Chapter 74
Mo Yun was lying on the table with her phone in her hand. She had intended to just glance at it before going to wash up, but she ended up reading chapter after chapter until her fingers suddenly couldn't turn the pages anymore. Only then did she realize that she had finished reading the novel.
"Oh, how come there's only so little?!"
Mo Yun sighed, then was startled by the time on her phone.
Good heavens, there are less than twenty minutes left until the time she and Yang Hui agreed to have dinner!
"I haven't showered yet!!!"
Mo Yun quickly put down her phone, hurriedly opened her suitcase, grabbed her clothes and towel, and rushed into the bathroom.
After taking a shower, Mo Yun, dressed in clean clothes, hummed a song contentedly as she picked up her phone. A message lay quietly in the notification bar, sent to her by Yang Hui while she was showering.
Little Lamb Loves to Eat Grass: How about we leave half an hour later? I'm not ready yet.
Silence is golden: Okay.
Mo Yun quickly gave an affirmative reply, as she also felt that she didn't have enough time; she hadn't blow-dried her hair or done her skincare yet.
Half an hour later, the two met at the entrance of the cafeteria. As soon as they met, Mo Yun couldn't wait to start talking about "Code Name: Dodder Flower".
"Have you read her new book from February? 'Code Name: Dodder' is amazing! It has a completely different flavor from her previous novels..."
"I saw it. I couldn't resist watching it in the dorm just now."
Yang Hui felt a little embarrassed; she was so engrossed in watching that she almost missed her appointment with Mo Yun.
"Me too!!!!"
Mo Yun grabbed Yang Hui's hand and shook it vigorously. They really are good friends, their thought processes are exactly the same, hehe.
Yang Hui led her into the cafeteria, asking as they walked, "Where are you now? I just finished reading everything in one go."
"I've finished reading it too. There are so few words, it's not enough to keep you reading," Mo Yun said with a hint of resentment. "Sigh, I'll have to keep up with the updates from now on."
"February has been busy enough. Do you want some grilled skewers or rice noodles?"
"Let's have some of everything. We didn't eat well on the train at noon, so we can have a big meal tonight."
Yang Hui nodded, and the two stood in front of a window to start choosing dishes.
After ordering, the two casually found a nearby spot to sit down and continued talking about "Code Name: Dodder Flower".
"Actually, I quite like the character Ye Xun. I hope the female lead can end up with him."
Mo Yun's eyes widened: "Ye Xun and the female lead? Your taste is so strange. I think according to the development of the story, it should be Yang Boyuan and the female lead, right?"
They were pretending to be a couple, so isn't it reasonable for them to fall in love after marriage?
“Isn’t Yang Boyuan having an affair with a female employee? He can’t do it,” Yang Hui shook her head, disagreeing with Mo Yun’s point of view. She still preferred the storyline between Ye Xun and the female lead, and she firmly believed that the atmosphere between the two was special.
"That's just Ye Xun's subordinate's side of the story, and there's no evidence. When I saw it, my first reaction was that the female employee's identity must be complicated, and she was most likely an accomplice of the female lead and her group."
Yang Hui hadn't considered this point, and she hesitated before saying, "What you said seems to make sense..."
"Right, right? Anyway, I think Yang Boyuan is very good and handsome, especially the part where he manipulates stock prices to embezzle foreign exchange, hehe," Mo Yun's eyes lit up.
"But I think he's a bit too hasty. He's only just arrived in Shanghai and hasn't even settled in yet, and he's already caused stock market turmoil. People will be suspicious, won't they? Ye Xun has his eye on him."
"Ugh, Ye Xun is so annoying! He's eyeing both the male and female leads. Can't we just get him offline already? I'm so afraid he'll harm them later!"
Mo Yun stood up as she spoke. She saw the stall owner at the window bring out their barbecue. Yang Hui got up with her and went to the rice noodle stall.
The rice noodles are ready too.
The two then each carried their things back.
*
3 PM.
The production team of "Legend of the Qing Dynasty" suddenly released a set of costume photos, thirty-five photos, thirty-five unfamiliar faces. The production team thoughtfully labeled each photo with small vertical text - the actor's real name and the name of the character played in the drama.
This drama is quite popular, and many entertainment marketing accounts have been keeping a close eye on the official website. As soon as a large number of character stills were released, they were immediately reposted to other places.
Suddenly, the official photos of "Legend of the Qing Dynasty" were everywhere on social media platforms like Taobao, TK, and forums. As the protagonist of the drama, Li Tingyu's name also suddenly entered the public eye.
Where did you find so many unknown actors? I don't recognize a single one of them.
-They were all selected from ordinary people through open auditions, so of course you don't know them...
-The actresses' costumes and styling are all very unique.
-Just tell me if it looks good or not [smoking]
What makes it look good?
Isn't it strange to wear such a big thing on your head?
- Hahahaha.
- February band loves to do these weird things, always using clothes and styling as gimmicks, I'm really impressed.
- It doesn't matter if a trick is old, as long as it works [doge emoji].
- It's clear that the huge success of "Empress Wu Zetian" has boosted her confidence; all I see in this drama is her desperate desire to replicate it.
- I don't know how they chose the cast. Couldn't they find a beautiful woman in the whole country?
-After a month of high-profile talent show, they only managed to select this ordinary person. You can find a lot of people like Li Tingyu on the street!
Li Tingyu isn't stunningly beautiful, but she's not ordinary either. She's very pretty and has a classic charm.
-A bunch of sour chickens.
