Chapter Eighty
After leaving the dining hall, Shen Qianzhan did not depart immediately.
She walked along the corridor all the way to the hotel’s rear garden.
The garden at Jichun Erwan offered year-round services for lawn weddings or outdoor press conferences, so professional gardeners meticulously maintained it throughout the seasons.
It was May, the transition between late spring and early summer. In the garden, flowers of various colors vied for attention. Though their true appearance was hidden under the night lights, the refreshing fragrance carried by the gentle evening breeze was enough to paint a vivid scene of a blooming spring feast.
Shen Qianzhan did not wander far.
She paused by a flower bed, giving herself space to think.
Ji Qinghe rarely interfered with her work. Unless he believed she was incapable of handling matters on her own, he always left room for her, exercising restraint and respect. Conversely, Shen Qianzhan would not recklessly interfere with his decisions or freedom.
This had always been an unspoken understanding between them.
But earlier, Ji Qinghe had said two things.
One was directed at Xiao Sheng: "Producer Xiao and General Manager Su must be quite close, right?"
The other was a question: "A romantic relationship?"
Ji Qinghe seldom concerned himself with others’ private affairs and had little interest in gossip.
Without reason, he would not bring up such matters in public.
Shen Qianzhan was no fool. With a little thought, she understood that Ji Qinghe’s two remarks, while seemingly directed at Xiao Sheng, were actually meant for her—he was telling her that Xiao Sheng and Su Lanyi had a deep personal relationship.
Based on her understanding of Su Lanyi, their private relationship was kept secret and likely not a proper romantic one, but rather an unspoken, behind-the-scenes arrangement.
Aside from making her sigh once again at Su Lanyi’s poor taste in men, this revelation seemed to serve no other purpose.
What concerned her was Su Lanyi’s intention in choosing to continue the contract with Wuxi Film and Television City, knowing full well that its controlling shareholder was Penglai Chenguang Pictures.
Su Zan’s ignorance of her personal grudge with Penglai Chenguang was understandable, but Su Lanyi was one of the few witnesses who knew the full story of what had happened back then. She could not possibly be unaware.
Over the years, Shen Qianzhan’s relationship with Su Lanyi had gradually deteriorated.
On the surface, Su Lanyi remained her mentor who relied on her for everything, while Shen Qianzhan remained the loyal and steadfast subordinate who, despite weathering storms, still chose to stand by Su Lanyi. But only Shen Qianzhan herself knew that their relationship was not unbreakable. Like a dam infested with termites, cracks had long appeared, and its collapse was only a matter of time.
She had considered trying to mend it, but their friendship had always been built on Su Lanyi’s acts of grace. Su Lanyi had her own thoughts but was unwilling to communicate, leaving Shen Qianzhan’s efforts one-sided and futile, with no solution in sight.
Shen Qianzhan’s lips felt dry, and her tongue was parched.
A sense of unwarranted anxiety stirred restlessness in her heart, like sparks rising from dry kindling, gradually spreading into a wildfire.
She suddenly missed the cigarette Xiao Sheng had offered her earlier, which she had refused.
Though it wouldn’t quench her thirst, at least it could help douse the fire.
—
Shen Qianzhan had only stood by the flower bed for a short while before her calves grew sore and her ankles began to itch faintly.
The buzzing of mosquitoes and other insects around her also grew more noticeable as night fell.
Shen Qianzhan had no intention of offering herself as a feast for mosquitoes. Just as she was about to leave, footsteps approached from behind, carrying the cool, detached demeanor of their owner, as if walking on clouds. In moments, he stood before her.
With his arrival, the temperature seemed to drop, and the night grew hazy and dim.The wind carried a hint of chill, and the scent she caught on the breeze, the cool fragrance of night air clinging to his shoulders, was faint as pine and bamboo yet rich as the bright moon.
The moment she saw him, Shen Qianzhan’s restless heart seemed to be silently soothed, settling back into place.
Shen Qianzhan blinked, meeting his gaze.
His eyes were deep and profound, his gaze steady and penetrating. Unlike her own slightly bewildered expression, his was resolute, and from the moment they faced each other, he had been scrutinizing her carefully from head to toe.
Feeling somewhat uneasy under his inspection, Shen Qianzhan asked, “What are you looking at?”
“Checking to see if you’ve been crying.” Ji Qinghe’s lips curved slightly as he flicked her forehead lightly with his finger. “Not checking your phone? I’ve been looking for you for a while.”
Only then did Shen Qianzhan belatedly fish her phone out of her bag. The screen displayed a neat row of missed calls and WeChat messages.
