Chapter Eighty-One
But how could it truly be unrelated?
That period of experience for Shen Qianzhan was like walking on the blade of a knife, each step an agony.
“I didn’t agree,” she said, lifting her gaze calmly. “I endured Zhao Zongchen’s harassment and threats before because I believed that every grievance has its source and every debt its debtor—that the person would surely be found, and there was still hope for my life. But slowly, it seemed I could also accept that he might never return.”
Once a person accepts reality, they begin to seek a way out.
Before Shen Qianzhan lay two paths: either take the road to ruin and willingly sink into depravity, or walk through mountains of corpses and seas of fire to be reborn from the ashes.
She no longer waited passively. When Zhao Zongchen came looking for her again, she signed a gamble agreement.
“The apartment I rented was on the thirty-ninth floor. I negotiated the gamble agreement with Zhao Zongchen while sitting by the window. I told him, either give me time and I’ll repay the money when it’s due, or I’ll jump from here today, and he’ll get nothing. That’s when the enmity began.”
She was disgusted by Zhao Zongchen’s transactional behavior that treated women as less than human, disgusted by his repeated verbal coercion and personal threats, and even more contemptuous of his unscrupulous means to achieve his ends.
As for Zhao Zongchen, he had already hated Shen Qianzhan to the bone ever since her “Empty Bottle” crew swindled his money.
At the time, she held the leverage that he wouldn’t dare to actually cause a death, pushing Zhao Zongchen to the brink of desperation. The look of furious exasperation on his face was something Shen Qianzhan still remembered to this day.
Even after Shen Qianzhan fulfilled the gamble agreement and repaid the debt with interest, the enmity between her and Zhao Zongchen remained unresolved.
The CEO of Penglai Chenguang, out of respect for Su Lanyi, once acted as a mediator to reconcile them. Unfortunately, Shen Qianzhan was unwilling to accept the goodwill, and Zhao Zongchen was unwilling to swallow his pride. Naturally, the matter ended without resolution.
Ji Qinghe didn’t respond immediately.
He held Shen Qianzhan with both hands, lifting her to sit on the railing.
At her feet were twinkling star-shaped lights, and her eyes, in the flickering light, glowed like fireflies, brightening and dimming.
He lowered his head to kiss her forehead. “It’s all in the past.”
Then he kissed her eyes.
Her eyelids trembled, slightly warm.
He lingered for a few seconds, following the bridge of her nose to kiss its tip, then her lips.
Her lips were dry, slightly cool from the night breeze.
He sucked on her upper lip, lingering and savoring, kissing her until she grew slightly warm.
Ji Qinghe’s life, though somewhat monotonous, had been smooth sailing, with few hardships encountered so far.
He never had to worry about money, and when problems arose, he had the ability to solve them. Compared to ordinary people who married, had children, and followed the routine of collecting a salary day after day after graduation, he was even more fortunate. He could choose the life and career he wanted, making decisions freely and living with ease and leisure.
The most troublesome person he had ever encountered in his life was Shen Qianzhan.
He found it hard to imagine how Shen Qianzhan, at such a young and inexperienced age, had endured the endless darkness alone and walked toward the light.
Any words he could offer felt too feeble, far from capturing even a fraction of what she had endured.
—
Shen Qianzhan rarely spoke of the past.
This part of her past was even more shameful to her than that unfulfilled relationship.
It existed in the gray area where light and darkness intersected. No one knew how deep into the darkness she had once descended or what kind of despair she had experienced. Nor did anyone know how long it took her to traverse that darkness and return to the world of the living.Those without shared experiences can never truly empathize.
She was being honest with Ji Qinghe because she suddenly had a suspicion: "I stood up Xiao Sheng tonight, and this matter might not end so easily."
Wuxi Film and Television City was Zhao Zongchen's territory. After tonight, she would likely have to guard against him secretly retaliating.
"Not necessarily," Ji Qinghe's expression turned somewhat cold, his gaze fixed on an empty spot in the middle of the lake. He deflected lightly, "He might not dare."
