Chapter40

The filming of the movie began smoothly, and shooting started in the afternoon of the same day.

This film by Xie Qingzong had been in the making for three years and was his first attempt at a realistic theme. Most domestic directors were hesitant to tackle such heavy topics because they didn’t align with mainstream markets, often resulting in polarized reviews, and there was no guarantee that it would even be able to screen domestically.

Initially, the investors had also pulled out for the same reasons.

But Xie Qingzong had experimented with all kinds of genres. In his younger years, he had made love stories and art films, then transitioned to war films and mainstream themes. It was only after turning fifty that he started to deeply reflect on whether, as a director, he should contribute something meaningful to society.

He spent a year traveling, visiting impoverished mountain areas and backward families, hearing stories that went beyond the limits of human understanding. He even went to prisons and juvenile detention centers to understand the minds of criminals. It wasn’t until he accidentally came across a story, based on a real event from several years ago—“The Life of Li Tao”—that he was struck.

At that moment, Xie Qingzong was certain: this was the story he wanted to tell.

After two years of adaptation and meticulous crafting by his team, the final product was “Falling.”

On the first day of shooting, Xie Qingzong privately approached Cen Zhen and asked, "Has Young Master Meng read the script? Did he say anything to you?"

Cen Zhen was surprised to hear that Meng Fanchuan had read the script. "No, when did he read it?"

"Quite early on." Xie Qingzong replied, "He read it when we were discussing investment. I explained some of the key scenes to him, and at the time, he just furrowed his brow and didn’t say anything."

At that moment, Cen Zhen suddenly remembered that Meng Fanchuan had indeed mentioned it to her once on the snowfield.

“Falling” dealt with human nature and ethics, and there were indeed a few scenes involving the male and female leads. However, Xie Qingzong wasn’t making an art film, and he had told Meng Fanchuan:

"That’s actually a very cruel scene."

But Meng Fanchuan didn’t probe further. He just felt that, indeed, it was a very cruel scene.

—At least, it was to him.

At that time, Meng Fanchuan had been bothered by it in his heart but said nothing. What could he say? It was he who had pushed Cen Zhen into this path; how could he tie her hands afterward?

He swallowed his dissatisfaction in silence.

With the filming underway, Xie Qingzong told Cen Zhen, "I don’t know what kind of relationship you and Young Master Meng have, but whether you are Cen Zhen or his girlfriend, now that the filming has started, everything must focus on the film."

Cen Zhen understood his reminder and nodded, "I will."

No one on set knew about her relationship with Meng Fanchuan. Everyone cheerfully called her Xiao Cen or Zhen Zhen. Only the few people who had seen her in the private room that night would respectfully address her as Teacher Cen.

During these days, Cen Zhen had been focusing on finding her rhythm, and it showed. On the first day of filming, everything went smoothly. Several scenes were completed in one take, and many people on set marveled at how talent played such a crucial role in acting. When an actor had it, the director only needed to give a hint, and the emotions would flow naturally, with an effortless ability to engage the audience.

In a scene where she fell into the water, she curled up in a corner, trembling from the cold, yet her eyes were stubborn, refusing to seek help. The people present were moved, their hearts breaking alongside her.

Everything seemed to be progressing smoothly, but what Cen Zhen hadn’t expected was that, on the first night of filming, a discussion about her would erupt online.

The reason was that after Cen Zhen posted a picture of the red envelope she received with a message wishing for a successful filming on Weibo, Song Wang had liked the post.

One was a rising newcomer in the film industry, and the other was a popular young actor in the entertainment industry. The two had never worked together before, so when Song Wang suddenly liked her post, netizens began to find this situation intriguing.

Soon, the first layer of their relationship was uncovered.

"Don’t overreact, they are classmates, Song Wang and Cen Zhen are in the same year."

That would have been fine, as Cen Zhen had more than one classmate in the industry, but an hour later, someone posted a photo of the flower basket from the opening ceremony.

"Song Wang even sent Cen Zhen a flower basket."

Netizens immediately sensed something was off:

"Wow, wow, wow, everyone else wished for a successful filming, but he wrote ‘Best Li Tao’."

"Could it be…? Hehehe."

"I’m wondering if it’s true, haha, if it is, they would actually make a good match."

Chi Yu looked at these comments, gritting her teeth in anger. Clearly, she had thrown away the card later, so who took a picture of it in advance?

"What’s the meaning of this? Doesn’t he know that liking someone’s post like this will cause misunderstandings? Is he just trying to ride the wave?"

