Hidden Affection - Chapter 10

Before Ning Zhi could carefully ponder, Mei Lan’s voice signaled the start, and she quickly focused her mind and got into the zone.

This scene was shot just after Ning Zhi woke up in the early morning.

The neighbors gathered together to gossip about the woman who had just moved into the third floor.

They covered their mouths with their hands, leaning close to each other’s ears as if sharing some shameful secret, but their voices were not exactly low. The “tsk tsk” tone carried their condescending disdain and contempt.

Those explicit descriptions from their mouths were Chi Sheng’s first impression of Ruan Yinmeng.

This scene was very difficult for Ning Zhi, who was just starting out.

Everyday scenes inherently test acting skills, and the reaction to those idle remarks, without any lines, can only be conveyed through a few expressions.

Ning Zhi made great progress today. Although she was still stumbling through the shoot, from Mei Lan’s much gentler expression, it was clear that she was quite satisfied with her improvement.

Every time Ning Zhi finished a take, she would casually glance over at Shen Yizhi, wanting to know what she thought of her performance.

…

…

Shen Yizhi was there all day. She stayed as long as they were filming, but Ning Zhi noticed that Shen Yizhi’s morning smile had disappeared. She didn’t know what Shen Yizhi was thinking; her expression grew increasingly distant.

Until evening, the final round of shooting.

“Cut!” Mei Lan’s voice rang out.

Ning Zhi quickly recalled whether there had been any mistakes in that last take.

Mei Lan clapped her hands: “This one passes.”

Everyone showed expressions of relief in unison.

Ning Zhi’s brows and eyes relaxed, and he couldn’t help but smile.

“Not bad.” The props team guy smiled at Ning Zhi while tidying up the props.

Several lighting technicians heard this and gave her a thumbs up.

They had worked with many crews and seen many actors; whether they were big stars or not didn’t matter to them. What mattered was that the actors could perform well, not cause trouble, and let them finish work early.

After two days of shooting, this reaction was considered an affirmation of Ning Zhi.

Ning Zhi smiled. Of course, she was happy to be praised, but she immediately thought of Shen Yizhi’s attitude and quickly turned to look for her figure.

She was seen standing beside Meilan.

Meilan happened to look this way, her gaze lingering on Ning Zhi for a moment, then she lowered her head and said a few words to Shen Yizhi.

For some reason, Ning Zhi instinctively felt they were talking about her, so she couldn’t help but walk over.

As she got closer, she heard Meilan say, “Ning Zhi’s performance today is commendable. If she can maintain this state going forward, the filming will go smoothly.”

It turned out to be a compliment to her. Ning Zhi’s mouth almost curled up, but she hurriedly held it back, wanting to appear a bit indifferent.

Shen Yizhi happened to look up and saw her. Ning Zhi slightly raised her head, proudly waiting to be praised.

Shen Yizhi’s gaze lingered on her for a moment, then he nodded: “Hmm, not bad.”

After she finished speaking, she stood up and left.

Compared to praise, it felt more like a hurried dismissal, as if implying that her performance today wasn’t that outstanding.

It wasn’t until she left the set that Ning Zhi came back to her senses; the joy from being praised by so many people just now had completely vanished. She pressed her lips tightly but said nothing, looking somewhat stubborn.

Work is done. Someone shouted out, and everyone was in a good mood, discussing which street food stall to go to for skewers tonight. Some even asked if Ning Zhi was going.

Whether or not you truly want to invite her along, it’s always necessary to ask when you’re part of a team.

Ning Zhi shook her head and politely declined.

She walked out of the room, and the setting sun was just shining through the window at the corner of the staircase, casting a warm orange-yellow glow on the stairs.

Ning Zhi paused for a moment in the sunlight and realized that she was quite similar to Chi Sheng; Chi Sheng was raised by his grandmother, and so was she.

Chi Sheng and Grandma live in an old, worn-down house, surrounded by neighbors who are particularly gossipy and love to spread rumors.

She and her grandmother also live in such an old house and have gossipy neighbors.

She recalled many things that happened in that old house.

When she was eight years old, her parents divorced.

Since Ning Zhi could remember, they had been constantly arguing, not a single day was good. The deep affection they had at the time of their marriage had long been worn away by day after day of quarrels and complaints, leaving only mutual disgust.

So the divorce was a good thing, freeing them both. For Ning Zhi, the only problem was that neither of them wanted custody.

They argued about this for several days, until finally Grandma couldn’t stand it anymore and came to take Ning Zhi back to her home.

