Rapid Collapse (GL) - Chapter 37

As they were chatting, Zhou Heyang walked over from not far away, snapped his fingers at the door of the meeting room, and said, “Alright, stop chatting and get in here for business.”

“You all go ahead and get busy,” Yu Xin said. “I’ll put my luggage in the hotel and take a break. Let’s have dinner together after everything’s done?”

Cheng Nian pouted, her little face scrunched up, looking at Yu Xin with reluctance, unwilling to let her go.

“Why are you acting like a kindergarten kid…” Han Ning teased, seeing how clingy the two of them were.

Cheng Nian threw herself into Yu Xin’s arms and even glared at Han Ning. “Hmph…”

“See? I’m not the only one saying this,” Yu Xin chuckled, pinching Cheng Nian’s cheek and kissing her forehead. She whispered softly in her ear, “Be good~ I’ll be back soon. See you later.”

After Yu Xin left, the three of them returned to the meeting room. Before they started, Chen Rong spoke up, “This is a military drama, which makes it quite special. According to the rules, before filming starts, all main actors are required to undergo a month of military training. Their appearance also needs some adjustments to match the image of a valiant female soldier. I’m sure none of you have ever seen a combat female soldier with long hair, fake eyelashes, and heavy makeup. So, for the filming, you’ll need to cut your hair short and go makeup-free.”

After hearing this, Han Ning and Cheng Nian exchanged glances, both feeling a bit uneasy, and sighed lightly.

“Do our two leading ladies have any objections?” Zhou Heyang asked.

Cheng Nian nudged Han Ning with her elbow. Han Ning hesitantly raised her hand and asked, “Um… I’m okay with no makeup, but how short do we need to cut our hair? A buzz cut?”

Chen Rong smiled and reassured her, “Since it’s a drama, we still need to consider aesthetics. It doesn’t have to be too short—probably around chin-length.”

The two imagined it for a moment and found it acceptable. In unison, they said, “No problem!”

Shen Xi distributed the script of Thorny Rose to the actors. Chen Rong explained, “What you have now is the full 30-episode script. To improve ratings, we will be making adjustments as we film, but the overall plot will remain unchanged.”

Each episode had the screenwriter’s name at the bottom. Given Chen Rong’s seniority, her name appeared in almost every episode. Han Ning flipped through the script and counted—Shen Xi had independently written six or seven episodes, which was quite impressive for a newcomer.

Feeling reassured, Han Ning glanced at Shen Xi across the table, feeling genuinely happy for her. It seemed Chen Rong really valued her.

“You’re practically glued to Shen the screenwriter…” Cheng Nian whispered while flipping through the script. “Focus on work! Look at me—I’m not even thinking about my wife!”

“Tsk… Who’s daydreaming?” Han Ning turned a page irritably. “Are you a wife-obsessed girl?

Can’t go a second without thinking about her?”

Cheng Nian squinted and smirked. “What’s wrong with being wife-obsessed? I have a wife, so why can’t I think about her? Unlike you, who doesn’t even have one—just staring at her won’t do you any good. If you like her, pin her down and kiss her already!”

Sitting across from them, Shen Xi heard every word clearly. She took a sip of water, glancing at Han Ning, who looked like she wanted to argue back. Instead, Shen Xi kicked her lightly under the table. Han Ning looked up at her, pursed her lips, and said to Cheng Nian, “Read your script!” before turning back to it.

Cheng Nian chuckled and muttered, “So whipped.”

Han Ning: “…”

Shen Xi: “…”

Around noon, Han Ning and Shen Xi walked out side by side, with Cheng Nian trailing behind. A few steps later, they saw Yu Xin coming out of the hotel. Cheng Nian’s eyes lit up, and she sprinted toward her.

Yu Xin almost couldn’t catch her, stumbling back two steps from the impact and laughing.

“Whoa!”

Han Ning, unwilling to witness this display of affection, rolled her eyes. “I’ve had enough!” She was about to leave when Yu Xin called them back and walked over.

Yu Xin pulled out two black velvet jewelry boxes from her coat pocket. When she opened them, each contained a Bohemian-style off-white leather cord bracelet. The cords were long enough to be wrapped around the wrist at a preferred length or even worn as a necklace. A silver cat charm and a pink crystal heart dangled from each.

Even though Shen Xi wasn’t into jewelry, the pink crystal and silver cat caught her eye.

She nodded. “It’s beautiful.”

Yu Xin smiled and helped her put it on. Cheng Nian, acting all sweet, helped Han Ning put on the other one and explained, “This is my wife’s latest design, a limited-edition ‘Wild Kitten’—not even released yet~” She then grinned at them. “Pink crystals attract romance!”

Yu Xin fondly ruffled Cheng Nian’s hair before turning to Han Ning and Shen Xi. “Don’t listen to her nonsense. It’s just a small gift. I usually work in Xicheng, so I can’t be with Nian Nian all the time while she’s filming. Please keep her company for me.”

“I’m a grown-up! I don’t need babysitting like a kid!” Cheng Nian grumbled, then smirked mischievously at them. “I’m not gonna be a third wheel—come on, wifey, let’s go eat~” She then pulled Yu Xin away.

Han Ning looked at the identical bracelet on Shen Xi’s wrist and felt a strange, warm sensation in her heart. Shen Xi felt the same. These two bracelets felt like an invisible red string tying them together, unbreakable.

With Yu Xin and Cheng Nian’s presence, the unspoken barrier between them became clearer.

If either of them took a step forward, everything would be out in the open. But at this moment, Han Ning hesitated…

For the past few days during script readings, she had been letting Coco drive her home.

Even when she had nothing to do at home, she hadn’t called or messaged Shen Xi. Her heart was in turmoil.

Shen Xi also noticed the change but kept it to herself. She assumed Han Ning was just getting busy with work, which was why they had less contact.

Shen Xi rubbed her eyes and closed her laptop. A few minutes later, her phone rang on the desk. Her heart skipped a beat in anticipation, but when she saw the caller ID, she felt a little disappointed. Still, she answered weakly, “Hello?”

It was her editor, calling about an offline event for her writing.

Shen Xi was a signed author on Huading Novel Network, which was celebrating its 10th anniversary. As expected, they were gathering top authors for a grand event. Though they held annual events, Shen Xi had never attended before.

This year, with her earnings skyrocketing and her novel adapted into a drama, she had become a big name. Her editor had received strict orders—if necessary, they had to drag Shen Xi to the event by any means necessary!

To the editor’s surprise, Shen Xi didn’t even resist. She simply said, “Alright.”

The editor, caught off guard, blinked in surprise. “Really?”

“Yeah. I’m mostly done with work, and I have three free days,” Shen Xi replied.

“That’s great! Love you! Mwah!” The editor laughed and hung up.

Shen Xi thought about it—Han Ning would be busy with script readings and military training for the next month. She had nothing better to do. After all these years of being signed with them, she had never gone to an event or made any friends. Maybe it was time to change that…

She picked up her cat, Thunderstorm, and kissed him. “Mom’s taking you on a trip, okay?”