Chapter 65 I'll be performing with my things.
In the evening, Yu Jianshan invited a group of executives and lead actors to a welcome banquet, as is customary.
But it wasn't just a welcome banquet; it was also the confirmation of his new film.
After a few rounds of drinks, he slowly said, "I have another script that I'm working on with Editor Su. It's been tentatively finalized, and we've chosen to continue casting Teacher Wen as the lead actor." He paused, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping over Xu Shaoting, "Qin Jiawen is the male lead, and Yunwen will also be in it. I hope our original cast can continue to work hard!"
Wen Jia, slightly drunk, leaned close to Xu Shaoting's ear and asked, "Did you invest money?"
"No."
"Even a penny will do!"
"Really, no."
The next second, Yu Jianshan raised his voice: "However, due to some personal reasons, the original investor, Mr. Hu Baiyin of Wanxing, withdrew his investment. So here I would like to thank Chairman Xu, as the investor of my two films, for his continued support of our production team."
Xu Shaoting: "..."
Wen Jia: "..."
Amidst applause and cheers, only the two people in the very center of the table were whispering to each other.
Wen Jia gave a small snort, "No wonder Yu Jianshan insisted that you sit in the main seat."
She should have guessed it sooner.
Xu Shaoting smiled slowly and deliberately, then secretly grabbed her slender fingers, but she haughtily dodged them, refusing to let him touch them. "You always lie to me."
He took her hand back and patiently comforted her, "I only paid for it because I had a grudge against Hu Baiyin and I had to take responsibility. Yu Jianshan's decision to cast you as the female lead was already made, and it has nothing to do with my money. Besides, Yu Jianshan and I have been friends for so many years. It's normal for me to support his dreams, right?"
How grand and dignified... leaving her with no reason to refute it.
"Besides, I've already read the script for you, and it's perfect for you."
"Where is it suitable?"
"There are few intimate scenes."
"..."
Wen Jia couldn't help but laugh, "Yu Jianshan probably only showed you part of the script. The female lead has the most intimate scenes with the second male lead."
"..."
Despite their teasing, Yu Jianshan remained unfazed, saying, "I'll have to work hard now, everyone. Let's give it our all and then focus on the next installment after this one is finished!"
So, in order to speed up the process, the filming went very smoothly for the next week.
In fact, Yu Jianshan had recalled a small number of supporting actors who were on standby two months ago to reshoot scenes with Yang Muyuan. Wen Jia, the lead actress, was among the last to return due to company commitments.
During the few days that everyone was confined to the film studio, they tacitly kept quiet, refusing to mention anything that had happened six months ago, and especially avoiding a certain three-character name.
Even the script supervisor surnamed Song lost his name and was called "that guy" all day long, being ordered around.
Because the original storyline was abandoned, the new narrative structure was a challenge for everyone. Su Jianyun's revised script removed a lot of the male lead's scenes and focused more on highlighting the female lead.
Yu Jianshan had discussed this matter with Yang Muyuan.
At that moment, Yu Jianshan was sitting in the audition studio, speaking earnestly, "You know the situation of our crew. It's a film that's aiming for awards. After filming, it still needs to be submitted for review. Reshooting is definitely too late. The script that Writer Su revised cut at least 30% of the male lead's scenes, so the focus will be on the female lead. What do you think about that?"
Yu Jianshan was used to compliance tests, and when asking each male actor who came to audition, his question was always "What do you think?" rather than "Can you accept it?"
Yang Muyuan is a down-to-earth person who doesn't like pretense, so he answered directly: "Director Yu, to be honest, any actor would have concerns about cutting scenes. But since it's for the sake of winning awards and for the final effect of the film, the amount of my personal screen time is not the key. The key is whether the character's existence is necessary and compelling. If the revised script is logically sound and the character arc is complete, I have no objections."
He paused, looked up at Yu Jianshan, and said sincerely, "Director Yu, I took this role because of the good story and the good team. The amount of screen time is secondary; my duty is to play the role well."
He said it, and he did it. During the week of filming, the male and female leads had very few takes, which made Xu Shaoting very happy.
That day, after finishing filming, Wen Jia sat in the back of the Rolls-Royce as usual, nestled into the man's arms, and took the initiative to seek his lips.
The car was dimly lit. Xu Shaoting carelessly tossed the tablet aside, grabbed her waist, and began to ravage her.
