Chapter 40 – Astray Actor (12)
Because he had to adjust to the time difference, Zhou Ji had no work and only rest time for the first few days after he returned. He didn’t rest much, instead voluntarily taking on the role of the family cook, preparing meals just in time for when Chen Luosong got off work, and then waiting for him to come home.
Today, Chen Luosong finished work earlier than usual and came home a bit earlier. Before he could reach out to open the door, it was already open, and as the light from inside spilled out, he found himself with a human pendant hanging on him.
The human pendant looked down, intending to do something, but then noticed a small wound on his mouth.
That evening, Zhou Xiaoji reflected deeply on biting someone and carefully applied medication to the wound.
The result of being reckless was that until the wound healed, he reverted to just hugging people simply as before.
After a few days of rest, he had to go with several main creators to various places to attend different events and do the final promotions for the movie. Most of his time was spent at events or on planes.
The movie had been scheduled for release beforehand, and it officially premiered after the first screening.
…
The public release day was a rest day, and Chen Luosong’s time on this day had been reserved by Zhou Xiaoji a month in advance.
That morning, when he woke up, the first thing he saw was a figure moving back and forth in the dressing room.
It was undoubtedly Zhou Xiaoji. From initially knocking on the door before entering the room, he had evolved to coming and going freely as if it were his own room.
The person who had just flown back from work yesterday was surprisingly energetic and had gotten up early. Noticing he was awake, Zhou Xiaoji quickly walked over with clothes in hand.
Chen Luosong got up and put on the clothes held by the expectant person standing by the bed.
It was a white sweatshirt, very loose, with a small yellow duck on the chest.
Zhou Ji was also wearing a white sweatshirt. He glanced at the little chick on his own shirt and then at the little duck on the other person’s shirt, unable to hold back a laugh. While the other person was getting dressed and heading to wash up, he said, “Breakfast is already ready.”
He was indeed full of energy, having not only prepared the clothes but also made breakfast early in the morning.
Their first plan for the day was to go to the cinema. They left home early, but since it was a rest day, most people chose to go out, causing some traffic on the way. By the time they arrived, there wasn’t much time left before the ticket check.
The cinema was crowded, with people standing and sitting, making it a bit difficult to navigate through the crowd.
Zhou Ji turned his head to look at the person next to him, glanced down at the other’s dangling hand, and precisely grasped it.
He first held the wrist, then slowly slid down, intertwining their fingers.
The person beside him turned to look at him, and Zhou Ji slightly lowered the brim of his baseball cap, saying through his mask, “This way, we won’t get separated.”
A very convincing excuse.
Chen Luosong didn’t say much, just nodded in agreement.
When they picked up the tickets, other movies were beginning their ticket checks, and a long queue had formed at the ticket check point, quickly clearing out the original waiting area.
The movie “Anonymous” was starting to check tickets, and judging by the long line, this show was likely sold out.
Although the lead actor of “Anonymous” was sitting beside him, Chen Luosong wasn’t there to watch “Anonymous” this time; he was there for an animated movie.
The animated movie was part of a series Zhou Xiaoji had watched while adjusting to the time difference last time. That night, Zhou Xiaoji had watched three movies in a row, and this was the fourth in the series.
The lead actor himself was clearly more interested in the animated movie and didn’t spend much time looking at “Anonymous”. He headed to the other screening hall for the ticket check and entry.
The ticket checks for the two movies happened within five minutes of each other, and their ending times were also close. After watching the plump cat for over an hour, they left the screening hall to find the crowd just as bustling as when they had arrived.
“Anonymous” had a lot of showings. As soon as they came out, another ticket check for it began, with the schedule being very tight.
The cinema lobby featured a standee of “Anonymous”, with many people lining up for photos.
Chen Luosong glanced at the gloomy, thin figure on the standee and then at the person next to him. The person noticed his gaze and smiled brightly, the expression of silliness not entirely hidden even by the mask.
Chen Luosong laughed and objectively commented, “The difference is quite big.”
Zhou Ji laughed too.
He also felt the difference was significant.
Before the audition, he hadn’t expected to play such a role. His initial plan was to start with supporting roles, aiming for major awards to build a foundation for the future. The way things turned out was unexpected, but the outcome was good.
By the time they left the cinema, it was almost noon. Zhou Ji had already reserved a place for lunch. During the meal, he talked about the plans for the afternoon.
He was smiling almost the entire meal.
Chen Luosong slowly sipped some water and said, “So happy?”
Zhou Ji replied, “Absolutely.”
In the afternoon, the temperature rose slightly. Back on the street, Zhou Ji went to buy some cool fruit tea, leaving Chen Luosong on a bench by the roadside. There was shade from the trees, so he wasn’t directly in the sun.
The sun was bright today, filtering through the mottled leaves, making the white sweatshirt gleam in the light. Even sitting quietly in the corner, he stood out, catching the eyes of passersby who couldn’t help but take a few extra glances.
