BXBX NOVEL Chapter 64 - Sixty-Four: Wife
Mika was talking to Shi Xiu nonstop about the script when Yun Nan walked in. The young lady’s eyes were sparkling as she listened to him, completely immersed in the plot.
Mika looked up and was stunned when he saw Yun Nan and Shi Nian come through the door. He then strode over and excitedly gushed, “Yun Nan! Yun
Nan, is he a new actor? He’s got quite the charisma; I want to give him a role!”
Yun Nan was exasperated and reprimanded him, “Aren’t you getting a little carried away? You can’t just give a role to every person you see! Are we so short of actors?”
Mika sized up Shi Nian as he answered Yun Nan, “You can never have too many actors. It doesn’t matter if he’s a newbie; I’m confident I can train him up.”
Yun Nan did not want to bother talking with him anymore because she hadn’t been able to reason with him for all the years they knew each other. She tugged Shi Nian close and told him, “Ignore him; leave him to his craziness. You can wait for me in my office.”
However, Shi Nian offered his hand to Mika and introduced himself, “Hello, I’m Shi Nian.”
“Hi, it’s a pleasure to meet you! My name is Mika,” Mika reached out and began to shake Shi Nian’s hand. Suddenly, his eyes narrowed, and he froze. “Shi Nian? THAT Shi Nian?! Oh my god! You are him!” Mika quickly released Shi Nian’s hand as if it were hot coals, took two steps back, and looked at Yun Nan in horror.
Yun Nan was a little tired of the situation. She rolled her eyes at Mika and quipped, “Don’t worry, he doesn’t bite.”
“Pfft!” Shi Nian and Shi Xiu couldn’t help but laugh.
Mika pulled Yun Nan over and hurriedly whispered, “This isn’t the time for jokes! How on earth did you manage to invite this legend? Is he here to invest in our studio? Why didn’t you say so earlier? We have to give him the royal treatment since he’s our investor! I’m no good at that! You have to get Fang Xi; she can handle him.” Mika then stomped his feet and anxiously stated, “Oh, no! She’s not here! Aargh, why did she have to be absent at such an important time? *Sigh* What should we do?”
“Mika, weren’t you going to make him an actor?” Yun Nan smilingly jibed as she looked at him.
Mika gritted his teeth and growled, “Yun Nan! I’m being serious here!”
Yun Nan stopped teasing him when she saw that he was truly stressed. “Chill,
Mika. It’s alright; don’t be nervous. He’s just here to have a look around today.
You don’t have to worry about the investment issue. We don’t need investments—at least not for this movie. Fang Xi and I can handle that ourselves.”
Mika still fretted, “How can I not be worried? You girls should save your money for your dowries. That small sum won’t be able to cover the movie production cost. Hmm? Did you say he’s here to look around?”
Mika looked at Shi Nian in shock. Shi Nian smiled, stepped forward, and put his arm around Yun Nan’s shoulders before addressing Mika. “Don’t worry, I’m always ready to invest if you guys need it.”
“R-Really?” Mika couldn’t believe it. Yun Nan stared at Shi Nian. She had never made such a request of Shi Nian, nor did she ever have such plans; she felt it was best to set boundaries between them. He was someone she used to deter her biological family’s pestering, and he did great at that—there was no need to complicate things further by going beyond the conditions agreed upon in their marriage contract.
“Of course, it’s my duty to support my wife’s work, isn’t it?” Shi Nian stated as he looked at Yun Nan affectionately. Yun Nan immediately took a step back at his affectionate gaze, but she didn’t break free from his embrace.
“Wife?” Mika was alarmed. “What wife?”
Shi Nian deliberately peered at Yun Nan and asked, “You haven’t told them
about our marriage yet?”
“You’re married?! When did that happen? Yun Nan, how dare you get married behind our backs!” Mika was genuinely offended this time. Everyone heard his shouting and came over.
Yun Nan looked at Shi Nian exasperatedly and mouthed, “You did this on purpose, didn’t you?” Shi Nian looked at her with a smile and nodded slightly.
Shi Xiu had watched the entire scene with her mouth agape. Right now, everyone had surrounded the small group, looking as if they were about to swallow her brother and sister-in-law whole, so she hurriedly stepped forward and shielded them. “Calm down, everyone. Take it easy; we can talk this over—”
Miss An pulled Shi Xiu over and interjected, “Shi Xiu, step aside. I have to interrogate this gentleman.”
“Miss An, he’s my brother,” Shi Xiu hurriedly said.
Shi Xiu felt that Shi Nian was useless; he couldn’t even protect his wife. She quickly pushed her hands out to stop the crowd. “Everyone, calm down and listen to me. My brother and Yun Nan were engaged since they were young. It was decided by both our families’ elders. They didn’t get married in secret; it was all above board.”
“Since they were young? An arranged marriage? That won’t do at all!” Miss An and Yun Nan’s other female friends were unhappy when they heard that and scrutinized Shi Nian even more critically.
Shi Nian watched the proceeding with great interest..