While the official character photos were being hotly debated online, the production team of "Legend of the Qing Dynasty" had already started filming.
As the female lead, Li Tingyu definitely has the most scenes. She has been busy filming in different locations and hasn't had time to check the online feedback yet.
Zhou Xingyun saw it first.
She gave Xu Ying a wink, and the two walked to a corner of the set: "Will the online comments affect the actors' performance?"
These people are newcomers, and their acting skills are not very stable. Some things still need to be explained and demonstrated by the director on the spot. What if they see bad reviews online and their mentality collapses?
"Don't worry, they're not that fragile."
Xu Ying didn't think it was a big deal.
A group of ordinary young women who dared to participate in the audition must have already experienced public criticism from those around them when they came to participate in the audition.
Zhou Xingyun was still worried: "How about I pay to suppress it?"
“You don’t want the hype anymore?” Xu Ying rolled her eyes at her. “Besides, the more you suppress it, the more rebellious netizens will become. Let them discuss it for a few days and they’ll forget about it.”
“You’re right,” Zhou Xingyun was immediately convinced. Why should she spend money to make herself unhappy?
That's right.
Xu Ying patted her on the shoulder, saying that things on the internet come and go quickly, and that paying too much attention to these things would only lead to being swayed by outsiders.
*
night.
Xu Ying got home at nine o'clock.
She didn't have much to do on set and was planning to come back early to write, but then Fuyou and Qingfeng suddenly said they wanted to go to the set to check on things.
"Then come on over."
Xu Ying stayed put while waiting for the two of them.
Since the two of them were already there, they should definitely have dinner together that night. Zhou Xingyun happened to know both of them, so Xu Ying invited her to join them, and the four of them drove to the restaurant.
Including the driving time, the meal took almost four hours.
The other three weren't satisfied with that and suggested going to Xu Ying's house that night to play mahjong all night.
"That won't do, I can't stand it."
Staying up all night to play mahjong was out of the question, so Xu Ying firmly refused the three men and drove home amidst their reluctant gazes.
It was past ten o'clock when I got home.
Xu Ying was feeling a bit sleepy and didn't really want to write. She hesitated for only a second at the door of the study before decisively turning around and going back to her bedroom.
She set her alarm for 8 a.m. the next day.
As soon as the alarm clock rang in the morning, she got out of bed full of energy.
Having had a good night's sleep, Xu Ying is now energetic, with a clear and quick mind, and even her typing speed is much faster than usual.
With Ye Xun's repeated probing and the unfamiliar perfume scent on Yang Boyuan's clothes, even the slow-witted Lin Jingshu noticed Yang Boyuan's unusual behavior.
"What's going on?" Lin Jingshu asked, holding his suit jacket.
Yang Boyuan initially denied it, but after Lin Jingshu repeatedly pressed him, he finally told the truth: "I do like her a little. Zhou Yi is a good girl, and she's had a tough journey..."
Lin Jingshu frowned and interrupted, "How much have you told her about our relationship?"
"No, I haven't said a single word."
Lin Jingshu felt a little relieved.
However, she made a decision almost instantly: once the mission to deliver the medicine was completed, she would submit a report to the organization to have Yang Boyuan transferred back to the base area.
He is no longer fit to stay here and continue his undercover work.
There was also the bank employee named Zhou Yi. When facing Yang Boyuan, she verbally expressed her belief, but in reality, she did not believe at all that the woman's appearance was a coincidence.
There's a problem.
There must be a problem.
She coldly instructed, "I hope you can control your emotions. You must remember that we are husband and wife now, and a loving couple at that."
"I know I've been holding back, but I just couldn't resist hugging you today."
Lin Jingshu didn't want to hear what he was saying, so she put down her suit jacket and turned back to her room.
Back in her room, Lin Jingshu sat at the desk by the window, pondering the task of delivering medicine to the base. Penicillin was crucial for the soldiers; she had to get her hands on this batch of medicine from the Japanese.
But now, Yang Boyuan is clearly a ticking time bomb.
On the other side.
Under the constant surveillance, Ye Xun gradually developed feelings for Lin Jingshu. He even gave his subordinates a day off and went to follow Lin Jingshu himself.
Watching Lin Jingshu buy groceries at the market, order a suit for her husband at a tailor shop, and pick up her repaired watch at a watch shop... Ye Xun's eyes grew increasingly dark.
He had already investigated and found out about the affair between Yang Boyuan and Zhou Yi.
Why, despite his numerous subtle and overt reminders, does this woman still remain completely devoted to her husband?
Ye Xun strode out, and just as he put away his pocket watch, Lin Jingshu, who had just stepped out of the shop, looked at him with surprise: "Deputy Director Ye?"
Ye Xun hummed in agreement, then asked knowingly, "Is Mrs. Lin here to buy a watch?"
Lin Jingshu shook her head: "No, it's because my husband's pocket watch is not keeping accurate time. I came to ask a repairman to help fix it."
"I was just thinking of buying a watch, and I wonder if Mrs. Lin has time to help me choose one?" Ye Xun said politely, but in reality, she had already extended her arm, gesturing for him to come in.
How could anyone refuse that?
Fortunately, Lin Jingshu hadn't planned to refuse him anyway. She was now 100% certain that Zhou Yi had a problem, but she didn't know whether she was working for the Japanese or the Military Intelligence Bureau.
Ye Xun's appearance made it convenient for her to test the waters.
"certainly."
Lin Jingshu smiled and walked back into the watch shop.
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