Chapter 14

Zhu Xinyue knew that Ji Linyu said he was coaxing her in order to apologize to her because she had waited for him for a long time in the restaurant with an empty stomach.

However, she was still very happy.

Zhu Xinyue’s mind was filled with scenes from the evening as she returned to the dormitory.

Ji Linyu had dropped her back at the base and told her to message him once she was in her dormitory.

When Zhu Xinyue got her phone that was charging in the dormitory, she saw a message that Ji Linyu had sent a few hours ago: “I’m next door, you eat first. No need to wait for me.”

At that time, he didn’t know she didn’t have her phone with her.

Zhu Xinyue pursed her lips and smiled, leaning against the table to send him a message.

[Zhu Xinyue: I’m back at the dormitory, Brother Linyu. Thank you for tonight!]

She stared at their chat window, waiting for Ji Linyu’s reply.

[Ji Linyu: You’re welcome.]

His reply was concise, leaving Zhu Xinyue with no opportunity to continue the conversation.

Zhu Xinyue opened the input box, wanting to reply with something, but she was afraid that the topic would be too abrupt, as too much is as bad as too little. Or maybe he was still busy. After all, when they were shopping at the night market, she had seen him decline several calls while he paid for her purchases with his phone.

He had made all his time available for her, seemingly putting her as his highest priority.

Zhu Xinyue clicked on Ji Linyu’s avatar and changed his contact name.

[Big Boss]

Her only big boss.

The next day, the main cast team entered the base to attend classes with them.

They attended different classes based on the roles they played. The same course would be divided into Class A and Class B according to the students’ progress. Class B progressed slightly slower, and the main cast team was temporarily studying with Class B.

Zhu Xinyue and Su Miao sat cross-legged at the back of the team, quietly chatting.

“Did Linlin get to eat the cake in the end?” Zhu Xinyue asked.

Su Miao, eyes fixed on the martial arts teacher demonstrating at the front, lowered her voice and said, “She did, she did. She asked me to thank you this morning when she went to Guqin class.”

After President Ji had taken Zhu Xinyue away, the staff didn’t stop her and only said, “This won’t happen again.”

Zhu Xinyue chuckled, “You’re welcome!”

The lead actors sat at the very front of the team. According to custom, they would soon be divided for practice, with the martial arts teacher providing individual guidance.

“Ji Qingyuan has dyed his hair back. Black suits him so well!” Su Miao craned her neck to look at the male lead sitting at the front of the adjacent row.

Zhu Xinyue glanced over and thought, he really is a master of time management. Last night at the gathering, Ji Qingyuan still had light blonde hair, and today it’s black again.

“I wonder if I’ll get a chance to get Ji Qingyuan’s autograph after class…” Su Miao murmured. When the camera filming the behind-the-scenes documentary turned toward them, she immediately fell silent, pretending to listen intently.

Martial Arts Teacher: “Is there anyone willing to come up and demonstrate what they have learned?”

Su Miao boldly looked around. The main cast had just arrived today, so they definitely wouldn’t go up. A few bold students in Class B might, but showing off at this moment wouldn’t be good…

If that’s the case, the teacher would likely call the best student up to demonstrate. Su Miao looked at Zhu Xinyue beside her, who had already lowered her head, hiding behind the tall male student in front of her.

Zhu Xinyue was good at her lessons, mainly because she was an artist at Jinhuan, and the teacher took “special care” of her. When they couldn’t find anyone to demonstrate or spar with, they would call her.

“Zhu Xinyue, I see you.” The martial arts teacher called her out by name.

Zhu Xinyue gritted her teeth.

She stood up from the back row, and all the young leading actors in the front row, except Ji Qingyuan, turned around to look at her.

The camera lens followed Zhu Xinyue as she walked to the front.

“Come, let’s do the part we learned yesterday.” The martial arts teacher handed her a prop umbrella.

The character Zhu Xinyue played used an umbrella sword. Normally, it appeared as an umbrella, but in serious fights, it became a sword.

Zhu Xinyue took the umbrella and followed the martial arts teacher to one end of the training area.

The students began to whisper among themselves.

“Is she an artist from your company?” The second male lead, hearing the Class B students behind him discussing, spoke to Ji Qingyuan beside him.

Ji Qingyuan nodded, “… Yes.”

From his understanding of Zhu Xinyue, she couldn’t endure hardships, wasn’t diligent in her studies, and was just a pampered rich girl. How well could she perform?

“Does your company have a beauty standard for recruiting artists?” The second male lead unabashedly scrutinized Zhu Xinyue.

Zhu Xinyue, already tall with a straight posture, had her hair tied in a high ponytail, revealing her slender neck, like a beautiful swan. Her fresh face, with delicate and striking features, was both beautiful and spirited.

