Chapter 349: Chapter 349 - 343: Retreating Once More to Jing Jihan’s Side

"Cousin? Where’d you get a cousin from? Judging by that tone, did he come from the Imperial Capital?" Jun accompanied Shi Su for a while in the restroom. She had just blocked Shi Dongyang’s hand earlier, washed her hands in the process, and despite using a lot of soap, she still felt disgusted.

She looked at Shi Su again: "I’ve heard that many wealthy kids from the business circles in the Imperial Capital have a bad reputation in private, and they are especially disgusting with their behaviors, cousins and relatives alike, their relationships are all messed up. As long as they don’t have children together, they do whatever they want. The way he acted just now was obvious, no wonder it made you queasy, I’m about to throw up too."

Shi Su was washing her hands as well.

The cold water splashing on the back of her hands could suppress the displeasure deep in her heart, allowing herself to calm down.

Jun dried her hands and then said: "Ever since I found out you were Shi Lingkang’s daughter, I also roughly guessed your relationship with the Imperial Capital the Shi Family. After all, I’ve heard Jiang City’s Shi Hong Group is a branch of the Shi Family from the Imperial Capital, an important company under the Shi Family."

"But you never brought up these things, and since you’ve been on your own all these years, I wasn’t too curious about your matters. Today, hearing what your cousin said, what’s his name, Shi Dongyang, right? It’s no wonder you’d rather forge a path for yourself outside than consider going back to them for a penny."

Jun handed a tissue from her bag to Shi Su.

Shi Su wiped her hands as she spoke: "The words ’wealthy family’ indeed sound admirable, but there are so many playboys among the children of wealthy families. Regardless of the older or younger generation, few are truly reliable. The Shi Family seems very rich, but if I want to get even a penny from there, I’d have to pay a thousand times the price, even at the cost of my freedom."

Jun chuckled and patted her on the shoulder: "Then let’s not. It’s good as it is now, much better than a year and a half ago when we first opened the studio. How much did we have combined in funds back then? Now the studio’s operating funds and reserve funds have multiplied several times, and we women should stand in this world with our own abilities."

Recognizing that Jun was starting to discuss women’s survival methods and her life view, which emphasizes self-respect, Shi Su felt her ears grow calluses listening to it and couldn’t be bothered with her, so she directly left the restroom.

"Why are there so many people at the bottom of the stairs?" The two were just about to head back to the exhibition hall on the first floor when they suddenly saw a crowd at the staircase below.

Two waiters were carrying empty trays up and heard Jun’s mutter. As they passed by, one said: "The organizers are inviting guests to sit inside now, so everyone’s gathered to get ready to go up front to take their seats. It’s crowded here, not good for going down the stairs. You can take the elevator in the middle of the corridor."

"Alright, let’s take the elevator." Jun grabbed Shi Su by the wrist and turned towards the middle of the second-floor corridor.

Shi Su was walking while checking the message Miss Chen had sent her. At the elevator, Jun raised her hand to press the down button. Suddenly, her phone rang and as she lowered her head to pick it up, she accidentally pressed the up button. She couldn’t cancel it and had to press the down button again, lighting up both the up and down buttons in front of the elevator.

"Miss Chen asked me to go to HBD with her tomorrow." Shi Su stood in front of the elevator, replied to a WeChat message, put down her phone, and said.

"Go ahead, Lin Chen has been arranging these engagements for you, almost all directly at HBD’s film center. She probably made some connections with the people in charge there." Jun replied while also looking at WeChat: "Choosing Lin Chen as your manager was indeed a good choice."

Jun looked down at her phone and said: "Although the artists she managed before were all quite minor, her business ability is outstanding, and she’s well-connected in the industry. It’s just that the two artists she had before lacked emotional intelligence. They were nearly popular but said the wrong things during a live broadcast, which caused a drop in fan attention and brought criticism. No one can manage such artists, but ever since Lin Chen joined you, your career has been going quite smoothly, and you two complement each other well."

Shi Su smiled, glanced at the elevator, and noted that the hotel floor where the exhibition was held had over thirty floors.

There were six elevators in total nearby. The two were so engrossed in their conversation that they stood in front of this one elevator for half a day without moving. Previously, the elevator was on the thirtieth floor and had now returned to the first.

If not for pressing the up button by mistake earlier, they would have entered the elevator by now.

"However, Lin Chen is indeed a competent manager, yet she is quite strict on your private life and day-to-day relationships. She hasn’t even met Mianmian a few times..."

Before Jun could finish her sentence, the elevator, which had come up from the first floor, stopped on the second.

The elevator door opened slowly, revealing two men inside.

Zhou He, inside the elevator, suddenly met Shi Su’s gaze and looked at her in surprise.

Shi Su’s eyes lingered for a moment on the face of the other strikingly handsome man. She instinctively moved forward but then withdrew, stepping back slightly without the intention of stepping into the elevator.

The man, dressed in black suit pants that wrapped around his long and straight legs, wore a bespoke handmade shirt without a crease, exuding an extraordinary identity, yet with cool detachment.

He stood in the elevator, a detached gaze falling on Shi Su without a trace of familiarity or emotional change. His eyes moved lightly over Shi Su and Jun, finally pausing as he saw Shi Su stepping back.

The man’s eyes were calm and steady, bearing a sense of distant aloofness and coldness.

Jun was also stunned for a few seconds before she hurriedly spoke: "Sorry, we meant to go down, pressed the wrong button. Please go ahead."

The handsome man inside, his face expressionless and calm, said nothing, while Zhou He quickly and politely nodded: "Okay."

As he spoke, Zhou He reached out and pressed the close button within the elevator, then retreated to stand beside Jing Jihan, pretending as if nothing happened, as if he hadn’t seen anyone.

In the past half-year, Shi Su’s name, while not quite taboo, considering this big star is now really popular, is frequently seen in photos of her attending new events or filming new dramas on mobile news, continuously featured in media coverage.

However, Lu Zhao had reminded him, not to mention Shi Su in front of Mr. Jing.

Yet, Zhou He was now thinking, Miss Shi Su looks quite nice in a suit, though he didn’t know if Mr. Jing noticed it clearly. But he didn’t dare to ask, didn’t dare to say anything, and standing in the elevator next to the taciturn and indifferent man, he inexplicably felt a kind of thin air suffocating sensation.