On a leisurely weekend afternoon, after washing the dishes, Yu Tu went to his study to work on his thesis. Qiao Jingjing followed him and watched for a while, but found it as incomprehensible as a foreign language. After bringing him a cup of rose tea, she slipped away to the sofa to read her script.
She had only read two episodes and was just getting into the groove when her best friend, who claimed to have filmed eight hundred scenes, called.
Qiao Jingjing stepped out to take the call.
Her best friend’s voice was excited over the phone. "I heard your boyfriend visited you on set while you were filming Yellow Sand, and it pissed Zhou Xiaoqi off?"
"...The drama wrapped up ages ago. Where did you hear that?"
"I just found out, hahaha, it made me so happy. I don’t care, I have to meet your boyfriend. He’s seriously a legend."
"Sure, let’s have a meal together when you’re free."
"How about today? I don’t have any schedules tonight. Come to my place for dinner. You haven’t visited my Shanghai home since I moved in back in August. I’ll have someone deliver hairy crabs—the kind that weigh six liang each. My current drama is almost wrapped up, so let’s celebrate."
"That should be fine. I’ll ask him."
"Should??? You still have to ask?" Her best friend was instantly indignant. "I’m the one inviting, me! Chen Xue! Does he know how famous I am? How could he not come when I’m the one inviting?"
Qiao Jingjing: "...His girlfriend is also very famous. What’s so special about you?"
Qiao Jingjing hung up and returned to the study, stopping by Yu Tu’s desk.
Yu Tu looked up, and Jingjing asked, "Do you know Chen Xue?"
Yu Tu vaguely remembered Jingjing mentioning her a few times. "Your good friend? The one who didn’t want me to watch her ex-boyfriend’s movie before?"
Jingjing: "...Yeah. She invited us to dinner tonight."
"Okay," Yu Tu checked the time. "Is leaving at 5:30 fine?"
Jingjing gave a thumbs-up.
Yu Tu picked up the pretty glass cup (newly bought by Jingjing) beside him and took a sip, then frowned.
Jingjing: "What’s wrong?"
"Too sweet."
He held the cup to her lips, and Jingjing leaned down to take a sip from his hand. "It is a bit sweet. Too much honey."
She took the cup and hurried to the kitchen. "I’ll add some water for you."
"You drink it. Just get me a glass of plain water."
Jingjing’s voice drifted from the kitchen, "No way. I’ve already had one cup today. Any more and I’ll gain weight."
Yu Tu: "...Then at least take out the flowers inside."
Since she was meeting her best friend, Jingjing didn’t bother with makeup. Once Yu Tu finished his work, they changed clothes and set off. Throughout the journey, she kept receiving WeChat messages from Chen Xue.
Chen Xue: I invited Duan Wu and Actor Zhou. Is that okay?
Jingjing: No problem.
They were all close friends.
Jingjing: Are they in Shanghai too?
Chen Xue: My next movie is with both of them. We had dinner with the producers yesterday, and I just asked—they’re still in town, so I invited them.
Chen Xue: By the way, want to play mahjong after dinner?
Jingjing: No, that’ll go too late. He still has to come back and work on his thesis.
Chen Xue: Isn’t your boyfriend working? What thesis?
Jingjing: =
Chen Xue: I get it!
Chen Xue: Don’t worry, we’ll act all academic too! ???
What was she talking about? What academic atmosphere?
Qiao Jingjing suddenly began to worry.
Sure enough.
When they arrived at Chen Xue’s home, the housekeeper opened the door. As soon as they stepped inside, they heard a deep, male voice shouting hoarsely, "We must save them!"
Qiao Jingjing: "..."
What was going on?As they stepped past the entryway and looked toward the living room, they saw three handsome men and beautiful women standing in the center, each holding a script and rehearsing lines together.
Qiao Jingjing never expected such an academic atmosphere.
Yu Tu also seemed a bit bewildered?
Seeing the two of them, the three people in the living room paused briefly. After exchanging greetings, the actor Zhou—long hailed as the nation's heartthrob—explained coolly, "We’re filming a movie together next month, so we’re taking advantage of being together to rehearse. The next scene involves the whole group—Jingjing, could you come help us with a role?"
He glanced at Yu Tu. "You don’t mind if we borrow Jingjing for a bit, do you?"
Yu Tu replied politely, "Of course not."
Qiao Jingjing walked over in a daze. Chen Xue handed her script to Jingjing. "You play this character."
