Abstract Art Award Winner

Li Qin's teasing remark was like a feather gently brushing against Zhou Le's heart.

The backstage corridor was brightly lit and bustling with people, yet at this moment, everyone seemed to become an insignificant background.

I glanced around and saw that no one was there.

Li Qin said in a low voice.

"Want to start a game?"

Zhou Le: "???"

When did this girl become so bold?
This place invites you to start a game?

But Zhou Le thought about it and realized that it was the end of the year, and not only were office workers eager to go home for the Chinese New Year holiday, but they were also looking forward to making a final push for sales before the holiday.

And the paparazzi went completely mad.

The New Year's Day holiday was fine, but the pressure came right after it ended.

Everyone wants to create some big news, earn a wave of public relations fees at the end of the year, and then have a good New Year.

"Forget it, let's wait a while. It's not safe right now."

Li Qin knew what Zhou Le meant.

"Sigh, okay, but you're going to be filming a movie after the New Year."

"There's no other way. I'll come find you after I finish filming the movie. If things are a bit better then, we can take a trip to Japan."

Li Qin's face lit up with joy: "Great!"

It doesn't really matter where we go, as long as I can be with Jiang Zhoule.

The reason is simple.

Just take on any business deal you need when the time comes.

After discussing their future plans, Li Qin looked at Zhou Le and asked, "But what exactly did you mean by what you said before?"

Zhou Le turned his head to look at Li Qin's cunning eyes, lowered his voice, and curled a wicked smile at the corner of his mouth: "Sister Qin, it depends on... what the job requires, and... what the people need." He deliberately emphasized the word "people," his eyes searching with a meaningful look.

A faint blush rose on Li Qin's cheeks. She glared at Zhou Le reproachfully and raised her hand as if to hit him: "Stop joking with me! Be careful I tell Nazha... or Reba?" She deliberately dragged out the last syllable, with a hint of threat and a sense of watching a show.

"Oh, my dear sister!" Zhou Le immediately raised her hands in surrender, her expression exaggerated. "I was just sincerely expressing my love for my work and my... well, my enthusiasm for life! It's all so innocent! Please don't take this out of context, my little body can't withstand the 'care' of both of them at the same time."

"What a character!" Li Qin chuckled, her eyes sparkling. "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. I know you're busy, a very busy person. Go and take care of your golden voice, don't let us down on the Spring Festival Gala." She waved her hand, turned and walked in another direction, her back swaying gracefully.

Zhou Le watched her retreating figure, shaking his head with a smile. A sense of propriety is crucial when dealing with intelligent and tactful actresses like these.

The best approach is to keep the banter brief and to understand each other implicitly.

It's also easier to get the hang of it.

As soon as I got in the car and turned on my phone, which had been switched off during rehearsal, it started vibrating wildly.

The end of the year is the peak time for film promotion, with requests from all sides flying in like snowflakes.

Zhou Le swiped the screen, and at the top of the list was Wang Baoqiang's voice message. He clicked on it, and Wang Baoqiang's signature Henan accent, which was both honest and shrewd, rang out:
"Le'er! Bro! What are you busy with? Detective Chinatown 3 is about to be released on Chinese New Year's Day! Can you help me with the promotion? Just post a Weibo, I'll remember it! If you need my support later, just let me know! Director Chen also said that if there's anything I can help with in the future, just let me know!"

Zhou Le smiled. He and Wang Baoqiang did have a good relationship; they had become friends back when they went to the film festival.

Although Chen Sicheng is shrewd and calculating, he is capable and has abundant resources. There's no harm in simply building a good relationship through cooperation.

He replied with a voice message: "Brother Qiang, don't worry! I'll definitely support you! I'll post it right away! If you have any copy, you can send it to me; if not, I'll figure it out myself!"

"Just do whatever you think is best, no need to make it too complicated."

"Okay, remember to send me a few posters later, I'll use them when I post them."

Just after I replied to Baoqiang, Jialing's message popped up.

Her tone carried her unique cheerfulness and a touch of trepidation:

"Teacher Zhou, can you help me out? This is my first time directing a movie about my mom, and I'm really unsure of myself! I'm so nervous. I know you're incredibly busy at the end of the year, but could you please put in a good word for me? I'll treat you to ten hot pot meals! All you can eat!"

