She Said: A Passionate Kiss [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 19
Ji Zheping’s face was cold, and the look behind her glasses was unreadable. She swung the cloth bag hard, hitting Gu Pingwan with it.
“Smack—!”
The books she had just packed fell to the ground, and the notes inside scattered everywhere.
Gu Pingwan didn’t dodge, allowing Ji Zheping to strike her.
Seeing this, Qiang Huai hurried over.
She had heard Gu Pingwan call the woman “Teacher Ji,” so she stayed quiet. She didn’t even have time to put on her mask and sunglasses and just stood beside Gu Pingwan.
Thankfully, since the office workers were still working overtime, the lobby downstairs was nearly empty.
In the vast lobby, the sound of books hitting the floor echoed loudly.
“Why am I here? You’re asking me why I’m here!” Ji Zheping shook her head as she spoke, her voice trembling, carrying a kind of weariness far beyond her age.
Gu Pingwan silently crouched down, picking up the scattered books.
Only then did Ji Zheping notice the woman standing next to her. Somehow, she found her a bit familiar.
Qiang Huai smiled in response to Ji Zheping’s glance. Gu Pingwan stood up and neatly placed the books back into the cloth bag.
“Teacher Ji, this is my high school classmate,” Gu Pingwan explained softly.
Ji Zheping rarely followed entertainment news or dramas, so she didn’t recognize Qiang Huai.
“Hello, Teacher Ji,” Qiang Huai greeted sweetly.
Ji Zheping’s expression softened quite a bit. She took the cloth bag from Gu Pingwan’s hand.
“Do you usually work here?” Ji Zheping looked around. She had been here for a while, sitting in the lobby reading, only standing up because she got tired.
Gu Pingwan nodded obediently. “Yes.”
“When do you plan to return to the research institute?” Ji Zheping asked coldly.
Gu Pingwan hesitated. “Teacher Ji, I’m still…”
Before she could finish, Ji Zheping interrupted.
“Pingwan, you were the most talented student I’ve ever taught, the one with the most potential.” Ji Zheping took off her glasses, wiped them, and put them back on.
She sighed deeply.
“Right now, our country is in dire need of engineers in this field, especially female engineers.”
Gu Pingwan kept her head down and remained silent.
“I know that research in our country is tough, and resources are scarce,” Ji Zheping said, her voice heavy with disappointment.
“But that doesn’t mean you should throw away your entire scientific career!”
“Teacher Ji, I left to make money,” Gu Pingwan said, as if the sentence had drained all her strength.
Ji Zheping gripped the cloth bag tightly, gritting her teeth.
“If I had known, I never would’ve accepted you as my student!”
“There were so many people lining up to have me as a mentor, and I picked you out from the crowd—a young woman among a sea of hopefuls.”
“I never thought you’d be the one who couldn’t hold on,” Ji Zheping said bitterly.
“Just consider it like I never took you as a student. From now on, I won’t accept female students ever again!”
“Go on, keep making your money, doing all these meaningless things,” Ji Zheping said as she turned to leave.
Gu Pingwan didn’t know how to explain—she could only bow deeply.
“I’m sorry, Teacher Ji.”
Qiang Huai, seeing how miserable and helpless Gu Pingwan looked, felt a pang in her chest.
She had restrained herself from speaking, but now she couldn’t hold back anymore.
“Teacher Ji, what you said is a bit one-sided.”
The moment she finished speaking, she regretted it. After all, this was between Gu Pingwan and Ji Zheping.
Ji Zheping stopped in her tracks. She turned around and looked at Qiang Huai, her expression one of disbelief.
“How do you know what she’s doing is meaningless?”
“The product she developed will help so many people in need in the future and prevent countless tragedies. You call that meaningless? Then what would you consider meaningful?“ Qiang Huai decided to lay it all out—since she’d already offended someone, there was no point in holding back.
Gu Pingwan immediately pulled Qiang Huai’s hand, signaling her to stop. Ji Zheping laughed loudly, her voice echoing in the lobby.
She gave them both a disappointed look and walked off with her cloth bag.
Gu Pingwan let go of Qiang Huai’s hand and stood up, as if preparing to chase after Ji Zheping, but then stopped.
“Qiang Huai, this is my business. You don’t need to get involved.”
“You stand high above in this vast world, looking down on the rest of us—you’ve never experienced this kind of pain,” Gu Pingwan said, her eyes filled with tears, about to cry.
Meaning? What even counts as meaningful?
Who defines it anyway? Gu Pingwan felt overwhelmed, regretful, and frustrated. All those emotions burst out at once.
Qiang Huai stared at her. “Gu Pingwan, what’s that supposed to mean?”
