"Director Qin." Xia Yitong didn't take the tissue from his hand. If she did, she would attract attention. She pushed it back calmly and said with a calm smile, "It's been a long time since I saw you either."
Qin Hanlin snorted: "I just saw you a few days ago."
Xia Yitong: “Hmm?”
Qin Hanlin whispered in a voice that only the two of them could hear: "Weibo Hot Search, you go there every other day, I'm almost tired of seeing it."
Xia Yitong smiled bitterly and said, "I can't help it. I didn't let them write about me."
Tsk, what a boast. Qin Hanlin looked behind her.
Xia Yitong: "What are you looking at?"
Qin Hanlin: "Look how high your tail is."
Xia Yitong laughed out loud.
"Miss Xia." Zhan Tan, who had been sitting on the sofa watching the two of them chatting, spoke up, "Lu Yinbing will be here for a while, please sit down first."
Before Xia Yitong moved, Qin Hanlin sat back down. Xia Yitong glanced around the sofa and chose a seat close to Zhan Tan. Zhan Tan took the initiative to stand up and exchange seats with Qin Hanlin, smiling and saying, "I'm not that petty. You two can chat."
Qin Hanlin added: "Do you think my husband is your Lu Yinbing? He has big eyes but a small heart."
Xia Yitong glared at him gently.
Although he was telling the truth, she couldn't let anyone say a word against Lu Yinbing.
Qin Hanlin became interested and raised his chin towards Zhan Tan and said, "Look, she's still glaring at me. The daughter is no longer under the control of her father."
Zhan Tan: “…”
Xia Yitong: “…”
When did she get such a father? How come she doesn’t know
"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't recognize your daughter randomly." Zhan Tan picked up the wine glass, pressed Qin Hanlin to the position next to Xia Yitong with one hand, and said gently, "I'm going to go out and chat with someone. Call me if you have anything."
"Okay, thank you, Mr. Zhan."
Zhan Tan patted Qin Hanlin on the shoulder, gently touched the side of his cheek with his fingers, and left with a gentlemanly smile.
It was estimated that Zhan Tan had been gone for a full five seconds before Qin Hanlin came back to his senses and said to Xia Yitong with a lingering look on his face, "Is my husband very handsome?"
"Yes, yes, very handsome." After not seeing each other for a long time, Xia Yitong gave Qin Hanlin a favor, "But Lu Yinbing is also very beautiful."
“Beautiful, beautiful.”
"Mr. Zhan is a gentleman."
"Lu Yinbing is also very elegant."
"You have a very good eye."
"You're not bad either."
The psychological satisfaction that two people bring when they try their best to praise each other's spouse is different from praising their partner in their heart a thousand times a day, and their faces are full of smiles.
After the flattery came to an end, Xia Yitong glanced in the direction of Lu Yinbing. She was still surrounded by the crowd and was the one who attracted everyone's attention. Even if everyone said a few words, it would take a while for them to finish.
But Xia Yitong was not in a hurry at all. She even hoped that the other party could talk to others more and regain his former arrogant and energetic self.
After returning to China in May last year, Lu Yinbing did not take any other work except reading scripts and filming at home, including magazine covers, because taking covers means accepting magazine interviews. TV stations, media, exclusives, and various notifications called her like crazy, hoping to pry out a little bit of information about the past two years from her, but she was rejected. She studied the script at home, which sounded good, but it was another way of escaping.
Xia Yitong, who doesn’t know Lu Yinbing 100% but at least 99% of her, can tell the difference between concentration and escape. This semi-closed state did not improve until Lu Yinbing’s new movie was finished. Acting is her second life, and she has been reborn. But the road must be taken step by step, and the meal must be eaten bite by bite. The reason why Lu Yinbing stayed at home for a long time before visiting the crew after the filming was that she was slowly breaking out of the cocoon.
As long as she is still developing in this circle, it is not feasible for her to only shoot her own dramas. She can turn down all notices other than acting, but she cannot separate herself from society, be timid, hesitate, and be afraid of other people's pointing fingers. That is not Lu Yinbing.
Xia Yitong knew that as long as she was given time, she would adjust herself and adapt to her original social role. Originally, it might take longer, but now it seemed that it was much better than she expected.
"I'm so tired." Lu Yinbing sat down next to Xia Yitong and poured the untouched boiled water into his mouth.
