Chapter 30: Reminder

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

The girlfriend was changing her shoes with half of her face obscured by her hair. Her expression could barely be seen. There was a feeling as if this was the calm before a storm.

“I said, I’m back.” She raised her head and directed her voice toward Zhou Rongshen. There was a slight tremor in her voice.

“Mm-hmm.” The man seated at the desk did not turn to look at her. His pen was still streaking across the paper. All he did was give an absent-minded grunt.

His reaction made his girlfriend’s body tense up.

Here, Jiang Se noticed Dai Jia’s performance. As her shoulders drooped, she looked slightly exhausted and rigid. Jiang Se could even feel that she was suppressing her anger which would erupt in the next moment.

“Zhou Rongshen! I’m telling you that I’m back!” The girlfriend could not take it anymore. She took a deep breath and her body was shaking slightly.

She changed her shoes and entered the house while holding her rose. She threw the hardworking man seated before the computer a glance. Her gaze was filled with despair and hope.

“The guy from my company, Duke, has given me a rose.”

She glanced at the vase on the table that contained a rose. She took it out, replaced the rose, and added some water.

However, her actions did not make Zhou Rongshen look up from his work. He merely posed a half-hearted question, “Who’s Duke?”

Although she chuckled, tears fell from her eyes.

Under the hazy lighting of the set, her expressions were captured by the camera. Her tears twinkled in her eyes. It was clear for the audience to tell that her emotions were raging.

“Duke is the new Human Resources Director in my company. I’ve told you about him before. He’s been pursuing me for a long time.”

Gu Jiaer gave another “okay” sign. It was clear that this take had passed as well.

The lighting of the set brightened. Dai Jia was still in her character and took some time to extract herself from it.

It was clear that she had worked hard to portray this character as Zhou Rongshen’s ex-girlfriend. Her acting was easily convincing. Even Gu Jiaer, who had been shouting at Zhao Ruoyun before this, offered her some praise, “That was good.”

With the director’s praise, the attitude of the crew members changed slightly when they talked to Dai Jia after the filming.

At the edge of the crowd, Zhao Ruoyun managed to maintain her smile. However, the mineral water bottle in her hand was twisted out of shape.

After some rest, the camera zoomed in on Hang Yuyi’s face. When he heard the news about someone in his girlfriend’s company pursuing her, he merely frowned. There was an annoyed expression on his face.

He displayed the irritation Zhou Rongshen felt deep within his heart, which blamed his girlfriend for being incapable of sorting her own matters, without resolve. Jiang Se could see that clearly. Her impression of Hang Yuyi changed.

She had heard of Zhao Ruoyun’s name several times when Lu Baobao mentioned her. She knew that Zhao Ruoyun had starred in several television dramas and was experienced in acting.

However, Zhao Ruoyun’s performance during the filming surprised Jiang Se. Her acting was awkward and there was no charm about her. This was disproportionate to her popularity.

She initially thought that Hang Yuyi would be of similar standards with Zhao Ruoyun. When the filming began, the focus of these takes was on Dai Jia. Hang Yuyi merely appeared on the scenes because the director wanted to introduce him to the audience.

However, when the filming began, Hang Yuyi’s performance seemed much more illustrative with the internal drama going on. He did not seem to bother talking to his girlfriend. It was clear that he found it a waste of his time.

Naturally, the lack of attention enraged his girlfriend who then erupted.

Dai Jia did a good job of portraying the character of a hysterical woman who had a big fight with Zhou Rongshen.

On the set, the woman was shaking as she insisted on a breakup. The man, on the other hand, was calm and silent. He said nothing even when the woman stormed into her room to pack her things up and leave.

The scene of their breakup was only retaken twice before being passed.

Gu Jiaer replayed the recordings, clearly satisfied with their performance. He then announced a short break.

Hang Yuyi unbuttoned the top of his shirt and walked over to the camera,

The lighting on set brightened again. As the stage manager instructed the crew members to remove the external backdrop, Jiang Se looked at the people crowding around the crew members, the lead actor, and the lead actress. She did not join them.

Instead, Dai Jia, who had earned Gu Jiaer’s praise, noticed her and moved closer to her. “How did I do?”

If Gu Jiaer had praised her, naturally she did well.

Her eyes were still wet from the tears she had produced while acting out the scene. She had not extracted herself completely from the character of the script. She ran her fingers through her fringe as she asked, “Do you have some tissue paper?”

Jiang Se was wearing her costume, so her personal belongings were inside her locker. There was no way that she would be carrying tissue paper. She shook her head. “Your acting was great.”

When Dai Jia heard this, she wiped the tears from her eyes with her fingers. “It’s nothing. I just managed to remember something.”

The two of them conversed for a short while. Then, they heard someone’s footsteps coming in their direction. Jiang Se turned to see a middle-aged man in a blue blazer with one hand in his pocket. He gave Dai Jia a round of appraisal with his eyes before looking at Jiang Se. He did not conceal the look of admiration in his eyes.

Jiang Se frowned. This man’s gaze made her uncomfortable as it was slightly invasive. He smelled like a mixture of cologne and cigarette smoke that was slightly overpowering.

When Dai Jia turned to look, she smiled and called out sweetly, “Brother Yao.”

Her voice pulled the man’s gaze back to herself. The man produced a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, pulling two cigarette sticks out and placing one between his lips. He lit it, drew it deeply, and passed it to Jiang Se.

“You did well. Director Gu is skilled in discovering new talent. Looks like we have two beautiful girls this year. Things are going to look much nicer now.”

When Jiang Se accepted the cigarette, the man’s smile thickened. Instead, when Dai Jia saw this scene from the side, she gave a slight frown, appearing slightly hesitant. When the man passed her a cigarette, she hesitated slightly before waving her hand and retreating instinctively. “I’m sorry. I don’t smoke.”

As she said this, the man smiled. He looked at Jiang Se with the cigarette in her hand. He pointed at her and said, “I think that you’ll do well.”

His voice had barely faded when someone called for “Brother Yao” from afar. The man curled the edge of his lips in a slightly mocking smile. He swept his gaze across Dai Jia’s body slowly, turned around, and left.

When he left, Dai Jia glanced at Jiang Se and snorted, “Don’t think that I’m jealous of you. The waters in this industry are deep. How could you accept everything that another person has given you?” She glanced at the cigarette in Jiang Se’s hand and said with contempt, “Who knows what’s inside?”

Jiang Se was still holding the lit cigarette. The smoke rose slowly and stung her nostrils. “All I did was accept it. It’s not like I’d actually smoke it.”

Dai Jia seemed to be well-versed in the workings of society, but she was not very experienced. They had met twice now. Jiang Se remembered the reminder Dai Jia gave her the other day. Although her tone was not friendly now, she meant well, so she wanted to repay her as well.

“Sometimes, even if you’re guarded against another person, you shouldn’t let them know that you’ve got your guard up against them. That’s how you’ll be able to protect yourself.”