Chapter 9 What is our relationship now?
Liang Kongxiang sat on a cushioned chair, and her gaze met Chen Yun's through the mirror.
Chen Yun's eyes clearly showed surprise, and she opened her mouth but didn't say anything.
“Mr. Jiang,” Liang Kongxiang looked at the call screen, not asking where he got the number, “what can I do for you?”
"Let's go downstairs." Jiang Jiaoming didn't waste any words. It was difficult to park here, so he tossed his phone to Zhang Bingjie.
Zhang Bingjie hurriedly took the phone and automatically explained into the microphone, "I came back to pick up something. Director Cao said you were going to the film set anyway, so I came to pick you up."
"Okay, thank you for your hard work." Liang Kongxiang and Chen Yun had already guessed what was going on when they heard the first sentence, so they packed their things relatively quickly.
The two stood silently in the elevator.
A few seconds later, Chen Yun suddenly said, "Let's talk when I get back tonight."
Liang Kongxiang thought of Jiang Jiaoming's words "let's talk" that morning and suddenly found it funny: "Okay, let's talk in my room tonight."
Having checked Liang Kongxiang's room before and ruled out the possibility of cameras or listening devices, Chen Yun felt at ease speaking there: "Okay. Send me a message when you have time."
The elevator doors opened, and a black Porsche pulled up in front of the glass entrance. The window was half-rolled down, revealing Zhang Bingjie's face in the passenger seat. He shouted, "Get in quickly, it's hard to park here!"
The gaze shifted inward, revealing half of Jiang Jiaoming's cold and handsome profile. He held the steering wheel with one hand and rested the other on the car window, propping up his temple. He didn't turn his head, staring straight ahead, seemingly uninterested in the person who had arrived.
Chen Yun opened the car door and got in first, sitting behind Jiang Jiaoming: "Thank you for your hard work, President Jiang and President Zhang."
Jiang Jiaoming glanced back through the rearview mirror and met Liang Kongxiang's gaze. "You're too kind."
“It’s not hard work,” Zhang San looked back and reached out to Liang Kongxiang: “Hey, if that pillow is uncomfortable, you can give it to me.”
"It's okay." Liang Kongxiang casually placed it between herself and Chen Yun.
"Okay." Zhang Bingjie withdrew his hand and smiled, "You haven't changed much over the years. You left before we even had a chance to catch up at the opening banquet yesterday."
Liang Kongxiang smiled and said, "President Zhang hasn't changed much either."
Liang Kongxiang smiled but didn't call out.
Zhang San added, "If you have any problems on set, just come to me. Speaking of which, we also have..." He glanced at Jiang Jiaoming.
"Four years."
It's important to understand that Geng Jiali and her ilk have accumulated their popularity over many years. When Liang Kongxiang first emerged, she fought her way out of a storm, constantly trending on social media, facing minor backlash every three days and major backlash every two days, which honed her into a group of die-hard fans.
Zhang Bingjie talked on and on, and Liang Kongxiang gave a soft "hmm" and tried to press the window but couldn't.
Jiang Jiaoming flicked a button with his left hand, and the rear window rolled down, but not by much, only about half a finger's width, so the wind didn't mess up Liang Kongxiang's makeup.
He glanced at the rearview mirror again, this time avoiding eye contact with Liang Kongxiang. "What's wrong, Teacher Liang? Are you feeling bored?"
Perhaps the car was going too fast, and the wind blew in, drowning out Jiang Jiaoming's words, so he ultimately did not receive a response.
The four people entered through the back door of the film set. The assistant used a green curtain to cover the car at the entrance, and only lowered the green curtain after everyone got out of the car, in order to prevent people from taking pictures and making a big fuss about it.
As soon as Wang Jianbai saw Jiang Jiaoming, he called out, "President Jiang, it's almost time to begin." He handed him a lit incense stick and gave some to Zhang Bingjie and Liang Kongxiang. Everyone bowed in front of the altar with Jiang Jiaoming at the center. After that, they went to the altar to take a group photo.
Because Liang Kongxiang was wearing makeup, her team only took a picture of her back and posted it on the official announcement Weibo.
