Ni Yi and Shen Lin had taken the child away so that Yu Yaoyao could comfortably focus on her call. Shen Yichong had stayed by her side. Yu Yaoyao lazily leaned back on the chair while her yellow dress billowed in the sea breeze, her bangs being blown lightly over her forehead.
The sun was high, casting a dim orange glow on the sea below. The water sparkled like diamonds. “Why is it that when her husband is the culprit, she becomes the loser?” she asked again, calmly.
“Of course, she isn’t,” said the Director, “Not in reality. But the society and the world in general has that perspective towards her.”
“I think,” continued Yu Yaoyao, “The world should stop besmirching women for the crimes of men. If a couple in a marriage aren’t happy with each other, the most logical step would be to break it off and follow their own paths in life.” Yu Yaoyao sounded sad. She covered her face with her hands. “Why would a woman need to cling to a broken relationship for the sake of a heartless man?” Shen Yichong, who was getting some coconut milk from the staff next to him, looked at her concernedly.
“Let’s take a real-life example,” he said, “Suppose, let’s just imagine, you were cheated on, what would you do?”
Yu Yaoyao thought about it, sitting cross-legged on the chair, her hair flowing in the light breeze. If Shen Yichong cheated on me with… Ling Shuang, thought Yu Yaoyao. She bit her lower lip in frustration. If he cheated on her with that woman, like he did on the original novel, what would she actually do? It made her terribly sad even thinking about such a thing.
“For argument’s sake,” she said, “If he actually cheats on me, I will demand half of every property, land and profit he has and full custody of the child. If it ever came to a point where we were miserable with each other, that is what I will do. I might feel heart-broken for a while, but I wouldn’t be wasting my time and energy being miserable on a man who doesn’t want me. I would get on with my career, keep many pets, take care of my child and live my life the way I want. I might even want more children. And, if I ever feel lonely, he is not the only man in this world, there are plenty of others.” Yu Yaoyao sat there with a stubborn face and even more resolute willpower. Shen Yichong looked pale at her words.
Shen Yichong thought about it. He could never cheat on her! It was just a silly question. The Director was just asking her opinion, nothing of the sort was going to happen. But still he felt a certain queasiness and avoided looking at Yu Yaoyao. He resisted walking forward and ending the call.
Yu Yaoyao had tears in her eyes. She held up a hand and wiped her eyes. She couldn’t imagine their lives turning that way. It would break her heart. She would go on and live, find cuter guys to shower her affections on, but it was still too painful to think about it.
The live broadcast comment section shared her despair, many pinging in to comment that she would have their full support, others expressing their own plight at having discovered their husbands cheating on them. The atmosphere turned grim from just one question.
Director Zhao Yu, who had been following the broadcast closely, couldn’t help but be frustrated at Director Qi’s hand for turning his warm, funny show into a sad, angry and gloomy one. Just yesterday, it had been about love and humor and all the nice things, and today, with one call, a shadow had been cast on his show.
Director Zhao decided to intervene to save his show, but before he could, a deep solemn voice rang out. “Whatever you want to do, however you want to live, I will stand by you each and every step of the way, offering my full devotion and support,” said Shen Yichong, turning to Yu Yaoyao. He went down to his knee and extended a hand to wipe her tears away. “You can have all the children you want, any pet you want, follow your career and live your best life with me. I would never, ever hurt you in that way. You are the only woman in my life, and I desperately wish to be the only one for you too.” He stroked her cheek. He took the phone from her hand and placed it on the table. “You don’t have to do this role; you didn’t want it in the first place. I made a mistake on pushing you towards it. It is only making you unhappy. I am sorry.”
Yu Yaoyao sniffled and looked at him. She took his hand in hers and felt secure in his warmth. “You wanted to help the other two families, right?” Shen Yichong asked, with a comforting smile, “Let’s go. It’s about time, don’t you think?”
The live broadcast room saw everything and couldn’t help expressing their emotions, either in the form of humor or in appreciation:
[Mr. Shen: Director, don’t talk nonsense! Also, you made my wife cry! Go back to wherever you came from!]
[Mr. Shen made me believe in love again!]
[Director Qi: Hey hey hey! I was just making up a topic, okay?!]
[The director got rejected by Mr. Shen… Hahaha! ]
Zhao Yu laughed at the scene in good faith. He was relieved that Shen Yichong had saved his show without him having to intervene.
A voice still came from the phone on the table. “I haven’t finished the interview yet,” said Director Qi Hang in a desperate tone, “Yu, I will make some changes to the role and get back to you in a few days. Please take some days to reconsider.”
The live broadcast room erupted in laughter. The Director seemed so adamant in casting Yu Yaoyao that he was even willing to make changes to the character design!