At the end of the hallway hung a painting.
It took just one look to be stunned.
The painting depicted a massive golden dragon spiraling up a mountainside.
The dragon’s claws were sharp, stirring up a storm. Its whiskers flowed elegantly, its eyes sharp, resolute, and full of majesty, exuding an overwhelming presence.
The colors were rich and deep, every dragon scale glinting with golden light, visually three-dimensional and incredibly lifelike.
It felt as if a real dragon had appeared before her.
The painting was so striking that she couldn’t help but exclaim.
She moved closer, examining it carefully, and could see that the dragon’s scales truly contained fine crystalline gold powder.
Zhou Yabin was a painting collector, so Cen Yingshuang had seen plenty of paintings—oil, mural, you name it—but she’d never seen colors quite like these.
Still, this painting seemed different from ordinary murals.
Since she didn’t understand, she decided to ask someone who did.
She snapped a photo and opened WeChat, scrolling through her contacts to find a chat window, then sent the picture: “Chen, are you there?”
“Look at this painting, it’s amazing! It feels different from other murals!”
She didn’t get an immediate reply, so Cen Yingshuang wasn’t in a hurry. She admired the painting for a while longer, even took a few selfies with it.
Then a WeChat message popped up.
“This is Yancai Painting. Simply put, it’s painted with pigments ground from natural minerals.”
Yancai Painting?
She really was ignorant.
Another message appeared: “This was painted by my cousin.”
Cen Yingshuang was surprised: “No wonder you’re family! So talented!”
“How did you see this painting?”
Cen Yingshuang replied: “I’m filming an ad. Funny thing, this painting is hanging right where I’m staying. The island is private, the landscaping is beautiful, and the house’s décor is unique. The owner has great taste, especially this painting~ haha”
The other side was typing.
Just as she was about to type, “Your cousin must be a famous artist, what’s his name?” a call popped up—Màn Jie.
She answered right away.
“Where did you run off to? Come get your makeup done,” said Màn Jie.
“Coming!”
Cen Yingshuang hung up, put away her phone, and hurried downstairs.
The styling team was already ready.
Since she’d be going into the water, they used all waterproof makeup.
Cen Yingshuang had striking features that looked best with minimal makeup.
Her hair was styled in big waves.
The dress for the shoot was a white satin slip dress custom-made by the brand, baring her entire back, with fine gauze at the hip tied into a huge bow at her tailbone.
The style was simple and elegant, but on Cen Yingshuang, it immediately became extraordinary.
Her back was smooth, her shoulder blades faintly visible, the line of her spine natural and gently sunken, extending downward until hidden by the bow.
Màn Jie had managed her since her debut, and had watched her grow up.
Her face had matured proportionally, never losing its appeal—she never tired of looking, and was amazed anew every time.
Màn Jie moonlighted as a “fan site master,” snapping photos of Cen Yingshuang as she got her makeup done.
The Perfume Promotional Film’s plot was roughly as follows.
The heroine is a little princess living in a palace-like castle. Protected by her parents, she is innocent, passionate, and full of life. But being overly sheltered makes her weary of a life of luxury and strict rules.
One day, while riding in a car, dressed in a gown with a gorgeous Diamond Necklace around her neck—the necklace modeled after the Perfume Bottle, with a 99.99-carat custom-cut diamond set in the middle—she spots a stretch of azure beach ahead while waiting at a red light.
On the beach sits a small speedboat. On a whim, she opens the car door and runs toward the beach, attendants chasing after her. She kicks off her heels and runs faster, reaches the beach, hops onto the speedboat, and skillfully speeds across the vast sea, only stopping far out.
There, she discovers a bottle of perfume identical to her necklace. She sprays it in wonder, and the aquatic scent of the ocean and water plants envelops her. When she opens her eyes, she finds herself truly in the ocean, swimming like a nimble fish.
The Perfume Bottle is ahead; she swims over, finally grabs it, and, smiling, lifts it toward the sunlight streaming into the sea.
The Perfume Bottle and her Diamond Necklace both shine brilliantly.
This perfume was developed with personal involvement from the brand’s current chairman, and is this year’s major limited-edition release.
The budget for this shoot was massive—everything had to be perfect.
The Director had already scouted the location in the morning.
The shoot would not take place in the shallow waters near the entrance, but in an area close to the deep sea.
Compared to shallow waters, the deep sea possesses a dual beauty, mysterious and dangerous, like fate itself, both unknown and inevitable.
It suited the perfume’s name perfectly—Echoes of Fate.
Other than the underwater scenes, the rest would be filmed in New York alongside jewelry and handbags.
The necklace around her neck was also part of the new Diamond Jewelry Series.
After styling, they began by filming the scene where she runs from the car to the beach.
The film crew borrowed the island owner’s yacht.
Seeing the yacht, Cen Yingshuang recalled the massive yacht she’d seen the night before.
It was nowhere near as grand.
But this yacht was still sizable, with two and a half decks, three bedrooms, a wine cellar, kitchen, study—fully equipped.
It also carried a small speedboat, perfect for filming her driving scenes.
Both scenes were shot quickly, each done in one take.
Then the staff piloted the yacht for about half an hour to the location for the underwater shoot.
They hadn’t reached the true deep sea yet, just the mesopelagic zone, with depths between 200 and 1000 meters.
Before entering the water, she had to breathe pure oxygen. Cen Yingshuang walked to the deck.
The endless sea surrounded her, suddenly filling her with a sense of loneliness, desolation, and fear.
