Shrine - Chapter 60
Chapter 60
The Gobi Desert stretched out under a cloudless sky, creating a strange sense of inversion, as if defying the natural order. It wasn't that all things reflected the sunlight, but rather that the dust and sand seemed to be reflected into the sky. The gray-streaked heavens looked as if they had been wiped with a handful of saltpeter, and the perfectly round setting sun was a stray ember, burning a hole between the desert and the sky.
Shi Ran sat before the main monitor, watching the playback of a key scene. Xiao Lin wrapped her in a down jacket covered in stick-on heating pads. After confirming everything was fine, she stood up, pressed her hands together in thanks to the crew working hard in the desert, and then got into the car to head back to the hotel.
The desert shoot had come to an end. The next scene was by Moonshade Lake, so they could stay in the city tonight.
Shi Ran took a relaxing hot shower, walked to the bed, and opened a can of chilled orange soda. She sipped it while organizing the script pages from today's shoot. They were covered in dense markings of various colors. She marked the scenes that had already been filmed, then flipped a couple more pages, rereading the parts she didn't remember as clearly.
After eating some fruit, her hair was mostly dry. Only then did she lean back against the headboard and play on her phone.
She replied to a few work messages, then opened Weibo. She had already turned off the red-dot notifications, and her private messages were a perpetually endless scroll. She gave them a cursory glance and expertly switched to the private account her manager had registered for her. It had never posted anything, and the profile was blank. It was just for her to search things and read the news, lest she accidentally like something and cause a stir.
Shi Ran opened the trending topics list. A quick scan told her it was boring; even the news that a certain pop idol had "earned himself" a police notice—blue background, white text—held no interest for her.
Her neck, sore from a long day's work, ached. She moved it around casually, her thumb brushing against the screen. She tapped the search bar and typed: "Ruan Ruan."
Ruan Ruan had a night shoot today and probably wouldn't wrap until after midnight. She heard the set wasn't too strict, so on-set candids would occasionally leak out.
The Ruan Ruan and Zhong Yi CP had shot to fame after the "I'm fond of you" moment on the red carpet. Their ranking in the CP Super Topic list had skyrocketed, and with a few fan-made videos going viral on A-Station, they were now considered a CP with some heat and great momentum in the industry. The CP fans firmly occupied the trending posts under Ruan Ruan's tag; several in a row were about the sweet moments between her and Zhong Yi.
A CP fansite was offering a high price for leaked photos of the two on set. As the saying goes, "a handsome reward brings forth a brave man," and some pictures had indeed been taken, some from an angle that suggested the photographer had climbed a tree.
In the latest trending post, Ruan Ruan was slightly covering her mouth, her eyes crinkling with laughter as she lightly tapped Zhong Yi's arm with her script.
Zhong Yi didn't dodge, standing next to the lighting technician, looking quite pleased.
Another GIF showed Zhong Yi with her hands spread, tilting her head in a gesture of playful surrender. Ruan Ruan was leaning against Wu Mei, looking Zhong Yi up and down with a hint of mock disdain.
The CP fans were already very familiar with them.
"Yi-bao is teasing her wife again."
"What's going on here? Why is a certain Ms. Zhong only this mischievous in front of a certain colleague?"
"Wu Mei: No one said being an assistant meant watching a young couple show off their love."
"Just think about it. When have they ever been this childish with anyone else? The more you think about it, the more it hits you."
"They're so real it's starting to scare me."
Shi Ran's gaze followed the myriad comments, moving down inch by inch, her reading time growing longer and longer.
She replayed the GIF. Once, twice, a third time. The comments she had just read became a voiceover, narrating their micro-expressions.
Shi Ran couldn't help but think back. When Ruan Ruan was with her, she never seemed to roll something up and tap her with it, nor did she ever look at her with that teasingly disdainful yet smiling gaze. She had never been so unrestrained, so presumptuously at ease.
