Expectation
In Jin Shuilan’s eyes, there was a faint expectation.
It was still early when Lu Zhenqiu got out of the taxi, half an hour earlier than her usual time. She glanced at her phone and hurried into the studio building. The heat was on inside, and two staff members who had already arrived were organizing the equipment. They saw Lu Zhenqiu and waved, “Qiuqiu, morning.”
The other one proactively asked, “Have you had breakfast, Qiuqiu?”
Lu Zhenqiu nodded, “I’ve eaten.”
As she spoke, she put down her bag and helped them tidy up the studio. A staff member smiled, “Thanks, Qiuqiu. Was yesterday your birthday?”
“I saw Teacher Jin’s Weibo post!” another one chimed in with a grin, moving closer. “Happy birthday, Qiuqiu!”
Lu Zhenqiu’s expression faltered at the words “Teacher Jin,” and she slowly smiled, “Mhm, thank you.”
“Is Teacher Jin not coming over today?”
Usually, they came together, but recently Teacher Jin had a cold and hadn’t been coming. It was unclear if she was feeling any better. Lu Zhenqiu said, “She’s resting at home.”
The staff member nodded, “She does need to rest well. I heard her new novel is almost ready. I so want to read it in advance…”
“Go read Teacher Bai’s first.” The other staff member chuckled. “Teacher Bai released a new novel last night!”
“For real? Teacher Bai hasn’t released a new novel in two years!”
The two of them could generate the excitement of several people with their discussion. Lu Zhenqiu, sitting idly with nothing to do, picked up her phone and browsed Weibo for a while. She saw many @mentions, all of them reposts from Jin Shuilan’s account.
She had been truly impolite. After Jin Shuilan posted on Weibo yesterday, she hadn’t even replied with a single “thank you.”
Lu Zhenqiu pressed her lips together and clicked into Jin Shuilan’s Weibo profile. She saw that the birthday wish post already had over a thousand reposts and many comments. She wanted to comment “thank you,” but then she saw the top comments shipping their CP. Lu Zhenqiu hesitated for two seconds, pressing her aching head, and didn’t make a move for a moment.
In the end, she posted a new Weibo status.
Jin Shuilan lay in bed, looking up at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling. The curtains weren’t drawn, and the light from outside cast mottled, flickering shadows on it. She turned over and received a message from Ji Zibo: 【Are you coming to the set this morning?】
She replied lazily: 【Is there something?】
Ji Zibo: 【To supervise.】
Jin Shuilan didn’t reply. A notification for a specially followed Weibo account popped up at the top of her screen. She tapped on it out of habit.
Zhenqiu: It was my birthday yesterday. Thank you all for the birthday wishes, and a special thank you to my good friends @Hua Luo @Xiao Yu @Ji Zibo @Jin Shuilan @Bai Mao.
She was placed between Ji Zibo and Bai Mao.
A sense of gloominess settled in Jin Shuilan’s heart. She put down her phone, pulled the blanket over her head, and after a few stuffy seconds, she threw it off, got out of bed to change her clothes, and a short while later, drove to the studio.
Ji Zibo was stunned to see her. “I thought you weren’t coming.”
Jin Shuilan’s face was tense, her voice cool. “Didn’t you ask me to come supervise?”
When she wasn’t smiling, her features appeared deep and sharp. Especially with her glasses on, the lines of her profile gained an even colder aura. Ji Zibo glanced at her a couple more times and asked, “In a bad mood?”
Jin Shuilan closed her eyes and said, “Writer’s block.”
It really was a ten-thousand-gold oil1 excuse. Ji Zibo asked, “Then can you still supervise?”
Jin Shuilan said, “I’m going to rest for a bit first. You supervise.”
Ji Zibo nodded, “Alright.”
After speaking, Jin Shuilan’s gaze swept around the studio, but she didn’t see Lu Zhenqiu. She called out, “Zibo.”
Ji Zibo didn’t even raise her head. “Hm?”
Jin Shuilan pressed her lips together. “Did she talk to you about Bai Mao’s radio drama?”
Ji Zibo nodded, “Oh, right. I almost forgot to ask you. When can we start promoting it?”
Jin Shuilan said, “Soon.”
Ji Zibo was surprised. “So fast?”
Jin Shuilan always took a two-month break after finishing a drama. This was the first time she was rushing into another project. She muttered, “But at this rate, I won’t have enough time on my end…”
Before she could finish, she paused for a few seconds and said, “How about this, we cooperate with another studio?”
The last time she went to see Zhen Yuan, it happened that Zhen Yuan’s studio was on a break. If they could invite Zhen Yuan over, their efficiency would double. Jin Shuilan said, “You handle it.”