Today is a private banquet and there are no media or reporters allowed in. Everyone is more casual than usual and there is no need to be so strict in observing social etiquette and following the rules. Besides, no matter how shabby Lu Yinbing is in Xia Yitong's eyes, she still looks beautiful with her own radiance.
"How much have you drunk?"
"I don't know, I feel a little dizzy. Let me take a nap first." Lu Yinbing leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes to rest.
"Don't fall asleep." No matter how casual Xia Yitong was, she would not be so careless as to treat this place as her home. She just restrainedly touched Lu Yinbing's face. It was not the intimate and ambiguous way that Zhan Tan touched Qin Hanlin, or the way between friends to see if the other's face was hot.
Fortunately, it wasn’t very hot, so it seemed that he wasn’t particularly drunk.
Lu Yinbing has a moderate alcohol tolerance and will deliberately control the amount of alcohol she drinks every time. Today, she definitely can't drink just a little. Xia Yitong was a little worried, so she raised her hand to call the waiter who could be seen everywhere here and asked for a glass of honey water with a straw. Lu Yinbing was not asleep, and she kept her rationality. When she heard Xia Yitong whispering in her ear to open her mouth, she opened her mouth and slowly sucked the honey water in the cup, her face red and obedient.
After feeding her a cup of honey water, Xia Yitong put down her snacks a little. Logically, she should take this opportunity to socialize with others and expand her network of contacts, commonly known as "showing her face". Although she has achieved good results in the past two years, her qualifications and resources cannot be compared with those of veteran movie queens and movie emperors like Lu Yinbing. They were all at the peak of their careers, and some are still popular now. This was also the original intention of Lu Yinbing to bring her here, but Lu Yinbing was now leaning back on the sofa. How could she leave temporarily? She was worried about her being alone for even a minute.
She didn't go to the mountain, but someone came to her. However, he was not a new face, but an old face, Director Cheng who had directed her before - the director of "Foster Mother". Director Cheng admired her very much. He came here this time because he saw her sitting here alone and wanted to take her to meet some people.
Xia Yitong was just about to thank Director Cheng and say sorry for not being able to leave, but Lu Yinbing opened his eyes behind her, greeted Director Cheng, then stood up and said calmly, "I'm fine, let's go."
Xia Yitong followed behind her.
"So stingy." Director Cheng lowered his head, took a sip of wine, shook his head and smiled, then went to find his old friend to reminisce about the past.
Xia Yitong took two quick steps to catch up with Lu Yinbing and asked, "I just saw Director Cheng smiling meaningfully. Is he..."
Before she could choose the right words, Lu Yinbing nodded and said, "Got it."
Xia Yitong: “…”
How many people in the industry know about their relationship? Qin Hanlin and Zhan Tan knew about it a long time ago, and the director who came to visit the set a while ago also covered for Lu Yinbing. Later, it was Cen Xi, and now there is also Director Cheng
Xia Yitong felt that she could still struggle a bit: "When did he..."
Lu Yinbing said: "When we were filming "Adoptive Mother" before, these people were all very shrewd. We were the ones filming the movie, and they were the ones directing it. We had to act whatever they wanted us to act. Do you think we could hide it from them?"
At that time, Lu Yinbing was staying in the ward and did not visit the crew. They only communicated over the phone. Director Cheng guessed their relationship and got a positive answer from Lu Yinbing.
Xia Yitong: “…”
Lu Yinbing comforted her, "Don't worry, he won't tell anyone. We are all in the same circle, so we know what we can and cannot say."
Xia Yitong: “…”
Why did she feel more worried the more Lu Yinbing said this...
Lu Yinbing took her to greet people. Xia Yitong had a positive attitude, high emotional intelligence, and was good at talking. She also had good grades, so everything went smoothly. The directors all chatted with Xia Yitong for a few words. Some of them were straightforward and asked her questions on the spot. Xia Yitong answered well and immediately made a good impression. There were also those movie kings and queens who were brought by Lu Yinbing. In addition, there were rumors in the circle that they were well-known, so they were naturally happy to make friends with Xia Yitong. This did not do them any harm.
The atmosphere was relaxed and everything went smoothly on this trip. However, ever since Lu Yinbing said those words to Xia Yitong, Xia Yitong always felt that other people looked at her and Lu Yinbing with meaningful eyes, as if everyone knew about their relationship. She couldn't help but feel uneasy and under a lot of pressure.