In the crowd, a few people who had been happily shopping spotted him from afar.
From their vantage point, they could only see a back view, but instinctively felt that the person sitting on the bench was a handsome guy.
The closer they got, the more certain they became. One of them, carrying a bag, found the figure increasingly familiar.
He seemed like a stranger, yet she had a nagging feeling she had seen him before. Though it sounded contradictory, this was her most immediate impression.
She kept glancing around, and the person next to her noticed her odd expression and asked, “What’s wrong?”
The one holding the bag honestly said she thought he looked familiar.
As they walked closer, the distance decreasing, they finally saw the person sitting on the bench clearly.
He sat there quietly, not looking at his phone, with one hand propping up his face, his gaze seemingly directed somewhere.
Under his tousled hair, his light-colored pupils appeared even brighter in the light, his long lashes casting shadows, and his fine, soft hair glowed with a light golden-brown hue.
He was exceptionally good-looking, even more so than they had imagined, and he seemed to be waiting for someone.
“…Damn.”
Before they could walk any further, the person carrying the bag had a burst of energy and forcefully held back the other person with her slender hands.
Their forward movement halted, her friend turned to look at her, asking what was wrong, “Do you know him?”
“Of course, I know him,” she said, clutching her hands tightly. “That’s my boss.”
She hadn’t expected to run into her boss in such a place. Initially, she just felt that the figure looked familiar, but upon seeing his face, she finally realized. Her boss was always in a three-piece suit at the office, and the most casual he dressed was in a dress shirt and trousers. Working in the same office area, she had never seen him in anything else, so it was understandable she didn’t recognize him right away.
It turned out that Mr. Chen wore clothes other than dress shirts in his private life.
And surprisingly, it suited him very well, giving off a completely different vibe.
As soon as she spoke, her friend also stopped in her tracks.
She didn’t have the courage to chat up handsome guys, let alone her boss or even her friend’s boss. Meeting in such a place made greetings awkward, so the two of them slowly backed away, deciding to quietly leave the street.
As they retreated, they saw the person originally sitting on the bench stand up. It wasn’t because they had noticed them, but because the person he was waiting for had arrived.
Someone carrying two drinks walked towards the bench. He was tall with long legs, and his height gave an imposing presence. He wore a hat and a mask, covering himself like a celebrity. He was also dressed in a white sweatshirt, and when they noticed the little chick and duck on the clothes, they watched as the person with the drinks easily grabbed the hand of the person next to him, interlocking their fingers skillfully.
“……”
Feeling like they had witnessed something they shouldn’t have, the two of them stood there, watching the distant figures slowly walk away.
*
After Sunday came Monday, and by Monday morning, the news that President Chen was possibly in a relationship had spread throughout the entire company. Everyone had a healthy blush on their faces as they exchanged gossip in the break room, eyes glazed over during work.
The gossip grew more outrageous, and by the time the third wave of people entered the break room, the conversation had already evolved into rumors that President Chen was planning to get married.
Bai Mingwei unusually made a trip to the break room.
The office water dispenser had a problem, and it would take some time to replace it, so without water, they had to go to the break room.
Although he had never participated, he roughly knew what the break room was actually for.
Near the lunch break, the break room was even more crowded than usual, and the lively chatter could be heard from outside.
Probably thinking there was no need to be on guard against any dangerous people coming in, the people inside chatted freely, not noticing him.
At this point, the gossip had evolved to discussing potential wedding dates.
Someone couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Don’t spread rumors. The boss is just considering marriage, that’s all.”
Everyone else laughed along, and amidst the laughter, a voice came through, “President Chen is getting married?”
Looking towards the source of the voice, they saw someone standing by the water dispenser, and the break room suddenly fell silent.
After a brief silence, someone said, “It’s just a rumor, no one is really sure.”
Bai Mingwei acknowledged with a hum, took his water cup, and left the break room, returning to his office.
He stood by his desk for a moment, put down his water cup, and picked up the file on the desk, then reopened the door.
He went to the office at the end of the corridor.
“You’re just in time,” the person behind the desk said, glancing at him as the file was placed lightly on the desk, “The afternoon meeting doesn’t need to be delayed. I have a backup of the missing materials at home.”
Bai Mingwei asked, “Do you need me to get it? I have some free time during lunch break.”
“No need,” Chen Luosong took a sip of water and said, “Someone is at home and can bring it over.”
Having been there many times, Bai Mingwei knew that Mr. Chen only had housekeeping services come at scheduled times to clean the house, and usually, no one was at home. The only possible person, the driver, had recently been assigned other tasks.
Knowing this, he understood what it meant for someone to be at home.
He adjusted the position of the file and asked, “I heard that Mr. Chen is getting married?”
Chen Luosong swallowed the water in his throat immediately to prevent choking, laughed, and asked, “Where did you hear that?”
He said, “I haven’t considered that yet.”
Smiling lightly without revealing any other emotions, Bai Mingwei said, “Then I must have heard wrong.”
