Overly Intense [Criminal Investigation] 46

Chapter 46: Just Her

Curiosity and the desire to explore it should be a human instinct.

But Qin Luo now preferred to call it a feminist’s gift.

For Qin Luo’s adolescence, some sounds would make her afraid.

For example, the beer bottles at the food stalls, the lighters outside the pool hall, whistling, and dirty jokes. And also, her father’s guidance and the social rules she was forced to obey.

These sounds had not disappeared.

But Qin Luo had completed her exploration of these sounds at different stages.

Smoking was indeed bad for her health, but she had still tried it out of curiosity, even imitating the drunk men at the KTV, casually throwing a cigarette butt on the ground.

Qin Luo had discovered her drinking skills in college, without any special trigger points, such as a breakup, relieving stress, or performing a drunken scene for her twentieth birthday.

She was just curious.

Curious if those behaviors that were exclusive to a certain gender could also happen to her.

After trying, Qin Luo found that she could.

Compared to the men who couldn’t quit nicotine and couldn’t control their alcohol consumption, leading to drunkenness, Qin Luo could control these variables freely, making them a social embellishment rather than a necessity of life or a substitute for something else.

She had also said in a talk show:

“When you question and hope to explore a new way of life, you have automatically joined the feminist camp. When others start to criticize you for being selfish, absurd, and an outlier, then congratulations, you have added more variables to the selection pool. Choosing variables makes the outcome of life no longer unique and fixed. Any happiness no longer has an absolute guide.”

Although Qin Luo had said these words with confidence in front of the camera.

She couldn’t guarantee that her words and actions would be consistent.

For example, the Shen Yiyi who was sitting in front of her, questioning her.

Qin Luo had once included Shen Yiyi in her life script, seeing her as a kind of victorious liberation.

This symbol was branded on her heart. No matter how many variables she held now, no matter how long she had stood on the high ladder, she still couldn’t change the happiness she had set for herself at seventeen.

Shen Yiyi was still a scar that couldn’t be faded, a fixed, traditional, and unshakable banner.

“I heard you’re a good drinker,” Shen Yiyi stared at Qin Luo.

Qin Luo’s chest was tight. “Who did you hear that from?”

“Your colleagues.”

Shen Yiyi’s eyes were fixed on the rice in her plate, her speech slow. “They said they’re going to get you drunk tonight and then stay in your river view room.”

…

“I hope you’ll be careful when you’re socializing tonight.”

Qin Luo wished that Shen Yiyi’s reminder had a hint of personal possessiveness, but her tone was calm, as if she wouldn’t mind if she brought someone home tonight.

Qin Luo said politely, “Okay, thanks for the reminder.”

Shen Yiyi buried her head and ate her own food. After a few bites, Qin Luo asked, “Where is Uncle Xu staying now?”

“A hotel near the hospital,” Shen Yiyi replied calmly.

Qin Luo probed, “Have they rented a place in Shanghai?”

Shen Yiyi didn’t want to talk much about her family’s affairs. She swallowed the food in her mouth. “They haven’t decided yet. I don’t know either.”

Qin Luo took the mineral water bottle in her hand, unscrewed the cap, and handed it over. After Shen Yiyi took it, she said again, “An employee from my company has resigned and gone to Singapore. Her apartment is for sublet. If Uncle Xu needs it, you can let me know. The company subsidizes half of the rent, so the rent is not expensive.”

Shen Yiyi shook her head. “No need.”

“Why not?” Qin Luo was anxious about this distance. “Since we’re friends, can’t I help Uncle Xu?”

Shen Yiyi looked up. “He’s not at the point where he needs help yet.”

In Shen Yiyi’s words, Qin Luo heard a broken self-esteem.

But Qin Luo couldn’t care less about Shen Yiyi’s feelings. She felt a sense of loss because of it.

She was frustrated that the power and money she had accumulated could not be put to use. Her self-deprecation, timidity, and messiness at seventeen had all been laid bare in front of Shen Yiyi, but now her success could not be displayed.

The food in front of her was tasteless, like chewing wax. Qin Luo put down her chopsticks. “Then let’s wait until Uncle Xu needs it.”

“Okay.”

Qin Luo had no appetite. She waited for Shen Yiyi to finish her lunch slowly, and then the two of them walked to the conference room.

Shen Yiyi asked casually, “When does your production officially start filming?”

Qin Luo said, “The shooting schedule is to start next month.”

“How long will it take?”

“Three or four months.”

Shen Yiyi walked under the shade of the trees. “How long have you been with this production? Do you have to stay on set all the time?”

“The script for this production was polished for five months in the early stages. Including today, it’s been almost eight months. I’ll be leaving soon after filming starts.”

Shen Yiyi asked again, “That girl in your production with the shaved head, what’s her job?”

“Cinematography director.”

Shen Yiyi said, “Oh.” “Why are all the people in your production women?”

“Yes, it’s an all-female production.”

Shen Yiyi was puzzled. “Is this a gimmick, or?”

Qin Luo blinked, her arms crossed. “What do you mean by gimmick?”

“From what dimension is an all-female production defined? For example, are all the staff members women, or are the participants in the main positions women?” Shen Yiyi asked seriously.

“Seventy percent.”

