Xie Ning didn’t have the habit of being attached to his bed.
But the first night at Zhuang Yan’s house, he tossed and turned on the pillow for a while without being able to sleep.
Even though he knew the mattresses and pillows were new, when he was lying there, he felt like Zhuang Yan’s smell was everywhere.
Zhuang Yan occasionally used men’s perfumes, but not often. Most of them were oak moss scented, giving off a wild and tough feeling, but also gentle and steady.
It rarely suits others, but it was extremely suitable for Zhuang Yan.
He didn’t know if it was a psychological effect, but Xie Ning felt like the scent was going to linger in his nose.
He wrapped himself up in the blankets for a little, and his face got redder and redder, hotter and hotter, until he threw the blankets off and got out of bed.
There was a thick rug on the hardwood floor, so it didn’t feel cold when he stepped on it, barefoot.
The room Zhuang Yan arranged for him was quite big, and the bedside lamp emitted a dim yellow light; when the light hit his face, it illuminated him warmly, like a gentle sun.
The balcony and his room was separated by a sliding glass door. Xie Ning pulled the thick, heavy curtains aside.
The moonlight spilled into the room softly, outlining the faint contours of his body.
Xie Ning didn’t know how good the soundproofing was here, so he was afraid to move around too much in case he woke up Zhuang Yan next door.
But since he’d been awake the whole time and hadn’t heard anything from next door, he guessed that the soundproofing should be quite good.
He sat on the edge of his bed, and sat in a daze for a while, facing the moonlight.
Things had happened so quickly tonight that he was dumbfounded, and practically listened to whatever Zhuang Yan said.
Right now, he was finally feeling the reality of being brought into Zhuang Yan’s house.
He picked up the phone from the bedside table and slowly tapped to Dr. Ji’s contact information.
He could send a text message instead of calling, right?
He opened his text messages and poked out a message, letter by letter.
[Hello, Dr. Ji. My name is Xie Ning. I have some psychological problems that I would like to consult with you. I’d like to ask, how long do I have to wait for an appointment?]
After he finished typing, he slowly checked the message letter by letter, to make sure nothing was wrong.
But he couldn’t press the send button.
His finger hovered above the screen and started to tremble involuntarily.
Xie Ning bit his lip and tried to restrain the terror he felt in his heart.
Suddenly, a light knocking sound came from the door.
The sound was very soft, but was still clearly audible in the solemn night.
Xie Ning was startled, and his hand shook, letting his phone fall to the floor with a pa.
He hurriedly bent over to pick it up, and turned it over.
Maybe he pressed something in his panic just now, but the word “Sent” was displayed on the phone screen.
Xie Ning: …
Xie Ning: !!!
He tapped open the sending history and checked it several times. He really did accidentally send the message to Dr. Ji’s phone just now.
Text messages aren’t WeChat messages, and can’t be recalled.
When the dust settled, he realized he didn’t have to struggle over this problem anymore, and didn’t know whether or not he should sigh in relief.
He wanted to sort this matter out before the film started its official production.
Zhuang Yan, Zhuang Yan was such a good person that Xie Ning didn’t want to drag it out and make him wait.
For so many years, he had basically trapped himself in a sealed castle, and the love and hate, right and wrong outside of it had nothing to do with it.
But right now, a person who made him experience emotion and made him want to walk out of his castle had appeared.
He realized that he could still love someone, like a normal person.
He wanted to leave the shadows of his past behind and step over the thorns.
Because he didn’t want to miss the tenderness and warmth that only happened once in his life.
At the door, Zhuang Yan probably heard some movement and knocked on the door again, asking softly, “NingNing, are you asleep?”
“No.” Xie Ning gathered his thoughts, arranging his clothes and expression for a while before running to the door and opening it for Zhuang Yan.
Zhuang Yan didn’t step into the room and leaned on the door frame. “I just need to talk to you at the door.”
Xie Ning asked, “I-is there something wrong?”
