Chapter 20 Meeting in a Skirt
"Oh! How could you be so careless!" Li Wan exclaimed.
"Are you alright?" Several people stood up, took out tissues and handed them to Li Xu, then cleaned up the broken pieces on the table.
"Call a few waiters in!" The words had barely left his mouth when someone went to open the door. "Waiters!"
"Sorry, my hand slipped." Li Xu wiped her hands with a tissue and made way for the cleaning staff.
The noise seemed to be coming from a great distance. Director Zhang asked him if he had hurt his hand. He took two seconds to look up and said, "I'm fine."
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the little girl sitting next to Zong Linhan talking to a staff member, her head slightly lowered, as if she didn't dare to look in his direction at all.
After the dinner, Li Wan drove Li Xu, who had been drinking, home. Popular internet songs played in the car, sounding both corny and upbeat.
Stopped at the traffic light, she swayed to the rhythm of the catchy tune, humming off-key. Usually, Li Xu would cover his ears at this point, looking utterly hopeless, but today he closed his eyes, leaned against the passenger seat, and remained silent.
The red light turned green, and Li Wan turned the steering wheel. "How could you be this drunk after just a few drinks?"
Li Xu raised his eyes slightly, but didn't say anything, staring at the dark mountains in the distance.
The car turned into the mountain and water villa area. Li Wan parked the car at the entrance, took out a lipstick to touch up her color, and waited for a while before Li Xu got out of the car.
Li Xu said, "Add me to the group."
Li Wan: "What group?"
Li Xu: "Hey production team, you've created a guest group, right?"
"If we were to form a group, we would definitely include you. If we didn't form a group today, we'll probably wait until the show starts filming." Li Wan rolled her eyes. "I told you to come earlier, but you didn't. Now you know how to fake enthusiasm."
Li Xu got out of the car, not wanting to listen to another word of nagging. Li Wan adjusted her hair in the rearview mirror. Li Xu didn't leave after getting out of the car, but stood by the door. Li Wan raised an eyebrow, "Do you still recognize your house? It's just behind. Turn around, one, two, three, hey, we're here!"
Li Xu remained motionless.
The streetlights cast a warm yellow glow in the night, and his face, flushed from the alcohol, furrowed as if he had a thousand words to say, "Don't you think..."
His voice was soft, and Li Wan propped herself up with her hands, straining to hear him clearly, "What?"
Li Xu rubbed his temples. "It's nothing."
The car door slammed shut with a loud bang.
Li Wan: "..."
I think you've got something wrong with your head.
As soon as Li Xu entered the door, Aunt Wen greeted him and asked if he wanted some soup. "Madam made ginseng chicken soup. She started simmering it this afternoon and has been waiting for you to come back and drink it."
The living room was decorated in a lavish style, with a huge crystal chandelier shimmering with light, bearing no resemblance whatsoever to the elegant image of the pop diva, Ms. Lin. The empty, desolate atmosphere was also completely at odds with her warm public persona.
Li Xu said calmly, "Auntie, you should drink it."
Since no one is here, there's no need to put on a show for anyone.
"Oh, this isn't a good idea..."
Li Xu went upstairs, entered the room, and threw himself heavily onto the bed.
With her arm pressed against her eyelids, her blood flow accelerated after drinking, and her heart pounded intensely. The room, cleaned and sprayed with a woody perfume, transported Li Xu back to an afternoon six years ago.
In the height of summer, at dusk, Tchaikovsky's "Barcarolle in June" echoed through the campus. He slung his school uniform over his shoulder, walked past the people blocking his way, and jogged towards the gate. As he approached the roadside trees, he slowed his pace, even his breathing became gentle.
A young girl sat on the stone stool by the door, wearing a long cotton dress and with her long black hair cascading down her back. Her profile was gentle, her expression focused, as she looked at the book in her hands. The book was thick and large, as long as her forearm. A breeze blew a page across the page, and her slender fingers pressed it down.
His heart was racing then, just like the reaction after drinking a large amount of liquid and the alcohol fermenting in his body. Li Xu's eyelids twitched slightly. The person in his dream seemed to sense something, smoothing her hair as she turned to look at him. Unfortunately, she disappeared just before she turned her head.
His body felt heavy, and his limbs were swollen and weak. Piano music echoed downstairs, played smoothly and naturally. Li Xu glanced at the time; it was one in the morning. Ms. Lin had returned.
As dreams and memories overlapped, Li Xu sat up on the edge of the bed.
She changed her name; she's now called Wen Zhiling.
She transformed into the young lady whom the Zong family had found.
...How is that possible?
-
Wen Zhiling was also suddenly awakened at one o'clock in the morning.
The room was dark because the blackout curtains were drawn, preventing moonlight from penetrating.
The houses, far from the city center, are quiet; at night, you can only hear the chirping of insects, and very rarely, you can hear cars passing by.
The pounding of her heart amplified in the night. Because of a chance encounter with an old friend, she dreamt of many things, recalling them all in a flashback.
She has few memories of her childhood, only remembering things before she was five years old.
My parents are very busy. They often wear white coats as work clothes, like doctors. Usually, only a nanny takes care of her at home. On rare weekends, they will take her to the office to keep the adults company while they work overtime.
Her earliest memory is of her father sitting at his desk, looking at blueprints, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, stirring millet porridge in circles with a small spoon. She didn't like the thick texture, so she never reminded him, like playing a fun game. By the time he realized the important task, the porridge was cold and undrinkable. At this point, a look of frustration would appear on his handsome face, and she would giggle, considering it a victory in the game.
