After agreeing to Wu Xiaojun’s invitation, Jing Li didn’t delay any further. He sent a message to Gu Tingshen before getting up and heading out the door.
When he arrived at the hotel entrance, Wu Xiaojun and his group were already waiting there as expected. Wu Xiaojun was chatting and laughing with Zhang Shuo, while Wang Lele stood beside them mostly in silence, listening with a faint smile on his face, looking not particularly enthusiastic.
Jing Li knew that Wang Lele didn’t quite agree with some of Wu Xiaojun’s ways of doing things and had mentioned it to him before, so he wasn’t too surprised by this and didn’t intend to intervene much.
Besides, from the moment he met Wang Lele, he was clear about what kind of personality he had. So, he always respected his style of handling matters. As long as there wasn’t too much bias, letting him handle things on his own was also a way for him to grow.
“Jing Li~!” Wang Lele was the first to see him, his smile instantly widening as he raised his hand to wave at him.
The others also looked up upon hearing his voice, their faces breaking into big smiles when they saw Jing Li.
Wu Xiaojun was looking at Jing Li too, but compared to the others, his feelings towards Jing Li were quite complex.
Initially, he had deliberately tried to curry favor himself with Jing Li in order to climb this high branch. After all, wanting to make it big in this circle without relying on any background and purely struggling on one’s own was extremely difficult.
However, as he interacted more with Jing Li, facing that handsome face every day, experiencing the gentlemanly warmth beneath his beautiful appearance, and witnessing his sincere and honest treatment of friends…
All of these made him inevitably attracted, leading to genuine feelings of affection, adding a touch of sincerity to his deliberate approach.
That’s why he paid close attention to Jing Li’s emotions, why he spared no expense to order flowers that Jing Li loved, and why he wanted to pursue him earnestly.
But never in his wildest dreams did he imagine that he would be a step too late, nor did he expect that Jing Li would end up with Gu Tingshen.
That’s why he felt such resentment and unwillingness that day when he saw them together.
But no matter how unwilling he was, he could only swallow it silently. Neither Jing Li nor Gu Tingshen were small fries he could afford to offend.
So, when someone approached him with the promise of unlimited resources to promote him in exchange for introducing them to Jing Li, he agreed without hesitation.
And this gathering was the result of his planning.
However, watching Jing Li’s figure briskly walking towards them with a smile, Wu Xiaojun suddenly felt a tinge of guilt and unease in his heart.
He was indeed tempted by the resources the other party promised him, but that was also because their initial request was merely for him to find a way to connect them with Jing Li.
As the second young master of the Jing family who was also close to the Gu family, there was no shortage of people both inside and outside the circle who wanted to latch onto Jing Li. So, he hadn’t given it much thought before.
But as he interacted more with the other party, coupled with their increasingly urgent demands each time, it made him vaguely sense that this matter might not be as simple as just wanting to meet Jing Li.
However, having come this far, whether for the sake of benefits or wariness of the other party’s identity and background, he could neither regret nor betray. He could only grit his teeth and follow their instructions step by step.
Yet, he didn’t want to put Jing Li in a difficult position because of himself, not only out of concern but also out of apprehension.
Moreover, that day when he unintentionally discovered Jing Li and Gu Tingshen’s relationship, even if he clarified that he truly never had any intention of harming Jing Li, likely no one would believe him.
“Have you been waiting long?” Jing Li, however, seemed not to have noticed his inner turmoil. Upon reaching them, he greeted everyone with a gentle smile.
“No, we just arrived not long ago either.” Wu Xiaojun responded with a smile on his face, suddenly finding it difficult to meet Jing Li’s eyes directly. Averting his gaze slightly, he said, “The car is already waiting outside. Shall we go now?”
The others naturally had no objections and, with a collective response, walked out the door together.
Wu Xiaojun walked at the rear, watching Jing Li, Wang Lele, and Zhang Shuo chatting and laughing. In the end, unable to resist the unease in his conscience, he hesitated for a moment before saying, “Jing-laoshi, I have a few words I’d like to say to you privately. Could you wait a moment?”
The three in front turned their heads to look at him upon hearing his voice. After a brief pause, Jing Li nodded and then said to the two beside him, “You two go ahead to the car first.”
Wang Lele and Zhang Shuo glanced at him and nodded before walking off, leaving Jing Li and Wu Xiaojun alone.
Jing Li walked back a few steps to stand in front of Wu Xiaojun, waiting for him to speak.
But after waiting for a while without any reaction from him, Jing Li couldn’t help but ask, “Didn’t you say you had something to tell me? What’s the matter?”
Jing Li’s words were gentle, not sounding like a question but rather carrying a hint of concern. It made Wu Xiaojun, whose heart was already filled with guilt, feel even more touched. The wavering balance in his heart instantly tilted towards Jing Li’s side.
“I…” Wu Xiaojun opened his mouth, but in the end still said, “I heard you took on another movie role, and it seems to be filming here at the studio too?”
“I didn’t expect the news to spread so quickly.”
Jing Li was stunned for a moment, obviously not expecting him to say this. However, it wasn’t a secret that couldn’t be shared, so he still smiled and said, “I indeed took on a role. It’s not far from our crew, but I don’t have many scenes, so it should only take a day or two to wrap up.”
Seeing Wu Xiaojun lowering his eyes and pursing his lips in silence after he finished speaking, Jing Li thought he was feeling disappointed. After some thought, he patted Wu Xiaojun’s shoulder with a smile and said, “It was a last-minute call. Otherwise, I could have looked into whether there were other suitable roles.”
“But it’s alright. If there are opportunities in the future, I’ll keep an eye out for you.”
Jing Li said these words naturally, but Wu Xiaojun was startled upon hearing them. He never expected Jing Li to actually consider him, making the already turbulent emotions in his heart surge even more.
If only he had known earlier…
“That’s not what I meant.” Wu Xiaojun sniffled, holding back the sour feeling in his nose as he threw caution to the wind and said, “Movies are different from TV series. The pace of movies is fast, and they place more emphasis on realistic benefits, so the competition is fiercer, and the circles are relatively more complex.”
He glanced at Jing Li and pursed his lips. “Anyway, just be more cautious yourself.”
That was all he could say. In the end, Wu Xiaojun didn’t dare to truly betray the people who approached him. He could only tactfully remind Jing Li to be careful.
With that, he took a slight breath and gave Jing Li one last look. “I’ve said my piece. I’ll wait for you in the car first.”
Saying that, he gave Jing Li a quick nod and then swiftly turned around to leave first.
Jing Li stood rooted to the spot, watching his hurried departing figure, his brows unconsciously furrowing.
He could sense Wu Xiaojun’s concern for him, but there seemed to be more to his words than just well-intentioned reminders, as if hinting at something else.
However, with just a few ambiguous sentences, he really had no clue. In the end, he could only temporarily suppress his doubts and decided to observe further later.
With that thought, Jing Li also quickly followed after him.
The others had been waiting in the car for a while. Wu Xiaojun got into the car a step ahead of Jing Li and was now sitting in the middle seat. Seeing Jing Li pull open the car door, he only smiled and called out to him, his face returning to its usual appearance as if everything just now was merely Jing Li’s illusion.
Jing Li discreetly observed him for a moment before getting into the car and sitting in the seat next to him.
The group then set off for the restaurant Wu Xiaojun had reserved.
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