jiang Xiao's scalp tingled when he called her that. The word "T" that she had been used to hearing since she was a child had a different flavor coming from his mouth, as if mixed with some unreal ambiguity.
Jiang Xiao thought she must have gone crazy. Her eyes flickered a few times and she shifted her gaze to the sidewalk next to her. She didn't dare to look Zhou Qishen in the eye, for fear that he would see something.
"Um."
After a while, she uttered a very light single syllable in response.
Unlike her awkwardness, Zhou Qishen still looked indifferent and dignified, without any unnecessary expression, and asked, "What did you want to say just now?"
Jiang Xiao's thoughts returned, and she turned her gaze to Zhou Qishen again, and asked cautiously, "Mr. Zhou, can we live together?"
She almost forgot the main purpose of agreeing to this arranged marriage.
A trace of imperceptible surprise flashed across Zhou Qishen's dark eyes. After a moment of silence, his voice became low: "You want to live with me?"
Hearing his hesitation, it was obvious that he had misunderstood her meaning, Jiang Xiao quickly explained: "I mean to live together, but sleep separately."
"Don't you want me to cooperate with you in playing a loving couple? Living together will make it easier for me to act with you, right?" The cool breeze from passing by blew Jiang Xiao's hair across her cheeks, making her feel itchy. She reached out and tucked her hair behind her ears, blinked her long eyelashes, and then added.
Zhou Qishen understood and raised his arm, indicating that they could discuss the specific matters after getting in the car.
The space inside the car was very wide, and a quiet atmosphere spread. Zhou Qishen propped up his chin and stared at her, then said, "If you don't mind, of course."
"There's no problem on my side." Jiang Xiao said firmly.
Of course she doesn't mind. She wishes she could live with him and get some traffic every day. If she gets married and changes her status, her traffic will increase directly to 45%. This is a good sign for her. She will be free once she gets 100%.
Zhou Qishen looked into her sparkling eyes and intuitively felt that something was wrong, but what did it matter? She had already married him, so even if there was a pitfall, he was willing to jump into it.
His eyebrows moved slightly, and a smile appeared on his lips, "Should I move over there, or should you move over here?"
After receiving so many benefits, Jiang Xiao felt embarrassed to trouble him again, so she said, "I'll move over."
"When are you moving in?" He nodded without refusing, and suggested in a gentle and slow voice: "How about this weekend?"
Jiang Xiao wanted to agree immediately, but she slapped her forehead and quickly checked the memo on her phone.
When Jiang Xiao saw the record in red and bold, she knew that her suspicion had come true.
After a few breaths of silence, he could only speak with deep apology: "Well, it seems that the moving matter has to be postponed. I have to join the crew to film in a few days, and I don't think I will have time to pack my things..."
The news was too sudden and Zhou Qishen was stunned.
The originally harmonious atmosphere suddenly became quiet.
After a long while, Zhou Qishen finally spoke: "How long will it take?"
"About three or four months?" Jiang Xiao wasn't sure. So many things had happened in those days that her mind was extremely confused. She almost forgot such an important trip.
This is a group portrait costume drama adapted from a male-oriented novel, set in the ancient Ming Dynasty. The cast and protagonist lineup are very luxurious. The male lead and supporting roles are all well-known seniors in the circle. She can only be regarded as the second female lead.
The director is also notoriously strict and naturally has high requirements. He pays special attention to the acting skills and strength of the actors. As long as the actor's condition and performance are not good enough, they will be re-shot. The actors who have worked with him basically can't stand his autocratic approach, and some are even so stressed that they cry secretly.
Therefore, after learning that she had passed the audition, Jiang Xiao deliberately stopped her schedule for the next six months, planning to settle down in the crew and concentrate on filming this drama.
The itinerary is roughly to shoot in Hengdian first and then move to location shooting. The shooting in Hengdian will take about one month, followed by about two or three months of non-stop shooting across the country. If you include publicity and other things, it will probably take more than three or four months.
In other words, as soon as you get married, you have to live apart for half a year...
Zhou Qishen proposed the marriage agreement just to deal with his family, but his partner was not in Beijing, so how could he help deal with the situation? It was totally contrary to his original intention.
In addition, there is another thing that bothers her, which is that her plan to attract traffic has to be put on hold.
It was because of her work that he had wasted his time. He was in charge of such a large business empire and must be even busier than her. So she couldn't shamelessly beg Zhou Qishen to take time out to accommodate her. She could only find ways to increase the frequency of their meetings despite her busy schedule.
Jiang Xiao was very annoyed. She intertwined her hands, clasped her palms with her slender fingertips, and said with some difficulty: "I will return to Beijing when I am free. Let's meet again then."
Zhou Qishen looked into her watery eyes, which were filled with guilt and regret, as if she was expressing her apology to him.
