Chapter 10 Chapter 10
"Hey, Jiyue."
P City had just been ablaze with lights, but now, as if struck by an electric current, a vast expanse of neon lights suddenly illuminated from near and far. The winding promenade of the Bay Area Park in the distance was outlined in a riot of color by the light strips. The tide surged in under the cover of night, quickly flooding the shallows that had been soaked by the sun all afternoon. What if a cat or dog, let loose and swept away before they could reach shore? An Jiyue's thoughts drifted, wondering if they would struggle desperately, just as she had done in the past, clinging to a straw and refusing to let go.
Or, like himself now, he would immediately raise his hands in surrender, letting the night tide wash over him without resistance, and just float with fate?
An Jiyue waited silently for the verdict to be announced. In the less than ten seconds of the call, she had already reviewed the worst-case scenario.
"I've been waiting for your call for a long time."
The ethereal voice on the other end suddenly became hoarse and clear, as if entering a quiet and narrow environment. An Jiyue nodded mechanically on the phone he couldn't see. When Xu Mu relayed his ambiguous attitude, she had already guessed that Lu Ye wanted her to come in person. She came, so what?
"Are you okay with that?" She tried her best to eliminate all emotion, her voice dark and toneless. "One day is enough. If it's fast, I'll try to keep it to half a day."
"Hmm." His sigh was so soft it was barely audible, yet it seemed to have drained all his energy. Lu Ye half-leaned against the cool wall of the soundproof phone booth, his long legs, one in front of the other, clad in his slim-fitting trousers. He stared down at the barely perceptible wrinkle on the toe of his leather shoe, not rushing to answer.
"Was it your idea to let Zhu Ling and I make up for the date?"
"What?"
"Was this Director An's idea?" Lu Ye's hoarse voice was laced with gentle sarcasm. The polished glass door reflected his increasingly rigid jawline. "Did you write the script yourself?"
"It wasn't my idea." An Jiyue answered honestly, absentmindedly, "But if you agree, I will participate in the script arrangement."
"I know that taking up workdays may violate your principles. If you have any other requests, you can ask—"
"Hmm." He interrupted her, no longer looking down at his shoes. Instead, he leaned back against the wall, sighing once more. Lu Ye held the phone in one hand and loosened his tie with the other. The man who had dominated the agency sales manager just an hour ago was now defeated without a fight.
"I agree. But the location for the shoot has to be in Pingjiang."
——
Pingjiang is a city where the old and the new intertwine. Even the air of the old city is filled with the breathtaking beauty of mountains and rivers. Gardenias sway in the breeze on the banks, and the clear water ripples in the morning light, all gently and peacefully flowing through time. Meanwhile, the machines in the industrial district churn tirelessly, tirelessly thriving day and night, chasing the clock.
"Director An, after the recording is over, can I take you for a walk?" Xu Mu asked attentively and considerately.
An Jiyue was studying the tourist brochure of Pingjiang Old Town over and over again. She felt a little embarrassed when she heard this and quickly waved her hand to refuse.
"It's a rare opportunity for you to go home. After the recording, go back and spend time with your family." She knew Xu Mu was from Pingjiang, and she had specially arranged for him to come with her this time. "I've been to Pingjiang before, so I can go around on my own."
"You've been here before? Then there's no need to visit these gardens again. Just seeing them once is enough."
But I haven't even seen it once. An Jiyue nodded in agreement, but sighed inwardly. The last time she'd been in Pingjiang was six years ago, when she'd been confined to an office in the industrial zone, working day and night on reports and materials, fretting over a single number in an inquiry letter for a week. She'd planned to sit leisurely in a teahouse, listen to a pingtan performance in the soft Wu dialect, pick out a few graceful cheongsams and accessorize them with flower hairpins, walk along the river until sunset, and finally return by boat.
Later, she didn't accomplish any of them. And the person she had planned to go with back then, chose to go here today and complete everything with another person.
An Jiyue trailed the couple in front of her, observing the live feed of a third-party camera angle on her tablet. The rest of the production crew was busy preparing for the weekend party shoot, so they were traveling light: just her, Xu Mu, Tang Bian, Xiao Zhou, the business manager, and two experienced photographers. She prepared a selfie angle, while the photographers followed closely. Before filming began, she wisely handed the live feed of her selfie angle to Xu Mu, carefully avoiding the camera.
Zhu Ling was still a dazzling beauty today, her lilac-colored flowing skirt reaching her ankles, and a large, tulle cape draped over her bodice, tied casually at the waist. She wore brown sunglasses for protection, and her rosy lips curved into a perfectly alluring curve. Beside her, Lu Ye had ditched his usual suit and tie for a raglan white shirt, light-colored jeans, and comfortable low-top sneakers. His casual, student-like outfit didn't quite suit Zhu Ling, but his calm and composed aura captivated her. They exchanged a casual hello for the selfie camera, then exchanged a knowing smile, officially beginning the conversation.
"Lu Ye and I have always gotten along really well. It was such a shame we didn't form a team last time! Today we decided to take a break from our busy schedules and go on a date in Pingjiang." Zhu Ling deliberately tilted her head and asked, "Hey, is this a date?"
"Of course." Lu Ye was stunned for a moment, then nodded gently. Zhu Ling's eyes flashed with surprise, and she smiled with pursed lips, immediately taking his arm.
"Then let's go." She deliberately ignored Lu Ye's stiff body reaction, her tone light and the camera in her hand also shook, "What should we do first? Take a walk around, okay? I just saw several cheongsam shops and I like them all."
