CHAPTER 198: CHAPTER 200: THE SELECTION BEHIND THE SCENES

Last time she went to the warehouse to get a camera, she brought back one that Mr. Lu ordered to be made to commemorate Mr. Mu, called "Shang." It was indeed a high-end model over ten years ago, but now it’s practically an antique buried under yellowing dust, with its specifications lagging far behind the times.

At most, she could use it to take nostalgic photos.

She thought it over and touched the secondary card Lu Shifeng had given her, then put it back again. She still didn’t want to use Lu Shifeng’s money, or maybe... she was afraid.

Afraid that dependency would become a habit, afraid that when one day he coldly discards her, she will have lost the strength to stand on her own.

The world is so big, she doesn’t want to get hurt again.

After work, she went next door to Cloud to find Ling Weilong: "Lend me some money to buy a camera, I’ll pay you back when I get my salary next month."

Ling Weilong looked at her as if she were crazy: "Come on, madam, you, a dignified young mistress of the Lu Family, have actually fallen to the point of borrowing money?"

Su Xingyu couldn’t be bothered to argue with him: "Lend or not? If not, I’ll go find Ouyang Yi."

"I’ll lend! Just because you came to ask me first, and not that brat Ouyang, I’ll definitely lend you the money!" Ling Weilong decisively took out his wallet and after thinking it over, put it back. He said, "You want to buy a camera, right? Let’s go, I’ll go with you and help you pick one." He liked visiting these equipment markets anyway, being a singleton with nothing to do in the evening.

Su Xingyu thought it would be good to have additional advice, so she went with him to look at camera shops.

Ling Weilong chattered away, "Are you having another fight with Lu Shifeng this time? Did he cut your household expenses? Xingyu, I’m telling you, marrying a man means clothing and eating, you can’t endure having your household expenses cut! You have to fight back, you must fight back, understand?..." After babbling for quite a while and seeing Su Xingyu ignoring him, he changed topics, "What do you need the camera for this time?"

This time, Su Xingyu finally escaped from his gossiping and quickly changed the subject, mentioning the selection at Hanyu Research Center.

Ling Weilong was astonished: "Hanyu? I’ve heard of it! It’s a place where they do cutting-edge aerospace research, involving some optical content, and they occasionally need photographers to collaborate. Being able to collaborate with Hanyu is a dream for many photographers, a symbol of status! But alas," he said with a hint of despair, "only you folks from Blade Group have this opportunity."

Su Xingyu nodded: "To be precise, in past years only Zhuang Heng had this opportunity."

Ling Weilong found it odd: "Why suddenly use a selection process this time? Is Zhuang Heng out of favor?"

The more Su Xingyu spent time with him, the more she found him to be gossip-prone, saying, "Who knows, I have no idea why."

Ling Weilong walked alongside her, brainstorming as they walked, then suddenly shouted, "I’ve got it!"

Su Xingyu was startled, turning her head to look at him.

Ling Weilong said triumphantly, "Do you remember the street photography competition at Blade Group last time? The one who helped you in the finals, Leng Fei! He’s a senior figure at Hanyu Research Center. Do you think he might have seen your skill in the final and become unimpressed with Zhuang Heng’s abilities?" The more he thought, the more he saw it as possible. "Xingyu, good for you!"

Su Xingyu laughed: "How could that be?" If that were the case, wouldn’t Leng Fei have directly asked for her?

Ling Weilong remained serious: "I’m telling you, there’s nothing impossible about it. How could the same photographer assist in research for so many years? They must need fresh blood, fresh perspectives. I’ve seen Zhuang Heng’s photos, and they’re quite good, but it’s a conventional kind of good; nothing much to fault, but not all that breathtaking either. I don’t like them."

"I don’t like them either." On this issue, she and Ling Weilong had much in common, and they immediately began discussing photography.

What she didn’t expect was that the scenario was exactly as Ling Weilong guessed—it was Leng Fei who suggested this selection.

Leng Fei hadn’t initially thought of it, but his recent collaborations with Zhuang Heng weren’t particularly smooth, and he keenly felt Zhuang Heng’s limitations in certain aspects. That day, when Su Xingyu called, he suddenly recalled this girl possesses an absolute sense of color, with her photos holding a soul-stirring power, astonishing people. He thought, having this girl come to Hanyu to assist could be a good move.

He called Lu Shifeng with this idea, and Lu Shifeng didn’t object, saying Su Xingyu could be brought directly.

Leng Fei thought about it: "Let’s have a selection. Su Xingyu is a promising talent, and maybe there are other overlooked talents worth considering as well." Hence, there was this selection.

Who knows if Zhuang Heng would cry if he knew the truth?

If it weren’t for her making it difficult for Su Xingyu with the phone call incident, Su Xingyu would never have sought Leng Fei’s help, and Leng Fei wouldn’t have thought of replacing positions in the project.

Ultimately, it’s self-inflicted harm.

Accompanied by Ling Weilong, Su Xingyu successfully bought the equipment she wanted—it was a professional-grade camera from Blade Group, with a landscape lens and a portrait lens, not the best gear, but enough for the environmental theme selection this time round. Ling Weilong even thoughtfully lent her a backup lens.

Su Xingyu was grateful; they say guns are a warrior’s weapon, but lenses are a photographer’s lover—what’s the justification for lending them?

True love is found in lending them.

The shooting day arrived, with the autumn air refreshing, and a clear sky without a cloud in sight.

Su Xingyu carried her equipment bag to the shoot location—Nanshan Race Club in the outskirts.

There are mountains and waters here, beautiful scenery, and a herd of robust and well-kept steeds, an excellent place for depicting the harmonious coexistence between humans and nature.

By the time she arrived, a lot of people were already there. The creative director from the advertising side was directing several models: "Pick the horses, choose the beautiful and cooperative ones. You can pose yourself, can’t you? If not, discuss with the photographer later. The key is to look natural, to be harmonious, understand? Relax, don’t give off a stiff vibe, make it look like you’re leisurely walking about..."

A sweet female voice came from the model group: "Mr. Li, what if I’m afraid of horses? Can we change to another animal for the shoot?"

Su Xingyu turned her head to look and it turned out to be Su Xingqi.

Long time no see, today she’s wearing a fire-red layered blouse, white wide-legged pants, with long hair intricately styled into natural curls, resembling a pampered princess. At this moment, the "princess" looked timidly at the herds of strong horses not far away, saying in a delicate voice: "They’re so tall, I’m scared to ride them."

Director Li frowned, he had told people to bring over a group of qualified models this time—ones capable of riding or at least getting close to horses. How was it that they brought in the princess-like Su Xingqi, who carried this grand air? But, Su Xingqi was a connection from the second son of the Qin Corporation, so he dared not offend, thus he said, "Qiqi, don’t be afraid, riding isn’t difficult, find someone to teach you."