Sang Ning had been dreaming about Shen Tingwan more frequently than she had back in university.
In the early morning, Sang Ning opened her eyes from sleep. She glanced toward the side of the bed, but it was empty. Unlike last time, Shen Tingwan’s face was nowhere to be seen…
A pang of unexpected disappointment welled up out of nowhere.
Her breathing was hot, her heart still pounding. This was the first time she had such an improper dream. She had often dreamed of Shen Tingwan before, but they were always just innocent chance encounters, never anything restless or fanciful.
She rolled over and buried her flushed face in the pillow. Even in a dream, it felt wrong.
It took her a full minute to fully wake up.
Sang Ning wasn’t one to linger in bed; she even tended to wake up before her alarm. Today was no different. She sat up, turned off the alarm that hadn’t gone off yet, then went through her routine of washing up and getting ready before heading out to work.
As she entered the office, a faint coconut scent hung in the air from the aromatherapy diffuser sent by a collaborative client. The fragrance was naturally balanced and quite pleasant.
Without dawdling, Sang Ning finished her coffee, grabbed the hair tie from her wrist, and casually tied up her long hair. She slung her camera over her shoulder and got to work.
Around ten o’clock, Yu Shuang poked her head into the studio and called out urgently, “Sang Ning, Sang Ning.”
Sang Ning turned to look. “What?”
Yu Shuang said, “Come out and greet a client for me. I’m swamped.”
Sang Ning set her camera aside. “Okay.”
The client was a young woman, here for the first time. Sang Ning smoothly introduced the studio’s services using their promotional brochure.
Sang Ning noticed the woman frequently glancing at her ears, so she briefly explained her situation.
The woman suddenly asked out of curiosity, “But with your ears like that, how do you handle shooting?”
Sang Ning had dealt with all sorts of quirky questions from clients over the years. She responded mildly with a joking tone, “My eyes work just fine.”
Her voice was soft and sincere, without a hint of sarcasm.
“Ah…” The woman laughed awkwardly, realizing how odd her question had been. “Sorry, that was dumb of me.”
Sang Ning smiled too, knowing there was no malice. She patiently explained, “Daily communication is no problem at all. It won’t affect the work, so you can rest assured.”
“Mm.” The client smiled sheepishly. “Miss, you’re way too gentle—and great at shooting too. I’m booking you.”
Sang Ning politely thanked her. After finalizing the collaboration details, she saw the client off at the door.
Yu Shuang had finished her own tasks by then. She had never seen anyone with a better temper than Sang Ning. Though Sang Ning was quiet and never actively buttered people up, a beautiful and gentle female photographer was hard for clients not to love.
Once the client had left, Yu Shuang leaned against the desk and looked at Sang Ning. “I’ve known you so long, but I’ve never seen you lose your temper. Do you really have no temper at all?”
Sang Ning thought about it and realized it was true. Because she didn’t care, she didn’t get angry. Her personality had always been this mellow.
Yu Shuang took a sip of water. “Sang Ning.”
Sang Ning: “Mm?”
“You have to find a really, really gentle girlfriend in the future,” Yu Shuang said seriously, dropping her usual playful grin for once. “With your temperament, I’m genuinely worried you’ll get taken advantage of and bullied.”
Sang Ning smiled without replying. She hadn’t really thought about finding a girlfriend. Aside from Shen Tingwan, no one else had ever stirred her heart.
Maybe once you fell for Shen Tingwan, it was hard to feel that way about anyone else…
After lunch, Sang Ning headed out for some fieldwork—a photoshoot for the magazine.
This one was in the magazine headquarters’ studio. Sang Ning took a cab over. Before the official shoot, they held a quick meeting to confirm the script and all the details one last time.
It was still early, and the small conference room was mostly empty. Having collaborated once before, Sang Ning was already on familiar terms with many of the staff.
Someone greeted her, “Teacher Xiao Sang, you’re here early.”
“You’re early too.”
“Hope we wrap up the grind early today and clock out soon.”
“Yeah, hope so.”
Among the collaborating photographers, Sang Ning was on the younger side. With her usual light makeup or no makeup at all, she looked even younger, so everyone habitually called her Teacher Xiao Sang.
This shoot was for a fragrance brand’s ad campaign. Having done ad photography before, she handled it with ease—it was right up her alley.
After the meeting, Sang Ning entered the studio around two in the afternoon. She started on the tedious setup of lights and tests. She was patient and skilled at using light and shadow to create atmosphere.
The team appreciated her: she had taste, spoke little, and was professional.
The client liked her style too, with no last-minute changes. Everything went smoothly, so the afternoon shoot wrapped up efficiently.
They finished half an hour ahead of schedule. After a full afternoon of high-intensity work, Sang Ning felt worn out, though there were still some wrap-up tasks left.
Most of the crew had dispersed from the set. Thirsty, Sang Ning went to the break room next door to pour herself a cup of water.
She overheard some idle chatter. She wasn’t interested in gossip about others, but the character “Shen” caught her ear sharply—it seemed they were talking about Shen Tingwan.
One man said, “I heard Editor Shen landed another brand deal. She’s really capable. Your ad department’s probably getting reamed again.”
