Chapter 20.3

Unexpectedly, it was heard by Liang Zhuo and his assistant who were preparing to return to the hotel. The assistant said coldly, “Who are you talking about? Our Brother Liang has acrophobia, do you think he wants to use a stunt double?”

“Sorry, we didn’t know just now. But now that we know, we won’t talk nonsense in the future,” Su Qian glanced at Liang Zhuo, “We don’t have a hobby of exposing people’s shortcomings.”

Liang Zhuo’s eyelids twitched, and he pursed his lips, “Didn’t you say you don’t care about my words?”

“I really don’t care. So you can continue.” Su Qian shrugged, “But we probably still have two months to get along. If you like to work in such a tense environment, feel free to do so.”

The more people she met, the more she felt that Jin Lie was a smart man. Sometimes being nice is not out of fear, but simply to make oneself more comfortable.

Obviously, Liang Zhuo is not like this. He probably belongs to the kind where everyone around him is uncomfortable, and he himself is comfortable.

Commonly known as a “troublemaker”.

Liang Zhuo was silent for a few seconds, then turned and left.

.

As for Su Qian, she never insists on interpersonal relationships. If they get along, they get along; if they don’t, they part ways, reducing the pressure on both herself and the other party.

Since she had spoken to Liang Zhuo, she planned to go with the flow. In the future, apart from work, she would try not to have any contact with him.

She had a well-thought-out plan, but a photo in the afternoon broke it.

A marketing account named “I am Real Liao Jun” posted a moving picture of Su Qian and Liang Zhuo entering the elevator together. The elevator doors slowly closed, Liang Zhuo was saying something with his head down, and Su Qian was looking up at him. The caption was: [sos][sos][sos] When did Su Qian and Liang Zhuo become so close! They even go back to the hotel together [shocked.jpg]

Soon, this Weibo post was simultaneously reposted by various major marketing accounts, and Douhua Network and Fox Community jointly promoted it, and the heat instantly rose to the top five on the hot list.

When Su Qian saw the photo, she carefully recalled the situation at that time. Liang Zhuo had asked her if she was going downstairs, and she felt that he had asked a pointless question, so she replied, “What else?” The most important point was that the location at that time was a restaurant, not a hotel.

The real situation was like this, but after the deliberate rendering by the marketing account and the processing of various filters and slow motion on the GIF, a simple elevator ride was turned into a dating scene.

Liang Zhuo’s fans quickly rushed to the comments to clarify, and at the same time, they didn’t forget to insinuate Su Qian. Although Su Qian’s fans had grown due to a previous variety show, they still couldn’t compare with the number of top-tier celebrities. Before long, the front row was filled with “Liang fans”.

Zhang Pingting sent a message at the first moment, asking Su Qian if she wanted to clarify, as she was there at the time and could help.

Su Qian declined politely.

Sometimes she felt that this girl was so naive that she didn’t seem like a person from the circle. When others saw her, they would avoid her from a distance, but she would take the initiative to approach.

But the main reason is that the more attention such things get, the hotter they become. For example, now, how many people still remember that she and Jin Lie once had a scandal. Everyone just casually gossips and then forgets.

Liang Zhuo’s team had the same idea. After the incident came out, his assistant contacted Xu Ke at the first time, requesting to handle it coldly.

They all agreed that this was the best way, not to go out of their way to explain, and at the same time, it could generate heat for the movie.

Jin Lie learned about this an hour after it had fermented. At that time, he had just finished a meeting and returned to his office. As soon as he opened his computer, he saw that the browser had pushed this news.

He read it from beginning to end, then looked at the time expressionlessly.

“What time is your flight to Hengshi?”

“Three, three o’clock.” Zhong Ning stuttered as he spoke, not sure if it was an illusion, but it seemed like the boss suddenly had a chill all over him.

“Add a ticket for me.”

“Alright.”

Zhong Ning quickly browsed through the ticket booking website, and said with a bitter face, “There are no first-class seats left, only one economy class seat.”

“Hmm.”

“But… you might not be used to sitting in economy class, right?”

Jin Lie lifted his eyelids and gave him a gloomy look, “I’ll sit in first class.”

“……Oh.”

Holding the tablet, Zhong Ning tearfully booked an economy class ticket for himself under Jin Lie’s name.

—

In the blink of an eye, more than two weeks had passed, and the shooting work was exceptionally going smoothly. In order to win people’s hearts, the production company prepared a banquet for the entire crew in the evening.

Su Qian’s role as the second female lead is neither big nor small, so she should have gone by all accounts. But unfortunately, her period suddenly came in the afternoon, and she was in so much pain that she couldn’t straighten her waist. Moreover, everyone feels more comfortable avoiding Liang Zhuo in such situations, so she simply decided not to go.