Suddenly, various opinions emerged online again, but this time the unpleasant voices were half as many. Now that it's a done deal and the film can be made smoothly, why add more hype? It's not that we're afraid of not becoming famous, it's that we're afraid of being silent. The best outcome is for both fame and criticism to disappear.
The cinematographer first shot several establishing shots, and then it was Liang Kongxiang's turn to film her first scene.
Cao Lengyu sat in front of the monitor, microphone in hand, staring at the screen. Her films are characterized by their beautiful composition and lighting. Cao Lengyu has extremely strict standards for the placement and angle of all objects in the shot, and she even calculates the exact time and angle from which sunlight enters the lens. Therefore, watching her films is a pure visual treat. In addition, as she writes and directs her own films, she has a very precise grasp of the script and is almost a master in terms of cinematic language.
Liang Kongxiang clearly displays a different kind of beauty in her shots. Most actors just play their roles in a rigid and formulaic way, but Liang Kongxiang is one of the few actresses who can imbue a character with charm.
Zhang Bingjie watched the monitor for a long time, then leaned over and whispered, "We also have some good projects. Don't be foolish and make enemies with Liang Kongxiang. It won't do you any good. With this performance, I could say she'd win another Best Actress award and no one would question it."
"You're overthinking it." Jiang Jiaoming didn't look at the monitor. His gaze, across the three cameras, fell on a woman reclining on a sofa in the distance, a group of drug addicts kneeling at her feet. Only when she looked directly at the camera did he slowly look at the monitor. Her bloodshot eyes were fixed on a certain spot. Despite her flamboyant makeup, a sense of sorrow could be seen in her eyes. Jiang Jiaoming continued to stare at the scene, his expression unreadable, as if he were enjoying something else: "At her age, it's unlikely she'll be nominated again anytime soon. Besides, 'Brilliant Past' is probably not in the Golden Phoenix award period, and the judges for 'Golden Phoenix' have a grudge against Cao Lengyu. Do you think Liang Kongxiang will be nominated?"
Zhang Bingjie gave Jiang Jiaoming a strange look, "...When did you start thinking about these things?"
"Do I need to think about it?"
“Something’s not right with you,” Zhang Bingjie asked suspiciously. “You wouldn’t…”
Jiang Jiaoming gave him a cryptic look: "Nothing?"
"Cut!" Cao Lengyu shouted.
Zhang Bingjie and Jiang Jiaoming's conversation was interrupted when Liang Kongxiang walked out from behind the set, her forehead still covered in sweat. Chang Xin moved a stool next to Cao Lengyu, and Liang Kongxiang sat down next to Cao Lengyu to watch the filming that had just taken place. Just as Zhang Bingjie was about to go over, Jiang Jiaoming left the set. Zhang Bingjie looked at his back with a puzzled expression for a moment, and then followed him.
Liang Kongxiang sat on a folding chair reading the script. After a few seconds, she glanced towards the back door. Chang Xin followed her gaze and looked in that direction, but saw nothing except for the fleeting glimpses of President Jiang and President Zhang's clothes. She slowly turned her face back and asked, "Sister, what are you looking at? Are you looking for Sister Chen?"
"No." Liang Kongxiang looked away. The script was covered with lines marked with highlighter, and Chang Xin felt intimidated just looking at it.
She squatted down beside Liang Kongxiang and whispered gossip, "Sis, I just saw that President Jiang seemed to be paying special attention to you." Even though Chang Xin knew that she couldn't be so presumptuous with her boss in the workplace, Liang Kongxiang was such a gentle person that she felt she was unapproachable and unreachable, yet she couldn't help but look at her and talk to her.
Liang Kongxiang wasn't sure if she was too engrossed in reading the script or simply hadn't heard Chang Xin, as she didn't respond. When Chang Xin went to film the next scene, she noticed Liang Kongxiang's script on the chair was no longer on the page she had just been reading. It seemed she was so absorbed in her reading that she hadn't heard her. Chang Xin didn't think much of it.
Because she got up early, she finished work early today. Liang Kongxiang finished filming at five o'clock in the afternoon. Chang Xin helped her get her script and coat. "Sister, Sister Chen told me to go back first."
"Okay. Thank you for your hard work." Liang Kongxiang took the coat handed to her by her assistant and put it on.
The weather is getting colder and colder, and it gets dark very quickly.