After their lips and tongues intertwined for several minutes, she abruptly pulled away, looked into his eyes, and asked meaningfully, "How did it feel?"
"What do you mean, how about it?"
"Kiss me."
Xu Shaoting felt that the woman in front of him was acting unusually strange today. He stared at her for several seconds without answering. Then, she slowly poured cold water on him.
"I'm going to do this kind of thing with someone tomorrow."
After saying that, she deliberately didn't look at his expression, got off him, and obediently sat back in her seat with a smile on her lips.
It was as if they deliberately ignited his emotions, and once he was on fire, he realized he was in a panic, so he just packed his bags and left, without putting out the fire.
Sure enough, the next second, he coldly ordered the driver, "Back to the hotel."
Then, with a flick of his finger, he raised the partition screen between the front and back rows.
He was supposed to go to the airport, but the driver, for some reason, suddenly changed his mind and, following instructions, abruptly turned the steering wheel and drove towards the hotel. Within minutes, they were near the hotel.
The rear seats of the car, now separated by partitions, instantly heated up, and Xu Shaoting's breathing inexplicably became heavy. He chuckled meaningfully, "A kissing scene?"
Wen Jia nodded obediently.
"A fake kiss, or a real kiss?" With a forceful movement, she was pulled back into his arms.
Wen Jia then revealed the whole story: "Borrowing space."
Xu Shaoting's tense expression and lip line finally relaxed.
Before he could even exhale a sigh of relief, he saw her smiling again, her eyes crinkling with a captivating charm.
"But apart from the lips, the rest of the kisses were real kisses..."
The Rolls-Royce came to a stop along with Xu Shaoting's body.
If you only heard her voice, you wouldn't think there was anything wrong, but he saw her expression.
She didn't flinch at all, but met his scrutinizing gaze directly, her eyes upturned with a hint of cunning probing.
"Chairman Xu, you're not jealous, are you?"
Very good, you're getting better and better at provoking him.
The car came to a stop, and the driver opened the door for him. He picked him up and carried him into the elevator lobby.
The air inside the elevator was icy cold, but even colder was his aura. Despite her repeated kisses on his Adam's apple and chin, it didn't ease the chill at all.
"Was it done on purpose?"
She nestled in his arms, a hint of coquettishness in her voice, "I just want you to spend one more day with me..."
There were many ways to make him stay, but she chose the most provocative one. Xu Shaoting was at a loss, chuckled helplessly, and thought of a thousand ways to punish her in his mind.
The elevator finally reached the top floor. He deftly opened the door to the executive suite, flicked it with the tip of his leather shoe, and slammed the door shut.
He laid her slender body on the bed, leaned over her, and pressed his forehead against hers.
"Besides the lips, do you want to kiss other places?"
Wen Jia wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, their chests pressed together, and her nose felt so blocked by his broad shoulders that she could hardly breathe.
Xu Shaoting's hot breath tickled her ear. "For example? Where?"
Before she could answer, he began to speculate wildly, "Here?"
A long, slender hand snatched it away. "Still here?"
He not only asked questions, but also enjoyed probing while asking.
Her legs were especially sensitive. If he had to describe them with a single thing, Xu Shaoting could only think of a mimosa plant. With just a light touch, they would close tightly, as if determined to swallow his hand.
Xu Shaoting stared intently at the person beneath him, "Speak, where else do you want to kiss?"
With her eyes closed, she truthfully presented "...her neck".
He chuckled softly, nodded frankly, and then buried his face in her neck, meticulously caressing her from top to bottom.
Wen Jia panicked for a moment, "...No!"
At times like this, she would only say no. He used to respect her, but today, provoked by her, he lost his temper. "Why not? Can't I rehearse it for you beforehand?"
He should thank him for telling her.
Wen Jia was utterly helpless against his scoundrels and began to sob. Unfortunately, her faint whimpers were like a spark in flour to him.
His desire burned intensely, and he lowered his lips, asking, "Where else do you want to kiss? Here? Or here?"
Before she could respond, he buried his face in her snow-white breasts, forcing out the gasps that were stuck in her throat.
He had thoroughly violated her, and with a weak sob in her voice, she said, "You should blame... Yu Jianshan... It wasn't my idea to act... I didn't want to act either..."
“I didn’t say you couldn’t act,” he leaned in at the crucial moment, looking down at you, “but you have to bring my stuff with you when you act.”
