Fu Feibai: "It’s quite a coincidence."
But he was very clear that Shen Jianian was already dead, and couldn’t be that person.
Initially, he didn’t know this matter. Later, when his mother fell ill, he finished filming the movie and turned down most work to stay in Beicheng to be with his family. Spending more ti with his brother naturally allowed him to feel the changes in his brother, who was already quiet and reserved, had grown even colder.
He had tried to open up and talk with his brother, but didn’t learn any useful information.
Fu Jichen was taciturn, and if he didn’t want to speak, no matter how many tis you asked, the result would be the sa.
Out of concern for him, Fu Feibai went to find Qu Mo to inquire.
Qu Mo felt that the matter had passed a long ti ago and there was no need to hide it, and told him that Shen Jianian had died in a car accident, and her remains had never been found. Qu Mo especially reminded him that the na "Shen Jianian" was taboo for Fu Jichen, and it was best not to ntion it.
Once Fu Feibai understood the situation, he didn’t press Fu Jichen further.
On the set, Shen Jianian didn’t know soone was talking about her. She was trying to familiarize herself with the script a few more tis when the phone rings from the bag beside her.
She puts the script on her lap and pulls out her phone. Seeing Pei Che’s call, she answers and brings it to her ear: "Did you get off the plane?"
"Yeah, just out of the airport." Pei Che’s voice is clear and cheerful, seemingly able to dispel the sumr heat, "Are you at the orchestra? I’ll co find you."
Shen Jianian glances at the crowd of the crew and doesn’t imdiately tell him she’s filming. After pondering for a mont, she says, "The orchestra is very busy today. If you co, I might not have ti to talk with you. Let’s et in the afternoon when I get back. You’ve been tired from traveling, go ho and rest well first."
While speaking, Shen Jianian unconsciously raises her eyes and notices soone photographing her.
Gu Chongli, caught in the act, looks slightly embarrassed, his fingertip brushing his nose, glancing elsewhere, trying to pretend like nothing happened.
Ending the call, Shen Jianian stands up and walks to Gu Chongli, speaking with certainty, not questioning: "You are photographing ."
Gu Chongli has no choice but to turn his gaze back to her face, feigning calm: "No, you got it wrong, I was taking selfies."
Shen Jianian doesn’t believe him, stretches out a hand: "Give your phone and let see."
Gu Chongli hesitates for two seconds and then honestly places his phone onto her open palm. Shen Jianian withdraws her hand, looks at the phone, sees a blank screen, and realizes he deliberately locked it.
Shen Jianian, disinclined to argue, taps the phone against his chest: "Delete it yourself, I don’t like being photographed."
Gu Chongli looks at her deanor, suddenly associating her with a puffed-up pufferfish, quite cute, causing him to chuckle: "What if your movie is released in the future and your photos are everywhere? Perhaps you might beco a hit, walking down the street and being recognized, with people chasing you for pictures."
Shen Jianian frowns slightly, seemingly never having considered this issue.
Just then, the director calls with a gaphone, signaling that filming is about to start.
After Shen Jianian turns around, Gu Chongli unlocks the phone and sends the photos to Fu Feibai.
Fu Feibai replies: "It’s not the sa person."
Gu Chongli goes off to film and doesn’t continue chatting with Fu Feibai.
At the sa mont in Beicheng, Fu Feibai is in the hospital ward, having just lulled Wei Ronghua to sleep. He takes out his phone to see a ssage from a friend and chats with him for a while.
Before logging out of WeChat, Fu Feibai opens the photo and enlarges it, confirming that it’s not the Shen Jianian he had seen before.
Just as he’s about to put away the phone, the door to the ward is gently pushed open.
Fu Feibai looks up and sees Fu Jichen, dressed in a black business suit, walking in. His features are striking and over the past three years, his deanor has beco increasingly profound, making him inscrutable and difficult to approach. On his wrist is an expensive watch, Fu Feibai knows, and there is a thin gold chain hidden in his sleeve, not easily noticeable, along with a keepsake that he never parts with.
Fu Feibai rises, his voice softened: "Brother, why did you co over now?"
Fu Jichen glances at Wei Ronghua, asleep on the hospital bed. Three years ago, Wei Ronghua was diagnosed with lung cancer, no longer concerned with past grudges, just wanting to live.
"I went on a temporary business trip, ca to take a look." Fu Jichen’s voice is low, "Why are you alone?"
"The caregiver had sothing to do and left for the morning. I’m fine alone." Fu Feibai says, "There are nurses and doctors around."
Fu Jichen nods slightly, his gaze inadvertently passes over the phone in Fu Feibai’s hand. On the illuminated screen is an enlarged photo of a young woman, and he casually asks, "What’s that you’re looking at?"
Fu Feibai suddenly rembers the person he was just discussing with his friend, hurriedly locks the screen, shaking his head: "It’s nothing, just a photo of a female actress."
Fu Jichen raises his hand to check the ti, deciding it’s about ti: "I’m heading to the airport. Make sure you rest well, don’t overwork yourself."
"Mm, I know."
Fu Feibai saw him out and waited until he entered the elevator before letting out a slight sigh of relief and returning to the ward to sit on a chair.