They lingered in front of a small shop, and Zhu Ling enthusiastically admired a lotus-white, sleeveless, ink-wash cheongsam in the window. The female shopkeeper warmly welcomed them in, handed the cheongsam over, and invited her to try it on. An Jiyue gazed enviously at the graceful figure outside the shop, then glanced down at the screen. The cheongsam was too small, fitting tightly on Zhu Ling's body, and didn't look particularly striking. The shopkeeper, however, ignored her compliments, exclaiming that it was a perfect fit and even starting to talk about the price.
"Not good." A cool, leisurely voice suddenly rang out from outside the screen, interrupting the female shopkeeper's speech. "Although the color is beautiful, it's too gentle and light, not the best for you. I don't think you're very comfortable wearing it either."
The photographer turned the camera and saw Lu Ye's fingers sliding across the hanger, finally pulling out another piece. "This one's deep lake blue, would you like to try it on?"
She gracefully walked to the mirror, stunning even An Jiyue and Xu Mu outside the shop, exclaiming in unison. While the lotus-white ink-wash color was beautiful, a darker shade would clearly suit Zhu Ling, with her deep features and unrestrained temperament. The embroidered pattern, with its lake blue base and winding lines, accentuated her graceful curves. Zhu Ling glanced around with satisfaction and raised her hand to pay.
"I'll do it," Lu Ye said with a smile, his admiring gaze undisguised as it lingered on Zhu Ling, though it seemed he wasn't just looking at her. He asked the shopkeeper for two handbags and packed his other lotus-white, ink-colored cheongsam into them.
"What's wrong?" Zhu Ling raised her eyebrows at him curiously as she walked out of the store. Lu Ye calmly pointed to the promotional advertisement on the side.
"Two for 20% off."
Zhu Ling's peripheral vision quickly passed over the billboard. Compared to this flimsy excuse, the girl behind the billboard, wearing a wide-brimmed sunhat and quietly following him all the way, was closer to the truth. She shrugged, put her arm around Lu Ye's forearm again, and pondered the atmosphere between them.
Mr. An, so high-spirited just a few days ago, had now reverted to being the dedicated Director An. She was the one who finalized every detail of the script, from shopping to choosing cheongsams, getting her hair done, to listening to pingtan (Chinese pingtan). They filmed along the bluestone pavement, and when they came across a stall selling hairpins, Zhu Ling squatted down to browse and choose. Lu Ye consciously stepped forward to stand beside her, shielding her from the glare and the potentially revealing side slits, and complimented her on her discerning taste, saying that the hairpins she had chosen complemented her outfit perfectly.
Zhu Ling thought she had done a good job and cooperated with the occasional retakes requested by the screenwriter and assistant. She thought everyone had reached a consensus privately, but why was it that Director An, who was hiding behind the scenes, often couldn't hide his gloomy expression, and this attractive partner beside him was also absent-minded off-camera?
Xu Mu, who claimed to be the director's assistant, came up from behind them and said, "Thank you both teachers for your cooperation. We have temporarily added a photo session, which will take about an hour, and today's schedule will be over."
Shooting from a fixed position meant she no longer had to worry about being in the frame, but Director An still stayed far away. Zhu Ling, a travel blogger for years, was already accustomed to all kinds of shots. She casually held onto the bridgehead, her other hand resting on Lu Ye's shoulder, and glanced back at the camera with a charming smile. After a few seconds of freezing, she shifted her body, tilting her head to gaze at his profile with a smile.
"Mr. Lu, please cooperate with Miss Zhu!"
The photographer helplessly watched Lu Ye's body twisting in an effort to maintain distance, and complained to Xu Mu beside him, "Can you persuade male guest No. 3 to cooperate a little? Miss Zhu has a good feeling, but if he doesn't cooperate, the photo won't be effective at all."
Xu Mu threw up his hands. It had been a tedious process to get male guest number 3 back for the reshoots. It had finally been Director An's intervention that finally convinced him. Eh? Where's Director An? Xu Mu looked around a few times before spotting his director's slender figure beneath a willow tree not far away.
He stepped forward and briefly explained the situation, his eyes filled with guilt as he begged for help. The same guest repeatedly caused problems, requiring the leader to personally resolve each one. Xu Mu felt he was incompetent.
An Jiyue's face flickered with surprise after hearing this. She patted Xu Mu's shoulder, told him to rest, and then walked over to the photographer to personally examine the film. In the photos, Lu Ye's fingers were stiff, his forced smile was extremely forced, and his eyes were evasive and dodgy. There weren't many usable photos.
"Hey, this one has a pretty good expression—"
An Jiyue paused on a photo of the two of them standing back to back, gazing into the distance, then abruptly stopped talking. Lu Ye was looking towards the willow tree where he had just been. She gave a sheepish smile and kindly urged the photographer to give the two of them more time.
"Let's do the same posture again. Please get ready!"
Zhu Ling turned without hesitation, and should have leaned completely into Lu Ye's arms. But the man behind her had his hands in his pockets, showing no sign of catching her. An Jiyue, determined, rushed into the camera without waiting for the photographer to speak, yanked Lu Ye's hand away, and forcibly unfolded his palm, pressing it against Zhu Ling's waist.
"Hold her with your chest, get close, and don't leave any space." She guided the two of them to pose, and coldly instructed Lu Ye to lower his head again, "Be gentler in your eyes, and look at her shoulder."
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