Abstract Art Award Winner

Dilraba hugged the giant snowman doll, which almost completely blocked her view.

The two continued their stroll through the streets. When they passed by Christmas carol performances, they would stop to listen and sway to the rhythm; when they saw a beautiful Christmas tree, they would approach passersby and ask them to take a photo of the two Santa Clauses wearing masks and holding snowmen with their phones.

Beneath the thick mask, breathing was somewhat humid and hot, and vision was limited.

But an unprecedented sense of ease and joy filled them.

No need to worry about being recognized, no need to worry about rumors, and no need to worry about managing your facial expressions. You can simply immerse yourself in the joy of the holiday and the company of each other.

"Are you tired? If you are, let's take a break."

"Not tired at all, not at all. I haven't been this happy shopping in a very long time." Reba said while hugging the doll tightly. After speaking, she quietly moved closer to Zhou Le: "Le'er, thank you. This Christmas is very special to me."

Zhou Le smiled and suddenly turned to look at Dilraba. Although they were separated by a mask, their eyes met.

Immediately afterwards, Zhou Le suddenly reached out and hugged Dilraba's waist, then slowly moved closer and kissed Dilraba's mask with his own.

"Hey, what are you doing? This is on the street."

"Haha, what's there to be afraid of? We're an old married couple, why should we worry about such things at our age?"

Zhou Le said he was completely unconcerned about his current situation. The scene of the two "kissing" had been filmed by passersby, and many people around were applauding them.

No one expected that Zhou Le and Dilraba were behind those two masks.

Zhou Le's composure contrasted sharply with Dilraba's shyness. Amidst the applause of the crowd, Dilraba grabbed Zhou Le and fled as if flying.

"I feel like the way we're doing right now is like we're having an affair," Dilraba said as they finally reached a secluded spot.

"Aren't we having an affair? If we could do it openly, why would we need to wear masks? Don't you think so?"

"Yes, sometimes I think, if only we weren't celebrities, we could do whatever we want, we could kiss openly in the street without wearing masks."

Zhou Le laughed upon hearing this: "That won't do. If we weren't entertainers, we definitely wouldn't be as financially free as we are now, able to do whatever we want and go wherever we want. Maybe if we weren't entertainers, we'd all be working somewhere right now, toiling away overtime while watching others enjoy the holidays."

"Wow, that's so vivid. No wonder you used to be a working-class person."

"Yes, I've done it, so I know very well that most people don't actually not want to work hard or just want to be lazy; it's just that the same job pays too little, so they have no motivation at all."

"Sigh, so we're actually quite lucky?"

"Relatively lucky? We're extremely lucky."

The two chatted while holding hands.

Then she remembered the kiss from earlier.

"Hehehe, have you ever kissed someone in the street before?"

"Of course not. How could someone as reserved as me kiss someone in the street?"

"Then why did you kiss me just now, in front of so many people?"

Zhou Le said, "That doesn't count. We didn't even stick our tongues out, so what kind of kiss is that?"

Dilraba gasped, "What? You're going to stick your tongue out too? How could you be that kind of person?"

Zhou Le shrugged, neither confirming nor denying it.

The holiday was still long, so after shopping at the mall, they went to a special attraction in the evening. It was mostly sightseeing and performances, which the two of them enjoyed. But what made them happiest was having someone to accompany them during the holiday.

They continued like this until around 10 o'clock, when they finally finished shopping and prepared to go back.

On the way back, the two finally took off their masks and chatted about what they had seen and heard that evening, as well as how they felt when they kissed through their masks outside the mall.

The snowman they bought was placed on the back seat. Because of their status as celebrities, the snowman would definitely not be seen in public in the future, but even so, Dilraba was willing to place it in the most conspicuous place in her home.

They took off their shoes only after they got home.

"Phew, I'm finally back. It feels like I've been through a war, with forced marches and undercover work, just like a spy movie."

Zhou Le took a deep breath. The warm air in the room carried a fresh fragrance. Dilraba's assistant had already removed the hot pot smell from the room.

Dilraba went into the bathroom to fix her hair and check if her makeup was smudged too much.