That afternoon, on the way back from the airport to the crew’s hotel, Shen Qianzhan had been browsing documents on her phone. To avoid disturbing Ji Qinghe and Ming Jue, she had switched it to silent mode. Unexpectedly, she had forgotten to switch it back afterward.
Feeling guilty, Shen Qianzhan cleared her throat and said, “Scripts usually write it this way—whenever something happens to the main characters, their phones are either dead or on silent, so they can’t be easily found.”
Ji Qinghe raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed by this explanation.
She changed the subject. “Where’s Ming Jue?”
“He’s behind us.” Ji Qinghe paused before adding, “If you’d rather see him right now, I can go switch places with him.”
Shen Qianzhan wouldn’t dare.
Ever since Ji Qinghe had gained the legitimate and reasonable right to sleep, his aura had become overbearing, often resorting to sleep-related threats.
Given her delicate constitution, she couldn’t withstand such relentless torment day after day.
Pretending she hadn’t heard, she asked instead, “What about Su Zan and Qiao Xin?”
“Ming Jue sent them off first.” Ji Qinghe’s hand slid down to take hers. “Take a walk with me?”
Shen Qianzhan thought for a moment. “Alright.”
Back at the crew, there were too many people and prying eyes, with who knew how many watching her like minesweepers, ready to pounce at any moment.
The two walked along a cobblestone path, moving from the lawn to the boardwalk by Swan Lake.
The boardwalk had streetlights every five meters, their dim glow providing just enough illumination.
Holding her hand, Ji Qinghe led her to the lake’s central peninsula. There were no streetlights here, only several rows of star-shaped lights wrapped around the wooden railing posts, twinkling like shooting stars piercing the darkness one after another.
Shen Qianzhan thought the atmosphere here was quite nice. Leaning against the railing, she glanced at the dark lake surface. Just as she was about to turn around, Ji Qinghe embraced her from behind, pulling her into his arms.
Her heart skipped a beat, a strange mix of excitement and fondness stirring within her for this unfamiliar sensation.
The question she had been pondering all along naturally slipped out: “When did you find out about Xiao Sheng and Su Lanyi being in a relationship?”
“Relationship?” He scoffed dismissively. “It’s not a relationship.”
Xiao Sheng was her colleague, and Su Lanyi was her boss. With her subordinates and the complicated dynamics involving Su Zan at the table, he couldn’t speak too directly or bluntly in public. That’s why he had used the term “relationship” to gloss over it slightly, leaving everyone with enough face.
As for when he found out, it was a long story.
Ji Qinghe carefully considered his words before replying, “After I got the proposal.”
The proposal?
Shen Qianzhan paused, probing further. “The proposal I gave to Old Mr. Ji?”
Ji Qinghe nodded.He rubbed his chin against the top of her head and said softly, "I'm used to making plans, and I'm used to thinking three steps ahead. At the time, besides considering how to naturally integrate into your life, I also took the opportunity to investigate your social circle."
Shen Qianzhan's tone turned sinister. "Took the opportunity to investigate? Don’t you think that kind of behavior is offensive to me?"
"It is offensive," he seemed to be laughing, his voice low, his chest vibrating slightly. "If you hadn’t asked, I was planning to let you go your whole life without knowing."
Shen Qianzhan: "..."
Was he actually being so unapologetic?
"Just kidding," Ji Qinghe reined in his smile and said seriously, "I spent some time finding the intersection of our lives. It was inevitable to understand your social and professional circles. If you want to waste unnecessary time being angry, I respect that."
Shen Qianzhan was left speechless by his words.
He had already said that being angry was "wasting unnecessary time"—so could she even be angry now?
Besides, was this his way of showing respect?
Given Ji Qinghe’s scheming nature and his tendency to think three steps ahead, they might never have a proper argument in their lives. It would just be her being outmaneuvered, countered, and defeated over and over again.
Without exception.
Shen Qianzhan calmed herself down and asked, "So, before you knew me, you already knew about Su Lanyi and Xiao Sheng’s inappropriate relationship?"
From her completely unguarded words, Ji Qinghe deduced—good, she was pacified.
He smiled faintly, his tone lifting slightly. "You could say that."
"I confirmed it in Beijing. Ming Jue and I both saw Su Lanyi drunk and being picked up by Xiao Sheng. We were curious at the time and took a closer look." He paused, leaving it at that and not elaborating further.
Shen Qianzhan understood.
She asked again, "When you deliberately brought it up in public tonight, besides trying to wake me up, was there something else I overlooked?"