...
Wen Jia lay languidly on the bed, unable to even open her eyes, but she secretly vowed in her heart never to tell him about such things again, as it would be asking for trouble!
The consequence of deliberately making things difficult for yourself is that you suffer a lot when you wake up the next morning.
Fortunately, she arrived at the film set on time, accompanied by Xu Shaoting.
Normally, he would drop her off at the film studio and then immediately return to the hotel, but today was different. He sat in the back seat of the car, and did not give any orders for a long time.
"Are you going to the film set to watch?" she asked, sounding quite guilty.
Hsu Shao-ting smiled confidently: "I canceled my flight just to go to the film set."
"..."
Since what happened with Song Yanlin last time, Yu Jianshan has been having recurring dreams about him, which has been keeping him restless all day. To avoid any further complications, he specially arranged the kissing scene for the first scene today.
The scene is set in the living room and is a flashback scene between the male and female leads. Feng Yingxue was not yet ill, so the scenes filmed before she fell ill were more... daring than the scenes filmed when she was ill.
Yu Jianshan pays great attention to cinematic language when filming. In all his romance films, viewers cannot find any explicit, obvious lines that would deepen the relationship between the male and female leads, because he often uses physical actions and objects to subtly convey these messages.
Therefore, his storyboard design is also extremely ingenious. With just a single shot, he can leave room for endless imagination, allowing the audience to understand the progress of the male and female protagonists' relationship in a thought-provoking way.
So this is a play without dialogue.
Even if it wasn't on screen, it happened off-screen. Yu Jianshan walked into the filming area and, as usual, gave his lead actor acting instructions.
He stood in front of Wen Jia, deliberately blocking the view of a certain unmoved figure in front of the monitor.
“Come on, let’s go over it. This scene is a flashback, and Feng Yingxue was still lively and energetic back then, so relax and act out the clingy, lovey-dovey relationship of a couple in the throes of new love.”
As Yu Jianshan spoke, he straddled Yang Muyuan's lap to demonstrate to Wen Jia the physical movements she would be replicating later.
"Come on, kiss my neck," Yu Jianshan commanded.
Yang Muyuan was also sacrificing for art, going all out and kissing Yu Jianshan's neck without any hesitation.
The latter clicked his tongue and slapped his hand away, saying, "Alright, haven't you ever filmed any romantic scenes before? So obedient? I didn't ask you to actually kiss me, just pretend!"
Yang Muyuan chuckled awkwardly twice and did as instructed.
"The kisses are staged, but the other places, like the neck and chest, are real kisses, so don't hold back. Go all out where you need to, and make sure the kissing and rubbing feels real, so the audience can feel the heat through the screen, understand? You also need to keep up with your breathing, a little panting, but don't overdo it, we're not making a pornographic film."
Wen Jia nodded.
"Alright, do it once more."
She took a step and subconsciously looked out of the film set, unexpectedly bumping into Xu Shaoting's deep gaze. He had his arms crossed, his posture calm and unhurried, as if he wasn't watching his girlfriend filming with another man.
Under such gazes, she leaned forward and sat down on Yang Muyuan.
"..."
Yang Muyuan wrapped his arms around her waist, and with his other hand, he cupped her back and buried his face in her neck and shoulder, mimicking a kiss.
The set fell silent instantly, the atmosphere even more oppressive than when Xu Shaoting first visited the set. His presence was too strong; everyone was thinking about the same thing, but no one said it aloud.
Yu Kaiqing stood behind Xu Shaoting, cautiously glancing at his figure. She saw him move his fingers, take out a cigarette, but deliberately didn't smoke it. Instead, he rubbed it between his palms, playing with it back and forth, as if trying to relieve some kind of suppressed emotion.
She felt uncomfortable for Wen Jia, realizing for the first time how long a scene with her could feel.
Several minutes later, Yu Jianshan finally cut off the call, saying, "That's about the feeling. We'll start filming in a minute."
The silence on set was finally broken.
Upon hearing this, Wen Jia quickly stepped off Yang Muyuan's lap and jogged towards Xu Shaoting.
She obediently squatted in front of him, her chin resting on his leg. Before she could speak, he took the initiative, saying, "I won't be angry, so feel free to take pictures."
She stared at him with wide eyes, cautiously touching the cigarette between his fingers. "Then what's this?"
"...It's just a little annoying."
She muttered, "Then... why don't you go out and stay for a while?"
