Reading in circles
Today was the reading session for the cast and crew of "Autumn Wind Chant". Su Jing had just stepped out of the van when he was blocked by reporters' microphones in front of the door.
"How is Professor Su recovering?"
"Any new plans for the second half of the year?"
...
While shielding Su Jing's face from the microphone, Zhao Wei mechanically repeated, "Thank you for your concern. Please follow the official Weibo account for the specific schedule..."
Security guards and staff cleared a path through the reporters as Zhao Wei led Su Jing forward. Suddenly, a voice broke through the noise: "Teacher Su, this is your first collaboration with Chu Yiran. What are your feelings?"
Su Jing stopped in his tracks. He turned around, his gaze precisely finding the reporter who had asked the question: "Looking forward to it."
The question caused a huge stir, and the crowd instantly erupted in a frenzy, bombarding them with more questions: "There have been rumors that you two are at odds. What is Professor Su's opinion on this? What is your relationship with Chu Yiran like in private?"
Su Jing's gaze swept over the black sedan approaching in the distance, a subtle smile curving his lips: "We're rivals in the play." He paused, his voice suddenly softening, "Off-screen... I hope he's doing well."
Just then, Chu Yiran's car door opened. Su Jing's answer was like a needle, piercing his eardrums precisely. He looked up and his eyes met Su Jing's.
Flashbulbs went off like crazy, capturing the rare moment when the two were together.
Two hours later, the hashtag #SuJingHopesChuYiranLivesWell# went viral and became a trending topic.
Fans in the comments section have started a new round of arguments—
"What does that mean? Is it a threat? Su Jing is so petty!"
"666 This is the first time I've ever seen someone make such sarcastic and aggressive remarks!"
"It's funny how some people are taking this personally. Don't they understand what a blessing means?"
"What's wrong with wanting the other person to live well? Chu Yiran's fans shouldn't be so hateful!"
...
After finally dealing with the reporters, Chu Yiran and Su Jing entered the meeting room one after the other. Inside were the director, screenwriter, cameraman, and producer. Lin Wanxing, who was sitting at the very back, waved to them and said, "Come on, come on, I brought you coffee!"
Chu Yiran deliberately separated herself from Su Jing, and the two sat on either side of Lin Wanxing. Producer Wang Kai led the way with a few pleasantries, and then the lead actors began reading the script.
Su Jing's right hand had not fully recovered, so he held the script in his left hand and read his lines in a deep voice: "In this chaotic world of war, whose hands are clean? So what if there are countless bones beneath my dragon throne? This world will ultimately be my world!"
His voice was as cold as ice, yet carried an undeniable imperial majesty. Chu Yiran unconsciously tightened his grip on the coffee cup in his hand, turning his head to look at Su Jing's profile.
In a daze, two similar faces overlapped in his memory. Chu Yiran recalled that not long ago he asked Su Jing why his injuries had recovered so quickly, and the other party simply replied, "He has a good constitution."
"They are not one person!" Chu Yiran murmured to himself, his fingertips tightening slightly. "You've verified this countless times, haven't you?"
He took a deep breath, suppressed his surging emotions, and refocused his attention on the script.
The script reading had just ended, and the staff were distributing boxed lunches when the meeting room door was enthusiastically pushed open again.
"Thank you all for your hard work. We are Xiaojing's parents, and we've come here today to bring you some warmth!" Ms. Wu Jingyun, Su's mother, had a melodious voice. Behind her, her husband, Su Ting, carried two huge insulated bags, his smile warm. Behind them were two restaurant deliverymen carrying several boxes of milk tea and desserts.
"Thank you for your hard work, teachers!" Mr. Su greeted everyone with a smile. "This is just a small token of my appreciation, please have a taste."
After Su Jing was injured in an accident, they suspended their overseas work and decided to stay in China to spend more time with their son.
"Xiao Jing, Mom made you some bird's nest soup~ Come and try it!" Wu Jingyun carried a thermos and walked up to Su Jing first. Before Su Jing could react, she put down the thermos and hugged her son's shoulders. "You're not fully recovered and you're already back to work. It breaks my heart!"
She had a pleasant scent of osmanthus hair oil mixed with sandalwood, rich and warm. Su Jing stood stiffly, letting Wu Jingyun pat his back.
Su Jing had already witnessed his parents' communication style while he was in the hospital, so as soon as he was discharged, he couldn't wait to avoid them. However, his parents still took every opportunity to show their concern for him.
Wu Jingyun spoke with the exaggerated tone characteristic of an artist. Her well-maintained hand ruffled Su Jing's hair without any politeness, making a mess of his carefully styled hair: "Why does he still look so bad? Old Su, come and see if our son looks much more haggard?"
