Returning Home Soon
Why Are You So Boring?
By the time Shen Man finished discussing the collaboration, it was already dark.
Seeing off the partner, she looked toward Wen Lan and asked with a smile, “You seem to have something on your mind today.”
Wen Lan was stunned for a moment, thought for a bit, and said, “Last night, I nearly hit someone while driving. When I got out to check, I found her passed out drunk in front of my car. Fortunately, she wasn’t injured.”
“It is good that no accident happened,” Shen Man said.
Wen Lan nodded with relief and said apologetically, “President Shen, I am sorry. My state of mind wasn’t good today; luckily, it did not affect this collaboration.”
Shen Man chuckled lightly and shook her head. “The work is done. You go back first.”
“Thank you, President Shen,” Wen Lan said gratefully.
Shen Man got into the car and sent a message to Lin Shu. “Shushu, are we eating at home tonight?”
“Otherwise?” Lin Shu replied instantly, her tone not very good.
“Good, I will go back and cook,” Shen Man typed with a smile.
Returning to the house, Shen Man changed her shoes.
Looking at Lin Shu sitting on the sofa with a leisurely expression, she asked with a smile, “Did you have fun shopping today?”
“What does it have to do with you?” Lin Shu answered snappishly.
Shen Man could see she was angry about last night’s events. Tactfully, she did not speak further, took vegetables from the refrigerator, and turned to go to the kitchen.
After bustling about for half an hour, Shen Man simply made three dishes and one soup1.
Lin Shu sat down, glanced at it with disdain, and nitpicked every single dish.
Shen Man listened quietly and did not refute her.
After finishing dinner, Lin Shu sat on the sofa, eating fruit while watching television.
Shen Man tidied up the bowls and chopsticks, asking as if casually, “Where is Shuangshuang? Why didn’t I see her come over to eat dinner?”
Hearing this, Lin Shu glared fiercely at Shen Man.
With a cold little face, she reprimanded, “Why do you love meddling in others’ business so much? She is my friend; there is no need for you to care.”
“Precisely because she is your friend, that is why I care,” Shen Man answered with a smile, carrying the dishes into the kitchen.
The rest of Lin Shu’s words stuck in her throat, and she swallowed them back angrily.
She pondered for a while but still decided not to inform Shen Man of the news that Ni Shuang was going to stay.
Shen Man finished tidying the kitchen and sat on the sofa to rest.
Seeing this, Lin Shu immediately protected the fruit platter in front of her body, not giving Shen Man any to eat.
Shen Man saw this childish gesture, smiled, and looked toward the television.
A familiar figure appeared on the screen, and she could not help but be somewhat surprised. “Is this Yin Ruxu?”
“What are you making a fuss about?” Lin Shu curled her lips in disdain, put a piece of fruit in her mouth, and chewed slowly.
After she finished eating, she looked at the TV and said, “In this drama, Yin Ruxu is the female number four. She plays a supporting female character who is a white lotus2 on the surface but actually has a vicious heart. Although she is good friends with the female lead, she is extremely jealous of her inside and always pulls little tricks in the dark.”
“It is quite similar to her actual self; it is simply a true-colors performance.”
Shen Man listened to the mockery in her words, smiled, and did not speak.
Leaning comfortably against the sofa, she watched Yin Ruxu’s scene.
This segment happened to show Yin Ruxu unexpectedly having her true colors discovered by the female lead.
She simply stopped pretending to be a good person, directly exposing her vicious side, and admitted her inner jealousy to the female lead.
Under the agitation of her emotions, she even sprouted killing intent toward the female lead.
Watching Yin Ruxu fiercely lunging forward to strangle the female lead by the neck, Shen Man had a momentary feeling that this killing intent was real.
She stared at the female lead’s face, thought for a long time, and asked, “What is this female lead’s name?”
“Sang Yidan3,” Lin Shu said with fruit in her mouth.
Her voice was mumbled, her enunciation a bit unclear.
It took a moment for Shen Man to understand.
She had an impression of the name ‘Sang Yidan.’ Besides hearing it from Xia Ke, colleagues in the company would also mention this name during idle chat; many people were fans of this big star.
“You don’t know her?” Lin Shu asked back.
“I don’t pay much attention,” Shen Man answered.
She was usually busy with work; her free time was spent reading books, and she basically did not pay attention to the entertainment circle.
“You don’t understand even a little bit of fun.” Lin Shu curled her lips, scolding her about the past. “From school days, you were a bookworm, all day only knowing how to read books. Now that you work, you again only know work.”
“Don’t you feel that a life like yours, without any entertainment activities, is uninteresting?”
“It’s alright.” Shen Man answered with a light chuckle, looked at Lin Shu, and said with eyes containing a smile, “So Shushu still remembers my matters from school days.”
Lin Shu froze, then quickly stiffened her neck to retort, “Don’t be self-sentimental4; who remembers you?”
After she finished speaking, she quickly rose from the sofa.
Shen Man smiled as she watched Lin Shu leave.
There was still fruit on the plate; she picked up a piece, eating while watching Yin Ruxu act.
The television reached an exciting part.
The female lead counterattacked, unintentionally hitting Yin Ruxu’s cheek.
This slap was extremely loud and clear. The corner of Yin Ruxu’s mouth bled on the spot; she was briefly stunned for a few seconds, then tried to rush forward to fight the female lead like she had gone mad, but was stopped in time by the male lead who had rushed over.
The female lead collapsed weakly into the male lead’s embrace, weeping.
Yin Ruxu knelt on the ground, her face like dead ash, being fiercely criticized by the male lead.
