The Seventeenth Star
For a while, neither of them spoke again.
Jiang Chuyi was lost in thought for quite some time, seeming to understand the meaning behind his words. Her heart that had been floating all night finally landed at this moment.
She calmly spoke, “Is it that girl you secretly liked for many years?”
Zong Ye was silent for a moment. “Who told you that?”
Jiang Chuyi: “Xin He told me.”
He didn’t answer this question and changed the topic, asking her, “Did you pack up your things?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Let’s go.”
“Huh?” Jiang Chuyi was confused.
Zong Ye glanced outside, picked up his coat, and pulled open the car door on his side. “It’s very late. I’ll take you back.”
They didn’t bring an umbrella when they came out, but fortunately the rain wasn’t heavy.
The two walked side by side in the deserted neighborhood, their feet stepped on the melted thin layer of snow, making a crunching sound.
The night was very quiet.
After walking her to the building entrance, Zong Ye stopped.
Jiang Chuyi turned around and said softly, “Thanks for the trouble. I’m going up.”
She wasn’t tall, barely reaching Zong Ye’s chin. When talking face to face, she needed to look up slightly.
Zong Ye nodded.
She had been holding it in the whole way and couldn’t help but ask, “Did you try to contact that girl again later?”
Zong Ye seemed to be lost in thought for a moment, then he nodded.
So he had tried to contact her but didn’t get a response?
Jiang Chuyi’s heart sank. She carefully spoke, “Zong Ye, I think, since that person left, you shouldn’t wait anymore.”
Zong Ye stared at her face, his eyes holding an inscrutable silence.
“I don’t mean anything else. I just think people should look forward.” Jiang Chuyi spoke slowly. “If some things can’t be forced, then don’t force them.”
“I know.” Zong Ye still had that gentle, calm smile.
With nothing more to say, Jiang Chuyi didn’t know what else to add.
She took the steps two at a time. When pushing open the door, she seemed to sense something and turned her head.
Zong Ye had a tall and slender figure. He was still standing in the same spot, watching her leave.
Even though they were only a few steps apart, his gaze seemed to give her the illusion that they were separated by thousands of mountains and rivers.
Jiang Chuyi waved at him again.
*
Jiang Chuyi stayed at home for a few more days until Gao Ning called her one afternoon.
The director of the drama they were currently discussing was coming to Shanghai today and planned to meet her at a coffee shop in Lujiazui (Downtown Shanghai).
The drama was a modern campus story adapted from a well-known youth literature IP “September Rain”. Not only was the production team excellent, the original author was directly involved as the screenwriter.
The director’s name was Li Ming, a famous big-shot director in the industry, a resounding ace in the film and television circles who had brought out many Best Actress and Best Actor winners.
Since it was a campus drama, it required a bit of a fresh youthful feel. Before heading out, Jiang Chuyi removed most of her makeup, tied her hair up high, and picked up some concealer to cover the dark circles under her eyes. She used her finger to dab on a bit of lip balm, making her pale lips look rosy.
On the way to meet Li Ming, Gao Ning carefully explained the current situation to her.
Xunfei, as the main controlling party of the project, directly bypassed the director and internally chose the male lead. The concession they made for this was that as long as the male lead’s screen time wasn’t reduced, they wouldn’t get involved in other casting.
Without capital intervention, there was no need to consider fame or popularity. The production team could freely select the most suitable actors as they wished. This was a rare blessing for small-time celebrities.
The second female lead in this campus drama was an introverted top student. Her features couldn’t be stunningly beautiful, but pleasant to look at, gentle to just the right degree. Gao Ning guessed that Jiang Chuyi probably caught Li Ming’s eye precisely because of her looks.
Jiang Chuyi raised a question, “Wasn’t it said that this drama is a joint investment by Hua Rui and Xunfei? Xunfei chose the male lead, but Hua Rui has no objections?”
“Are you dumb?” Gao Ning clicked her tongue. “Don’t you know how Xin He became popular?!”
Jiang Chuyi tried to recall.
Seeing that she was a blockhead who couldn’t figure it out, Gao Ning said, “Xin He was promoted by Li Ming, what do you think? This drama is definitely her cake! What objections could Hua Rui have!”
“Xin He?” Jiang Chuyi had a sudden realization, then laughed. “If I can get this drama, won’t I be her co-star?”
“Sigh, that’s right. But for the sake of your future, just endure it for now.” Gao Ning also felt very stifled but still tried to cheer her up. “I’m also a bit upset, how come you’re supporting Xin He again. The thing is, the female lead roles you can get now at most involve acting opposite those male idols with pretty faces but no acting skills. The production teams are basically all temporary setups with very poor quality! Broadcasting one is definitely a black mark on your history. No one buys it except fans. But this drama is different. It has a proper cast of actors.”
Jiang Chuyi raised a soul-searching question, “Then why did you rush to have me film a movie with BloodxGentle?”
