Chapter 77

Chapter 77

Qi Wei didn’t ask An Ye to respond immediately; she just responsibly went over the issues.

“The problem on our side is simple,” she said. “The termination clause clearly states that there are still two variety shows to be completed. These two variety shows nominally require your approval, Teacher An, and we’ll be given the option to choose.”

“But as you can see, if it weren’t for Chi Lv’s timely intervention on ‘Star Treasure Stage,’ we might have been cut to the Lantern Festival Song and Dance during the live broadcast.”

“Out of the twelve variety show invitations we’ve received, only two are feasible. The reality show is filmed every Thursday afternoon for an entire season, and it will take at least four months. Our schedule can’t accommodate that. Moreover, this setup clearly has you paired with Qing Ze. Since you’ve already left Huàn Zhōu, binding you to Qing Ze for four more months will only fuel fan speculation. Even if you and Chi Lv announce things low-key later, Qing Ze’s fans will create a storm.”

Qi Wei took a sip of water.

“As for the ‘Opposite-Sex Friend’ show…” Qi Wei paused, “If it weren’t for Teacher An’s mother’s interview today, I might not have thought much of it. But now, it’s clear what their goal is—they don’t plan to let you, Teacher An, terminate the contract easily. Even Guan Shengyu has been involved. Originally, I thought Huàn Zhōu was just trying to suppress your value, but now it seems like there’s a unified stance within Huàn Zhōu regarding this matter.”

“So, even if we decline these twelve variety shows, others will still come.”

“Since our new studio is small, there will be other people who want to take advantage of the situation, not just Huàn Zhōu.”

“If we avoid confrontation, we’ll just drag it out with Huàn Zhōu. If there are no suitable variety shows, we won’t accept any. But if similar incidents happen again, mistakes are inevitable, though I will minimize the damage.”

“If we confront them head-on, then I suggest you and Chi Lv participate in this variety show.”

“You’ll have to announce things eventually. Right now, you can’t move because of the ambiguity in your mother’s interview. Teacher An is a female celebrity, and rumors of alleged medical scandals are always popular. If things escalate, they might say you terminated the contract because you were manipulated by Chi Lv, and a series of operations will put us in a passive position.”

“But being passive doesn’t mean we have to just take the blows. The issue about your mother’s comment about you being like a son and that family photo—this should come from you, not from someone else’s interview.”

“As for whether Teacher An can be easily manipulated and why you left Huàn Zhōu, that’s something you need to explain yourself.”

“Of course, confronting them head-on won’t be easy. Guan Shengyu is involved, and they’ve surely prepared a hundred ways to prevent you from speaking up. We’ll have to respond as the situation unfolds.”

“I’ve been in this industry for so many years, and there’s only one ironclad rule: If something objectively exists and has already happened, avoiding it only complicates matters. The more complicated it gets, the more likely there will be loopholes. Once things get complicated, it won’t be so easy to return to the simple truth.”

Qi Wei rarely looked so serious.

After finishing, she asked An Ye to focus on eating first. She would contact her once things with Chi Lv were settled. This wasn’t a small matter—it concerned An Ye’s future promotion style and persona. She hoped An Ye would think carefully.

After hanging up with Qi Wei, An Ye and Chi Tuo didn’t discuss work matters anymore.

They didn’t drink today. An Ye poured herself a glass of water, and Chi Tuo poured himself an ice soda. They didn’t clink glasses; they just sat in the restaurant like an ordinary day, with three dishes, two bowls of mixed grain rice, and two pairs of chopsticks on the table.

“I haven’t celebrated Lantern Festival in years,” An Ye pushed half of her mixed grain rice to Chi Tuo’s bowl, biting on the end of her chopsticks as she furrowed her brows. “I’ve forgotten the last time I celebrated it.”

“I still celebrate every year,” Chi Tuo peeled off the silver cod skin and put it aside. “But after my mom got married, I didn’t really want to celebrate anymore. These past few years, I’ve been spending it alone in Canada.”

An Ye took a bite of the silver cod and paused before asking, “Why?”

Chi Tuo glanced at her.

