usenovelgroup Chapter 65, Shaking
Chapter 65, Shaking
At the same time, in another office building, Wu Yifan's agent sat opposite his mother, Wu Xiuqin, with the box office data of "The Left Ear" on the computer screens in front of them.
Wu Xiuqin's expression was not good; her lips were pursed into a line, and her fingers tapped lightly on the table, one tap at a time, like some kind of timer.
"1.5 million." She read the number aloud, the sourness in her voice palpable even from three meters away.
How much did "Somewhere Only We Know" cost on its opening day?
The agent hesitated for a moment: "6100 million."
"More than half short." Wu Xiuqin's voice rose an octave before falling back down, as if she realized she shouldn't have lost her composure like that.
She glanced at Wu Yifan, who was sitting on the sofa playing on his phone, and asked in as calm a tone as possible, "Fanfan, did you see that?"
Wu Yifan looked up at his mother, then looked down at his phone again.
"I saw it."
"Don't you want to say anything?"
"What did you say?" Wu Yifan's tone was very impatient, as he was only focused on looking at the girl's photo on his phone.
"His high box office is just good luck. Besides, it's just a movie with a supporting male lead. He can't compare to me."
Wu Xiuqin nodded in agreement, opened her mouth as if to say something, but swallowed her words when she saw her agent was there.
……
3 PM, Songjiang University Town, Shanghai.
When Gao Huan stepped out of the RV, the sunlight fell directly on his shoulders.
He was wearing a black T-shirt, his hair was unkempt, and wisps of hair fell down, covering one eyebrow.
She wasn't wearing makeup, but her face looked even better in the afternoon sunlight.
He did not participate in the second day of the promotional tour for "The Left Ear," but only attended the premiere.
He didn't want his face plastered everywhere, didn't want to be surrounded by crowds chanting "Xu Yi" at every city's roadshow, and didn't want to say "Thank you for supporting my movie" to the camera at every meet-and-greet.
Filming for "Love O2O" is already more than halfway complete.
Today's scene is the one where Xiao Nai and Bei Weiwei bump into each other in the library.
One of the most anticipated scenes for fans of the original work.
Lin Yufen sat behind the monitor for a long time, her eyes filled with surprise.
That was a great shot.
She was in such good condition that she couldn't believe it was Nazha.
Since Gao Huan returned from France, Gulnazar seems like a different person; her acting skills have suddenly blossomed.
She experienced all sorts of emotions during the relationship. Before, she was only worried about the feelings of being in love and liking someone, but now she also felt anxious and insecure.
Lin Yufen didn't know what was happening in France, but she knew that Nazha was probably in the best condition since her debut.
Gao Huan was standing in front of the set, rehearsing his lines with Nazha.
"Are you reading here?" His tone was Xiao Nai's. A hint of curiosity mingled with indifference, and beneath that curiosity lay a well-disguised concern.
Naza sat at a long table in the library, with a half-read book in front of her.
She looked up at him, her lips curving slightly as if she wanted to laugh but held it back.
"Um."
Just one word, but there was so much in that look.
Surprise, tension, and a touch of unreality—"How did you get here?"
When Lin Yufen was watching that video on the monitor, her hand unconsciously tightened its grip on the walkie-talkie.
She called out "Cut".
Naza snapped out of her reverie, looked at Gao Huan, and smiled—a smile different from the one she wore in the drama.
It's that kind of smile that asks, "Did I do a good job just now?" with a hint of expectation.
Gao Huan nodded without saying anything more.
Naza's lips curled up like a cat being petted on the head, her eyes sparkling.
Gao Huan walked to the rest area, picked up his thermos, and took a sip.
Yangyang Jin walked over from the side, holding her phone, looking quite happy.
"Brother Huan, the box office has gone up again."
"Um."
Aren't you going to take a look?
Gao Huan took the phone and glanced at the screen.
Maoyan Professional Edition has accumulated 2.18 million yuan in box office revenue. Today's real-time box office figures are not yet available, but pre-sales have already exceeded 6000 million yuan.
He returned the phone to Yangyang Jin and screwed the lid of the thermos back on.
Yangyang Jin looked at him, hesitant to speak.
"Brother Huan, Ou Hao is trying to steal the box office."
Yangyang Jin still said, "Their team released a lot of press releases, saying that Ou Hao carried the box office."
Gao Huan leaned back in his chair and looked at her.
What do you think?
Yangyang Jin thought for a moment and said, "I think we should still take this seriously."
"Then you shouldn't have told me to just deal with it directly, Sister Yangyang. He's not my friend, right?"