"No need." He pulled her up, cupped her face in his hands, and hid them both behind the monitor. He asked in a low voice, "How many takes do we need?"
“Just once…” she assured him, “just once, for you.”
Xu Shaoting nodded, kissed her lips with a certain emotion, and only released her after a long while, "Go,"
Then he said the exact same thing as last time.
"I'm here."
He wanted her to see him as the first person she saw after leaving the scene.
Just then, Yu Jianshan announced the start of filming over a loudspeaker, and she softly hummed in agreement, "Wait for me."
The script supervisor, photographer, and sound recordist were all ready. Wen Jia sat on Yang Muyuan's lap, just like before.
The clapperboard was immediately knocked down.
On the sofa, the light was deliberately dimmed. Yang Muyuan slowly kissed Wen Jia's fair and slender neck, a light, fleeting touch, moving down to her chest. She was wearing a camisole and a knitted cardigan, so while the view wasn't completely exposed, it was still partially concealed, exuding a captivating allure.
Her senses gradually awakened under the delicate touch, and were amplified infinitely as she descended. She was kissed until she leaned back, her eyes half-closed, her expression dazed and unfocused.
So no one knew that at one point she pulled away from Feng Yingxue's body and looked at the man outside the film set.
Xu Shaoting was clearly suppressing his long, drawn-out breaths, deliberately slowing the rhythm of his chest's rise and fall.
However, the actions were too intimate and ambiguous. Even if it was just acting, he couldn't deny that at one point, he lost control of his emotions.
He stood up and walked out of the film set.
He deliberately turned his back to the filming area, so he could only hear Yu Jianshan's commands:
"A little deeper, a little more."
The lighter in Xu Shaoting's hand clicked once.
"Press your lips closer together."
The lighter's flint clicked a second time.
"Kiss her lips."
Flames erupted, and the cigarette butt instantly glowed crimson.
He frowned, unwilling to think about where the two of them were in their act, or where he had kissed her.
He took a few deep drags of his cigarette in the wind, then exhaled heavily. After a long wait, when the cigarette butt was half gone, he heard a 'click' from inside, followed by the sound of familiar, light footsteps.
He paused, then suddenly turned around.
In the autumn sunlight, she stood quietly, her hands folded in front of her, her delicate eyebrows slightly furrowed, her eyes rather unfocused and dreamy, as if she was trying hard to figure out who the man in front of her was.
He knew she was in the same state last time; she hadn't snapped out of her reverie and was still immersed in her intimacy with another man.
His heart sank, and he rushed to her, calling her name, "Wen Jia."
He called her name once, not enough, and then called it a second time, "Wen Jia." Without saying a word, he kissed her lips, selfishly wanting to sweep away the scent of other men left on her.
His possessiveness and aggressiveness almost made her lose her balance.
No one on set dared to make a sound. All they could see was the man holding a cigarette in one hand and cradling her head in the other, kissing her deeply. The kiss was a deep, suppressed feeling from the depths of his heart.
He didn't release her until she was almost out of breath from the kiss, and looked into her eyes. "Look at me, Wen Jia."
When she saw him clearly, her eyes changed noticeably; the previous dazedness had vanished, replaced by a clear gaze.
Only his clarity.
"Call me by my name," he commanded, but gently.
But Wen Jia called out not on his orders, but according to her own heart, "Xu Shaoting..."
Her face was pressed against his chest, and she cried out in a muffled voice.
Only when he heard those three words was he satisfied, and he pulled her into his arms.
"Wasn't it said that you would be over there?"
She was also afraid that she wouldn't be able to see him right away.
"I'm sorry," he apologized for his selfishness, "I'll definitely do it next time."
“There won’t be a next time, all the kissing scenes have been filmed,” Wen Jia said obediently, “as well as the intimate scenes.”
Xu Shaoting then smiled with satisfaction.
He was very selfish and wouldn't allow her to have any other men in her eyes or heart.
-
He stayed to watch her film the kissing scene, and returned home immediately after it was finished.
After a two-hour flight, when he returned to Fushan Avenue, it was only afternoon. As soon as he stepped into the living room, he saw Xu Bozheng's tall figure.
The latter, dressed in a dark suit with his hair perfectly styled, walked towards him with his hands behind his back and a cold, stern expression.
