Actresses

Chapter 9 My Name

For a moment, the air in the room became completely quiet.

Shi Jiahe was stunned for a moment, feeling as if she were watching a spectacle on a film set. What was happening before her eyes must be some kind of vertical screen short drama plot. But that couldn't be right, the assets in vertical screen short dramas were much larger than this, and female CEOs like Jiang Wuhan usually spent over a billion yuan at a time, letting their daughters take it and spend it as they pleased.

The daughter can feel at ease, but she can't.

Shi Jiahe blinked, unable to think of a single word to answer.

"Speak up, are you mute?"

"No, I... I can't accept that."

"What's this about being able to handle it or not? You're my manager, how can you be so unambitious? Look at so-and-so and so-and-so." He Yuran rattled off the names of three or four A-list celebrities and their managers. "Didn't they all buy houses for them later? We've all gotten along like family over time. It's settled then. Tomorrow you'll go talk to your landlord about buying a house. You'll handle it yourself, I won't get involved. Just let me know the price later."

Shi Jiahe closed her eyes and gasped for breath nervously.

Of the names I just mentioned, two pairs are actually relatives.

"Sister...you really can't do this. I remember all the good things you've done for me. But you pay me a salary and give me a year-end bonus, and when people say I'm your manager, your colleagues at least give me some face. But I haven't been able to do anything for you yet. I can't accept something for nothing." As Shi Jiahe said this, her eyes unconsciously reddened.

These are all the truths, these are all from the heart, but it's so hard to say them. I don't want to lay bare my innermost thoughts and let the other person see them clearly. Can't we all just be a little oblivious to some things?

He Yuran looked at her for a long while, then sighed. "If I were you, I would have agreed immediately the moment I said it. Even if you didn't know the asking price of the house, you could have quoted four or five million to solidify the deal. That's how collaborations are negotiated, that's how profits are secured. How could you back down when something good happens? I understand your mindset; you feel like you're getting money from me for free. You even calculated two thousand yuan so meticulously, afraid I'd think you were taking advantage of me. Have you considered that, on the other hand, this gives me a sense of security? It's like I'm binding you to my side. Unless I kick you out one day, you'll always be devoted to me, am I right?"

"Sister Ran, I..."

He Yuran shook her head. "It's alright. I've known this kind of personality of yours for a long time. Over the years, you haven't been influenced by me, which is probably a good thing! Otherwise, it would be quite scary to think that we would become the same."

After saying that, He Yuran laughed, patted Shi Jiahe on the shoulder, stood up and yawned.

"It's getting late, I should head back. How about we call it a day for this tribulation? I've really had enough."

Shi Jiahe also stood up and nodded silently.

Even now, she still didn't know what to say.

He Yuran walked to the entrance, then stopped, turned around to look at the dazed Shi Jiahe, and blinked her big eyes. "I almost forgot my phone, could you get it for me?"

Shi Jiahe said "Oh," and immediately ran to the dining table to get He Yuran's phone. Before handing it over, her mind finally returned to normal. "Sister Ran, that's enough for the next couple of days, but we can't just have a chat today. Let me think about how to move this entertainment industry drama forward, and then find a suitable script as soon as possible."

"The script isn't urgent right now." He Yuran picked up her phone and waved it lazily. "Trust your sister. We still need to lock in the dates and find actors, especially big-name ones. I can't take it anymore, I need to go back and catch up on my sleep. I've had to get up early two days in a row, I need to sleep until next week."

Shi Jiahe put on her clothes and changed her shoes, listening to He Yuran's rambling all the way downstairs, until she saw He Yuran put her in the back seat of the car before she went home.

To be fair, these past two days haven't been entirely fruitless. At least we've aligned a little bit on people's understanding of livelihood with He Yuran. But getting someone to make a fundamental change is never easy, especially for a big star like He Yuran who's used to doing things her own way.

But Shi Jiahe had her own plans. She started contacting producers and screenwriters she knew, subtly inquiring about any scripts about the entertainment industry that hadn't been officially announced yet. Several close friends were somewhat surprised, thinking she was looking for a side business to invest in.

Shi Jiahe explained helplessly that she had no spare money to invest in projects.

Even his colleagues didn't believe him, pressing him for an answer: "How could you be broke? You're a top agent! You need to own a house and a car, and have money to invest in projects."

Faced with such naive speculations that weren't malicious, Shi Jiahe felt somewhat helpless. Should she explain to each one individually? Even if she did, they wouldn't believe her. The friends she met during the industry's boom were kind-hearted, but most of them still clung to the business logic of those prosperous years, taking abstract concepts as facts and the facts as mere pleasantries, making communication incredibly tiring. Moreover, even if she explained everything clearly, it would be pointless; Shi Jiahe's core objective was to find projects, not to dissect herself for others.

Therefore, we had to continue the selection process.

But pressing one gourd only brings forth another.

