I Want You - Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Half a month later, the jewelry commercial filmed by Shang Congzhi was released nationwide. On the giant screens of any random shopping mall, one could see her sitting on the yacht, back turned to the mysterious azure sea, looking back with a smile.

In terms of internet discussion and national recognition, she instantly leaped to become this year’s hottest, top-tier high-traffic little flower. Even the “HOT” threads floating at the top of various major forums were filled with Shang Congzhi’s name.

Inside the film crew’s dressing room.

Since finishing the commercial, Shang Congzhi had officially joined the cast of a new movie—a youth film specifically chosen to match her age.

“This time, you’ve truly broken into the mainstream.”

Su Lian held a tablet, a blatant smile on his face. Having managed Shang Congzhi for so long, this was probably his most triumphant moment. It was all thanks to that yacht. Otherwise, how could the photographer have found such great inspiration to shoot a high-quality, breakout masterpiece?

Su Lian sighed, “I’m grateful for that yacht. In a couple of days, I’ll go offer some incense to it.”

Shang Congzhi sat before the vanity mirror. Her beautiful face wore only light makeup, and she was dressed in a red-and-white checkered academic-style miniskirt with a white shirt. When her peach-blossom eyes curved upward slightly, they lost a bit of their seductive allure and gained a touch of pure beauty.

She gave Su Lian a dissatisfied look through the mirror. “The yacht was just an accessory. The reason it went viral is because of this fairy’s peerless beauty.”

“Yes, yes, yes. You are the most beautiful fairy in the whole world.” Su Lian coaxed her. “And the world’s most diligent and professional fairy. You have to work hard for today’s wire-work scenes.”

He was most afraid of this pampered young lady suddenly throwing a tantrum and quitting.

Today’s temperature reached 35°C. They were filming the female lead’s suicide scene, jumping from the third floor while suspended by wires. Moreover, it required filming from multiple angles, repeating one shot seven or eight times.

Shang Congzhi jumped over and over again.

Xiao Tang watched the monitor, her heart trembling for her. It was so dangerous. With such high-intensity action scenes combined with the scorching sun, Shang Congzhi—who rarely sweated—now had a slightly pale face, showing signs of heatstroke.

Fortunately, the final scene ended.

The assistant director, seeing Shang Congzhi accidentally lose her balance and suddenly kneel onto the bluestone floor, felt the pain for her. “There was a stunt double for this scene; why didn’t you use them?”

Xiao Tang felt a slight relief when she saw staff members supporting Shang Congzhi. Before heading over, she seriously told the assistant director, “Our Zhizhi might be pampered in her daily life, but she never uses a stunt double when filming.”

After saying that, regardless of what the directors thought, she rushed over. “Zhizhi, are you okay?”

As soon as she arrived, she saw a large patch of red swelling and bloodshot streaks rapidly appearing on Shang Congzhi’s knees. Xiao Tang almost cried. “It’s definitely going to bruise. Let’s go apply medicine quickly.”

Shang Congzhi leaned on Xiao Tang’s shoulder as if she had no bones, taking a sip of cool water to suppress the dizziness caused by the sun. “As long as it doesn’t leave a scar.”

A fairy must never have scars!

After returning to the lounge, she took a bath and applied medicine to her knees. The cooling sensation temporarily numbed the pain, or perhaps she was just numb from hurting. She lay on the sofa with the air conditioning blowing.

Shang Congzhi felt she had finally come back to life.

Filming is so tiring.

Maybe I shouldn’t take on roles in the summer anymore?

In such hot weather, wouldn’t it be better to stay in an air-conditioned room, eat watermelon, play on her phone, and binge-watch shows? Why work so hard? It didn’t fit her “vase beauty” persona at all.

Although Shang Congzhi was pampered and afraid of the heat and sun, she could have chosen not to accept roles in the first place. But once filming started, she treated it with caution. After all, this was the dream her father once fought for; if she wasn’t professional about acting, it would be an insult to her father’s dream.

Su Lian pushed the door open, his expression solemn, his previous triumph completely gone.

Shang Congzhi glanced at her, leisurely drying her long hair which was still damp from the bath. Her soft, moist red lips quirked. “What happened?”