Shen Man watched, feeling that the expression in Yin Ruxu’s eyes was a bit wrong.
Clearly, it should have reached the scene of repentance. Yin Ruxu’s mouth was speaking words begging for forgiveness, but hidden within the weakness of her gaze was ruthlessness.
This kind of hate seemed to be sincere and heartfelt.
The male lead refused to forgive her; conversely, it was the female lead helping her plead for leniency.
After hesitating for a while, the male lead ultimately chose to forgive.
Seeing this point, Shen Man felt the plot was cliché.
She turned off the television and got up to return to her room.
After washing up, Shen Man lay on the bed reading a book.
A description regarding human personality in the book made her involuntarily think of that look in Yin Ruxu’s eyes—tender yet carrying ruthlessness.
Shen Man seriously pondered for a bit and still felt that Yin Ruxu’s emotions in that place just now were incorrect.
She thought about it, then continued reading.
Time unknowingly reached late night.
Shen Man was preparing to sleep when her phone sounded with a message.
She picked it up to look; it was a message sent by Xia Ke.
“I bought a plane ticket to go back next week. When the time comes, let’s come out to gather together,” Xia Ke said, followed by a sticker of a big laugh.
Shen Man looked at this sticker, her mood somewhat complex.
She and Xia Ke had always been in contact.
After Xia Ke went abroad, what she chatted about most was the speed at which she changed girlfriends.
In the span of three years, she had dated no fewer than ten, not to mention the occasional romantic encounters.
Although Xia Ke said with her mouth that she had already let go, in reality, Yin Ruxu’s influence on her far exceeded the degree she herself could control.
A cheerful, enthusiastic girl who loved to smile, after suffering the blow of first love, had become unrestrained and dissolute.
Sometimes, in the photos posted on social media software, her eyes carried a coldness, possessing not a shred of her former gentleness and kindness.
“Good, I will treat you then,” Shen Man typed in reply.
“Manman is truly good. I love Manman the most,” Xia Ke said with a smile, pairing it with an exaggerated blowing-kiss expression.
Shen Man was somewhat helpless.
Although Xia Ke was enthusiastic and generous before, she was still reserved and would not casually say ‘like’ and ‘love.’
But now, these words were things she could say as soon as she opened her mouth.
“See you next Thursday, bye-bye,” Xia Ke said.
“Okay,” Shen Man replied.
Shen Man kept track of the time; on Wednesday, she specially worked overtime to handle some matters in advance.
She came back late and saw Lin Shu sitting on the sofa with a cold little face.
“Shushu, what is wrong?” Shen Man asked with a smile.
“Why did you only come back now?” Lin Shu asked in a cold voice, raising her volume to say, “Did you intentionally want to make me go hungry?”
“I told you I had to work overtime today and would be back a little late,” Shen Man explained.
“I don’t care. Go cook for me to eat right now,” Lin Shu said forcefully, hugging her chest with both hands, a look of huffiness on her face.
“Okay,” Shen Man responded with a good temper, put down her bag, and went to the kitchen to cook.
Lin Shu’s stomach gave a Gu sound.
She got up, took a few snacks, and sat down to eat while watching TV dramas.
Suddenly, a burst of mobile phone ringing sounded.
Lin Shu looked around in a circle and discovered it was coming from Shen Man’s bag.
She walked over, picked up the phone, and saw the caller ID ‘Xia Ke.’
Frowning slightly, she thought for a moment, took the phone to the kitchen, and said loudly to Shen Man, “Your phone call. Xia Ke is calling.”
Shen Man took the phone, pressed the answer button, and said with a smile, “Xiao Ke, is there something the matter?”
“Manman, I brought a few local specialties from here back for you. I don’t know if you will like them,” Xia Ke said, her voice much steadier than before.
“No need to be so troublesome; it is good enough that you are back,” Shen Man said, one hand holding the spatula to stir-fry vegetables.
Hearing the dong-dong-qiang-qiang sounds from that side, Xia Ke asked curiously, “Manman, it is so late, are you still cooking?”
“En, Shushu didn’t eat dinner,” Shen Man answered with a natural expression.
Hearing this name, Xia Ke was somewhat surprised and said with a smile, “You guys are living together.”
Shen Man’s heartbeat tightened, and her fingertip was accidentally scalded by the edge of the wok.
She hurriedly shook her hand and changed the topic. “Do you want me to pick you up at the airport tomorrow?”
“You busy yourself with your work; someone is coming to pick me up,” Xia Ke said with a smile, a touch of ruthlessness revealed in her eyes. “My return to the country this time is to take over my dad’s domestic entertainment assets.”
“He said it, take this as my graduation gift, and let me toss it about5 myself.”
“Your dad has quite a lot of assets; why choose the entertainment industry specifically?” Shen Man asked.
The words had already left her mouth, but she had the answer in her heart.
“I feel it is relatively interesting; I can play a bit more happily,” Xia Ke said and began to laugh loudly, her expression gradually becoming excited. “You know, engaging in this industry allows one to see many stars.”
“Whether they are big stars or small stars, all can be seen.” She deliberately increased the tone of the last sentence.
Listening, Shen Man already understood her intention very clearly.
Xia Ke’s return this time was obviously directed at Yin Ruxu.
Yin Ruxu had been acting consistently while in school, taking on quite a few dramas under the banner of being Sang Yidan’s junior sister, but they were all small roles and simply did not cause any splash.
Although her acting skills were not bad, her resources were too poor, and her number of fans was very small.
The company Xia Ke was about to inherit could be ranked highly within the entertainment industry.
She could more or less imagine the situation Yin Ruxu was about to face.
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