Don’t Play with Fire [Entertainment Industry] 37

Chapter 36: Fire

At lunch, Yan Duo looked at Fang Fang who was setting up her meal and said casually, “Zeng Meng told me that a man in the crew sent Xiaoman a WeChat message, asking if she wanted to be his girlfriend. Xiaoman is a bit tempted, but she doesn’t know what kind of person he is. Hey, aren’t you the gossip queen? Why don’t you help her find out?”

Xiaoman is the name of Zeng Meng’s assistant.

Fang Fang said with a smile, “Sure, what’s his name? I’ll go ask around.”

Yan Duo picked up a piece of green pepper with her chopsticks and put it in her mouth, saying: “I think his name is Ma Peng, do you know him?”

“Ma Peng?” The smile on Fang Fang’s face stiffened for a second before quickly returning to normal, then she said, “I know him, he’s Teacher Ji Ran’s assistant.”

Yan Duo: “Are you familiar with him? Do you know if he’s married or has a girlfriend?”

Fang Fang said with a smile: “I’ve only been here for a few days, I’m not sure about these things yet. I’ll help Xiao Man find out.”

Yan Duo lowered her head to eat, “Oh, alright then. You should ask as soon as possible.”

Fang Fang guaranteed: “Sister Duo, don’t worry, I’ll find out before we wrap up today.”

Yan Duo nodded casually and didn’t continue the topic.

During the afternoon break, Zeng Meng winked at Yan Duo. Yan Duo glanced at Ji Ran who was talking to the director, then picked up her water cup and walked over to Zeng Meng’s resting area. As soon as she sat down, Zeng Meng handed her phone to her.

“Xiao Man took this ten minutes ago, and it hasn’t come out yet. If you want to confirm, you should still be able to see the live version.”

Yan Duo took the phone and pressed the video start button. The video showed Fang Fang walking into the spare props room, which few people in the crew ever visited. A moment later, Ma Pengzu also slipped in furtively after glancing left and right.

The video was only a minute long. After watching it, Yan Duo returned the phone to Zeng Meng and said with a smile, “They’re in a relationship, why would I need to watch the live version? I just needed to confirm it. Thank you and Xiao Man for this, and please don’t mention it to Fang Fang. I’m afraid she’d be embarrassed.”

Zeng Meng took back her phone, glanced at Yan Duo, and said nothing.

This matter could be considered big or small. To put it simply, since she didn’t hire the assistant with her own money, she not only lacks basic understanding of the situation but also can’t build trust. After all, romantic relationships are private matters, so it’s normal that Fang Fang didn’t tell Yan Duo. What’s most feared is that Fang Fang might betray her behind her back, and Yan Duo would find it difficult to replace her unless she becomes famous enough to have a say in the company. But judging from the current situation, that seems quite difficult.

Yan Duo could tell what Zeng Meng was thinking, but didn’t explain much. After all, she wasn’t sure herself at the moment, but it wouldn’t be difficult to find out clearly.

A few minutes later, Fang Fang returned to Yan Duo’s side. Her round face looked as cheerful and likable as usual with its smiling expression, but Ma Peng, who came out shortly after, didn’t seem to be doing well. Yan Duo could clearly see a faint handprint on his left cheek.

When they finished work in the afternoon, Yan Duo didn’t follow Zeng Meng for dinner, nor did she make an excuse to send Fang Fang away. Instead, she took her into a taxi and returned to the hotel together.

After they finished eating, Fang Fang followed Yan Duo to her room and said, “Sister Duo, I’ve asked around and it seems Ma Peng probably has a girlfriend. I don’t think he’s a good match for Xiaoman.”

Yan Duo “oh”ed, looking at her and asked, “Then do you know his girlfriend?”

Fang Fang shook her head, “I don’t know.”

Yan Duo asked with a faint expression, “Is that so?”

Fang Fang looked at her, feeling inexplicably uneasy. She lowered her head, not daring to meet Yan Duo’s eyes: “Yes.”