An Ye’s slight unease softened his heart. Her biggest change over the past ten years was that she had become particularly good at avoiding problems. Anything that would trouble her, except for acting, she didn’t want to touch.

His mother’s issue? She definitely didn’t want to ask about that. She had forced herself to bring it up.

“My stepfather has a son and a daughter,” Chi Tuo said. “They’re about the same age as us. When I go back, the children live upstairs. In Singapore, it’s hot, so they don’t wear much at home, which is a bit inconvenient.”

Chi Tuo thought for a moment. “Also, his son is doing poorly in school. He’s been unemployed since graduating from university. Every time my stepfather sees me, he can’t help but compare us. It’s pretty annoying.”

An Ye, holding her chopsticks, listened and tilted her head, thinking for a moment before nodding."What's wrong?" Chi Tuo asked.

"It sounds like you're the one not fitting in," An Ye said. "It's not that they're excluding you."

Chi Tuo smiled.

It's true, his stepfather was a very good person, the kind who lived a down-to-earth life. His step-siblings treated his mother well, and it wasn’t a fake closeness, but rather the kind of family dynamic where they occasionally bickered but usually negotiated things.

It was just that he wasn’t used to it.

"During these five toughest years for you, things have actually been improving on my side," Chi Tuo said as he ate a piece of beef short rib, which was a bit too soft. "After my mom remarried, life has been much better for her. She’s gained quite a bit of weight."

An Ye nodded thoughtfully, still chewing on some cartilage. Her cheeks puffed up as she chewed with her mouth closed, making a slight crunching sound.

"So, if..." she began slowly.

"No," Chi Tuo interrupted quickly, cutting her off. "Your situation is different from mine. Your mom remarrying won’t improve your relationship with her."

An Ye: "…Can't you wait until I finish asking before answering?"

Chi Tuo complied: "Then go ahead and ask."

An Ye: "…"

She was a little annoyed but also realized that Chi Tuo’s way of talking with her made her feel quite happy.

Neither of them had to pretend; underneath it all, they were still just kids.

"Then I..." she started slowly again.

This time, Chi Tuo didn’t interrupt, patiently looking at her.

But An Ye stopped speaking, just puffing her cheeks and staring at him.

Chi Tuo: "…Actually, I don’t know."

He knew what she was going to ask—how her relationship with Wang Shanshan could be like the one he had with his mother.

"My relationship with my mom wasn’t particularly close either. At least it’s not as close as it was before I went abroad," Chi Tuo said. "She... feels too guilty towards me."

After Zhang Rou’s condition mostly recovered, she had been trying to make up for the years she had neglected him. She tried to be obedient and cautious, even though she had expectations for his future, she didn’t dare voice them. She even hid when she was sick or had a fever, so as not to affect him.

For a long time, their mother-son relationship had been fragile, like walking on thin ice. Sometimes, when he stayed up late studying and went to the living room for water, he would see his mom tiptoeing to the kitchen—because she didn’t want to disturb him while he was studying, she didn’t even dare wear shoes at home.

It was too exhausting, so eventually, he chose to stay at school.

"I think we might not be good at handling close relationships," Chi Tuo said with a wry smile. "After I went to Canada, and only returned once or twice a year, things actually improved a little."

"Lowering expectations, treating it like a visit, makes things much easier."

"Once it’s more comfortable, the relationship slowly improves. It won’t go back to what it was when we were kids, but it won’t be as uncomfortable anymore."

An Ye stayed silent, not speaking.

This was the first time she had taken the initiative to talk about her family. Even though she only shared half of it, Chi Tuo could figure out the rest.

It was also the first time in her twenty-eight years that she had mentioned Wang Shanshan, thinking about how to solve the problem.

Although Chi Tuo’s family wasn’t the same as hers, his way of handling things made her think of some things she hadn’t considered before.For example, between a mother and daughter, it’s not necessary for them to be intimately close or constantly pulling each other.

She subconsciously reached for the beef short rib again with her chopsticks.

Chi Tuo blocked it with his chopsticks.

An Ye: "?"