"Work is more important. It doesn't matter to me." Zhou Qishen's voice was calm and steady. He remained calm as always and expressed his understanding of her busyness.
This gave Jiang Xiao some confidence. She reorganized her words and said, "Have you been to Hengdian before? If not, you can come and visit when you are free."
She said this with some selfish motives and hints. If, she meant if, Zhou Qishen was willing to visit her occasionally during the filming, it would make up for the shortcoming of being apart, and at least allow her to get some traffic.
Zhou Qishen was a man who understood her implication immediately. "You want me to visit the set?"
Jiang Xiao tightened her grip on her palms. Of course, she wanted him to come visit her, but it would be a bit distorted if she said it directly, so she threw the words back: "If you want to come, you can come."
"Of course, I know you are very busy, and Hengdian is quite far from Beijing. If it is really not possible, forget it..."
At the same time, Jiang Xiao found a way out for herself to avoid being too embarrassed after being rejected.
"It's not that I don't want to go, but I'm afraid it will affect your career." Zhou Qishen paused for a while before answering: "If I go, aren't you worried about rumors spreading?"
It is normal for him to have this concern.
After all, Hengdian is the place in the country where it is easiest to run into celebrities. There are many fans waiting there, paparazzi taking pictures, and fans at the club. If you are not careful, you will be photographed, such as uncivilized behavior like smoking and spitting, or gossip and scandals.
However, as long as the marriage relationship between them is established, it is only a matter of time before it is discovered and exposed. Taking this into consideration, Jiang Xiao felt that there was nothing to hide. Anyway, she had never marketed her single persona. If she was photographed, she would announce it openly. If she was not photographed, she did not want to take the initiative to expose her private life to the public.
As her thoughts turned back, Jiang Xiao suddenly realized something. It was one thing that she didn't mind making it public, but what about Zhou Qishen? There probably aren't many entrepreneurs who would be willing to expose their private lives to the public, right?
Jiang Xiao glanced at him and asked in a low voice: "Well... after all, we are just in a contract marriage, not a formal marriage, so I don't plan to make it official, but if you are really photographed, I hope you can cooperate with me to do the public relations."
Zhou Qishen understood what she meant, his thin lips slowly raised, his tone sounded very happy: "Okay, I'll go."
*
After parting with Zhou Qishen, Jiang Xiao went straight home and started packing the necessary luggage.
Considering that she would be settling down in Hengdian for a long time, she chose to bring two suitcases, one for daily necessities such as skin care products, and the other for clothes. In summer, there is less fabric, so it is not difficult to pack.
Because of her work, she had many opportunities to travel, so she stocked up on a bunch of travel sets online. The originally cumbersome process was simplified a lot, and she had packed both suitcases in no time.
After the plane arrived in Hengdian, Jiang Xiao's life returned to normal, as if nothing had ever happened. If it weren't for the extra red book at home, she would even think that the experience some time ago was a dream she had when she was mentally disturbed.
After a night's rest in the hotel suite arranged by the crew, Jiang Xiao got up at around five o'clock, changed into a custom short-sleeved shirt prepared by the props team, and set out early to attend the opening ceremony at 8:18 in the morning.
As soon as she arrived at the scene, she heard someone greet her: "Xiaoxiao, long time no see."
Jiang Xiao turned around and looked in the direction of the voice. A tall figure came into view. His tall body was wrapped in a black tight T-shirt. His exposed arms had smooth muscle lines, and were well-trained to be camera-friendly. His honey-colored skin made his eyebrows look deep, his nose was high and his lips were thin. His facial features were extremely outstanding.
The person speaking is the male lead of this drama, Ji Changzheng. He has a tough and upright appearance, but his personality is exceptionally gentle and amiable, like an older brother next door. He debuted as a child star and has been rooted in the film industry. At the age of 16, he became the youngest winner of the Best Actor Award in the industry. He has a good reputation and strength, and has been popular all the way and has remained at the top. He has won all kinds of awards and is only thirty years old.
By the way, he was also nominated for the Best Actor Award at the Golden Ji Awards last year, but the trophy was ultimately won by Zhou Wenting.
Jiang Xiao has been filming TV dramas since his debut. The two of them were in different fields and had no intersection before. At most, they were just acquaintances at major dinner parties. It was not until last year that Jiang Xiao was invited to make a brief cameo appearance in a movie starring him that they officially met.
The two unexpectedly got along well on the set, so they added each other on WeChat privately, but they never had the chance to contact each other. The last time they contacted was after both parties confirmed to play the male and female protagonists in "Legend of Zhu Xi", and the other party took the initiative to send a message, and they chatted for a short while.
Our relationship cannot be said to be good, but it is not bad either. We are colleagues who are just average and can get along well with each other.
