**33**

Ning Zhi didn’t sleep soundly, tossing and turning for half the night.

When she woke up the next day, her body was damp, sweat soaking her clothes, but her head no longer hurt; only her limbs felt a bit sore and weak.

She took a shower, and when she came out, the doctor happened to come for a follow-up visit.

She first measured her temperature, which had returned to normal.

The doctor asked her a few questions, such as whether she had a headache or if her throat felt uncomfortable. Toward the end, he stared at her face for a moment and said seriously, “You’re under too much stress. You need to relieve it more. Get a good night’s sleep, and sleep as long as you can.”

Ning Zhi responded obediently, looking like a well-behaved patient following the doctor’s advice.

The doctor had seen all kinds of patients and immediately saw through her seemingly compliant but actually perfunctory attitude. He didn’t persuade her further; young people are mostly confident about their own health and wouldn’t listen even if advised.

He left a few boxes of medicine and then left.

Ning Zhi felt weak all over. She glanced at the time, seemed to remember something, stood up, ran outside to look around, and then turned back to ask Yang Yang, “Has the assistant sent by Shen Yizhi left?”

“You left after you fell asleep last night.”

It wasn’t a serious illness. As long as she saw the doctor properly and took her medicine well, it would be fine. If it lingered, it wouldn’t be concern but annoyance. Shen Yizhi definitely knew how to handle this boundary.

As soon as Ning Zhi heard that the person monitoring her had left, she immediately didn’t want to stay in the hotel anymore. She quickly called out to Yang Yang, “Arrange a car quickly, we’re going to the set.”

The club was very large. Ning Zhi stopped a waiter to ask and found out which private room they were in.

She quietly slipped inside and ran over to Mei Lan’s side.

Meilan glanced at her distractedly, then turned her attention back to the camera.

One shot was filmed several times but still didn’t pass.

The lights in the private room were turned on. Meilan walked over and roughly demonstrated the scene to the extra playing Mr. Zhou. The actor nodded timidly as he watched.

“Yizhi isn’t going to eat you, be bolder, don’t hold back,” Meilan joked.

The male actor scratched his head, cautiously glanced at Shen Yizhi, then quickly looked away and nodded.

This made Shen Yizhi smile involuntarily and encourage him, “The way you handled it yesterday was pretty good.”

The male actor instantly blushed, not knowing where to put his hands, feeling like a primary school student being lectured by two teachers at once, repeatedly saying, “I know, I know.”

Ning Zhi stayed a few meters away, watching the smile on Shen Yizhi’s face.

Shen Yizhi was facing her sideways, and from her angle, she could only see his profile, just the slight curve at the corner of Shen Yizhi’s lips. She was wearing such heavy makeup, her lip color as red as ripe cherries, naturally giving off a worldly allure.

Ning Zhi could still see the features belonging to Shen Yizhi beneath her makeup—the curve of her lips when she smiled, the sound of her voice, the glance that could make Ning Zhi’s heart leap to her throat with just a faint look.

Ning Zhi hid behind the crowd, looking at her without any restraint.

Shen Yizhi suddenly seemed to sense something and looked over in this direction. A smile still lingered at the corner of her lips. When her gaze met Ning Zhi’s, Ning Zhi instinctively restrained the recklessness in her eyes and casually curved her lips at Shen Yizhi as a greeting.

The smile at the corner of Shen Yizhi’s lips froze for a moment, then disappeared.

Smiling so happily at others, but when she saw her, the smile disappeared. Ning Zhi’s mood instantly became gloomy, as if her chest was stuffed with a dense, tangled cloud that wouldn’t dissipate.

Her right hand hanging by her side clenched the seam on the outside of her pants, her gaze turning cold as she saw Shen Yizhi turn toward her, seemingly about to come over.

At that moment, Mei Lan clapped her hands: “All groups, take your positions!”

A few extras busily returned to their positions following her instructions.

Shen Yizhi paused, glanced at Ning Zhi, and returned to her spot.

