After Reuniting with My Aloof Movie Queen Childhood Friend - Chapter 11

Some scenes used for film and television filming are free, while others are not built by the scenic area and require money to rent. Generally, a deposit is paid first, followed by daily rentals, with the balance settled at regular intervals.

The owner of this studio was well-acquainted with the previous producer, the studio had been rented to the crew without a signed contract or a deposit. Now that the producer had fled, the owner sent people to collect the “overdue fare.”

However, Ji Youyi had checked the crew’s accounts, which showed that this deposit had been paid as early as a month ago.

As for where that payment actually went, nobody knew. Ji Youyi sneered inwardly, this was exactly why “messy stalls” were so hard to take over.

Ji Youyi was now both the director and producer of this drama, so the burden of cost accounting and financial auditing fell on her shoulders. She had no choice but to call Ye Ye.

Wu Buxing was relatively polite, saying he would contact the former producer, but insisted that before the accounts were cleared up, they wouldn’t pay the studio. Furthermore, he claimed the company’s disbursement process was slow and definitely wouldn’t happen today or tomorrow. In short, he wanted Ji Youyi to advance the money herself.

In small budget productions, it was common for the crew to advance funds.

But the problem was, where would Ji Youyi get the money?

From her frozen bank cards? Or her debt of over five million?

Ji Youyi thought for a moment, then turned and left the studio.

The person who had come looking for the outreach producer earlier was the manager of the studio company. Ji Youyi asked for his contact information to understand the situation.

The studio owner’s surname was Hu, known as President Hu. Ji Youyi mentioned she wanted to treat President Hu and Manager Liu to dinner, but received a regretful reply. President Hu was already at Zuixian Restaurant with a few friends and had been eating for a while.

Ji Youyi hung up, hailed a taxi, and headed straight for Zuixian Restaurant.

Zuixian Restaurant had a grand name, but its decor was old-fashioned. Business was good; the square tables in the first-floor lobby were half-full, mostly occupied by average looking middle-aged men drinking and shouting loudly, making the atmosphere chaotic and smoky.

It didn’t look expensive. Ji Youyi breathed a sigh of relief for her wallet.

At the front desk, she selected a bottle of liquor worth over 400 yuan. Before paying, she claimed to be a friend of President Hu coming to join him for a drink. After confirming the private room number and the number of people inside, she pulled out five “red notes” (100 yuan bills) to pay.

When buying the alcohol, she naturally didn’t forget the invoice.

She carefully tucked the invoice into her pocket, stacking it with the taxi receipt. She then asked for a wine glass and, holding the glass in one hand and the liquor in the other, pushed open the door to the private room.

Ji Youyi had seen President Hu’s photo on Manager Liu’s social media. The moment the door opened, she moved toward her target with a beaming smile:

“Oh, President Hu! Sorry to interrupt! What a coincidence! I was eating next door and heard from Little Liu that you were here too. I thought to myself, I definitely have to stop by.”

Ji Youyi placed her glass on the table and opened the bottle in front of everyone, pouring a glass for President Hu and filling her own to the brim.

Holding the glass with both hands, her smile was fervent. “President Hu, you don’t know me, but I’ve admired your reputation for a long time. I’m from the crew of If Life Were Only Like the First Meeting. I often heard our producer mention you before, and today I finally get to meet the man himself. Since fate brought us together, I have to offer you a toast. Please, drink as you like, President Hu, I’ll finish mine!”

Ji Youyi absolutely loathed drinking.

Her first time at a drinking table was when she was five years old.

After her first movie finished filming, her foster mother had meticulously tied her hair into a princess style with a bright red bow and carried her into a private room.

To this day, she could still recall that dim room, the ghost-like shadows of people, and the foul stench of cigarette smoke, alcohol, and body sweat. Every time she remembered it, it made her nauseous.

But over the past decade or so, she had consumed countless drinks.

From an insignificant little child forced to drink round after round to stay by her mentor’s side to learn filmmaking, to the famous Director Ji navigating the vanity fair, she couldn’t avoid drinking a few taels.

How could something as good as money be exchanged for something as bad as alcohol?

Ji Youyi smiled and toasted, draining the glass in one go without even a twitch of her brow.

“Whoa, bold!” President Hu felt greatly honored by the flattery. He led the applause and gave a thumbs up, asking, “Which one are you in the crew?”

“My surname is Ji, just a minor director in the crew.”

“I see, Director Ji! Since Director Ji is giving me so much face, I’ll have one too!” President Hu had already drunk quite a bit. Now that the atmosphere had been heightened by Ji Youyi, he raised his glass and downed it.

Ji Youyi looked flattered. “President Hu, you’re overestimating me. I don’t deserve that title; just call me Little Ji. Oh, no, just for that ‘Director Ji,’ I have to toast you again!”

As she spoke, she picked up the bottle and refilled both glasses.

Pouring, drinking, pouring, drinking, interspersed with hypocritical smiles and flattery. It took Ji Youyi two hours to drink President Hu under the table.

President Hu was hammered. While settling the bill downstairs, staggering and supported by friends, he didn’t forget to slur his words to Ji Youyi: “That studio… no deposit needed. Director Ji is filming! Using my studio is an honor! If I take a deposit… am I even human?! Take your time filming! Pay the rent whenever you want! Remember to… to find time to drink together again!”

“Absolutely, for sure!” For sure, my foot. Once this job was done, she was washing her hands of this. This producer gig was garbage, whoever wanted it could have it.

Ji Youyi saw them off but didn’t rush to leave herself. Her head was spinning violently. She grabbed a chair in the lobby and sat down, intending to recover a bit before departing.

She was a “good” drinker, even when drunk, she could maintain a facade of reason until she reached a safe place, at which point she would let go and lapse into a deep sleep.

