Chapter 18
On the third day of joining the crew, as expected, Zhengzheng's scenes would wrap up tonight.
The morning scenes were smoothly filmed, and when Shen Yin was pondering how to solve lunch for today, Chang Zhiyuan came to the rescue like a knight in shining armor.
"Boss, how did you come over?" Yan Yan was the first to spot Chang Zhiyuan.
Shen Yin, drawn by the voice, was about to turn and check the situation when Zhengzheng in her arms spoke.
"It's Dad." Zhengzheng's little hand waved towards Chang Zhiyuan, as if saying, "I'm here."
Chang Zhiyuan walked over, "Sis-in-law, haven't eaten yet, right? I brought some food, though it may not be as delicious as yours, I can guarantee it's better than the crew's food."
Due to their not-so-pleasant first meeting, Shen Yin hadn't formed a good impression of him, but since he brought her food, she couldn't keep a frown.
So, she adjusted her attitude and said, "Thank you."
Chang Zhiyuan had the dishes placed on the table in the room and reached out to Zhengzheng with both hands.
Zhengzheng and Chang Zhiyuan were quite familiar, so a hug was only natural.
Shen Yin secretly sighed with relief; lunch was finally sorted. After this scene, Zhengzheng shouldn't participate in filming anymore. He's too young, and filming is too demanding.
While playing with Zhengzheng, Chang Zhiyuan said to Yan Yan, "Yan Yan, go call Shu Yi over."
Yan Yan knew the boss liked Shu Yi and didn't ask much. She went to the set to find Shu Yi.
When she saw Shu Yi, she was drinking water. Shu Yi only knew Yan Yan as Zhengzheng's assistant and was a bit puzzled, furrowing her brows, not clear why Yan Yan was looking for her.
"Teacher Shu, the boss sent some food over. He asked me to call you to eat together."
Shu Yi, a rather shy girl in the industry, usually filmed when there were roles and stayed at home sleeping when there weren't. When well-rested, she would travel, not very acquainted with people in the industry.
Even though Shu Yi was about to refuse, thinking of Zhengzheng being so cute and calling her godmother, she agreed.
The sun was a bit intense, and Shu Yi was afraid of getting sunburnt, so she got on her own RV and grabbed a sun umbrella.
"Let's go." Shu Yi opened the umbrella, speaking gently, and moved it a bit towards Yan Yan's side.
This action surprised Yan Yan. She had been an assistant for several years, encountering many actors, some throwing their weight around, some with bad tempers. She didn't expect Shu Yi to be so friendly.
She didn't have much impression of Shu Yi before. Shu Yi had good acting skills, played supporting roles in several dramas, never did marketing. Only when the drama aired did she have a few days of popularity, disappearing again once it ended. If not for her boss liking her, Yan Yan probably wouldn't have noticed her.
"Teacher Shu, I haven't seen your assistant these past few days."
Shu Yi casually replied, "I don't have an assistant."
"Ah, shouldn't the company provide assistants?" Yan Yan couldn't comprehend it. In her understanding, even fourth or fifth-tier female celebrities have assistants, let alone second or third-tier ones. Shu Yi might not be a big star, but with a few supporting roles, she should at least qualify for second or third-tier, so she shouldn't be without an assistant.
"The company did provide an assistant before, but she went back home to get married and have a child. The company was going to assign me another one, but I wasn't accustomed to it, so I declined," Shu Yi explained gently, her tone plain, as if discussing something unrelated to herself.
As they continued chatting, they arrived at Shen Yin's place, and Shu Yi immediately spotted Chang Zhiyuan. She regretted it immensely. She had been careless, forgetting that Zhengzheng was brought here by Chang Zhiyuan.
"Come on in, let's sit down and eat," Shen Yin greeted warmly. For her, nothing was more important than sharing a meal.
Chang Zhiyuan kept staring at Shu Yi, making her feel uneasy.
"Yan Yan, don't just stand there, come sit here," Shen Yin didn't notice anything amiss and invited Yan Yan to sit beside her.
Chang Zhiyuan continued to act as a godson, calling Zhengzheng his godson and occasionally calling Shu Yi "godmother." Shu Yi felt extremely awkward at this moment, hoping that time would pass quickly. She had never felt so agonized over a meal before.
Shu Yi's nervousness and anxiety didn't escape Chang Zhiyuan's gaze. The undercurrent between them was noticed by Yan Yan.
