Chapter 48
Ji Qinghe’s words came so smoothly that Shen Qianzhan was momentarily bewildered. Once she grasped his meaning, she first raised an eyebrow, then smiled in relief, assuming he was joking with her.
But when Shen Qianzhan turned her head, trying to brush it off with her usual cheerful demeanor as she always did when teased, she realized Ji Qinghe seemed serious.
He was still focused on the road, his jaw slightly tense. He wasn’t smiling, nor did he spare her even a glance. His expression was slightly rigid, the lines of his profile as if drawn with a brush, possessing a natural artistic quality.
His appearance leaned toward the cold side; when he wasn’t speaking, unless intentionally, no one would ever associate the words “approachable” or “friendly” with Ji Qinghe.
The last time Shen Qianzhan saw him like this was when they signed the contract earlier in the year. He was exuding an air of cold, businesslike seriousness.
She had always felt she couldn’t see through Ji Qinghe. He was deep-minded and cunning, scheming without leaving a trace. Every time they clashed, she not only ended up at a disadvantage but also fell into traps he had set at some unknown time, leaving her in an embarrassing state each time.
This time was different.
He wasn’t disguising anything, nor did he convey any strong signals. He simply and directly informed her of his attitude—he wasn’t joking.
Instinctively, Shen Qianzhan began replaying every moment in her mind from the afternoon when she entered the courtyard house.
From Old Mr. Ji showing her friendliness, to Ms. Meng turning around at the stove to speak with her, and finally to the farewell scene.
Old Mr. Ji’s curiosity about her personally was only evident during the brief walk from the main house to the kitchen. Ms. Meng never directly inquired about her background, maintaining the politeness and distance appropriate for a guest.
She parted her lips, wanting to say something, but the atmosphere in the car had already been reset to the awkward silence from when they first got in, all because of Ji Qinghe’s earlier words.
They remained silent all the way to the parking lot. Before getting out, Ji Qinghe turned down the somewhat noisy music to a volume suitable for conversation. “You don’t need to worry. They still think I’m in the unrequited love stage, so they won’t have any opinions about you.”
This kind of topic had always been sensitive between Shen Qianzhan and Ji Qinghe.
If it were any other time, given Shen Qianzhan’s personality, she would have already fired back with sarcastic remarks, whether sincere or not, making sure her attitude came across as unyielding. But today’s situation… was a bit unusual.
That moment behind the screen—although it was Ji Qinghe who couldn’t control himself, Shen Qianzhan couldn’t lie to herself… She not only didn’t push him away but even somewhat enjoyed that feeling of suspension, followed by a sudden impact mid-air and a rapid, disorderly descent.
Deep down, she still accepted the validation of being admired, desired, and possessed, especially when that person was Ji Qinghe—the one who had breached her defenses and made her willing to share intimate moments with him.
She quickly thought about how to respond to his words.
Saying “I didn’t take it to heart” felt weightless, while retorting “Why should I worry?” seemed frivolous. For the first time, Shen Qianzhan felt the air in the car was so thin.
Fortunately, a phone call came at the perfect time, rescuing her from the inescapable situation.
Shen Qianzhan said, “Hold on,” and checked the caller ID. Seeing it was Su Zan, she quickly found an excuse: “Su Zan is probably calling about the script.”
Ji Qinghe nodded, signaling her to answer first.
Shen Qianzhan didn’t pick up. She let the phone vibrate, as if she had completely forgotten what they were discussing earlier, and said, “Thank you for Old Mr. Ji and Ms. Meng’s hospitality tonight. Please convey my gratitude to them again on my behalf.”
Ji Qinghe turned to look at her.
He was calm, even somewhat composed. That expression on his face seemed to imply, “Let’s see what else you can come up with.”
Unfazed, Shen Qianzhan asked him, “When are you returning to Xi’an?”
“Not decided yet.” Ji Qinghe paused for a moment and said, “Ming Jue will arrange it. I’ll have him notify you in advance.”
After speaking, he brushed his thumb across his lips, his voice slightly lower. “Tomorrow is Thursday?”
The vibrating call was cut off. Shen Qianzhan instinctively looked down at the screen to confirm the time. “Yes, Thursday.”
Ji Qinghe seemed to think for a few seconds and said, “I have something urgent tomorrow, so I won’t be attending the script meeting. Have Su Zan send the meeting audio and written records directly to Ming Jue.”
The excuse of “something urgent” was too insincere. If not for his tone being so detached and devoid of emotion, Shen Qianzhan would have thought her own lack of tact had angered him.
She was slightly taken aback but didn’t show it on her face, readily agreeing. After watching Ji Qinghe leave, she stood there for a while, utterly perplexed.
Did this dog man not want to see her tomorrow, so he claimed to have something urgent?
Or did he find it dull after getting what he wanted again?
No way?
Could Ji Qinghe’s goal really be satisfied with just a kiss? That’s so half-hearted?
—
The dog man’s drastic change in attitude left Shen Qianzhan pondering all night about when exactly his mindset had twisted.
When she realized she had spent so much time dwelling on such a trivial matter, Shen Qianzhan felt as if struck by a sudden blow, jolting her awake.
After a night of light sleep, Shen Qianzhan woke up the next day with a splitting headache. Everything she saw was dim; the distant high-rises were shrouded behind a gray curtain, indistinct and unclear.
She lay in bed for a while until Shen’s Mother came in to urge her to get up since she was running late. Only then did she support her heavy head and get ready for work.
When Old Shen saw her off downstairs, he looked worried. “The weather forecast says another cold wave is coming. It’s almost the Lantern Festival; I hope we won’t be stuck in Beijing and unable to return home.”
Shen Qianzhan pressed the elevator button and teased, “Are you tired of seeing me and eager to go back?”
