— He poured wine directly at Ji Mingshu.
Ji Mingshu provoked her first, so no amount of retaliation from her was excessive. Moreover, everyone knew that Ji Mingshu was willful and capricious, so no matter what she said or who she was talking to, she was always in the right.
Just like in his student days, no matter what the truth is, Ji Mingshu will never get anything out of her.
Just as she was about to throw the wine, Cen Sen suddenly turned around and looked at her with a cold and direct gaze.
Li Wenying was startled, but she couldn't take the wine glass back from her hand.
Without much thought, Cen Sen grasped Ji Mingshu's slender white wrist with one hand and gently pulled her behind him. With his other hand, he firmly and accurately twisted Li Wenyin's wrist bone, bending it inward and forcefully changing the tilt of the wine glass at the last moment.
The purplish-red liquid flowed up Li Wenying's arm, quickly staining her apricot A-line skirt. The stains dripped onto the ground from her arm and hem.
She pursed her lips, her face pale.
Firstly, Cen Sen truly showed no mercy, ruthlessly breaking her wrist, which caused her great pain.
Secondly, she genuinely couldn't believe that Cen Sen was so heartless as to fight her for a woman like Ji Mingshu.
Cen Sen met her gaze, his voice cold and devoid of even basic politeness. He was simply running out of patience and giving her an ultimatum: "Li Wenying, that's enough."
In that instant, Li Wenying suddenly felt that the man in front of her was very unfamiliar, completely different from the handsome and gentle boy from ten years ago.
She shook her head gently, muttering to herself, seemingly finding it hard to accept reality, "Ah Sen, how could you have become like this?"
Those who truly understand Cen Sen will know that he has always been this way.
Li Wenying was simply trapped in her own embellished memories and her own filtered fantasies, unable to extricate herself.
She had forgotten that even the handsome and gentle boy from ten years ago, after accepting her pursuit, had not shown her much tenderness or affection.
What she missed and liked was perhaps never Cen Sen, but rather the jealousy and envy she received from her peers after dating him; the conveniences and preferential treatment that came with Cen Sen; and the sense of presence that made her the center of attention and the girlfriend of a top student.
She never experienced such glory again in her life.
The PR person in charge of "Zero Degrees" noticed the sudden situation on their side and was about to step forward to mediate and handle it. They also called several security guards via walkie-talkie to prevent anyone from deliberately causing trouble so that they could be kicked out.
But as soon as she took a step, someone suddenly grabbed her arm. "Don't worry about it."
Looking back, it turned out to be Gu Kaiyang, who had been appearing and disappearing mysteriously since the start of the event.
"Sister Gu, over there..."
Gu Kaiyang looked in the direction she was speaking, his eyes fixed on her, a slight upturn at the corners of his lips, and reiterated, "I said, don't worry about it, I'll take responsibility."
—Their little princess has been holding this in for years, and she finally got to see Cen Sen make a move, so how could she be easily interrupted?
PR obviously couldn't understand, but since Gu Kaiyang had given such an order, she could only dismiss the security personnel and pretend to be blind.
This happened in front of the dessert table, and Jiang Chun happened to be nearby.
Attracted by the commotion of this couple's combined doubles attack, she sat up from the beanbag chair, staring blankly for a moment, forgetting to eat her cake. She unconsciously waved her little fork, silently chanting in her mind: "Chop her up, chop her up, keep chopping her up! Our little canary baby, that shrew Li Xiaolian, who has suffered so much injustice, must die on the spot and be reduced to ashes!!!"
However, the little goose's wish was destined to be in vain.
Despite all her faults, Li Wenying was still Cen Sen's ex-girlfriend with whom he had a proper relationship. To publicly assault and verbally abuse an ex-girlfriend is something no normal man would do, let alone Cen Sen.
In truth, Cen Sen's intervention and stern warning had already greatly surprised Ji Mingshu. She had initially thought that Cen Sen pulled her back to shield her from the drink. How could someone as rational as him…
She stood behind Cen Sen, and it took her a long, long time to realize that what she had imagined—that Cen Sen would stand against Li Wenying to protect her—had actually happened.