Seeing who the person was, Jiang Xiao raised an official smile and said sweetly, "Brother Changzheng, long time no see."
There is an unwritten chain of contempt in the entertainment industry, that is, movie stars are more important than TV stars and more important than idol stars. Every actor wants to make movies and win big awards. Jiang Xiao is no exception. There is no harm in building a good relationship with Ji Changzheng, who has been in the film industry for many years.
As for why Ji Changzheng suddenly started filming TV series, it is probably because the quality of TV series has improved and they have become extremely popular in recent years, and he also wants to take advantage of the opportunity to add another highlight to his resume.
Ji Changzheng slowly approached and his eyes fell on the girl in front of him. Her cold white skin and black T-shirt formed an eye-catching color contrast. Under her denim skirt was a pair of slender white legs. Her beautiful figure was curvy, and her fluffy hair cascading down was like rows of waves, smooth and shiny.
Jiang Xiao's beauty is undoubtedly very impactful. Her impeccable skin and figure allow her to give people a silent, soul-stirring charm even with light makeup, light lips and flirty eyelashes.
But perhaps because of her young age and strong confidence, there was no trace of vulgarity or flattery in her eyes, which made her charm even more sacred and made people dare not desecrate it easily.
Ji Changzheng never hesitates to praise beauties: "I haven't seen you for a few months. You are getting more and more beautiful."
Everyone likes to hear good things, and Jiang Xiao is no exception. The smile on her face deepened, and she seemed a little more sincere, and said in a worldly way: "No way, Brother Changzheng is getting more and more handsome."
Ji Changzheng chuckled when he heard that, and a deep laugh escaped from his chest: "Hahaha, really? It seems that my hard work in fitness over the past few months has not been in vain."
After they flattered each other, the atmosphere immediately became much more harmonious.
Soon, other actors also took the opportunity to join in, and with them at the center, laughter was everywhere.
Just when Jiang Xiao had told a joke and made everyone around her laugh, a remark from someone nearby instantly stopped the laughter and even the air became several degrees colder.
"This isn't a vegetable market, where did these stinky mosquitoes come from that keep buzzing?" A woman passing by glanced at the crowd, rolled her eyes in Jiang Xiao's direction, and impatiently called to her assistant, "Hurry up and bring me my headphones, it's so noisy."
These words are really harsh to hear, and the undisguised provocation in them is even more regrettable.
Everyone turned their eyes to the rude actress. It would have been better if they hadn't looked at her. Once they saw her, they were so impressed by her style and attitude that they didn't know what to say. Four or five assistants surrounded her, holding umbrellas, bags and coats, supporting her, handing her water and headphones, serving her like an ancient empress.
Everyone had different expressions, and they immediately understood who she was targeting. However, her words just now scolded everyone. Most of the people present were seniors in the industry who had been working in the industry for many years. None of them was a soft persimmon that could be bullied. If it were any other time, they would have scolded back.
But since today was the opening ceremony and Director Zheng would be there soon, no one wanted to cause trouble at this critical juncture. Everyone just watched her with their eyes and noses, thinking nothing of her, and ignored her.
But there was one person who didn't tolerate her and sneered and said sarcastically: "Hey, Sister Strong, I know you are a straight-forward person, but you can't use your mouth to do it."
"Pfft——" Someone couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Qin Yuanyuan was stunned at first, but soon realized what she meant and blushed, "You!"
Jiang Xiao leisurely admired her exasperated expression. After a while, he blinked and said, "What about me?"
The two of them confronted each other from a distance, and Qin Yuanyuan couldn't think of any suitable words to retort, and was at a disadvantage for a while.
However, she was usually arrogant, so even if she couldn't win with words, she also knew a little about fist and feet. When she was about to rush up to teach Jiang Xiao a lesson, she was interrupted by a voice.
"Director Zheng is here."
Director Zheng heard the argument from a distance. He glanced at Jiang Xiao and Qin Yuanyuan, who looked obviously unhappy. He gave them face and did not directly point it out. He asked casually, "What happened?"
A great director is a great director. He speaks in an intimidating manner without even getting angry, giving people a strong sense of oppression.
Jiang Xiao moved her lips and was about to speak, but unexpectedly, Ji Changzheng beside her spoke up first: "Nothing, just chatting together."
After saying this, he secretly gave Jiang Xiao a look, and the latter understood and silently shut up.
"The filming is about to start, so it's only right to get familiar with each other and build good relationships in advance. But I'll be frank with you. If someone doesn't think about how to make a good film and instead has some crooked ideas, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Although Director Zheng's tone was gentle and steady, his words were not polite at all. He directly warned everyone that if they dared to cause trouble, he would replace them in a minute.
