Tenant’s Secret Love

Chapter 36: Burning with rage

Mark was at a loss for words when I told him, and he had to ask for my help. After a while, he spoke to me in a softer tone and said, “I'm also very annoyed that GUCCI changed the shooting date at the last minute, but what can I do? I can't just break with them. There are many shopping malls where they can set up their counters, but it's hard for us to find the eighth international first-line brand... Sigh! One has to go with the flow... Lucas, if you want to go higher and further in the workplace, you must learn the four words of patience and compromise and keep them firmly in mind.”

After Mark said that, I felt embarrassed to continue being angry. In fact, he is quite a good boss. In the past two years at the company, he has taken good care of me, but I haven't been very motivated.

I didn't want to make things difficult for Mark. He had his own difficulties, and I was well aware of the stakes in this matter. After a long silence, I said to him, “I'll get in touch with her, but the day after tomorrow is the 10th, and time is so tight. Can we coordinate another schedule? I really can't guarantee this time.”

Mark rubbed his temples tiredly and said, “Try to communicate. Tell her that if she can participate in the filming on the 10th, I am personally willing to pay her triple the labor cost as compensation.”

I was silent again, deeply appreciating the difficulty Mark was facing. The company's senior management must have exerted a lot of pressure on him regarding this incident. He is different from me. After all, he has already reached this position, while I am just at the grassroots level. If I don't feel comfortable doing the job, the worst that can happen is that I change to another company... Perhaps his helplessness and compromise is precisely the manifestation of the cruelty of the workplace.

...

After leaving Mark's office, I called Violetta on the phone in a complex mood.

Violetta seemed to have not yet woken up, and it was a long time after I dialed the number before she answered in a hazy tone: “Hello, Lucas, why are you calling me now?”

“Are you still asleep?”

“Well, I had two night shoots last night, which lasted almost all night, so I'm very sleepy!” Violetta said, yawning again and asking, “Do you have something to tell me?”

I was a bit embarrassed and after a long silence, I said, “The filming schedule at GUCCI has been adjusted, it's been brought forward to the 10th, which is the day after tomorrow. Can you coordinate your schedule?”

Violetta was silent on the other end of the phone, and the silence was enough to prove how difficult this was for her, because she had already applied for leave on the 15th with the film crew. The film crew would definitely have to make adjustments to her scenes, and these adjustments would involve many other actors. At this time, if adjustments were made, the other actors would definitely have strong opinions.

“I'll go find the director now. I'll let you know as soon as I can coordinate it,” Violetta said to me.

“Well, I'm really sorry about this time!”

Violetta said with a smile, “What's the point of saying all that? If it can be sorted out, you'll have to come to Hengdian to pick me up this afternoon, because the train ride is so boring!”

“No problem.”

“Well, then, I'll wait for your news.”

After ending the call with Violetta, I immediately went to the bathroom and smoked a cigarette. I felt a sense of panic in my heart. I knew very well how bad it was for Violetta, as a newcomer, to repeatedly make demands on the crew, but she still agreed to it so readily. I really hoped that she wouldn't get into trouble.

Around noon, while I was eating, my phone vibrated. I looked at the message and it was from Violetta.

“Lucas, the film crew has approved the leave, a total of 3 days. Come and pick me up.” A smiley face was attached to the text.

I took a deep breath, and my nervousness finally eased a little. I immediately sent a message back to Violetta, and that afternoon I would rush to Hengdian to pick Violetta up and take her back to Suzhou.

...

I went to Mark's office again to report the situation to him. He was as relieved as I was, and immediately gave me the keys to his car and 2,000 yuan in cash, asking me to treat Violetta to a meal in Hengdian on his behalf, and to treat her to a separate meal when she returned to Suzhou.

Mark also told me that the vice president of Gucci China would come to Suzhou on the day of the poster shoot to formally sign a contract with our department store to set up a Gucci store. This meant that the Gucci investment promotion plan that the planning department and investment promotion department had been working on for months was finally complete, and Baoli Department Store had officially reached the standards of a top-level department store B category. Personally, I had been promoted to the position of head of the planning and copywriting team.

I hoped that this time it would really be a success and that there would be no more changes.

