Just as he put on the ring, someone behind him urged him to do it. Ji Shiyan let go of his hand and turned to the side to get the card and map he had placed on the machine.
Ji Ning put his hands behind his back and gently rubbed the ring with his thumb.
It feels a bit unnatural, as if I don't know how to use this hand better. It feels heavy and itchy.
Along the way, her ring balloon attracted most of the attention. Ji Ning felt embarrassed, so she pulled the balloon off and held it in front of her.
The man glanced at her sideways and said, "I won't be able to find you this way."
She had no choice but to let go of the balloon and let it float up.
"I'm not a child anymore..." she whispered.
I won’t get lost, you don’t have to keep looking for me, and I can take care of myself now.
He whispered, not sure if he hadn't heard clearly: "Hmm?"
Ji Ning said what he was thinking truthfully: "The way we do this is very much like a father taking care of his children."
“…”
The man's originally happy mouth suddenly frowned, as if even his brows were covered with layers of dark clouds: "What... and what?"
After thinking about it carefully, she felt that something was not right, so she changed her words and said, "The elders take care of the younger ones."
Ji Shiyan put the tip of his tongue against the roof of his mouth and narrowed his eyes: "... Do you think I'm too old?"
Ji Ning had never expected him to think in that direction, and quickly shook his head, "No, of course not, I mean you treat me too much like a child."
"I just don't want you to live such a tiring life." The man said casually.
She was stunned.
Entering this circle too early, struggling to stand out under the pressure of capital, she seems to have long been accustomed to a very tiring life. Working non-stop, always keeping sober and cautious, being watched by countless eyes and having to hand in high-scoring answers so that the constraints of public opinion can be temporarily relaxed.
It's her fault that she has no background and no team, and she is also confronted by the boss's daughter.
Even she gradually felt that all this was normal. She didn't expect that someone would stand in front of her and say that they wanted to make her feel more relaxed.
Relaxed—how long had it been since she heard that word
It seems like the time I have been alone has been too long.
"The gate is open," Ji Shiyan observed and turned around to remind her, "Let's go, be careful of the steps."
///
The first project is relatively mild, while the second one is a little more exciting.
When entering the gate, the staff reminded Ji Ning to take off the balloon and ring in his hand to avoid danger.
For safety reasons, Ji Ning did as he was told, placed the ring on the locker and pressed it down with a cup of water.
When the second project was about to begin, Ji Ning heard a noisy noise coming from not far away, but he didn't pay attention to it. When he came down, he saw a staff member walking up to him with an apologetic look on his face.
The gist of the incident is that another uninformed staff member passed by, picked up the cup and was about to put it in the beverage area, but he didn't see the balloon, and the balloon flew out because it was not pressed down firmly.
The staff failed to catch it and the ring was stuck in the middle of a pond. People have been sent to salvage it.
Ji Ning was still a little confused after hearing this. He didn't expect that he just went for a ride on the flying chair, and as soon as he came down, the balloon and the ring flew away with it.
She wasn't sure whether this was deliberately designed by the program team to create some reversals and difficulties.
After all, there’s nothing to watch if a show goes too smoothly.
She and Ji Shiyan went to the middle of the pool and found that the ring was stuck in a crack in the rock. A group of staff members were surrounding it and trying to get it out.
Ji Ning was not optimistic. He squatted down and hugged his knees, muttering to himself, "Can it be taken out?"
"It doesn't look like it will work," Ji Shiyan said, "That place is a blind spot and it's hard to get through. Even if we pry the stone open, the ring will have been worn out."
How could I have forgotten that the ring would be worn out at this point? Ji Ning lowered his eyes and thought gloomily, even if the staff could go over and pry the ring out, the ring would definitely be worn out beyond recognition.
Then the commemorative items would be left incomplete, and there was even a possibility that they could not be salvaged. She was not interested and had no strength to speak.
"Then forget it."
Rather than having a ring full of scratches in her hand, it would be better to just let it stay there.
Ji Shiyan also had this intention, he rubbed her hair and comforted her: "It's okay, I'll give you something else next time."
The depressed mood was instantly swept away, and Ji Ning looked up: "Anything else?"
"Yeah." Isn't the ring gone
"Anything else?" she demanded.
"You are quite curious."
The man stared at her for a while, and when he saw her slowly stand up again, he smiled and said, "Keep it a secret for now."
laugh.