Ning Zhi let out a breath she had been holding, yet couldn’t help but wonder if she had intended to come over just now? Or wanted to say something to her?

Could it be to demand an explanation? Shen Yizhi had said last night that she had taken a day off for her, yet she still came to the set, seeming ungrateful.

Meilan happened to walk back and asked pointedly, “Yizhi asked for leave for you yesterday, but instead of resting properly, why did you come here?”

Ning Zhi felt even more regretful. She didn’t mean to offend Shen Yizhi; she was just bored staying at the hotel. It was better to come to the set and watch Shen Yizhi act. Even a glance was worth it, and every extra second spent with Shen Yizhi was a gain.

But she definitely wouldn’t say this out loud. Given the friendship between Director Mei and Shen Yizhi, telling Director Mei was the same as telling Shen Yizhi.

“I’m dedicated,” she muttered weakly.

Meilan smiled and made a gesture toward the door. The main lights in the private room were turned off, leaving only the lights specifically used for filming.

Another round of shooting began.

The moment Shen Yizhi clapped the slate on set, she transformed into Ruan Yinmeng, and time and space seemed to shift instantly, turning the set into a hedonistic playground.

Ruan Yinmeng was grabbed by the wrist by an overbearing guest. She struggled in vain, smiling on the surface. She was pushed mercilessly onto the sofa, like a drifting duckweed floating helplessly on the water.

She wore a mask of fragility and submission, smiling as if playing a part, but her words of refusal showed no sign of yielding. She intended to endure some physical pain just to get through this scene.

What she was enduring, Ning Zhi understood, and Chi Sheng understood as well.

“What are you doing right now?” Suddenly, a voice sounded by her ear. The voice was very soft, deliberately lowered, almost just a breath, yet it exploded beside Ning Zhi’s ear like a thunderclap.

Ning Zhi was completely unprepared. She turned her head in shock and met Mei Lan’s deep gaze.

“I…” Ning Zhi’s thoughts settled like fallen leaves drifting down in autumn.

A scene appeared in her mind.

A narrow stairwell, dim orange-yellow light casting long shadows on the floor, and a person sitting on the steps frequently glancing down the stairs.

“I’m waiting for her,” Ning Zhi thought to herself, a wave of sorrow spreading from all directions like the encroaching night, engulfing her.

When Ruan Yinmeng was being tormented and humiliated by guests at the club, she waited for her to come home at the doorstep every night, just like every other night before.

There was a scene like this in the script: she sat on the stairs until dawn, and for the first time, she did not wait for Ruan Yinmeng to come back in the early morning.

This part had no dialogue, not a single word of dialogue.

“What are you thinking?” Meilan’s voice sounded again.

Ning Zhi knew that Meilan was not asking what she was thinking now, but what Chi Sheng was thinking in that situation.

“I was thinking…” she murmured.

Ruan Yinmeng was forced to drink cup after cup of alcohol, the golden liquid pouring from the transparent glass entirely into her mouth. Three full bottles of wine had long reached her limit, but she had to force herself to swallow it all.

The people around went from cheering to watching silently.

The colorful lights in the private room flickered, and the music from the speakers continued without end.

At the same time, on the crude and narrow staircase, a girl who had been waiting a long time for her beloved buried her head in her arms. The sky gradually brightened, but the light that illuminated the world sometimes could not reach the cold, shadowy corners.

“I was thinking…” Ning Zhi trailed off, but she knew what she was thinking. The person she liked had that kind of job, staying out all night—where had she gone?

No matter how naive or ignorant, one should know what kind of work Ruan Yinmeng did, having even heard the term “going out for business” whispered among neighbors.

Ruan Yinmeng’s night out was equivalent to laying this stark reality bare in front of Chi Sheng.

Meilan didn’t force her to say it, only gently said, “Feel it. Chi Sheng can’t see this scene now, but as an actor, you can use it as a reference.”

Ning Zhi nodded, still immersed in these few questions.

Could Chi Sheng really be completely free of resentment? At that age, brave and fearless, but also sensitive and impulsive, as she became more and more involved, could she truly accept Ruan Yinmeng continuing to work in that kind of place?