The father and son stood facing each other for a moment. This time, Xu Bozheng did not lose his temper. Instead, he calmly looked at his eldest son and asked directly, "Where did you come from?"
"Yungang".
"On business trip?"
"..."
Seeing that he did not answer, he commanded, "Come with me."
"The company still has clients to meet."
"Let's cancel it for today," Xu Bozheng said, his words sharp and clear.
"I'll take you to see someone."
"Whom are you going to see?"
Xu Bozheng had already turned around and started walking, but Xu Shaoting didn't follow, only asking a question in return.
"A girl."
Xu Shaoting chuckled, puzzled. "What do you mean? A blind date?"
He finally set off, but walked in the opposite direction. "I have a girlfriend, I'm not seeing her."
Xu Bozheng watched his retreating figure, unusually calm, without showing any anger.
"Believe me, you will definitely want to see it."
Xu Bozheng was acting very strangely today. He deliberately avoided arguing with him and instead gave him a long and earnest lecture.
This unusual restraint made Xu Shaoting's heart sink.
He'd rather openly or covertly exchange barbs with him.
Xu Shaoting slowly turned around and followed him. The two got into the back seat of the Rolls-Royce one after the other.
Xu Bozheng straightened the hem of his suit jacket and spoke slowly, "You've gone to Yungang to see her time and time again?"
Xu Shaoting said casually, "Not repeatedly."
Xu Bozheng remained silent for a few seconds, but his composure finally crumbled, and he snapped, "What? You regret not going there more often?"
"To tell the truth."
Xu Bozheng was about to explode when Xu Shaoting calmly interrupted him: "Don't be angry, Dad, it's bad for your health."
The Rolls-Royce remained silent for a few seconds.
Xu Bozheng suppressed his anger, crossed his arms in a show of composure, and sighed, "I told you I'd give you six months to date, and we'd break up immediately after that. Now it's been more than six months, what are you going to do?"
Xu Shaoting did not hesitate, "I can't do it."
"It's just a matter of a word."
"I can't do it in my heart."
Xu Bozheng's expression grew increasingly cold and stern. "You like her that much?"
Xu Shaoting remained silent, which was taken as tacit agreement.
Tell me why you like her.
If Wen Jia herself had asked him this question, Xu Shaoting would have answered her seriously, perhaps because of her brightness, her resilience, her insight, or her likable personality. But if someone else had asked, he would only have a brief answer:
“It’s hard to say,” Xu Shaoting smiled unconsciously. “She only acts like a little girl in front of me.”
Xu Bozheng seemed taken aback. "That's all?"
“Yes, she is always strong and stubborn in front of everyone, but she is vulnerable in front of me. I want to protect her.”
Xu Bozheng sighed almost imperceptibly, for his son. How could he not understand? Seeing the woman he loved let her guard down only in front of him, the feeling of being completely entrusted with something—no man could resist that feeling.
Xu Bozheng stopped talking and just looked out the window with a sense of melancholy, his determination to take him to see this person becoming even stronger.
They stared at each other in silence for a long while, until the car drove onto the main road, at which point Xu Shaoting asked, "So who exactly are you taking me to see?"
You'll see when you get there.
The driver drove for nearly an hour before turning onto a quiet, tree-lined road and finally stopping in front of a villa.
The villa has a very grand exterior, but because the surrounding walls are a bit higher than those of ordinary villas, it appears particularly enclosed.
The two walked into the front yard, where several clumps of plants were full of life, their small white petals trembling in the wind, and a few hibiscus bushes stretched out freely, standing out against the surrounding high walls.
Xu Bozheng rang the doorbell, and a servant came to greet them and ushered them inside.
The house was unusually quiet. The living room was luxuriously furnished, but the luxury was silent and understated, as if lifeless.
The servants led them to the center of the living room, where the noise came from the stairs.
Xu Shaoting stopped and looked up, where he saw a young girl who looked to be about twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. She was tall and had an exceptionally beautiful face.
She stood still, holding onto the handrail, not getting down immediately. Instead, she stared at Xu Shaoting for a moment before turning to Xu Bozheng and greeting him with a smile, "Uncle Xu."
After saying that, he went down to the first floor.
“Mingyan, it’s been a while,” Xu Bozheng patted her shoulder as if greeting a younger person, then turned to his son: “You two met once when you were little, do you remember me?”
Xu Shaoting tried his best to recall the name 'Mingyan', but to no avail. He maintained a polite smile and told the truth, "I don't have much of an impression of her."
