Zhou Wei took a long time to react before she remembered when he was referring to.
It was when she went to visit him at the hospital and he was asleep. She seemed to have told his aunt and agent that she would come by again another day.
But after Song Linchuan was transferred back to City S that day, Zhou Wei had basically given up on the idea.
In principle, Song Linchuan was injured trying to save her, so she really should have thanked him in person. But later Zhou Wei decided not to disturb him further and just had Jiang Qiong pass on her thanks to Song Linchuan's agent.
Zhou Wei certainly hadn't expected that Song Linchuan would make this call himself.
She was suddenly unsure of what he was thinking, but she wasn't stupid either. She didn't really think Song Linchuan had asked her to come just to visit him while he was recovering.
But no matter his reasons, she had to go for both personal and moral reasons.
Song Linchuan was injured trying to save her. She had avoided going before because she didn't want to be a bother, but now that he had brought it up himself, she had no reason to refuse again.
Zhou Wei returned to City S three days later and immediately contacted Song Linchuan.
When she arrived at the Song's villa, Song Linchuan's aunt Song Anan happened to be there too, which instantly put Zhou Wei at ease.
But neither of them expected that Song Anan would have to leave halfway through, leaving just Song Linchuan and Zhou Wei alone in the huge living room.
Zhou Wei looked at Song Linchuan's injured leg and asked, "How is your injury? Did the doctor say how long you need to recuperate?"
Leaning casually on the sofa, Song Linchuan replied indifferently, "Injuries to the tendons and bones take a hundred days to heal. The doctor said that to avoid long-term effects, I need to recuperate for at least three months."
Zhou Wei froze for a moment. Three months?
That was longer than she expected. She knew Song Linchuan would need time to recuperate from this injury, but she hadn't imagined it would be so long.
It went without saying that his upcoming work schedule must be disrupted.
"I'm sorry, I've delayed your work," Zhou Wei said.
Zhou Wei knew that a perfunctory apology wouldn't actually do anything, but other than apologizing, she didn't know what else she could do.
Seeing the guilty look on Zhou Wei's face, Song Linchuan said lightly, "It has delayed some work, but the impact isn't too big. I'm going to be in Director Qi's new movie next, so I was going to take time off to prepare anyway."
Hearing this, Zhou Wei's eyes lit up. Director Qi?
"You mean Director Qi Hui?"
Song Linchuan gave a soft "Mm," and said, "Director Qi's new film starts shooting in three months. By the time my leg is better, the timing will work out perfectly."
Zhou Wei's face instantly broke into a smile. "Congratulations!"
She was genuinely happy for him. Everyone in the industry knew that whether it was the lead or supporting role, the chances of winning awards were huge in Director Qi Hui's films.
Song Linchuan was currently transitioning genres. If he could get a role in Director Qi's film, it would be like getting one foot in the door of mainstream filmmaking.
This would be nothing but beneficial for Song Linchuan!
"You're really that happy for me?" Song Linchuan asked.
Zhou Wei nodded emphatically. "Of course."
Knowing that he had such a great opportunity, she was genuinely happy for Song Linchuan.
If not for anything else, just simply hoping that he would get better and better.
Song Linchuan looked at her quietly, and said softly, "Me too."
Zhou Wei paused for a moment, suddenly understanding what he meant.
Song Linchuan said sincerely, "Although I don't know why you turned down 'Easterly Winds', if it was because of me, I want you to know that even if we're not friends, we're still classmates. I also hope you'll get better and better."
Zhou Wei suddenly didn't know how to respond.
They had been in the same industry for years. She had thought about the day they might run into each other again, but never imagined it would be like this.
After hesitating for a moment, Song Linchuan said, "Zhou Wei, could it be that you still mind about that matter?"
Zhou Wei paused, immediately understanding what incident he was referring to.
"No, it was all in the past," she said, lowering her eyes.
Song Linchuan gave a soft laugh, a fleeting ambiguous look flashing across his face. "All in the past..."
"Yeah, it's all in the past. So what are you still avoiding?" He paused, then said, "What's more, I was the one who got rejected back then. Are you thinking I'd continue pestering you?"