“Is someone trolling me again?” Generally, when he had this expression, Shang Congzhi couldn’t think of a second reason.

“Yes, take a look first.” Su Lian handed her the tablet. “I’m going to have a video meeting with the PR department.”

The hashtag #ShangCongzhiYachtMasterpiece had been hanging on the Weibo hot search. Originally, most people were just thirsting over her looks. Now, a vague “leak” from a big marketing account (V) had climbed to the hot posts.

Entertainment News Early Knowledge V: Inside scoop: the yacht Shang Congzhi used for her photos was purchased by a certain business tycoon at an auction. As expected, she is the actress with the strongest background in the industry.

— The ‘sugar daddy’ rumors are now solid.

— I heard it was to overshadow a certain A-list star (censored) who also filmed a yacht shoot.

— Gosh, no wonder the press releases are everywhere. She’s young but has huge ambitions, actually trying to punch above her weight class against an A-lister.

— Well, she has a ‘Gold Master Daddy’ after all.

— Shang Congzhi, get out of the entertainment circle! This kind of ‘vase’ who has no acting skills and relies on a sponsor every day should disappear!

— Am I the only one who thinks… Shang Congzhi doesn’t need to do anything in the circle, her face alone is enough?

— Sister’s beauty slays me!!! That look back on the yacht is truly legendary. With this face, who does she need to step on? Please, sister, keep serving looks!!!

Shang Congzhi lay lazily on the sofa holding the tablet and scrolling through Weibo, while the task of drying her hair had been taken over by Xiao Tang. After finishing the comments, her red lips curled into a faint, ambiguous arc.

Xiao Tang said cautiously, “They’re all anti-fans maliciously slandering you. Zhizhi, don’t be angry.”

If you get angry… Everyone is going to have a bad time. The most unlucky ones would probably be the PR department.

“They’re complimenting my beauty; why would I be angry?”

Shang Congzhi turned around and pinched Xiao Tang’s face, which still had some lingering baby fat. Her eyes, stripped of light makeup, revealed a dazzling and lush beauty once more. When she smiled lazily, she exuded an unconscious charm that made even Xiao Tang, a woman, unable to stop her heart from racing.

She handed the tablet to Xiao Tang. Then, she opened her snow-white palm toward her. “Give me my phone.”

Xiao Tang peeked at Su Lian, who was currently discussing PR strategies with the department. She whispered, “Brother Su doesn’t allow you to touch your phone.”

Shang Congzhi’s eyes sharpened slightly. “Who pays your salary?”

Xiao Tang: “…”

A moment later, faced with Shang Congzhi’s lethal gaze, Xiao Tang obediently surrendered the phone. Shang Congzhi immediately beamed, her peach-blossom eyes blinking gently. “Good girl.”

She teased Xiao Tang so much she almost got a nosebleed. Mom, I’m going to turn gay!!!

After getting her phone, Shang Congzhi immediately opened Weibo. She picked an unedited candid photo from her gallery, posted it, and forwarded an anti-fan’s post.

Shang Congzhi V: “Do I really need a yacht’s help to overshadow others??? Tell your ‘main’ to come out and battle. [Photo.jpg]”

Fenghua Bumao: “I heard it was to overshadow a certain A-list star (censored) who also filmed a yacht shoot…”

Su Lian was in the middle of his meeting. Suddenly, an employee from the PR department said something. Su Lian spun around abruptly. “Shang Congzhi, you brat! What the hell did you just do!!!”

Shang Congzhi calmly raised her eyelashes. “My fans asked for some ‘business’ on Weibo, so I just posted a photo for them.”

“You call openly provoking an A-list senior ‘business’?” Su Lian took a deep breath, trying to stay calm.

Shang Congzhi curved her red lips. “Susu, don’t be so quick to get excited.”

Su Lian was expressionless. “What do you mean?”

Is there more? Seeing the brat reveal a beautiful and terrifying smile, Su Lian’s heart began to thump…

As expected.

Shang Congzhi pushed a WeChat business card to Su Lian. “Susu, your perspective is too small. This is what you call provocation.”