Mo Xiang also found it absurd. There had been so many flower baskets at the event, and if it weren’t for prior preparation, who would have been watching closely to take a photo of his?

It was obvious that someone was deliberately stirring things up, trying to link Cen Zhen with Song Wang.

This kind of trick was too familiar to Cen Zhen. Before, Song Wang had used the same tactics to hype up his relationship with Jiang Yuan. After their drama ended, they had calmed down, but now, it seemed the attention had shifted to her.

Cen Zhen immediately contacted Qiao Tingting to get Song Wang’s number and called him. "Mr. Song, what are you trying to do?"

Song Wang seemed to have anticipated her anger and apologized, saying, "Sorry."Song Wang’s agent knew about his past with Cen Zhen. At the time, Song Wang had insisted on the relationship, and the agent had no choice but to go along. Fortunately, the two had only been together for less than half a year, and the agent never took Cen Zhen seriously.

It wasn’t until they attended the film festival that Song Wang’s agent realized—

With Song Wang's current fame, it would be a shame not to use it.

When discussing it with Song Wang, he initially refused. He obviously felt that after breaking up, using his ex-girlfriend’s popularity was beneath him. But the agent, speaking earnestly, reminded him that there’s no such thing as ethics in the entertainment industry.

Hoarding traffic and making money by riding the wave is the only real “ethics.”

No matter how much the agent insisted, Song Wang remained firm. Eventually, the agent gave up and said, “Don’t you want to get back together with her?”

That sentence hit Song Wang like a light bulb.

Back then, it was Cen Zhen who insisted on breaking up. He didn’t want it. Now, even though she had a new boyfriend, that Volvo car…

He couldn’t help but wonder if it was meant to provoke him.

Otherwise, why would she so recklessly admit it in front of the media?

Even if not, the man driving a 300,000 yuan car to pick her up wasn’t exactly impressive.

“Opportunities are made by people. If you want to get back together, you’ve got to do something.”

It was because of these words that Song Wang finally compromised. He sent Cen Zhen a flower basket for the start of the film and liked her Weibo post.

But he didn’t expect that his agent, behind his back, had orchestrated the situation and hired a team to stir things up.

Because of this, Song Wang sincerely said, “I was wrong in this matter. Can you accept my apology?”

“I won’t accept it.” Cen Zhen was furious and disappointed. “Tell your agent to stop this kind of publicity stunt immediately, or I won’t hesitate to publicly tear the mask off.”

Cen Zhen didn’t give Song Wang a chance to continue the conversation and hung up the phone directly.

She felt a wave of physical nausea in her chest, and Chi Yu comforted her, “Don’t get mad, don’t let it ruin your mood.”

In the next two days, it was unclear whether her threat had any effect, but there was no new movement from Song Wang’s side. However, once the topic was raised, it was like a spark igniting in the dark. Netizens, who had finally caught onto the clues, couldn’t help but immerse themselves in the excitement of being amateur detectives, theorizing wildly and creating an atmosphere of high enthusiasm.

No one cared about what the parties involved thought.

And no one cared about how Meng Fanchuan, who had been in Hu City, felt after seeing everything unfold.

When he first met Cen Zhen, he had no idea about her relationship status. Later, when they met again in Hu City, she was already with Song Wang, so he repressed his admiration and never expressed any special feelings for her. In fact, until today, he had never mentioned their previous encounter.

Meng Fanchuan simply felt some regret—if he had gone to Room 222 a bit earlier, would Cen Zhen have still been there? Would their story have been different?

But Meng Fanchuan was someone who liked to look forward, and for him, the only significance of Cen Zhen and Song Wang’s breakup was—now he could move forward with her.

So, Meng Fanchuan never thought about Cen Zhen’s past with Song Wang. He never asked and didn’t care. But now, with netizens digging up all kinds of old stories, they were having fun as if it were all just entertainment. Meng Fanchuan knew, however, that all of it was real.

Through those words and photos, he could faintly see their past.

Their youthful freedom, the best age to meet, the best age to fall in love. The fact that Song Wang had spent four birthdays with Cen Zhen was enough to make Meng Fanchuan burn with jealousy.

Not to mention the figures in their graduation photo, leaning slightly against each other. It felt like a bullet that had been delayed for a long time, shooting straight into Meng Fanchuan’s chest.

It turned out he wasn’t as open-minded as he thought. All the calmness before was just a cover. When that curtain, which had been deliberately ignored, was effortlessly pulled away, his heart and mind went numb.

The word "generosity"? It simply didn’t exist.

It had been eight days since he last saw her.