“Nonsense.” Old Shen laughed and scolded her. “You’re so petty, not even letting me nag. I’m worried about the pond in the backyard—there are fish in it.”
This year’s Spring Festival weather had been abnormal, with snowstorms everywhere recently and relief galas held one after another. No wonder Old Shen was anxious. Shen Qianzhan didn’t take it seriously, reassured him a few words, and drove to work.
The script meeting was scheduled for the afternoon, partly to accommodate Jiang Juanshan and Lin Qiao, who lived far apart in the city, and partly to suit Ji Qinghe’s schedule. Shen Qianzhan had coordinated with Ming Jue several times and knew he was busiest in the mornings, so she always arranged for afternoons.
Now that he was absent, Shen Qianzhan had no intention of rescheduling. She instructed Qiao Xin to take detailed meeting notes, and at 3 p.m., the meeting began on time.
This hastily assembled creative team consisted of neither Jiang Juanshan nor Lin Qiao being inexperienced newcomers. Lin Qiao, in particular, had collaborated with Shen Qianzhan multiple times, so the first half of the meeting took only an hour to determine the revision direction.
During the break, Su Zan went downstairs to buy coffee and returned with Su Lanyi, who sat in for the second half of the script meeting.
After the meeting ended, Su Lanyi showed great interest, not only requesting the meeting notes but also asking the screenwriters to prepare a proposal, turning their creative direction and inspiration into a PowerPoint presentation.
After assigning this “homework,” seeing the heavy snow outside, she specifically arranged for a company car to take the screenwriters home.
Jiang Juanshan had driven himself there and politely declined. When everyone looked at Lin Qiao, he smiled and answered on her behalf: “No need to trouble yourselves. I’m heading in that direction anyway.”
Seeing that neither of them was just being polite, Su Lanyi gave up and had Su Zan escort them downstairs.
Once the small conference room emptied, the sound of running equipment became particularly clear.
Shen Qianzhan sorted through the meeting notes while archiving them. Qiao Xin turned off the projector and came over to organize the meeting documents.
Su Lanyi sat for a while, perhaps finding it too quiet, and flipped through the printed outlines on the table, asking Shen Qianzhan about the next steps.
“Finalize the outline and the first episode script within this month,” Shen Qianzhan scrolled through the mouse, quickly browsing. “Teacher Jiang and Lin Qiao’s collaboration is very harmonious, and their progress is faster than I expected. If they maintain this pace, we can move forward with production soon.”
Shen Qianzhan’s work pace was notoriously intense, and the difficulty of her projects was no less than walking through fire.
Su Lanyi rarely interfered in this aspect. She elegantly finished flipping through the outline and nodded in approval. “Are you considering Shao Chouxi for the director?”
Shen Qianzhan didn’t answer immediately. She gestured for Qiao Xin to hand her a USB drive. “Su Zan has been interested in cinematography lately. A while ago, he edited some classic scenes from Director Shao.” She turned the computer screen toward Su Lanyi and opened the media player.
Su Lanyi noticed a folder named “Ji Qinghe” on her desktop and raised an eyebrow slightly. “What’s this?”
Shen Qianzhan followed her gaze and explained, “Files related to Mr. Ji.”
At the end of last year, while collaborating with Endless Year, Shen Qianzhan personally revised several versions. For easy access, she kept them on her desktop. Later, as their cooperation continued, the volume of exchanged materials and information grew, and she often dragged files and images directly into this folder.
Su Lanyi had asked casually, but upon hearing this, she took a closer look and smiled. “You and Mr. Ji are quite interesting—one has a dedicated folder on the desktop, and the other is only interested in topics about you at the dinner table.”
The cursor hovering over the video file slowed for a moment. Shen Qianzhan looked up at Su Lanyi.
The latter shrugged lightly and said in a gossipy tone, “After Xiang Qianqian terminated her contract with Thousand Lights, she invited Mr. Ji and me to dinner.”
Shen Qianzhan had heard about this from Su Zan. At the time, she had even worn down one of her nails from anxiety, so the memory was vivid. “When Xiang Qianqian was at the peak of her popularity at Thousand Lights, I never saw you treasure her so much. Now that she’s terminated her contract, you’re having dinner together?”
“If I had known she was the one organizing it, I wouldn’t have gone.”
Xiang Qianqian’s decision to terminate her contract and leave had deeply offended Su Lanyi. She had initially intended to make things difficult for Xiang Qianqian—even if the termination went through, she could drag out the legal battle for a year or two. If not for Ji Qinghe’s intervention, the matter would never have been resolved peacefully.
“That old fox Jiang Yecheng arranged the meeting for her. I thought it was another opportunity to make money, but all I saw was Jiang Yecheng’s oily behavior. It disgusted me.” Su Lanyi shook her head, her tone disdainful. “Just as I was about to leave, Mr. Ji arrived. He didn’t need to give Jiang Yecheng any face. He glanced around the room, didn’t even sit down, stood for a moment, and said, ‘Since not everyone is here, don’t waste my time.’”
“Jiang Yecheng was stunned and asked who else was missing.” She took a sip through her straw and gave Shen Qianzhan a suggestive look.
Alright.
No need to name names—Su Lanyi’s gaze clearly pointed to her.
Shen Qianzhan remained expressionless, clicked on the video, and her tone was even steadier than Su Lanyi’s. “I never thought my name could trick such a big shot now.”
Su Lanyi laughed. “Didn’t I tell you before?” Her features were bright and uniquely beautiful, and when she stared intently at someone, it was quite intimidating. “I love seeing that stubborn look of yours when you refuse to admit it. It’s especially charming.”
“Do you really think Mr. Ji gives face to just anyone?” Su Lanyi propped her chin on her hand and said with a smile, “I think you’re taking advantage of his favor and acting spoiled.”
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