**44**

The rain was still falling. When they were filming this scene, they happened to encounter a sudden downpour, just like in the movie—wild winds raging, the sky dark and gloomy.

The windows were deliberately made to look old, and when the wind blew, they emitted a continuous series of faint knocking sounds.

The director listened to the sound recording results to determine whether the sudden rain during filming would affect the audio. After listening, the sound engineer judged that a little post-processing would suffice and it would not affect the final cut in any way.

This scene is **not easy to perform; grasping the character’s psychology is one aspect, while vividly expressing it through expressions, eyes, and movements is another.

Shen Yizhi and Ning Zhi both performed very well; doing it again might not achieve the same effect.

Meilan listened once more, confirmed there were no major issues, then breathed a sigh of relief and said to the sound engineer, “Okay.”

Turning her head, she saw the two people sitting side by side on the sofa and was slightly distracted. The assistant director called her name and quickly spoke to her in her ear.

Meilan paused for several seconds before coming back to her senses, lowered her gaze, and asked softly, “What did you say?”

Shen Yizhi and Ning Zhi have been sitting here since the filming ended.

They hadn’t removed their makeup yet, but they had put their clothes back on.

She was wearing Ruan Yinmeng’s clothes and wearing Ruan Yinmeng’s makeup. Her hair was obedient and smooth, embodying the youthful spirit and innocent purity that only Chi Sheng possessed.

Ning Zhi felt a kind of confusion, as if she didn’t know where she was, like stepping into thin air and falling endlessly, but never reaching the bottom.

The person beside her moved slightly. Ning Zhi turned her head in a daze, and in that instant, her senses ignited with a loud spark.

Last time**, she just couldn’t recover the whole night, simply being brought into such a passionate atmosphere, only after a long while did she absentmindedly think that it was Shen Yizhi acting this scene with her.

But now, she was taken to another realm, one filled with the thick, unmelting love in Ruan Yinmeng’s eyes, with her body pressing tightly against hers, urgently giving herself to her without reservation, with her precious yet uncontrollably whispered name in soft, breathy moans.

It was lips and teeth entwined, it was ears and temples brushing, it was bodies pressed together without any gap, it was an indescribable, profound love.

Her palms grew hot, her ears flushed, and her eyes seemed to still reflect the tender affection from just moments ago, even her breath seemed to still carry the intense passion from Ruan Yinmeng’s body.

Every inch of her senses was occupied.

She saw Shen Yizhi beside her, somewhat disoriented, until Shen Yizhi’s slightly cold gaze fell on her. Only then did she, like a lamb being guided out of a maze, follow Shen Yizhi’s eyes and return to reality.

She involuntarily moved a little closer to Shen Yizhi.

Normally, Shen Yizhi would have comforted her, but at this moment, her gaze swept over Ning Zhi’s rosy lips and then looked away.

Her lips were stained with her lipstick, just like last time.

They returned to the hotel together, sitting in the car with a somewhat heavy atmosphere. Ning Zhi didn’t lean against the corner of the car door as usual but instead moved closer to Shen Yizhi.

She didn’t say anything. Shen Yizhi saw her soft profile in the hazy night and her jet-black eyes.

She came out of character before Ning Zhi did. When she kissed her eyes, wiping away her tears, she suddenly broke away from the state of Ruan Yinmeng. She saw Ning Zhi’s trembling eyelashes and the look full of tender love in her eyes. She kissed her back, licking her lips like a puppy. Her breath was so pure, soft, and clear.

Her hand caressed her waist. She was back in character, finding the edge of her clothes and slipping her fingers inside. When the slightly cool fingertips touched the skin on her waist, Shen Yizhi couldn’t help but tremble. She didn’t know if Ning Zhi noticed, but this wasn’t Ruan Yinmeng’s reaction—it was hers.

Perhaps Ning Zhixing noticed, she quickly pulled her hand away and hugged her tightly. Perhaps not, the eyes full of love were still the way she looked at Ruan Yinmeng.

Because of this, Shen Yizhi did not want to pay attention to her now.

Outside the hotel room, Ning Zhixing lingered, her eyes constantly glancing at her, clearly unwilling to leave.

Shen Yizhi pretended not to see, opened the door by herself, Ning Zhixing’s expression darkened, but she did not insist, quietly said good night, and left.

Seeing her so wronged, Shen Yizhi couldn’t help but soften again.

She suddenly realized that whether it was wanting to commute together or wanting to be by her side, Ning Zhi would never take the initiative to ask. He would only carefully reveal his feelings to her, but the initiative was in her hands. If she called him, he would come immediately, happiness written all over his eyes and brows.

But if she pretended not to see, like now, Ning Zhi would tactfully leave.