Just as the two of them were moving among the crowd, the villa welcomed two new guests.
A petite woman in a black dress and 15cm high heels handed her invitation to the receptionist at the door. She also brought a female companion who was only wearing a pair of flat shoes but was still a little taller than her.
The waiter also took them to the same building where he had taken Lu Yinbing and Xia Yitong before.
The people who came were Xue Yao and Su Han.
The threshold for this banquet was very high. Even Su Han, a well-known gold medal agent in the entertainment industry, did not receive an invitation. Xue Yao received the invitation because when she was the actual head of the studio, she had frequent contacts with the subsidiaries of Wang Group. Su Han was just an agent after all, and he was not very well-known outside the circle.
Xue Yao called Su Han as soon as she received the invitation and asked her if she wanted to go. Su Han would not refuse such a good opportunity. What agents compete with each other? Brains are secondary, and connections and resources are primary. With connections and resources come fast and informed information channels, speed and strength in handling things, etc. In the industry, agents are divided into different levels, which is just the difference in these aspects.
Last time, Xue Yao asked her to think about it, and then they started to go out to eat together after work whenever they wanted. It has only been ten days now, and it seems that it is no different from before she confessed her feelings. No, it is no different from before she said it. Su Han did not think that this was a confession. If she had to define it, it would be better to say that they had a frank chat.
Not responding, not refusing, this is Su Han’s choice, and it is actually also an answer.
Xue Yao quite enjoyed this state. She had lived like this for the past forty years or so, and didn't mind an extra year or two. She had plenty of patience, waiting for the prey to take the bait, as long as she didn't run back.
Maybe it's not love yet, Xue Yao sometimes thought, but soon she told herself, I'm not a twenty-year-old young man, I don't need to love you to death, there are not so many love stories, you live and I live, I feel happy when I see you, that's enough. Besides, feelings can be cultivated, just think of yourself as a slow warmer.
As for why she suddenly wanted to fall in love, it had something to do with Lu Yinbing and Xia Yitong. After eating too much dog food day after day, year after year, it was natural for her to yearn for love. This was human nature.
Those two people should have arrived a long time ago, right
After entering, she saw Lu Yinbing and Xia Yitong surrounded by the crowd. Xue Yao sent a message to Lu Yinbing and took Su Han to take care of their business.
Xue Yao shouted an English word, which seemed to be an English name, and then a lady with burgundy hair standing in front of them turned around and hugged Xue Yao warmly, kissing her on the cheek.
"This is Claire, the director of e magazine in China." After Xue Yao exchanged pleasantries with the person, she introduced him to Su Han.
He introduced Su Han to the other party. Su Han had a good appearance and temperament, and gave a good first impression. The two chatted for a while and then exchanged contact information.
Claire goes with the two of them to meet the next person. All relationships are built in this way, one plus one equals two, one plus one plus one is not three. Ten people get together and introduce each other to the other nine people, one by one, weaving a complex and huge network of relationships.
It was an hour and a half later when the four of them finally reunited. Lu Yinbing and Xia Yitong sat together, their eyes scanning back and forth across the gap between Xue Yao and Su Han on the sofa that was like the boundary between Chu and Han.
Neither of them spoke, and Lu Yinbing spoke first: "You two, explain yourself."
Su Han: "I'm going to the bathroom."
She ran away to pee, leaving Xue Yao alone on the field. Lu Yinbing sighed: "You are quite loyal?"
Xue Yao frowned and glared at her: "Who gave you the right to talk to me like this? Is there still any distinction between the old and the young?"
Xia Yitong shrank back, leaving Lu Yinbing and Xue Yao to face off. Xue Yao had accumulated power for a long time, and Lu Yinbing was well-known. Apart from her curiosity about gossip, Xia Yitong still wanted to know who was stronger between the two of them.
Xia Yitong blinked.
Lu Yinbing met Xue Yao's eyes and smiled sweetly: "Aren't I just concerned about you?"
"Care about me?" Xue Yao asked.
Lu Yinbing nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
Xue Yao sneered: "Why don't I believe it?"
Lu Yinbing said, "It's more real than real gold, I swear."
Xia Yitong: “…”
Okay, I got it. Xue’s mother is very nice and strong.
Lu Yinbing noticed her gaze and turned his head to look at her. The resentful look clearly meant "My attitude now is because you made her so mad. If I don't coax her a little, she'll resign again soon."