In fact, Meng Fanchuan had returned to Beicheng the day before, but Zhuang Jiayi called and said that Meng Songnian had caught a cold during his business trip to Europe and had been bedridden ever since. She asked if Meng Fanchuan could return and check on him.

Despite their arguments, Meng Fanchuan wasn’t cold enough to ignore his father, so early this morning, he went back home.

The servant had just given Meng Songnian his medicine, and now he was lying on the bed. The butler came in to notify Meng Fanchuan that he was home, and Zhuang Jiayi went to greet him, reminding her husband with a smile, "Our son is thoughtful. Don’t bring up marriage again."

Meng Songnian hadn’t expected this "ungrateful" son to show concern. He grunted, pretending to be indifferent, but after a while, he found a cushion and propped himself up.

When Meng Fanchuan entered, he was leisurely holding a document that seemed to come from nowhere. He only slightly lifted his head and said, "You’re here."

"Still pushing yourself when you’re sick?" Meng Fanchuan’s tone was calm, and his eyes slightly fell upon him, mercilessly exposing him. "Do you think you’re twenty this year?"He was never polite in his speech, but his intentions were good. Meng Songnian, remembering his wife’s reminder, nonchalantly put away the documents and paused, “I heard you took the initiative to visit Zhongshi Media. The sun must have risen from the west?”

Zhuang Jiayi, who was standing by, could only remain silent. The father and son, clearly concerned about each other, spoke in a way that was anything but pleasant.

"Didn't you tell me to start a family and build a career earlier?" Meng Fanchuan replied with rare patience. "Anyway, I was free, so I went back to listen to last year’s financial report."

Zhongshi Media, as a small part of the massive business matrix of the Yawan Group, was initially set up to cooperate with the government on cultural exports, aiming to create a philanthropic and cultural image for Yawan. It had never been a source of profit. Over the years, the company’s financial reports had been mostly flat.

But Meng Songnian had recently taken the time to look at last year’s report, and he was surprised to find that in the three months Meng Fanchuan had been there, the year-end profits had increased by 1.07% compared to the previous year.

This was the first time in years that profits had increased, though the growth was only 1.07%. It piqued Meng Songnian’s curiosity, “What did you do? How did you turn a profit in just three months?”

Meng Fanchuan had done nothing, except sign Cen Zhen.

That 1.07% increase came from the revenues brought in by her promotional video, but it wasn’t much. Meng Fanchuan knew her worth was far beyond that. This was only the beginning; she would eventually become Zhongshi Media’s most valuable asset.

“If I say the profit could increase by more than 20% by the end of this year, would you believe me?” Meng Fanchuan saidsoftly.

Meng Songnian’s aura was so strong that he stared at Meng Fanchuan with sharp eyes, eventually sneering, “What, did your car team go bankrupt?”

Meng Fanchuan: “…”

"Thanks to you," Meng Fanchuan bluntly told him. "Not including sponsorship and ticket revenue, last year, the racing team alone earned 2.13 billion."

Before Meng Songnian could mock him, Meng Fanchuan calmly added, "In US dollars."

Meng Songnian: “.”

The racing team Meng Fanchuan had invested in was now worth at least 1 billion euros. In previous years, Meng Fanchuan would already have been abroad preparing for the spring season, but this year, due to personal matters, his schedule had been repeatedly delayed.

Compared to the profits of the Yawan Group, this number was far from shocking to Meng Songnian, but to Meng Fanchuan personally, even without the Meng family’s support, he had already achieved financial independence in every sense.

That was what really mattered to Meng Songnian.

Meng Fanchuan had always been rebellious since he was young, never walking the path set out for him. In the past, Meng Songnian allowed him to make mistakes, thinking that when he got hurt, he would naturally come back. But now, it seemed like he was going further and further, and didn’t need the family’s support as much anymore.

Meng Songnian crossed his arms and hummed, “So, you still care about the little money Zhongshi makes?”

“Do you have to care about money?”

Meng Songnian furrowed his brows, “Then what do you care about?”

Meng Fanchuan knew it was not the time to introduce Cen Zhen, and jumping in too hastily would only make things awkward.

“You rest,” Meng Fanchuan said as he stood up. “I have things to do.”

Zhuang Jiayi came in with fruit. Seeing that her son had left, she asked her husband, “Did you two argue again?”

Meng Songnian shook his head and cursed. "He didn’t even sit down properly. How could there be a chance to argue? What’s so urgent?"

He pondered for a moment, then thought to himself—if it’s not money, why did that brat go to Zhongshi?

Meanwhile, the "Falling" drama was in full swing with filming.

Cen Zhen hadn’t seen Meng Fanchuan for eight days.