As she looked in the mirror, she suddenly saw Zhou Le. Zhou Le came up behind her and naturally reached out to tuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. His fingertips brushed against her slightly warm earlobe, and they both paused for a moment.

Reba tilted her head slightly, not looking away, but instead looked up at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes: "I don't see you're tired at all. You were quite energetic outside, like 'Santa Claus'."

As she spoke, she picked up a mask that was placed not far away and waved it in front of Zhou Le: "Now that we're back, Santa's mission is complete, but shouldn't we do some of Santa's duties at home too?"

Zhou Le raised an eyebrow, immediately understanding, and then picked up the mask and put it on, deliberately lowering his voice to imitate Santa Claus's tone: "Oh, beautiful lady, what Christmas present do you want? My reindeer and sleigh are parked downstairs."

"Me? I want a lot of gifts, I wonder if you've brought enough?"

Zhou Le smiled and said, "Of course, my reindeer are very powerful."

"How powerful?"

"Just as amazing as you."

At this point, Dilraba suddenly remembered something, then went to the living room. Instead of taking the mask, she found the glowing deer antler headband she had bought while shopping earlier, and put it on Zhou Le's head without saying a word.

She wore this the whole way.

But then he took off Zhou Le's Santa Claus mask and put it on his own face.

"From now on, our roles have changed. You are the reindeer, and I am Santa Claus."

As she spoke, she jumped and pounced into Zhou Le's arms, her long legs measuring Zhou Le's waist.

Zhou Le was worried that the other person would fall, so he reached out and caught him.

"I've never seen Santa Claus ride a reindeer like that. Don't they usually sit on a sleigh pulled by reindeer? And even if they were to ride, they should be on his back, not like that?"

Zhou Le carried the other person around the house while talking.

"It's okay, it's more secure this way. I'm afraid of falling."

Zhou Le carried the other person around the room a few times before finally entering the bathroom. He then closed the door, and soon the sound of water began to run inside.

Along with the sound of water, Zhou Le's voice could be heard: "Did you just close the curtains in the living room?"

"They're already drawn. How could you not close the windows and draw the curtains in winter?"

"Oh, that's good. By the way, how's the heating here at night?"

"The heating is great too. It's usually very warm at home, so I just wear a nightgown or a tank top."

"That's fine then." "Heh, you're testing me with this? I already knew what you were up to, so I turned on the air conditioner before I came in. It's nice and warm in here now."

Hearing this, Zhou Le felt relieved. He wasn't worried about the cold himself, but he was mainly afraid that Reba would get cold.

After showering, Dilraba dressed up as Santa Claus again, riding Zhou Le, who was dressed as a reindeer, out of the bathroom.

"Your most loyal reindeer will bring you warmth and take you wherever you want to go."

Zhou Le said.

"Then I want to go there now."

"Ok."

Zhou Le quickly walked to the sofa and plopped down on it.

The sofa is soft, so it's naturally very comfortable to sit on.

As Reba herself said, she didn't feel safe at all, so she clung tightly to Zhou Le's reindeer neck, afraid of falling off, since the ride was too bumpy.

After a while, Zhou Le took off the antlers from his head and put them on Reba.

"Alright, emperors can take turns being emperors, now it's my turn to be Santa Claus."

And so the two of them took turns role-playing, wearing antlers, bells, and masks, as well as Santa hats, reins, and all sorts of other accessories.

After the third trip, Dilraba leaned against Zhou Le's chest, feeling her face burning hot.

"Santa Claus, where's my Christmas present?"

Zhou Le is well aware that what Dilraba is talking about now is definitely not the gift she gave him on Sunday morning.

So he gently stroked Reba's cheek: "Only obedient children receive gifts. You were a good child tonight."

Dilraba's voice was barely audible, with a hint of coquettishness: "I've always been a good boy/girl, Mr. Santa Claus, so where's my present?"

"The gift? I've brought it with me, you just need to open it yourself..."

……

Another half hour later, Dilraba opened a bottle of red wine, and the two drank some and rested for a while.