"That's the fifth one," Chi Tuo said. "That's enough."

An Ye widened her eyes, instantly forgetting everything else: "…Ah!"

"If you like it, I'll make it for you after the filming wraps up," Chi Tuo said, seeing her look of horror, unable to help but laugh. "I’ll go running with you tonight."

An Ye frowned at him: "Today is Lantern Festival..."

She didn’t want to go running. She hadn’t celebrated Lantern Festival in so long.

"If you don’t run, don’t step on the scale tomorrow morning," Chi Tuo said, standing up to clear the dishes.

An Ye always carried a weighing scale with her, a habit from childhood. As soon as she woke up, she’d step on it. He originally thought that since she had a nutritionist now, she wouldn’t need to control herself so strictly. But when Lan Yifang moved, she brought over five scales...

She had eaten a little too much today. It was the first time he had seen her eat rice since their reunion. Although it was mixed grain rice, she finished that small bowl clean.

Chi Tuo suspected that her public persona of eating very little and being disciplined was purely because she was always hungry. Wang Shanshan wouldn’t prepare normal food for her, and the nutritionist was keen on preparing an entire week’s worth of food at once. He felt that she hadn’t had a proper, freshly made meal in a long time.

The fact that she had managed all this time without developing an eating disorder just meant she was really craving food.

"If you don’t want to run, we can just take a walk," Chi Tuo suggested, still concerned about her digestion. "The track in this community is connected to the one in the neighborhood you used to live in. It’s 1,500 meters per lap. We can walk three laps to help with digestion."

"Oh." An Ye, having accidentally eaten too much, frowned and naturally stood by his side. He cleared the remaining food from the plate, and she shoved the bowls and dishes into the dishwasher.

She thought about her weight, feeling guilty. She silently tightened her core, lifting one leg behind her as she practiced glute exercises while loading the dishes.

Chi Tuo was both amused and exasperated by her. He raised his wet hand, placed his elbow on her to hold her in place, and gave her a kiss, warning her: "Move in half an hour!"

He wasn’t even worried about her stomach prolapse.

"That variety show, do you want to go?" An Ye asked obediently, standing still.

"Hmm?" Chi Tuo raised an eyebrow, surprised she would suddenly bring up work.

She had been unusually proactive today, in every way.

"It requires you to appear on camera," An Ye continued. "Do you think it’ll affect your future career?"

"Old Yuan would love for every entertainment lawyer to be on TV," Chi Tuo said with a smile, thinking carefully. "Do you want to participate?"

"I just want to pay off my debts and completely separate from Huàn Zhōu," An Ye said bluntly, not caring about how Chi Tuo might feel about it. Her attention was still on her slightly bulging stomach, and without thinking, she spoke, "I also want to announce it."

Chi Tuo paused in his movements, wiping his hands, and replied calmly, "Then go."

"Chi Tuo." An Ye also said his name calmly, as if they were still casually chatting, "Can you keep holding on to me?"

"Even if I run away again like I did today because I’m scared, can you still hold on to me like you did today?" She looked at him. "I don’t know what will happen in the future, and my mental state isn’t exactly healthy. I can’t make any promises about trying this, but I will try my best."

So, will you keep holding on to me?

Don’t let me fall any further.Chi Tuo crossed over her shoulder and closed the dishwasher, using some force to lift her up onto the kitchen counter.

"Yes," he promised. "But next time, let’s not talk about this in the kitchen."

"Why?" An Ye didn’t quite understand the shift.

"Because it’s not romantic," Chi Tuo sighed. "On your left is kitchen waste, and on your right is Old Bai."

"But in front of me is you," An Ye tilted her head.

Chi Tuo’s Adam's apple moved, and in the end, he resisted the urge to kiss her intimately again in the kitchen.

It was too soon.

An Ye was still a child with no sense of security, constantly seeking reassurance, and now wasn’t the right time.

"Let’s go for a walk," he finally said, patting her on the backside and urging her to go change clothes. "After the walk, talk to Qi Wei about the variety show."

"Chi Tuo."

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

"…You’re welcome."