Xie Mingyan is clearly an introverted person, even somewhat repressed, and doesn't talk much. She greeted the guests and invited them to sit down, then thoughtfully poured them tea.
Xu Bozheng seemed to have brought him to a blind date, but then again, he didn't, because he knew that someone with this kind of personality wouldn't be the kind of daughter-in-law he wanted.
He had little patience for other women and wanted to leave immediately, but it would be impolite to do so, so he sat down politely and courteously.
Xu Bozheng led the conversation among the three, while Xu Shaoting barely said a few words, simply drinking cup after cup of tea.
From the half-hour conversation, he learned that her father and Xu Bozheng were old friends, having been in frequent contact in earlier years, but had become somewhat estranged in recent years. The rest of the conversation was quite routine, nothing more than trivial matters about family and work. They chatted for nearly an hour, the fruit plate was empty, the tea was cold, and Xu Shaoting glanced at his watch, intending to stand up and leave, when he heard Xu Bozheng ask:
How's your mother doing lately?
This question, which should have been asked during the initial greetings, was instead asked at this crucial moment. An inappropriate question, an inappropriate time, and an inappropriate answer—
"Very bad."
Xu Shaoting stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. At that moment, he finally understood where her repression came from—it came from her mother. When she spoke of her mother, her face seemed to turn bitter, a stark contrast to her beautiful features.
"Is it convenient for me to go see Wenshuang?" Xu Bozheng asked.
Xie Mingyan nodded gently, "Uncle Xu, come with me."
Xie Mingyan led the father and son to the front of the villa garden, but did not step inside; instead, they looked through the glass window.
Amidst a cluster of roses in full bloom, a woman sat with her back to them. Usually, in such a setting, a woman would be sitting on a swing chair, but she wasn't; she was sitting in a cold, impersonal wheelchair.
Her back view was as thin as a sheet of paper. Although she was wearing an expensive silk dress, she was lifeless. The roses beside her seemed to have more vitality than she did.
"Still refusing to talk to others?"
He used the word 'still'.
“Yes,” Xie Mingyan said with a sorrowful expression, “I sit in the garden every day, I don’t even want to eat, there can’t be any noise in the house, I just talk to the flowers every day, or I wipe those trophies.”
Xu Shaoting followed Xie Mingyan's gaze and saw a clean glass cabinet on the side of the living room, with five shelves filled with gold trophies.
It's exactly the same as the one in Wen Jia's office.
He approached and looked at the words on the base of the trophy one by one.
'Double Star Award - Best Actress'
'Golden Tripod Award - Best Supporting Actress'
'Hong Kong Film Awards - Best Actress'
'Best Performance Award in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival'
...
It is clearly an impressive resume of an excellent actress who has gone from China to the world.
Finally, his eyes settled on her name.
Su Wenshuang.
Xu Shaoting remembered who she was.
He attended her wedding when he was nine years old.
At the wedding, everyone was saying that the groom was charming, good-looking, rich, and capable, and that he had married a female celebrity who was willing to give up everything for him.
But back then, Su Wenshuang, whom Xu Shaoting saw, was all smiles. Why did she turn out like this after not seeing her for over twenty years?
He turned his gaze back to the gaunt figure in the garden, trying to connect her in this moment with the one in his memory.
But it's difficult.
At that moment, Xu Shaoting belatedly realized that Xu Bozheng hadn't brought him to meet any girl, nor had he brought him to a blind date; rather, he had brought him to meet the girl's mother.
Su Wenshuang seemed to sense some movement and slowly turned around until she was facing the three people outside the glass.
Her face was still beautiful, with well-defined features. Although her cheeks were thin, her excellent bone structure supported her former beauty.
But those eyes were empty and lifeless.
"Mom, Uncle Xu is here."
Upon hearing this, Su Wenshuang smiled slightly and maneuvered her wheelchair to the father and son.
"Bozheng, what brings you here today?"
After asking the question, she turned her gaze to Xu Shaoting, her expression stunned.
"This is Shao Ting. Wen Shuang, do you remember him?"
Su Wenshuang tried her best to appear self-consistent in front of outsiders. She nodded gracefully and said, "Shao Ting has grown so much?" She looked Xu Shao Ting up and down carefully. "He still looks very good, but he doesn't look like he did when he was a child."
Hello, Auntie.