“I was afraid you wouldn’t be able to sleep well.” Zhuang Yan laughed in his low voice, and magically took out something from behind him. “This is for you.”
It was a blue whale plushie.
The light in the corridor wasn’t on, and in the darkness, Zhuang Yan’s eyes were gentle. “With him, you should be able to have a good dream.”
Xie Ning felt the soft cloth between his fingertips.
It was as if somewhere deep in his heart was also filled with this softness.
With the blue whale plushie accompanying him, Xie Ning really did sleep peacefully until the next morning.
When he went downstairs, Zhuang Yan had already finished making breakfast and was waiting for him.
“I wanted to fry an egg for you, but I remember you don’t like to eat it, so I didn’t.” Zhuang Yan said.
Xie Ning was just okay with eggs. He didn’t hate them but he wouldn’t take the initiative to eat them.
In front of Xie Ning’s seat was a bowl of salty tofu, with pickled mustard stems and green onion.
There was a cup of warm milk next to it as well, and it was still steaming.
Xie Ning said, “You felt out my tastes pretty thoroughly.”
Zhuang Yan smiled and said, “I could figure it out as long as I observed you a couple of times. It’s nothing difficult.”
The tofu was tender and delicious; Xie Ning finished it in a short while.
Zhuang Yan casually asked, “Eggs are nutritious, so why don’t you eat them?”
“It’s because they’re nutritious.” Xie Ning smiled and recalled the past. “In the last year of high school, the school would give us all a boiled egg every day. They said it was to give us more nutrition, and the teacher had to watch us finish it.”
No matter how delicious something was, if one was forced to eat it every day for a year, then the food would taste dull.
Zhuang Yan lifted his eyebrows. “You reminded me that I should probably change the taste of food every day, or else you might get sick of it one day.”
Xie Ning said, “...That wasn’t my intention.”
Zhuang Yan, not listening, said, “Let’s agree on it. Every day, breakfast is included.”
...He wants to rush to cook breakfast for someone every day?
Xie Ning quickly ate to the bottom of the bowl of tofu, and, staring at the exposed white porcelain, couldn’t decide if he was taking advantage of Zhuang Yan or if Zhuang Yan was taking advantage of him.
……
Not long after Xie Ning’s art studio was cleaned out, the day to scout out shooting locations had arrived.
There weren’t people who went. In addition to Zhuang Yan, Zhao Yang, and Wang JianJian, there were also sub-directors, cameramen, and a few assistants. Altogether, it was about 10 people.
“Hengdian has a Shanghai beach film and television shooting base, and we can probably find most locations there. Then, let’s go look around at Shanghai’s Chedun film and television base. I remember there was a WaiBaiDu Bridge there? It’s suitable for some scenes that we need to shoot. There’s also a Republic Street in Chongqing, so we might need to take a look there as well…”
Zhuang Yan circled some locations they needed to check out. “The Republic of China’s scenery is not easy to find, so there are some unique settings that probably have to be built from scratch. I’m almost finished with writing and assigning different shots; the art department should give out drafts as soon as possible, and I’ll have others divide the shots according to the scenes...anyways, we’ll be busy for a couple of days.”
“And that’s only these couple of days,” Zhao Yang, experienced, said, “These are only the preliminary preparations. Aside from the casting and setting, shooting will take half a year, and adding on post-production and award screenings…”
He finally gave a long sigh and came to a conclusion, “If we estimate on the lower end, it’ll take about a year.”
Xie Ning: “...”
“Frightening words to scare people.” Zhuang Yan glanced at him and smirked. “You talk as if I’m Zhou the exploiter and make you guys work all year round. It’s not like I didn’t give you breaks in the middle to rest.”
Wang JianJian lifted his eyes and insulted him as well. “That’s not the case. When you exploit people, you’re much worse than Zhou the exploiter.”
Zhuang Yan said, “...Scram scram scram, I’m also much more handsome than he is.”
They all fought for a while, but they still had to honestly work hard. Who made Zhuang Yan not only a director, but also their financial dad?
