"Mom isn't pressuring you to date or get married. You're old enough to date. Having someone by your side will make you feel warmer."
Gu Yueyue thought her mother was right, but this wasn't something she could just talk about whenever she wanted.
"I haven't found the right one yet."
After thinking for a moment, Gu's mother comforted her, "It's okay, don't rush. Take your time. My daughter is so outstanding, she will definitely find the best man."
Before Gu Yueyue could speak, her mother added, "If you like, a woman is fine too."
For some inexplicable reason, a figure flashed into Gu Yueyue's mind, and her face flushed even more.
"Mom! What are you saying!"
"Times have changed. Women can be together now, so don't limit your perspective."
"..."
Gu Yueyue still remembers when she was in junior high school, a couple of female classmates got together. Her mother said at the time, "Gu Yueyue, if you dare to follow their example and start dating early, I'll break your legs."
Thinking of this, Gu Yueyue suddenly froze. It seemed that the focus of her mother's words back then was not gender, but... puppy love?
For twenty-six years, no one, male or female, has ever made her heart flutter.
Gu Yueyue didn't care about her sexual orientation; she just hoped that her destined partner would come soon.
Gu Yueyue stayed here at noon to have lunch with her mother. Originally, she wanted to stay and keep her mother company for two days, but her mother had a strong reaction after taking the medicine at noon, so Dean Wei did not recommend that she stay overnight.
Gu Yueyue had no choice but to go back.
That evening, news of Gu Yueyue's appearance at the Haibin Mingchen Sanatorium suddenly appeared on the trending searches, and was quickly pushed to the top of the trending search list by a group of nighttime netizens.
A note from the author:
Jinjiang was down today and I couldn't open it, so I couldn't update at 9 PM. I'm so upset.
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2022-01-05 14:17:31 and 2022-01-06 22:05:24!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: 10 bottles for insomnia and excessive dreaming; 4 bottles for Jin Yiming;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter Forty-Two
Xiao Xiao came up to Xu Yi, stood on tiptoe, and held up her phone to show her, "She's very sick!"
"..."
After reading through the trending topics, Xu Yi was still unfamiliar with the world of paparazzi who made unfounded accusations and the marketing accounts that added fuel to the fire.
So, without knowing the truth, and with Xiaoxiao providing corroborating evidence, she was easily led astray by the marketing account.
"I'll go ask." Xu Yi put away her phone and was about to leave.
This matter is not simple; we cannot act recklessly without understanding the underlying causes.
Xiao Xiao didn't understand this principle. She hugged Xu Yi's leg, not letting her leave, "Take me there. I'm very useful."
Xu Yi explained the importance of the matter to her, and Xiao Xiao angrily let go of her leg.
"You just don't want me to see Xiao Gu's mother. You're a bad person."
“You’re being unreasonable. Is this something I want to do or not? Go to her and tell her you’re her child, her biological child, and see if she believes you.”
Being called a bad person by her own son made Xu Yi feel even more wronged than a little bit.
Little Dudu muttered that she was a bad person, kicked her little legs, and lay on the bed, refusing to communicate with Xu Yi.
Xu Yi didn't want to argue with her. The most important thing was to find out whether Miss Gu was sick, what kind of sickness she had, how her condition was, and whether there was any way to treat it.
After Xu Yi left, Xiao Xiao stayed at home and became angrier and angrier. Finally, she put on a concealment talisman and ran out.
Ma Youcai was filming on set. During a break, some minor celebrities from the crew gathered in small groups to gossip, focusing on terms like "trending topics" and "Gu Yueyue".
"What are you talking about?" Ma Youcai asked, leaning closer with a thermos in hand. "What's trending? What's going on?"
Chu Man'er scrolled through the messages on her phone and laughed, "Director Ma, we were talking about the trending topics. Teacher Gu spent the whole day at the Haibin Mingchen Sanatorium yesterday, and it was exposed by entertainment reporters in the early hours of the morning. Now this is all over the internet."
Ma Youcai took out his phone, opened the trending topics, and scoffed after reading them, "They're just bored and have nothing better to do."
Marketing accounts are saying that Gu Yueyue is under too much pressure and is on the verge of a mental breakdown. Some are even spreading rumors that Gu Yueyue has become deeply depressed due to the high pressure at her company and has to see a doctor.
In short, there are various theories, and the underlying meaning of each one points to the fact that Gu Yueyue has gone mad.
"Director Ma, what do you mean by that?"
Chu Man'er knew about the relationship between Ma Youcai and Gu Yueyue and was thinking of digging some dirt on Ma Youcai, but Ma Youcai glared at her and said, "What do you mean? What do you guys mean by this? Gathering here to gossip about your fellow actors, do you think my little studio is too deserted?"
Ma Youcai berated the actors who were watching the spectacle, and they left embarrassed and slunk away.
Chu Man'er's face was even more unpleasant. After Ma Youcai left, she muttered and cursed behind his back.
Filming continued in the afternoon. During a fight scene, Chu Man'er couldn't get it right no matter what. She even came over to ask Ma Youcai if she could use a stunt double, which infuriated Ma Youcai.
"Okay, stunt double. I'll have someone find you a stunt double. You can rest now." Ma Youcai turned around and gave a few instructions to the assistant director, telling them to quickly find a suitable stunt double.
Since the scene couldn't be filmed, Ma Youcai had no choice but to let everyone rest. He himself carried a thermos and wandered around the set, worrying that the Mediterranean coastline would have to be moved back again.
Just as Ma Youcai was wondering whether he should just shave his head, someone told him that a minor actor had come looking for him.