Zhou Wei wanted to reflexively say 'no', but realized that kind of denial seemed even more feeble.
"Whether you believe it or not, I wasn't avoiding you, and I never thought that way either. It's just..." She trailed off.
Song Linchuan's brows furrowed slightly. "Just what?"
Zhou Wei pursed her lips and looked up at him. "Afraid that you'd feel bothered."
Afraid he'd feel bothered...
Song Linchuan lowered his eyelashes, concealing all the emotions in his eyes.
After a long silence, he slowly looked up and said, "I wasn't bothered. Don't dwell on it. It's all in the past, I got over it long ago. Back then we were young and foolish. All that about liking or not liking, it was just casual talk, I never took it seriously."
Young and foolish?
Zhou Wei's clasped hands tightened. "You're right, it's long in the past. How could I still care about it?"
The corner of Song Linchuan's mouth twitched. "Then what reason do you have to refuse?"
Zhou Wei opened her mouth but didn't speak.
Song Linchuan said earnestly, "Zhou Wei, as you said, you're not new to this industry. So you must understand very clearly that opportunities don't wait for people here."
"We're classmates, just like you said. I sincerely hope you'll do well..."
In the end, Zhou Wei accepted the role in "Easterly Winds".
She understood Song Linchuan's personality well enough. With how far he went that day, refusing again really would have been ungrateful.
Filming for the drama would start early next year. As always, Zhou Wei treasured every role and this time was no exception.
Song Linchuan was right about one thing. Part of the reason Zhou Wei was selected so easily was because her acting skills passed muster.
After watching her previous roles, the director and producer were very impressed with her acting and coincidentally, her image matched the second female lead role very well.
And after joining the crew, Zhou Wei did not disappoint. Everyone said she brought the role to life.
During filming, Zhou Wei and Song Linchuan had a decent relationship, keeping an appropriate distance while not being overly distant either.
But the two also had a rare tacit understanding, seeming very familiar with each other's habits. Sometimes they could understand each other with just a look.
Especially when shooting scenes together, the director kept saying they didn't seem like it was their first collaboration. As time went on, the crew gradually learned that Song Linchuan and Zhou Wei were former classmates. But because the two interacted very appropriately, no one thought much of it.
However, this was only limited to the production crew. Those familiar with the two easily noticed something amiss.
In a hotel room at the set location, Jiang Qiong looked at Zhou Wei and asked the biggest question on her mind recently, "Wei Wei, tell me the truth. Did you and Song Linchuan date before?"
Zhou Wei glanced at her. "Don't talk nonsense. We're just friends."
Jiang Qiong was skeptical. "Really?"
No matter how she saw it, the way they interacted seemed very familiar with each other.
It really didn't seem as simple as just being ordinary classmates.
Just take Song Linchuan for example. He actually knew that Zhou Wei didn't eat cilantro or celery, and even knew about her milk allergy.
Zhou Wei's eyes flickered. "Just ordinary friends. There's no need to hide anything from you if there really was something between us."
Jiang Qiong conceded that she had a point. With their relationship, there really was no need to hide anything.
But she still scratched her head, puzzled. Why did it feel like they were mutually deceiving themselves by claiming to just be friends?
Jiang Qiong, like all the agents, had also noticed something was off with Song Linchuan. Jiang Han, who was Song's agent, naturally picked up on it too.
In another room on the same hotel floor, Song Linchuan was watching the crew with Jiang Han sitting next to him.
"Linchuan, do you like Zhou Wei?" Jiang Han suddenly asked.
Song Linchuan paused for a moment, turned to look at him, but didn't say anything.
Jiang Han shrugged. "It's no use just looking at me like that. Don't try to deny it, I've been observing you for days now. You're acting very strange!"
Upon hearing this, Song Linchuan put down the script in his hand. Unsure, he asked, "Am I that obvious?"
When Jiang Han heard this, he had an 'I knew it!' expression on his face.
"Not too bad. Others probably can't tell, but we're too close. I feel like it's pretty obvious."
Having been his agent for so many years, Jiang Han was very clear on his artist's temperament.
In all these years since his debut, there had barely been any scandalous affairs, whether on set or at events. He usually kept a certain safe distance from other actresses.