Su Ting, who was called out, immediately came over, adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses and examined him carefully. He solemnly said in a musical theater tone, "Not bad, still as handsome as ever, just like his father."
Su Jing: "..."
This boundless, burning emotion was more terrifying to him than a thousand troops; his instinct was to break free, to coldly order everyone to back down—
But out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Chu Yiran standing to the side.
Because of that one glance, Su Jing's almost bursting rebuke was forcibly suppressed. Like a puppet, he stiffly forced a smile and squeezed out a voice through clenched teeth: "Thank you, Mom... Dad... I... am fine."
Lin Wanxing was clearly very familiar with Su Jing's parents. She naturally went up to help distribute the drinks, and said to Chu Yiran with a smile in a low voice, "Su Jing's parents are very nice people. It's just that when Su Jing was young, they were busy with their careers and didn't spend much time with him, which made him a bit independent and sullen."
Looking at the harmonious scene before him, Chu Yiran couldn't help but wonder: If Su Jing, who struggled alone in the cold palace in his previous life, could have had such unconditional love, would the ending have been different?
"Auntie, you're being unfair!" Lin Wanxing pouted and acted coquettishly after handing out the milk tea. "You only brought bird's nest for Su Jing? What about mine? What about mine?"
Wu Jingyun laughed, "Yes, yes! Xingxing's peach gum stewed milk is packaged separately!"
“You’re Xiao Chu, right? I remember you visited Xiao Jing at the hospital before,” Su Ting smiled gently and handed a thermos to Chu Yiran. “This was made by Xiao Jing’s mother. Try it.”
Chu Yiran quickly accepted it with both hands: "Thank you, Uncle."
Everyone was eating in the conference room when Lin Wanxing suddenly remembered something and turned to ask Su Jing, "By the way, Brother Jing, do you want to take some time next week to visit Xixi and Linlin? The director said our first filming location is Shantou."
Su Jing was clearly taken aback. He quickly searched his mind for fragments of the original owner's memories. Several scenes of Su Jing playing with children flashed through his mind before he remembered that the original owner of this body was a well-known philanthropist who had been privately supporting a pair of twins named Xixi and Linlin, who suffered from congenital heart disease, and would visit them regularly. This had been exposed by the media and earned him a lot of goodwill.
Mentioning this, Wu Jingyun clapped her hands and said, "It should be summer vacation by now, right? Xiao Jing, why don't you bring them over for a couple of days? I haven't seen these two cuties in ages!"
Su Jing hesitated. He didn't have much of a concept of children and wasn't used to such tender scenes.
However, Lin Wanxing's next words made him change his mind instantly: "Ran Di, why don't you come with us? The children will definitely like you!"
Upon hearing that Chu Yiran might also be going, Su Jing nodded almost immediately, all hesitation vanishing: "Okay, let's go together." There was even a hint of barely perceptible urgency in his tone.
Chu Yiran didn't agree immediately, but hesitated and said, "Let's see when the time comes..."
At this moment, producer Wang Kai announced loudly, "That concludes our reading session for today. Teachers with scheduled activities this afternoon can leave now. Other teachers can continue to discuss script-related questions with the editors..."
After saying that, Wang Kai walked up to Su Ting with a smile: "Hello, Teacher Su, I am Wang Kai, the producer of 'Autumn Wind Chant'. You can just call me Xiao Kai! I am a big fan of yours and I have always loved your stage plays. Can we take a picture together?"
Su Ting nodded: "Of course." Then he waved to Wu Jingyun and Su Jing, "How about we take a picture together?"
"Come on, come on!" Wu Jingyun enthusiastically pulled Su Jing forward, and the three of them took photos with Wang Kai.
Wang Kai handed his phone to a staff member, then stepped back and squeezed next to Su Jing. Wu Jingyun and Su Ting stood behind, while Wang Kai and Su Jing stood in front.
It was the height of summer, and Wang Kai, tall and strong, was sweating profusely in a black short-sleeved shirt. The sticky sweat on his arms rubbed onto Su Jing's forearm, making Su Jing's hair stand on end. He wished he could leave immediately, but Wu Jingyun was right behind him, holding his shoulders tightly.
The staff member holding the phone shouted, "Come on everyone, get ready, everyone smile..."
Su Jing glanced at Chu Yiran beside him, pursed his lips, and then saw Sun Xiaoxiao come over to pick up Chu Yiran for the next event.
The staff member continued, "1, 2, 3—"
The moment Chu Yiran turned around, Su Jing immediately jumped out with a cold face: "You guys take pictures first." Before he finished speaking, he strode away, leaving behind a stunned crowd and frozen smiles.
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