On the empty street, a white-haired old man was holding a huge paper bag with baguettes, parsley, and a large bottle of milk. It was obvious that she had just bought it from the supermarket. She walked slowly and leisurely. Passing by, the trivial footsteps made the quietness of the street more and more peaceful.
Two figures standing downstairs in the apartment, a man and a woman.
The man is tall, tall and slender, wearing a black suit and white shirt. He only used a few strokes to outline the cold and elegant temperament, such as the eyebrows drawn from the scabbard and the deep and distinct facial features, wearing a black frame. Glasses, the unsmiling expression adds a touch of abstinence/sexuality that is daunting.
The woman was petite, only reaching the man's chest. The sky blue shirt and dark gray skirt looked dignified and virtuous, but not too aggressive. On the soles of her feet unexpectedly, she stepped on a pair of black flat shoes, which lacked the sharpness of high heels. But he became more approachable, with a faint genial smile on his face, like Muchun/Wind.
The woman turned her head, saw Renly who had stopped, and waved her hand gently, "Long time no see, Renly."
Renly took the cigarette from his mouth, looked at the man next to him, and raised his eyebrows slightly. Matthew shrugged innocently and spread his hands to show his innocence.
The woman standing beside her still smiled gracefully, as if she hadn't seen the eye contact between Renly and Matthew, and said warmly, "It's raining again in London for the past two days, and the weather is not very good. It's hard to see the weather today. A little bit of the sun, I heard that the day after tomorrow will also be sunny, it’s really been a long time. London in autumn is always nostalgic, isn’t it?”
The elegant woman in front of her is Elf-Hall, another sister of Renly and the eldest child in the family. She is one year older than Asher and is twenty-eight years old. .
Elf is a legend in the Hall family who persevered in her dream and followed her family's expectations to become a surgeon. Although in the eyes of the elders it is still "showing up", although it is still "not suitable for marriage" in the upper class, but at least the professional image of the surgeon has been recognized enough.
What's more, compared to Edith and Renly, Elf has to be said to be a role model, in the eyes of George and Elizabeth.
However, if Renly were to evaluate Elf, he would say: This is another Elizabeth Hall.
The filming of "Crazy Love" has been going on for four days. If you include the day he arrived, he has been in London for a full five days, and Elf is long overdue. But what's more interesting is that there is no news from George and Elizabeth at all, and Arthur is also in the dark, as if he never came back to London.
good romance novel
Even after meeting, Elf's demeanor overlapped with what Renly remembered, and it didn't seem to have changed at all.
Proper advance and retreat, gentle and decent, etiquette in place. The opening dialogue mentioned the weather, as if the two had only met yesterday, without the slightest strangeness, and without deliberately mentioning sensitive/sensitive topics such as actors and going home. Li couldn't refuse to respond.
"Edinburgh is so beautiful this season, you should go there on vacation." Renly responded with a smile, then walked over, put the cigarette in his mouth again, and held the cigarette case in his hand, Ai Erf looked down at the cigarette brand in Renly's hand before shaking his head.
This small gesture made Renly smile. Deja Vu, everything is so familiar, maybe, he really never left.
"Are you going to Edinburgh for a holiday?" Elf said with a smile. "I thought you would want to stay in London, and Edith will be back next week. You know, the busiest time of the year."
London Fashion Week. Edith, as a top photographer, is bound to be very busy, and to be precise, the next month will be very busy.
Renly shrugged and didn't intend to answer, but Elf didn't care, and continued, "How long will we stay in London this time? We've had too little time to meet. Let's have a good conversation at dinner another day. How's the trip going? Is everything okay?"
Traveling, as if he'd just taken a long trip to New York, wasn't an outrageous challenge to the actor's dream.
"Very well, everything is fine." Renly didn't burst the bubble of this lie. "I went to New York to see it, and then I stopped in Los Angeles for a while. At least, the weather is better than London."
"Of course, of course." Elf nodded lightly, her expression still gentle, as if she was undergoing a precise surgical operation, and she had to keep her emotions stable without too many fluctuations, "After returning to London, you saw Any drama worth recommending? You always have a unique eye for drama, and the West End seems to be buzzing again."