This was the first time he had gone to such lengths for a girl.
All that effort he spent chasing after her gifts and resources was completely unlike his playboy ways.
Not to mention later on set, although Song Linchuan pretended well, Jiang Han had caught him looking at Zhou Wei several times.
It was that kind of ambiguous yet meaningful look that implied history between them.
Jiang Han seemed to recall something. "Don't tell me you took on the role in Challenge Yourself for Zhou Wei too!" he exclaimed.
Song Linchuan didn't say anything, but his reaction was clearly acquiescence.
Jiang Han was utterly shocked. He had thought Song Linchuan was so aloof because he hadn't blossomed yet.
Tsk tsk, he was clearly not unblossomed at all. This could be considered puppy love in high school already!
After getting over his surprise, Jiang Han was filled with gossip-thirst.
What exactly happened between them in high school that this young master was still so hung up over her?
"So why did you and Zhou Wei break up in the first place?" Jiang Han asked.
Song Linchuan glanced at him. "We didn't," he said simply.
Jiang Han's eyes widened. "What! You didn't break up?"
Could it be they had been secretly dating all these years?
Song Linchuan looked at Jiang Han as if he were an idiot. "I meant we were never together," he clarified.
How could they have broken up when they were never together?
Hearing this, Jiang Han grew even more excited. "Whoa, so it was unrequited love? That's so pure!"
Seeing Jiang Han's obvious thirst for gossip, Song Linchuan almost didn't want to entertain him anymore.
Jiang Han also noticed his reluctance and hurriedly dialed back his gossipy expression. "I'm just too surprised, that's all."
"But as your agent, let me get the full picture so I can be vigilant and react quickly if anything comes up that could be scandalous, you know?"
Of course Song Linchuan understood this reasoning. He sighed silently to himself and said, "I didn't get the girl."
Jiang Han was dumbfounded.
He had imagined many scenarios, but this one truly never occurred to him.
Despite Song Linchuan's looks, he couldn't even get the girl he chased? That defied all reason!
Jiang Han wanted to ask more, but Song Linchuan clearly didn't want to talk about it further. He didn't want to badger him.
"So what's your plan now, keep chasing her?"
Song Linchuan looked irritated. "I don't know," he said.
Chase her? He was afraid of ending up like seven years ago. After a few seconds of silence he said, "Let's just leave things as they are for now."
This drama had been filmed for a full four months, with the entire crew pouring their hearts into it. When they wrapped up, the whole crew was elated.
The crew had specially prepared a wrap banquet on the first floor restaurant of their hotel.
At the banquet, the leads sat at one table with the director and producers. Zhou Wei sat next to Song Linchuan.
After working together for four months, the two had grown quite close.
Director Chen gave a speech praising all the leads, and especially commended Song Linchuan and Zhou Wei.
There was no denying that Song Linchuan had given Director Chen a huge pleasant surprise with his performance in this drama. Right before taking on this role, he had just finished filming a movie directed by Qi, and his acting skills had markedly improved.
Director Chen believed that when this drama aired, everyone would be amazed by Song Linchuan's acting.
As for Zhou Wei, Director Chen simply admired her.
In this industry, it was truly rare to find an artist who remained so grounded and focused on her craft.
At the dinner table, after a few rounds of drinks, everyone livened up.
Having worked together in the crew for four months, all the actors, director, and producers had grown quite close. Without the initial restraints, they joked around freely.
Producer Zhang Sister looked at Song Linchuan and Zhou Wei sitting together, thinking they looked more and more compatible.
They were both stunning beauties who could take your breath away at first sight. Among the table of handsome men and beautiful women, they were definitely the most dazzling.
Thinking about how they were high school classmates, she couldn't help but sigh at the luck of their school to have such good-looking students.
"Linchuan, Weiwei, tell the truth, you two were really just high school classmates?" Zhang Sister jokingly asked them.
Hearing this, the others at the table chimed in as well.
"Definitely more than just classmates. With their looks, they must have been the king and queen of their school. As we all know, the school belle and beau are meant to be!"
"Yes, yes! Even if not before, they can still be together now. It's not too late, not too late..."