Liang Kongxiang walked alone into an open space. In the distance, there was a campervan parked there. The interior of the vehicle was bright and eye-catching in the area.
She stared down at the number on her phone screen, the mud on the grass making her shoes stick out as she walked faster and faster, then slowly stopped, standing a step away from the car, watching the tall man in the black sweater.
Jiang Jiaoming leaned against the car door with his arms crossed, staring at her with his head slightly lowered: "You're back?"
Liang Kongxiang glanced behind him, but there was no one there.
Jiang Jiaoming turned around, then back to Liang Kongxiang: "Stop looking. I called you away."
“I did not give you permission to let my employee leave,” Liang Kongxiang said calmly, continuing to walk forward.
"It's nothing that needs to be brought up deliberately; she doesn't need to know."
"Is it that she doesn't need to know, or that you're afraid to recall?"
Liang Kongxiang smiled. "What exactly are you trying to say?"
Jiang Jiaoming, who had arrived early, was tired of standing. He opened the refrigerator and spent a while picking out a bottle of water before sitting down opposite Liang Kongxiang. He said, "Don't guess. The reason I came is very simple. This drama will take at least a year from filming to release. I don't care how disgusted you are by my presence."
He unscrewed the water bottle cap, took a sip, and rubbed it between two fingers. He said slowly, "In this year, at least put away that attitude of yours that you'd never speak to me again. I need your fame to get more screen time, that's true, but you also need me to introduce you to award judges."
“You’re overthinking it,” Liang Kongxiang said, pausing for a few seconds after hearing his words. “I have no reason to make things difficult for you. As for the award, you know I don’t care.”
"Yeah, you've kept the film camera even though it's broken." He suddenly walked to the cabinet, reached out and touched the broken camera. "So sentimental?"
She was immediately drawn to this thing when she came in; after all, it was the first gift he had ever given her.
Liang Kongxiang glanced at him before looking away, her words utterly blunt: "No need to beat around the bush. Jiang Jiaoming, aren't you tired?"
"How could I, a person with nothing to do, be tired? Being free of desires makes one feel light and carefree. You're overthinking it."
"To the best of my knowledge, no temple has ever accepted you."
Jiang Jiaoming said "Oh," leaned against the cabinet and laughed, "How did you know? Did you secretly inquire about me?"
Liang Kongxiang didn't respond to his joke: "Since you want us to change our relationship, I'm open to it."
Seeing that things had gone well, Jiang Jiaoming sat down again and said, "Is that so? Then tell me, what should our relationship be now?"
Liang Kongxiang looked at him and said, "President Jiang has the final say."
"Are you calling me 'President Jiang' to remind me to be mindful of my status?" Jiang Jiaoming scrutinized her expression. Liang Kongxiang's face remained unchanged under the light, as if she hadn't heard anything. Jiang Jiaoming then asked, "How about we just be ordinary friends?"
"Can."
Just friends. She actually dared to agree.
Jiang Jiaoming sneered inwardly, then suddenly stood up and stared at her with his head down.
After staring at each other for several seconds, Liang Kongxiang suddenly felt that the RV seemed a bit small and cramped, and the air felt like a viscous liquid, making it impossible for her to move.
They just stared at each other silently, neither of them saying a word.
After a while, Jiang Jiaoming kicked the chair away with a light kick, the chair leg scraping against the floor with a sharp sound. He asked in a cold voice, "Since we're friends, is this how you see a guest off when they're leaving?"
Liang Kongxiang still didn't stand up. "President Jiang, take care. I won't see you off."
Jiang Jiaoming sneered. He bumped into Zhang Bingjie as soon as he got out of the RV. Zhang Bingjie looked at Jiang Jiaoming with a serious expression. Jiang Jiaoming didn't care why Zhang Bingjie was around or what he had heard or guessed. He strode past Zhang Bingjie and drove back to the company alone.
A note from the author:
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Prize quiz:
1. In this dialogue, who spoke ironically between Liang Kongxiang and Jiang Jiaoming?
A. Liang Kongxiang. B. Jiang Jiaoming. C. Both A and B.
3. Will Zhang San chase after Jiang Jiaoming to gossip?
A. Yes. B. No. C. Yes, but was scolded away by Jiang Jiaoming.
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