Spring Night of Misty Rain - Chapter 49

Jin Yue raised an eyebrow, sizing Shen Zeyu up as if she were hearing such a bold claim for the first time. “You certainly talk big. With your third-rate screenwriting skills, thinking you can enter the hall of stories and become immortal—you’ve got quite the imagination.”

She threw in a few more insults: “I hope you have the life for it, and don’t end up back in a psychiatric hospital.”

Shen Zeyu didn’t back down, but Jin Yue simply turned and left with Shang Qiuchi arm-in-arm. Throughout the exchange, Shang Qiuchi never spared Shen Zeyu a single glance. Of course, Shen Zeyu didn’t look at her either.

The Nature of Jealousy

Once Jin Yue was out of earshot, Qin Zhiyue couldn’t help but snap, “Is she sick or something? If she has that much free time, why doesn’t she just hold her wedding with Shang Qiuchi? Why keep looking for trouble with you!”

Tang Qingyue, having just witnessed this massive piece of gossip, looked equally bewildered. Shen Zeyu was also speechless: “I don’t know where she gets the energy to start something the moment we meet.”

Logically, Jin Yue was nearly fifty years old. How could she have such little control over her temper?

Xu Luosu, still holding Shen Zeyu’s hand, let out a sigh. “She’s probably jealous.”

“Huh?” Qin Zhiyue was stunned. Even Shen Zeyu looked surprised.

Qin Zhiyue started venting immediately: “What kind of jealousy is she feeling? Did she have to force Shang Qiuchi to be with her? Shang Qiuchi kicked A-Ze to the curb to follow her. A-Ze even ended up in the hospital, yet she…”

Qin Zhiyue was getting worked up, but seeing Tang Qingyue listening intently, she lowered her voice.

Tang Qingyue offered a different perspective: “Director Qin, you’re looking at this from Teacher Shen’s point of view. But for Jin Yue, it’s different. Teacher Shang and Teacher Shen were together for so many years, starting from when they had nothing. That kind of emotion is much more pure. Pure love is rare. No matter the reason for the breakup, in Jin Yue’s eyes, there’s a high probability that Shang Qiuchi is only with her for the money.”

Xu Luosu fell into a pensive silence, beginning to understand what “jealousy” meant in this context.

“As far as I know,” Tang Qingyue continued, “Jin Yue was single for over a decade before getting with Shang Qiuchi. She must really like her. She envies the fact that A-Ze once had all of Shang Qiuchi’s youth.”

Qin Zhiyue clicked her tongue. “She’s a lunatic. She really treats life like a novel where she’s the CEO, Shang Qiuchi is the ‘sweet little wife,’ and A-Ze is the ‘pitiful first love.’ Because their relationship has friction, she takes it out on A-Ze? What kind of person does that!”

Confessions in the Corridor

As the team prepared to enter the signing area, Xu Luosu remained unusually silent. Shen Zeyu, noticing her mood, squeezed her hand. “Junior Xu?”

Xu Luosu snapped back to reality, looking a bit dazed. “What’s wrong?”

“I should be asking you that,” Shen Zeyu said with concern. “We’re almost at the signing wall. Why are you so distracted?”

Xu Luosu pursed her lips and struggled for a moment before speaking. “It’s nothing… I just suddenly realized something.”

“What?”

Xu Luosu tilted her head thoughtfully. “Hmm… I think I’ve been jealous of her, too?”

This time, it was Shen Zeyu’s turn to be bewildered. “Huh?”

The Global Launch

Before Shen Zeyu could wrap her head around Xu Luosu’s words, they were swarmed by international media.

“Is it true that Zhu Yu reached out to Teacher Jin Ze specifically? Does this mean you will only focus on the international market from now on?” “Zeyu, you usually use Shang Qiuchi as your leading lady. Have you found a new muse?” “Why attend this time? Have you changed your nationality as the rumors suggest?”

The questions were aggressive. Xu Luosu stepped in front of Shen Zeyu, shielding her. “All questions will be answered during the press conference. We have no further comments.”

She pulled her team through the media blockade and took their seats in the front row. A half-hour later, Edward, the General Manager of Zhu Yu Asia-Pacific, took the stage.

“As the world’s largest video platform,” Edward said in his accented Mandarin, “Zhu Yu has always pursued the creation of excellent art through the collision of global cultures. Let us welcome Jin Ze and Qin Zhiyue as they officially join the Zhu Yu family with Night Languor!”

The “Aesthetic of the Soul” Speech

The spotlight hit Shen Zeyu’s team as the second trailer for Night Languor played on the massive screen. Edward, an old acquaintance, invited them onto the stage.

During the Q&A, a reporter from Canada asked a sharp question: “You usually make films. Is it true that the domestic film industry is boycotting you and you have no money, so you had to settle for an ‘inferior’ TV series?”

The room went quiet. Shen Zeyu thought for a moment and began to speak in fluent English.

“Perhaps our friends should remember the origin of my country’s English name. It translates to ‘Porcelain’ (China).”

“In our history, porcelain was a primary trade export. My family comes from a lineage of potters. My grandmother, Yang Feixia, spent her life creating art—entire series based on our legends and classics. The medium might change, but the effort and the soul behind the creation remain the same.”

Her voice was calm and magnetic, easily silencing the room.

“To me, film, television, drama, or musicals—they are no different from making ceramics. They are all ‘artistic carriers.’ Carriers have no hierarchy. What determines if a creation is a work of art is its core, its intent, and its aesthetic consciousness.”

She looked down at the reporter, her amber eyes shimmering under the stage lights. “Beauty has a standard. Things without beauty have no value to be pursued. I believe that with five thousand years of history, even a fragment of our real material is enough to strike brilliant sparks in the world of aesthetics and burn a unique mark into the halls of storytelling.”

The hall was silent for a breath before Edward began to clap enthusiastically. The applause soon swelled into a thunderous roar.

Shen Zeyu breathed a sigh of relief and turned to Xu Luosu. Xu Luosu was clapping frantically, her face flushed with excitement and her eyes fixed on Shen Zeyu like a devoted puppy.

Shen Zeyu whispered, “What are you so excited about?”