“What do you mean I stand high above and look down on your lives?”
Both of their emotions were running high. Gu Pingwan regretted what she said the moment it left her mouth. She knew she shouldn’t have said that to Qiang Huai. After getting to know her recently, she saw how hardworking and passionate Qiang Huai was about her acting career. What right did she have to judge her?
Qiang Huai couldn’t believe it. She had only stepped in because she didn’t want Gu Pingwan to feel wronged, and Ji Zheping had been too harsh.
Gu Pingwan swallowed and opened her mouth to say something else, but after a pause, she turned and ran in the direction Ji Zheping had gone. Ji Zheping was likely alone in this unfamiliar city and already at an advanced age—she couldn’t help but worry.
Qiang Huai remained standing there, stunned.
For all these years, she had imagined what it would be like to be with Gu Pingwan, but in that moment, everything they had built since reuniting was shattered.
Gu Pingwan caught up with Ji Zheping, who was sitting by the planter in the center of the office building, lost in thought. She walked over and sat beside her.
Ji Zheping didn’t react. Deep down, she never really believed Gu Pingwan would truly leave research behind.
While she had been sitting in the lobby pretending to read, she had been secretly watching, ears pricked for any sign that someone was coming.
When she saw Gu Pingwan get out of a luxury car, her anger exploded.
“Pingwan, I spoke too harshly just now. Your classmate was right,” Ji Zheping said hoarsely, pulling a tissue from her bag to wipe her nose.
“I found your company because I noticed a recent software release in the market and looked it up. That’s how I found you,” Ji Zheping explained.
“The app you developed really can benefit society. I shouldn’t have dismissed it like that.”
She put the used tissue back in her bag, planning to throw it away later.
Gu Pingwan’s brows twitched slightly. “Teacher Ji, did you come all the way here just to find me?”
Of course not—Ji Zheping had plenty on her plate. If she really had to make a trip, she’d rather spend the time on research.
“After you left the institute, our project on visual perception modeling for astronaut simulation systems stalled. The others couldn’t finish it alone.”
She added, “It’s true, salaries for domestic researchers are low. But I already applied for a grant on your behalf. I hope it helps.”
“Thank you, Teacher Ji,” Gu Pingwan said, but added cautiously,
“If the grant is only for me, please withdraw the request.”
Ji Zheping burst out laughing. “You silly girl. Don’t worry. Everyone’s getting it. No special treatment.”
“The national policies are improving, and pay will get better. Talent loss is something we should’ve addressed long ago.”
Though she had been harsh earlier, her care for Gu Pingwan was undeniable.
Naturally, Gu Pingwan was glad. “Then once I finish handing things over here, I’ll go back with you.”
Ji Zheping waved her hand. “I’m taking the train tonight. That’s why I waited here—I wanted to see if you’d chase after me.”
Gu Pingwan did exactly that. She canceled the train and bought Ji Zheping a flight leaving in a few hours. Now that her project bonus had been deposited, she had a sizable amount of money.
After repaying the loan for her mother’s medical bills, she still had plenty left. Barring any emergencies, it would cover treatments for a long time.
Ji Zheping insisted she didn’t need it, but Gu Pingwan couldn’t bear to let an elderly woman endure a long train ride.
After dropping Ji Zheping off at the airport, Gu Pingwan sent Qiang Huai a message:
“I’m sorry, Qiang Huai.”
There was no reply.
Qiang Huai was at home, drinking, and in her drunken state had trashed the place.
…
The next day.
Qiang Huai was awoken by the shrill ring of her phone. It was Qin-jie calling—the director of the school bullying film had asked her to come audition.
Even though Qiang Huai had clout in the industry, this Chinese-Korean co-production prioritized quality. Even minor roles required strict auditions.
“Darling, I’ll pick you up at eight sharp tomorrow morning,” Qin-jie said and hung up.
Qiang Huai squinted at her phone. She saw Gu Pingwan had messaged her at 2 a.m. to apologize. She tossed her phone aside and didn’t reply.
Hungover and dizzy, Qiang Huai called Xiaoyu and asked her to bring the skincare team over—she wasn’t going anywhere.
When she got up to wash, the state of the apartment shocked her. High heels were in the frying pan, the water dispenser was filled with liquor, and her LV rug was covered in “Gu Pingwan is a big dummy!” scrawled in marker. She’d stuffed her tens-of-thousands-worth Hermès bags with soil and stuck flowers in them…
Qiang Huai sobered up instantly and began cleaning like mad.
She hurried to hide the rug with “Gu Pingwan is a big dummy!” written all over it, only to realize the same phrase was on chair legs, bowl bottoms, and wine glasses too.
