The car suddenly fell silent, and the atmosphere in the air became stagnant.
Xiao Yanzhi's smile faded. His gaze on her grew deeper and his thoughts sank.
"Jiang Li, are you serious?"
Jiang Li faced Xiao Yanzhi, stubbornly pursing her lips slightly. There was hardly any expression on her face.
Silent but resolute, she was showing her attitude.
The two of them were deadlocked like this.
The air pressure in the car dropped bit by bit. Jiang Li could keenly sense that the man in front of her was becoming increasingly impatient, but she remained unmoved.
After a moment of silence, Xiao Yanzhi slowly exhaled a breath. "There should be a limit to throwing a tantrum."
He never had much patience. "What exactly do you want? Just say it clearly. I don't have the time to play guessing games."
By this time, Xiao Yanzhi still thought that Jiang Li was threatening him with contract termination again and again to achieve some goal.
He simply didn't believe that Jiang Li would really want to leave.
"I don't have the time to set puzzles for you either." When Jiang Li spoke, there was a heavy sense of powerlessness. "I'm already very tired. I just want to take a long rest."
Since being tough didn't work, Jiang Li tried being soft.
"You've seen it too. I didn't go to the hospital for cold medicine today." Jiang Li let out a short laugh and softened her tone. "The doctor said that with my current condition, the best treatment is to stop working."
Jiang Li's voice was soft. "I'm an actress. I need to be on the screen all the time to gain the audience's favor. As long as I disappear for more than three months, there will be new and excellent actors to replace me, and the audience will forget about me."
"Didn't you say that no one is irreplaceable? I'm no exception."
Xiao Yanzhi listened quietly to what she said, not caring. "Don't I still exist? Do you think I'll let you fade out of this industry?"
He said it lightly.
Indeed, in terms of capital, Xiao Yanzhi could really turn things around. As long as he wanted her to stay in the spotlight, all he needed to do was throw money at it.
Whether to make her popular or obscure, he could decide it all on his own with just a snap of his fingers.
All those so - called talents, efforts, and day - and - night training were just little tricks to add a bit of color in front of people like him.
As long as they wanted, even a complete novice could be turned into a million - star - level celebrity.
Jiang Li forced a smile. "Yes, in the end, all you want is for me to recognize that I, Jiang Li, can achieve nothing without you."
Xiao Yanzhi frowned.
"But what if I don't want anything anymore?"
She asked casually. Xiao Yanzhi paused for a moment, then suddenly seemed to think of something. "Why do you say that? Is it because Qin Yaoyao is pregnant with my child, so you want to end it?"
His gaze was scrutinizing. It was obviously to confirm her feelings, and also seemed like he was eager to turn the tables in this relationship.
It was as if this could prove that Jiang Li still cared about him.
Jiang Li didn't avoid his gaze. But when she heard him say "Qin Yaoyao is pregnant with my child" with his own mouth, her eyes blinked quickly a few times, as if trying to hold back the accumulated mist.
She said word by word, her voice trembling with emotion. "Since you know, then you should start building your family, consider your future life, and plan everything from marriage to childbirth."
"I've already paid off the money I owed you. My years of hard work for Jiang Entertainment should be enough to repay your kindness. It's time for us to end."
"You didn't say that back then." Xiao Yanzhi's eyes darkened, as if he was questioning her previous words. "Didn't you say with your own mouth that you would follow me forever?"
He was always like this, arranging and planning according to his own ideas, never compromising for anyone or anything. The initiative was always in his hands.
Jiang Li had never been more sober than at this moment. "But this 'forever' doesn't include me becoming your mistress who can't be in the light, a kept woman for the rest of my life."
He was the master who controlled the stars, but she no longer belonged to his galaxy.
"Then what do you want?"
"I've said it before. I want a perfect marriage, a complete family, and a stable and peaceful life."
She glanced at him. "What I want is very simple, but you can't give me any of them."
Xiao Yanzhi's Adam's apple rolled a few times. He seemed to want to say something but stopped himself. His brows were gloomy, but finally he fell silent.
Xue An had slowed down the car as much as possible, but they had already reached their destination. He had no choice but to park the car by the side of the road.
Before getting out of the car, Jiang Li took a deep breath one last time. "Please don't come to the filming set to find me anymore, and don't pester me either."
"I wish you a happy marriage, a harmonious family, and all the best."
After that, she held an umbrella in her hand, opened the car door, and got out.
The heavy rain showed no sign of stopping.
Jiang Li left so resolutely. She didn't pause for a single step. Her steps were hasty but steady. She walked briskly, not even looking back once.
As long as she looked back once, he would immediately open the car door and chase her back.
But she didn't look back even once.
The umbrella gradually moved away and disappeared into the curtain of rain. It was no longer recognizable.
In the past, she and Xiao Yanzhi had a clear sugar - daddy relationship. She was the canary he kept, the red rose he watered. She clearly and without choice belonged to him.
But now, she had broken free from his net.
---
For quite a while after that, Xiao Yanzhi really didn't show up on the filming set again. The shooting went extremely smoothly.
Although Ying Chengqi thought it was a good thing, she also thought it was too abnormal. She finally couldn't help but ask Jiang Li what good method she had used to gain such peace.
"There's no good method. I just made him unhappy and had to endure his cold shoulder." Jiang Li deflected the question. "Besides, isn't it just what we want that he doesn't come?"
Ying Chengqi nodded on the surface, but she knew exactly what was going on in her heart.
Most likely, the canary had pecked the sugar - daddy's hand and there was a quarrel.
As long as no scandal was exposed, it was basically just a minor tiff. It would be okay after some time.
The relationships in their circle were hard for outsiders to understand clearly for a while. As long as the serious business wasn't delayed, it was fine.
In one's life, many things were really better left muddled.
...
For a month, the progress of filming had been extremely smooth. The atmosphere in the whole filming set had become more and more harmonious. Since everyone was together day and night, their feelings had also deepened a lot.
On this day, Director Ying suddenly had an idea. He said that he wanted to treat everyone to a meal in a restaurant outside to relax. He would foot the bill.