Ji Qingyuan looked up and down at the second male lead beside him and clenched his fists.

Hmph, what an idiot, you dare to covet my childhood sweetheart with your ugly appearance? Are you worthy?

On the field, Zhu Xinyue stopped, holding the umbrella and facing the martial arts teacher with a suddenly sharp gaze.

She gripped the umbrella handle and slashed at the teacher, who dodged. The fierce whooshing sound of the air could be heard with each strike, as if each blow was intended to kill.

The umbrella, with horizontal and vertical slashes, seemed more like a sword in her hands.

She rolled forward to attack, with the tip of the umbrella switching to a long sword with each thrust and lift.

The martial arts teacher, being a professional, blocked every attack aimed at him, making a crisp “pop” sound that set people’s teeth on edge.

The two fought from one end of the field to the other, the sweeping wind of the umbrella hitting the lead actors sitting at the front, making them lean back instinctively, even though the two men who were fighting were actually still far away from them.

The last move was the most spectacular. Zhu Xinyue was initially at a disadvantage, with the martial arts teacher pointing a branch at her throat. She dodged while kneeling, simultaneously aiming the umbrella tip at him and pressing the umbrella’s open button.

Pop.

The opened umbrella blocked his branch.

The incredibly smooth fight left people almost forgetting to breathe.

The second male lead stood in awe and applauded along with the people around him.

Ji Qingyuan raised an eyebrow, clapping with a smile.

The martial arts teacher handed the branch to Liang Yuyu, who was sitting in the front but at the corner, saying, “The segment I just did with Zhu Xinyue is what you’ll be learning, Xiao Liang.”

Liang Yuyu looked up at the actress who had put away her umbrella and was walking back to the back of the team, his eyes full of admiration.

“Alright, I’ll do my best.”

While Liang Yuyu watched Zhu Xinyue, Jiang Rui who was standing behind him was also looking at him.

For the next martial arts lesson, Zhu Xinyue’s sparring partner was Liang Yuyu.

After interacting with Liang Yuyu, Zhu Xinyue finally understood why, after his suicide, much of the entertainment industry mourned his passing.

Liang Yuyu was a very dedicated actor and a very easygoing senior.

Sometimes, during sparring, Zhu Xinyue’s strikes would land heavily, leaving a red mark on Liang Yuyu’s arm. However, he never got angry, just shook his head and told her to continue.

Occasionally, Zhu Xinyue would bring her scripts to martial arts class, taking advantage of breaks to memorize her lines to avoid forgetting them in front of the acting teacher.

When Liang Yuyu saw her memorizing lines from “The Merchant of Venice” during their break, he naturally took over the lines when she forgot them.

Zhu Xinyue quickly followed his lead, continuing with her lines.

Whenever her acting was off or her emphasis was incorrect, Liang Yuyu would point out her mistakes.

“Thank you, Teacher Liang,” Zhu Xinyue held the script and thanked Liang Yuyu.

Liang Yuyu replied, “As long as you don’t mind my instruction.”

He was so modest. As Zhu Xinyue spoke to him, two shadows fell over them.

Ji Qingyuan sat down beside Zhu Xinyue first.

The actress he was sparring with, Jiang Rui, sat next to Liang Yuyu, leaving a small gap between them.

“How’s your training going?” Ji Qingyuan asked Zhu Xinyue in a familiar tone.

Zhu Xinyue glanced at the training area behind them. The actors and teachers were all seriously engaged in their lessons, leaving the four of them to rest and chat.

“Not bad.”

Ji Qingyuan took her script and flipped through it. “The Merchant of Venice? Who are you playing? Let’s run lines together.”

With nothing better to do, Zhu Xinyue turned to face Ji Qingyuan and began acting out the scene with him.

Jiang Rui glanced at Liang Yuyu and saw a bruise on his arm. “Teacher Liang, I have medicinal wine in my room. Would you like me to bring it over?”

Liang Yuyu looked at his arm and shrugged it off. “It’s nothing.”

Ji Qingyuan, after running lines with Zhu Xinyue, rolled the script into a tube and lightly tapped her on the head. “Your line memorization needs work. Have you been paying attention in class?”

In their school days, every time Zhu Xinyue had gone to Ji Qingyuan with questions, he would always make her pay attention in class while privately tutoring her until she understood before sending her home.

Zhu Xinyue grabbed the script back and retorted, “The teacher said this part doesn’t need to be acted out, so I didn’t memorize it.”

Ji Qingyuan was about to say that learning the basics of acting was important, even if the teacher said it wasn’t necessary.

“Xinyue is very diligent,” came Liang Yuyu’s voice from the side.