She had already walked far, reaching the corner, then looked back and saw that she hadn’t gone inside yet. Ning Zhi stopped.

Shen Yizhi didn’t speak; she wanted Ning Zhi to say it himself.

But Ning Zhi was like a clam that wouldn’t open its mouth, neither leaving nor approaching, just staying there, waiting for her to call him or let him go.

How did he become like this? He used to be so stubborn, no matter how angry she was, he wouldn’t change his words and would firmly say, “I like you.”

Shen Yizhi was extremely annoyed.

“Come here,” she said coldly.

The voice was soft, but Ning Zhi heard it.

She ran back without a moment’s hesitation.

Shen Yizhi opened the door and went in.

Ning Zhi hurried to follow.

Shen Yizhi ignored her and went to the master bedroom by herself.

Ning Zhi noticed that she seemed unhappy and nervously paced outside for a while before finally sitting down next to the sofa where they had sat and chatted that night.

The words were still fresh in her ears, but in fact, a week had already passed.

These few scenes, when edited, might only be about ten minutes long, but they took a whole week to shoot.

The crew officially started filming in early June, and now it’s already the end of July.

The entire movie has three scenes in total. The first scene was shot on the first day of filming. She was clueless, letting Shen Yizhi lead her around, like Zhu Bajie swallowing ginseng fruit—she didn’t taste anything while swallowing, but after finishing, she was dazed and confused all night.

Today is the second scene, which also has a strong aftereffect.

Ruan Yinmeng’s gaze was like the softest place in the world, as if with this moment, her life was complete. No matter what Chi Sheng did to her in the future, she could accept it, she could forgive.

Such a look in her eyes…

Shen Yizhi’s acting was incredible.

Ning Zhi sighed softly, then saw Shen Yizhi come out wearing light and comfortable clothes. Her gaze involuntarily fell on her eyes, cold and clear, like the moonlight in September.

It was a completely different look from Ruan Yinmeng.

Ning Zhi’s eyes moved down to her lips. She finally broke away from the script and thought of Shen Yizhi’s appearance that afternoon.

Wet and soft, breathing slightly, letting out uncontrollable sobs from her throat, as if she had been terribly bullied.

Just as she was deeply lost in thought, suddenly—

“Ning Zhi.”

Ning Zhi quickly sat up straight, her eyes darting away guiltily.

Shen Yizhi’s lips went dry under her restless gaze, and the spot on his waist that she had touched instantly felt hot.

Shen Yizhi’s star status was well established, while Ning Zhi was a newly debuted rising star. This area was quite sensitive, and how much to reveal and to what extent had long been negotiated.

This scene didn’t reveal much, only the shoulders; everything below the chest was covered. Before filming, Meilan had carefully explained the camera angles, ensuring nothing below the chest would be shot.

The action of reaching under her hem was entirely her own doing, getting carried away in the moment.

Shen Yizhi suddenly regretted having softened his heart and let her in just now.

But Ning Zhilai was already here and clearly didn’t want to be sent away. She glanced toward the guest bedroom, hinting, “I’ve slept in that room before, is it still available?”

Shen Yizhi didn’t respond.

Ning Zhi didn’t bring it up again. She grabbed the nearby pillow and hugged it, settling for a compromise: “I’ll leave after a while. If you have things to do, go ahead.”

Shen Yizhi didn’t want to pay attention to her and went straight to the study, leaving her outside.

He seemed very angry. Ning Zhi silently hugged the pillow tighter but couldn’t figure out why. But Shen Yizhi really was ignoring her now, and she was bored being alone here.

Of course, she wouldn’t disturb him, so after sitting quietly for a while, she took out her phone and messaged 0929.

The shooting schedule has been tight these past few days, and she hadn’t been in touch with 0929 for a long time, but she always remembered this good online friend.

Now that she had some time, she quickly checked in on her.

How have you been lately? Busy?

I’m a bit busy, but it’s fulfilling.

There are also some insights I’ve gained, and I’ve decided to share them with you.

She sent these three polite opening lines.

Shen Yizhi had been quiet for less than a minute when her phone started vibrating nonstop. She picked it up and her expression grew slightly numb.

“First, be brave. Bravery is the most precious quality of humanity; it can help people achieve unexpected results.” Ning Zhi shared her greatest insight with the mysterious netizen 0929: Chi Sheng was very brave, so he earned Ruan Yinmeng’s affection.

Mysterious netizen 0929 found her annoying and replied with one word: “Busy.”

Ning Zhi’s enthusiastic sharing was cut short, leaving her a bit disappointed. She said pitifully, “Is that so? Then you go ahead and be busy.”

