Back Then, I Adored You

The best way to tackle this problem was to find an investor who could obtain the most shares.

Director Lin’s new movie was a costume drama. From special effects staff to cast members, he had invited the best in their fields to join his crew; the budget for the movie was exceedingly high. He needed a few investors to back the film.

Zhou Jing and Liang Doukou were familiar with three investors. They had met for dinner with two of the three not long ago. After she assured Liang Doukou that all would go in her favor, Zhou Jing tried to contact all three of these men; however, she could not reach any of them. One was on a business trip, another was on vacation overseas, and the third had returned to his hometown to pay his respects to an ancestor.

The leading actress in Director Lin’s new movie was going to be publicly announced in the next few days. If Lin Yi were to be replaced after the announcement, there would be numerous news articles and gossip about Liang Doukou taking her role. Many of these stories would come out in different versions, which would hurt Liang Doukou’s stellar reputation and fame; therefore, Zhou Jing and Liang Doukou turned to other investors after they couldn’t reach those with whom they were familiar.

The first investor they decided to pursue couldn’t be reached through any means. They then tried a second investor who they managed to get a phone number for, but he was quick to turn down the offer on the first phone call.

The last investor they had contact information for was a Mr. Yang. Zhou Jing and Liang Doukou had heard of him but had never met him in person. He was well known as a prolific playboy. It was rumored that he had slept with some 80 percent of the female celebrities in the entertainment and other industries.

If this or a similar problem had happened before, Liang Doukou could have asked Old Master Gu to have Gu Yusheng secure her the leading actress role in Director Lin’s new movie for Liang Doukou.

Unfortunately, Old Master Gu could not ask Gu Yusheng to do anything for her now in the entertainment industry, since Gu Yusheng had fought with her and Old Master Gu last year.

Also, Old Master Gu was hospitalized and seriously ill at the moment. Even though he had woken up from his coma, he was still not in great shape. Because she had always been well behaved in front of him, she did not want to bother him with her career troubles and possibly have him think less of her.

After struggling with her conundrum, Liang Doukou firmly decided she could not allow Lin Yi to take the leading role, and she agreed to Zhou Jing’s proposal to contact the playboy investor, Mr. Yang.

Zhou Jing dialed the number. After the call went through, Mr. Yang agreed to meet with Liang Doukou without any hesitation. They agreed to meet at a casual setting, at a suite at the Four Seasons Hotel.

After the call ended, and having heard their discussion on the phone, Liang Doukou changed her mind about meeting with Mr. Yang.

Zhou Jing did not give her a hard time; she only said, “You’d better give this a bit more thought. You could lose your popularity and celebrity status, or you can meet Mr. Yang.”

Liang Doukou felt like her back was against the wall. After Zhou Jing promised her that she would be with her the whole time, not leaving her alone with Mr. Yang, and that there was no chance of a scandal, Liang Doukou reluctantly finally agreed to meet with him.

When Liang Doukou went to her meeting with Mr. Yang, however, Zhou Jing did leave the hotel suite, but not by design: Zhou Jing unexpectedly received a call from one of the three investors she had tried to contact before.

Because she was unsure that Mr. Yang could help Liang Doukou get the leading actress role, she needed to take the call from that investor. She leaned into Liang Doukou’s ear to let her know who was calling her and that she was stepping out of the suite for a minute.