Faced with everyone's teasing, Song Linchuan lowered his gaze to the wine glass in front of him, the corners of his lips curved in a faint smile.
He looked quite good-natured about it.
Zhou Wei, on the other hand, helplessly said, "Don't joke around like that, guys. That's how rumors get started."
Hearing this, everyone laughed again.
She was right, if their joking got into the ears of gossip websites, it would immediately blow up as a hot search topic.
Everyone had good judgment and could sense the implication behind Zhou Wei's words. So they didn't harp on the topic anymore.
The dinner table livened up again, with some toasting and some chatting. Everyone's attention soon shifted away from the two of them.
Song Linchuan took a sip of the red wine in his glass. He leaned sideways towards Zhou Wei and asked, "Are you going back to S City?"
Zhou Wei nodded. "Yeah, it's a good chance to rest for a while and see my family."
Then she asked, "What about you? Any plans after this?"
Without even thinking about it, she knew Song Linchuan's schedule must be packed. After filming for so long continuously, he must have postponed a lot of work.
Song Linchuan replied, "Me too."
Zhou Wei was a little confused. "Huh?"
Too? What did he mean?
Song Linchuan glanced at her and explained, "I'm also going back to S City for a bit to see my parents."
Zhou Wei let out an "oh" of understanding.
Song Linchuan asked again, "When are you heading back?"
Zhou Wei didn't think too much and casually replied, "This afternoon, I guess. What about you, when are you leaving?"
Song Linchuan nodded lightly. "That works out, we can go together this afternoon then."
Zhou Wei blinked. Together?
Song Linchuan said, "My driver is taking my agent to the airport. It'll be convenient if I can catch a ride with you back."
Zhou Wei didn't see any inconvenience with that. It was on the way after all.
Their filming location wasn't too far from S City. By car it was only a two hour drive, very convenient.
Zhou Wei didn't think too much about Song Linchuan suddenly wanting to carpool.
After working together these past months, their relationship was pretty good. Sometimes after wrapping up, they would share a car if they happened to be heading in the same direction.
Just like many ordinary friends.
No need to deliberately avoid suspicion, but also not overly familiar. Everything seemed perfectly normal.
After the wrap banquet ended, Song Linchuan was held back by Director Chen to chat for a bit.
By the time they left the restaurant, the other guests had already gone.
As the two passed through the hotel lobby, they spotted a familiar figure in the distance by the elevators. It was Zhou Wei.
What's more, she had her arm hooked with a man's, chatting and laughing together very intimately.
Seeing the man's face, Song Linchuan faltered in his steps.
It was him!
Director Chen chuckled and said, "I didn't know Little Zhou had a boyfriend. She kept it very secret."
Song Linchuan stared blankly at the two, not saying anything.
The elevator doors opened, and the two walked in. Song Linchuan and Director Chen were in no hurry to catch the elevator either, opting to take the next one instead.
After Song Linchuan returned to the hotel, he sat on the sofa absent-mindedly, not knowing what he was thinking about.
Jiang Han walked over and asked, "What's up? What did you and Director Chen talk about?"
Song Linchuan glanced up at him, reacting noticeably slower than usual. "Nothing much, just chatted casually."
Jiang Han naturally noticed his abnormal behavior, and was about to ask what was going on, when the doorbell rang at that moment.
He went to open the door, and saw that the visitor was Zhou Wei's manager, Jiang Qiong.
"Mr. Song, I'm sorry. Zhou Wei told me to come and tell you that her family came to pick her up, so she may have to leave first and won't be able to go back with you." Jiang Qiong stood at the door and said to Song Linchuan inside.
"However, since Zhou Wei is taking her family's car, ours happens to be empty and we can lend it to you."
Family?
Song Linchuan couldn't help but pause for a moment: "No need, I changed my itinerary at the last minute and am going back to City B directly."
Jiang Qiong didn't think too much of it either and left soon after.
After closing the door, Jiang Han was a little confused.
When did he say he was going back to City S?
Wasn't he supposed to go back to City B? The plane tickets were already booked.
But Jiang Han wasn't stupid either. After pondering Jiang Qiong's words for a moment, he guessed what was going on.