The elevator descended to the first floor, and Fu Jichen took the lead, stepping out first. Song Fang followed two steps behind him, gazing at the broad, solitary figure ahead, whose gait was slightly unusual—only noticeable if one looked closely.
"Mr. Chen, the reporter from Chenyang Daily has requested an interview with you for the third ti. Are you sure you want to decline again?" Song Fang recalled receiving a call just outside the ward and casually ntioned it to Fu Jichen.
Fu Jichen spoke in a tone that left no room for negotiation: "Decline it."
"Okay, I got it." Song Fang sighed inwardly. That female reporter was persistent, repeatedly attempting to schedule an interview despite being turned down ti and ti again.
In the years he had followed Fu Jichen, he had never seen him agree to an interview with any dia outlet. Most reporters, when rejected once, would give up, but not this one—she was remarkably stubborn.
The car stopped at the hospital entrance, and the door to the backseat was already open. Fu Jichen bent down to get in and hesitated noticeably when drawing in his left leg.
Song Fang did not miss the sudden tension in Fu Jichen’s jaw at that mont. After circling around the car’s front, he sat in the passenger seat, pondering for a few seconds before turning his head to gently suggest, "Mr. Chen, perhaps after you return from New York this ti, you should schedule an appointnt with a specialist to check your leg. I heard the orthopedics departnt at Jiangcheng First Hospital is quite renowned."
Qu Mo started the car and chid in, "Or, there are excellent specialists in New York as well. Scheduling a visit there shouldn’t take up too much ti."
Fu Jichen understood they were looking out for him, so he didn’t respond harshly. He squeezed the bridge of his nose and said, "We’ll see when the ti cos."
Qu Mo and Song Fang exchanged glances, both realizing it was just an excuse.
Last February, Song Fang accompanied Fu Jichen on a business trip to Yicheng. The car was parked by the roadside, and he went into a pharmacy to buy hangover dicine. Fu Jichen saw a girl crossing the street ahead who looked very much like Shen Jianian, and afraid of missing her, he opened the car door and ran after her.
At that mont, the traffic light had just turned green, and cars started moving. The drivers didn’t notice soone suddenly rushing out, and one car couldn’t brake in ti, hitting Fu Jichen’s leg.
Song Fang imdiately got him to the hospital for surgery, but that period was busy, with a major dical accident occurring at the subsidiary in Yicheng. As the president of Junshan Group, Fu Jichen actively handled various matters and didn’t get the proper rest post-surgery, which left lingering aftereffects.
Fu Jichen later requested surveillance footage from the traffic bureau and found that the girl was not Shen Jianian, leading him to give up the pursuit.
Recalling this, Song Fang couldn’t help but feel a sense of lant.
He felt that since Shen Jianian’s death, his boss had been ill—an ailnt of the heart that no typical dicine could cure. That’s why, no matter how busy he was, Fu Jichen would make ti every month to visit Tanfu Temple for incense and prayers.
A person who doesn’t believe in Buddhism praying so devoutly, all to wish for sothing impossible.
*
At Jiangcheng University, Shen Jianian had just finished shooting the first scene of her life, feeling as exhausted as if she’d just finished a marathon.
She stood behind the director, slightly bent over, watching the playback on the monitor alongside him, holding a disposable paper cup with cool tea poured by the lead actress, Zhao Shunyi.
Wu Heng praised her while enjoying the performance: "Not bad, you’re very talented, even better than I expected. I’m considering giving you more scenes."
Shen Jianian instinctively refused: "No, please."
Instead of getting angry, Wu Heng laughed heartily and, without turning around, asked her, "You don’t like acting?"
"I’m not used to it," Shen Jianian said truthfully.
It wasn’t until she actually tried it that she realized how difficult acting was. Performing a completely unfamiliar role under the watchful eyes of so many people not only required the ability to let go but also to grasp the character’s essence. It primarily tested one’s psychological resilience.
Wu Heng said, "The beginning is always the hardest part. It’s like this with anything – practice makes perfect, and you’ll get used to it over ti."
Shen Jianian took a sip of the cool tea, silently answering in her heart that she might never get used to it.
"Tomorrow’s scene will be your forte; it’s the one where you play the cello on stage. You probably won’t need any preparation, just perform as you usually do."
Wu Heng lit a cigarette, his eyes still fixed on the monitor, genuinely considering giving her additional scenes, not just joking.
As the focus shifted to filming other perforrs’ parts, Shen Jianian sat and rested on set, taking the opportunity to observe how other actors perford. Even though she was just a cao, she intended to do her best because she had promised them.
The male and female leads fild several scenes consecutively, and the director announced a break for lunch.
Shen Jianian still had a scene in the afternoon and couldn’t leave temporarily, so she joined others for a boxed lunch.
She received her al, returned to her original seat, and broke open disposable bamboo chopsticks. The freshly delivered al was hot, so she picked up her phone to pass the ti, and suddenly, a news notification popped up on the screen.
[World-renowned cellist Yan Qiusheng is making a grand coback after years of retirent, set to perform at the Beicheng Grand Theater on the evening of August 16th!]
Shen Jianian imdiately clicked on the news to check the specific ti for ticket sales.
She thought, there’s no way she could miss Yan Qiusheng’s concert.
Reviews
All reviews (0)