Director Zheng has extensive experience in the industry and a wide network of contacts. If one does not have a strong background, offending him is equivalent to blocking one's own retreat. One will never have good resources again, which is no different from a soft ban. Everyone was shocked and were glad that they did not respond to Qin Yuanyuan's words.
Director Zheng left after he finished his lecture, and the others also dispersed, leaving Jiang Xiao and Qin Yuanyuan staring at each other.
Jiang Xiao and Qin Yuanyuan both have bright looks and similar acting styles. One is backed by Fengchao Entertainment, a well-established capital company, while the other is backed by Fenghua Entertainment, which is currently in its heyday. They are competitors both secretly and openly.
At first Jiang Xiao didn't notice the existence of such a person in the entertainment industry. It was until the other party bought articles to slander and imply things about him that she realized she had invisibly "robbed" him of many roles.
This time too, Qin Yuanyuan originally auditioned for the role that Jiang Xiao plays now, but the director finally chose Jiang Xiao, resulting in her only getting the fifth female villain role. Not only is her character unlikable, she also doesn't have many scenes and is just a marginal character in the play.
The two of them had been holding a grudge against each other for a long time, and this time they had a falling out in public, which made them truly enemies.
After a while, in order to prevent the two from having further conflicts, Jiang Xiao was pulled towards the stage by Ji Changzheng, and Qin Yuanyuan was persuaded to leave by the assistants.
All the main actors are present and the opening ceremony officially begins.
The official Weibo account of "Legend of Zhu Xi" announced the start of filming and released a message to confirm the cast. Fans of the leading actors and the original novel came to watch the news. From the character configuration to the costumes and makeup, to the direction of the plot, the discussion has been high and almost dominated the hot search list of the day.
After the ceremony, Jiang Xiao met with the production director and returned to the hotel to prepare for tomorrow's official shooting.
She curled up on the sofa and read the script, which was covered with dense annotations and the key parts were colored with markers. It was clear at a glance and well-organized, showing how much care she put into it.
Liang Cheng accompanied him quietly. After an unknown amount of time, she suddenly opened her mouth and said, "By the way, the acting teacher you asked me to find for you will be at the hotel tonight. I asked Xiao Zhang to pick her up."
In an era where traffic is king, there have been many actors like Jiang Xiao who are not from professional backgrounds but have become popular with their looks. Each of them is so exquisite and beautiful that they look like porcelain dolls displayed in a window, making it hard not to like them.
However, Jiang Xiao knew clearly that the popularity she enjoyed now was only temporary. As time went by, if she continued to stagnate, sooner or later she would be pushed off the counter by newcomers and turned into a pile of debris that no one cared about.
So instead of making a bunch of bad movies that people can't remember, it would be better for her to calm down and hone her acting skills, then carefully select a good script and a good role, and strive to make a representative work. This is what she should do most at this stage.
"Legend of Zhu Xi" is undoubtedly an opportunity for her transformation and improvement, and it is also a good opportunity to learn acting from her predecessors.
In this group portrait costume drama unfolding from the male protagonist's first perspective, she plays the charming innkeeper, who is apparently the male protagonist's long-lost childhood sweetheart. She and the chivalrous male protagonist form a five-member team to fight monsters and level up along the way, solving one mystery after another, and looking for the truth behind the tragic extermination of the male protagonist's family.
However, her real identity is the daughter of the biggest villain. She approached the male protagonist with a purpose from the very beginning, and was torn between the two factions, entangled in pain. In the end, she was killed by the villain to protect the male protagonist, which became a regret for countless readers.
This character dares to love and hate, is flesh and blood, and has a huge contrast between the beginning and the end. It is completely different from the roles she has taken on before, which means that the difficulty of acting is greatly increased. In order to play this role well, she must put in a hundred times a thousand times the effort.
For the past half month, she has been filming with the crew during the day and studying the script with her acting teacher in the hotel at night. She would also take the initiative to find Ji Changzheng, who has the most scenes with her, to discuss the next plot when she has time, in order to find the most suitable acting method for the role.
She goes out early and comes back late almost every day and is very busy. After returning to the hotel and taking a shower, she falls asleep as soon as she hits the bed and has no free time to look at her phone at all.
In such an isolated state, unless the other party bombarded her with calls, she would either ignore unimportant text messages or reply only when she happened to see them, thus missing a lot of text messages other than work messages.
Even for the occasional greetings from Zhou Qishen, who was very important to her at the moment, she took a long time to reply, so she inadvertently ignored the text messages from him asking to visit her on set.
By the time she discovered it, the message had already sunk beneath countless text messages.
I looked at the time and saw that it was sent around eight o'clock last night.
It was dark outside the hotel window. A whole day had passed. Jiang Xiao paced back and forth in the room holding her cell phone. She thought carefully and realized that she seemed to have just finished work and had a dinner with several leading actors. She turned on the silent mode and handed the phone to her assistant Xiao Zhang.
