The Eleventh Year of Secretly Loving Her - Chapter 3

After freshening up and getting dressed, Zhong Xiran sat back at the dining table, the rosy color still lingering on her cheeks.

She glanced uneasily at the milk and a plate of six small sandwiches on the table—so it had been Qi Sinian in the kitchen just now.

The housekeeper was on leave and had told her before leaving yesterday. Qi Sinian’s sudden return had made her completely forget about it.

Qi Sinian was a man of few words and cold demeanor; in their interactions, Zhong Xiran had always been the proactive one.

At this moment, she tactfully complimented, “I didn’t know you could cook.”

“You obviously didn’t,” Qi Sinian replied flatly. “What do you really know about me?”

“……”

The conversation died just like that.

Since their marriage, Qi Sinian occasionally made barbed remarks, probably lingering resentment over her past elopement, but they weren’t serious, and she had grown used to it.

Zhong Xiran decided to keep quiet and eat.

Qi Sinian pushed the plate of six sandwiches toward her. “Finish them.”

Zhong Xiran: ?

How was she supposed to eat all of this?

It was probably the first time Mr. Qi had cooked for her, and he didn’t want his effort wasted; hence the request.

Zhong Xiran cautiously looked at him. “I can’t eat this much. Can the leftovers go in the fridge for later or tomorrow?”

“No,” Qi Sinian raised an eyelid and glanced at her. “I’m not easy to talk to.”

“……”

Was he… joking?

Has the sun risen in the west? Is he really in such a good mood today?

The meal passed without further conversation.

Afterward, Zhong Xiran took the initiative to wash the dishes.

When she came out of the kitchen, Qi Sinian had changed clothes and was sitting on the sofa.

He wore a celadon-green shirt, a color most people couldn’t pull off, but with his cool pale skin, it made him look exceptionally elegant and striking.

The sharp spin sound of a lighter’s small wheel could be heard.

Qi Sinian flicked the lighter, but didn’t light a cigarette, repeatedly doing the motion as if merely out of boredom.

Hearing her approaching, he looked over.

Zhong Xiran recalled her father’s words from yesterday and asked, “Do you have time these days? My dad asked us to go home for a meal.”

Qi Sinian said, “Been busy lately. We’ll go in a few days.”

Zhong Xiran nodded in agreement.

Qi Sinian set down the silver lighter. “How much investment does the film need?”

It was an offer to help her.

Zhong Xiran felt awkward and said softly, “No need.”

Qi Sinian: “I’m not short on money.”

“I know,” Zhong Xiran bit her nails in nervousness, unwilling to outright refuse. “I want to try raising the investment on my own first.”

Qi Sinian nodded lightly, tossed the lighter onto the coffee table, and started to leave, leaving only one sentence behind.

“There’s medicine on the table.”

Medicine?

She picked it up to look, her face began to flush again.

She hadn’t even known such medicine existed.

After Qi Sinian left, Zhong Xiran exhaled in relief, sat on the sofa, and started calling the investors on her phone one by one.

She wanted to make a light urban romantic comedy called Secret Crush in Progress.

The script was written by an unknown, inexperienced writer and had some flaws in character design, but she was immediately drawn to the bittersweet feelings of unspoken love in the story, and personally revised the script herself.

“The company has cut this year’s budget; we can’t invest.”

“Urban romantic comedies like this lose money eighty to ninety percent of the time in these past two years, we’re not doing it.”

“We don’t work with inexperienced directors.”

……

When the room grew dim, Zhong Xiran belatedly glanced at the time. It was already eight in the evening.

Not a single investor was willing to give her a chance; some wouldn’t even talk about the project.

She had been working as a director for two years since graduation, and being a woman in this field was especially difficult.

Although Zhong Xiran had faced difficulties before, this was the first time she had hit so many dead ends in a row. She felt a bit down, bent her legs, buried her face in her knees, and ran her hands through her hair.

Her phone rang.

She had hoped it was an investor returning her call, but it was Qi Sinian’s assistant, Jiang Zheng.

“Madam, it’s the end of the year, and Mr. Qi is busy with work. He won’t be home for the next few days.”

Qi Sinian had a bed in his office; it was normal for him to disappear when busy.