Zhou Le greatly admired Jia Ling's sincerity and sense of humor. He also remembered that although the film was produced by Jia Ling's Big Bowl Entertainment and most of the actors were from their own circle, Shen Teng was also in it.

So he replied almost without hesitation: "Sister Ling, you're being too polite! I'll definitely show my support! I've got the hotpot on my mind, ten meals, not one less! I've seen the movie trailer, it looks good! Looking forward to seeing Sister Ling's blockbuster!"

After saying that, he also asked the other party for a few posters.

After agreeing to promote two major films, Zhou Le was just about to catch his breath when a familiar profile picture lit up again—Yang Mi.

"Boss Zhou, would you do me the honor of having a casual meal?" The message was followed by a playful razor blade emoji.

Zhou Le raised an eyebrow and replied, "Time and place?"

Yang Mi quickly sent me the address of a highly private club.

"Come on now."

Inside a quiet private room at the club at night, Yang Mi was already there.

Wearing a simple off-white knit sweater and light makeup, she looked somewhat languid, even... carrying a hint of subtle melancholy, having shed her usual sharpness.

Her figure remains as explosive as ever.

Aside from still having very little hair, her face was still as delicate as a young girl's.

"Money really does make you stronger. If someone else were this busy, they would have aged prematurely by now," Zhou Le thought to himself.

Yang Mi swirled the red wine in her glass, watching Zhou Le push the door open and enter.

"Oh, the busy man has arrived? I thought we couldn't get a chance to invite such a great person like you."

His tone was half-true, half-false, with a hint of barb.

Zhou Le sat down opposite her and poured himself a glass of water: "If Sister Mi calls, I'll come even if it means going through fire and water. Especially since it's such an exciting thing as having a secret meeting in a private club in the middle of the night." He deliberately emphasized the words "middle of the night," with a teasing tone.

"Stop being so sarcastic." Yang Mi rolled her eyes at him, put down her wine glass, leaned forward slightly, rested her elbows on the table, and propped her chin up. "Assassination of a Novelist is a film mainly invested in by my company, and you know Director Lu Yang. The film is of good quality, but as you know, the Spring Festival season is fiercely competitive, with more wolves than sheep. In terms of publicity and distribution... we need your help, Zhou, the top star."

Yang Mi speaks frankly.

Her voice was as captivating as ever. "Since Sister Honey has spoken, there's definitely no problem." Zhou Le readily agreed. "I've actually seen this promotional video. The concept is quite interesting, similar to the online novels I used to read. I'll cooperate with the promotion later; just send me the text and pictures directly."

"I knew you'd be a good friend." Yang Mi smiled.

"I thought I would have to do a lot of talking, after all, with Mr. Zhou's current popularity, a simple advertisement can easily earn at least a million, and my tea is far from enough."

Zhou Le laughed: "Yeah, I thought it would take a lot of talking, but I didn't expect it would really only take a little talking. But to be honest, who told Sister Mi to be the first one to take a liking to me? If it weren't for Sister Mi, I might have left the entertainment industry long ago."

Yang Mi covered her mouth and laughed for a long time. Even though she was already a charming and alluring married woman, Zhou Liao still saw a girlish feeling in her.

"The way you're saying that makes it sound like I'm keeping you as a mistress."

"Hey, Honey, you should have said so earlier! If you'd mentioned skincare earlier, I would have agreed already!"

Yang Mi: "So you mean you don't want to sign with Jaywalk Studio, and would rather be kept by me?"

"That is required."

"Hey, I wasn't divorced yet back then."

"That's perfect, I'd love to be a caged bird."

Yang Mi shook her head: "You? You want to be a caged bird? You're not the type to be a caged bird. No matter what, you're the kind of roc that can fly to the sky. No company can keep you, just like all the women around you, but none of them can really keep you by their side."

Zhou Le: "Sis, don't talk nonsense. I'm still a virgin."

"Come on, stop making your honey sister laugh. You're a virgin? Then I'm still a little cook."

Yang Mi sneered, not believing Zhou Le's words at all.

However, her smile quickly faded, and her gaze drifted to the window with a strange sense of detachment. "These days, publicity is more exhausting than filming. You know, when people are famous, everything is easy to talk about. But once there's even the slightest bit of trouble..." She didn't finish her sentence, but shook her head meaningfully and took a sip of her drink.

Zhou Le didn't respond; he knew what Yang Mi was referring to. The biggest "storm" in the industry recently was the dog-owning ex-couple's abandonment scandal—it was a nuclear-level shock, leaving the entire industry in a state of panic, everyone fearing being implicated, especially those who had given birth.