Zhou Le asked, "What about my gift?"

"Your gift? So, are you a good child?"

"I might not be a well-behaved child; I'm more of a mischievous one."

"Then there's no gift..."

Before Dilraba could finish speaking, Zhou Le stood up.

"No? If not, then there's nothing I can do. I'll have to come and get it myself."

……

It was already the next day when the Christmas games ended.

After Christmas Eve, the next day is the official Christmas Day.

Although the atmosphere outside is still strong, and some activities are still ongoing, their festival is over.

The two silently tidied up the various props on the ground, their minds filled with yesterday's madness, but their mouths were talking about serious business.

"Le'er, I have something to tell you. Tencent is going to produce another TV series recently, and they've contacted me, saying they want me to act in it. It's a kind of urban idol drama, but the theme is e-sports plus romance. I've already been confirmed as the female lead, but the male lead hasn't been completely decided yet."

However, I have talked to them about this, and they said that the male lead is basically being chosen from two people: you and Yang Yang.

Because Yang Yang had previously filmed a similar e-sports themed TV series, which was quite popular and had good viewership, his side of the industry is quite inclined to support him.

But you're already a top star at Tencent Pictures, with all the resources at the S+ level, and you also have a lot of fans in the e-sports circle, so they said they might consider you, and they even asked for my opinion, asking who I wanted to collaborate with.

Zhou Le was holding a pair of red stockings, which was the same ones Dilraba wore during her cosplay yesterday.

"Then what did you say?"

“I told them I would prefer to work with you, but they said they need to have another meeting, which will probably only take a day or two. If they can make a decision, they will probably ask for your opinion.”

Zhou Le nodded, but before he could ask anything else, his phone suddenly rang.

When I picked it up, I was surprised to find that it was a call from Tencent Pictures.

Before he could even put down the stockings in his hand, Zhou Le answered the phone.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the other party explained their purpose.

"Teacher Zhou, I'm calling you because we're about to produce a TV series. We've already prepared for the project approval, and we've found most of the other actors. The only thing left to do is to finalize the male lead role."

After our meeting, we felt that you were more suitable, and even General Manager Cheng said that you were the most suitable for this role. Because in the past, you have always played roles in movies or serious dramas, or male-oriented leading roles, but after filming "Love and Redemption" this year, the response has been very good.

Furthermore, since you haven't acted in a modern urban romance drama yet, I was wondering what your thoughts are, and whether you have the time or interest in coming.

Zhou Le glanced at Reba and thought to himself, "She's here really fast."

"Sure, but we can sit down and talk about the schedule when we have time. After all, I have quite a few projects next year, several of which are in cooperation with Tencent."

"No problem, let's schedule a time later. We can invite the lead actress, Dilraba, to join us so we can all chat together."

"Row."

Zhou Le nodded and then hung up the phone.

"See, what did I tell you? They're definitely more interested in you. Back then, I not only met with CEO Cheng Wu, but also Yao Xiaoguang and Sun Huaizhong. These three people who can make decisions are more willing to work with you. Although there are two producers who prefer Yang Yang, their words don't carry as much weight as those of the CEOs."

"That's true, but we'll be the leads in this movie. Do you know who else is in the cast?"

Dilraba thought for a moment: "Among the remaining people, I also know Teacher Pan Yueming and Sister Hu Ke. Let me tell you an inside story: whether they film this movie or not depends on the situation. If they invite Yang Yang, then the male and female leads will become Teacher Pan and Sister Hu Ke."

If you were in the lead role, we'd be the male and female leads. That's a factor in determining the billing order, because you have a stronger influence and wider audience.

Besides those two, I know of Jin Chen among the confirmed actors. You should know Jin Chen, she's from Tangren Media, but I don't know her current situation with Tangren. Another one is Zheng Hehuizi, she's an actress from Wanhe Tianyi.

Zhou Le was no stranger to Zheng Hehuizi, as he had a good relationship with Wan He and his gang.

I saw the other person appear when I watched "Unexpectedly" before.

I never expected to have the opportunity to work with them in the same drama. (End of Chapter)