This game, which she enjoyed immensely, continued until she was five years old. Despite his mother's objections, he accepted an invitation to participate in a secret expedition, without explaining where they were going or what they were supposed to do. He never returned.
Wen Zhiling often missed him, so from then on, she never refused oatmeal porridge again, even though her mother's oatmeal porridge wasn't very good, and she challenged herself to make steamed buns, dumplings, pizzas, and other dishes on the internet...
After failing to find both Western and Chinese food to fill her stomach, her mother turned her attention to jam. Strawberries were mashed into a paste, put into glass jars, and coated with two or three layers of honey. She could then put on a homemade label. At a young age, Wen Zhiling learned to read people's expressions. In order to avoid eating even more unpalatable food, she forced herself to say it was delicious. Later, the family had a lot of strawberry jam, so sour that she once thought that all the strawberry jam sold outside was sour.
Between the ages of 6 and 12, she vaguely remembered being sent to an orphanage, where she lived for many years, before being taken away to other places. When she tried to recall the specifics, it was a blank. The last time she could clearly remember was on a rainy day when she was 15, when she moved into the Li family's home.
The phone next to her pillow was lit up. She squinted slightly, then picked it up to look at it.
She received a reply to the message she sent to Aunt Qiao before going to bed. She only told them that she had a high-paying job in another city and might not be able to visit her in the hospital recently. Aunt Qiao didn't ask any further questions, but sent three long voice messages, each one reminding her to be careful, eat on time, and get more rest and avoid staying up late. Her simple concern warmed Wen Zhiling's heart.
There were also some messages in the small work group afterwards. Her departure was sudden, and her colleagues were all reluctant to see her go. They would occasionally confide in her about the troublesome customers they encountered, chatting and joking around to maintain their friendship.
As her unease subsided in the darkness, Wen Zhiling drew back the curtains, sat by the window to get some fresh air, and gazed at the inky black sky.
Her phone vibrated, and when she looked down, she saw a friend request.
I heard these past few days that the production team will call her in advance. It's 1:40 AM, and she still has to work in the middle of the night. It's really not easy for her.
Wen Zhiling accepted her friend request and sent a greeting: "Hello?"
"You're from the production team..." Before he could finish speaking, a message came from the other side.
Simply put, it's just two words: "Li Xu"
Wen Zhiling pressed her fingertips slightly against the phone, her back stiffened slightly as she leaned against the window, and her lips tightened slightly.
The screen displays "The other party is typing."
After a while, it disappeared and didn't send another message.
Wen Zhiling couldn't quite describe her emotions. She turned her phone screen down and slammed it onto the table with a little force.
-
On the morning of the pilot episode recording, Wen Zhiling got up at six o'clock, like a primary school student waiting for a home visit. She tidied up the room inside and out several times, and reviewed the family genealogy, afraid that she would not be able to answer the questions.
The clothes that needed to be put in the suitcase during the shoot were all on a separate shelf in the wardrobe. Wen Zhiling noticed that there was an extra set of gray pajamas.
Long sleeves and long pants, a bit dowdy, don't match her other dresses at all.
Wen Zhiling wanted to put it in the bottom compartment.
Zong Linhan leaned against the door and said, "It's windy on the island at night, so dress warmly."
Wen Zhiling discovered several extra pieces of clothing under the closet; they were dresses she had intended to put in her suitcase, but somehow she had misplaced them.
She took them to the next level, thinking, "The wind on the island isn't that cold, is it?"
Zong Linhan: "Catching a cold is a real hassle."
Wen Zhiling folded the clothes one by one, saying, "You didn't bring many long-sleeved shirts either."
Zong Linhan didn't speak, watching Wen Zhiling fold clothes. When she was about to put the last light blue dress into the closet, he finally asked, "Do you want to take this one too?"
She stood up and spread out her skirt, revealing a light blue backless fishtail dress with a slit that reached below her thighs. The back was designed with a tie-up detail, and the interlaced light-colored thin ropes accentuated the beauty of her back, making it perfect for taking photos while strolling on the beach.
Wen Zhiling: "This one looks really good."
This piece has the most atmospheric feel, immediately evoking images of the seaside, sunset, sea breeze, and a tipsy feeling.
Wen Zhiling: "I really like this one. Wearing another one won't make me extra heavy."
This dress looks great on Wen Zhiling; it accentuates her elegant curves, slim waist, and beautiful expanse of fair skin on her back.
Zong Linhan said slowly, "I like it too." However, his focus wasn't on the dress.
Wen Zhiling paused in folding clothes, feeling that his drawn-out tone made it seem like he was talking about something else, but at first glance it didn't seem wrong.
The filming went more smoothly than expected. Wen Zhiling was a little nervous at first, but fortunately, the director in charge of her part, Taozi, was a very lively girl. She brought her breakfast before filming started and chatted with her for a while, treating her like a friend, which made her feel much more at ease.
Wen Zhiling put the folded clothes into the suitcase and introduced them lightly: "...and sunscreen and sunglasses. These storage bags come in many sizes and are very cost-effective."
She looked up at the camera lens, remembered what her agent had told her, and added, "Should there be an advertising space here?"
Tao Tao, behind the camera, turned her face away and smiled.
Zong Lin was also quite surprised. Wen Zhiling said she was nervous, but when it came to filming, she was calm and natural, and even managed to create some entertainment value, which was better than he had imagined.
Zong Linhan took out his phone and glanced at it, discovering that it was the phone Wen Zhiling had left in his pocket.
The screen lit up and displayed a WeChat message; the sender was: XU - -
Content: "Shall we meet?"
The person's nickname looked very familiar, and it was also among his WeChat friends; it was Li Xu.
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