Chapter 7: Block

“Perfect Partner” started filming before the New Year.

Time was tight, and Lin Yun moved quickly, preparing Gao Qi and Qin Pei’s contracts the very next day.

And just as Xu Jian had said, within two short days, numerous investors proactively called, offering advertising sponsorships.

After signing the contracts, promotion preparations began.

Marketing accounts gradually released the guest list and recording dates for “Perfect Partner,” and online forums became quite lively.

[“‘Meeting Her’ and ‘Perfect Partner’ are clashing schedules again?”]

[“Yeah. ‘Meeting Her’ will probably make Tang Xi popular again. As for Ning Ke, who watches that minor flop show?”]

[“Don’t jump to conclusions too early, didn’t you see ‘Perfect Partner’ hit number one on the trending list a few days ago!”]

[“So what if it was number one? Just because Gao Qi and Qin Pei retweeted, does it mean they’ll participate? A bunch of unknown celebs, boring. Might as well watch Tang Xi’s romance show.”]

[“Breaking news!! Stop arguing! Look at the trending topics!”]

The arguments in the forums built up high threads, and trending topics started exploding one after another.

“Meeting Her” added a currently popular girl group idol pair.

CP fans had been shipping their love-hate relationship, and now they were actually appearing on a romance show.

Fans were thrilled, and the [#MeetingHer#] tag shot straight to number one.

[“F*ck, my coffin lid can’t hold me down anymore! What is my CP doing?”]

[“Quick, block the closet door ahhhhh!”]

[“Booking this year’s number one hit show!”]

The readership for the number one trending topic quickly surpassed ten million.

But soon, new tags parachuted to number one, directly pushing #MeetingHer# down!

[#GaoQi QinPei#]

[#PerfectPartner OfficialAnnouncement#]

Clicking into the tags, Best Actor Gao Qi and Best Actress Qin Pei officially announced their participation in “Perfect Partner.”

Simultaneously, popular singer Jing Luo and recently popular model Chu Yao were also announced.

The onlookers were dumbfounded.

[“What kind of lineup is this for the year?!”]

[“It would be against heaven’s will if this variety show doesn’t blow up, right?”]

Ning Ke was aware of the online public opinion trends, but with Lin Yun and Xu Jian managing it, she didn’t pay close attention.

Today, she had dinner plans with Qin Pei and her husband.

She scrolled through her phone for a while, then changed clothes and went downstairs.

Lin Yun called: “Keke, do you know who else is participating?”

Ning Ke didn’t even think: “Jiang Hongbing?”

Lin Yun’s volume suddenly increased: “How did you know?”

Ning Ke: “It was easy to guess. Who else would make you call about it.”

Lin Yun: “How could she agree…”

Ning Ke: “She’s Qin Pei’s junior sister. Qin Pei invited her. She’s not coming for you. Alright, stop thinking about it.”

Back then, it was Lin Yun who told Jiang Hongbing they shouldn’t see each other anymore.

If she were Jiang Hongbing, someone who abandoned her wouldn’t be welcome in her sight.

Lin Yun said softly: “I know.”

Ning Ke: “We’re having dinner with Gao Qi and Qin Pei this afternoon. Are you coming?”

Lin Yun: “Not coming. I need to… coordinate the contract signing with her manager, and her promotional video.”

Ning Ke couldn’t persuade Lin Yun and didn’t bother trying further: “Fine, hanging up.”

Yan Yunzhi stood in the living room, looking up as she descended the stairs: “Ready to go?”

Ning Ke: “Let’s go. Jian Ge is here.”

Xu Jian stood outside the villa gate: “Keke, Teacher Yan.”

Yan Yunzhi smiled at him: “Hello, thank you for taking care of Ning Ke all this time.”

Ning Ke: “?”

‘Why did she say that as if she knew her well?’

Xu Jian gave Ning Ke a meaningful look, smiled, opened the back car door for them, and sat in the passenger seat himself.

