The Eleventh Year of Secretly Loving Her - Chapter 12

When Zhong Xiran woke up at 2 p.m., she briefly suspected she had lost her memory—she had no recollection of how she ended up in bed.

Probably, it was Qi Sinian who carried her back.

But she didn’t have the luxury to dwell on that.

Qi Sinian wasn’t home. The housekeeper had left her a meal. Zhong Xiran forced down a few bites, then went back to working on her storyboards.

After five days of hard work, she had more or less completed the storyboard.

Li Cheng even called to say he loved the script. When he learned about their limited budget, he agreed to take half his usual fee to join the film.

That freed up five million yuan, which allowed Xu You to secure Zhang Ruo, one of the top young actresses of the post-’90s generation.

With two A-list stars attached, there was no worry about getting audiences into theaters. As long as the quality held up, the box office would follow.

Zhong Xiran had no reason to object.

Though Zhang Ruo’s acting could feel formulaic, with some direction during filming, she would be fine. After all, in this industry, everyone had to compromise a little.

Next came casting the other roles, preparing the crew, and getting the production started within half a month.

Everything was ready, but the day before shooting began, Zhong Xiran suddenly received a call from Zhang Ruo’s agent, saying the actress had another project and wouldn’t be coming, even if it meant paying damages.

Being stood up right before filming was downright unprofessional. Zhong Xiran’s face instantly darkened. “This isn’t just about money.”

The agent hung up without another word.

Just as Zhong Xiran was about to call Xie Yu, she got a call from Xu You, “Xixi, something’s wrong. Meng Niannian is back in the country.”

Meng Niannian and Zhong Xiran had been in the same directing class at Beijing Film Academy. Back in school, the two clashed constantly over Huo Xin and over their different approaches to filmmaking.

But after graduation, they had little contact.

Meng Niannian’s father was Meng Jinggong, a top-tier director in China who had once won the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival.

With her father’s connections, Meng Niannian went straight to study directing at New York University after graduation.

Meanwhile, Zhong Xiran built her career steadily, starting with commercials and short films.

“What does her return have to do with me?” Zhong Xiran asked, puzzled.

Xu You hurriedly explained, “I heard Meng Niannian already secured a 100 million yuan investment from Huanyu. She’s planning to make a film about unrequited love, based on a hot online novel, with her father, Meng Jinggong, as producer.”

In other words—they were making the same kind of film.

In the industry, nothing was worse than competing with the same theme. The project that came out first almost always had the upper hand.

Once the buzz died down, any similar films released later were doomed to flop.

And going head-to-head with Meng Niannian, who had both connections and accolades, there was no doubt who would get left behind.

Xu You’s voice weakened over the phone. “Xixi, are you… still going to shoot it?”

“Yes.”

In his office, Huo Xin was reviewing resumes while on the phone. “If there are damages, I’ll cover them.”

After hanging up, he pushed a stack of selected resumes toward Zhou Di. “Arrange the interviews as soon as possible. The China team must be in place within a month.”

“Alright.” Zhou Di agreed, then asked, “President Huo, it’s been confirmed that Qi Sinian will be attending the Wals Business Forum in East City at the end of the year. Will you… still be going?”

Huo Xin smiled gently. “Why wouldn’t I, with such a good opportunity?”

That evening, a leaked list of attendees for the Wals Business Forum in East City appeared online.

The post quickly went viral.

[Am I seeing things? This list has to be fake, right?]

[Holy sh1t, it’s real. The official agenda is out, and both big shots are on it. Here’s a screenshot.]

[I’m shaking. This is a once-in-a-lifetime showdown!!!]

[President Qi has the center spot. President Huo has to step back a little.]

[President Huo just came back to the country. Not being center stage is normal. Now fight! Fight!!!]