Just a wall away, Shen Yizhi pinched the bridge of his nose. Thinking of her helplessly hugging the pillow just now, he softened and decided to listen to her precious insights: “We can chat for a little while.”

The little dog instantly revived with full energy: “Okay, but if you’re busy, you don’t have to reply to me.”

Shen Yizhi released the hand pressed against her forehead and couldn’t help but smile.

Ning Zhi stopped sharing his insights and instead became curious: “You’re so busy, why do you use this app?”

Although Ning Zhi hadn’t interacted much with 0929, from the few words exchanged, she felt that 0929 didn’t seem like the type to casually chat with strangers on social apps.

Shen Yizhi was caught off guard by her question and couldn’t tell the truth, so he countered, “What about you? You’re already married, yet you’re still looking for strangers on a social app?”

Ning Zhi was stunned by the question, and Shen Yizhi himself was momentarily taken aback.

That question was clearly crossing a line.

Shen Yizhi thought about how to cover it up, but deep down, she felt uneasy. This kind of same-sex friend app obviously carried ambiguous undertones. Ningning usually seemed well-behaved, but privately, she was so close with strangers online. She didn’t even know how many people Ningning had added to her list.

“This is a long story,” Ning Zhi replied quickly, in a casual tone, with a hint of reluctance to say more.

Cunning. Shen Yizhi commented, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.

“Because there are many things I can’t talk about with others in real life, and keeping them bottled up feels bad, so I have to go online to find a vent,” Ning Zhi told the truth. Because 0929 treated her well, although they didn’t communicate much, every time she was sincere and caring.

Ning Zhi is the kind of person who, when others show her a bit of kindness, feels compelled to repay it tenfold. She is unwilling to be indifferent to those who care about her, even if they are complete strangers she has never met.

Hearing her say that, Shen Yizhi couldn’t bear to blame her anymore. Achieving such heights in the entertainment industry at just twenty years old was indeed very stressful. To stay popular for a long time, the most crucial rule was to be cautious with words and actions. Many things really weren’t convenient to share with those around her.

She replied, “Then I’ll be your confidant. Say whatever you want.”

Ning Zhi was sitting a bit tired, leaning inward and sitting cross-legged.

Behind her was the city lights outside the floor-to-ceiling window, directly facing the closed study door. The night was quiet, truly inspiring the urge to confide.

But she was in a pretty good mood, maybe because the intense filming schedule had finally paused for a while, maybe because even though she was left outside, Shen Yizhi still let her in, or perhaps it was because of that intimate scene during the day.

Without this movie, she would never have had the chance to interact with Shen Yizhi like this.

She felt quite happy and wanted to talk to someone about Shen Yizhi, so she slowly pressed on the screen: “My fiancé is a very unexpected person.”

The topic unexpectedly turned to this, and Shen Yizhi suddenly became nervous: “How unexpected?”

Of course, Ning Zhi couldn’t say it was Shen Yizhi; even if she did, no one would believe her and would probably just think she was a die-hard fan of Shen Yizhi. Suddenly, she remembered that not long ago she had complained to 0929 about a colleague she disliked.

“It’s my colleague,” she typed. This answer was definitely unexpected.

Sure enough, 0929 took a while before saying, “That’s so unexpected.”

Ning Zhi couldn’t help but laugh, then felt a bit embarrassed, especially since she had complained so harshly not long ago.

As expected, 0929 also remembered and asked, “If you dislike her so much, why did you marry her?”

“Let’s just say she helped me out.” She said. Although she stubbornly insisted in front of Shen Yizhi that it was a mutually beneficial arrangement, she knew deep down that Shen Yizhi had helped her more.

Shen Yizhi hesitated, unsure whether to ask further.

But Ning Zhi didn’t pause for long; she quickly sent another message.

“Sometimes she can be quite infuriating, but she’s really wonderful.”

“I’ve known her for many years, though there was a long period when we lost contact.”

Meeting her again is a particularly happy thing. I always say I dislike her, but actually, I don’t hate her that much.

There’s a knot in our hearts; it would be good if it could be untied.

Probably quite difficult. Those things happened too long ago. I was really bad before and did some irreparable wrongs.

I’m not much better now, but my luck is better than before.

At this point, the person who had been rambling suddenly stopped.

Ning Zhi spoke hesitantly, her fingers pausing, then she smiled. Luck was really on her side. No matter what happened in the future, at least for these few months, in the movie, Ning Zhi and Shen Yizhi were together.

Their names would appear side by side in the cast list, and the movie would be shown to the whole world.

Rounded up, it meant her love was declared to the entire world.

Shen Yizhi waited for a while before Ning Zhicai said, “You go ahead and get busy, I’ve kept you for quite some time.”