She wrinkled her nose in dissatisfaction, but really didn't dwell on what had just made her unhappy. She picked up the drink and took another sip.
After the slightly bitter first note of honey grapefruit tea passes, a light sweetness is passed on the tip of your tongue.
It seems... not a loss.
Finally, they stopped the sweaty staff over there, and the staff apologized repeatedly. In order to make up for the loss, they opened a small theater just for them.
There was a theater performance in the amusement park, which stopped on time at six o'clock. Taking into account the special circumstances today, the supervisor added another performance after six o'clock. Only the two of them could enter, and it was a performance specially for the two of them.
The air-conditioning in the huge venue was turned on quite high, and the temperature was probably regulated according to the requirements for more than 500 people. As soon as Ji Ning entered, he felt the cold air going straight into his collar.
She crossed her arms and shrank her neck.
The opera happily began after the curtain opened. Looking at the actors singing and dancing on the stage, Ji Ning inexplicably thought of Ji Shiyan who had stood on his debut stage a long time ago.
At that time, she hadn't fallen in love with him yet, and many of the videos were made up in post-production. But when she saw the clips in front of her, she couldn't help but feel a bit of respect and awe, thinking with emotion that they were all people who loved this career, and even if there was only one audience member, they were giving 100% of their effort to present the best performance.
After the lively singing and dancing, the show gradually became quiet. Ji Ning felt increasingly cold. She couldn't help but rub her palms and look at her skirt.
If I had known, I wouldn’t have changed into this skirt for the sake of ceremony before going on stage.
The love drama on the stage was reaching its lingering part. Ji Ning tilted his head and found that the man was using his beautifully curved fingertips to unbutton the buttons that extended from his throat.
She scratched the back of her hand somewhat helplessly.
… Is her idol, whose single time limit is unknown, so restless
Ji Ning turned around and pretended to watch the drama seriously. In fact, she had no idea what was going on. Her hearing was fully serving the man next to her.
After a while, she felt soft fabric on her shoulders. She subconsciously moved to adjust it, and Ji Shiyan's deep voice sounded above her head: "Concentrate on watching the show."
"… oh."
Ji Ning couldn't concentrate so he had to focus on watching the show, but his mind was still wandering far away.
Ji Shiyan lifted the shoulder line of his clothes, made sure she was covered, and then left the table.
She moved her body huddled under his large shirt, feeling the soft texture of her arms touching the fabric, and her cuffs still seemed to contain his warmth.
She found that the neckline of the skirt was a little low, so she pulled it up, and the skirt became shorter again, just covering her legs.
Ji Ning reached out and adjusted her skirt, pressing it down with her palm.
This often happens to female artists when they are at events. When they see a skirt that is just the right length, it is too short when they sit down. Although they wear safety pants, they are afraid of exposing themselves in the cameras everywhere, so they can only use their hands to hold it down.
The man who had just left the table came back at this time, bringing with him a small square rug.
He said, "They don't have any bigger ones, so just use this to cover it."
Ji Ning raised his eyebrows in surprise, but naturally took the blanket and covered himself with it. He was about to say something, but then he remembered that he was such a careful person, so it was not surprising for him to do such a thing.
Moreover, his considerateness without leaving any trace will never make people feel burdened or cause pressure.
Ji Ning had no recollection of what was being performed in the drama that day. She only remembered that the indoor lighting cast his shadow on her, and his clothes had the same pleasant ebony scent as always.
///
The most recent episodes of "First Kiss Diary" have adopted the format of recording the day before and broadcasting the next day. Apart from doubling the number of post-production staff and having everyone stay up late, this can be said to be good news for everyone.
Ji Ning was not wrong in his guess. It was indeed the program crew who "instigated" the placement of the ring into the pool. However, they did it just for the sake of topicality and plot twists, and had no idea what the ring meant to Ji Ning.
However, considering that someone promised to buy her a new one, she did not pursue the matter further.
But we have to say that the program crew made the right move. The spot with the balloon quickly became a tourist attraction in the amusement park. Not only did fans living in France go there to check in, but French audiences also went there to take photos and group photos. There were also CP fans who went there to travel and went to find out what it was like at all costs.
The local TV station was attracted and shocked by the large number of people in the photo, and the incident even made news on the foreign Internet, which was another natural wave of traffic and national popularity increase.
