Is This The Right Way To Repay A Favor? Chapter 27

Try it

Cai Zhiyang looked at Director Weng, then at Jiang Zhou, and exclaimed with an exaggerated expression, “Mr. Jiang, how did you get so thin!”

As soon as he spoke, everyone looked at Jiang Zhou. Jiang Zhou tugged at his clothes uncomfortably.

Cai Zhiyang said earnestly, “Mr. Jiang, it’s not good for a man to be this skinny!”

Zhang Qian jabbed him with an elbow. “Who’s not good? Who are you calling not good? You have the nerve to talk about others with your physique?”

The few of them burst into laughter and started messing around again.

No one noticed the faint blush spreading across Jiang Zhou’s neck, hidden beneath his collar.

After gathering under the banyan tree, everyone took a group photo and then headed to the reading room.

The reading room was located on one side of the viewing pavilion, and the plaque bore Director Weng’s calligraphy: Tongzhou Study Post.

Jiang Zhou subconsciously looked at it twice, a warm feeling spreading through his heart.

The entire reading room was wood-toned. In the center, dark solid wood bookshelves were neatly arranged, with books categorized by type. Along the east and west windows were dark long tables and wooden chairs, and beanbag chairs were scattered in the corners around the bookshelves.

Thick, sound-absorbing carpets covered the floor, and the air was filled with the rich scent of paper, creating a tranquil atmosphere.

Cai Zhiyang’s loud exclamation instantly shattered the quiet.

“Are all these books real?”

As Cai Zhiyang spoke, he took a few books off the shelf and flipped through them. “My goodness! They really are books with black text on white paper!”

“Feeling ashamed now! Yu Ge had his fans recommend these,” Zhang Qian mocked him from the side. “Look at you, then look at Yu Ge. What a difference in perspective, tsk tsk tsk…”

Cai Zhiyang rolled his eyes and immediately retorted, “You have the nerve to talk about me! Who lost so badly playing idiom solitaire last night that he had to call me ‘Dad’? Wasn’t it you!”

The guests were used to their bickering and paid them no mind.

Reading is a solitary journey. Everyone tacitly went off to find books to read.

Jiang Zhou casually picked up a book and sat on a sofa beneath the bookshelf to read.

During his student days, Jiang Zhou spent most of his time with books. Before university, he had no friends, had never been to a cinema or an arcade, and the place he frequented most was the library.

In those years without companionship, books were his most loyal friends throughout his student life.

He was reading The Legend of Jingwei Filling the Sea. The daughter of the Yan Emperor drowned in the East Sea, and her soul transformed into the Jingwei bird. Hating the sea that had swallowed her life, and to prevent the tragedy from recurring, she carried wood and stones to the sea day after day, vowing to fill the vast East Sea.

Jingwei wanted to carry tiny twigs and small stones to fill the boundless ocean. Everyone knew it was futile.

After finishing the story, Jiang Zhou almost instinctively looked up to find Shen Zhiyu. Coincidentally, he was sitting at a long table by the window diagonally in front of him.

His removed jacket was casually draped over the back of the chair. He was slightly bowed, focused on his book, his profile looking exceptionally gentle in the winter sunlight.

As if sensing Jiang Zhou’s gaze, Shen Zhiyu looked up from his book and glanced in his direction.

Jiang Zhou understood the question in his eyes: “Is something wrong?”

Jiang Zhou shook his head at him.

Shen Zhiyu closed his book, stood up, and walked straight toward him.

Jiang Zhou didn’t have time to react, watching him pass through the bookshelves, getting closer and closer, until he finally stopped in front of the sofa where Jiang Zhou was curled up.

The tall figure enveloped him, bringing with it a faint scent of citrus mixed with cedar.

Jiang Zhou tried to stand up, but maintaining one posture for too long had made his legs and feet numb, and he immediately stumbled back onto the sofa.

Shen Zhiyu leaned down, gripped his arm with his right hand, and gently pulled him up.

“Legs asleep?”

The reading room was very quiet, so Shen Zhiyu spoke softly. Only with the two of them this close could Jiang Zhou hear him clearly.

It turned out to be a misunderstanding. Shen Zhiyu thought he couldn’t stand up and was asking for help.

Jiang Zhou went along with the misunderstanding. “Thank you.”

He was still holding the book in his hand. His slender, pale fingers seemed to blend with the pages, like fine white porcelain, making one want to touch them.

Shen Zhiyu raised his fingertips and followed his gaze to the open book, where an illustration of Jingwei Filling the Sea was drawn.

“Jingwei Filling the Sea?” Shen Zhiyu’s voice softened even more, like a feather gently brushing past.

Jiang Zhou nodded.

Shen Zhiyu reached out, his long fingers casually pointing at the page Jiang Zhou was holding, his fingertip almost touching Jiang Zhou’s knuckle.

“A little bird…” Shen Zhiyu’s voice dropped even lower, and Jiang Zhou couldn’t quite hear him. He unconsciously leaned closer to Shen Zhiyu before catching the rest of his words. “Knowing the East Sea is boundless, yet carrying stones to fill it day after day. What do you think, is it persistence or futility?”

After speaking, Shen Zhiyu raised his eyes to look at his face.

Only then did Jiang Zhou realize how close they were. So close that he could clearly see the slight movement of Shen Zhiyu’s Adam’s apple beneath his shirt collar, and the dark brown mole at the corner of his eye.

When Shen Zhiyu spoke, Jiang Zhou could even feel a faint wisp of breath brush past his face.

Jiang Zhou’s cheeks felt slightly warm, and his breathing inexplicably lightened.