Another man scoffed. “Maybe she’s capable in certain areas.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Acts all high and mighty on the surface, but privately it’s all drinks and schmoozing. I saw it myself last time. How does someone so young climb that fast?”
…
“With a figure like that, she must be quite the ride. She’s got the assets…”
Sang Ning didn’t catch every word of the sleazy gossip, but she got the gist. She froze in place, gritted her teeth, and after hearing a few disgusting chuckles, she couldn’t hold back her anger anymore. She strode over quickly.
The two men saw someone approaching and clammed up guiltily.
Sang Ning glared at them coldly, said nothing, and directly splashed the water from her cup in one man’s face, then hurled the paper cup at him. In her twenty-plus years, it was the first time she had done something so extreme. Her whole body trembled lightly…
It happened so suddenly that they were stunned, looking utterly disheveled.
“Are you fucking crazy?”
“What did we do to you?!”
Sang Ning ignored their foul stench and turned to leave, but one grabbed her arm. “Damn, you make a mess and just walk? No explanation?”
They started tussling.
The commotion drew onlookers. “What are you doing? How dare you bully a girl?”
The argument escalated, and it reached upper management. Several people, including them, were called to the office to explain.
“What’s going on? Adults quarreling like kids?”
“Director Zhang, ask her—she came up and splashed my face.”
Sang Ning shot back coldly, “Do you dare repeat what you said?”
Director Zhang recognized Sang Ning; she wasn’t from the magazine but a photographer they’d worked with twice. She was usually quiet and polite. “What did you say? Why would she splash you for no reason?”
The two had been badmouthing their boss behind her back, so they hemmed and hawed guiltily. “We didn’t say anything about her…”
Sang Ning clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palms with a faint sting. She rarely argued, seeming frail but with a stubborn streak. “You were so bold spreading rumors earlier—now you won’t even admit it?!”
The man panicked. “How can you say it’s rumors? Got proof? Can those ears of yours even hear clearly?”
Each stuck to their story, and it was a blind spot for cameras, so nothing would come of it.
Sang Ning returned to the studio sullenly and meticulously finished her wrap-up work. Soon after, Shen Tingwan suddenly called her.
She picked up. “How’d you get into an argument? Are you okay?”
Sang Ning hadn’t expected Shen Tingwan to know so soon. Hearing the full concern in her voice, she smiled down at her phone. “I’m fine, don’t worry.”
Shen Tingwan had heard about it from Director Zhang. At first, she hadn’t believed Sang Ning had argued with someone and confirmed it repeatedly.
“Where are you? I’ll come find you.”
A few minutes later, Sang Ning saw Shen Tingwan hurrying into the studio. She gave her usual faint smile. “Senior Sister.”
Now that they were face-to-face, Shen Tingwan asked again, “What happened?”
Sang Ning looked at Shen Tingwan, unsure how to explain.
Shen Tingwan had gotten the rough story from Director Zhang: Sang Ning had overheard something, gotten mad, and splashed water on them.
She knew Sang Ning’s good temper too well—no one would do something so impulsive unless they’d heard something intolerable. But since Sang Ning wouldn’t talk, she didn’t press…
They stood awkwardly for a moment.
Shen Tingwan asked warmly, “Hungry? Let’s go eat.”
Sang Ning: “Okay.”
Night had just fallen, the city lights twinkling romantically.
Shen Tingwan picked a restaurant nearby the office. Sang Ning quietly followed her pace.
They ate more quietly than usual this time. Sang Ning still said nothing, and Shen Tingwan didn’t pry. Both were distracted.
The Riverside Scenic Belt was right by the restaurant. After dinner, they took a stroll to aid digestion, leaning on the railing to enjoy the river breeze and view.
Shen Tingwan glanced at Sang Ning’s quiet profile. Rumor had it she’d argued fiercely in the office—what grievance could push someone of her temperament to that?
Sang Ning turned her head and met her gaze.
“If you’re upset, you can tell me,” Shen Tingwan couldn’t help saying. “Did they bully you?”
Sang Ning could see Shen Tingwan had been worried about her all along. After thinking it over, since it involved Shen Tingwan, she probably should know.
She looked at Shen Tingwan for a moment, then quietly explained, “They were spreading rumors about you behind your back.”
Shen Tingwan froze. She’d thought someone had said something about Sang Ning to provoke such a reaction…
Sang Ning lowered her head.
It took Shen Tingwan a while to recover. She smiled lightly, as if it were nothing. “They said I got resources through some shady means?”
Sang Ning fell silent, unable to smile.
She’d heard these rumors plenty of times—pointless drivel. Knowing that’s what it was actually relieved Shen Tingwan; she’d feared it was something against Sang Ning… “It’s fine. Some idle people without talent love smearing others. I’ll keep an eye on them.” They were probably from the ad department, still sore about her blocking their work last time.
Sang Ning pressed her lips together lightly, still quiet. Thinking of those words still made her upset and angry.
Shen Tingwan noticed every little detail. After a pause, she half-jokingly asked, “It was about me—why are you so mad?”
Sang Ning truly had never been this angry before. She couldn’t pretend otherwise now. She turned to Shen Tingwan, utterly serious. “Because I know Senior Sister is wonderful.”