Because she had a filming early the next morning, after returning from the hotel, she was in a hurry to wash up and go to bed, and she never opened her phone again...
Regret suddenly swept over her heart, and after thinking it over again and again, she called the other party.
After a cold beep, a deep and pleasant male voice came from the other end of the phone: "Xiao Xiao?"
Zhou Qishen's voice sounded particularly stable, without any sign of anger. Jiang Xiao's uneasy heart gradually calmed down, but she couldn't help but tighten her grip on the edge of the phone and softened her voice: "It's me."
"What's wrong?"
"Well, I've been too busy these days and haven't had time to check my phone, so..." I forgot to reply to the text message.
Jiang Xiao fell silent as she spoke, her lips opened and closed, and she couldn't finish the next few words because no matter from which angle she looked at it, her words sounded like a useless excuse.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Qishen did not blame him, and his tone was as calm as before: "It's okay, I understand, you have worked hard these days."
Jiang Xiao bit her lower lip. It was undeniable that she was moved by his words at this moment. After all, she was the one who ignored the news first. It was already good enough that the other party spoke to her in a nice tone, not to mention that he cared about and comforted her in return.
The thumping sound of her heart was particularly obvious in the quiet room. Jiang Xiao asked tentatively in a low voice: "Then...are you still coming?"
There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds. When he spoke again, his clear voice was mixed with a bit of apology: "Sorry, I'm at the airport now. I have to go to New Zealand on a business trip for a while, so I may not be able to come."
Hearing the news, Jiang Xiao lifted her hair and felt even more annoyed that she had missed the news. But now she could only accept the current situation and asked, "How many days will you be gone?"
"It will probably take two weeks."
Business trips of this length are usually planned in advance. Jiang Xiao instantly realized that today might be the only day he had time to see her during this period. However, because she did not reply to him in time yesterday, he had to change his schedule for today and missed the opportunity.
Realizing this, Jiang Xiao couldn't help but feel a little disappointed: "Is that so..."
As if he could sense her unhappiness, he breathed faster and said, "Xiaoxiao, I'll be back as soon as possible."
The more he listened to these words, the more they sounded like the advice a husband would give to his wife before leaving, or like he was promising her that he would make up for the regret of not being able to come this time. Jiang Xiao couldn't help but be moved as she listened to them, and her heart seemed to skip a beat.
After a while, she shook her head gently, trying to put aside her unusually agitated emotions.
"It's okay. Work is more important. You can come anytime." At the end, she lost her mind and added inexplicably: "It doesn't matter if you don't come."
As she finished her words, they all fell silent and the silence spread.
After a while, he murmured, "Don't you need me to come now?"
Jiang Xiao was confused by his aggrieved tone and didn't react for a moment: "What?"
He didn't answer her question, and the atmosphere fell into an eerie silence again.
It wasn't until the airport broadcast prompt sounded that Zhou Qishen's voice came again in a trance: "Xiaoxiao, don't forget that it is written in the contract that you are not allowed to cheat during marriage."
Jiang Xiao was keenly aware of the hidden anger and warning in the call, and became more and more confused. Just as she was about to ask more questions, the call page on her phone suddenly ended and returned to the desktop.
The other party hung up the phone.
*
The private terminal of Weixing International Airport is 25 kilometers southwest of the city center of Beijing.
Assistant Chen Lie had just finished handling the relevant formalities and returned to his seat when he happened to see Zhou Qishen staring at his phone in a daze. He couldn't help but feel a little surprised. The boss has always been emotionally stable, decisive and omnipotent, yet there are things in this world that make him worry.
As one of Zhou's most promising employees, he knew the way to survive and would not be stupid enough to take the initiative to pry into his boss's private affairs. He walked forward with his head lowered and said, "Boss Zhou, you can board the plane."
Zhou Qishen concealed the dark color in his eyes without making a sound, and returned to his usual cool and indifferent attitude, saying calmly: "Have someone remove the top spot on the trending search."
Chen Lie nodded in understanding, took out his mobile phone and opened a certain orange-red software. The first hot search read: #Jiang Xiao and Ji Changzheng’s relationship exposed#.
If you scroll further down, you will find that most of the entries are related to it. He is one of the few people who know about the boss and Jiang Xiao's secret marriage. No wonder the boss has had a stern face since the afternoon. How can a good man not be jealous when he sees his wife having an affair with another man?
"I'll do it right away." Chen Lie nodded, thinking that there seemed to be more than one hot search that needed to be removed.
Zhou Qishen narrowed his eyes slightly and looked back at the phone screen, staying on the chat page with Jiang Xiao.
For each individual green text message on the right, a black time divider will appear in the center. The screen is so long that only five or six messages can be loaded before it reaches the top.