Yan Yunzhi said she would host.

Qin Pei and her husband didn’t decline further.

They booked a well-known private kitchen restaurant in Mingchuan with a quiet environment.

Qin Pei and Gao Qi had already arrived.

Gao Qi was very enthusiastic upon seeing Yan Yunzhi, standing up to shake her hand: “Teacher Yan, the last time I heard your performance was two years ago! Your tickets are really hard to get!”

Yan Yunzhi: “Director Gao is too kind. Next time, I’ll have someone send VIP box tickets to you in advance.”

“That would be great,” Qin Pei asked with a smile, “Would you like some wine? We brought red wine.”

Yan Yunzhi turned her head to look at Ning Ke, seeking her opinion with her eyes.

Ning Ke thought for a moment: “Since both teachers brought wine, it’s hard to refuse their kindness. Jian Ge has to drive and can’t drink. Let’s have some.”

Yan Yunzhi wasn’t surprised by her answer: “Okay.”

Gao Qi and Qin Pei exchanged glances, curious about the relationship between Yan Yunzhi and Ning Ke.

They had seen negative news about this popular starlet online before, heard she had a difficult personality and poor connections.

How could she be acquainted with Yan Yunzhi?

Yan Yunzhi had a calm disposition.

She was accustomed to taking care of those around her, serving food and refilling water at the table, thoughtful and considerate.

She wasn’t talkative, but could chat with anyone.

First, she talked with Gao Qi about one of his art films, which had low box office but excellent reviews.

Later, the conversation shifted to violin. Gao Qi and Qin Pei were both music lovers, and the atmosphere became excellent.

Ning Ke let Yan Yunzhi take the lead, lowered her head to glance at her phone, and suddenly heard Yan Yunzhi mention her name: “Our Xiao Ning is also facing this difficulty now.”

…Xiao Ning?

Qin Pei was discussing career transitions with Yan Yunzhi.

Hearing her refer to Ning Ke so familiarly, she asked, “Teacher Yan and Miss Ning are very close?”

Ning Ke turned her head, her clear black and white eyes full of confusion.

Yan Yunzhi returned her gaze with a smile, her expression open, as if saying, they were marriage partners after all; even if there were no feelings between them, wasn’t it normal to wish her well?

Right… quite normal.

Ning Ke straightforwardly asked Qin Pei: “Teacher Qin, please advise. I started with historical idol dramas and campus dramas. But in recent years, the environment is such that capital dictates audience aesthetics, and I’ve played many roles that just involved staring blankly. Now I want to transition to serious dramas, but I don’t have a single representative work to show, so I can’t get good scripts, let alone movies. I don’t know where to start transitioning?”

“That’s not difficult. As long as your basic skills are solid, come audition a scene for me someday,” Qin Pei rested her chin on her hand, studying the girl’s features—well-proportioned, dignified, suitable for serious dramas and the big screen. The only question was her acting ability.

Hearing this, Ning Ke stood up to toast Qin Pei, speaking crisply: “Then thank you, Teacher Qin. When you have time, I’ll pay a special visit another day.”

Qin Pei covered her lips with a coy laugh: “Why wait for another day? There will be plenty of opportunities to chat while filming the show.”

Over there, Xu Jian was also chatting happily with Gao Qi, the topic still being Gao Qi’s new film.

Midway, Xu Jian had to leave first for some business. Ning Ke followed him out.

After they left, Qin Pei asked Yan Yunzhi: “Teacher Yan, are you and Miss Ning good friends?”

Yan Yunzhi: “We’ve known each other for a long time.”

Qin Pei was somewhat surprised by her answer: “A long time? I’m not very familiar with her, only heard she was blacklisted two or three years ago when she was at her peak. What a pity.”

Yan Yunzhi frowned: “Blacklisted?”

Just then, the private room door pushed open.

Qin Pei stopped talking. Yan Yunzhi didn’t ask, her slender fingertips tapping lightly on the tabletop twice.