Qin Luo walked on the outside of Shen Yiyi, her crossed arms tapping on her elbow. “Most of the main positions were recruited. Just the film crew alone needs more than two hundred people. Among them, it’s rare to see female DIT technicians in the industry, so we can only hire male engineers. And then there’s the best boy in the grip department. Although the main assistants for the mechanical arms in our production are all women, on the technical coordination list, they are still called best boys. And then there are the stagehands and the dolly track workers. It’s hard to have one hundred percent women in these positions that require repetitive physical labor.”

Shen Yiyi asked again, “Then on what basis do you call it an all-female production? This involves discrimination against certain types of work.”

Qin Luo shrugged. “But if it were ten years ago, our production probably wouldn’t even have been able to gather ten percent women.”

“Oh, so there’s been progress in terms of numbers.” Shen Yiyi nodded. After a moment, she asked with confusion, “Then are all the people in your production gay?”

“Most of the leadership is,” Qin Luo said truthfully.

“That cinematography director is a few years younger than you, right?” Shen Yiyi had her hands in her pockets.

Qin Luo smiled. “She has a girlfriend. You’re mistaken. The one who wants to sleep in my house is the assistant director, the one in the black shirt.”

The description was so specific, which proved that Qin Luo had observed the other person…

Shen Yiyi smiled.

But she just smiled and didn’t say anything, carrying her laptop bag and walking quietly.

When the two of them entered the elevator and reached the conference room floor, Qin Luo was about to part ways with her. Only then did she stop and say slowly, “Drink less tonight.”

“Okay, I know.” Qin Luo pointed to the conference room door. “Then I’m going in.”

A door separated Qin Luo from the possibility of further questioning.

For example, she was about to blurt out: “Do you want to leave together after work? Do you want to go to my house for dinner tonight?”

She wanted to know if Shen Yiyi would stop her.

But when the door closed and she walked back to her seat and finished the set design meeting, Shen Yiyi didn’t say another word.

The acting training next door was over for the day. Qin Luo sat in her chair with her legs crossed, her chin resting on her hand, and looked out the window. It was not yet sunset at four o’clock. She could only stare at the clouds in a daze.

“Let’s go.” You Ning pushed open the door and deliberately came to find Qin Luo. “I’ll drive.”

Qin Luo turned to look at her.

You Ning was good-looking, a typical third-generation rich kid who was just playing around in the circle. She had dabbled in both the fashion and art circles, and her private life was considered decent.

Normally… she could get any internet celebrity she pursued. But for some reason, she had set her sights on her.

Qin Luo waved at her. “Come here.”

You Ning’s eyes lit up. She trotted over and pulled up a stool to sit in front of Qin Luo. “What’s up?”

“Why are you pursuing me?” Qin Luo asked curiously.

The sudden question sent a jolt through You Ning’s head. She straightened up and said with an awkward smile, “Sister Qin, you’re so direct…”

Qin Luo asked back, “Isn’t it good to be direct? Shouldn’t people who want to be in a relationship be more direct?”

“Haha.” You Ning was being stared at by Qin Luo and forced a smile. “But sometimes being too direct can also be scary.”

“So why are you pursuing me?”

“Because I think I can get you.”

This was an answer that Qin Luo had not expected. She had thought that You Ning would give some superficial reasons, describing her mate selection criteria in various dimensions.

She had not expected You Ning to be even more direct than her.

Qin Luo was very interested in this answer. She adjusted her posture, put the hand that had been supporting her chin into her pocket, and leaned back in her chair to re-examine You Ning.

“How am I easy to get?”

“Our values are equal.” You Ning felt that this was a good opportunity to express herself. Instead of using a shortcut to get into the river view room, it was better to seize this opportunity.

“You’re interesting, gentle, good-looking, and you have a good career.” You Ning carefully observed Qin Luo’s expression. “You also have a company that’s developing well.”

“So I’m worthy of you?” Qin Luo joked.

You Ning waved her hand. “I’m not that narcissistic.”

“To you, I’m someone who can provide career resources. Our social circles overlap. Besides, I’m not ugly, and although my career is not that great, I’m still a director. We’ve gotten along very well in the months we’ve been on set together. I have a lot of things I want to share with you. So compared to others, I think my chances are probably higher.”

Qin Luo was amused and nodded in agreement. “Indeed, the tendency to choose is greater.”

“Really?” You Ning blinked.

“People are selfish.” Qin Luo raised her hand and looked at her watch. “When personal resources are limited, they always like to choose the one with the higher cost-performance ratio.”

It had been three hours since Shen Yiyi’s class had ended.

Qin Luo stood up. “But the premise is… we’ve already treated the relationship as a transaction. What I can bring to you, what you can bring to me, whether my investment in the relationship will be rewarded, and… whether I will be greatly disappointed in the future.”

You Ning stood up with her.

“A relationship with a clear price tag dies quickly.” Qin Luo made a throat-slitting gesture at her own throat, then patted the assistant director’s shoulder lightly. “I have something to do tonight, so I won’t be going for a drink.”

You Ning was flustered. “Huh? You’re not going?”

“Thank you for tonight. I’ll treat you to a drink another day!!!” Qin Luo picked up her laptop bag and walked toward the door.

You Ning smiled wryly. “Thank me for what??”

“Thank you for your sincerity~”

And thank you for providing a choice, for letting me clearly distinguish what I want in a limited choice of two.

Not a banner, not a transaction, and not about cost-performance.

Just Shen Yiyi.