Although they chatted daily on WeChat, the comfort of text could never compare to the embrace of meeting in person. Cen Zhen was relieved she hadn’t told Meng Fanchuan a month ago; she had said a week, but now eight days had passed, and he didn’t seem to have any intention of visiting her.

She wasn’t sure if it was because she had been too harsh with her words and scared him off.

Filming during the day was fine, as she immersed herself in the script and didn’t think too much. But at night, when she lay alone in her room, a sense of longing inevitably crept over her.

Cen Zhen had recently encountered many troublesome things. Although Chi Yu and Mo Xiang hadn’t said much, and they had taken her phone away to prevent her from searching related keywords, it was only when an extra asked her for an autograph at the set the day before and questioned whether she and Song Wang were secretly in a relationship, that she realized how ridiculous the rumors had become.

She was speechless, wanting to explain and clear things up, but Mo Xiang didn’t allow it.

No star would jump in to explain just because of a few speculations by netizens; it was too impatient.

Moreover, how would she explain it? To explain, she would have to acknowledge the past with Song Wang, and who knew what more trouble would follow.

Mo Xiang said, “Just focus on your acting. If it’s not in front of you, don’t worry about it. Stars are always discussed, speculated, and watched. Today they’re guessing you’re with Song Wang, and tomorrow they’ll guess you’re with someone else. Are you going to explain that too?”

But Cen Zhen didn’t actually care what outsiders thought of her. Like with the Bai Yan incident, the only person she truly cared about was Meng Fanchuan.

The weather had been bad for the past few days—cloudy, as if a heavy rain was about to fall.

At 2 PM, Cen Zhen was filming at the set.

Due to the bad weather, they had been filming indoor scenes for the past few days. Fortunately, Cen Zhen wasn’t affected by the external public opinion. Most of the shots went well, except for one scene where she had to argue with her mother on the stairs and fall. Director Xie Qingzong had her do several takes.

Everyone present felt that this young girl was very dedicated, rolling down the stairs over and over without a single complaint.

Finally, on the last take, Director Xie Qingzong was satisfied. He called Cen Zhen over to watch the playback and said, “Go take a 20-minute break. After that, we’ll shoot the next scene.”Cen Zhen paused for a moment, “I don’t need to rest.”

“Go on,” Xie Qingzong pointed toward the exit, “Your rest room. Come back when it's time.”

After speaking, Xie Qingzong took the walkie-talkie and started arranging for the other actors.

Cen Zhen felt vaguely puzzled but guessed that maybe she had fallen too many times, which was why Xie Qingzong specifically asked her to rest.

Chi Yu had just gone to a pharmacy outside to buy some ointment and said with concern, “The director asked you to rest, so go ahead. I’ll check if you’ve injured yourself.”

Cen Zhen had no choice but to agree. The two of them walked together toward the rest room.

The set was simple, and the actors' rest rooms were makeshift rooms partitioned off from others. When they arrived at Cen Zhen's room door, Chi Yu opened it first, but after seeing something inside, she quickly closed the door.

“?” Cen Zhen was confused, “What’s going on?”

“I suddenly have a stomach ache,” Chi Yu held her stomach and handed Cen Zhen the ointment, “You use it yourself.”

“…”

Chi Yu turned and ran, leaving Cen Zhen standing there, speechless for a few seconds. She glanced down at the name of the ointment Chi Yu had handed her and then opened the door.

She kept her head down, reading the instructions on the ointment, and after closing the door, she walked inside, still feeling strange, but as she walked, an odd intuition suddenly emerged.

There seemed to be a familiar aura in the room. Cen Zhen hesitated for a moment, thinking it was just the result of falling too many times, feeling dizzy and having an unclear vision.

But she still slowly raised her head.

At the moment she made eye contact with the figure on the sofa, Cen Zhen’s mind went blank. It was too sudden, making everything in front of her seem unreal.

Until he smiled and stretched out his hand, “What are you dazing for? Come here.”

Cen Zhen snapped back to reality. She felt her skin heat up, and her heart rate quickened. She even quickly jogged the few steps to Meng Fanchuan’s side, though once there, she stopped and shyly asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Came at the wrong time, you’re filming,” Meng Fanchuan replied.

“Then why didn’t you go in to watch?”

“You said I’d distract you if I came in,” Meng Fanchuan gently pulled Cen Zhen beside him to sit down. It felt just like before when he lightly caressed the palm of her hand. “I asked Director Xie for a 20-minute break for you. It shouldn’t be too much to ask.”