The financial dad was rich, so the bunch of them went to Shanghai by plane. They set foot in the airport in the morning and arrived in Chedun in the afternoon.
WaiBaiDu Bridge is a landmark in old Shanghai. It has lasted for three generations and is the “totem of the Shanghainese”.
To this day, WaiBaiDu Bridge still connects Pudong and the city center. It spans the Suzhou River and is an important transportation hub in Shanghai.
Of course, the real WaiBaiDu Bridge couldn’t be used for filming the Republic of China; fortunately, there was a “replica” at Chedun’s film and television base. Most of the film crews that needed a Republic of China setting used this replica bridge to film.
Prices inside the film and television base are several times more expensive than outside. A bottle of water that might cost 1 RMB outside could cost up to 5 RMB inside.
Zhuang Yan bought two bottles, opened them, and handed it to Xie Ning. “Want some? After walking for a whole day, your lips are chapped.”
Xie Ning licked his lips subconsciously, and he found he was a little thirsty.
He took the water bottle, smiled, and said, “Thank you.”
Zhao Yang muttered, “Why did you only buy two bottles? Where’s ours?”
Zhuang Yan smirked. “I only have two hands, so of course I can only take two.”
Zhao Yang was left speechless for a while, then said, “Then why didn’t you ask the store for a bag?”
“You want me to carry a bag of drinks over?” Zhuang Yan raised his eyebrows. “What made you think that I don’t want to keep my image and face?”
Zhao Yang: “...I shouldn’t have had hopes towards you.”
Xie Ning held the water bottle he drank from, looking a little embarrassed.
But he’d already drank some, so it was hard to give it to others.
Wang JianJian came out to smooth things over. “Enough, enough. It’s just a couple bottles of water, all you have to do is ask someone to go get some more. When we passed by a store just now, you didn’t remember to buy water either.”
He turned his head and asked his assistant to buy a bag full of water bottles. Zhuang Yan snorted softly.
The weather today was quite good. The winter sun wasn’t intense, and shone warmly on everyone, making everyone squint a little and feel stunned.
Although it was only a replica of WaiBaiDu Bridge, when one stepped on it, the lake rippled, and the willows on either side of the bank had just sprouted buds. Looking into the distance, one can see the slightly run down shops of the Republic of China. Those with good eyesight could even see the calligraphy on plaques.
The heart couldn’t help but change according to time and space, entranced by old Shanghai.
The cameraman was probably influenced, and excitedly pulled Zhuang Yan to the side to discuss which angle he should shoot at and what kind of lens effect would be super good.
At first, Zhuang Yan made sounds in agreement to what he was saying, but he gradually stopped talking.
The cameraman was American, and everyone called him George. He’d followed Zhuang Yan’s crew overseas as well. Since he didn’t speak Chinese very well yet, he rambled to Zhuang Yan and said a bunch of things.
Xie Ning’s English was quite good, and he could easily listen.
But Zhuang Yan became quieter and quieter, and his eyebrows slowly knit together.
Xie Ning thought it was because George said something, so he leaned over to listen more carefully, but his body suddenly stopped.
Zhuang Yan’s hand sneakily hooked his own, and his fingertips trailed across his palm.
It was like a feather floating across. Xie Ning was ticklish, and his hand tried to retract, but Zhuang Yan grasped it tighter.
Now, Xie Ning definitely couldn’t understand what George was saying. He resisted the urge to shake Zhuang Yan off, but was afraid that others would find their private, small movements, and his body slowly stiffened.
Zhuang Yan instead lifted the corners of his mouth, and from the bottom of his heart, a little bit of joy burst out because of their secret movements.
His fingers were slender and strong, with well-defined joints. With the feeling of cold winter, his fingers wrote the words “Xie Ning”, stroke by stroke.
Then drew a heart.
-------------------------------
Author’s Note: ZhuangZhuang means: Xie Ning is someone I put my heart on.
Twitter: @jiyangtrans
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