The latest one came from him, sent at 8:20 last night: Are you free tomorrow? I'm here to visit the set.
No reply.
At that time, she was having dinner with the man who was on the hot search.
He and Jiang Xiao were married by agreement, and he personally had no right or position to question their relationship. Apart from using the contract to bluff and remind her, there was nothing he could do.
Thinking of this, Zhou Qishen closed his eyes irritably, and his long eyelashes swept down, covering his dark eyes like a deep pool. The light black mole above his left eyelid was completely revealed, showing a sense of perverseness and sharpness, and he seemed to be in a very unhappy mood.
However, the more he tried to calm down, the more he couldn't do so. After a while, he opened his eyes, swiped the screen twice with his index finger, and turned off the phone neatly.
Out of sight, out of mind.
*
Jiang Xiao slumped on the sofa, looking at the overwhelming hot searches, holding her forehead in silence.
The crew went out for dinner together, but the paparazzi took a photo of her and Ji Changzheng entering the restaurant together, and tagged the photo with a suspected relationship exposure, easily sending her and Ji Changzheng to the top of the trending searches.
How do rumors come about? That's how it happened.
Taking things out of context and being irresponsible.
At this moment, she also understood what Zhou Qishen meant by his sudden words "no cheating within marriage". He must have seen the trending search and misunderstood the relationship between her and Ji Changzheng. He was reminding her in disguise that a married woman should learn to keep a sense of propriety with other men.
When she saw the trending search, she called Zhou Qishen back immediately, but his flight had probably taken off and the phone was turned off. She suddenly had no way to seek justice. Apart from editing two messages and sending them to explain, there was nothing else she could do.
In this regard, Jiang Xiao, feeling aggrieved, called Liang Cheng and stated her request directly: "Sister Liang, ask the company to dispel the rumors about Ji Changzheng and me."
When Liang Cheng on the other end of the phone heard about this, he curled his lips indifferently: "That thing is fake at first glance, what's the point of refuting it? It's best to ignore this kind of fake news. It will be gone in a few days. Just think of it as adding some heat and discussion to the drama."
Jiang Xiao sighed: "Sister Liang, you know I'm married. It would be terrible if it were to come out in the future."
Some unscrupulous marketing accounts like to make groundless accusations and publish irrelevant content. In the past, Jiang Xiao's attitude would be the same as Liang Cheng's. As long as it did not involve serious personal attacks or exposure of privacy, she would turn a blind eye and let them do whatever they wanted.
But things are different now. Allowing false rumors to spread will not do her any good in the future.
Liang Cheng pondered for a while and felt that her concerns were correct. He decided to deal with the matter later as she said. He thought so in his heart, but he did not forget to tease: "Okay, okay, I understand, you are a strict husband."
Jiang Xiao rolled her eyes and didn't respond, which was considered as her agreement with this statement.
What can she do? Although she and Zhou Qishen only had a marriage certificate and were not actually husband and wife, they still had to fulfill their marital obligations. After all, she had received a lot of benefits from the other party, so she still had to abide by the most basic terms of the contract.
Even though there was nothing ambiguous between her and Ji Changzheng and it was purely fabricated by a marketing account, it was not a big deal for it to remain on the hot search list, so it was better to clarify it as soon as possible.
After a while, Liang Cheng's surprised voice suddenly rang out: "Hey, wait, when was the trending search removed?"
Jiang Xiao was stunned when she heard this, then she temporarily exited the call, clicked on the hot search and quickly refreshed it, and found that just as Liang Cheng said, the first place in the hot search had been replaced by the second one, and the rest of the related entries had been deleted completely.
"What's going on?" Jiang Xiao was stunned, with three question marks flashing across her mind. Her first reaction was to think that Ji Changzheng had intervened.
Liang Cheng was also puzzled, but soon figured it out. She chuckled and said, "Could it be your husband who did it?"
“……”It’s not impossible.
"Since someone has taken action, I don't care anymore. I'm hanging up first. I still have to help that brat Jiang Yihuai find a new variety show." Liang Cheng finished complaining to himself and hung up the phone.
Liang Cheng brought in two artists in total, one was Jiang Xiao, and the other was Jiang Yihuai, a newcomer who debuted as a model, a carefree and funny boy. The company planned to develop him into a variety show star, first to attract some fans and gain some popularity, and then switch to filming after laying a solid foundation.
Jiang Xiao threw her phone away and leaned her upper body downwards, sinking into the soft blanket. She had been shooting action scenes all day and her whole body ached as if she had been run over by a car.
If she hadn't read the text message from Zhou Qishen before going to bed, she would probably have been playing chess with Zhou Gong in her dream.
Sleepiness gradually came over her, and Jiang Xiao closed her eyes, intending to ignore everything and rest. However, within a few seconds, she got up, found the mobile phone she had thrown in the corner, sat cross-legged, and started operating it.