Since then, Ning Zhi has been living with Grandma.

After moving to an unfamiliar place, Ning Zhi initially had a hard time adjusting and wasn’t very talkative. The neighbors appeared warm and caring towards her in person.

But Ning Zhi overheard them gossiping behind her back, saying that this child’s parents had abandoned her, how pitiful she was.

They also said that parents wouldn’t stop loving their child, so maybe there was something wrong with the kid?

Some said there was nothing wrong, that she was quite quiet; they thought it was just the parents being irresponsible.

Ning Zhi did not like hearing such gossip, so she also disliked those neighbors and would not greet them when she saw them on the street.

As a result, many people quietly said that this child indeed had a problem—her words were not sweet, and her gaze was cold. What seven or eight-year-old child behaves like this?

One day, she lost her keys, and since her grandmother was not at home, she had no choice but to sit on the doorstep and wait.

It was also such an evening, with the sun outside and the weather particularly hot; even the stairwell was stuffy, without a trace of wind.

She sat there dazed, thinking about what she had just heard outside.

She met a friend of her dad’s at the school gate. That uncle sighed and shook his head when he saw her, saying, “You need to behave from now on.”

Ning Zhi didn’t quite understand why he suddenly said that, so she just nodded casually.

The uncle then said, “Your dad is getting married soon.”

It had been less than a month since she was taken to her grandmother’s house.

Ning Zhi sat on the stairs, tears suddenly falling down. Actually, she didn’t know why, after all, many people had already told her that she would have a new mother.

Adults seem to especially love scaring children.

They always say things like the new mom is very cruel and only loves her own child. They also say that once there’s a stepmother, there’s a stepfather too, and your dad will care even less about you.

Ning Zhi had long known this day would come, but she was still a little sad.

Just then, a girl in a white dress came up from downstairs. She had a backpack on both shoulders and walked lightly.

Ning Zhi heard a sound, looked up, and recognized it was the older sister living across the door. She quickly wiped away her tears, pretending as if nothing had happened, neither getting up nor speaking, just watching her warily.

The young lady in the white dress also said nothing. She walked past her carefully, making sure not to brush against her, then opened the door, went inside, and closed the door behind her.

Ning Zhi breathed a sigh of relief; she had been afraid of being asked what was wrong and why she was crying.

Then tomorrow, perhaps the neighbors would have yet another topic to talk about.

The child whom neither the father nor the mother wanted was secretly hiding in the hallway, crying. It was said that the father was going to get a new wife. How pitiful, what will happen to this little child?

But before she could fully relax, the door behind her opened again. That older sister came out, and this time she bent down beside Ning Zhi and handed her an ice cream.

Ning Zhi was stunned for a moment and didn’t move. She raised the ice cream a little higher, signaling for her to take it.

Ning Zhi was a bit at a loss but still took it.

She didn’t ask anything. After Ning Zhi took the ice cream, she left again.

The door closed once more.

Ning Zhi held the ice cream, licking it slowly, waiting until her grandmother came home.

And for the next several days, no one secretly talked about her hiding on the stairs crying.

So Ning Zhi realized that the older sister hadn’t told anyone about this matter, which made her feel both relieved and a little embarrassed.

A few days later, when she met the older sister living across the door again, Ning Zhi took the initiative to greet her: “My name is Ning Zhi, you can call me Ning Ning.”

She said this with a lot of worry, after all, the older sister seemed very aloof. Although she had given her an ice cream that day, she hadn’t said a single word to her.

But unexpectedly, she was very nice. Although she seemed a bit surprised, after her self-introduction, she still said, “My name is Shen Yizhi.”

Shen Yizhi went downstairs, and the nanny car was waiting downstairs.

She got into the car, then closed her eyes and gently exhaled.

The venue arranged by Meilan was very similar to the building they used to live in.

Not only did Ning Zhi remember that day, but Shen Yizhi also recalled it.

Old houses can’t keep secrets; what happens today will be known by everyone in the building tomorrow, especially when something as big as a child suddenly appearing next door occurs.

She had long known Ning Zhi and also knew that her parents were divorced and didn’t want to raise her.

That day in the hallway, she was clearly still crying, but the moment she saw her, she immediately put on a defensive expression, quickly wiped away her tears, frowned at her, and the look on her face clearly said, “Just try to tell anyone about this.”

She gave her an ice cream cone because the weather was very hot.

Unexpectedly, someone with such a strong sense of pride and insecurity could be opened up by just a small ice cream cone, allowing her to hear her awkward yet hopeful voice say, “You can call me Ningning.”

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