She finished confiding in the tree hole.

Shen Yizhi gently swiped the screen, reading through these few sentences addressed to that marriage prospect, the words inexplicably carrying a sense of closeness and helplessness.

It was much better than before when she would immediately say she hated it, but Shen Yizhi still looked a bit sad.

She suddenly wanted to see Ning Zhi, to know what kind of mood she was in alone outside, what expression she had, and how she confided these words to a stranger.

She got up and opened the door, but was stunned.

The living room was empty, with no sign of Ning Zhi.

Shen Yizhi picked up his phone and saw an unread WeChat message.

It was from Ning Zhi, sent just a few minutes ago.

I’m leaving, don’t stay up too late.

Shen Yizhi was momentarily stunned, then walked over and saw the pillow that Ning Zhi had just hugged neatly placed on the sofa.

She felt a sudden wave of suffocation for no reason, and her heart followed, growing empty.

So much so that when she saw Ning Zhi the next day, she hardly wanted to pay attention to her.

Ning Zhi, puzzled, approached her and tentatively asked, “What’s wrong?”

Shen Yizhi glanced at her but said nothing.

Moody and unpredictable. Ning Zhi thought to himself quietly, there was nothing he could do, so he could only follow her like a little punching bag.

Fortunately, the filming started quickly, and having something to do kept his mind from wandering.

The plot moved on to the next stage, a new phase.

Today was still an outdoor scene.

Ruan Yinmeng, dressed in simple clothes and wearing very light makeup, came out of the club.

She didn’t leave through the front door but went around to the back door, which few people visited during the day, and exited from there.

Such a grand clubhouse, yet the back door was filthy, with dark sewage flowing on the ground. Ruan Yinmeng walked along the dry spots, feeling increasingly at ease.

Emerging from the alley, she stood by the roadside and hailed a taxi home.

Perhaps because summer was ending, the weather was unusually cool. The car windows on both sides were open, letting the breeze flow in and lift the strands of hair by Ruan Yinmeng’s temples, yet the sun was still so bright, shining clearly over the land.

She had arrived early, but after some detours, it was nearly noon when she came out.

Waiting at the traffic light, the driver turned his head and smiled, saying, “You’ve been smiling all along, is there something good happening?”

Only when he said that did Ruan Yinmeng realize how happy she actually was. She had thought she would feel somewhat uneasy about the road ahead, but unexpectedly, when the moment came, she felt this relaxed.

She smiled but said nothing.

The driver didn’t mind; the traffic light turned green, and he pressed the accelerator.

Ruan Yinmeng took out the newly purchased SIM card, removed the old one, and deleted all the numbers in the contacts, leaving only Chi Sheng’s. She had completely cut ties with him.

“Are you home?” A text message came in; Chi Sheng was anxiously waiting.

Ruan Yinmeng softened her brows and eyes, then suddenly spoke, answering the driver’s earlier question: “My spouse is waiting for me to come home.”

As soon as she finished speaking, her heart pounded rapidly.

The driver laughed: “That really is a wonderful thing. After finishing this job, I’ll go home too, go home to eat.”

Ruan Yinmeng curved her lips into a smile as the sunlight shone through the car window, illuminating her.

Chi Sheng grew anxious waiting at home. She wanted to go with Ruan Yinmeng, but Ruan Yinmeng wouldn’t allow it. Even though those matters were about to end, she refused to let Chi Sheng get involved in the slightest.

After anxiously waiting at home for a long time, Chi Sheng finally saw Ruan Yinmeng return. As soon as the door opened, Chi Sheng looked at her nervously. Ruan Yinmeng pressed her lips tightly and nodded at her. Chi Sheng was overjoyed and hugged her tightly.

“Chi Sheng.” Ruan Yinmeng leaned against her, and Chi Sheng let out a soft hum.

Ruan Yinmeng showed a hesitant expression, and after a moment, she spoke in a consulting tone, “I’ll go with you.”

Chi Sheng didn’t understand at first. She let go of her hand, stepped back a little, and looked at Ruan Yinmeng questioningly. But the moment their eyes met, she understood her meaning.

Her eyes slowly widened, and she couldn’t hide her smile. She asked in disbelief, “Really?”

Is she really going to the city where she attends university with her?

“Really?” she asked again, jumping on the spot, her happy eyes shining brightly.

Ruan Yinmeng looked at her surprised face, her anxious heart finally eased, and she smiled along: “Mm.”

That’s great!” Chi Sheng happily picked her up and spun around on the spot, “Then we don’t have to be apart!

Ruan Yinmeng was caught off guard, almost letting out a scream, quickly covering her mouth, but the smile couldn’t be hidden.