Chapter 4 (Ignite At a Touch)
Chapter 4
Zhou Yining had been in Hengdian for a little over a week before she returned to City B.
Qin Sen introduced her to a talent agency and an agent. She arrived at Shiguang Media at the agreed time, not knowing who her agent would be. Whoever was willing to sign her, a newcomer who had entered the industry through connections, was probably also a novice agent.
The sound of high heels clicking on the floor was particularly crisp, and the footsteps sounded very assertive.
Zhou Yining looked up at the door and saw a woman with short red-brown hair, around 30 years old, with a capable and sharp appearance.
A real career woman.
Zhou Yining sighed inwardly and smiled at the newcomer, "Hello."
"I'm Wan Wei, and I'll be your agent from now on."
Zhou Yining was astonished. Wan Wei? The top-tier agent? Signing her?
Seeing her reaction, Wan Wei smiled, pulled out a chair, and sat down, getting straight to the point, "I've already familiarized myself with your situation. Let me lay out a few of my requirements. First, move out of the Qin residence as soon as possible. You'll be filming and attending events frequently, so living at the Qins' is inconvenient and looks bad. Second, I'll arrange some courses for you, and you need to attend training sessions regularly. Third, I heard that you and Ji Dongyang don't seem to get along? That's not good. Even if you really don't get along, you can't let it show on the surface. That's basic professionalism for an actor."
Zhou Yining took a few seconds to digest this long speech. She thought for a moment and said, "I was planning to move out anyway, but it will take some time. I'll handle the matter with Ji Dongyang."
Wan Wei said, "If the reporters dig up that you disrespected a movie star, millions of fans could crush you like an ant. No matter how strong your background is, you won't be able to make it in this industry."
This was true; Ji Dongyang's fan base was indeed formidable.
Zhou Yining recalled Ji Dongyang's words from that night, "Let's hope so."
Zhou Yining, this girl, had been stubborn since childhood. The more unattainable something was, the more she would persist; the more she couldn't have something, the more she wanted it. Ji Dongyang's inadvertent words had struck directly at her weakness.
He was right about everything. Her attitude towards joining the crew wasn't serious enough. She wasn't like other actors who were passionate about the industry.
Her father wanted her to get engaged to Shen Yanjun, but she refused.
So, she ran away.
Her family was wealthy. From a young age, she and Zhou Jiahui had the best of everything. Zhou Jiahui liked to compare herself with her, and the moment Zhou Yining had something better, she would immediately refuse to accept it and rush to buy something even better. This behavior was actually a kind of psychological disorder.
Over the years, not only had Zhou Jiahui become perverted, but Zhou Yining had also become somewhat perverted.
She didn't know when it started, but she began to dislike everything Zhou Jiahui liked. She became completely different from Zhou Jiahui.
Zhou Jiahui played the role of a good daughter and a princess little sister at home and in front of others, so Zhou Yining became a rebellious little witch. She smoked, and her alcohol tolerance was so high that she could knock out several men, but she didn't indulge herself. She studied hard, and the school her mother had arranged for her abroad, she went.
Shen Yanjun was a few years older than her, handsome, from a good family, and capable. They were childhood sweethearts, but she didn't love him.
The night before she eloped, she suddenly remembered the man who had saved her from a desperate situation years ago.
Unfortunately, it was too dark at the time. He gave her some money and left after the rescuers arrived, so she didn't even see his face clearly.
After eloping, she felt like she had reached a fork in her life and suddenly didn't know what she wanted to do or what she wanted most.
She wandered aimlessly around the crew, and suddenly the thought of acting crossed her mind.
Perhaps, one day, if she became famous, she could tell that story in person and find that person.
Perhaps...
Her reasons for entering the entertainment industry weren't pure, which is why Ji Dongyang could hit her where it hurt.
...
Back at the Qin residence, Zhou Yining had dinner with her uncle and aunt. From a young age, her uncle and aunt had doted on her, and she liked to come here.