This question didn’t require much thought from Ji Qinghe. "Bringing it up in public is more straightforward. I’ve never liked gossiping behind people’s backs."
Shen Qianzhan couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow, clearly not believing that Ji Qinghe’s motives were that simple.
But she was always fair. Since Ji Qinghe had answered her questions, she didn’t mind explaining the conflict that everyone must have thought was her sudden outburst tonight.
"I told you before that I have a past I’d rather not look back on," Shen Qianzhan paused and turned to look at him. "What you heard was the first half. There’s actually a second half."
"The 'Director Zhao' that Xiao Sheng mentioned is one of the directors of Penglai Chenguang, with real authority. He was one of the producers for the project I was scammed on. Back then, Penglai Chenguang was seeking a transformation and partnered with my former employer. But at the time, Penglai Chenguang wasn’t strong enough to shoulder the huge investment costs. Coincidentally, I had just resigned to start my own business, and that scumbag negotiated Penglai Chenguang’s investment on my behalf under the guise of my former employer. He deceived both me and Director Zhao. I thought Director Zhao was my benefactor, someone who valued my project and abilities. Director Zhao, on the other hand, thought my studio was a subsidiary under my former employer’s name—otherwise, he wouldn’t have agreed to invest at the time."
Ji Qinghe sorted through his thoughts and asked, "You had contact with Penglai Chenguang while working for your former employer, so it was a case of mistaken identity? He didn’t suspect he’d been deceived, and you thought he simply admired you."
Shen Qianzhan smiled bitterly. "Yes.""After finalizing the script for the first ten episodes, to avoid wasting time, I simultaneously began approaching actors. Penglai Chenguang's first investment was transferred to the public account before signing any actors. Initially, the accounts were straightforward, with income and expenses clear at a glance. At that time, apart from crew salaries and equipment rental costs, the biggest expense was venue rentals."
"The company's accountant was hired randomly, and I had no idea initially that they were secretly colluding with him. On the day filming began, Penglai Chenguang, as agreed in the contract, transferred the remaining funds in one go into the public account."
"Once filming started, the financial flow became complex. The production team needed money for meal orders, vehicles required fuel, actors' travel expenses needed reimbursement, and script payments were made per episode. Other expenses like costumes, promotions, and miscellaneous costs added up to hundreds of thousands. By the time I discovered the funds had been embezzled, it was too late to report it to the police."
"As the company's legal representative, I had approved all expenditures and audits. Apart from the accountant being imprisoned, it was nearly impossible to recover the embezzled money."
This was Shen Qianzhan's first time as an independent producer, and she was already overwhelmed.
With someone she trusted assisting her, she gradually let her guard down.
Later, when filming began smoothly, she felt as if she saw a glimmer of hope, immersing herself in the illusion of success she had created, completely losing her sense of crisis.
Moreover, as this was her first time running a company, she lacked experience and blindly trusted the accountant.
Falling into such a deep pit wasn't entirely someone else's fault.
She took a deep breath and continued, "After the incident, Mr. Zhao found out he had been deceived and demanded I repay the money."
In that situation, Shen Qianzhan could fully understand Mr. Zhao's feelings.
The company had come to Beijing seeking transformation, breakthroughs, and profits, staking everything on this venture. Yet, on the day filming began, the producer and director conspired to embezzle all the funds. No one could easily accept such a blow.
So, even though Shen Qianzhan felt utterly defeated, she had to step up and deal with the mess before her.
"With the little money I had left, I disbanded the crew and signed an IOU. Since the rented filming venue wouldn't refund the money, I moved into the studio. Mr. Zhao came to see me several times. At first, we could sit down and negotiate peacefully, but after a few visits, when he realized I genuinely couldn't repay the money, he lost patience."
"He came from a rough background and acted recklessly, resorting to all kinds of dirty tactics. At first, he only brought people to intimidate me, but gradually, the situation spiraled out of control. He found my parents' address and contact information, threatening to harass them if I didn't fill the financial gap."
She had signed an IOU, reported to the police, and was tormented by Zhao Zongchen to the point of nervous exhaustion, unable to sleep at night.
She had tried every possible method, but no matter what she did, she couldn't repay such a large sum of money in the short term.
"Later, when the studio lease expired, I moved back to my rented apartment. Zhao Zongchen, perhaps realizing I could also run away or simply running out of patience, suddenly changed his approach. He coerced and tempted me into selling myself to repay the debt. He said he knew many upper-class figures who liked desperate, innocent girls like me. With a little effort, I might be able to repay the money within three years."
Her tone was calm, her voice steady, as if she were describing something completely unrelated to herself.
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