Would she waver in her feelings for them? Would she struggle? And how should she face Ruan Yinmeng?

Ning Zhi pondered, figuring out these questions, then she would know how to act out the scene of sitting in the hallway until dawn.

She was so deeply absorbed in her thoughts that she didn’t notice the camera had finished filming this shot.

Shen Yizhi walked over, and Ning Zhi caught a faint scent of alcohol. She looked up, her gaze meeting Shen Yizhi’s eyes.

The taste of alcohol instantly reminded Ning Zhi of the scene she had just witnessed. Ruan Yinmeng was downing glass after glass of liquor. Despite being mistreated and humiliated, her posture remained so graceful, like a bamboo growing in the shadows—so slender, fragile as if a gust of wind could break it, yet still standing straight and unyielding.

She suddenly grasped a spark of inspiration. Chi Sheng was brave and fearless, sensitive and impulsive, and she was sincere and passionate.

Up until now, they hadn’t touched on why Ruan Yinmeng took this job, but she trusted her intuition, trusted her feelings, and trusted Ruan Yinmeng’s character.

It wasn’t that she didn’t mind or held no grudges; she simply trusted Ruan Yinmeng’s soul. She believed that even if this person was mired in filth, even if scorned by others, her soul remained pure.

She never wavered in her affection for Ruan Yinmeng, but she was tormented by pain, deeply overwhelmed by her own helplessness and weakness.

Shen Yizhi walked up to her and said calmly, “Focus.”

Ning Zhi’s eyes were full of sorrow and helplessness. Shen Yizhi originally wanted to ask why she didn’t rest an extra day at the hotel, but upon seeing her eyes, her words caught in her throat.

Shen Yizhi hadn’t heard the conversation between Mei Lan and Ning Zhi just now; she only thought Ning Zhi was angry and helpless after seeing Ruan Yinmeng being mistreated.

Of course, she didn’t like being mistaken for someone else by Ning Zhi off-camera, but seeing her so downhearted, Shen Yizhi couldn’t bring herself to be harsh.

After a few more seconds, Ning Zhi’s emotions eased, and Shen Yizhi said, “Look closely and see who I am.”

Ning Zhi felt guilty. When Shen Yizhi gave her ice cream that time and asked who she thought she was, it was obviously out of anger.

She didn’t mean to; she just couldn’t control herself and couldn’t manage her emotions well.

Besides, her acting was so bad that being able to film this far was thanks to this immersive experience—of course, the more invested, the better.

Feeling guilty but unwilling to show weakness, Ning Zhi said, “Look carefully, and then what?”

Her tone was stiff, making Shen Yizhi frown deeply. Ning Zhi held her gaze under Shen Yizhi’s displeased look.

With so many people around, her courage returned all at once, completely dispelling the nervousness she felt last night alone with Shen Yizhi in the hotel room.

Shen Yizhi looked at her for a long while, her gaze eventually softening. She said lightly, “You have such a little dog temper, biting whoever you see?”

It was hard to tell whether there was more reproach or more helplessness in her tone.

Ning Zhi felt strange hearing the phrase “puppy temper.” Not many people would describe her that way; if anyone had to say it, it would only be the mysterious netizen 0929. So why did Shen Yizhi say it too?

This doubt flashed briefly through her mind but she didn’t dwell on it.

Her heart was still lingering on the emotions from just now when she was pondering Chi Sheng’s state of mind. Looking at Shen Yizhi right in front of her—Shen Yizhi who smiled at others but immediately stopped smiling when he saw her, Shen Yizhi who didn’t like her and even called her puppy-tempered—Ning Zhi suddenly felt wronged and muttered softly, “I didn’t bite you.”

This time Shen Yizhi didn’t get angry; he just smiled and reached out to touch Ning Zhi’s forehead. Ning Zhi dodged back a little, but Shen Yizhi’s palm still pressed against her forehead.

Ning Zhi’s first reaction was that it felt a bit cold; was she feeling cold?

