Our Tender Harmony

The thump of bass. The constant chatter. The clink of glasses.

The pungent smell of body odor.

Partying, perhaps some would consider it an activity intrinsic to youth. Not intrinsic to any age, but intrinsic to the state of mind.

Unlike the individual meetings occurring in other parts of the hotel, one of the first-floor ballrooms had been reserved by another significant cast member: Ma Xiaotian. Crew members, cast members, and even some people from outside the production had gathered in what could only be considered a rave.

Strobe lights swept across the room, like lighthouse beams searching for lost sailors.

Ma Xiaotian, as the host, stood off to the side, leaning against the wall as his small crowd of friends surrounded him.

“Yo, this actually is popping off.” “Partying after a week of work goes crazy.” “Shi, I've been looking forward to this since the beginning of the week.”

“How did you put this together so quickly, Xiaotian?”

“You sure you don’t want us to bring over some girls?”

Ma Xiaotian clinked glasses with one of his friends who just arrived. Draining the glass in one clean motion, he let out a sharp exhale. “I put it together with just a few connections. You know how it is.”

“We don’t! Bahaha! That’s our movie prince though!”

“It comes with just being a little more influential,” Ma Xiaotian poured himself another drink from the table beside him. “No need to make a big deal out of it. I’m doing it for you all, you all have worked hard.”

“That’s our goat!” “Truly a man of the people!” “You’re a dragon amongst peasants!”

A faint smile tugged at the corners of Ma Xiaotian’s lips; yet, before anyone could notice, it disappeared, like a prisoner tossed into the sea. “You all should go though, have some fun. Pick up some girls. Live your life.”

“What about you then?” “We can’t leave the king behind!”

“I have no interest, you know, perhaps it’s a weakness of being a public figure,” Ma Xiaotian flashed a professional smile while waving his friends off. Suppressing the unwilling voices, he pushed them away.

And because none of these women are good enough for me…

Only people like those two.

Or Han Jingyi…

“You sure?” A voice brought Ma Xiaotian out of his thoughts. When he looked up, he found all but one of his friends had rejoined the mosh pit. The one who remained? Peng Yao.

“You sure?” Peng Yao repeated, leaning against the wall beside Ma Xiaotian. He raised his glass up to offer a toast, one which Ma Xiaotian took him up on.

“I… have my sights set higher,” Ma Xiaotian stared towards the crowd. He lowered his voice. “You know how it is.”

“Respect it as always, brother,” Peng Yao chuckled. “Any progress with Jingyi?”

“… Not particularly,” Ma Xiaotian rubbed his thumb against the side of the glass. “Though, she does seem to be fracturing off from Chu Changfeng’s camp. So that’s good progress at least. Who knows what type of faction she’ll move towards next though.”

“Li Feiling’s if I had to guess,” Peng Yao took a sip from his own glass. “She’s the only one who can protect her. Other than you, of course.”

Ma Xiaotian shook his head with a self-deprecating laugh. “No need to flatter me like the others. I know I can’t stand up to Chu Changfeng right now. Not yet.”

“Alright sure,” Peng Yao shrugged. “You’re the boss. Or… well you will be.”

Ma Xiaotian’s hand came to a stop. He raised an eyebrow and turned to look at the well-built man beside him. “You’re actually considering the job? Not interested in acting?”

“I have managerial experience, I wouldn’t mind starting a studio with you,” Peng Yao swirled his own glass. “Plus, I’m not dumb. My acting career is quite limited. I just lack the talent and drive. You, though, have a future. So, why not hop on. You’re going to make a studio regardless one day, most of the large actors have been doing that recently.”

“I’ll treat you well,” Ma Xiaotian smiled, raising his fist.

After returning the fist bump, Peng Yao leaned in closer. “Regardless, are you really sure you don’t want a girl? I can help you out.”

Looking down, Ma Xiaotian’s eyes widened as he found a couple unmarked white pills sitting in Peng Yao’s hand. “Are these…?”