Yan Duo didn’t say anything more and let Fang Fang go back.

Over the next few days, Yan Duo refused Ji Ran’s invitations to go upstairs, using her period and stomach pain as an excuse. Ji Ran didn’t press the issue, coming to Yan Duo’s room to keep her company every evening.

This morning, while organizing Yan Duo’s closet, Fang Fang discovered a men’s pajama set hanging among a row of women’s pajamas. Then in the drawer, she found several pairs of men’s socks that didn’t belong to Yan Duo. Fang Fang’s mouth twitched for a moment before she closed the drawer without saying a word, while Yan Duo was on the phone at that moment.

“Senior Fan, you said you were coming to see me?”

“I don’t need anything.”

“Then help me buy some duck necks, extra spicy please.”

That evening, when Yan Duo went to room 808 for dinner, there was not only duck neck on the table but also a plate of her favorite goose wings.

Ji Ran handed Yan Duo a pair of chopsticks and said, “Eating too much spicy food isn’t good for your health. This non-spicy version is the best. Go ahead and eat.”

Yan Duo glanced at him, took the chopsticks, and said casually, “How did you know I was craving duck necks?”

Ji Ran lowered his head to eat, “You mentioned it in your sleep last night.”

Yan Duo: “Really? What else did I say?”

Ji Ran thought seriously for a moment, “I’ll listen more carefully tonight.”

Yan Duo smiled at his words but didn’t say anything.

The next day was a full day of filming for Yan Duo and Ji Ran.

Sun Yizhou and Wen Jun were eating and chatting in the pavilion when unexpectedly, a light rain began to fall in the rose garden. The strong wind made it impossible to take shelter in the pavilion. Wen Jun asked Sun Yizhou, “Would you like to come to my place to wait out the rain?”

Sun Yizhou looked up at the sky, realizing he couldn’t leave for the time being, and hesitated, “Is it convenient?”

Wen Jun held the round fan over her head, lifted her skirt with one hand, and walked into the rain, “It’s no trouble at all, come with me.”

Sun Yizhou watched the graceful figure in the rain, holding the snacks in his hand, and followed without hesitation.

Wen Jun seemed to love the rain; though slightly damp, she kept a smile on her face, and her silver bell-like laughter was utterly captivating.

Sun Yizhou followed her steps, unable to help being infected by her smile, and asked her: “Judging by your appearance, it seems you haven’t been in the rain for a long time?”

Wen Yun tilted her head and thought for a moment, her beautiful figure resembling a fairy who had just descended to the mortal realm in the hazy rain, lively and naturally ethereal.

“Yeah, for 305 years.”

Sun Yizhou looked at her joking seriously and couldn’t help but smile, joining in her jest, “May I ask your age?”

Wen Jun: “I’m 323 years old!”

Sun Yizhou didn’t believe it at all and said casually: “If you’re 323 years old, I should be 328.”

Hearing this, Wen Jun stopped in her tracks, watching his back from where she stood. It wasn’t until Sun Yizhou turned back and called for her that she seemed to awaken from a dream, quickly running a few steps to lead Sun Yizhou to a quaint, antique wooden building.

Sun Yizhou stood in front of the building and looked up, feeling very puzzled. This building didn’t look like the antique-style structures built in later times; instead, it was filled with an authentic ancient atmosphere, exquisitely constructed and well-preserved. By all rights, such a rare building would typically be designated as a paid tourist attraction, but Sun Yizhou didn’t see any staff members around.

Wen Jun pushed open the door of the embroidery building and called behind her, “Hurry up and come in.”

Sun Yizhou put away his doubts and followed Wen Jun into the small building. The antique-style tables and chairs inside amazed him even more. Sun Yizhou couldn’t help but ask Wen Jun, “Do you live here alone? Where are your mom and dad?”