Xia Yitong clasped his hands together and bowed to her: I was wrong.
Lu Yinbing frowned, turned around and faced Xue Yao again, and put on a flattering smile: "Can you tell me? From the perspective of someone who has experienced it, perhaps I can give you some suggestions."
"What suggestions?" Xue Yao asked.
Lu Yinbing said, "This is advice for pursuing someone."
Xue Yao sneered: "You have never chased anyone."
Lu Yinbing said: "I did chase her. Who said I didn't? I did chase her..." She lowered her already low voice even lower. The few of them sat in a quiet corner. No one came to disturb them, but to be on the safe side, they spoke in low voices.
Xue Yao glanced at Xia Yitong.
Xia Yitong: “???”
Lu Yinbing did pursue her, that's fine. Although her pursuit skills were very poor, and she discovered Xia Yitong's feelings for her before the relationship officially started, and then they had a spiritual connection and transitioned directly to the sweet and loving stage.
Xue Yao looked at Lu Yinbing with a half-smile: "You call that chasing? I think we should just forget it."
Doesn't she know her own worth? Xue Yao didn't think she could get any constructive advice from Lu Yinbing.
Faced with her naked mockery, Lu Yinbing had no choice but to bring out Xia Yitong, who had rich experience in chasing people: "If I can't do it, why can't she do it too? She has been secretly in love with me for many years, and finally I got her."
Xue Yao looked at the trembling Xia Yitong critically, and after a long while she finally spoke: "How do I pursue her?"
Lu Yinbing asked excitedly: "So are you admitting that you are the one pursuing her?"
Xue Yao: “…”
It turns out he's waiting for her here, what a bunch of nonsense.
Xue Yao had a strong personality and was decisive in her work. She was always proactive. She didn't feel ashamed about pursuing someone, so she frankly admitted, "Yes, what's wrong?"
She spoke so frankly and righteously that Lu Yinbing, who had originally intended to make fun of her, was speechless.
"Nothing, I'm fine, right?" Lu Yinbing pushed Xia Yitong's shoulder, and Xia Yitong came over to smooth things over for her: "Yes, yes, I want to ask about the details of what happened, Aunt Xue. Did you confess your feelings? How did you tell her?"
Xue Yao dropped both of her hands on the sofa, and then looked at them quietly, as if she wanted to say something but hesitated. Both pairs of eyes were fixed on her lips, and Xue Yao's lips moved, and she uttered a few words softly: "Why should I tell you?"
Lu Yinbing had a bad temper and her hair immediately exploded. Xue Yao was actually playing tricks on her!
Xia Yitong held Lu Yinbing's hand and said, "Since Sister Su Han has taught me for five years, I have a close relationship with her and I know her better than many people."
Xue Yao looked thoughtful.
Lu Yinbing snorted.
This time, after waiting for less than five seconds, Xue Yao told the whole story. She didn't mention her motivation for wanting to fall in love, lest Lu Yinbing get so angry that she would float up.
After listening to this, Lu Yinbing had a huge question in his mind: "No smoking, no drinking, no gambling, no bad habits? I remember you smoked a pack of cigarettes every two days, didn't you?"
Xue Yao said calmly: "I've stopped since the day we talked, is that not okay?"
"Okay, okay." Lu Yinbing gave her a thumbs up with both hands. "It seems that you are very determined this time. You can even quit smoking."
Xue Yao said seriously: "That's because smoking is harmful to your health."
Lu Yinbing said sourly, "It's true that love makes people quit smoking. When I used to snatch your cigarettes and throw them into the trash can to persuade you not to smoke, you wanted to hit me. But I didn't say a word, and you quit smoking on your own."
Lu Yinbing sighed.
Xue Yao also sighed and said, "You can't be a person without conscience. It was you who stole my cigarette and threw it into the trash can. You also said you would beat me if I smoked again. You beat me every time you saw me smoking. So I avoided you to smoke. Wherever you are, I will never leave the smell of cigarettes. Isn't what I have done enough?"
Lu Yinbing snorted in dissatisfaction: "Not enough, you can't even quit smoking for me, but you quit smoking for another woman."
"I can quit smoking for you." Xia Yitong found the right opportunity and showed off her presence. She was just about to wag her tail and arch her head to let Lu Yinbing touch her.