Faced with such a question, Renly almost burst out laughing, but his internal strength over the years made him hold back, "No, I haven't had a chance to go to the West End for the time being. I wonder if Matthew told you, I've been busy with work lately."
"Oh, work." Elf raised her chin, the white and elegant neck line was like a swan, without the slightest flaw, "Yes, Matthew mentioned it to me." Matthew and Renly exchanged glances , both of them had a sneering smile in their eyes, "However, I just bought something boldly from the Sona Chayin Antique Store, a terracotta cow made in the fifth century AD, I'm appreciating it, So much so that the detail is forgotten."
"You know, I'm so busy with work that I have few leisure activities now. I have to find something to unwind. I used to love reading books, but now I find that reading books doesn't seem to ease my mood. I hope Went to see some plays in the West End and had no good options. Are you sure you don't have anything to recommend?"
Alf's unremarkable conversation, with her characteristic tenderness and tonality, was slow and slow, the subject circled around Renly, then deftly avoided it, and finally returned to herself, a paragraph. After talking, there was nothing substantial.
This feeling is really long gone.
"Sorry, I really don't have any recommendations." Renly's affirmative answer made Elf show a clear look, but he was not disappointed, just nodded lightly, "Actually, I have to go back to work now, other colleagues are all Waiting for me. Would you like to take a look? My colleagues won't mind if you want."
Renly knew that Elf would refuse.
"No, it's too rude." Elf shook her head politely, "I also have to go back to the hospital now, the lunch break is coming to an end, and there is still work to do in the afternoon." Elf lifted the He looked into Renly's eyes and smiled, "Are you going to continue traveling?"
"Yes." Renly answered in the affirmative with a smile.
"Then, I wish you a good trip." Elf said politely, as if they were strangers they met in a social situation. After saying that, she nodded, then turned and left.
Watching Elf leave, Matthew spread his hands and explained in a low voice helplessly, "She forced me to do this, she called the office, pretended I wasn't there, and then she sent a bouquet of flowers. When I got to the office, there was an emotional greeting letter attached to it." Thinking of the content of the greeting letter, Matthew felt goosebumps behind his back - frightened, "Then she called again."
Renly patted Matthew on the shoulder with a smile, "Go back to work quickly. Elf is still waiting for you to pick up a taxi for him." A true lady will not hold a taxi by herself, she must There must be a gentleman.
Matthew rolled his eyes with a sad expression on his face, which was incompatible with his cold temperament, then he gave Renly a hug, turned around and quickly caught up with Elf's departure.
Renly knew that Matthew had no way to refuse Elf, because Elf would not give Matthew the room and space to refuse. Even if Matthew continued to flee, Elf would have a way to achieve her goal.
Elf's appearance today is actually to bring greetings on behalf of the Hall family, on behalf of George and Elizabeth, to see Renly's current state with his own eyes. In comparison, Elf is the most suitable candidate.
Renly and Elf's relationship is not close, but it's not bad either. Elf is a typical loner. Her relationship with everyone in the family is not far or near, neither too close nor too far away. She moves back and forth between each relationship skillfully and savvyly, like an outsider, meticulously. Maintain this seemingly harmonious and united family that has long since fallen apart.
Even when George and Elizabeth had the idea of divorce, it was Elf who mediated between the two—not because she was worried about her parents getting divorced, but because she was worried that the divorce would become a scandal in the upper class, and then affect the reputation of the entire family. .
This is Elf.
So, Elf's task today is to appear, show up, and greet her. She didn't do it on purpose. "Greetings" was her ultimate goal. After completing the task, she would naturally retire. She won't get involved in this mess, she won't defend George and Elizabeth, and she won't think about Renly, and as long as Renly doesn't go so far as to damage the family's reputation, she will continue to stay out of it.
This is a step towards breaking the deadlock, but also a step towards maintaining the status quo.
Renly believed that after Elf returned, he could at least be cleansed for a while, and they would not come to disturb him again.
He had expected such a situation, even Elf's appearance and the content of the conversation did not exceed the expected range, but when it really happened, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. Perhaps, after he returned to London, his performance was still affected after all. He was not as calm and restrained as he imagined, and he was not as careless as he imagined.
Suddenly, Renly missed Edith and Arthur a little, at least they were alive.