Leaning against the back of the chair, she reached up to touch her stomach.

From the moment she downed the first glass, it had begun to hurt, a searing, burning pain.

As the liquor went down glass after glass, it was like pouring oil on a fire. The flames scorched her internal organs, midway through, the pain had been so intense she nearly couldn’t hold her glass.

But eventually, the pain miraculously vanished, along with any sensation of her stomach’s existence.

At this moment, she was rubbing her belly, but after a long time, she couldn’t even feel where her stomach was. It was as if the area beneath her skin was hollow.

As she kept rubbing, her phone suddenly erupted with a loud ringtone.

Ji Youyi looked down, her sluggish brain turning a gear until she remembered: Oh, the 8:59 alarm, reminding her of the 9:00 call she scheduled.

It’s Sister Meng! The beautiful amateur! Cheap and useful!

She would surely use her silver tongue to trick her into joining the crew! Go for it, Little Ji!

After an exhausting day, Ji Youyi finally felt a bit of joy. Her spirits lifted. She opened the chat window, watched the clock tick to 9:00, and immediately dialed the voice call.

The phone rang three times before being picked up. A clear, cool voice came through: “Hello?”

Ah, so pleasant to hear.

Ji Youyi propped her face with her left hand, elbow on the table, and pressed the phone tightly to her ear with her right hand: “Sister Meng, hehe, Sister Meng, good evening.”

There was a pause on the other end. “What’s wrong with you?”

“Nothing is wrong.” Ji Youyi was puzzled. “Didn’t we agree? Tonight at nine, I’ll tell you about the character.”

Ji Youyi’s speaking rhythm was noticeably half a beat slower than usual, and her pronunciation was soft and coquettish. Meng Xingshu stood before a large floor to ceiling window, gazing at the neon river view reflected outside, momentarily dazed.

The background noise on the other end was chaotic. A piece of information she had received that afternoon flashed through Meng Xingshu’s mind.

She has been applying for jobs all over the Film City. Yesterday she acted in a short drama, and today she was promoted to director by the investors. Who knows what kind of drinking party she is attending now.

Meng Xingshu asked, “Where are you?”

“I’m outside, just finished eating.” Ji Youyi looked around and realized something. “Is it too loud for you? This place really isn’t suitable for talking. Sister Meng, wait for me, okay? Wait for me to get back…”

“Are you alone?” Meng Xingshu interrupted.

“Yes.”

“Stay where you are. Send me your location.” Meng Xingshu walked toward the entryway and reached for her trench coat on the rack.

“Are you coming to pick me up? No need, I’m not drunk.”

“…Send me the location.” This time, the tone was much colder and firmer.

Ji Youyi pouted: “Oh.”

The magnanimous Director Ji would tolerate every “fierce” female lead. Director Ji moved her finger and sent the location.

“How much battery is left on your phone?”

“Let me see… 41. Oh, now it’s 40.”

“It should be enough. Stay in the lobby, don’t wander off, wait for me to arrive. Don’t talk to strangers. Keep your phone in hand, put it on speaker, and stay on the line. Understood?”

Ji Youyi had never been nagged like this before, it made her feel like a child. She felt a bit uncomfortable: “Oh.”

So many demands. Fine, she was a magnanimous director, she respected actors with their own ideas.

Director Ji propped her cheeks with both hands, the phone lying flat on the table, her eyes staring at the call timer as it ticked upward.

As she watched, the text began to blur.

Everything turned dark. The stomach she couldn’t find earlier suddenly reappeared.

It was throbbing, beating violently like a heart.

It was moaning as if in extreme agony, twisting itself tighter and tighter until it formed a knot, finally stopping for a split second.

Then, with a “bang,” it exploded.

Ji Youyi covered her mouth and rushed into the restroom.

Bright red blood gushed from her mouth, flowing over her thin left hand and seeping through her fingers.

Ji Youyi was so pained she had no strength left, yet she remembered to put the phone in her pocket before turning on the faucet. Phones cost money, she couldn’t let it get ruined.

A cold stream of water poured down. Ji Youyi supported herself against the counter with her right hand, slowly washing her left hand.

She could feel herself trembling. Waves of dizziness hit her. Just as she was about to give out, she vaguely heard hurried footsteps behind her.

Ji Youyi slowly looked up and saw a dark figure appear in the mirror.

A black hat, a black mask, black clothes.

It must be Sister Meng. Who else would like this kind of outfit?

While Ji Youyi’s brain was still struggling to function, the person behind her had already approached. Their breath was slightly heavy, but their movements were extremely fast. One hand pulled out a tissue to wipe the blood from her lips and chin, while the other turned off the faucet.

Immediately after, Ji Youyi felt her feet leave the ground. She was picked up by Meng Xingshu in a horizontal “princess carry.”

The person who had arrived through the night wind still carried a chill. Leaning against her chest, Ji Youyi could feel the distinct rise and fall of her breathing.

Did she… run here to find me?

Ji Youyi thought muddledly as she heard the cold voice of the person holding her: “We’re going to the hospital.”

Okay, a very reasonable suggestion. Director Ji approved.

Ji Youyi was too miserable to speak. She rested her head on Meng Xingshu’s shoulder, her nose instinctively inhaling the scent of Meng Xingshu’s clothes a few extra times before she felt slightly better.

She intended to just fall asleep like that, but suddenly remembered something very important. She forced herself to stay conscious and laboriously looked up.

“What is it?” Meng Xingshu carried her out, her expression cold, yet her head submissively lowered to bring her ear close to Ji Youyi’s lips.

Ji Youyi worked incredibly hard to enunciate: “Help… help me keep the receipts… they can be reimbursed…”

Meng Xingshu: “…”