Both of them turned to look at him. Liang Yuyu, with a natural expression, simply stated a fact with a smile. “She has a lot of potential. Just a little guidance, and she grasps everything quickly. Even without formal training, she’s much smarter than most trained actors.”

Liang Yuyu was Ji Qingyuan’s senior. Although he wasn’t as famous, in terms of experience and acting skills, Ji Qingyuan still had to call him “Teacher Liang.”

Ji Qingyuan hadn’t expected Liang Yuyu to speak so highly of Zhu Xinyue, and it irked him that Liang Yuyu seemed to know her better than he did, her childhood friend.

“Alright then, since you have Teacher Liang’s support, I won’t say anything more.” Ji Qingyuan’s tone was subtly irritated, his eyes smiling but his hand on his knee clenched into a fist.

He didn’t look at Zhu Xinyue but stared at Liang Yuyu instead.

Others might not notice, but Zhu Xinyue knew he was unhappy.

But why was he unhappy? What was bothering him about seeing her improve?

“By the way, I came here to tell you that you don’t have to attend classes for the next two days. I’ve asked for leave for you.” Ji Qingyuan patted Zhu Xinyue’s shoulder and said, “I’ve booked a flight to Country Y for you. After class, go directly to the airport.”

With that, Ji Qingyuan stood up to leave.

Zhu Xinyue remembered the message Zhu Shilang had sent her a few days ago and had a guess. She followed Ji Qingyuan outside.

They walked to the corridor outside the training area.

Ji Qingyuan, seeing no one around, said, “My parents are having their wedding in Country Y.”

Zhu Xinyue recalled Ji Qingyuan’s background from the novel. The grudges of the previous generation were long and complicated. His parents had registered their marriage abroad early on but had never held a wedding.

When Zhu Shilang had sent her the message, Zhu Xinyue had guessed that since it was father Ji’s wedding, Ji Linyu would surely attend as well.

“The Zhu family is also on the invitation list,” Ji Qingyuan paused, looking at Zhu Xinyue with his beautiful puppy-dog eyes. “Will you sit with me at the main table, or with your dad and the other guests?”

His smile was bright, his tone cheerful, as if he already knew her answer, confident she would always stand by his side.

Zhu Xinyue thought, fortunately, she wasn’t the original owner, or she would definitely think he was flirting with her given his charming demeanor.

Adults weigh pros and cons. The eldest daughter of the Zhu family attending as his date was enough to save face, right?

Seeing her not responding, Ji Qingyuan, used to her shyness, laid out the next steps: “The plane landed in the early morning, and my brother will pick us up.”

Mentioning Ji Linyu made Zhu Xinyue blink.

“Okay.” Her body answered before her brain could.

Ji Qingyuan thought she was talking about sitting at the main table, so he hooked his arm around her shoulders and said with a smile, “You’re the best.”

The plane landed at 4 a.m. local time.

Zhu Xinyue had taken red-eye flights before when she worked, and she was extremely sleepy every time. What’s more, this time it was a long-distance flight. When she came out of the exit, she couldn’t help yawning.

Ji Qingyuan pulled Zhu Xinyue, who was about to wander off with a group of foreigners, back to his side, hooking her shoulder to prevent her from getting lost, and called his brother.

“Brother, Xinyue and I have arrived. Yeah, I’ll find you.”

Zhu Xinyue, fighting off sleep, allowed Ji Qingyuan to hold her shoulder while she dragged her small suitcase towards an exit.

“Brother!” Ji Qingyuan removed his mask and waved in a certain direction.

Zhu Xinyue jolted awake, opening her eyes to look ahead.

Leaning against a car, Ji Linyu was watching them. 

Even after not seeing him for days, Zhu Xinyue noticed the changes in Ji Linyu instantly—his hair was cut shorter, making him look cleaner and more refreshed. He wasn’t wearing his usual three-piece suit but a soft blue shirt and black casual pants, giving him a youthful, relaxed appearance.

Ji Linyu’s gaze swept over Ji Qingyuan and landed on her.

Instinctively, Zhu Xinyue ran her fingers through her slightly messy hair, realizing Ji Qingyuan’s hand was still on her shoulder. Pretending to tie her shoelace, she bent down to escape his touch.

Ji Qingyuan’s arm fell empty, and he stared at Zhu Xinyue as she fussed with her Velcro sneakers, finding it odd. He looked up to see his brother approaching.

His brother’s eyes were fixed on Zhu Xinyue.

His brother laughed softly.

Zhu Xinyue’s ears suddenly turned red.

Ji Qingyuan lowered his gaze, looking at Zhu Xinyue, then at Ji Linyu, who was dressed very differently from usual.

Impulsively, he said to his brother, “Brother, Ayue is my date.”