Five days later, Ji Ning was invited to record the program "Sound and Image".
As the name suggests, "Sound and Image" is a program related to sound, aiming to show the charm of actors in voice and lines.
With the increasingly rapid development of the times, it seems that it has become a thankless and stupid task to concentrate on making a good drama. Most of the dramas on the market have "fast food" written on the lid, just like instant noodles.
Fewer and fewer actors are willing to study their lines seriously. After all, no matter how bad their lines are, they can find a good voice actor to dub them seamlessly. They get paid so much anyway, so the best thing to do is to get the money and move on to the next crew.
Even if their lines and acting skills are so bad that they are totally out of place, they can still become a top star with a good look and a fan-attracting character in variety shows. They don't need an actor's self-cultivation. After all, their goal is not to be a good actor.
The program "Sound and Image" aims to give actors with strong professional abilities an opportunity to be seen by the picky and distorted market.
The previous episodes of the show all invited actors who performed in serious dramas and had almost no traffic. Ji Ning did not expect that he would be invited. He thought it would be a good idea to learn and gain some experience, so he agreed.
She arrived very early that day, and after putting on her makeup, she read the script on the small sofa in the lounge, like an invisible person.
Soon the guests arrived one after another, and some staff members were gossiping in low voices while clearing the tables.
"Why hasn't Ji Ning come yet?"
"You haven't arrived yet?! The recording starts in half an hour."
"Yeah, I heard that she's a big shot and she wants her own super-large VIP lounge, otherwise she'll go on strike. Do you think she had an argument with the director team over this..."
"Where did you hear that?"
"I forgot. Anyway, I have been looking for her today. I want to see what she looks like in real life..."
"Then you may have heard the wrong news," Ji Ning behind them raised the script in his hand, "I was here three hours ago."
The girl who was cleaning the table was stunned. Her dull look gradually turned into surprise. "Are you here? Why are you sitting here? There's an artist lounge inside!"
"Someone was just cleaning and there was a bit of a commotion," Ning said, "so they came outside."
She doesn't like too much noise when she's reading a script, and it doesn't matter where she sits.
Later, Ji Ning was called by the director to check the process. The two girls looked at her back and began to doubt their lives.
The girl who just said she was a big star shook her head and said, "She's not a big star at all. She looks so genuine when she laughs. I'm a bit of a fan. What's going on?"
Another person also looked in her direction: "Me too, this figure is amazing, even thinner than on TV."
…
The program recording will start in half an hour.
There will be three guests in each episode. The different colors on the seats represent each guest. The audience chooses which color of stool to sit on to represent which guest they support.
Finally, the judges inside and outside the venue will decide the rankings of the three guests, and the audience corresponding to the winning guest will also receive gifts. In each round, the audience has the right to change seats, that is, the right to support - in essence, whoever you think may win first place, you support whoever, after all, there are prizes for guessing correctly.
In this episode, in addition to Ji Ning, there are two other Qingyi actresses who perform serious dramas. Although their traffic is not particularly large, they are also the type that is well-known among the people.
Ji Ning's color is yellow, the cheering color, as usual.
Before the performance begins, the audience can freely choose their positions, which is equivalent to blind guessing. After each round of performance, they can also choose whether to switch to another camp based on the strength of the guest.
As the only one with traffic, Ji Ning didn't feel very frustrated when he found out that his area had the least supporters.
After all, in this era, traffic seems to have long been no longer equal to strength, so it is normal for her to be treated so "partially".
Qingyi actress Xu Nian came on stage first and sang a clip from a classic drama about a mother looking for her child.
The emotions were spot on, and there was applause from the audience, with some people in her section of the audience cheering loudly.
The second actress, Zhao Anan, performed a sad scene after the heroine found out that her lover had passed away.
As usual, there was a lot of cheering.
Ji Ning felt a little stressed and his palms were sweating.
The outstanding performances of the two predecessors certainly put a lot of pressure on her, but what was even more difficult was that she chose to play a madman.
A mother who is mentally split into five people has conversations with her five personalities in prison.
It sounds ridiculous for a popular actress to perform something so difficult.
Nuonuo advised her, and the director also repeatedly confirmed with her whether she had made the decision.
