"There was nothing much recently. Rest more at home and take a look at these scripts."
Yu Minmin proceeded to throw a huge pile of scripts at Lin Che. Looking at the pile, she quietly asked, "What are all of these?"
Yu Minmin said, "These are for roles we hope you'll play. We're still looking. You can browse them and if there's any that interests you, let me know."
"Wow, so many!" Lin Che exclaimed in surprise.
Yu Minmin smiled and replied, "These are not even all of them. The ones we selected for you are all top female lead roles. They won't go wrong."
"Top female lead?"
"Yes. I'm not giving you supporting roles anymore. The first step was a supporting role. Now, it's time for the next step, which is to make you a lead actress in a television drama for you to shine. Thus, these scripts are very important. Take your time to pick."
The pair walked side by side. Yu Minmin's phone suddenly rang.
Yu Minmin looked at the number and her expression subtly changed. She turned to smile at Lin Che and then walked ahead to answer the call on her own.
"Dad, what's wrong?"
"Daughter, my good daughter. I have decided to turn over a new leaf. All these years, I have let you down. I let you and your brother suffer. I'm going to quit gambling from now on."
Yu Minmin listened to the solemn vows on the phone and curled her lips in a smile, "Tell me. How much did you lose this time? How much money do you want me to give you?"
"Not much… Not much, really. This time, I got cheated by someone. During the last game…"
"I'm not interested in your stories. Just tell me the result. How much do you owe?"
"Thiry thousand…"
"Thirty thousand… Dad, that's a few months' worth of my salary!"
"My daughter. Your father only has you. You have to help me. Otherwise, they're going to use your mother to clear the debt."
"You…" Yu Minmin took a deep breath, "For Mom. Dad, I'm only doing this for my mom and brother. Please leave them alone, will you? Can you divorce Mum?"
"You… Are you still my daughter?"
Yu Minmin hung up. When she returned outside, Lin Che noticed that Yu Minmin looked a little flustered. She asked, "Sister Yu, are you okay?"
Yu Minmin smiled, "I'm okay; I just have personal matters. Go back and look at the scripts. I won't send you off."
Lin Che nodded as her gaze fell on Yu Minmin, "Sister Yu, I feel that you're rather mysterious sometimes."
"What?" Yu Minmin laughed.
Lin Che said, "I've worked with you for so many years but I've never heard you mention anything about your family or your personal life as a matter of fact. Everybody says you're a workaholic."
Yu Minmin looked at Lin Che, "And I have never told anyone that you're Lin Li's sister and a lady from the Lin family."
Lin Che panicked and she quickly looked down, laughing dryly, "I always felt that there's nothing much to say about that. There's no point. It's better if I fight for myself and get away from those people and the past."
Yu Minmin replied, "And that is why I've always liked you; you're not vengeful. What you said is right. There's no point in saying anything so neither have I. Remember, this society doesn't applaud failure. I never let others carry what I can carry myself. I don't want to burden others when they already have their own problems. And I don't want to add salt to my wounds…"
Yu Minmin waved her hand for Lin Che's car to pick her up.
Lin Che turned back and looked at Yu Minmin. She was walking back into the building. Her back view looked somewhat lonely while she always put on a strong, unwavering front; It was so drastically different…
Lin Che took her pile of scripts home.
Gu Jingze saw that Lin Che was carrying something and asked for someone to help her.
"What are these?" Gu Jingze asked.
Lin Che replied, "The company is letting me choose scripts."
Gu Jingze gingerly picked one up. The title read "Golden Affections".
What a terrible name.
Lin Che sat on the sofa and poured the scripts on the table, casually flipping through them.
Gu Jingze sat on the other side and also took the scripts to see.
"I'll help you see," Gu Jingze offered. "You can choose from all of these?"
"Yes."
Lin Che looked at him silently, "Do you know what to look for in all of these?"
Gu Jingze said, "I have a Master's degree from McGill College."
"…"
Lin Che replied, "Literature and acting are completely different!"
"But they're both arts; there must be something in common."
Lin Che held her scripts and raised her head to look at Gu Jingze with curiosity, "But why would a bronze-stinking businessman like you study literature?"
Gu Jingze said without looking up, "I also have a Ph.D. from Harvard Business School, a Master's degree from Yale School of Psychology and Law, and I studied management and economics at MIT. It's too bad that I only had enough time to get a Bachelor's degree."
"…"
Lin Che raised both her hands up at him, her face filled with admiration, "Oh, you philomath! Let me bow down to you."
Gu Jingze raised his head, "Philomath?"
Lin Che said, "It's someone who likes to study."
Gu Jingze replied, "I see."
Lin Che asked curiously, "But how could you learn so many things with such little time? Doesn't university take four years? How did you study everything?"
Gu Jingze said, "Don't you know? There are some universities that allow you to study more than one course at a time."
"But what's the point of studying so much?"
"Everything is naturally of use. It's better to know some stuff."
"I don't get it…"
"Indeed, because of your brain's capacity. You won't get it."
"Hey, Gu Jingze. I'm a university graduate myself."
"You graduated from university?" Gu Jingze looked at her incredulously.
Lin Che asked, "Didn't you say you checked my entire background before we got married?"
"My assistants didn't report that kind of unnecessary information to me."
"…" Did that mean her education was unnecessary?
Lin Che said spitefully, "I graduated from theatre school. It's also a legitimate major!"
"Oh, really?" Gu Jingze raised an eyebrow.
Lin Che felt a little guilty, "Of course I graduated!"
"Really? Then how much was your scholarship worth?"
Lin Che felt even more guilty. She pursed her lips and thought of what to say.
Gu Jingze smiled and said, "It looks like you didn't pass, after all."
"No way. My graduation score was 61 points. It's a pass!"
Gu Jingze raised his brow, "61 points… Lin Che, you're such a poor student."
"…" Lin Che took a while to realize that he was making fun of her.
"Aren't you a cunning businessman!"
"Don't you like cunning businessmen like me?" Gu Jingze inched closer to her, wanting to reach across and pinch her face.
The truth was that he did not scorn her results. He just thought that it was more fun to provoke her.
It was her admiring look that made him burst with vanity. It made him feel good.