She tugged at Cen Sen's sleeve and secretly glanced at Li Wenying, only to be met with Li Wenying's undisguised look of hatred.
Yeah, for some reason, it just feels really good.
She forgot the occasion for a moment, gave Li Wenying a sweet smile in a manipulative way, and shrugged, her eyes full of helplessness as if to say, "Sorry, my husband is so protective of his own, I really can't stop him."
The next second, Cen Sen turned around, and she instantly changed her expression to play the innocent and naive girl, timidly tugging at his sleeve, looking kind and unwilling to argue with this woman.
Unexpectedly, Cen Sen was really susceptible to this, and took her hand and even patted her head to comfort her.
The "plastic besties" who were watching the show had been immersed in a life of extravagance for over a decade, and their eyesight was incredibly sharp. They had been standing quietly at the back, but now, sensing the end of the show, they rushed forward one after another to put on a grand performance, comforting Ji Mingshu while also dissing Li Wenying.
"Honey, you're just too kind. What kind of people are these? They're bullying you and you don't even care. I'm so angry!"
"Xiao Shu has always been a kind-hearted person. Did you only meet Xiao Shu today? Oh, right, I suddenly remembered my friend saying that she is most afraid of offending writers, painters, and filmmakers. If she makes them unhappy, who knows how she will be portrayed in their so-called works. These days, there are more and more people using the banner of artistic creation to vent their personal grievances."
"Yes, in my opinion, this kind of person should be banned!"
“Those with questionable private morality should also be banned.”
"I think the scariest thing these days isn't people using artistic creation as a pretext to vent personal grievances, but rather people using artistic creation as a pretext to indulge in daydreams. I've never seen a man who fantasizes about having a wife and then still thinks about her and is deeply in love with her after marriage."
"You've seen it now, haven't you?"
Several girls couldn't help but giggle.
After laughing, someone else said, "Xiao Shu, let's not participate in these kinds of events anymore. Anyone can get an invitation."
"Even without an invitation, you can still sneak in with those who do have one; who can stop that?"
They exchanged a knowing smile, glancing at Li Wenying with the same disdain in their eyes.
Ji Mingshu usually doesn't appreciate praise, but standing next to Cen Sen and receiving such compliments makes her feel a little guilty. Moreover, the mockery and glances from these fake beauties are so on point that she's embarrassed to look back at Li Wenying's expression.
But... it's still so much fun!
She was so excited that she felt a little dizzy, but she was afraid that going too far would make Cen Sen dislike her and feel sorry for Li Wenying. So she hurriedly agreed to several invitations to spend money and then apologized and said that she had to go first.
As she spoke, she looked around for Gu Kaiyang and Jiang Chun. Gu Kaiyang was probably too guilty about colluding with the enemy, so she didn't see him. But she spotted Jiang Chun immediately.
She quietly gestured to Jiang Chun to make a phone call, then pulled Cen Sen along, and surrounded by a bunch of plastic flowers, they left the chaotic event first.
"Um, do you think I've been a bit too harsh on Li Wenying?" On the way home amidst the falling snow of winter, Ji Mingshu couldn't help but ask Cen Sen this question.
"Won't."
Cen Sen looked at his schedule on the tablet and answered without hesitation.
Ji Mingshu felt a little relieved, stole a few glances at Cen Sen, tucked a stray hair behind her ear, and put on a nonchalant look. While playing with her phone, she asked, "Li Wenying said you're completely different from before, but I feel like you're the same as before... When you were dating Li Wenying, were you gentler?"
After waiting for a while without receiving a reply from Cen Sen, she muttered to herself, "Anyway, I'll know when the movie is released."
Cen Sen covered the tablet. "The movie won't be released."
...?
He had warned Li Wenying more than once not to make the film, but she wouldn't listen. Even after Junyi withdrew his investment, she insisted on getting investment from the Yuan family to prove him wrong. Therefore, he couldn't guarantee at what stage the film might encounter unsolvable problems.