“This is truly eye-opening,” Yang Mi laughed self-deprecatingly, lowering her voice even further. “I used to think our industry was chaotic enough, with very low standards. But now… ha, it turns out that standards really don’t exist. Even children can… tsk tsk.”

She didn't name the person directly, but the implication was extremely clear.

Then, as if remembering something, she chuckled, "Now, even children can fall from the sky. This world is getting more and more magical."

This is clearly a veiled reference to another incident involving running with the ball.

Zhou Le remained silent, only taking a sip of water. These topics were too sensitive; saying more would only lead to more mistakes.

He knew there were certain things he definitely couldn't say.

Yang Mi didn't seem to need his response; it was more like she was venting some pent-up emotions.

She turned back, her gaze refocusing on Zhou Le, with a hint of scrutiny and a barely perceptible envy: "So, sometimes I really think it's good that you're not married. You're free and easy, without so many troubles, and without so many responsibilities and... constraints."

"You yourself are your own asset, and you don't need to rely on anyone to rise to the top. Back in our time, how could we be so lucky?"

She paused, her tone somewhat complicated, "Not everyone can live like Deng Chao and Sun Li, making their lives seem like a romantic drama. Most people... just make do, they have no other choice."

She seemed to have opened a floodgate: "Look at Zhao Liying, she tried so hard to squeeze in, what was she after? And now she's... ha." There was a hint of disdain in her tone, but then, as if to cover it up, she feigned nonchalance, "But it'll be soon, won't it? Everyone has their own life. Marriage and divorce are just formalities to cover things up. If it works out, great; if it doesn't, then it's over. Let's not hold each other back."

Zhou Le was taken aback. Although rumors of Zhao Liying and Feng Shaofeng's divorce had been circulating for some time, it was quite significant that someone in the industry would so directly point out that it was "coming soon" and include such an assessment.

He remained expressionless, simply steer the conversation back on track: "Sister Mi sees things very clearly. But don't worry about the publicity, I'll definitely cooperate fully. The plot of 'A Writer's Odyssey' is very interesting in itself, and I'll definitely give it a good recommendation when it comes out."

Yang Mi seemed to realize she had said a bit too much, so she composed herself and regained her shrewd and capable demeanor: "Okay, I'm relieved to hear that. My team will coordinate the specific publicity plan with your studio later." She raised her glass. "Thanks, Boss Zhou."

"You're welcome, Sister Mi." Zhou Le raised his water glass and clinked it against hers.

However, business discussions in the evening naturally don't end so quickly.

Although this place is secluded, and Zhou Le knew that anything could happen next since he had come here.

But he dared not say it himself.

After all, Sister Honey is no ordinary person.

It's really hard to say who will be playing whom at that point.

However, after a while, Yang Mi brought up that movie again: "Actually, when we were filming the movie, I thought that Mr. Zhou's acting skills were really amazing. I even thought about asking Mr. Zhou to give me personal guidance, but you were too busy at the time."

Zhou Le's spirits lifted.

"Personalized guidance would be too expensive for me to afford with just one advertisement."

"Haha, I may not have other things, but I have plenty of money. If you want to pay, you can name your price. Of course, if it's something else, we can talk about it."

"Then forget it. Sister Mi's acting style is unique. How could I be qualified to give her guidance? In fact, I should be asking Sister Mi for more guidance."

Yang Mi nodded.

"Let's learn from each other. But we've almost finished our tea. Would you like to soak in the hot springs up there? I know you've had a long day."

As Yang Mi spoke, she leaned forward slightly, her collar slightly open.

"spa?"

"Yes, I just happened to buy an extra pair of men's shorts."

"Ha, that's what I was just about to say."

"In that case, let's go."

And so, Zhou Le put down his teacup and went upstairs.

Immediately afterwards, Yang Mi took off her sweater.

Zhou Le was stunned.

"What's wrong? Haven't you ever seen someone wearing a bikini before?"

Zhou Le smiled and said, "Yes, of course I have. I was just thinking about the movie 'Island of Horror' that Sister Mi filmed back then. For a while, that picture of you on the ship was my phone's wallpaper."

Yang Mi: "Haha, then you've come to the right place today. Not only did you see it with your own eyes, but you also got to see it..." (End of Chapter)