Director Wang Qisheng smiled meaningfully, “Quite a few people from the production company came today.”

Su Qian said with a pale face, “Then please say a few good words for me, Director Wang.”

There’s no helping it, when Aunt Flo^[1]“大姨媽” (dàyímā) = Big Aunt, This is a euphemistic, slang, and humorous term in Chinese, which means “Aunt Flo” in English. It’s a personification of the menstrual period or … Continue reading comes, everyone else can only become insignificant.

After work, Su Qian went straight back to the hotel. She rolled around in pain on the bed and slowly fell asleep.

On the other hand, around six o’clock, Jin Lie and Zhong Ning just got off the plane. Upon learning about the crew’s dinner, they headed straight to the hotel.

As soon as Jin Lie entered the private room, he was welcomed warmly. Everyone raised their glasses to toast him.

Zhang Pingting held her rice bowl and blinked hard, “My god, that face… it’s like a walking enchantment.”

Jin Lie looked around and casually asked, “Is everyone here?”

“Oh, one of the actresses wasn’t feeling well and went back to the hotel.”

They continued to toast and drink. And there was no reply to the message Jin Lie sent.

After sitting for a while, he slowly got up and said, “I have something else to do, everyone enjoy your meal.”

After leaving the restaurant, Jin Lie let Zhong Ning go back to the hotel first, and he went to find Su Qian alone.

On the streets of Hengshi, cars were shuttling back and forth, and the wind was filled with a strange smell. Jin Lie was driving with no expression on his face.

It seemed that at this moment, he still didn’t understand why he came here. It’s obvious that Zhong Ning can get things done by himself.

Twenty minutes later, Jin Lie handed the car keys to the hotel’s parking attendant, straightened his suit, and walked in leisurely.

Before going upstairs, he went to the restaurant on the eighth floor. When he came out, he had two takeout boxes in his hand.

He took the elevator up to the tenth floor and knocked on the door of room 1012. About a minute passed, and someone inside slowly opened the door.

Su Qian’s mind was foggy, and there were several obvious pressure marks on her face.

“You…”

She looked at Jin Lie who appeared in front of her, and didn’t react immediately. Until he frowned and forcefully pushed open the door, Su Qian, who was hit on the toe, suddenly woke up.

She took a step back and slammed the door shut.

Bang——

Jin Lie, who was shut out, said: “……”

With such a guilty look, who was she hiding inside?

He frowned and raised his hand to knock again, but the door reopened.

“Why are you here?!” Su Qian looked shocked.

“Can’t I come?” Jin Lie’s voice was cold, but his eyes were peering inside.

“It’s not that you can’t come, it’s just that you came…”

“Sister Qian, someone’s here?” Before she could finish saying ‘it’s not the right time’, Xu Ke’s voice came from the bathroom.

Su Qian was startled, hesitated for a few seconds between “pushing Jin Lie out” and “letting him in”, and chose the latter.

She peeked out like a thief, grabbed his wrist, and pulled him into the room.

Like driving a duck onto a perch, she pushed him quickly towards the window.

“Just a few minutes, behave yourself.”

After saying that, she pulled the curtain shut with a swoosh.

At the same time, Xu Ke came out of the bathroom.

“Did someone come just now?”

Su Qian stood in front of the curtain, shaking her head unnaturally, “They knocked on the wrong door.”

“Oh. What do you want to eat? I can order for you before I leave.”

“No need, I’ll order myself.”

Xu Ke looked carefully at her face, which seemed a bit pale, “Then I’ll stay with you for a while longer. Just in case you’re still feeling unwell.”

Su Qian was almost dying of anxiety inside.

Even though there was a heavy curtain between them, she seemed to still feel Jin Lie’s cold gaze. The feeling was like a thorn in her back, making her feel like she was sitting on pins and needles.

“Really, it’s not necessary. I want to read the script, you go back first and don’t disturb me.”

“Alright then, call me if you need anything.”

Xu Ke picked up her bag and was about to leave when she suddenly heard a faint sound similar to a sneeze. She first looked at Su Qian, and after not noticing anything unusual, she looked terrified, “Sister Qian, did you hear any strange noise?”

“No… No.”

Su Qian held her breath, feeling like her heart was about to jump out.

Xu Ke: “But I clearly…”

“You heard it wrong.”

Xu Ke was doubtful, could she really have had a hallucination? She doubted herself as she walked towards the door.

“Achoo……”

A faint sound echoed again.

Xu Ke’s eyes widened.

Su Qian: “……” What is this man up to! She really wanted to scream for help!

“Sister Qian,” Xu Ke was scared, her voice trembling, “Your room… it’s not that there’s something shady in there, is it?”

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TL’s Note: I will unlock 2 chapter every Sunday. Stay tuned for more releases. (⁠≧⁠▽⁠≦⁠)