Song Linchuan had probably heard that Zhou Wei was going back to City S, so he said that he was going back too. His intention was naturally to hitch a ride with them.
But unexpectedly, Zhou Wei's family came to pick her up halfway, so his plan fell through.
After figuring out the ins and outs of the matter, Jiang Han was about to mock Song Linchuan a few words, but when he turned around, he was met with a black face.
He swallowed back the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
Better not provoke him.
Jiang Han originally thought Song Linchuan would get over it soon. After all, this was just a failed attempt at a small trick, no big deal.
But unexpectedly, his bad mood didn't seem to be dissipating at all, which left Jiang Han very confused.
It wasn't until they ran into Zhou Wei in the hotel lobby when leaving that Jiang Han suddenly realized what was going on.
Zhou Wei had come to the hotel front desk to check out. She suddenly remembered leaving something in her hotel room, so her assistant went back to get it while they waited there.
At this moment, Song Linchuan and his group also came down from upstairs, and the two parties ran into each other directly in the hotel lobby.
Jiang Han greeted Zhou Wei and her companions.
Song Linchuan, on the other hand, kept a sour face the entire time without saying a word, even when they left.
Watching their departing backs, Xu Qin frowned slightly, then turned to look at Zhou Wei, "Weiwei, did he..."
Zhou Wei shook her head at him.
Xu Qin lightly hmm-ed, and didn't continue.
On Song Linchuan's side, after getting in the car, Jiang Han suddenly realized what was going on, a little late.
The young man standing next to Zhou Wei probably wasn't as simple as the "family member" Jiang Qiong had said.
Jiang Han understood that in order to protect artists' relationships from exposure, their boyfriends or girlfriends were often passed off as staff members or family.
So it was very likely that the man was Zhou Wei's boyfriend.
Judging from Song Linchuan's reaction earlier, he probably also knew this man.
Jiang Han instantly pictured a melodramatic scene - that man looked around the same age as Song Linchuan and Zhou Wei.
So wasn't it because of him that Song Linchuan failed to pursue Zhou Wei back then!
Moreover, from the current situation, there was a high probability that Zhou Wei and that man were still together, or had broken up and gotten back together.
Damn!
Jiang Han suddenly felt a little bad for Song Linchuan - it seemed he had gotten an unrequited love script.
After getting in the car, Song Linchuan sat in the back with his eyes closed, feigning sleep.
However, his mood at this moment was obviously not as calm as it appeared on the surface.
Thinking back to how Zhou Wei and Xu Qin were standing together earlier, his thoughts couldn't help but drift back seven years ago, to the day he confessed to Zhou Wei.
Zhou Wei had rejected him, and it was while hooking arms with this man that she told him her heart belonged to someone else.
Seeing Xu Qin again today, Song Linchuan still felt a little dazed - he really hadn't expected to run into him again.
On the other side of the highway.
Xu Qin drove while Zhou Wei sat in the passenger seat in a daze.
She thought of Song Linchuan's appearance just now, and it felt like her heart was pricked.
When Xu Qin suddenly showed up today, Zhou Wei's first reaction was that he couldn't meet Song Linchuan.
Nothing else, just that the things from seven years ago were in the past, and she didn't want Song Linchuan to be reminded of that embarrassing past.
But unexpectedly, they still ran into each other in the end.
The past that both had refused to mention since reuniting was still uncovered.
Xu Qin glanced at Zhou Wei and sighed, "Weiwei, you didn't explain our relationship to him?"
He had seen the news, seen them filming together, and thought everything from back then had been clarified already.
Zhou Wei shook her head lightly, "There's no need to bring up the past again."
A hint of helplessness flashed across Xu Qin's face.
Judging by Song Linchuan's reaction to seeing him earlier, it didn't seem like a thing of the past at all.
"Weiwei, do you have any regrets about the decision back then?" Xu Qin asked.
Zhou Wei turned to look out the window, "What's there to regret? With my family situation back then, I didn't have a choice."
Xu Qin sighed silently and didn't say anything more.
Zhou Wei murmured, "Brother, let's not mention the past again. He and I are just ordinary friends now, and that's good enough."
Just ordinary friends? Did she believe that herself?