…
Wait… what does your movie have to do with me?!
Qiao Jingjing felt so wronged. She was clearly on vacation, yet she’d been tricked into working overtime?
She had initially planned to just muddle through, but with Yu Tu sitting on the sofa watching, how could she let herself be outshone? She had no choice but to throw herself earnestly into the performance.
After finishing one segment, the four actors huddled together, pretending to discuss the script.
Chen Xue whispered to Qiao Jingjing, "Academic enough? Artistic enough?"
The acclaimed actor also leaned in with a serious expression, murmuring, "We were actually playing Work Pass earlier, but as soon as we heard you coming, we put the cards away and started rehearsing."
Duan Wu added, "We definitely have professional-level immersion speed."
Chen Xue pressed, "So, does it feel academic? Does it have an artistic vibe? We’re not losing to those scientists, right?"
Qiao Jingjing didn’t want to speak; she just wanted to record this conversation and show it to their fans.
Just look at your idols—aren’t their images totally shattered?!
Next, Qiao Jingjing was pulled into performing another segment. By the time it ended and the four of them returned to the sofa, she felt her soul was utterly exhausted. Yu Tu had been watching the whole time, and now he seemed lost in thought. Qiao Jingjing couldn’t help feeling nervous: "What’s wrong?"
Had her performance just now paled in comparison to the acclaimed actor’s?
After a brief hesitation, Yu Tu asked, "Is this a sci-fi movie?"
Qiao Jingjing said, "I think so."
Yu Tu pondered for a moment and said, "In that scene you just performed, there was a physics-related bug."
The acclaimed actor immediately looked over.
Five minutes later, the actor relayed the bug Yu Tu had pointed out to the screenwriter. Ten minutes later, a famous industry screenwriter promptly called to discuss it with Yu Tu.
The living room had already moved on to discussing a bunch of incomprehensible topics. Chen Xue dragged Qiao Jingjing into the kitchen and gossiped excitedly, "Your boyfriend is really handsome—when I say someone’s handsome, they’re genuinely handsome. And so knowledgeable, no wonder he outshines Zhou Xiaoqi’s rich second-generation boyfriend."
Shedding her elegant celebrity persona, she gripped Qiao Jingjing’s hand enthusiastically. "I finally get why you chose him. If it were me, I’d want him too."
Qiao Jingjing: "...Say that again."
Chen Xue: "Oh, I was just expressing admiration. How could I ever go after my best friend’s boyfriend?"
Qiao Jingjing was somewhat satisfied with that.Chen Xue began preparing the coffee—this had been her excuse to drag Qiao Jingjing over. "Actually, some people in our circle are jealous about your current relationship, saying you picked an ordinary salaried worker after all your careful selection. I didn’t quite understand before why you didn’t choose Boss Su. Su Ye is quite presentable—though he has his flaws, what handsome, wealthy man doesn’t have an inflated ego? But thinking about it now, aside from feeding vanity, he doesn’t offer much else. We already have money ourselves, so why not just choose someone we like? How much the other person earns doesn’t matter at all."
Qiao Jingjing retorted irritably, "There was no choosing involved, thank you very much!"
"Got it~" Chen Xue drawled. "But Jingjing, hypothetically, if you weren’t an actress and couldn’t earn so much, would you still be with your current boyfriend?"
"With my looks and diligence, how could I not make money? I’d be rolling in cash even as an Anchor!"
"What if you just had bad luck and couldn’t earn much?"
Qiao Jingjing rolled her eyes, thinking her friend was being absurd and illogical. "Are you stupid? If that were really the case, of course I’d hold onto him even tighter."
On the way back, Yu Tu wore a faint smile at the corner of his lips. Qiao Jingjing leaned in to look at him. "What are you so happy about? Is it because that screenwriter asked for your advice?"
"No." Yu Tu replied, "I’m happy because my girlfriend is especially clever, with flawless logic."
Qiao Jingjing blinked. Was this a compliment? Though she didn’t know why, it didn’t stop her from seizing the moment to gloat a little. "Took you long enough to realize."
But such vague praise felt somewhat unsatisfying. She pressed further, "What specific incident made you think that?"
Specific incident?
Yu Tu recalled unexpectedly overhearing her earlier remark in the kitchen—"of course I’d hold onto him even tighter"—and said with a smile, "For example, how you brought home all the leftover uncooked crabs."
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