Yan Yan focused on eating the fruit in front of her, while Shu Yi and Chang Zhiyuan had different thoughts.
Chang Zhiyuan thought, "This person next to me is really interesting. Clearly nervous and anxious, yet still pretending as if nothing happened. She won't even lift her head when I look at her, so adorable. I'll definitely win her over sooner or later."
Shu Yi thought, "This is bad. What should I do? I can't afford to provoke this person. I can only avoid him. But now, I can't even do that. Is he behind casting me as the leading actress in this drama? It seems like he invested in this drama; is he trying to take care of me?"
Zhengzheng was too young, only interested in eating, while Shen Yin was too clueless about relationships to notice anything abnormal. The mother and son enjoyed their food.
When Shen Yin had almost finished eating, Chang Zhiyuan said, "Sister-in-law, I've also had someone buy some sour plum juice. It's in the box behind. It's getting close to summer, so it'll be refreshing."
Upon hearing this, Shen Yin thanked him and got up, saying, "Thank you, you've worked hard."
Five cups of chilled sour plum juice. Shen Yin couldn't help but marvel at how convenient this era was. Having ice in the summer was a luxury.
Considering that Zhengzheng couldn't handle the cold, they put his cup back.
"Mommy, Zhengzheng wants some too," Zhengzheng pouted, unhappy.
Shu Yi found Zhengzheng's expression too cute to resist. Since she couldn't drink cold beverages these days, she said, "Zhengzheng, how about I give you mine?"
Zhengzheng nodded enthusiastically, revealing a smiling face.
Chang Zhiyuan wasn't too pleased with this, but it wasn't like he hadn't experienced it before. Why not drink? Could it be because he bought it?
"Well, then, have a sip of mine," he said, assertively handing his glass of sour plum juice to Shu Yi.
Shu Yi, startled, quickly waved her hands, "No, Chang Zong, I'm not thirsty. You go ahead."
Seeing this scene, Shen Yin suddenly thought of what Xu Xiu had mentioned—Chang Zhiyuan liked Shu Yi.
She was quite curious, eager to gossip, but couldn't ask directly. Revealing it might make things awkward, so she had to hold back. Perhaps she'd find an opportunity later.
"Chang Zong, Mrs., I've finished eating. I'll go back to rehearse the script and prepare for the afternoon performance," Shu Yi, feeling uneasy, expressed her desire to leave.
Chang Zhiyuan wanted to say something more but was interrupted by Shen Yin, "Alright, Shu Yi, I'll walk you out." Afterward, he turned to instruct Yan Yan to check on Zhengzheng.
Shu Yi picked up an umbrella and left with Shen Yin.
"Give me the umbrella; I'll hold it for you," Shen Yin reached out to take the umbrella.
Shu Yi felt that Shen Yin, standing beside her, had an extraordinary status. She was just a small actress and not acquainted with Shen Yin, so she didn't want to trouble her.
"It's okay, I'll handle it. If you're uncomfortable, don't force yourself. I'm not just talking about the umbrella," Shen Yin insisted.
Shu Yi was surprised and somewhat disbelieving, "How do you know I'm uncomfortable?"
"I can tell. Even with makeup, you can't hide the fatigue on your face, and your expression isn't right."
As they spoke, they reached Shu Yi's trailer, and Shu Yi suddenly felt that Shen Yin was quite impressive.
"Can I come up and take a look?" Shen Yin asked.
"Of course."
Shen Yin entered the trailer; it was her first time in such a vehicle. The space was large, with a bed and a table inside.
"Are you on your period?" In a woman's life, menstruation was an extremely private matter. That's why Shen Yin only asked once inside the trailer.
Shu Yi's expression became even more astonished.
Shen Yin took Shu Yi's hand, checked her pulse, and found it a bit slippery with a weak sensation.
"Your hands and feet must be cold in winter, sensitive to cold, and you're experiencing menstrual cramps now," Shen Yin said seriously, presenting herself as an experienced Chinese medicine practitioner.
"Menstrual cramps, unbearable every time. I was just about to take ibuprofen. Are you a traditional Chinese medicine doctor?"
"No, but I've studied it. There's too much cold in your body, affecting both your stomach and uterus. You need to treat it promptly, or it might affect your ability to have children in the future."
Shu Yi liked children but had no plans to have them. She hadn't met someone she liked, so having children or not didn't matter to her. However, menstrual cramps were too painful.
"Have you been relying on painkillers all along? With modern medicine so advanced, haven't you seen a doctor?"