"Zhao Zongchen dared to treat you that way before because he saw you as young and easy to fool. With his temperament, he must have a dirty ledger. I've asked Ming Jue to investigate and get it for you. With me here, you don't need to worry about other men."
Shen Qianzhan was taken aback, then beamed with joy: "Mr. Ji, your way of handling things is a bit too practiced."
Seeing her smile, Ji Qinghe also curved the corners of his lips slightly. "Most things in this world can be solved with money. If money doesn't work, then power."
Shen Qianzhan asked, "What about you? What works on you?"
He smiled as if carelessly, "It's not that complicated. You're enough."
——
Soon, the weekend arrived in the blink of an eye.
Ji Qinghe and Ming Jue went on a business trip to Hong Kong.
Shen Qianzhan couldn't get away, so she sent Su Zan in her place to see them off.
These past few days, she had been guarding the four antique clocks borrowed from Old Mr. Ji like they were her own eyeballs, wishing she could keep watch twenty-four hours a day. The crew members responsible for guarding the clocks were nearly driven to nervous breakdowns, each one tense and on edge.
Shao Chouxi was terrified that the crew would go insane before the film wrapped.
During the two days Ji Qinghe was still with the crew, Shao Chouxi had piled all the scenes involving the antique clocks together for concentrated shooting.
That afternoon, during a short nap.
Shen Qianzhan was lying on a recliner playing a leisurely game when she saw Shao Chouxi walk in with his hands behind his back. She lazily lifted her eyelids and kicked a plastic stool over to him.
Seeing her less-than-pleasant expression, Shao Chouxi pulled the stool over and sat down, grumbling unhappily, "I'm not here to ask for money."
Shen Qianzhan was the epitome of pragmatism.
As soon as she heard Shao Chouxi wasn't there for money, she immediately put on a smiling face and asked warmly, "What's wrong? You don't look too happy. Was the lunch too salty today, or not tasty enough?"
Shao Chouxi glanced at her and complained, "If you have time to play mahjong, hurry up and urge Teacher Song. The female lead still hasn't joined the crew. How are we supposed to build chemistry with the male lead?"
"Don't worry about that," Shen Qianzhan said. "Teacher Fu and Song Yan are both professionals. Why would they need to build chemistry in advance? Want to bet? As soon as you start filming, they'll immediately get into character."
Shao Chouxi pursed his lips, still unhappy. "I don't care. If Song Yan doesn't join the crew soon, I won't film either. Facing a bunch of guys every day, who can feel creative?"
Shen Qianzhan played a "Fa Cai" tile and glanced at him, amused. "Since when did I know your creativity relied on the female lead for inspiration?"
Shao Chouxi really couldn't worry any less at this point. He muttered, "Didn't you say she could wrap up and join the crew in the next couple of days?"
"Yeah, didn't I tell you last night?" Shen Qianzhan drew a tile and, seeing Shao Chouxi's confused expression, deliberately kept him in suspense. "Maybe you've been asking for too much funding lately, and I forgot to mention it."
Shao Chouxi fell silent.
He didn't dare slam the table in front of Shen Qianzhan, nor did he dare flip the stool over. He could only sit there steadily, pretending he hadn't heard a thing."Spring River" wrapped up this afternoon, so barring any surprises, Song Yan should be able to join the crew tonight. I noticed she’s been working hard lately and felt a bit sorry for her, so I asked the supervisor to schedule her scenes for tomorrow afternoon. Didn’t you get the schedule?" As she finished speaking, she seemed to remember something and deliberately muttered to herself, "Hmm, I might have intentionally not had it sent to you."
Shao Chouxi rolled his eyes dramatically. "You only dare to mess with us. Would you dare to pull something like that with Teacher Ji?"
Shen Qianzhan chuckled softly but didn’t argue.
How she messed with Ji Qinghe—could he possibly see that? It was definitely not suitable for children.