Her aunt liked to play mahjong and, as usual, set up a mahjong table in the evening. After her aunt had won a few rounds, Zhou Yining spoke up, "Auntie, I want to buy an apartment and move out."
Aunt Qin was unhappy when she heard this, "Why move out? It's good here. Someone cooks for you every day, you don't have to clean the house, and you can come home at night and play mahjong with me. Isn't that great?"
Zhou Yining raised an eyebrow, "The key point is that someone can play mahjong with you, right?"
Aunt Qin glared at her, "How can you talk like that? Isn't your aunt good to you?"
Zhou Yining quickly smiled, "Of course you're good to me, better than my own mother. But I mean it, I'm all grown up now, and I'm an artist. It's a bit far from here, and it's not very convenient to commute every day. I also want to have my own place."
Zhou Yining repeatedly assured her that she would visit often, and her aunt finally agreed, "You don't have to worry about the house and car. Let Qin Sen and Qin Kai handle it."
A few days later, the car and the house were all sorted out.
Zhou Yining picked a Land Rover from Qin Sen's garage, and the house was found by Qin Kai. She went to see it and was satisfied with the large, fully furnished apartment, except for the lack of furniture.
She finally felt the excitement of breaking away from City S and putting down roots in City B.
She was so excited that she was jumping up and down in the house.
Half an hour later, she put on her backpack and went out to find a designer to help her choose the furniture, as she always hated doing such tedious things.
When it came time to pay the deposit, the designer pushed the POS machine towards her, but Zhou Yining didn't even glance at it, "I'll pay in cash."
The designer's eyes widened, "80,000-plus, Miss Zhou, are you sure?"
The next second, she saw Zhou Yining unzip her backpack, and her eyes widened even more.
Zhou Yining looked calm as she laid down stack after stack of pink 100-yuan bills on the table. The designer caught a glimpse of the remaining stacks of cash in her bag and finally closed her gaping mouth, exclaiming, "Nowadays, people basically use cards, and I've never seen a girl carry so much cash out shopping..."
Zhou Yining smiled and didn't explain, nodding her chin, "Count it."
Half an hour later, Zhou Yining left with her backpack.
Inside the design studio, there was a lot of talk. A male designer said, "This girl is a rich heiress for sure. Should I chase her and be her boy toy?"
"With your looks, she wouldn't even look at you! The way she threw the money was so cool..."
"I just want to know, does she carry this much cash with her every day? Isn't she afraid of being targeted by thieves?"
"She's rich, so what if she likes to show off?"
...
More than ten days later, all the furniture was moved into the new home. That night, Zhou Yining went to check it out, bouncing on the sofa and feeling that it wasn't very comfortable.
She wandered around and was quite satisfied with the house, except that the original design didn't include a wine cabinet. She was missing a wine cabinet. She ran her hand over the linen-colored fabric sofa, forgetting to tell the designer that she liked leather sofas.
She closed the door and left.
The elevator stopped at the underground parking lot, and Zhou Yining walked out with her head down.
The person waiting for the elevator outside paused and exclaimed in confusion, "Miss Zhou?"
Zhou Yining looked up and saw Ah Ming, Ji Dongyang's assistant, holding a large bag of groceries. She immediately had a bad feeling and asked, "You live here?"
Ah Ming smiled wryly, "Miss Zhou, don't tease me. How could I afford such a nice place?"
Zhou Yining was silent for a few seconds, "Ji Dongyang lives here?"
The answer was obvious, but she wanted to confirm it.
Wouldn't it be such a coincidence to live in the same building as him?
Ah Ming nodded, "Yes, but Brother Dong doesn't live here often. He has several residences and sometimes stays in different places to avoid the paparazzi."
Ah Ming thought for a moment and curiously asked, "Do you live here?"
Zhou Yining nodded, "I have something to do, so I'll go first. You go ahead."
The filming for 'Tai’ping Dynasty' in Hengdian was almost complete, and the crew would be returning to City B in the next couple of days to shoot the indoor palace scenes.
Judging from the daily necessities in Ming's hand, Ji Dongyang will probably live here for a while.
What bad luck.
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