Chapter 6 Zhang Bingjie didn't know you were my ex-girlfriend...
Zhang Bingjie stood close to the corner. The end of the corridor was a dead end, and apart from the thick glass that let in some dim light, he couldn't see anything.
Who is Jiaoming standing with...? It looks like a woman.
He called out to Jiang Jiaoming from about ten steps away, then hesitated and didn't take another step forward.
Jiang Jiaoming and Liang Kongxiang looked at each other silently, neither of them uttering a sound.
For a moment, all three fell silent.
Although Zhang Bingjie was Jiang Jiaoming's close friend, he was still perceptive enough to ask a question from a distance without approaching.
Jiang Jiaoming was much taller than Liang Kongxiang. When Liang Kongxiang was turned to the side and blocked by Jiang Jiaoming, he could only see Jiang Jiaoming's muscular shoulders. However, Liang Kongxiang could easily recognize who was speaking from a distance by their voices.
"President Zhang is here." Liang Kongxiang took a step back, creating distance between herself and Jiang Jiaoming, to remind him.
Jiang Jiaoming didn't turn around, staring at her and asking knowingly, "So?"
"Aren't you afraid of being misunderstood?" Perhaps because of the alcohol and his dealings with Jiang Jiaoming, Liang Kongxiang's tone was a little tired. Looking at him, she raised her voice to a normal volume: "It's a pleasure to cooperate with you."
Before Jiang Jiaoming could figure out the meaning behind that glance, Liang Kongxiang turned and walked forward.
She took two steps and then stopped as if stunned, then looked down at her right wrist.
A hand rested on her wrist and held it firmly, as if it were ready to let go at any moment, but it just wouldn't.
Liang Kongxiang glanced down at their intertwined hands, without looking at Jiang Jiaoming or withdrawing her hand. "What is President Jiang doing?"
As he spoke, Jiang Jiaoming released her as if he had just casually pulled her.
Liang Kongxiang looked at him calmly, "President Zhang is waiting for you."
"See, you're giving an irrelevant answer again." He chuckled, but there was no smile in his eyes, as if he had anticipated that Liang Kongxiang wouldn't give a direct answer. He then said, "Zhang Bingjie doesn't know you're my ex-girlfriend."
Liang Kongxiang was silent for two seconds, then ignored him. Just as she was about to leave, Jiang Jiaoming walked away first, leaving behind a light "I owe you" as he brushed past her. It was like snow falling on her hair in winter, almost weightless, melting on her head before she could even touch it. She shook it off, leaving only her body damp.
Liang Kongxiang was unwilling to delve into the reasons behind his actions.
There was no going back to the private room. Liang Kongxiang sent Chen Yun a message saying she felt dizzy, then got into Xiao Fang's car and went back to the hotel.
When Chen Yun received the message, she was chatting with Cao Lengyu. A while later, the door to the private room was pushed open, and Jiang Jiaoming walked in with a calm expression, followed by the silent Zhang Bingjie.
Cao Lengyu teased, "Oh, you look like you've been drunk after just one trip out. Mr. Jiang, did you sneak a drink?"
"How dare I sneak a drink behind Director Cao's back?" Jiang Jiaoming laughed, poured himself a full glass before even sitting down, clinked glasses with the half-empty glass on Cao Lengyu's right, and downed it in one gulp.
“President Jiang is really drunk,” Cao Lengyu said with a smile, pointing to the wine glass on her left. The glass was full and yellowish under the light, making it quite conspicuous. “This is mine.”
Jiang Jiaoming stood there and looked carefully for a few seconds before smiling at Chen Yun as if he had just realized something: "I'm sorry, Miss Liang has been gone for so long, I almost forgot that she was at this dinner table tonight."
Chen Yun had just received news of Liang Kongxiang's return a few minutes earlier, so hearing Jiang Jiaoming's words inevitably made her worried.
Who couldn't understand the implication in his words? Wasn't he complaining about Liang Kongxiang's grand gesture, leaving everyone at the table standing there unattended?
"It's really unfortunate that Kong Xiang wasn't feeling well, and I was worried she wouldn't be in good shape for the opening ceremony tomorrow morning, so I had her go home first," Chen Yun poured herself a glass, stood up and drank it for Liang Kong Xiang: "It's my fault, I forgot to have her come over and say hello."
"Why are you suddenly feeling unwell?" Cao Lengyu frowned. "You were perfectly fine just now."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Bingjie glanced at Jiang Jiaoming. Jiang Jiaoming looked back at him, and Zhang Bingjie looked away again, rolling his eyes inwardly.
What are you pretending for?
"She said she felt dizzy." Chen Yun explained, "Kong Xiang is busy with work, often working non-stop, and she is also stubborn. She tries her best to do everything, so it's inevitable that she won't take care of her health."
“That’s true,” Mr. Li of Illusion said with a smile, “Kong Xiang’s commercials are longer than Gao Ling’s filming time. I’ll have to trouble Teacher Liang to take good care of Gao Ling in the future.”
"Taking care of her"? It's probably just an attempt to use Liang Kongxiang for publicity.