Someone who obviously still had lingering feelings, how could they possibly be just ordinary friends?
Xu Qin still wasn't sure of Song Linchuan's exact feelings, but as for Zhou Wei, he understood her very clearly - she still had Song Linchuan in her heart.
To be precise, she had always had him there.
Xu Qin was Zhou Wei's cousin. The two were close in age and had grown up together.
Seven years ago, at Zhou Wei's request, he helped reject Song Linchuan. But Xu Qin knew that Zhou Wei liked Song Linchuan. He had heard her mention him more than a few times before that.
Back then, Xu Qin had even thought that with Zhou Wei's attitude, she might be the one to confess first.
But sometimes things just happened contrary to expectations - Song Linchuan confessed first, but Zhou Wei had no choice but to turn him down.
To be honest, Xu Qin hadn't taken it too seriously at the time. He figured Zhou Wei would soon forget about Song Linchuan.
But in all these years, she hadn't had a single relationship.
She always had an appearance of being pure and uninterested in romance. Those who didn't know better might think she was oblivious about love. Who could have imagined she was someone who had almost fallen in puppy love!
After returning to City S, Zhou Wei had dinner with her family, then chatted casually in the living room.
Having not come back for such a long time, they ended up talking for a long time without realizing it.
By the time Zhou Wei returned to her room, it was already past 11 pm.
Sitting cross-legged on the bed, she opened WeChat and scrolled down until she found Song Linchuan's account.
Thinking of his expression when he saw Xu Qin today, a hint of gloom flashed through Zhou Wei's eyes.
She silently typed out a line, but on second thought, deleted it all again.
Zhou Wei tossed her phone aside and flopped down heavily on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Never mind, just like he had said before, it was all in the past, so let's not bring it up again.
Being able to continue as ordinary friends was good enough.
After the wrap of Dawn Rises, Song Linchuan returned to City B and had basically been busy since.
Due to filming, he had postponed quite a few commercials and magazine cover shoots that now all had to be made up for.
Before he knew it, it was May, and Song Linchuan's 25th birthday arrived.
On this day, he had Jiang Han book a restaurant in advance, and only invited his aunt Song Anan and Pei Kuang.
But coincidentally, Pei Kuang had something come up last minute and wasn't able to make it, so in the end it was just his aunt who accompanied him for this birthday.
At dinner, Song Linchuan drank a little more than usual, and was noticeably tipsy when leaving.
Jiang Han helped get Song Linchuan into the car, while Song Anan held him back.
"Auntie, what's the matter?" Jiang Han asked.
Song Anan looked at Song Linchuan in the car and said worriedly, "Does Linchuan seem unhappy about something? He doesn't look too happy to me."
Jiang Han sighed silently. No wonder he wasn't happy.
Sigh!
His artist seemed to have gotten a tragedy script.
"It's nothing, Auntie. He's probably just under a lot of work pressure. Don't worry, he'll bounce back after some time."
Song Anan oh-ed and said, "Then please take good care of him."
Jiang Han naturally agreed emphatically.
Song Linchuan was not too drunk at this moment. To be precise, his mind was still very clear.
In fact, when having dinner with his aunt, he generally would not drink, let alone get drunk, but today was an exception, he just could not help it.
Just because he received a WeChat message from Zhou Wei wishing him a happy birthday during the dinner.
The perfunctoriness and estrangement revealed in that simple line seemed to convey him a message that there was no possibility between them.
It should be said that there had never been any possibility at all, it had always been his wishful thinking.
In the past and now as well.
The more Song Linchuan thought about it, the more suffocated he felt in his heart. He raised his hand and rolled down the car window.
A gust of night wind blew in and finally dispelled some of the stuffy feeling in his chest.
The car soon drove to the neighborhood where they lived. When passing through an intersection, Song Linchuan happened to catch a glimpse of a familiar figure.
It was Pei Kuang.
And the person who was intimate with him was also someone Song Linchuan knew.
His aunt said that she was a girl Pei Kuang had always liked, childhood sweethearts who grew up together.
At this moment, Song Linchuan suddenly envied him very much.
The one you like also happens to like you, it is already a very fortunate thing in this world.
After all, many people seek in vain.
Like him.