Ji Zibo nodded, “OK, then I’ll start looking for people?”
Jin Shuilan grunted in agreement and walked into the lounge.
There was no one in the lounge. The air conditioner’s heater was whirring loudly. Jin Shuilan walked to the sofa in the innermost part of the room and lay down on her side. The sounds from outside were noisy, with the footsteps of people coming and going. For the first time, she didn’t feel irritated; instead, she closed her eyes with a sense of peace.
When Lu Zhenqiu entered the lounge to get a script, she glimpsed a person on the sofa. She thought it was a staff member and didn’t pay it much mind. It was only after taking two steps closer that she realized it was Jin Shuilan.
Jin Shuilan was lying on her side. She had a tall figure, so her calves were curled up on the inner side of the sofa, with her back against it. Unlike the comfortable picture she presented at home, right now she surprisingly gave Lu Zhenqiu the illusion of being a small, pitiful thing. She must be losing her mind.
Lu Zhenqiu didn’t look for long. She noticed the dark circles under Jin Shuilan’s eyes, which she had already seen this morning—faint and not obvious. The corners of her eyes were also a little red, perhaps from rubbing them. She had thought Jin Shuilan would rest at home today but didn’t expect her to rush to the set. Lu Zhenqiu pressed her lips together, quietly picked up the script, and was about to leave. At the doorway, she turned back, thought for a moment, and still took a thin blanket from the nearby cabinet to cover Jin Shuilan.
Jin Shuilan had just recovered from a cold; she couldn’t afford to catch another one.
She tucked the edge of the blanket in, arranging it by Jin Shuilan’s side. Looking down, she saw Jin Shuilan’s gold-rimmed glasses on the coffee table. The lenses were reflecting light. She moved them to a different spot. Finally, she stood up, took the script, and left. At the door, she passed by a staff member who was about to enter. She said, “Please be a little quieter, Teacher Jin is resting.”
The staff member nodded, “Okay, I got it.”
The door closed softly, bringing a roomful of quiet. All around was silent. Listening to her own heartbeat, Jin Shuilan gathered the blanket closer, wrapping herself tightly.
She slowly opened her eyes, glanced at the moved glasses, then looked toward the door, turned over, and continued to rest.
She slept until noon. Ji Zibo came in to call her for lunch. She had no appetite. Hearing a pattering sound, she sat up halfway. “Is it raining?”
“Sleet,” Ji Zibo said. “It’s freezing outside.”
The air conditioner in the studio was blowing hard, so they didn’t feel it at all. Jin Shuilan draped the blanket over her shoulders and walked to the window, watching the heavy snowflakes drift outside.
Outside the door, the staff were also discussing it.
“It’s supposed to be rainy tomorrow too, right? God Xia is really unlucky, having her book signing scheduled for these two days.”
“Hasn’t it been rescheduled?”
“I heard it was. There’s no way it could be held in this weather.”
Tang Yingxia’s book signing was originally set for tomorrow, but since it was still going to be sleeting, it was helplessly postponed for two days. She sat sullenly in the studio. Thinking of how Lu Zhenqiu used to send her videos every time it snowed, Tang Yingxia was busy with her phone when a voice came from her side, “God Xia.”
She turned her head and saw Yu Wen walking over.
Yu Wen hadn’t been in good spirits these past two days, angered by Hua Luo’s fans. It was clearly Hua Luo who was rubbing off on the heat2 by starting a novel with the same theme, but just because Jin Shuilan had helped repost it, the spear was now pointed at Yu Wen. She was so angry she hadn’t eaten for days.
Jin Shuilan.
It was Jin Shuilan again.
Tang Yingxia, holding a breath of frustration in her heart, said to Yu Wen, “You’re not feeling well, why aren’t you resting at home?”
Yu Wen walked to her side and sat down, her face slightly pale as she said, “I wanted to come and see if there’s anything I can help with.”
Tang Yingxia said, “This project will be over in a few days. Rest well at home and write your novel.”
“What’s the word on your book signing?”
Tang Yingxia: “Rescheduled to the day after tomorrow.”
Yu Wen nodded, “Do you want me to go?”
As she said this, she looked up at Tang Yingxia. Recently, Jin Shuilan had become active in the circle again. Although she hadn’t started a new novel, she had stolen a large portion of the limelight. The reader groups were discussing her every day.
Yu Wen had thought that after leaving her old east master3, she would choose a magazine with a higher price point. She even had a friend raise the contract terms, wanting to sign Jin Shuilan right after she left her old company to create a wave of hype. Unexpectedly, when she contacted Jin Shuilan, she was rejected without any mercy, not even given a chance to renegotiate.