“This is the Asian head of EUV fashion magazine. He took a liking to the expressive power I showed in the yacht shoot, so he decided to terminate the contract with Song Yan on short notice and switch to me for the next cover.”

“Contact him and set a time to sign the contract.”

Song Yan. She was precisely the A-list actress who had pulled strings to snatch the yacht earlier to shoot her cover, and the one the anti-fans claimed Shang Congzhi was trying to “punch up” against.

How could Shang Congzhi take a loss quietly? She had already noted it down in her little notebook when the yacht was snatched.

Su Lian: “!!!”

Crazy, crazy.

“Took a liking to expressive power” my foot. Unless this fashion magazine head had his brain crushed by a door, he would never terminate a signed partnership midway for such a reason. This was clearly making a public enemy out of Song Yan. What brand would do something so harmful to others and themselves!!!

Furthermore, Song Yan and the magazine’s official account had already been teasing next month’s cover on Weibo. Switching to Shang Congzhi now… was she afraid people wouldn’t know she snatched it back midway???

Su Lian had a massive headache. He had now completely forgotten about her Weibo post; his mind was full of the fact that if she shot this cover and announced it, she would definitely be flamed to death by the other side’s fans.

Shang Congzhi played with her thin phone with her slender white fingers and smiled leisurely. “She isn’t as beautiful as me, her body isn’t as good as mine. She can only hide in shame and restrain her fans from bothering me.”

“Otherwise, does she really dare to battle me on looks?”

Her revenge usually seemed simple, crude, and direct, but it wasn’t impulsive or brainless.

“Brother Su, look at the Weibo comments!” Xiao Tang suddenly cried out.

Su Lian was still stunned by what Shang Congzhi had said, but before he could react, Xiao Tang shoved the Weibo page on the tablet under his eyes. It was still the #ShangCongzhiYachtMasterpiece hot search.

However… the originally one-sided hate had turned around after her retweet:

— Hahahaha, I just love Shang Congzhi’s ‘relying on beauty to commit crimes’ attitude. So edgy, I love it.

— LOL, who in the entire industry dares to battle the ‘Goddess of Divine Looks’ in beauty? That’s just asking for humiliation.

— If we’re talking looks, this little vixen Shang Congzhi is undoubtedly number one.

— Battle? What a joke. Which other actress has unedited daily photos that are 360 degrees without a bad angle?

— It’s good to be alive to see a peerless beauty like Zhizhi with my own eyes.

— Goddess of Divine Looks, GOAT.

— The little vixen doesn’t need any yacht to overshadow anyone; her face alone can overshadow everything!

Shang Congzhi gave a final evaluation: “They have excellent taste.”

No wonder they were her fans.

Shang Congzhi thought for a moment. “Is my fan count about to hit 10 million?”

“For the 10-million fan benefit, let’s do a lucky draw.”

Su Lian’s train of thought was derailed by her, and he instinctively followed up: “Draw for what?”

Shang Congzhi rested her chin on her finger, thinking seriously. “How about drawing for 10 million?”

“Pfft!”

“Pfft!!”

Not only were Su Lian and the others shocked, but even the PR employees still on the video call wanted to immediately jump ship to Shang Congzhi’s studio! Being this generous to fans, she must be even more generous to employees!

Everyone was suddenly filled with power and high spirits. They felt they could follow Shang Congzhi and clean up her messes for a lifetime!!! They hoped the “Fairy” would stir up even more trouble to give them a place to show their skills.

Su Lian: “…”

He just wanted to die.

Instead of teaching this misbehaving little brat a lesson, even the PR department had defected? What a mess. In the end, under Shang Congzhi’s meaningful gaze, he obediently added the WeChat of the top-tier magazine head to discuss the contract.

He kept telling himself: I am a professional manager. Professional. Not a shrew. I cannot curse in the streets!

At 10 PM, when Shang Congzhi returned to the hotel to shower again, her peripheral vision caught the full-length mirror. Only then did she notice a large bruise on her waist. It must have been from being suspended in the wires for too long.

Looking at her skin, which was normally white all over, there was now the raw, red wound on her knee and a dark bruise on her waist. It wasn’t beautiful at all!

Shang Congzhi changed into a nightgown with a cutout at the waist and began applying the ointment Xiao Tang had left for her knees.