First, I logged out of the small account that I usually use to surf the Internet, then logged into my main account, clicked on the edit page, selected a group photo of last night's dinner in the album, thought for a moment, typed a line of words, and captioned: Good friends having dinner together.
Finally, don’t forget to add two happy emoticons and the "Legend of Zhu Xi" tag.
Less than a minute after pressing the publish button, the comment section was flooded with messages from fans. Jiang Xiao also saw several familiar fan names, most of whom were helping to control the comments and deny the relationship.
As expected, my personal intervention to dispel the rumors was more effective than anything else.
She forced herself to stay asleep and browsed the comment section for a while. Seeing that things developed as she expected, Jiang Xiao turned off the lights contentedly, lay down, closed her eyes and went to sleep peacefully.
The next afternoon, she received a reply from Zhou Qishen.
The first one is: I misunderstood you, I'm sorry.
Followed by the second one: forgive me.
The third one came with an emoji of a cat with a flattering smile and holding a rose.
Jiang Xiao looked at this cute expression pack that was totally inconsistent with his image and couldn't help but laugh out loud, covering her lips. It takes about twelve hours to fly from Beijing to New Zealand. It seems that he replied to her text message as soon as he got off the plane.
Ji Changzheng, who was sitting next to her, accidentally caught a glimpse of Jiang Xiao's brilliant smile. He was stunned for a moment, and seeing that she had been staring at her phone, he couldn't help but ask curiously, "Xiaoxiao, what are you looking at? You're smiling like that."
Jiang Xiao shook her head: "I'm not watching anything, I'm chatting with someone."
At this time, the assistant director reminded that the shooting was about to start. Jiang Xiao only had time to reply with a playful emoticon, then turned off the screen of her phone and handed it to her assistant, asking the makeup artist waiting nearby to touch up her makeup.
Ji Changzheng mentioned the misunderstanding last night: "Did you withdraw the trending search last night?"
After he saw the update posted by Jiang Xiao last night, he realized that the other party did not want to take the opportunity to hype up the relationship. Coincidentally, he was not a person who liked hype, so he immediately forwarded her update, which was a disguised denial of the relationship rumors.
Jiang Xiao was just guessing that Zhou Qishen had been removed from the hot searches, and she didn't know who actually removed it. However, she couldn't take the initiative to mention Zhou Qishen's existence to Ji Changzheng, so she just gave a vague "hmm".
"It's quite funny to say that even a meal can cause a scandal." Ji Changzheng found it ridiculous when he thought about it now. A group of people were coming in and out to eat, but they could single him and Jiang Xiao out to make the news. The paparazzi were really capable.
"Who says it's not?"
Jiang Xiao pursed her lips tightly, letting the powder puff fly back and forth on her face, so her words were a little slurred.
I don’t know if it’s because the makeup artist’s technique was too simple and rough, but Jiang Xiao’s eyes and nose twitched from time to time out of fear. Her red lips were pursed into a curved line, and her cheeks puffed up, making her look chubby and cute.
Seeing this, Ji Changzheng smiled silently, his lips raised slightly, and he couldn't help but reach out to help her tidy up a strand of messy hair hanging from her temples, and quietly tied it behind her thin shoulders.
Jiang Xiao didn't notice Ji Changzheng's little movements at all. She was completely focused on her face. Her nose was extremely sensitive. If the makeup artist continued with this technique, she would probably be irritated and sneeze soon.
After a while, she whispered to the makeup artist to "help her": "Teacher, is it done? Is it done? I feel like the powder has gotten into my nose."
Upon hearing this, the makeup artist stopped immediately: "Okay, okay."
Finally freed, Jiang Xiao wanted to scratch her itchy nose, but was afraid that rubbing it carelessly would ruin the makeup artist's hours of hard work, so she could only force herself to fan herself with her hands. Should I say it, this method did have some effect.
So he increased his strength, trying to make the wind come stronger.
Ji Changzheng was once again amused by her flapping her hands in an attempt to divert her attention, and he kindly used the script in his hand to fan her to help relieve her itch.
"Thank you." Jiang Xiao thanked with a smile.
Ji Changzheng lowered his eyes to look at her and said gently, "It's a small matter."
The shooting was going well, and before we knew it, another day had passed. It was almost July in Hengdian, which could be described as a hot summer season.
The temperature continued to rise, and people basically carried a parasol and a small fan with them when they went out. However, in such weather, Jiang Xiao felt cold all over from time to time, with one shiver after another, which made her wonder if she had a cold.
During the break on the set, Jiang Xiao went back to the RV and lay down for a while. Thinking that the time was almost up, she reapplied her sunscreen, put on a thick headscarf and layer upon layer of ancient costumes, bent over and walked out of the car door.