But she was the least promising newcomer in the show. How could she get a new life without a desperate battle
No matter what others think, she doesn't want to be labeled as a vase by conforming to the times. Only by challenging herself to the maximum can she dispel doubts to the maximum extent.
The transformation after this round will represent the audience's true evaluation of her strength.
Whether it can change the public's opinion depends on what happens next -
Ji Ning adjusted his headset, took a deep breath, and held the microphone, "We can start now."
Background music slowly started playing.
The first person to come out is the protagonist's imaginary daughter personality: "I'm really scared. It's so dark. Where is this?"
Because the protagonist had killed his own daughter with his own hands, he suffered from split personality under the pressure of self-blame and various emotions, and the first girl personality was born.
Ji Ning's voice is crisp to begin with, and it goes perfectly with the little girl's voice. It is clean and pure, and carries a bright yearning for life.
This kind of dubbing cannot show the level of the actors. Some people in the audience were laughing, thinking that this was the true level of the traffic and it was just a child's play.
The second personality is a timid girl who needs to be protected. Ji Ning clenched his hands with trembling teeth, and his voice lost its childishness: "I don't want to be locked up here for the rest of my life. Let me out, let me out..."
Her crying voice became more intense and her expression became more into the role. When the second personality opened his mouth to cry, she also opened her mouth and burst into tears of fear.
Crying is not an easy role to play, but she did it just right, her lines were clear, and the character's emotions were present without stealing the show.
It was obvious that many audience members were stunned.
This is... one person playing multiple roles
You should know that in the previous programs, only one guest dared to challenge himself to play multiple roles.
The third personality is the murderer. The protagonist blames all the bad things on the third personality, which is full of evil thoughts.
Ji Ning's crying suddenly stopped, and turned into a hoarse, resentful, creepy tone. He bit his back teeth and glared, "Let's die together, die in this dark place, we all deserve to die, we are all sinners!"
When a series of horrible laughs rang out, the audience rubbed their arms at the same time.
The speed of the transition and the intensity of her immersion in the play gradually changed their impression of this pretty young actress.
The fourth personality remained calm, but still a little scared: "You killed her, we are innocent, why should we die with you?"
"Why? You're still asking me why?!" The third personality's emotions became increasingly intense. "Then why do you want to kill me? When you created me with your own will, did you ask me if I wanted to be created?! Why did you let me out and then let me die? Why should I die if she lives? You push all the bad things onto me and then erase me - is this my meaning?!"
Her mood suddenly changed, and she sneered twice, in an extreme way that seemed crazy, devilish, and rational: "Then let's all die together, forever and ever... together."
The last personality is the personality that the protagonist split out after her husband left. When her husband found out that she killed the child, he also suffered from schizophrenia and resolutely divorced and left. The memory of the fifth personality deleted these fragments and stayed forever at the happy moment of the marriage.
All the quarrels and fears of the personalities seemed to have nothing to do with her, and she didn't care at all.
All she cared about was that her husband got off work at 5:30 every day and returned home at 6:30. When they first met, his favorite play was playing on the stage behind him. He turned his head when she hummed softly, and they fell in love.
He liked listening to her singing the most.
Ji Ning came out of the sorrow and resentment of the third personality, and used the time to breathe to quickly empty his mind. He twirled his fingers and sang meaningfully for the protagonist: "She is as beautiful as a flower, and time flows like flowing water—"
The ending tone is infinitely prolonged, and then gradually becomes lighter, as if it is singing praises to someone's love, or as if it is the sadness after unrequited love.
Or, like all of this, it was so grand, but ended up in nothingness.
In the moment of stopping, even Ji Ning couldn't control the waves in her heart. She took a deep breath and there were tears in the corners of her eyes.
She couldn't tell whether it was a daughter's fear, a mother's self-blame, or the murderer's remorse. She just wanted to cry for others.
There was real silence for three seconds in the audience.
There was complete silence for three seconds. No one spoke. The audience and the judges all paused for a moment and stood still, staring at her.
Three seconds later, there was thunderous applause.
The author has something to say: Oh, I really like writing about Ningning showing off (not really)
This is the first update. There should be a second update of about 2,000 words later. I don’t know what time it will be, but I estimate it will be around 10 o’clock!
I'm also giving out some red envelopes in this chapter! Leave me a message!
*To add, "You are as beautiful as flowers and as fleeting as time" comes from Tang Xianzu's "The Peony Pavilion"