“They’re what you think they are, I might not be a ‘Movie Prince’ but I do have some connections,” Peng Yao grinned. “You want some?”

“… No, I’m fine,” Ma Xiaotian shook his head.

“Expected,” Peng Yao slid the pills back into his pocket. He leaned back against the wall. “Or as those other bootlickers would say: ‘As expected of our honorable King!!’ Those dumbasses.”

“They really are,” Ma Xiaotian laughed, taking a sip from his drink to mask the glint in his eyes.

It is good to know a connection for these drugs though…

Might come in useful one day…

---

Beyond all the late-night meetings—whether the regular practice sessions between Li Feiling and Xia Ruyun, the weird investor-director meetings between Chu Changfeng and Feng Wei, or Ma Xiaotian becoming a ‘man of the people’ and hosting more parties—shooting continued.

At a blistering pace too.

Before everyone knew it, several weeks had gone by and the first episode had aired. The cast, having done a few promotional livestreams ahead of time, had all reposted the same message on their social media pages the morning of:

[The Dragon’s Maw! Episode one premiering today at noon! Tune in for the fiery oncoming corporate world battle!]

Then, attached to each of their messages was the promotional trailer. For most, that was the end of the story. Yet, Chu Changfeng and Li Feiling, as the leads, had each added another line to their respective posts.

[Chu Changfeng: The world shall come to bow before my majesty. If you fear my rule, it’s because you fear the freedom it may bring. Our future shall glitter gold.]

[Li Feiling: Pain is not punishment. It is preparation. My hopelessness, fear, and failure fuel the everlasting fire burning in my heart. I’ll build my kingdom in the ashes of yours.]

That night, as they hung out, Xia Ruyun sprawled out on the couch. Scrolling through social media, she paused as she reached the promo messages from the morning. After reading “I’ll build my kingdom in the ashes of yours” aloud, she craned her neck back to look at Li Feiling. “How grandiose, Miss CEO.”

“Xia. Ru. Yun.” Li Feiling scowled back at the woman sprawled out on her couch.

“I’m just speaking the truth~” Xia Ruyun teased, sitting back upright once Li Feiling returned to the couch. “Did you come up with it?”

“No, the promotional team came up with it,” Li Feiling set two cups of tea down on the low table. Sinking into the couch beside Xia Ruyun, she leaned over, peering over Xia Ruyun’s shoulder as she scrolled through social media. “Anyway, anything interesting after that premiere?”

“You’re trending, though that’s not unexpected,” Xia Ruyun pointed to the [Li Feiling step on me!] trending topic.

“As per the usual, the netizens are… creative with their requests…” Li Feiling murmured. “Anything else?”

“Just some fun comments, take a look,” Xia Ruyun raised her phone up to make it easier for Li Feiling to see. As she did, her slender hand swiped through the [Dragon’s Maw Episode 1] topic.

[The Wind Blows from North to South: Truly masterful slop. I can predict it now, this will be season defining slop. We already have so many memable images from this first episode.]

[I Choke Men: This comment has been removed by our moderation team]

[I Need to go to the Gym: Lowk the plot wasn’t bad in episode one. I thought it’d be straight power fantasy but mc actually is going through difficulty]

[Naming? I can’t Name: Fun episode]

[Shart, more like Tactical Biodeployment: tbh what do you all think will be the other avatars? We’ve seen dragon and phoenix so far. Will there be more? @FengWei are there more?]

[Li Feiling’s Shoerack: That OUTFIT IS SO GOOD ARG;OIHAERG;OA LI FEILINGGGGG YOU’RE SUCH A BADDIE EUGHGHHHH YOU HAVE ME IN A CHOKEHOLD YOU HAVE MY LIFE ON A LEASH PLEASSHEEEE PLEASE;OIJA;E HOW ARE YOU SO HOT]

Xia Ruyun’s hand paused as they reached the last comment.

Click. The screen went dark.