The air conditioning in the club was set too low.

Her second reaction was the fluttering heartbeat after physical contact, her body so stiff she didn’t dare move.

“Has the fever gone down? Have you taken your temperature?” Shen Yizhi withdrew his hand and asked.

“Retreated,” Ning Zhi said simply.

Shen Yizhi didn’t say anything more. The shoot was about to start again, and she left from in front of Ning Zhi.

Ning Zhi walked out of the private room, intending to find a club waiter to turn up the air conditioning. After a few steps, she still couldn’t help but touch the spot where Shen Yizhi’s palm had pressed.

She actually wanted to ask Shen Yizhi why she was so good to her.

Help her ask for leave, and yesterday she even had the assistant watch over her to rest, came to see her, and brought her some sweet soup.

But she also knew that if she asked, Shen Yizhi’s answer would mostly be that she promised grandma she would take care of her, or it would be like the words she said that day at her house.

“Hasn’t it always been like this? I’ve always cared about you this way.”

She would definitely say that, pretending the six years without contact never happened, pretending her initial confession never happened, and continuing their previous way of interacting.

Did she really like how things were between them before that much?

Ning Zhi smiled wryly.

If Shen Yizhi liked how things were before so much, why was she still scared off by her feelings and cut ties with her? She didn’t even know how much patience she still had for her now.

She found a waiter and told him it was too cold, asking if the temperature and brightness could be turned up.

The club’s air conditioning was centrally controlled, but the waiter immediately agreed after hearing her request.

Ning Zhi thanked him and returned to the private room.

There was no further communication between them for the rest of the day.

After returning to the hotel that night, 0929 asked, “How was that colleague today?”

Shen Yizhi was quite good today; she touched her forehead to check her temperature and showed a lot of concern for her.

Ning Zhi also thought of her smile and replied seriously, “She looks pretty good when she smiles.”

After sending it, she recalled how Shen Yizhi stopped smiling as soon as she saw her, and angrily added, “But she only smiles at others.”

After sending it, still not satisfied, she continued, “She definitely has something against me.”

0929 said, “Could it be because you’re being very perfunctory with her?”

Perfunctory? Ning Zhi thought, no, she’s just not very enthusiastic.

“You hate her, she might be able to feel it,” 0929 said again.

Ning Zhi was momentarily stunned. Thinking of Shen Yizhi’s expression and words during the day, she felt 0929 was overthinking. If Shen Yizhi really sensed it, why would she still take the initiative to care about her?

How could anyone knowingly approach someone who clearly hates them?

“She doesn’t know,” Ning Zhi replied. After sending the message, she realized that this sentence was equivalent to admitting she hated Shen Yizhi.

She hesitated for a moment, wanting to retract it, but then felt it was unnecessary. 0929 knew she disliked that colleague, and she and Shen Yizhi had only recently started to ease tensions.

0929 took a while before saying, “Hmm.”

Ning Zhi looked at the brief word on the screen and inexplicably felt that 0929’s mood seemed to have suddenly dropped. She pursed her lips, about to say something to lighten the atmosphere, but 0929 said again, “I’m busy, talk later.”

The thumb paused on the screen; so she was busy, Ning Zhixin thought. Naturally, she didn’t want to disturb her and replied, “Talk later~”

She even added a cat emoji.

For the next while, Ning Zhixin was filming the scene where Ruan Yinmeng returns home. The scene lasted over a minute, and it took three days to get it right.

Ning Zhixin noticed that the more delicate the scene, the higher Meilan’s demands became—so meticulous it bordered on nitpicking, not allowing the slightest deviation.

Fortunately, Ning Zhi had a very accurate understanding of Chi Sheng’s psychology, and in the end, managed to get through this hurdle smoothly.

That day at dawn, Chi Sheng didn’t wait for Ruan Yinmeng; she sent her a text message.

“When will you be back?”

Ruan Yinmeng didn’t reply to her.

Chi Sheng stood in place for a while, clutching her phone, then went home and lay back on the **.

