The Plan

As the wise men say, time is the best medicine as it heals all wounds. There is definitely wisdom in that. Have you ever observed the aftermath of a disaster? Regardless of the scale of the catastrophe, give it enough time and people will start to rebuild their lives, because whether you are ready or not, life moves on.

That was true as well for the characters of this story. Mrs. Xiu's departure might have been a rocky event but soon daily habits set in and peace returned to both Lin and Xu households.

Back in the Lin family, as glad as Mrs. Lin was at Mrs. Xiu's departure, she still rejected Xiu Ling's request to hire a nanny for Lin Xi. She wanted the young woman to know that luxury, especially those that she deemed unworthy, was not easy to come by.

Running out of option, Xiu Ling had no choice but to turn the discussion over to her husband. To her surprise, Lin Kang was weirdly permissive of her requests. At the end of their discussion, Xiu Ling found herself moving out of the main bedroom and into a shared bedroom with Lin Xi.

As confused as Xiu Ling was at Lin Kang's motivation, it could not be said that she minded the new arrangement. Not only could she keep her son company, she could also avoid the fearful night encounter with Lin Kang. This meant that ever since that eventful night, Lin Kang had not laid a finger on her again.

…

"Three, two, one… and, cut! That's a wrap for now! Thank you everyone for their hard work, now we shall take five! Just a few more shots in the afternoon and we are done!" The director announced behind the camera before adding, "Right, before I forget, the crew dinner that is scheduled for tonight. If there is anyone who wishes to provide a recommendation, please do so before noon so I can book the venue, if not we will just go back to the usual place!"

Then, the man got up from the director's chair and wandered off to the editing room. The crew busied themselves with lighting and the set while the actors moved over to the side to take a break and study their lines.

Now, a little elaboration on the situation. After the trailer for "Bringing the Nation's Husband Home" was released to the public, the reception was so positive that the production movie had signed on a sequel even before the movie itself was screened at the cinema.

Therefore, the director gathered the crew and the cast back together again to shoot a special post-credit sneak peek for the sequel. The atmosphere at the set was relaxed and celebratory. In fact, the party that night was a double celebrations, one was to mark the official ending of the shoot for "Bringing the Nation's Husband Home" and two was to celebrate the signing of a sequel.

While Joann was studying her script, she felt someone approach her. She lifted her eyes off the pages and saw an embarrassed Lee Mu smiling at her.

"I surely have acted a fool at the birthday party. Joann, I hope you do not take offense to anything that I have said or done," began Lee Mu with an apologetic smile. Lee Mu's apology was so delayed because after his birthday party, many of their scenes had been shot apart from each other and Joann was too concerned about Xiu Ling to have time for people around her. When she was not working, she had this constant frown on her face that deterred others from disturbing her.

Before he knew it, the movie shooting had already ended and calling people just to apologize on the phone was too awkward of a thing to do, at least for Lee Mu. Therefore, he was thankful when he received the call from the director, informing him of this special shoot. This presented him the perfect opportunity to make his apology.

"Don't be silly. Of course, I won't. Lee Mu, we have been friends for how many years already? Do you think I take offense so easily?" teased Joann.

Lee Mu sighed in relief. The two continued in their friendly banter until Joann noticed Qing Qing walking past them from the corner of her eyes. Joann raised her voice to catch the girl's attention, "Qing Qing, where are you going? Why don't you come and join us? We can study the script together."

"Sister Joann, I am so sorry but I'm in a rush. Please forgive me, I will talk to you later. Nice to see you as well, Brother Lee Mu! I would love to stay but I am in a hurry. Goodbye," Qing Qing said as she walked away.

"I wonder where is she in such a rush to get to," commented Lee Mu.

Joann turned to face him and warned, "Probably the toilet or something. Lee Mu, while I do not mind your drunken antics but you definitely have made a fool of yourself in front of Qing Qing at your birthday party. So when you have the opportunity, please go and apologize to her."

"Oh God, what have I done then? In any case, thanks for the reminder, Joann."

Joann smiled and proceeded to fill the man in on the stupid things he had done that night.

…

There was a knock on the editing room door. "Come in," the director said.

The door opened to reveal a young woman. The director was surprised to see the young actor there because it had been quite some time since she came to ask him for the sex scene tape.

"Qing Qing, how can I help you?" asked the director kindly. He had a fine impression of the young actor. Little did he know most of the things he thought the young actor had done because she was hardworking and studious were merely Qing Qing exacting the steps of her plan.

That morning, she was back there again because she had another master plan of hers cooking.