Yangyang Jin paused for a moment, then smiled.
"Okay, I won't say anything more."
Gao Huan stood up, walked to the set, and prepared for the next scene.
She took two steps, then stopped and turned back. "Sister Yangyang."
"Um?"
"Thanks for your hard work."
Yangyang Jin looked at him, her eyes a little sore, but she didn't cry.
"What's so hard about this? With your achievements, other agents must be incredibly envious."
"Then, thank you for always being there."
Yangyang Jin did not answer.
She lowered her head, pretending to look at her phone, but her finger tapped the screen several times without finding the app she wanted.
Gao Huan had already turned and left. She looked up at his retreating figure.
Her hair was blown by the wind, revealing the back of her neck.
Yangyang Jin took a deep breath, suppressing the bitterness in her eyes, switched to her work WeChat account, and began replying to the flood of messages from brands.
What she didn't know was that the moment Gao Huan turned around, he saw her looking down at her phone.
He noticed her ears had turned red. A slight smile played on his lips as he turned and continued walking towards the set.
Sunlight fell on his shoulders, casting a long shadow across the stone-paved road of Songjiang University Town.
At 6 p.m., filming for the day for "Love O2O" ended.
Gao Huan changed his clothes and came out, only to see Nazha standing next to the RV waiting for him.
She was wearing a white T-shirt, jeans, her hair was down, and her makeup was on but had smudged.
Holding a cup of milk tea in his hand, with the straw in his mouth, his cheeks bulging out, he looked like a little hamster stuffed with food.
"Your performance today was very good," Gao Huan said.
Naza took the milk tea out of her mouth and looked at him.
"real?"
"real."
Naza smiled, her eyes curving into two crescent moons.
Then she lowered her head, looked at the milk tea in her hand, and remained silent for a while. "Brother Huan."
"Um."
"Today..." She looked up, meeting his eyes, "Can you have dinner with me today?"
Gao Huan looked at her and remained silent for two seconds.
"it is good."
Naza's eyes lit up for a moment, then dimmed again.
She remembered the last time they ate alone, his phone rang halfway through the meal; it was a video call from Chen Duling.
She bit his calf under the table.
He answered it for a long time.
She waited for a long time.
"No one will call anymore," Gao Huan said.
Nazha was stunned for a moment.
How did you know?
"Because I turned my phone off."
Naza looked at him, her eyes reddening, but she didn't cry.
She reached out and grabbed his sleeve, her grip light but firm.
"Let's go then, I'm hungry."
After they finished eating, Nazha put down her chopsticks and looked at him.
"Brother Huan."
"Um."
Will you participate in variety shows in the future?
Gao Huan thought for a moment.
"Yes. We're already in talks about 'Go Fighting!'."
Naza nodded.
"Then you'll be very busy."
"I'm always busy."
Naza lowered her head and traced circles on the rim of the teacup with her finger.
"Then when will you be with me?"
Gao Huan looked at her, reached out, and tucked the hair that was hanging down beside her face behind her ear.
"Aren't you with her right now?"
Naza's lips slowly curled up.
That slight upward curve, conveying a mix of "I know you're trying to comfort me, but I'm still very happy," with a touch of grievance and a great deal of satisfaction, is absolutely beautiful.
She picked up her teacup and took a sip.
The tea had gone cold, but she thought it tasted great.
After finishing the meal, we paid the bill and got into the car.
In the evening in Shanghai, a patch of orange-red clouds burned on the horizon, and the leaves of the plane trees rustled in the wind.
Naza walked beside him, her steps lighter than usual.
Her hands hung at her sides, her fingers slightly curled. Occasionally, she would touch the back of Gao Huan's hand, then pull back, like a butterfly that wanted to get close but dared not.
After walking a few steps, she reached out her hand and hooked her little finger with his.
Gao Huan glanced down, said nothing, and didn't shrink back.
The two of them hooked their little fingers together as the car slowly drove along the tree-lined road.
"Brother Huan," Nazha called out to him.
"Um."
"Were you serious when you said my acting was good today?"
"Seriously."
"Even better than Chen Duling?"
Gao Huan turned his head to look at her. The light from the streetlamp fell on his face, making the beauty mark on his face appear and disappear.
"You are not Chen Duling, you don't need to compare yourself to her."
Nazha was silent for a moment, then after taking a few steps, she spoke: "So, do you think I can play Bei Weiwei well? How have my recent performances been?"
Gao Huan looked at her and thought for a moment.
"very good."