Zhong Xiran nodded in acknowledgment.

After hanging up, Jiang Zheng gently pushed open the conference room door.

Qi Sinian was in a meeting with seven or eight executives, one of whom was outlining the pros and cons of an acquisition. Two large bags of boxed lunches sat on the table, untouched, since no one dared eat without the boss speaking first.

Jiang Zheng approached Qi Sinian and lowered his voice, “I’ve already called Madam.”

Qi Sinian nodded and gestured to pause the meeting. “Eat first.”

After saying that, he stood up and left, and the others immediately grabbed the boxed lunches—workers had it rough and were starving.

Back in his office, Qi Sinian leaned back in his chair, appearing a bit tired, and asked, “Did Madam say anything?”

Jiang Zheng barely dared to breathe. “Madam didn’t say anything in particular.”

Qi Sinian’s gaze remained indifferent.

Jiang Zheng pushed the boxed lunches from the house chef toward Qi Sinian. “Would you like to eat first?”

Qi Sinian replied flatly, “Call the boss at Jiahe.”

Although Jiahe was among the top film companies in the industry, its profits were only a fraction of Qi Group’s, which also controlled nearly a third of all cinemas.

Chen Sheng, the head of Jiahe, would dream of connecting with Qi Sinian; even a slight nod from him could secure extra screening slots, which translated into significant money.

But Qi Sinian’s position and cold, aloof personality made him untouchable.

When he heard Qi Sinian was calling, Chen Sheng hurriedly left all the actors and directors in the private room behind and specifically went to a quiet room to take the call.

“Mr. Qi, at your command?”

“Don’t be formal, Mr. Chen. There’s a film project I like, and I want to invest with your help, with a 20% bridge fee.”

Wasn’t this practically throwing money at him?

And a project Qi Sinian liked couldn’t possibly be bad.

Chen Sheng quickly laughed. “Why bring up a bridge fee with me? Which project is it? I’ll invest a bit too and ride along.”

Qi Sinian said calmly, “A small project. Thanks. After this busy period, I’ll treat you to a meal.”

Chen Sheng hurriedly protested.

He thought “small project” was a polite phrase, but when he received the project name from Qi Sinian’s assistant, he froze.

⸺Secret Crush in Progress?

Which major director’s project was this? He’d never heard of it.

Zhong Xiran hastily finished her meal, returned to her bedroom, and stared blankly at her phone contacts.

She had reached out to everyone she could think of. Some had clearly refused, some had said they’d think about it, and now she had to find other unknown investors through introductions.

If it really didn’t work out, her only option was a detour, shoot a web movie first to test the waters.

Suddenly, her phone rang, and Zhong Xiran hurriedly answered.

“Director Zhong? This is Yin Tai from Huacheng. A few investors and I have reviewed your Secret Crush proposal and really liked it. We’ve decided to invest. When are you available so I can bring the investors to meet and discuss the details?”

Yin Tai was the CEO of Huacheng.

Zhong Xiran hadn’t expected such a minor project to catch the CEO’s attention. She quickly replied, “Thank you, Mr. Yin. I’m free tomorrow.”

“Then let’s meet tomorrow at 10 a.m.”

“Got it.”

After hanging up, Huo Xin raised his glass and clinked it with Yin Tai. “Thank you, Mr. Yin.”

Yin Tai smiled. “No problem. I also feel sorry for you and Ms. Zhong.”

Huo Xin stared at the clear red wine in his glass and said softly, “I’ll win her back.”

After sending the good news to Xu You, Zhong Xiran couldn’t help spinning around on the sofa in joy. She finally had some hope.

She immediately went to take a shower and put on a face mask, preparing to meet the investors in her best condition the next day.

The next morning at 9, Zhong Xiran was just about to leave after getting ready when she received a call from her best friend, Xie Yu.

Xie Yu blurted out, “Xixi, Huo Xin is back in the country. Did you meet him?”

Zhong Xiran was surprised. “How did you know?”

The next moment, Xie Yu sent a voice message on WeChat, her tone panicked. “It’s not just me who knows, the whole world knows. Paparazzi caught you two, and it’s trending right now!”

Zhong Xiran stiffened.