"Are you married?" she asked.
"not yet."
"A girl likes you, right?"
Xu Shaoting nodded slightly and smiled, "I have a girl I like."
Upon hearing this, Su Wenshuang nodded, muttering to herself, "Not married... not married is fine too..."
She seemed to have only come to ask these trivial questions, and after receiving the answers, she turned her wheelchair and returned to the rose bushes.
Su Wenshuang disliked being disturbed by outsiders or dealing with them, so the father and son couldn't linger. Xu Bozheng went up to her and had a private conversation before leaving in a hurry.
After leaving the villa, the two remained silent, the atmosphere becoming increasingly tense. Only after getting back into the car did Xu Bozheng ask, "Do you remember who she is?"
"Um."
"In your memory, she should be very beautiful."
There was a moment of silence inside the car.
Xu Bozheng continued, "She's like your girlfriend; she used to be a star, an actress. She might have been even more dazzling and talented than Wen Jia. Her husband is very good, providing her with the best possible life, but he no longer allows her to show her face in public. Her past dreams, talents, and brilliance have all become embellishments that this family needs to carefully preserve. At first, she would sigh and lament when she saw her past. Five years later, when she looked back, she would regret it deeply. By the tenth year, she couldn't accept that she had become like this, and the psychological gap made her depressed for eight whole years. She even thought about suicide."
"She has the best medical team, but they can't cure her; it's a psychological problem."
"Is this why you brought me to see her today?" For once, there was a moment of harmony between father and son. Xu Shaoting turned his head and said in a calm tone, "You're afraid that Wen Jia will suffer the same fate as her."
His comprehension was always so remarkable. Xu Bozheng neither admitted nor denied it.
Xu Shaoting said slowly, "I won't let her become like that. I'm not like her husband. I won't forbid her from showing her face in public."
“It’s different.” Xu Bozheng’s lips twitched, but there was no real smile. “Back then, the Xie family had a weak foundation and needed Su Wenshuang’s fame to bolster their image. It was a win-win situation.” His gaze pressed down heavily. “But for a family like ours, what we fear most is unnecessary attention and trouble. On the contrary, we need her to tone down her brilliance and avoid any potential negative impact. Her industry has high exposure and lots of gossip. Today it’s a trending topic, tomorrow it’s a scandal. For ordinary people, it’s just fodder for conversation, but for her, it could be a storm.”
“I admit that families like ours can be cruel at times, so many things are cruel in a natural way, and you can’t control them, just like your mother.”
Xu Shaoting suddenly looked up at him.
"Your mother gave up a lot to marry me. At first, she thought it was worth it, but now if you ask her to look at her past self, she can't bear to. I feel very sorry for her now and I regret it. If I had known it would be like this when I was young, I would rather not have married your mother and have married a woman I could not love. Because seeing the person you love suffer will only make you more miserable than her."
"That's why you've always wanted me to marry Shen Zhiyun."
“Shao Ting, I’m not cursing your love, I’m showing you a cautionary tale. How long can the passion of love last? When the passion fades and life reveals its trivial, realistic, and even cruel nature, will Wen Jia resent you for giving up on herself? I don’t want you to experience the same heartache as me when you reach my age.”
Xu Shaoting turned his head to look out the window, hesitated for a long time, and then said, "I can let her be completely herself."
For the first time, Xu Bozheng felt that his eldest son was almost irrationally persistent about something. He took a deep breath, about to speak, but then swallowed it back and said earnestly, "You'll be very tired that way."
“I don’t care,” Xu Shaoting said with a slight smile. “You said there are some things I can’t control, but she can control herself. She won’t let herself become like Su Wenshuang.”
“Yes, she might not necessarily turn out that way; nothing is absolute,” Xu Bozheng paused for a moment, his voice turning cold and sharp. “But since you’re going to be with her, you have to be prepared for the risk that she might turn out that way! Ask yourself, would she want to see herself become like that? Would you want to see her like that?”
"Don't let momentary romance cloud your judgment. Let me tell you, dating and marriage are two completely different things. There are many other things you need to consider."
He didn't force him to break up, he just comforted him, which was very unusual.
Xu Shaoting withdrew his gaze and slowly began to speak, "So—"
"Therefore, you need to think carefully about your feelings."
“Starting next month, all your duties will be suspended.” Xu Bozheng’s tone left no room for argument.
"I'll give you time to think it through."
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