Soon, another post appeared: [Shock! I think I’ve discovered that the necklace Huo Xin is wearing is actually a couple’s necklace from years ago…]”

​​Post: Remember that video where President Huo declared he would gladly accompany? He was wearing a necklace then. I thought the gold looked off, too dull to be real gold. I searched everywhere at the major jewelers but couldn’t find anything like it. I even wondered if it was custom-made! But I finally found the exact same one on Pinduoduo1. It’s from a small private silver jewelry studio that specializes in couples’ designs. This particular piece, “Rose and the Little Prince,” was a gold-plated 925 silver necklace from eight years ago, long sold out and taken off the shelves. The photos are still online though! So why would our multibillionaire President Huo be wearing something so cheap? The answer is—it was the couple’s necklace he shared with Zhong Xiran back then!!!

[Are you sure this isn’t just an ad?]

[Honestly, I kinda believe it. OP’s argument is solid and convincing.]

[I believe it! OP, spill more tea!!!]

OP: Also, Qi Sinian and Zhong Xiran have been married for a long time, but aside from that one public appearance together, they’ve never shown up at any events as a couple. You could call it low-key, but after digging through post-marriage photos, I found, they’ve never worn wedding rings! [Photo]

And here’s Qi Sinian’s schedule after getting married—he’s on business trips more than ten months out of the year. How could their marriage possibly be doing well?

[Awesome, OP! More! More! We’re waiting!]

[True, I work at Qi Corporation. I’ve seen President Qi in private before, and he never wore a wedding ring.]

[I once shot a commercial with Zhong Xiran. None of us knew she was married to Qi Sinian, we all thought she was single.]

OP: Lastly, let’s break down frame by frame a video of the Qi couple facing reporters together. If you slow it down, you’ll notice when Qi Sinian puts his arm around Zhong Xiran, she gives the slightest flinch, watch her shoulder carefully. That’s a clear sign of discomfort and distrust. In conclusion, the two of them are just putting on an act for the cameras!

[OP, you’re definitely destined for big things!]

[Looks like that whole press conference was just a PR stunt. Gotta admire how billionaires can lie with a straight face.]

[To those who don’t believe, if your husband hugged your waist, would you really look that stiff?]

[Is it possible they’ve actually never… you know, done it?]

[? ? ?]

And just like that, the thread went completely off-track.

In the Qi Corporation building, Qi Sinian finished reading the forum posts with a blank expression and ordered, “Delete it.”

Jiang Zheng, “Yes, sir.”

Ten minutes later, the entire thread vanished.

Zhong Xiran had always thought of Yin Tai as a calculating businessman, someone who never made a deal that didn’t turn a profit.

But to her surprise, this time he actually focused on the script and fully supported her in moving forward with the film.

Her impression of him improved quite a bit.

Zhong Xiran then contacted Xie Yu to have Ming Yan audition, and sure enough she fit the role of the heroine, Qiu Xin, perfectly.

After that, she called Li Cheng to tell him she planned to switch Ming Yan from second female lead to the leading role.

“Ming Yan has this pure, delicate aura like a little white flower. Her acting feels natural and real. Trust me, she’s perfect.”

Li Cheng didn’t sound too convinced. “Really? Could I trouble you, Director, to send me her audition clip first?”

Zhong Xiran sent it over right away.

A moment later, Li Cheng replied: Not bad.

With both the male and female leads locked in, Zhong Xiran finally felt relieved.

She immediately called Xie Yu. “Li Cheng agreed, Ming Yan is officially our female lead!”

Xie Yu was thrilled. “That’s amazing! Our Yanyan’s luck has finally turned! Xixi, you’ve really got an eye for talent.”

Busy with preparations, Zhong Xiran said, “I’ll send someone over to go through the contract with you. If there’s nothing else, I’ll hang up now.”

“Wait,” Xie Yu stopped her. “Have you seen the news?”

“What news?” Zhong Xiran was swamped, how would she have time for the news?

Xie Yu, “It looks like your husband is going to appear at some year-end forum… together with Huo Xin.”

“Who with whom???”