"As far as I know, Mr. Pei is not only the lead actor in this production, but his own company is also one of the investors. You can have someone calculate the costs incurred by the production halt. Also, I remember that the production contract should have a clear clause stating that if the losses are caused by the joint production party's unilateral reasons, the party involved will compensate for all subsequent losses. I believe I don't need to explain the stakes involved to you again."
"Hahaha..." Pei Shaocheng laughed, tightening his grip on Lu Yanheng's tie as he slowly said, "Lu Yanheng, I advise you to abandon that businessman's act. There are twelve film crews shooting here right now, and the known investors behind them, besides my company and Zhong Hao, include Tianheng, Rushi, Zijingmen, Huaying... As for the higher-level forces they are connected to, don't you know that yourself...? Compared to you making enemies everywhere here, your younger brother Lu Yanchen has recently won over quite a few people. Instead of meddling in other people's family affairs, you should go back and check on your old man's health."
Pei Shaocheng's tone turned cold: "Otherwise, I really don't know if when we meet again, you will still be President Lu, or a stray dog that has been kicked out."
Lu Yanheng was being choked by Pei Shaocheng until he could hardly breathe, his face turning bright red. He struggled, and taking advantage of Pei Shaocheng's distraction in controlling him, he touched the bandage hanging down Pei Shaocheng's hand and pulled it down hard.
The bandage tightened instantly, digging into Pei Shaocheng's wound. Pei Shaocheng frowned and gasped, but Lu Yanheng quickly subdued him and launched a fierce attack on his opponent's weak point.
At the crucial moment, the door to the lounge was suddenly opened, then gently closed and locked.
As the two were grappling, they both turned to look at the source of the sound, and their movements both paused.
"Minor Cold".
Lu Yanheng was the first to let go of Pei Shaocheng. He straightened his tie, not wanting Wen Yuhan to see his rude and reckless behavior.
Pei Shaocheng stared silently at Wen Yuhan with his dark eyes, quietly hiding his bleeding hand behind his back.
Wen Yuhan held a coin in his left hand and a wire in his right, which was covered in a plaster. With his eyes half-closed and a cigarette dangling from his lips, he sighed and said, "I once wrote a play about a thief. I thought it would be more realistic, so I learned a couple of tricks. I was planning to break into his house and take the money if the client didn't pay me in the future..."
At this point, Wen Yuhan exhaled a puff of smoke and smiled, "Just kidding." He looked at Lu Yanheng and said slowly, "The locks here are bad, and the soundproofing is poor... Yanheng, let's find somewhere else to talk."
He didn't even glance at Pei Shaocheng once.
Lu Yanheng nodded, then glanced at the plaster on Wen Yuhan's wrist and his still trembling hand, and a surge of anger welled up inside him.
He avoided Pei Shaocheng and walked towards Wen Yuhan, frowning as he said in a deep voice, "I brought a doctor with me. He's in the car. Let's go check on your injury first."
"Mm." Wen Yuhan responded, a hint of guilt in his eyes. "Thank you for coming all this way."
"Let's not talk about this anymore, let's go."
Lu Yanheng tidied his hair and clothes to avoid looking too disheveled. Then he and Wen Yuhan walked out of the lounge together.
Just as he was about to reach for the door lock, Pei Shaocheng's gloomy voice came from behind him: "Don't leave."
More than once, he had watched Wen Yuhan leave in front of him with other men. Looking at the other man's back, Pei Shaocheng felt a familiar and endless panic once again.
He gritted his teeth and threatened, "If you dare to go with him today, I guarantee you'll both regret it."
His words were ruthless, much like the despicable villain in the story.
Pei Shaocheng understood that he had lost after all.
Behind the seemingly powerful threat lies a weakness and incompetence that even he himself finds shameful.
Wen Yuhan stopped and breathed a sigh of relief: "I won't leave." He said calmly, "After all, this is a job I worked very hard to get, but if I don't get my hands treated, I may never be able to hold a pen again in my life."
"I also brought a doctor with me."
“Mr. Pei.” Lu Yanheng rubbed his temples, tossed his broken glasses aside, and said calmly, “Do you even realize you brought a doctor with you?”
After saying that, he led Wen Yuhan out of the lounge and into the black Porsche.
...
The plaster was carefully peeled off. After seeing Wen Yuhan's swollen wrist, Lu Yanheng's private doctor frowned and said seriously, "No, we still need to go to the hospital for an X-ray." He then pulled out his phone's contacts. "I have a senior from my orthopedics department who works at this hospital. I'll contact him."