In just a few days, He Yuran had rapidly reverted to his old habits. Not only could she not be reached in the morning, but she couldn't be contacted even at 3 PM. The work, script feedback, and platform requests from her studio colleagues began piling up again. Crucially, several filming requests related to her hometown's cultural tourism required He Yuran's personal assistance; no one else could answer them. Shi Jiahe had no choice but to visit her again.

After passing through several buildings, Shi Jiahe went straight to He Yuran's small apartment. She banged on the door and shouted, "Sister, open the door!" No one answered. Finally, she had no choice but to enter the password to get in.

Before she could even change her shoes, the scene before her eyes made Shi Jiahe's eyes widen. He Yuran was sitting on a recliner by the window, holding a cup of tea, staring blankly out the window. The speakers were blasting loud white noise, and a line of floating English lyrics drifted around, like the heartfelt thoughts of a big star, easy to understand.

Hearing footsteps, He Yuran reached out her hand as a greeting.

"Sister Ran, I thought you were sleeping, so I just came in." Shi Jiahe explained in advance, afraid of offending her again.

"Hmm." The reply was a little muffled.

Then came the sound of someone slowly and quietly sipping tea.

Shi Jiahe glanced at He Yuran and, seeing that he looked calm, put her phone on the coffee table, moved a stool over to the window, and sat down. She then remained silent and did nothing, simply keeping him company.

In fact, besides her frequent outbursts, He Yuran occasionally experiences these moments of deep, immersive blankness. The first time it happened, Shi Jiahe was frantic, but after a few tries, she figured out the trick. First, don't interrogate or rush her, but you can be there for her in the same space. After a certain period, He Yuran will recover on her own. But the prerequisite is that you must meet in person. This is to reassure Shi Jiahe, because if left to her own devices, He Yuran might just book a plane ticket and fly abroad at any time.

The two of them stood facing each other in the living room for an hour, completely lost in thought. Shi Jiahe got up, got herself a bottle of water, and refilled He Yuran's tea twice before He Yuran finally spoke.

"Is there something particularly urgent at work?"

"Alright, I've finally regained my social composure." Shi Jiahe breathed a sigh of relief.

"Things are all fine. I'm mainly worried about you. I'm afraid you'll feel uncomfortable if you're alone and want to talk to someone."

Shi Jiahe felt she had conveyed her emotions sincerely enough, but to her surprise, He Yuran frowned after listening. "What can I, a grown man, do? Oh, you're worried about me, so you abandon your work? Isn't that still delaying my work?"

"..." Shi Jiahe almost closed her eyes, a million thoughts racing through her mind, but she could only stand up abruptly. "I'm sorry, sis, I'm going back to the studio now. You get some rest."

"Come back here!" He Yuran sat up straight immediately when he saw that Shi Jiahe was really about to leave, and scolded her.

Shi Jiahe stopped where she was, but didn't turn around. Although she could read the unyielding tone in He Yuran's voice, she didn't know where to direct her small anger for the time being.

He Yuran, standing behind her, shouted much louder this time: "I told you to come back!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the white noise from the speaker stopped. Shi Jiahe had no choice but to put on a smile and turn back.

"Okay, stop fooling around, go ahead and tell me."

Shi Jiahe caught her breath and briefly explained the backlog of things, mostly verbal announcements. He Yuran thought for a moment. "Then I'll go do some simple makeup and change my clothes. You can just take a quick picture of everything."

Shi Jiahe nodded, indicating that she would go to the side to reply to some work-related WeChat messages.

He Yuran, however, was still eager to continue, following him like a little shadow, asking, "Don't you have anything else to say?"

Shi Jiahe looked up, her expression surprised. "Sis, weren't you going to put on makeup?"

"Makeup is quick. Think again? Did you forget something?" He Yuran persisted.

Shi Jiahe knew that Ran Jie had been either extremely excited or depressed most of the time lately, and rarely appeared to be in a normal mental state. So, she figured she was probably in a normal mental state right now. Therefore, she decided to cherish the moment.

After thinking for a moment, she replied, "We haven't found a suitable script yet. I'll keep asking around."

"Yes, that's it. I suddenly thought today, is it possible that instead of going out to look for us, we could devise a way to have others come to us?" He Yuran raised an eyebrow and winked.

Shi Jiahe was completely baffled and could only honestly shake her head. "Boss, I don't understand..."

"What's so hard to understand! Just think about how to use me; my name is a ready-made goldmine."

Shi Jiahe felt even more confused. What was she saying? It sounded like she was talking in her sleep. Was she in someone's dream? "Boss, I've probably been too slow lately. I really don't understand what you mean. Could you please explain it to me?"

"Ugh, you're so stupid!" He Yuran plopped down, gesturing a huge circle with his hands. "Why don't we hold a script competition in my name? I'll pay for the rights and find screenwriters. I refuse to believe we can't find a suitable story!"