Seeing she wasn’t responding, Shao Chouxi didn’t press further and quickly changed the subject. "Spring River has had such a rough time—first halted by a snowstorm, then that on-set fight that accidentally injured the lead actor. I heard a production company had already agreed to collaborate with Producer Xiao, just waiting for Spring River to wrap up. But with all these incidents happening one after another, the client immediately backed out."
Shen Qianzhan was just regretting misplaying a tile when she casually asked, "Wasn’t the news about the on-set fight suppressed?"
"It was suppressed, but the commotion was so big back then that most of the nearby crews knew about it. Even with Producer Xiao’s connections, he couldn’t silence everyone." Shao Chouxi sighed lightly. "The film industry is the most gossipy place. Once someone spreads a rumor, it’s known far and wide in the blink of an eye."
Shen Qianzhan said, "There must be other reasons."
Shao Chouxi glanced at her. "I haven’t heard anything else. The client probably just thought a crew with continuous incidents was unlucky. If Spring River hadn’t already secured a platform, even getting a platform deal would’ve been tough by now." As he finished, he suddenly remembered Xiao Sheng’s working relationship with Shen Qianzhan and felt he’d spoken out of turn. He quickly shut his mouth, pretending nothing had happened.
Shen Qianzhan drew a matching Red Dragon tile and discarded a White Dragon, then inquired, "Which client was it?"
Shao Chouxi thought for a moment. "A local Wuxi-based production company, Penglai Chenguang Film."
As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Qianzhan’s opponent completed a pure hand with a self-drawn tile. Against the backdrop of the game’s sound effects, she suddenly felt that the health-preserving mahjong she’d been so into lately had lost all its appeal.
—
In the evening, Song Yan checked into the hotel with her assistant and manager, officially joining the crew.
Coincidentally, Shen Qianzhan’s "unseen" family member was away on a business trip, leaving her unsupervised for the night. So, she treated Song Yan and her team to a casual dinner out of her own pocket.
After the meal, as soon as she returned to the hotel, Ji Qinghe’s video call invitation arrived right on schedule.
She kicked off her high heels, walked barefoot across the floor, and settled into the sofa.
Before answering the call, she took a moment to check her reflection in the window, smoothing her hair slightly.
When the video connected, a wave of noisy background noise flooded in first.
Ji Qinghe seemed to have just noticed the call had gone through. Holding his phone, he stepped into a break room. "I thought it’d take you a bit longer to pick up."
Shen Qianzhan suspected the dog man was implying she cared too much about her appearance and stubbornly stayed silent.
He sat down on the sofa and finally had a chance to look at her properly. "Did you drink?"
Shen Qianzhan had only had a small cup in the evening and was surprised he’d guessed. "Is it that obvious?"
"Just testing you, and now I know." He chuckled softly a few times before making small talk. "How much did you drink?"
Shen Qianzhan gestured with her thumb and forefinger, showing a nail-sized gap. "Just this much, a symbolic sip."
"Are you done with your meeting?""Ten-minute intermission." He paused, then said, "So I started calling you the moment I left my seat, afraid to waste a single second."
Shen Qianzhan pursed her lips and smiled. "Miss me that much?"
As she spoke, her tone lifted slightly, carrying a hint of coquettishness she herself hadn't noticed.
Ji Qinghe was pleased.
His gaze seemed to pierce through the screen, picturing her sitting cross-legged on the sofa. It instantly reminded him of that time in Beijing before the New Year, when she had gathered friends at Kunshan Villa and treated him to Japanese cuisine.
The sound of his arrival had made her turn her head, her hair swept aside. That sidelong glance—her brows and eyes like a painting, radiant and lively—felt as vivid as yesterday.
He adjusted his posture slightly, leaning against the sofa, his eyes fixed intently on her.
"I do miss you quite a bit." Shen Qianzhan's lips curved into a sly smile, her tone clearly insincere. "Do you want to ask me where I miss you the most?"
Ji Qinghe chuckled helplessly. "There's still one flight from Hong Kong to Wuxi after midnight."
"Shen Qianzhan, think carefully before you speak. Otherwise, you'll bear the consequences."
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