Being rejected by Jin Shuilan time and time again, Yu Wen was also getting angry. She simply gave up on Jin Shuilan and focused on Tang Yingxia.
Tang Yingxia turned her head and said, “Come over if you have time.”
Yu Wen smiled, “Okay.”
Tang Yingxia asked her, “How’s the new book coming along?”
Yu Wen said, “It’s alright, but Teacher Bai also started a novel last night, and it’s the same theme…”
Tang Yingxia: “Bai Mao?”
Yu Wen had a troubled expression. Tang Yingxia said, “Isn’t that even better?”
“Better?” Yu Wen frowned, seemingly confused. “Why?”
Tang Yingxia said, “You can borrow Bai Mao’s east wind4 to promote yourself.”
Although Bai Mao’s fame was not on par with Jin Shuilan’s, she was still one of the top figures in the circle. She had been writing for a long time and had many readers. Yu Wen asked, “How do I borrow it?”
Tang Yingxia looked at the sleet outside the window and said, “You have the same theme. As long as you’re bundled together, we’ll ‘borrow’ her readers.”
Yu Wen seemed to finally understand. She nodded, “Then at that time…”
“At that time, we’ll just find one of her weaknesses.”
Not only could they smoothly unbundle, but they could also step on her. This kind of tactic was commonly used in the entertainment industry to hype CPs. The final step of purification is to solidify and abuse the fans5. They couldn’t touch Jin Shuilan, but could they not touch Bai Mao? The thought of being able to step on Bai Mao, which was equivalent to stepping on Jin Shuilan, gave Tang Yingxia a twisted sense of pleasure.
Yu Wen lowered her head, hiding the darkness in her eyes. She asked, “Then can you help me? I don’t know how.”
Tang Yingxia nodded, “No problem.”
Yu Wen smiled, “Thank you, God Xia.”
Tang Yingxia looked at her gentle expression and said nothing, just turning her head to look out the window. A car drove out of the garage. Jin Shuilan turned her head to look at Lu Zhenqiu standing by the door. During lunch just now, the two hadn’t said a single word. Lu Zhenqiu could still chat and laugh with others, but she became silent upon seeing her.
Jin Shuilan tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, watching her from a distance. She was probably looking for a taxi, constantly looking outside. The cold wind blew her long hair into disarray.
Lu Zhenqiu tucked her hair behind her ear several times, only for it to scatter again. She hadn’t brought a hair tie either. Just as she was holding her hair with one hand, she heard the sound of brakes beside her. She looked down and saw Jin Shuilan sitting in the car. The front passenger window was halfway down, and warm air blasted onto her face. Jin Shuilan said, “Get in.”
Lu Zhenqiu’s hand loosened, and her beautiful hair was once again scattered by the wind. Her bangs covered her eyes. Through the gaps in her hair, she saw Jin Shuilan’s gaze looking over, and in it, there was a faint expectation.
The author has something to say:
Thirty red envelopes, muah muah. There are no real-life prototypes; it’s all made up.
I’ve been into the “little princess” theme recently and wrote a synopsis. If you like it, you can save it to your collection in advance.
Princess Syndrome6
Su Lingyue was the apple of the Su family’s eye, spoiled by them since childhood. Her personality was perverse and domineering, and she acted with unbridled willfulness. The worst thing she did was during the winter camp in her sophomore year of college, when she called Ji Zhiyi a beggar in front of her classmates, saying she wasn’t worthy of sharing a tent with her. Not long after returning to school, Ji Zhiyi went through the procedures to withdraw from school and was never heard from again. Many classmates guessed she couldn’t handle the blow, feeling both regret and pity for her.
Later, the Su family’s company underwent a sudden change, splitting into two. Half remained in the Su family’s hands, and the other half fell into Ji Zhiyi’s hands. What also fell into her hands was Su Lingyue.
Everyone guessed that Ji Zhiyi had most likely returned for revenge and waited to see Su Lingyue become a laughingstock. Su Lingyue thought so too.
On the day she took Su Lingyue home, Ji Zhiyi personally designed a pair of princess shoes. The socialites in their circle were all eager to buy them at a high price, and the shoes were hyped up to a sky-high value. At the company’s annual party, Ji Zhiyi took the princess shoes out of the display case and, under everyone’s astonished gazes, knelt on one knee and carefully put them on for Su Lingyue.
A friend asked Ji Zhiyi why she wanted to take Su Lingyue home.
Ji Zhiyi smiled, “I want her to be my princess for a lifetime.”
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