Wen Jun was placing a copper kettle filled with water on the brazier in the center of the hall to boil when she heard the question and replied, “My mother and father have both passed away. Only I am left.”

So he was an orphan. Sun Yizhou felt that his question had been rather abrupt and said apologetically, “I’m sorry for bringing up painful memories.”

Wen Jun, however, shook her head. “It’s fine. They’ve already been reincarnated many times. According to Granny Meng, they’ve been happy in every lifetime. I think that’s quite good, so I’m not sad.”

Sun Yizhou only took these words as something Wen Yun had encountered in a dream and didn’t take them seriously. Instead, he felt that Wen Yun possessed a kind of open-mindedness that ordinary people didn’t have, which made him curious about her private affairs.

Wen Jun looked at Sun Yizhou, and seeing that his clothes were all soaked, she asked him, “Do you want to change into a different set of clothes?”

Sun Yizhou didn’t bring any clothes with him at all, “It’s fine, I’ll just warm myself by the fire for a while.”

Wen Jun disagreed, however, lifting her skirt as she walked up the wooden stairs, saying as she went: “That won’t do, your clothes are all wet. Wait here, I’ll go find some clothes for you.”

Watching Wen Yun’s back as she quickly went upstairs, Sun Yizhou swallowed his words of refusal.

In less than ten minutes, Wen Yun came down in a light yellow Hanfu dress, holding in her arms a simple, stand-collar, straight-cut light blue long robe.

“This is the only kind of clothes I have, I made them myself, you”

You won’t mind, right?”

Sun Yizhou looked at Wen Jun’s slightly blushing face and couldn’t bring himself to refuse. After taking the clothes, he found a corner and changed with his back to Wen Jun.

But when he turned to look at Wen Jun, there was an emotion in her eyes he couldn’t understand. Then, a clear tear fell from her eyes, sliding down her face before dropping to the ground.

After wrapping up for the day, Ji Ran, who had been stopped by Director Zhong for a long talk, removed his makeup and tried to contact Yan Duo, only to be told that she had already left, without even taking her assistant.

[I went out for dinner with Zeng Meng, so you should go back by yourself.]

Ji Ran looked at the message, feeling somewhat unsettled. After casually eating dinner, Ji Ran took the room key and went directly to Yan Duo’s room, deciding to wait for her to return. But until 9:30, there was still no sign of Yan Duo. Ji Ran frowned tightly as he called Yan Duo. The phone rang but no one answered. It wasn’t until 10:30, when Ji Ran was about to storm off, that the call was finally answered.

Hearing the noisy sounds from the other end, Ji Ran asked in a deep voice, “Where are you?”

Yan Duo’s voice was loud: “Huh? What did you say? I can’t hear you clearly!”

“Send me your location, I’ll come pick you up!” Ji Ran said in a louder voice.

“No need, I’m out clubbing with Zeng Meng, and I don’t even know if I’m going back tonight.”

Ji Ran insisted: “Send me the address…”

Before he could finish, Zeng Meng’s voice came from the other end of the phone, “Duo Duo, come on, I’ll take you dancing.”

Yan Duo immediately said to Ji Ran, “That’s it, I’m hanging up.”

Ji Ran looked at the disconnected phone, thinking about the chaotic bar, Yan Duo being approached and flirted with by unknown men, feeling extremely upset. There was a sense of unease that things were going beyond plan and out of his control.

That night, Ji Ran slept in Yan Duo’s room for the night, and Yan Duo indeed didn’t return.

In his dream, Ji Ran saw Yan Duo being held by the waist by a strange man as they danced, chatting and laughing together. Finally, the two held hands and went to a hotel, followed by Yan Duo’s uniquely seductive voice in bed… Ji Ran never wanted to fall asleep again.

The next day, when Ji Ran saw Yan Duo on the film set, there wasn’t a trace of fatigue from staying up late on her face. Instead, she was full of energy, which formed a stark contrast with his own listless state despite having been in bed all night.