The oncoming sunlight was so bright that she couldn't open her eyes for a while, and the feeling of discomfort came over her again. Fortunately, her assistant Xiao Zhang immediately put an umbrella over her head, and she felt much better.
"Sister Xiao, are you okay?" Xiao Zhang couldn't help but feel worried. Jiang Xiao's physical condition had visibly deteriorated in the past few days, and her spirits didn't seem as good as when she first joined the crew.
Jiang Xiao stood there for a while, thinking that it was just dizziness caused by sitting for a long time and the sun. She didn't take it too seriously. She waved her hand to indicate that she was fine, and then rushed to the shooting site without stopping.
However, two days later, her physical condition still did not improve, and she even had signs of fever. After Xiao Zhang's repeated persuasion and company, Jiang Xiao had no choice but to ask the director for leave and take time to visit a clinic near the hotel.
After completing the basic examination, the doctor said that there was nothing wrong with her body, but she just had hypoglycemia due to overwork. He asked her to go home and have a good rest, and come back for a checkup if her condition worsened.
Jiang Xiao heaved a sigh of relief after hearing this answer. Feeling embarrassed to trouble others, she declined Xiao Zhang's offer to stay and take care of her. She planned to go back and have a good sleep, and maybe she would feel better the next day.
Back in the hotel room, Jiang Xiao reached out and touched her feverish forehead. She intuitively felt that the temperature was unusual, but when she measured her temperature in the hospital, it showed that everything was normal, leaving her a little confused.
After simply wiping her body and changing into her nightgown, Jiang Xiao planned to drink some water and go to bed to rest.
When I walked to the low table and was about to bend down to pour hot water, my eyes suddenly fell into darkness and my body fell forward uncontrollably. I accidentally knocked over the handbag on the table, and tissues, lipstick, makeup mirror, charging cable... some of my personal belongings were scattered all over the floor.
Crackling.
The piercing sound awakened Jiang Xiao's consciousness. She managed to grab the edge of the table just before she fell and stabilized her body. She stayed in this strange posture for a long time before she barely regained consciousness.
After regaining consciousness, Jiang Xiao covered her chest with her hands in fear, and endured the discomfort. She squatted down and found her cell phone among the scattered debris. In her current state, she didn't know when she would faint, so she had to find someone to accompany her.
However, just as she was about to call Xiao Zhang and ask her to come to her room, the system that had not appeared for a long time popped up again.
【System 003: This is the side effect of your failure to fulfill the system's mission, my lord. Don't panic. 】
Jiang Xiao stopped unlocking her phone and was so angry that she almost vomited blood: Side effects? What are the side effects? If there are side effects, why didn't you tell me earlier?
【System 003 (spreading his hands in grievance): The key is that you didn’t ask, my dear. 】
Jiang Xiao was speechless. She really admired this stupid system. Did it have to answer her questions? Isn't it the most basic thing to inform the awakened ones of the conditions and limitations for completing the task? How else would she know?
【System 003: Having enough traffic can indeed help you escape your inevitable death, but on the other hand, if you don’t have enough traffic, your energy will become weaker and weaker, and your body will become worse and worse until you are on the verge of death. 】
【System 003: Although you won’t die immediately, if you stay away from the villain for too long and your energy is completely gone, the system may automatically judge you as giving up the mission, and then kill you. 】
The "but" that she didn't finish saying at the police station that day turned out to be referring to this. She had read many novels about systems, and she dared to say that the one she had was the most useless one, no doubt about it! I think about her worthless life every day.
How long had it been since she and Zhou Qishen broke up? More than twenty days? It’s not even a month yet, so what the hell is the energy not enough?
But what’s the point of complaining all the time? It would be better to think of a way to solve the current predicament. Jiang Xiao decided to go to the hospital first. If she became critically ill before Zhou Qishen returned home, at least the doctor could give her emergency treatment.
【System 003 (scratching his head in confusion): Which hospital? Isn't the most urgent task to get to the villain? 】
Jiang Xiao: Is it that I don’t want to go? But he is far away in New Zealand, how can I get there? Fly over?
She remembered that Zhou Qishen said the business trip would take about two weeks. Counting from that day, a week and a half had passed. It would only take a few days for him to return home. If she urged him again, she might be able to force him to come back a day or two earlier.
Thinking of this, Jiang Xiao immediately sent a text message to Zhou Qishen: When will you come back from New Zealand?
Fearing that her urging was not strong enough, she gritted her teeth and added a cheesy sentence: I want to see you, I really, really want to see you.
[System 003 (even more confused): That’s not right, the villain is clearly here…]
However, before the system could finish its words, it was interrupted by an urgent doorbell.
At this time, Jiang Xiao also saw the reply from the other party on the phone: Open the door.
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