"Thank you for your hard work, Dr. Wang." Lu Yanheng nodded, his gaze darkening as he looked at Wen Yuhan's wrist. He then turned to Dr. Wang and asked, "Did you bring your driver's license?"
Dr. Wang nodded in understanding, switched places with Lu Yanheng, sat in the driver's seat, and started the car.
Lu Yanheng opened the back door and sat down next to Wen Yuhan. After pondering for a long time, he said in a deep voice, "Come back to Yancheng with me, Xiaohan. I've checked your work progress. Xiaoyang can handle the remaining tasks here. You don't need to..."
"Not yet," Wen Yuhan said softly. "There are a few scenes that I'm still not satisfied with, but I haven't found a solution yet."
"Then let's do it online." Lu Yanheng was a little annoyed, and his tone was inevitably a bit harsh. But he immediately realized his attitude and quickly softened his voice, "Sorry."
Wen Yuhan shook her head and looked out the window: "I should be the one saying that."
"Xiao Han." Lu Yanheng patted Wen Yuhan's shoulder. "I told you before that it would break my heart if you were like this."
Seeing Wen Yuhan lower her eyes and remain silent, he continued gently, "Can you tell me what happened between you and Pei Shaocheng before? Why did he target you like this? And why did you say those things to him and show those emotions that you never showed me?"
"It's all my fault." Wen Yuhan leaned back in the car seat, her eyes clouded with a gloomy mist, but her tone remained calm.
“Fine, I won’t force you if you don’t want to talk about it.” Lu Yanheng stared at him. “Then let’s talk about what’s going on between us… why you wouldn’t agree even though I’ve asked you to write the script for my company’s movie over and over again.”
"To be honest, I've already decided to forgo credit for this film," Wen Yuhan replied, seemingly changing the subject. "I want to give it to Xiaoyang."
"What?" Lu Yanheng was surprised.
Wen Yuhan smiled faintly: "If President Lu trusts him, Xiao Yang is indeed a very promising talent. You can talk to him directly. If needed, I will also cooperate with him."
“Xiao Han…” Lu Yanheng sighed, paused for a moment and said, “You know how I feel about you. Even if you don’t want to accept it, I thought you would at least consider me a friend.”
“Of course you are,” Wen Yuhan said softly. “That’s why I don’t need to get payment from you, nor do I need to be credited. Just treat me as a ghostwriter, and don’t tell anyone else about it.”
"You're not telling the truth."
“I’m not lying.” Wen Yuhan looked at the fiery clouds outside the car window. “I’m already very fortunate to be able to return to this industry. I don’t care about fame and fortune, as long as I don’t starve.”
He paused, then chuckled and said, "Maybe I'll suddenly get tired of it someday. If your company ever needs someone to sweep the floor then, remember to let me know... Oh well, I'm too lazy to even clean my own house."
“I thought you would be more persistent if you returned to the industry,” Lu Yanheng said.
Wen Yuhan rested her head on her left hand, closed her eyes, and then slowly opened them after a moment, saying leisurely, "Stubbornness... Being too stubborn comes at a price. I dare not do it again."
After that, neither of them spoke again. Lu Yanheng quietly scrutinized Wen Yuhan, watching the captivating gaze in his eyes gradually darken in the twilight.
He considers himself to be a good judge of character. He joined the family business right after graduation and has done countless things for the family, both good and bad. He has also met countless people, both good and bad.
He had read countless thoughts in those inscrutable eyes: flattery, scheming, hypocrisy, friendliness... but even now, he found that he still couldn't understand Wen Yuhan.
He first met Wen Yuhan by the water tower in that small fifth-tier city. He was listening with great interest to two old fishermen arguing about whose fishing rod got tangled in the other's line first. He even joined in later, smiling and lecturing others about the situation.
At the time, Lu Yanheng thought he was just a bored young man from a small town who happened to be born with the right aesthetic sense.
Lu Yanheng had even considered having a one-night stand with this person while on a business trip.
He asked Wen Yuhan what he wanted to eat, seafood or Japanese food? Or where he wanted to go for fun? Unexpectedly, the other party told him that he should go see a play instead.
Later, Lu Yanheng was surprised by Wen Yuhan's erudition from his conversation. From Western classicism to the Stanislavski system, he had his own insights on everything.
Lu Yanheng then learned that the other party was a graduate of the drama academy. However, Wen Yuhan did not tell Lu Yanheng that he was a screenwriter. He only said that he was expelled before graduation because he had angered his mentor.