Zhong Yi was very good at dealing with people. She had the confidence that came from a good family background—not just money, but the certainty of "I know everyone will love me." Some people's faces clearly show the trajectory of being loved. Every piece of the puzzle of love in her life was complete and presentable.
One could imagine that her parents, and all her relatives—grandparents, aunts, and uncles—doted on her.
That kind of pride couldn't be acquired later in life. It was like someone giving you a limited-edition, complete set of Barbie dolls as an adult; you would still be missing the five-yuan one from the school gate when you were a child, the one with hair that tangled and clothes that smelled of cheap adhesive.
Looking at the beaming Ruan Ruan, Shi Ran felt a strange sensation, as if the doll in her hands no longer needed her.
A childhood illusion surfaced. She was sitting on the wooden floor, and her parents were telling her to give the Barbie doll in her arms to her cousin who had come from far away. Little Shi Ran clutched it, refusing. Her parents said she already had so many toys, what was the big deal about giving one to her cousin?
She hoped the doll would speak up, or reach out and hug her. But of course, the doll couldn't. It just smiled, facing any child who held it.
A thorn grew in Shi Ran's heart. It didn't hurt, but it was grating.
She swiped right, back to the main feed, and scrolled down. Amidst the "Yi Ruan Qing Mi" posts, another CP appeared. It was Xin Chen x Ruan Ruan.
In the video, Xin Chen had her arm around Ruan Ruan's shoulder, and Ruan Ruan nudged her with her head.
Still smiling so sweetly.
A shipper said that a few years ago, Xin Chen and her so-called ex-boyfriend clearly weren't close. Rumor had it they were a contract couple. After the man was photographed living with another man, she declared in an interview that she was single. Later, when things relaxed a bit for the GL genre, Xin Chen appeared on a variety show with yuri elements, and the first drama she produced was also a yuri drama. It was hard not to be suspicious of her sexual orientation.
And the female lead of her first drama had also signed with her company. The relationship between them was intriguing.
Shi Ran opened the comment section. Many people said Xin Chen had always been in the glass closet. One comment read: "The trajectory you've summarized is pretty much the same as the top star's."
Also participating in a variety show, then investing in and filming a yuri drama.
Something stirred in her heart. Shi Ran saw that a few replies were collapsed. After a moment's hesitation, she tapped to expand them. Her eyes blinked, a flicker of anticipation hidden within her curiosity.
Netizen 1: No way for our top star.
Netizen 2: ears.jpg
Netizen 1: Have you ever seen someone who's actually involved be this open about it? Xin Chen is the real boss. Why didn't she take her under her wing personally?
Netizen 1: Besides, the top star has been underground for two years since the show? They would've been photographed long ago.
Netizen 3: Shi Ruan andrology.
Andrology? What did that mean? Shi Ran tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She and Ruan Ruan were both girls.
She sniffled and waited a moment, but no one asked that netizen what they meant.
Shi Ran put down her phone and habitually rubbed her wrist. Then she lowered her hand, her right fingers tapping lightly on her left forearm.
She tilted her head up to look at the ceiling light for a few seconds until her vision blurred. Then, she lowered her head coolly, opened Weibo, and searched: Shi Ruan.
They already had a Super Topic. Although it wasn't as big as "Yi Ruan Qing Mi," it still had a fair number of CP fans.
Her gaze followed her scrolling finger downward until she saw a similar comment: Shi Ruan is really hard to ship.
This time the characters were correct, and she could understand it. There were replies, too. Shi Ran tapped on them, her heart skipping a beat.
Netizen 4: I agree. How can anyone even ship SR? The top star always looks like a boss. She's so stiff.
Netizen 5: Ahhhh, that's what I'm saying!! R clearly has an 'I want to get off work' expression on her face whenever she sees S! It's so obvious!
Netizen 4: Besides, if you ship this CP, you have to deal with the top star's dream girls. facepalm.jpg
Boss… wants to get off work…
Shi Ran thought about how Ruan Ruan laughed and joked with Xin Chen and Zhong Yi. Was it really like that?
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