It was the middle of the night. There was no need to call Xiao Tang back.

So when Fu Xingqiao called for a video chat, she saw Shang Congzhi twisted into a pose like a pretzel.

Fu Xingqiao rested her chin on her hand. “What new yoga pose are you doing?”

Shang Congzhi showed her her slender little waist. “This is the glorious medal I earned today for my career.”

“Hurry up and praise me!”

“Gosh, that must hurt so much.”

“You actually didn’t cry?”

Fu Xingqiao thought of this pampered brat. When they were young, if she broke a fingernail, she would cry miserably in her cousin’s arms, insisting she wouldn’t be okay unless “Brother Yueya-er” gave her a kiss.

Shang Congzhi let out a soft laugh. “I even scraped the skin off my knees! I stood up very firmly and didn’t cry!”

“When I finish filming and go back, you have to comfort me properly.” She made a huge demand: “I want to eat a feast personally made by you, eighteen courses.”

Fu Xingqiao: “…”

“No problem. But are you sure you don’t need your ‘Brother Yueya-er’ to give you kisses, hugs, and lift you high to feel better?”

“I’m not a kid anymore!”

Kisses, hugs, and lifting high…

But, Yueya-er… it had been a long time since she had heard Mu Xinglan’s nickname. She certainly hadn’t called him that in a long time.

Shang Congzhi lay lazily on the bed. “I’m so tired today, I’m going to sleep. Goodnight.”

“Remember my eighteen courses.”

“I won’t forget. Remember to apply the medicine again tomorrow morning.”

Fu Xingqiao looked at the girl in the video who fell asleep as soon as she said so and felt a bit worried. After hanging up, she didn’t even think about it.

She relayed the matter to Shang Congzhi’s “guardian.”

The next morning.

When Shang Congzhi climbed out of bed, she felt like her bones were falling apart. Especially her waist. She really wanted to go on strike today.

Shang Congzhi only thought about it… in the end, she leaned on Xiao Tang to walk out of the hotel. However, to her surprise, Su Lian wasn’t waiting for her inside the van. Instead, he was standing upright by the car door. The back door was wide open.

While she used the door to pull herself up, she turned to ask him, “Are you standing here to cosplay a door god?”

Su Lian gave her a faint smile, exceptionally polite. So polite it nearly sent Shang Congzhi away.

Su Lian: “Look who’s here?”

Who? So early in the morning.

After Shang Congzhi bent down to get in the car, what met her eyes was a young man sitting formally in the back seat. A silver laptop sat on his knees, and he was currently looking over at her. His face was handsome and… familiar.

She blinked, suspecting she was seeing things or dreaming. She turned to get out immediately. “I didn’t wake up properly today; I’m going back to sleep some more.”

“Come here.” The man’s voice, warm as a clear spring, echoed in the cabin.

The car door had already been swiftly closed by Su Lian from the outside, leaving behind a sentence: “President Mu is here to visit the set. You two get along well!”

Shang Congzhi: “…”

She had evidence that Su Lian, that bastard, was doing this for revenge because her Weibo post yesterday forced him to work overtime!

Shang Congzhi sat in the spot closest to the door and furthest from Mu Xinglan.

“Something the matter?” She didn’t believe for a second that Mu Xinglan was specifically here to visit her on set.

Mu Xinglan didn’t mind. He bent down and grasped her ankle, placing her calf onto his lap.

Shang Congzhi had come down wearing flip-flops. At this moment, her round and beautiful toes curled up nervously. “You-you-you! What are you doing!”

A flip-flop wobbled and finally fell onto the floor with a thud.

With one hand, he held down the girl’s flailing ankle, while his other hand covered her skirt, lifting it up a little.

“Holy crap! You’re actually lifting a young girl’s skirt!!!”

The skirt was lifted above the knee. The red swelling and bruises on her knee were exceptionally prominent and tragic against her delicate, snow-white skin. Mu Xinglan was originally checking her knee injury, but upon hearing those words, his cold-white fingertips paused on a bruise at the edge of her knee.

He then raised his eyelashes, looking at her coolly. “Say that again. Think before you speak.”