Naza paused for a moment, then laughed, a hearty laugh that made her eyes crinkle into crescents and her lips curl up high, making her look like a flower that had suddenly bloomed.
She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
When the warmth of her lips touched hers, she heard her heart pounding like a drum, incredibly fast.
Gao Huan could smell the consistent fragrance emanating from her.
But Nazha's actions reminded him of Chen Duling hooking his little finger with hers by the Seine and saying, "Will you miss me in the future?" He remembered Meng Ziyi lying on him and asking, "Do you only see me as a lover?" He remembered Liu Shishi leaning against his chest and saying, "I don't seem to dislike you." He remembered Chen Yao standing in the studio crying and saying, "If I'm going to do it, I'll be the real girlfriend."
He squeezed her hand.
His fingers slipped between hers, their fingers interlocked, and their palms pressed together.
Naza's fingers paused for a moment, then tightened, as if afraid he would run away.
Naza suddenly said, "Brother Huan, I read the reviews of 'The Left Ear' yesterday."
"Um."
Some people say you don't look like Xu Yi.
Gao Huan turned his head to look at her.
"How so?"
"Some people say that even the most handsome guy in high school couldn't be as good-looking as you."
Gao Huan thought for a moment, "That's an exaggeration."
Naza was silent for a moment, then looked at him.
"Brother Huan," she called to him.
"Um."
"You are not Xu Yi."
Naza said, "You won't become him, and I can always be your little ear."
Gao Huan did not answer, but he held her hand tightly without letting go.
The clouds on the distant horizon changed from orange-red to deep purple, and then from deep purple to gray-blue.
Back at the hotel, Gao Huan took a shower, sat down at his desk, and opened his laptop.
I just closed my laptop after writing a new script.
My phone vibrated.
He picked it up and saw it was a message from Yangyang Jinfa.
"Brother Huan, do you know who started that 'show your ticket stub' activity today?"
Gao Huan typed: "Who?"
"The First Star in the Galaxy".
You may have seen that fan on Weibo today.
She took the lead in posting her ticket stub online, and then the topic inexplicably exploded.
Gao Huan looked at the ID "Galaxy's First Star," thought for a moment, and typed a few words: "Who is she?"
"I don't know, I'm just an ordinary fan."
But her data is very good, and her account has high authority, so she's probably a big fan.
Gao Huan thought for a moment and typed a message: "Please keep an eye on her for me. If she needs any help, please let the studio know."
The other end was silent for a few seconds, then sent a "OK".
A little while later, another message came: "Brother Huan, you're so good to your fans."
Nazha went to the bathroom.
The sound of rushing water was barely audible through the door, like a light rain in Shanghai on a spring evening, falling intermittently, with no clear indication of when it would stop or when it would start again.
Gao Huan leaned against the headboard, holding his phone in his hand. On the screen was a message from Yangyang Jinfa: "Brother Huan, you are so good to your fans." He stared at the message for two seconds, then locked the screen and placed the phone face down on the bedside table.
The bathroom door opened.
Water vapor billowed out from inside, white and hazy, like a crumpled cloud.
Naza was wearing one of his white T-shirts, the neckline of which was ridiculously large, exposing one shoulder. A water droplet, still wet from not being wiped off, clung to her collarbone and glistened under the bedside lamp.
Her hair was wrapped in a towel, with a few wet strands sticking to her cheeks and neck, making her skin appear even whiter.
"You're still awake?" She walked over barefoot, leaving faint watermarks on the floor, each step carrying the lazy, reluctant air of someone who had just taken a shower.
"Wait for you."
Naza smiled, said nothing, climbed onto the bed, knelt down next to him, and put her hands on his shoulders.
"Turn around, I learned something new today."
Gao Huan turned his head and glanced at her.
When did you learn that?
"I had the masseuse teach me when you were filming on set."
Naza spoke confidently, "Don't you always say my core is too weak and my neck and shoulders are too tight? I learned massage, and by giving you massages, I can also strengthen my own body. It's better than not learning anything."
Gao Huan didn't say anything more and turned away.
Naza placed her fingers on his shoulder, not too hard, but the position was quite accurate.
Her thumb pushed down along the inside of his shoulder blade, the movement neither too fast nor too slow, like kneading a lump of dough that hadn't been kneaded yet, stretching it out to both sides as she kneaded.
Gao Huan had her eyes closed, but she could feel the warmth of her palm seeping through the thin fabric of her T-shirt; it was warm and carried the scent of shower gel.
"Is the force enough?"
"Heavier."
Naza added more force.
When her hand pressed on the muscle, you could feel her pressing down with the weight of her entire body, shaking it.