It felt like the end of the world—no one around except them…
But when she turned—no, wait, they weren’t alone…
Just dozens of meters away, another yacht was anchored—identical to theirs. Several men stood on its deck.
Were these yachts sold wholesale?
Cen Yingshuang narrowed her eyes, trying to see more clearly, when the Director called her over.
He was a famous American Director, already past sixty, with several Oscars to his name, but he was kind and approachable, without any airs.
She listened carefully as he explained the details, then he smiled, patted her shoulder reassuringly, and said in English, “Relax, the divers will ensure your safety.”
Cen Yingshuang nodded.
She’d been swimming since childhood and was a strong swimmer.
Before the shoot, she’d even spent a month learning freediving and got her certification, but practice was different from reality, and the open sea was nothing like a pool.
Especially being so close to the deep sea, with the unknown lurking below—she was truly a bit nervous.
The photographer and two safety divers entered the water first.
She breathed oxygen and equalized her ears.
After some mental preparation, she set down the oxygen bottle and decisively entered the water.
The water was a bit colder than the shallows, so she took a few seconds to adjust before opening her eyes.
She was instantly dazzled.
The sea was deeper and bluer than the shallows—like Klein Blue.
It was her first time diving into the sea, and she’d always imagined the deep would be barren and murky.
But seeing it with her own eyes, she realized how stunning it was.
She hadn’t gone very deep yet, but all around were schools of fish known as Sea Wolf, swirling together in vortexes to form a storm’s eye—this was the legendary, breathtaking Sea Wolf Storm.
If she swam deeper and looked up, it would be like witnessing an unparalleled underwater starry sky.
The photographer was ahead, the safety divers a short distance to her side.
The Diamond Necklace at her neck felt even heavier in the water.
The short film’s plot called for her to swim freely, like a fish.
She swam downward, away from the Sea Wolf shoal.
Glancing down by chance, she saw a bottomless cliff, and a wave of fear and panic surged within her.
She forced herself to stay calm.
Imitating a fish’s movements.
Swimming freely and joyfully.
She swam toward the photographer, reaching out to the camera, making a gesture of grabbing.
In the story, this was when she caught the falling Perfume Bottle.
For practical reasons, this part would be post-processed with a CGI Perfume Bottle.
Then, the safety diver handed her a real bottle.
She acted out grabbing the perfume, then spun excitedly underwater.
By now it was evening, the water darker, the setting sun orange and yellow. Beneath the surface, a shaft of Jesus Light shone down.
She swam into the light, holding up the Perfume Bottle, and finished the last shot.
Holding her breath while diving was already pushing her limits.
With the pressure, her body instinctively began to float upward.
At that moment, she heard a long, melodious call.
She reflexively turned.
Not far ahead, a massive Whale was slowly passing by.
Even with this unexpected encounter, she didn’t forget she was underwater, and suppressed the urge to scream.
Her body acted before her mind—instinctively, she chased after the Whale.
But as the Whale swung its tail upward toward the surface, she suddenly saw a person hidden by the tail.
A man.
He wore a black wetsuit, no diving gear except a mask, and was swimming up from the abyssal cliff.
The wetsuit hugged his body, perfectly outlining his flawless physique.
Long legs, broad shoulders, a narrow waist—a textbook inverted triangle.
His arm muscles were taut and smooth, bulging as he stretched them, radiating strength.
The moment the Whale’s tail moved away, he stopped swimming, facing the Whale, arms naturally spread wide.
Cen Yingshuang was momentarily dazed.
The safety diver, seeing her freeze, thought something was wrong and quickly swam over, grabbing her arm and bringing her to the surface.
Cen Yingshuang breathed in the long-missed air.
The pressure in her chest finally eased.
A support boat from the yacht was waiting at the surface, having followed them throughout the shoot.
Màn Jie and several crew members waited on the boat. As soon as she climbed aboard, Màn Jie wrapped her in a dry towel.
Her mind was foggy from lack of oxygen—she couldn’t tell if what she’d just seen was real or an illusion.
Instinctively, she looked toward the distant yacht.
Sure enough, the man surfaced a second later, and the people on the deck hurried to greet him.
He pushed himself effortlessly onto the yacht’s ladder and boarded.
Dusk had faded, sinking below the horizon.
The sky and sea seemed to blend into one, plunging into the post-sunset blue hour.
The distant yacht was ablaze with light, and in the clear view, every contour of his body was visible.
His back was to her—broad, muscular, barefoot on the deck, powerful thighs, dripping wet.
He casually removed his diving mask with one hand, handed it to someone, then ran his palm through his short, damp hair, unhurriedly climbing the steps into the cabin.
Cen Yingshuang stared at his back, lost in thought.
Just then, she suddenly heard Màn Jie excitedly ask in her ear, “Guess who that man on the yacht is?”
Cen Yingshuang swallowed, her voice small but certain as she said a name: “He Yuzhou.”
She was sure that the man she’d seen on the massive yacht last night was also him.
Thinking back to the sea just now.
The Whale’s massive tail stirring the water, spray flying.
Waves rolling across the surface.
The seabed was tranquil yet surging with hidden currents.
The Whale sang, call after call.
Even in the deep blue darkness, with everything distant and secret, Cen Yingshuang could feel it clearly—that gaze from behind the diving mask.
She just had a strong intuition.
At that moment, he wasn’t looking at the Whale—he was looking at her.
Even after coming ashore, he never looked back.
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