...

After leaving the office, I immediately drove Mark's Audi A4 to Hengdian. It was already past 4 pm when I arrived. Instead of looking for a hotel, I went directly to the scenic spot where Violetta was filming. I had promised her that I would wait for her outside the scenic spot after she finished filming this afternoon's scenes.

The autumn wind blew away dusk, and the sky had completely darkened. Violetta had not yet come out of the studio. Lighting a cigarette, I habitually looked at the exit of the scenic spot absentmindedly.

Violetta finally appeared in the light at the exit. She was walking slowly, covering her face with her right hand, so I couldn't quite see her expression.

I got up and walked towards her. She looked at me, but didn't act as affectionate as she usually did.

I smiled and asked, “Do you have a toothache? Why are you covering your face?”

Violetta remained silent and continued walking, which was an unusual move that left me full of doubts.

I immediately followed her and asked with concern, ‘What's wrong? Let me see your face.”

“It's nothing,’ said Violetta, who had quickened her pace, but her voice was already choking.

I grabbed her and then forcibly removed her hand covering her cheek. I was shocked to see several bright red fingerprints on her fair face.

I was burning with rage: “Which i***t hit you? I'll f*****g kill him,” I said as I walked towards the entrance of the scenic spot.

Violetta grabbed me tightly from behind: “Lucas, don't go.”

“Get away from me, I'm not f*****g hitting him (her), I'm sorry.” I could no longer control my anger. I vaguely realized that Violetta being beaten must have something to do with this incident.

After being shaken off by me, Violetta sat on the ground again, hugging my legs tightly, crying and saying, ”Lucas, I beg you, don't make trouble...it's not good for me at all...there are a lot of people here, let's go back to the hotel and talk.”

I tried my best to control myself, and looked around at the stares already being thrown at us. Gradually, I calmed down. At this time, I ran in. Making a scene would only make things worse for Violetta, unless she didn't care about anything and gave up on the play, which was obviously completely impossible for her. At the moment, for Violetta's sake, the only thing I could do was to be patient.

I helped Violetta up from the ground, my heart convulsing with an uncontrollable rage. I took out a tissue to wipe away Violetta's tears and said as gently as I could, “Let's go back to the hotel first, but you have to explain things to me.”

Violetta nodded and gently took my arm, walking towards the parking lot.

...

In the hotel room, Violetta sat next to me as I used an ice pack to help soothe the bruises. My heart was still seething, and I gritted my teeth as I asked Violetta, “Who the hell hit you? Was it your director?”

Violetta shook her head, tears running down her cheeks again. After a long silence, she said to me, “It was an actress from our crew... She said I was a vixen, seducing the director, so the director took such good care of me, twice helping me arrange my schedule, to the detriment of the rest they didn't get, but I...”

Violetta didn't say any more, she was already sobbing, and my heart felt like it was being torn apart. I guessed that I was right, it was indeed my business that caused this trouble for Violetta. I hated that I couldn't find that actress right now to help Violetta slap her back.

“Do they usually bully you like this?”

Violetta nodded and said, “This circle is very complicated, I'm just a newcomer who has just graduated from school, it's normal, Lucas, you don't need to get angry for me.”

“Who is that actress?” I asked with a frown, still wanting to help Violetta get an explanation.

Violetta shook her head desperately and refused to tell me.

I felt an unbearable sense of frustration well up in my heart, and I resented myself for letting Violetta suffer so much.

Violetta seemed to read my mind and gently comforted me, “Don't think about it. She hitting me will only make me work harder. I will definitely go higher and farther than her. Maybe I'll even have to thank her for the slap she gave me today!”

I sighed with gritted teeth, and the words Mark said to me this morning came back to my mind. Yes! Whether in the workplace or in show business, we must learn to be patient and compromise, because those of us struggling at the bottom don't have the capital or right to lash out. If we act on impulse and don't learn to restrain ourselves, we will only pay a greater price. That's why Violetta tried so desperately to stop me from getting her justice.

But because of our lowly status, do we have to live without dignity? Is there really no crystal clear “Castle in the Sky” in this world? Can we never return to the original Empty City of humanity?

Who the hell is going to give me an answer?