After Ning Ke sat down, she noticed Yan Yunzhi seemed somewhat unhappy.

She didn’t ask why, continuing to chat with Qin Pei about filming.

After drinking about half a glass of red wine, she wanted to pour more, but her glass was held down.

“Drink less,” Yan Yunzhi said softly. “Eat something warm and light.”

Ning Ke raised an eyebrow. ‘This person could practice her own self-cultivation, why was she managing her now?’

But since others were present, Ning Ke gave her a subtle glare and let it go.

The meal ended with both hosts and guests happy.

Yan Yunzhi bid them farewell, even gifting a music score book to Gao Qi before leaving.

Qin Pei was very pleased: “Next time, it’s our treat. See you soon.”

Yan Yunzhi smiled warmly: “We should meet again very soon. Be careful on the road.”

Ning Ke stood by the roadside.

After Yan Yunzhi finished speaking, her voice was a few shades softer and warmer than usual: “Where are you going?”

Yan Yunzhi: “Going back. Want to come home with me?”

‘Go home with her.’

Ning Ke thought for a moment: “Alright then.”

Ning Ke had drunk half a glass of wine, while Yan Yunzhi, conversely, hadn’t drunk at all.

Yan Yunzhi said: “I’ll drive.”

Xu Jian had urgent business back at the company and had someone drive Ning Ke’s spare car from the company over.

Ning Ke handed her the car keys, watched her get into the red convertible Ferrari, and said with a smile, “Hey.”

Yan Yunzhi’s temperament really didn’t match this car; it looked awkward no matter how you looked at it.

Yan Yunzhi fastened her seatbelt before looking up at her.

Ning Ke stood beside the car.

A radiant beauty slightly tipsy from the wine, her thick hair cascading over her shoulders, skin white as porcelain, cheeks flushed like crimson, a pair of bright, round eyes shimmering, tilting her head with a half-smile as she sized her up.

Was she drunk?

Yan Yunzhi unfastened her seatbelt, got out of the car again, opened the passenger side door, her voice light and soothing: “Let’s go home.”

Ning Ke: “Oh.”

Actually, she was only slightly tipsy, her mind perfectly clear.

She leaned against the car seat, closed her eyes for a while, then opened her phone.

Yan Yunzhi glanced at her, saw the flush on her face gradually fade, guessing the alcohol effect had passed.

As soon as she opened Weibo, Ning Ke saw countless likes, private messages, and comments.

She didn’t look at them one by one, just scanned briefly. On a whim, she clicked into Yan Yunzhi’s profile.

Yan Yunzhi didn’t have that many followers, six million, very few compared to the tens of millions traffic stars boasted.

But the data was solid gold, not inflated at all. Fan activity was high too, with every post having over ten thousand interactions.

Yan Yunzhi rarely posted on Weibo.

The last post was the retweet of hers. The comment section was full of ‘?’ and ‘!’, doubting their own eyes.

The post before that was from over half a year ago, at the seaside, captioned: [Because you said you wanted to see the sea.]

The picture showed her standing on the beach, against the sunset glow, her slender and elegant back view amidst the interplay of light and shadow.

Ning Ke’s heart skipped a beat.

Who was this ‘you’?

Did Yan Yunzhi have a dog outside?

Although for the past two years, their marriage was practically widow-like, as plastic as could be, she absolutely could not accept being cheated on.

Ning Ke clicked into the comment section.

A string of ‘Ahhhhh’ screams directly assaulted her eyes.

[“Sister! Wife!”]

[“Ahhhhh wife, why did you go out alone without me?”]

[“Stop dreaming, Yan Yunzhi is in my arms!”]

“Dream on,” Ning Ke couldn’t help muttering under her breath, “I’m her wife.”

They happened to be waiting at a red light.

Yan Yunzhi turned her head, saw her looking unhappy and muttering to herself, caught a certain term, and subconsciously asked: “What did you call me?”

Did she call her, wife?