tiantianyingshi

“Sorry! Sorry,” Yang Huayue hurriedly apologized.

For the sake of realism, to the request of Ye Zian, Yang Huayue didn’t hold back when she strangled Liu Man. The light was on, and the red almost-lacerations on Liu Man’s neck were clear as day.

“I’ll have my assistant send you to the hospital,” Yang Huayue said.

Liu Man shook her head, “I really am fine. I just need a good night’s sleep.”

Yang Huayue opened her mouth to say something, but Ye Zian cut her off,

“Huayue, costume and make-up. You’re on again in five minutes.”

Yang Huayue had to obey Ye Zian. She could only take a few seconds to tell Liu Man, “Promise me you’ll contact me if anything happens.”

Liu Man nodded.

Yang Huayue took a few steps before she turned her head again, “Oh, and, after you return to the capital, make sure to not forget me.”

Liu Man smiled, “Of course I won’t forget you.”

“Then I’ll see you again. This is goodbye for now,” Yang Huayue looked at Liu Man. She had an inkling that they will meet again soon.

Liu Man washed off her make-up, changed out of costume, and left the garden villa. Ye Zian had told her just now that she could be going home tomorrow.

Ye Zian was very satisfied with Liu Man’s performance these past twenty days. She was never tardy, she never dragged anyone down, she didn’t cause much ruckus. She wasn’t shabby as an extra.

Before Liu Man left, she thanked Ye Zian and the other staff members, everyone from the stage manager to the make-up artists to the videographers.

The cast still had their work cut out for them. Liu Man’s departure, like that of the other extras, went unnoticed by many.

However, after she left, a rumor started to spread among the staff: The male lead, Qiao Xin, had taken advantage of a rookie during scenes, and she didn’t dare to complain despite her anger.

Of course, this rumor came from those two make-up artists. In the end, the entire cast knew about it.

Liu Man had no idea Yang Huayue purposely told the make-up artists “not to spread the rumor around”. She was hoping for them to spread the news and defame Qiao Xin.

Yang Huayue thought it was self-explanatory: Liu Man was meek and quiet, so she didn’t dare to report Qiao Xin after he had groped her. Yang Huayue decided she was going to avenge Liu Man by challenging Qiao Xin.

It was almost midnight when Liu Man got back to her hotel. She booked a plane ticket so she could fly back to the capital the next day. She then remembered Yu Zhan’s message for her before he left Shanghai, so she sent him: “I’ll be back tomorrow.”

Yu Zhan replied in two seconds flat: “When will you arrive?”

Liu Man checked the order form. “Five-forty-five in the afternoon.”

“Alright, godspeed.”

Liu Man slept in, and she only started packing after getting up. She took a picture of her white luggage and sent it on Wei Bo with the caption, “I’m returning to the capital this afternoon!”

“Sis is finally coming back! (Crying with joy right now!)”

“I’ve been waiting for so long, I was about to cry. Our Princess is finally coming home!”

“Does that mean our live-streamer can start live-streaming every day again?”

“Of course! I’m still waiting to hear her play the piano.”

“I miss Daylight so much.”

“Me, too! We’ve only been seeing Daylight in pictures on Wei Bo. I want to see her when she’s moving!”

“Sis, are you live-streaming tonight? Please reply, please reply, please reply, please reply, please reply…”

Liu Man only replied to her comment. Liu Man wrote: “For your sake, I’ll be live-streaming tonight!”

“Amazing!!!!!!!!!!! We’ll all be waiting for you!”

…

After she checked out, Liu Man left the hotel with her luggage and was about to hail a taxi to the airport. A black nanny van stopped in front of her.

A short, puny young man got out from the passenger-side door. Liu Man had seen him before, at the garden villa—he was Tang Tu’s assistant. She remembered his name was Ma.

Ma came up to her, “Hello, Miss Liu Man, I’m Tang Tu’s assistant, Ma. Tang Tu has asked me to send you to the airport.”

Liu Man’s first reaction was, of course, to reject him, “No, I’m fine. I can call a taxi myself.”

Tang Tu must’ve seen her Wei Bo post to know she was leaving today.

Ma said, “New Year’s Eve was only three days ago, and the weather’s nice. It’s also rush hour. It’ll be hard to get a taxi right now, especially downtown. If you don’t believe me, look it up.”

Liu Man tried on her phone: Forty-seven people were currently in line for a ride.

“If you get in line right now, the plane would probably be long gone by the time you get to the airport.” Ma was only relaying Tang Tu’s words. Ma continued, “I know you’re worried. Tang Tu is on set right now, so there’s only me and his driver in the car. You can treat us like a normal taxi service, and after we get to the airport, you can pay us the fee.”

Liu Man knew Ma was being reasonable. If she paid the fee, she wouldn’t owe Tang Tu anything.

The problem: What kind of taxi was that luxurious and comfortable?

Seeing that Liu Man accepted the deal—reluctantly, of course—Ma exchanged glances with the driver and the back door automatically opened. Ma gestured to Liu Man, “Please, after you.”

“Thank you.”

The car floor was high, Liu Man grabbed onto a handle to get on. Ma mimed helping her from behind but did not touch her.

When Liu Man sat steadily on a seat, Ma got onto the passenger seat. The driver started the car engine, and they left the hotel in the direction of the airport.

No one spoke the entire trip.

They reached the airport. Liu Man looked online for the approximated fare for a ride from the hotel to the airport. “Do you have Paypal?”

Ma was astonished. He had offhandedly suggested her pay a fare and didn’t expect Liu Man to take it seriously.

Nonetheless, he opened Paypal and promptly received 200 RMB.

Ma watched as Liu Man disappeared into the airport. The driver asked him, “How much did that girl give you?”

“200.”

“The fee would be 150. She gave an extra 50 as a tip?” The driver quipped.

“The tip isn’t just the 50, it’s the entire 200. Tang Tu’s probably going to be busy tonight, let’s go get us a snack.”

“Good idea!”

Credits: Sydney & Teresa