She crammed everything into the storage room—no one could see this.
Once she was done, Xiaoyu arrived with the team.
As soon as she walked in, Xiaoyu gasped:
“Teacher Qiang! Who the hell wrecked your house? Was this a robbery!?”
Qiang Huai had a dark expression. “…@#&%…”
The skincare team maintained professionalism, calmly laying out their tools while Qiang Huai lay back in the massage chair, letting them work.
Meanwhile, Gu Pingwan was in Pei Yang’s office, submitting her resignation.
Pei Yang looked at the document and smiled. “So the day has finally come.”
“Thank you for everything, President Pei. I’ll make sure to properly hand over the work,” Gu Pingwan said humbly.
“Your share of the profits will be deposited monthly,” Pei Yang said.
He admired this young woman—her dedication to computing and meticulous research attitude were rare.
After thanking him, Gu Pingwan left and gathered her team for a handover meeting.
In the conference room, everyone was silent. Many of them admired Gu Pingwan and were reluctant to see her go.
They had worked together for so long yet never shared a proper meal.
“I’ve written everything about the upcoming server expansion in the documents. If you have any questions, feel free to email me.”
She closed the PowerPoint.
“Let’s have dinner together after work,” she added.
A girl said, “Chief Engineer Gu, can’t you stay?”
“Yeah, things were going great. Without you, we’ve lost our backbone,” a male colleague added.
Gu Pingwan smiled gently.
“Partings are a part of life. I hope you all continue to thrive in your respective fields.”
She thought silently:
Now it’s my turn to pursue that steadfast dream, that romantic starry sky.
That evening, she saw Qiang Huai still hadn’t replied.
Slightly tipsy, she sent more messages.
“I’m going back to the institute tomorrow. Not sure when I’ll be back.”
“Qiang Huai, it was my fault yesterday.”
“I’ve already explained things to Teacher Ji.”
Still no reply.
Back at the institute, Gu Pingwan dove right into work. The current focus was simulating problems astronauts face during long flights, using Human-System Integration (HSI) for analysis.
Due to the complexity and variety of spacecraft control systems, errors in human-machine interaction were common. They needed to greatly improve efficiency and confirm cyclical data.
Colleague Qin Feng said, “Engineer Gu, you’re finally back. We’ve been swamped while you were gone.”
“Really sorry to trouble you all,” Gu Pingwan said with an apologetic smile.
“I heard you developed an app based on 3D satellite positioning?” Qin Feng zipped up his jacket and turned off his phone.
Gu Pingwan put on gloves. “Yeah.”
“Impressive. I’ll have my wife download it too. I think that celebrity Qiang Huai endorsed it. It’s cutting-edge—even foreign companies haven’t done it yet.” He gave her a thumbs-up.
“It’s nothing special,” Gu Pingwan replied, glancing at her phone—still no reply from Qiang Huai. It looked like she was really mad.
Qin Feng noticed and teased, “What? Just one trip to Jincheng and you’re completely distracted by your phone?”
Gu Pingwan pretended not to understand. “Just checking the time.”
“I counted. That’s the eighth time you’ve checked your phone,” Qin Feng said, curling his fingers.
Gu Pingwan: “…”
Meanwhile, Qiang Huai was busy with auditions.
She auditioned for the role of a female celebrity. The director rubbed his chin, then immediately confirmed Qiang Huai for the role. Filming would begin in January.
After a long day, she drank coffee while riding back to the company.
She had a backlog of things to handle. Lately, she’d grown lazy. In the past, she clocked in every day she wasn’t filming—even if just to walk around.
She looked at Gu Pingwan’s messages but still didn’t reply.
Maybe, in some moments, their souls had never truly aligned?
Soon it was New Year’s Day. Qiang Huai handed out huge red envelopes to her staff and bought loads of treats. But she was on a diet and couldn’t eat any of it before filming started.
Yu Lele’s case had also been settled. An Linlin was sent to a psychiatric hospital—years of torment had left her unstable.
Qiang Huai sat in her office chair, still wearing the gloves Gu Pingwan had embroidered. Qin Jie and Xiaoyu were at their wits’ end—every day she went on about how the gloves were from Chief Engineer Gu, and how she’d wanted them since high school.
Eventually, Qin Jie snapped:
“If you care so much, why haven’t you replied to her messages?”
Qiang Huai went speechless. She took off one glove, picked up her phone, and tapped on Gu Pingwan’s profile picture.
Just then, her phone buzzed.
Gu Pingwan had sent a message:
“Happy New Year, Qiang Huai.”
“I’m downstairs at your company. Would you do me the honor of having a meal together?”