After speaking, he quietly looked at her, then suddenly leaned down and kissed her, “I missed you, couldn’t wait until tonight.”

The kiss was initially light and quick, a simple visit, and Meng Fanchuan thought he could keep it casual.

But as he looked at Cen Zhen, gazing into her eyes that shimmered with a hint of water, he couldn’t hold back anymore. He gently cupped the back of her head and kissed her again.

The kiss, filled with longing, was deep and intense. He was greedy for more, even lifting Cen Zhen up and sitting her on his lap. She leaned back, gasping for air, but unwilling to pull away, until his hand brushed against her thigh.

Cen Zhen felt the pain and let out a soft cry.

Meng Fanchuan stopped, furrowing his brows, “What’s wrong?”

Cen Zhen didn’t want him to worry, “It’s nothing.”

She paused for a moment, then added, “…You bit me.”

But Meng Fanchuan wasn’t so easily fooled. Didn’t he know whether he had bitten her or not? It seemed like he had touched her leg earlier—

He lowered his gaze.

For the past few scenes, Cen Zhen’s makeup and costume were designed to reflect her teenage years, so her outfit was youthful. Today, she wore a checkered skirt that came just above her knees, but because she was sitting on Meng Fanchuan’s lap, the already short skirt had become even more disheveled.

Seeing Meng Fanchuan’s gaze fall on her, Cen Zhen felt a little uneasy. She wanted to find an excuse to sit back down, but it seemed that he had noticed something. He directly pushed her skirt up.

She was caught off guard.

A fresh bruise on the outer side of her thigh was exposed.

“How did this happen?” The bruise was so striking that Meng Fanchuan’s tone suddenly turned heavy, as if he was about to go out and hold Director Xie accountable.

Cen Zhen hurriedly explained, “I accidentally bumped into the stairs. It’s nothing, it’ll heal in two days.”

Seeing that Meng Fanchuan didn’t say anything, her tone softened. She even gently tugged at his finger, “Don’t be like this. Injuries happen while filming. You saw me get hurt when we went skiing last time, didn’t you?”

With her comforting words, although Meng Fanchuan still felt uncomfortable, he suppressed his emotions and picked up the ointment that had fallen on the sofa. He asked, “Are you planning to use this?”

Cen Zhen nodded but then immediately shook her head as if she remembered something.

Meng Fanchuan easily saw through her, twisted open the ointment, and pushed her skirt aside.

Cen Zhen realized what he was about to do. Her eyes widened, but before she could refuse, the ointment was already being applied to her skin by his cool fingers.

It felt like electricity running through her body. She grabbed Meng Fanchuan’s wrist, “...Don’t.”

But he failed to stop his action.

Meng Fanchuan's fingertips with ointment gently circulated on her bruises, and his palm covered them. The warmth of the man took good care of every part, and the coldness slowly warmed up with an unbearable slowness.

Cen Zhen knelt and sat facing him, with only a pair of safety pants on her lower body, which was almost transparent. She closed her eyes in shame, bit her lower lip, and an inexplicable soreness surged through her body.

"Is it okay?" She was embarrassed to look and asked pleadingly.

After a while, the hand finally stopped at the side of her leg, but followed by a faint question: "Did he apply medicine to you like this before?"

Meng Fanchuan couldn't forget the past mentioned in Song Wang's trumpet.

He said that when he delivered medicine to Cen Zhen, did he also touch her skin and her body like this?

Cen Zhen was stunned by Meng Fanchuan's question. At first, she didn't understand who "he" was, but when Meng Fanchuan looked up at her, her heart tightened and she suddenly understood--

He should have read a lot of news on the square these two days.

The white light in the lounge was cold, and Cen Zhen's face was also a little pale.

"No." She lowered her eyes guiltily, not wanting him to be angry.

But the hand that stopped at the side of her leg suddenly went deep, which made her admit and beg for mercy again, "Just once."

She said with a nasal voice: "But he just--"

Cen Zhen didn't have a chance to explain.

The second kiss was obviously much heavier, with a kind of restlessness after forcibly restraining. Meng Fanchuan seemed to want to confirm something and get something from this kiss, and plundered her mouth forcefully. Cen Zhen's body became weak and she had to hold his back tightly to maintain balance. She wanted to take a breath several times, but was pushed back and blocked.

The cold and damp lounge was filled with hot air, making people dizzy and addicted.

During the 20-minute break, the two kissed for at least half of it.

Until a discordant voice suddenly broke in——

There were several hurried but cautious knocks on the door, and Chi Yu urgently notified from outside:

"Zhenzhen, Song Wang is here, saying he is here to visit you..."!