She slid her phone back into her pocket with a light cough. “… A… Anyway…”

“Anyway?” Li Feiling rested her chin on Xia Ruyun’s shoulder. “Too ashamed to look any further?”

“A woman should keep her dignity with others,” Xia Ruyun answered with a self-righteous tone before performing what could only be called a car crash of a topic change. “Anyway, have you talked to Han Jingyi recently?”

“No, have you?” Li Feiling brushed a bang out of her face. “I’m a tad worried about her situation with Chu Changfeng, but I don’t have enough contact with her to really say anything or know anything more.”

“She’s not really enjoying her time in the crew. It’s not that unexpected... but still a little sad, you know? I guess the industry isn’t as pure as she hoped,” Xia Ruyun sighed, leaning back against Li Feiling.

Li Feiling stiffened.

As if a cat had suddenly allowed her to pet it.

“Well, I invited her to come practice with us.” Xia Ruyun fiddled with her phone. “Sorry for not asking beforehand, but I felt you wouldn’t mind.”

“Of course, I’m happy to support anyone trying to get away from Chu ‘The grease I slick my hair back with comes from my ass’ Changfeng,” Li Feiling threw out a quick jab. “She’s still young too, right?”

“Yeah, twenty-two, fresh out of university,” Xia Ruyun stretched her arms out. “All the more reason to help her. Though, that does make me feel like we’re getting old, Feiling.”

“All the more reason to help indeed,” Li Feiling laughed, brushing some of Xia Ruyun’s hair back. “Don’t say that about getting old though. You only feel like that because you seem to have a penchant for mentoring young actors. First Wu Linjie, now Han Jingyi? We’re still only twenty-six, definitely within the younger generation still.”

“I… guess so,” Xia Ruyun tapped her chin, craning her neck back to facilitate Li Feiling’s brushing. “I’m just running an adoption center...”

Falling silent, Xia Ruyun let out a small sigh as her body relaxed. Her brown hair cascaded through Li Feiling’s long fingers; like chocolate waves, and in that moment, sweeter than any actual candy. The room’s coziness seemed to envelop them as the conversation came to a slight lull.

Just, the sound of hair brushing and quiet breaths filled the room. Steam drifted up from the two porcelain tea cups sitting on the table beside the couch, the two trails intertwining as they faded into the air.

“You really are running some adoption center, weren’t you just talking to Wu Linjie earlier in the adoption group chat or whatever? About his future endorsements? How did you end up talking to Han Jingyi too?” Li Feiling broke the silence as she began braiding Xia Ruyun’s hair.

“I was just sitting outside, texting Wu Linjie, then Han Jingyi ran into me. I invited her to sit down and… I guess she just needed someone to vent to because all her troubles just came tumbling out,” Xia Ruyun set her phone down, staring towards the ceiling. “Any thoughts on the career advice I gave to Linjie? I feel like you’re more qualified to answer.”

“It was good, no comments from me,” Li Feiling nodded. As she braided, her nails glimmered under the light, flashing as if performing a dance. “Though, if you really want an instant noodle connection, I still have an endorsement. I think.”

“You do?” Xia Ruyun’s eyes lit up. She began to turn, only to freeze as Li Feiling tapped the back of her neck. “Could you get me some?”

Li Feiling paused.

“… No?” She concluded after a few seconds of mental debate, her hands continuing their braiding dance. “It’s not particularly healthy. Didn’t my dietician back on the last set say you really should stop eating those?”

A forlorn sigh escaped Xia Ruyun’s lips. “… Yes, he did. I didn’t think you’d remember that.”

“I have a similar ban, that’s why,” Li Feiling chuckled. “Every once in a while is fine, but... using that connection would get me crates. I’m sure you don’t need crates of instant noodles.”

Xia Ruyun’s mind flashed back to the crates of instant noodles sitting on the floor of her apartment.

A bead of sweat appeared at her temple.

“… Yeah… there’s no need for sure…”

And so, another night passed between the two of them. Quiet, as they decompressed from another day of shooting.