Gao Ning looked at her in disbelief. “Big sis, are you mistaken? Can the popularity of those little idols compare to BloodxGentle? Even filming a rural romance with them would be profitable!”
Jiang Chuyi: “That makes sense too.”
“You see, the entertainment industry is just this realistic. You barely hyped things up a bit with Zong Ye and gained some popularity. The resources are instantly different from before.” Gao Ning sighed. “You’re also stubborn. If back then the old man…”
Jiang Chuyi: “Let’s not talk about the past.”
Gao Ning glanced at her expression and shut up. “Alright, be smart when you meet the director later.”
Jiang Chuyi nodded. “I know.”
…
…
This time, a young female director also came with Li Ming.
They seemed to have limited time and didn’t exchange too many pleasantries with Jiang Chuyi before getting straight to the point.
Li Ming sat on the sofa and observed Jiang Chuyi for a while. The female director flipped through her information and asked a question, “You were born in ’97, right? I remember you were filming movies in the past few years?”
“Yes.”
“Compared to movies, do you prefer filming movies or TV dramas more?”
Jiang Chuyi sat there, unable to come up with an answer for a moment, carefully considering her wording.
Li Ming poured her a cup of tea. “You can relax a bit. Just treat it as a chat.”
Jiang Chuyi thanked him and replied softly, “Actually, filming TV dramas or movies is the same to me. I just want to act my role well.”
Smiling, Li Ming began to get to the main topic. “You should have a general understanding of the Meng Yu character these past few days, right? Can you tell me about it?”
Jiang Chuyi nodded.
She had finished reading the novel a few days ago and specially went online to search for various evaluations of the second female lead in this book. She copied them into a notebook and wrote a character profile.
After hearing her speak in an orderly manner, Li Ming and the female director both nodded.
Li Ming’s eyes showed a hint of approval. He said to Gao Ning, “Among the people I interviewed these past few days, Chuyi has a relatively deep understanding of the character. She can settle her heart, it’s quite good.”
Gao Ning was delighted in her heart but still maintained a calm expression, smiling and saying, “You flatter us.”
“Alright, we’ll discuss it again after we go back and notify you of the results in a few days.”
“Great.”
Gao Ning and Jiang Chuyi stood up to shake hands with them.
Walking them to the door, Li Ming suddenly remembered something and said to Jiang Chuyi, “Xiao He mentioned you to me these past couple days, saying you act very well. I rarely hear her praise anyone. You two have a good relationship?”
Jiang Chuyi was stunned.
Gao Ning reacted very quickly and picked up the conversation, “Yes, they filmed a movie together recently.”
Li Ming looked pensive. “No wonder.”
After the two left, Gao Ning had a very puzzled expression on her face and asked Jiang Chuyi in surprise, “Why would Xin He praise you to Director Li? Why didn’t she undermine you instead?”
Jiang Chuyi had a mysterious look on her face. “She’s actually quite a good person. Think about how many bad things you said about her before.”
Gao Ning: “…”
Jiang Chuyi’s heart stirred. She belatedly realized that this time Gao Ning was able to get access to the big cake jointly invested by Xunfei and Hua Rui, and even personally meet the director before the audition. Perhaps Xin He really did have some connections involved.
Gao Ning clicked her tongue twice, lightly slapping her own mouth, sighing repeatedly, “Indeed, you can’t judge a book by its cover. Hua Rui still has two good people. I take back all the bad things I said about her before.”
Jiang Chuyi smiled.
The two were walking inside when a surprised voice came from the side, tentatively asking, “–Chuyi?”
Jiang Chuyi stopped in her tracks and turned her head, discovering it was a somewhat unfamiliar woman, but vaguely exuding a hint of familiarity.
She couldn’t recall for the moment, so she politely inquired, “Hello, you are?”
“It really is you. I’m Qiqi!” The woman’s expression held some excitement. “You don’t remember me? We were even deskmates in middle school!”
“Qiqi…” Jiang Chuyi tried hard to remember.
Seeing this, Gao Ning said, “You two chat first. I’ll go make a phone call.”
Jiang Chuyi nodded.
While trying to recall, she said to Qiqi with some apology, “I seem to have trouble remembering. I’m sorry. I didn’t stay much at school in middle school, so I can’t recognize many classmates anymore.”
“It’s okay, it’s been almost ten years after all. Everyone has changed.” Qiqi expressed her understanding. “But you’re a big celebrity! I do remember you well.”
Jiang Chuyi felt undeserving of her praise, embarrassed. “Just making a living. Where do you work now?”
“My company is nearby.” Qiqi pointed it out to her. “I came with my colleague.”
Reuniting with a middle school classmate many years later, the two found a table to sit and chat for a bit.
Jiang Chuyi flipped through the menu and asked Qiqi and her colleague, “What would you like to drink? Let me treat you to something.”
“No need, no need. We already bought coffee. We have to go back to work later.” Qiqi laughed, saying a bit nostalgically, “You’re still the same as in middle school, beautiful and kind-hearted!”