Who is it?
"She's an actress named Xu Yi. She's very young and came to our production team to earn tuition fees."
"Oh, I remember, I remember," Ma Youcai recalled. "What's she doing here?"
Ma Youcai thought highly of this young woman, but unfortunately there was no suitable role for her at the moment. Driven by his admiration for her talent and his gossip about Gu Yueyue, Ma Youcai happily went over with a thermos and a plate of sliced watermelon.
Xu saw Ma Youcai and showed a rare smile.
"Hello, Director Ma."
"Hello, hello. Did you need something? Don't be shy, have a seat. It's terribly hot today, would you like a slice of watermelon?"
"No need," Xu Yi waved her hand in refusal. "Thank you, Director Ma. I came to see you because of some things."
Ma Youcai held a slice of watermelon, took a bite, and found it juicy and sweet. He spat out the seeds and asked Xu Yi, "What is it? Tell me."
Xu Yi told Gu Yueyue about her worries.
"Teacher Gu has helped me a lot. I was very worried after seeing the news online. I couldn't get in touch with Teacher Gu, but I remembered that you and Teacher Gu were close friends, so I wanted to come here to ask about the situation. Is Teacher Gu alright?"
Ma Youcai put down the watermelon in his hand, his expression becoming somewhat strange. He looked at Xu Yi intently, but perhaps because she looked too harmless, and because she spoke so frankly about gathering information, Ma Youcai couldn't bring himself to speculate.
"Okay, I'll call her for you and ask. You'll know the answer if you ask her directly." Ma Youcai was worried that he had finished eating the melon in his hand, but the melon in his heart was still nowhere to be found.
Gu Yueyue had just finished discussing the countermeasures with Xiao Ye when Xiao Ye suggested turning the tables and not denying going to the hospital, but instead directing the blame at the company, letting the public see how the company was exploiting her, and paving the way for not renewing her contract in the future.
After careful discussion, the two felt the plan was feasible, so they asked Ono to contact someone to make detailed preparations, while Gu Yueyue simply waited to see how things would develop.
I didn't expect to receive a call from Ma Youcai as soon as I got home.
"Director Ma, you're not here to check on my mental state too, are you?" Gu Yueyue had just finished dealing with this matter and was in a pretty good mood, so she could even tease Ma Youcai when she received his call.
Ma Youcai laughed and said, "I'm not worried about you. Someone saw the trending topic and was so anxious that they came to me for help. Tsk tsk tsk."
As Ma Youcai spoke, he looked at Xu Yi. Seeing the girl sitting there with a serious expression, he was surprised. Just as he was marveling at how she could remain unmoved by his teasing, he noticed the blush spreading across the tips of Xu Yi's ears.
"Is Xiao Xu with you?"
Gu Yueyue didn't expect that she would blurt out the question.
Ma Youcai's smile became even more peculiar. "I haven't even said anything, and you've already guessed everything? Is this a sign of our perfect understanding, or are you two just on the same wavelength? Huh? Tell me about it?"
Gu Yueyue was speechless. When Ma Youcai said that someone was worried about her and couldn't get in touch with her, the first person she thought of was Xu Yi.
Feeling embarrassed by Ma Youcai's teasing, Gu Yueyue said to him in a cold voice, "Give the phone to Xiao Xu, I have something to say to her."
"What, you won't let me listen?" Ma Youcai handed the phone to Xu Yi. "Here you go. ...I've been bad at making friends, I've crossed the river and burned the bridge."
Xu Yi took Ma Youcai's phone. She had just overheard Ma Youcai and Miss Gu's conversation, and Miss Gu's tone didn't seem to indicate that there was anything wrong.
"Teacher Gu, are you alright?"
"Yes. It's kind of you that Xiao Xu still thinks of me. I'm fine, don't worry."
"That's good."
"Hmm..." Gu Yueyue had something to say, but she hesitated and couldn't speak for a long time.
"Teacher Gu, is there anything you'd rather not tell me?"
"no."
It was quiet on Gu Yueyue's end, and Xu Yi stopped urging her. The two of them held their phones in silence, so quiet that they could clearly hear each other's breathing, like fine downy feathers, tickling their itchy hearts...
Ma Youcai suddenly leaned out and said, "Hurry up, the phone bill costs money."
Gu Yueyue naturally heard his loud voice clearly.
Gu Yueyue held her phone, both amused and exasperated, and said to Xu Yi, "Xiao Xu, write down my phone number. Contact me directly if you need anything in the future."
"Okay, sure." Xu Yi's voice was soft, her heart pounding with excitement. Getting their contact information was proof that their relationship was progressing further.
Gu Yueyue read it aloud and asked if she had memorized it. Xu Yi then read it aloud after her.
"Yes, this is it. If it's convenient for you, just call me later."
"good."
The two hung up the phone, and Xu Yi returned the phone to Ma Youcai, saying, "Thank you, Director Ma."
Ma Youcai took the phone and was about to tease her when he saw Xu Yi take a coin out of her pocket and give it to him.
"I'll give you the phone credit." Xu Yi took what he just said seriously.
Ma Youcai stared at the coin for a long time before finally being amused by her silly behavior.
"Are you trying to belittle me in a roundabout way?" Ma Youcai took the coin from her hand. "You're quite something."
Xu Yi didn't understand what he meant by those words, but she felt relieved after seeing that he had accepted the money.
When Xu Yi got home, Gu Yueyue's phone rang, the one she had been waiting for.
For more than three hours, Gu Yueyue kept wondering if the girl had forgotten her number, which was why she hadn't called back.