"You're too kind. It's not like I'm taking care of her. Gao Ling is a girl whose name suits her perfectly. Director Cao even praised her to me, saying that Gao Ling is a very talented actress." She looked at Gao Ling at the next table with admiration in her eyes, appearing to be very sincere.
As Jiang Jiaoming listened to the insincere flattery of the people around him, his thoughts drifted away, seemingly becoming as light as air, along with the empty seat.
Eating a meal felt like a battle; I was exhausted.
When the dinner party ended, Jiang Jiaoming and Zhang Bingjie got into a car.
"Let's go to the hotel." Jiang Jiaoming was too lazy to waste words with him, got in the car and closed the door behind him.
"No, why are you coming to the hotel with me? Don't you have something to do tomorrow?"
"I'm drunk and too lazy to move."
Jiang Jiaoming closed his eyes, clearly refusing to communicate, which infuriated Zhang Bingjie.
No one paid him any attention, and Zhang Bingjie muttered again, "I really don't understand why you keep making things difficult for Liang Kongxiang..."
Jiang Jiaoming opened his eyes and stared coldly at him for two seconds. Annoyed, he turned over and faced away from Zhang Bingjie. A few seconds later, he slowly opened his eyes and stared at the receding night outside the car window.
The area surrounding the filming location consisted mostly of low-rise residential buildings, with narrow streets and rows of stalls taking up considerable space, filling the windows with acrid smoke. The navigation system indicated a school zone nearby, warning of pedestrians, and Jiang Jiaoming then noticed a number of students along the roadside.
"It's so nice," Zhang Bingjie said, opening the window. The smoky and stuffy air rushed in, colliding with the cool air inside the car, making everything feel sticky. He rubbed his arms, yawned, leaned back in his seat, and looked out the window at the groups of high school students in their school uniforms. He said lazily, "Thinking about it, high school was the most fun. Back then, the biggest worry was what to eat, drink, and play the next day."
When Jiang Jiaoming ignored him, Zhang Bingjie, who was like a thorn in his side, instantly got angry. He glanced to the side and saw that his brother preferred to stare blankly out the window rather than pay attention to him. "What are you looking at so intently?"
“…What’s so interesting about this?” Zhang Bingjie looked at it for two seconds and then turned back, casually remarking, “This guy is so pretentious.”
This time, Jiang Jiaoming reacted, giving Zhang Bingjie a cold look: "Close the window."
"Oh." Zhang Bingjie turned it off and casually said, "That Gao Ling, I think President Li is trying to set you up. She's pretty, and with some effort, she could probably become a popular actress. But it's unlikely she'll end up like Liang Kongxiang."
"Why not?" Jiang Jiaoming said casually, "You have a pretty high opinion of her."
He found it strange, “It seems like it was like this when we were in school. Whenever Li Si, Zhao Wu, Qian Liuyi mentioned Liang Kongxiang, you would give them a sour look and forbid them from paying attention to her. People who didn’t know better would think that Liang Kongxiang owed you something.”
Zhang Bingjie had been holding back until now before finally rambling on and on. However, although the two were childhood friends, it involved work, and given their respective positions, it wasn't appropriate to say much.
When Cao Lengyu first introduced Liang Kongxiang, who at the dinner table couldn't understand her meaning? Even if Jiang Jiaoming didn't like Liang Kongxiang, he should still consider Director Cao's perspective.
Zhang Bingjie, being cautious, asked him again, "The filming starts tomorrow morning. You're already here. Do you want to come over? If you want to show up, I'll make arrangements in advance. If you don't want to show up, I won't say a word."
He was actually testing the extent of Jiang Jiaoming's dislike for Liang Kongxiang, but to his surprise, Jiang Jiaoming didn't say anything at first. Just when Zhang Bingjie thought he was unlikely to go, he said, "Since we're already here."
“…Okay.” It seems things aren’t beyond saving yet, Zhang Bingjie thought.
Zhang Bingjie stepped out of the elevator and realized that the people behind him hadn't followed. He turned around and saw Jiang Jiaoming standing in the elevator, seemingly lost in thought.
"Let's go." Zhang Bingjie called out again, and Jiang Jiaoming finally came out.
Only after returning to his room did Jiang Jiaoming say thoughtfully, "If I remember correctly, this hotel belongs to Qian Duo's family."
“Yeah,” Zhang Bingjie took off his coat and threw it on the sofa, “After leaving Qian Liu, who else would give us such a low price?”
Jiang Jiaoming didn't say anything, washed up, turned off the light, and lay down on the bed.
Once the night settles down, it expands infinitely, appearing empty.
It was pitch black, like a giant theater curtain. Jiang Jiaoming stared at the black walls, black curtains, black cabinets, and black ceiling. Suddenly, his eyes turned black, and his heart turned black too.
The world was filled with black, like a black ribbon tightly binding his eyes, nose, and heart.
Gradually, he seemed to see a sliver of white through the haze... This hazy white grew more and more, like a thick layer of snow piled up on the ground.
Deeper and clearer...
Upon seeing Liang Kongxiang, the dark curtain of Jiang Jiaoming's childhood was drawn back by those eyes.
A note from the author:
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Jiang Jiaoming: Since we're already here (reluctantly)
Zhang Bingjie: No, who let you come? Huh?
There will be red envelopes in the comments section of the next chapter!
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