After all, the process of a film going from its initial conception to its official release is complex and time-consuming. The film industry is also highly sensitive these days; it's not impossible for a film to be pulled from theaters just one day before its release. And the later the problems arise, the heavier the price to pay. Before audiences have finished watching and given their opinions, who can truly say they've released a film?
"It won't be released?" Ji Mingshu asked hesitantly, confirming again.
Cen Sen hummed in agreement and then said, "Wait a little longer, there's no rush."
The last stone weighing on Ji Mingshu's heart was finally removed by Cen Sen himself. She turned to look out the window, but she couldn't bring herself to smile.
As the Bentley drove from the event venue to Mingshui Mansion, at the fork in the road just before entering the suburbs, Cen Sen looked at the sign of a fresh food supermarket not far away and suddenly asked, "Ming Shu, do you want to eat braised pork ribs today?"
"..."
Now, whenever Ji Mingshu hears the word "ribs," she blushes and her heart races almost reflexively. She kept looking out the window until the traffic light was about to change before stammering, "It's...okay, I haven't had them in a long time."
The driver understood and turned towards the supermarket.
After Ji Mingshu finished speaking, her face turned bright red, just like that of a naive teenage girl, and her heart was pounding so fast that she had no choice but to open a crack in the window to let in some fresh air.
The snow in the capital city is always thick and biting.
A cold wind carrying snowflakes drifted in through the window cracks and landed on Ji Mingshu's hair. Cen Sen suddenly leaned over and covered her hair, removing the snowflakes. He then whispered in her ear, "I'll make it for you when we get home."
Chapter 56
Ji Mingshu's clothes were stained with red wine, and she didn't get out of the car when Cen Sen went to buy ribs.
When Cen Sen returned, the Bentley sped all the way to Mingshui Mansion.
As evening approached, the snow had stopped, and the sky was a pale, lingering gray, the light dim. On the island in the lake, the trees and plants were all covered in a blanket of white, and the streetlights stretched out in a winding path, casting a gentle glow. Ji Mingshu suddenly realized that this was the first time she had ever seen the Mingshui Mansion covered in snow.
Back home, Cen Sen carried supermarket shopping bags to the kitchen island.
Ji Mingshu glanced at the red wine stains on her body, greeted him, and hurriedly went upstairs to take a shower.
Before taking a shower, Ji Mingshu stood in front of the wardrobe where her pajamas were placed for a full five minutes, hesitating.
She would occasionally pick out a dress and try it on herself, but she was never satisfied. Pale yellow was too childish, burgundy was too sexy, a full set of pajamas that covered her hands and feet was too conservative, and the lace dress had an overly eager feel to it, not at all reserved.
After thinking for a while, she picked out a few items to take photos of and sent them to the group chat for Jiang Chun and Gu Kaiyang to give her advice.
Gu Kaiyang remained feigning death, while Jiang Chun was the first to give his reply.
Jiang Chun: [The green one is nice, but why are you asking? Are you having a pajama party? I'd love to go sometime!]
Ji Mingshu completely ignored the second half of her sentence, 【What green is there?】
Jiang Chun: [Isn't the second one green?]
Ji Mingshu: 【…It's clearly hazy blue, are you colorblind?】
Ji Mingshu: [Forget it, I must be crazy to ask for your opinion.]
Jiang Chun: [Weak, pitiful, and helpless.jpg]
For some reason, the two started their daily meme war again. During this meme war, Jiang Chun finally realized something was wrong—the background in Ji Mingshu's picture was so high-class, it was clearly no longer Gu Kaiyang's little pigeon coop!
She pressed him for answers several times, but Ji Mingshu evaded the question and refused to give a direct answer.
Gu Kaiyang had been silently watching the screen, and finally couldn't resist popping up a comment.
Gu Kaiyang: [What's the difference what you wear? You'll have to take it off anyway.]
The chat group suddenly fell silent.
Thirty seconds later, Jiang Chun started spamming the screen.
Jiang Chun: [Waaaaah, I'm just a simple, adorable little goose.]
Jiang Chun: [What did I do wrong to deserve having my pure heart corrupted by you all!]
Jiang Chun: [I suspect you're involved in pornography and I already have evidence!]
...
Nobody paid any attention to her.