Looking at the light in Wen Yuhan's eyes when he talked about drama and movies, Lu Yanheng felt that he must be a very dedicated person to art. It was very likely that he had a conflict with his mentor because of this, and that he chose to leave the school because he was unwilling to back down.
At that moment, Lu Yanheng felt as if he were drawn to this passionate person...
As he got to know him better, he realized that Wen Yuhan had told him many lies, including when he first asked her to come back to the hotel with him, Wen Yuhan said she already had a child old enough to run errands. He found this person incredibly cunning, yet also quite interesting. However, the more familiar Lu Yanheng became with her, the more he realized that he had never truly understood Wen Yuhan.
The only glimmer of information that could be gleaned was that this person had always been lonely and pessimistic, and that deep in his heart, there was always someone...
That man's name was Pei Shaocheng.
At the time, whether it was out of a desire to win or the fatal attraction of the other party, Lu Yanheng suddenly had an urgent desire to enter Wen Yuhan's world and completely replace that person named Pei Shaocheng...
And so, several years passed.
Now, his affection for Wen Yuhan has reached a point where it's impossible to reverse, and he's becoming increasingly unable to control himself.
...
A note from the author:
Kids, we're doing clip-making tonight, so I'm taking a day off! Updates will be tomorrow at 6 PM (usual time)!
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 40
Wen Yuhan's CT scan results came back, showing that it was an acute tenosynovitis attack caused by overwork.
Although it's not serious enough to require surgery, the doctor advised me to take good care of myself and apply hot compresses and medication daily.
Holding a bunch of anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving medications prescribed by the doctor, Wen Yuhan looked up and asked softly, "Could you give me a nerve block injection?"
Before the doctor could reply, Lu Yanheng frowned: "No, the side effects of the blockage are too great. Your stomach isn't good, what if it gets worse?"
"It's not that scary." Wen Yuhan smiled, then said to the doctor, "I still have some work to do, so I can't delay. Thank you for your help."
"Xiao Han," Lu Yanheng said in a low, stern voice, suppressing his anger, "listen to my advice, hmm?"
"Just this once. I promise that after I finish revising this version of the script, I will take a good rest for a while."
Lu Yanheng looked at Wen Yuhan, wanting to say something more.
But he knew this person in front of him too well; he was both soft and stubborn, and once he made up his mind, no one could persuade him otherwise.
Lu Yanheng finally pursed his lips and let out a long sigh. He then turned to the doctor beside him and said, "Mr. Wen is a writer and currently has a mission. Will a single injection have a significant impact on his health?"
"Theoretically, it's advisable to avoid it if possible, but if it's really urgent, one time shouldn't cause too much of a problem," Dr. Wang explained from the side.
In the end, the doctor still gave Wen Yuhan a nerve block injection. Dr. Wang suggested catching up with his senior from high school and staying at his place that night.
It was past nine o'clock at night when Lu Yanheng brought Wen Yuhan out of the hospital.
The Porsche drove through the night, but not on the way back to the hotel.
Wen Yuhan sat in the passenger seat, looking at Lu Yanheng beside her with a puzzled expression. Lu Yanheng kept his eyes on the road and said slowly as he drove, "I've booked a room in the suburbs. You'll come with me there tonight. Don't think about anything related to work. Just get a good night's sleep first."
Wen Yuhan tried moving her wrist and found that the pain had subsided considerably, so she said softly, "I feel much better. I still have to revise the script tonight, we'll talk later..."
"Are you considering Pei Shaocheng's feelings?" Lu Yanheng asked.
Wen Yuhan paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "No, it's simply because I still have work to do."
“One night’s rest won’t be a problem.” Lu Yanheng rolled up the car window and turned on the turn signal. “We should wait until your hand has gone down before we talk about it.”
His tone was gentle, yet carried a hint of undeniable authority.
Seeing that he couldn't persuade her otherwise, and feeling guilty for insisting on getting the injection earlier, Wen Yuhan could only nod helplessly and sigh, "Alright."
...
As it turns out, when Lu Yanheng said he "booked a room," he meant he had rented an extremely luxurious garden villa in the suburbs.
Surrounded by mountains and water, it is very quiet, and the air is filled with a faint fragrance of plum blossoms.
Looking at the grand mansion in front of her, Wen Yuhan couldn't help but glance at Lu Yanheng and chuckle, "You're spending too much for just one night."
Lu Yanheng parked the car and led Wen Yuhan into the villa, saying with a faint smile, "Young master can't stand a hard life, Teacher Wen, please be understanding."