Shen Zhiyu didn’t seem to need an answer and continued speaking in a low voice, “Instead of throwing stones into the murky abyss…”

His voice remained low, and Jiang Zhou didn’t dare to retreat, maintaining the close posture.

“Why not try the wind right in front of you.” The last sentence was almost whispered, carrying an enticing allure.

His fingertip subtly swept across the page, gently sliding it open.

This almost blatant guidance was like a giant stone thrown into the lake of his heart, leaving Jiang Zhou unsettled and bewildered.

Jiang Zhou watched him leave in a daze.

Jiang Zhou put down the book and picked up a new one to read. This time, however, he couldn’t concentrate at all. His mind kept circling the phrase, “try the wind right in front of you.”

Shen Zhiyu thought he was helping him shift his focus, unaware that the driftwood he personally offered was the shore Jiang Zhou had been yearning for.

He was just being a good person; Jiang Zhou didn’t dare to take it seriously.

————

To maintain the reading environment, there were no follow-up cameras in the reading room, and the microphones were turned down to the lowest setting, with only a few fixed cameras installed.

When Shen Zhiyu spoke, his voice was so low that the production team in the monitoring room couldn’t hear what they were saying, only seeing the two figures standing extremely close.

Jiang Zhou’s assistant, Xue Pengfei, was stationed in the monitoring room. Even if the production team was curious, they dared not ask or look too closely.

After a morning passed, the guests emerged from the reading room, and the cameramen resumed following them.

Cai Zhiyang couldn’t hold it in. “Yu Ge, it’s not that I don’t support your business! I really couldn’t stand it anymore!”

“I won’t participate in this reading activity again even if you kill me next time.”

The others, however, were relatively calm, especially Director Weng and Hua Qian.

Shen Zhiyu didn’t force them. “It’s fine. If you don’t want to come, don’t. Everyone can do as they please in Taoyuan.”

“Then I want to play basketball this afternoon! Anyone joining?” Cai Zhiyang rubbed his hands, looking determined to redeem himself. “Yu Ge, coming? I won’t go easy this time!”

“Oh! So the last time Yu Ge thrashed you was because you went easy on him?” Zhang Qian couldn’t resist teasing him again.

“What are you shouting about? If it weren’t for you dragging us down last time, would we have lost so badly?”

“You’re blaming me again?”

“Yu Ge, you don’t need to step in this time! I’ll take care of him myself!”

“We’ll see who takes care of whom! Watch me beat you until you’re picking up your teeth this afternoon.”

The two grew increasingly excited and couldn’t wait until the afternoon, immediately arguing to go to the court.

They tried to invite everyone to watch their match but only received a bunch of eye rolls.

Director Weng, however, had a suggestion. Seeing everyone wearing high school uniforms, he was inspired and proposed shooting a short campus-themed film right there.

The two who were arguing to fight to the death on the court immediately made a U-turn when they heard about shooting a film.

“If Director Weng is shooting a film, we absolutely must participate!” “I’ve never been in a movie before! Director Weng, give me a chance.”

Director Weng was a renowned director in the industry. Although he had retreated to a secondary role ten years ago, his skill remained. Almost every new actor he had mentored had won a Best Newcomer Award.

Although the film Director Weng proposed was only a micro-movie, having the opportunity to participate was extremely fortunate.

Since it was lunchtime, everyone went to the dining area to discuss.

Jiang Zhou had no involvement in film production. Languang Media’s film production and investment side only handled investment and supervision, leaving the creative control entirely to the director and screenwriter, never interfering with the creative process.

This was one reason Languang Media was able to grow rapidly in the entertainment industry.

Jiang Zhou had no ideas, so he didn’t join the discussion. He consciously went into the kitchen to get busy.

He had just taken ingredients out of the refrigerator when Shen Zhiyu followed him in.

“Tea-leaf fried crispy ribs again?” Shen Zhiyu saw the ribs in Jiang Zhou’s hand.

“Mhm,” Jiang Zhou nodded. Shen Zhiyu had been cooking during the few days of rest, and only yesterday had Jiang Zhou taken over the kitchen again, making this dish.

Shen Zhiyu naturally took the ribs from his hand. “I’ll do it.”

Life skills were a major highlight of the variety show, and Jiang Zhou intended for the production team to emphasize this side of Shen Zhiyu, so he didn’t argue.

Neither of them spoke afterward, but they worked together seamlessly—one washing, the other chopping; one frying, the other plating.

During lunch, Director Weng had already outlined the preliminary filming plan.

“I’m tentatively calling this micro-movie Parallel Recess. It’s about capturing the possibilities of a high school student’s ten-minute break.”

“The filming style will be similar to a documentary. Everyone doesn’t need to deliberately design a plot. Just recall what you most wanted to do during recess back then and go do it.”

This setting perfectly aligned with the show’s theme of doing as one pleases.

Cai Zhiyang: “Report, Director Weng, what if I used to sneak off to the bathroom to smoke?”

“Only you would smoke!” Zhang Qian elbowed him. “Do something healthy!”

Everyone burst into laughter.

Director Weng: “For the sake of art, moderate beautification is not out of the question.”

Cai Zhiyang thought about it and genuinely couldn’t think of anything he wanted to do, so he might as well play basketball with Zhang Qian. “Then I’ll just go play basketball.”

Director Weng: “Playing basketball is fine.”

Cai Zhiyang: “Huh?”

His eyes immediately lit up. “Director Weng, my dear father! You must film my heroic posture on the court!”

“How many fathers have you recognized since joining this show!” Zhang Qian couldn’t bear to watch.