Jiang Chuyi waved her hands repeatedly. “You’re too polite.”
“I’m not being polite.” Qiqi’s expression suddenly turned serious. “I really think you’re not only pretty, but also very kind. I’ve remembered it for many years.”
Many people complimented her beauty, but few mentioned kindness, so this word felt particularly sincere. Jiang Chuyi felt warmth in her heart. “Thank you.”
Qiqi’s colleague spoke up to testify, “It’s true. Qiqi often talks about you at work.”
Qiqi immediately explained, “I’m not boasting to them that I have a celebrity classmate. Although I’m indeed very proud, I really keep mentioning you because I think you’re an especially good person.”
Jiang Chuyi was a bit embarrassed from her repeated praises. “I’m not as good as you say, but thank you. Hearing these words can make me feel happy for many days.”
“I’m really quite grateful to you.” Qiqi’s expression was solemn. “I was constantly bullied in class before. You were the only one willing to talk to me and even shared tiramisu with me.”
Jiang Chuyi was stunned. “Really?”
She indeed had completely no memory of such things.
“Yes, you secretly brought a lot of desserts to school back then, saying your family didn’t allow you to eat them.” Qiqi sighed. “When we were in middle school, campus bullying was quite serious. You weren’t often at school much so you weren’t aware.”
She mentioned another person. “I remember there was a short boy in our class who was also severely bullied. Everyone ostracized him. Somehow you told the teacher you wanted to be his deskmate. It was in the second semester of ninth grade.”
Those few years in middle school were the busiest years for Jiang Chuyi’s filming. She had a packed schedule, frequently traveling all over the country. Sometimes she would go with Qin Tong to film in remote mountains and forests, staying without break for nearly half a year, missing a lot of schooling. She even forgot who her homeroom teacher was. As for her classmates, she was even less familiar with them. By the time graduation was approaching, she still couldn’t recognize everyone.
But Jiang Chuyi did have a slight impression of the person Qiqi mentioned. It seemed he was always targeted because his family circumstances weren’t good and he had offended some ringleader in the class.
“His surname was Li or Lin, right?”
Jiang Chuyi couldn’t recall that person’s appearance at all. She only remembered that period dramas set in the Qing dynasty were all the rage nationwide at the time. People loved to call him by the nickname of a eunuch, Little Lin. In her vague memory fragments, all that remained was a skinny and short figure. He wore large, thick black-framed glasses and always walked with his head down, a very quiet and reticent boy.
She was a bit curious. “How is he doing now? Are you still in contact with him?”
“I lost contact with that group from middle school long ago.”
Jiang Chuyi nodded and didn’t ask further.
The two chatted a while longer. Qiqi exchanged WeChat contacts with her and said goodbye.
*
Gao Ning had been in high spirits lately, feeling the sun was shining brightly even in the middle of winter when she walked on the street.
Jiang Chuyi asked, “Are you going back to the company?”
“Yeah.” From Li Ming’s words just now, it was very obvious this cake was likely in the bag. Gao Ning was in a good mood and generously said, “I’ll give you two more days off. After the BloodxGentle movie wraps, maybe you’ll join the new crew without a break.”
Jiang Chuyi nodded.
“Put in some effort. No satellite TV station invited us to perform at the New Year’s Eve concert this year. Maybe next year there will be.”
Speaking of this, Jiang Chuyi remembered. “Oh, Brother Jin told me a couple days ago that Star City TV is planning to invite Teacher to be a guest and wants me to go together.”
Gao Ning snorted. “The old man is finally willing to come out of seclusion? Sigh, you’re indeed his favorite disciple.”
In recent years, Star City TV basically led the ratings among the seven stations, not only producing many variety shows but also spending lavishly on the New Year’s Eve concert, inviting all kinds of popular big shots at the peak of their fame.
Especially because of their partnership with IM, BloodxGentle had been their countdown finale performance for the past two years, enjoying exclusive rights. It directly maximized ratings and popularity, making the other TV stations pale in comparison.
On the way home, Jiang Chuyi was pondering the matter of accompanying Qin Tong to the Star City New Year’s Eve countdown. If BloodxGentle was also the finale guest this year, wouldn’t she see Zong Ye again then?
Thinking this, for some reason, she felt quite excited.
Maybe it was because she had watched many of their clips on Douyin recently. Jiang Chuyi really wanted to see them perform live.
Thinking about this, she suddenly sobered up.
Why did she want to see Zong Ye?
Jiang Chuyi had an epiphany.
Could it be that she had developed some improper thoughts about Zong Ye…
She forcefully knocked on her head, shaking the water out of her brain, repeatedly warning herself in her heart.
It was better to be realistic. Zong Ye was a superstar. He wasn’t someone she could aspire to.
Besides, Zong Ye had someone in his heart he couldn’t let go of.
Thinking of this, Jiang Chuyi inexplicably felt a little disappointed.
She suddenly thought, if only he wouldn’t wait for that person.