Having been awake most of the night, she wasn’t tired at all; her mind was even more active than usual. Listening to the sounds outside, the neighbors were starting their day, footsteps occasionally echoing, but none of them were familiar to Chi Sheng.

Chi Sheng felt as if her heart was being torn apart. She took a deep breath, sat up, greeted her grandmother, and then rode her bike out the door.

The sun grew increasingly intense, and she soon rode with sweat pouring down her face.

The bicycle turned into a small alley and finally stopped in front of a tutoring center.

Chi Sheng locked the car and went inside, where the people warmly greeted her.

Chi Sheng smiled and asked, “Do you need a painting teacher? I am…”

Before she could finish speaking, the person politely declined, “Sorry, our teachers are fully recruited.”

Chi Sheng’s smile stiffened. This was her first job application, her first rejection, and she felt a bit embarrassed. After a pause, she said, “Thank you.”

She kept looking. The summer vacation had already started for a while, and the tutoring classes had all filled their teaching positions.

There must be some that hadn’t filled their spots yet, maybe someone was quitting, or perhaps she could find another job. There was always a way, she could always earn money.

Chi Sheng knew that right now, the most important thing was money. With money, she could allow herself to hope a little for the future she and Ruan Yinmeng might have.

She rode her bike around the streets, looking at the job postings on the walls and utility poles. Whenever she saw a suitable one, she would call to inquire, only to be rejected time and time again.

From initially being too embarrassed to face it, Chi Sheng gradually became numb, as if being rejected was the norm.

But she did not get discouraged; she even called around among classmates and friends to ask if any children needed a tutor.

She had been busy like this until evening and was planning to come back tomorrow, when she actually found a job as a tutoring class teacher, and it was for evening classes.

After agreeing on the outing, Chi Sheng happily jumped on the spot.

But she didn’t plan to tell Ruan Yinmeng about her job search.

She was still very concerned; the little money she earned probably wouldn’t be noticed by Ruan Yinmeng at all.

However, the beginning is always the hardest. As long as she takes this first step, the path will surely become broader and broader. Later on, she will find more opportunities, better opportunities. Chi Sheng encouraged herself like this.

And at that moment, Ruan Yinmeng replied to her: “I won’t be coming back these two days.”

The joy of finding a job froze on her face. She was momentarily at a loss, then increasingly worried. She hesitated for three seconds, but in the end, concern won out.

She called Ruan Yinmeng.

Ruan Yinmeng answered.

Chi Sheng licked her dry lips. She had been running all day and barely drank any water. It was only now that she realized how severely dry her lips were.

“Ruan Yinmeng?” She called her name.

Mm.

Ruan Yinmeng’s voice came from over there. Although it was just a short syllable, it still assured Chi Sheng that she was okay.

Chi Sheng asked, “Aren’t you going home these two days?”

Ruan Yinmeng’s voice was somewhat low: “Not going back.”

Chi Sheng bit her lip until it hurt, leaving deep teeth marks, then forced herself to control her emotions and tone. She didn’t even dare to ask what she was going to do, only saying, “Then take care of yourself.”

Okay.” Ruan Yinmeng’s tone was very calm. “If nothing else, I…

“Wait a moment!” Chi Sheng interrupted her.

Ruan Yinmeng did not hang up, but she also said nothing.

Chi Sheng clenched her phone tightly, looking somewhat bewildered at the cars coming and going under the night sky. She actually wanted to say that she had seriously considered their future, that she could shoulder their future, that she would lead her into the sunlight, and that they were both clean and pure.

But these words held no conviction.

She was just a seventeen-year-old high school graduate who hadn’t yet gone to college. She was merely a poor student with no background or money. She had only found a job as a tutor at a cram school.

What right does she have to say such shameless words?

But these unspoken words from that moment on were etched into her heart, carved into her bones, becoming her obsession, becoming her inner demon.

In the end, she could only smile, listening fondly to the soft breathing of Ruan Yinmeng on the other end of the phone, saying, “Ruan Yinmeng, see you the day after tomorrow.”