"Where to start? Your request is too general, my family life - I need to know what you want to know in order to understand what to say to you, just casual talk - legally we will be separated into a family, but I don't think there is anything to talk about in my current life. ”

"Sounds like an excuse,"

"I just want you to define your question precisely, what do you want to know about my family, are you curious about my family life because my mother parked her car in front of the door, or is there some other motive that you want to talk about something else, like seating arrangements at receptions, things like that."

"I feel a little uncomfortable with you—you're talking a lot, aren't you at ease? Cesare? ”

“…… No, I just want to understand what we're talking about. ”

"(chuckles) You're really uncomfortable."

"I really didn't—well, in that case, I'll start with what you think I'm trying to dodge: my mother has come to me today to ask for forgiveness, and she wants to get a chance to whitewash, and of course she'll call it an explanation, but we all know she's not going to tell the truth, and she's hoping I'll be silent about it, and accept the explanation, and turn the page -- I guess she's prepared a lot of excuses to remind me of the help she's done to me."

"Sounds like you know your mother quite well."

"She is an important connection for me, and it is necessary to study her because of my kinship with my maternal family."

“…… I think the tone in which you talk about her seems a little ruthless, don't you, Cesare, feel like you're a little too businesslike? ”

Observing Cesare's expression, Jeanne decided not to continue digging at this point, if she wants to say, Cesare is indeed still angry, although his performance is not too obvious, for ordinary people, he is completely businesslike and polite, without a little emotional abnormality, but whether it is from his unusually clear attitude, and his performance when he turned off his mobile phone when he just watched the movie, he must not be completely relieved.

"So, you've already fully guessed why she did that?" She changed the subject, "Since you know her so well." ”

"It must have something to do with the different plans we had for my career," Cesare said with a twist of his lips, putting the pasta in his mouth and chewing a few bites, "It wasn't what she expected to get into the big dream full-time, in fact, she was also unhappy that I was getting too involved in the big dream before that, she thought it would be unnecessary legal risk, and it wouldn't help me much in my career at CAA, of course, she later admitted that it would be more or less financially helpful, but that's not the point, For us, economic issues have never been the focus. ”

"Career planning," Jenny mused, "so that your mother, though not so emotionally close to you, still has a promise for your career—"

"We are indeed mother and son in name, and I am also in the film and television industry, just like my maternal grandfather passed on his business to several children, of course she will also want to pass on the business to future generations, this is a mutually beneficial cooperation, because I can bring her the help of my father's family, of course, it may not be obvious during the initial investment period, but according to her original plan, I should be able to become the CEO of CAA before the age of 40, and after five to ten years, I can enter Disney - You can calculate that at that time, with the convenience of CAA, she could easily accumulate merit and have a great hope of moving up the ranks, maybe not the CEO of the group, but the CEO of the film department should be very promising - so that she could hand over her original position to me, and with the artist network accumulated during the CAA period, I could help her sit in this position and continue to make profitable films for Disney. And after that, maybe it's a direct inheritance, maybe it's a plan for the succession of generations. Cesare paused and took a sip of water, "Or I'll go from Disney to Legends, Lionsgate, or Warner, and head a subsidiary, and then a few years later, when she announces her retirement, I can be the CEO of the film department, or at least have the confidence to make a splash on the platform." -- As I said, a fair, reasonable, and mutually beneficial cooperation plan. ”

Jenny was silent for a moment, she chewed on this plan repeatedly, and the more she thought about it, the more she realized its reasonableness: Virgilia was able to rely on this plan to get her son's most powerful resources, so that he could rise step by step (of course, with his own efforts), and Cesare could also see his own long-term interests in this plan and find his own way out: Generally speaking, when the mother is an executive and CEO, the son is unlikely to be an executive in the same system, or a competitor's decision-maker, And this plan avoids conflict to the greatest extent possible, which can make both people satisfied. Virgilia and Cesare's efforts and gains are almost equal, and no one is making sacrifices, which is rare in the family business - many times, children in a similar situation to Cesare need to prove themselves desperately in order to get the rewarding support of their parents, and may even be deliberately hit and sharpened, of course, parents must still be dedicated to the good of their children, this seemingly unreasonable plan, in fact, is full of painstaking efforts, and compared with this type of succession plan, the tacit understanding between Cesare and his mother, It's more like a contract between two strangers, fair is fair, but in terms of mentality, it is indeed a little alienated and guarded.

"I never knew you and your mother had planned your whole business." She said, "Of course, at least at the time, you were in favor of this plan, right?" ”

"I get a lot of benefits and support from this program, and there is no conflict between our interests, so why say no?" Cesare shrugged, "But of course, things changed after that—"

"You've never told me before," said Jenny, with some shock, "I don't have the slightest clue about how much pressure you've put on your shoulders to join Big Dreams, how many after-effects you have to deal with, and so on." ”

"It's a normal job decision," Cesare pursed his lips and pushed his plate aside, "Joining Big Dream was my choice after thinking about it, and I didn't say it was easy. ”

Turning away from a path that is highly feasible, has been identified and fulfilled for several years, and chooses a path full of risks, one that he has probably guessed, far from being as beautiful as outsiders imagined, and in fact still full of dangers, although this seems to be a fast lane, Jeanne can still imagine the courage required in it, and she can't help but shake her head after reviewing many details of Cesare's promise to join the big dream until now.

"Wow," she said with emotion, "you can join the big dream, it is completely - it must have been arranged by God, otherwise I really don't know what I had in the back then that was worthy of your decision." ”

Cesare pursed his lips, as if he didn't mean to answer, and under Jenny's intriguing urging gaze, he said after a moment with some reluctance, "You have your characteristics, Jefferson, you have always been able to work miracles, and this is your advantage-"

As Jenny's smile grew from small to large, he continued, "Of course, as you can imagine, her decision to join Big Dream as CEO must have annoyed her, not only because of the unhappiness of having her control violated and her plans interrupted, but also because Virgilia's career has also been greatly affected, and I think this is the fundamental reason why she did this." ”

"That's true, I've got it...... The moment you become the CEO of Big Dream, Virginia's ascent to Disney has been cut off, and you form a competitive relationship, unless Virginia is willing to come to Big Dream...... No, it's not realistic, unless Virgilia is willing to go to the TV department, it is impossible for her to be promoted to the level of CEO, COO. "From this point of view, you have become the greatest adversary she must get rid of—yes, look at it this way, and the matter is completely clear." ”

For large companies, it is a big taboo for blood relatives to hold important positions respectively, unless the company is originally a family business, especially for the relationship between Disney Group and Big Dream, the blood relatives of Big Dream CEO hold the leader in a certain department of the group, which may be a hotbed of malfeasance, but based on risk control considerations, Virgilia and Cesare cannot rise at the same time, and Cesare has been stuck in the position of 'CEO of a small production company', Virgilia's career path is indeed painfulAfter thinking about the whole thing, she couldn't help but say again, "I think you must have inherited her from your foresight, and I never thought about it before that, because it is difficult to say whether Dick will succeed to the throne, and it is really difficult for ordinary people to think of the position after Dick-"

"Calculating the next three moves, or even four moves, before making a move, is the quality of a good chess player," Cesare said objectively, "and I was not good at this point either, I should have realized this earlier, and I should have been wary of her, it was my rash negligence that gave her the opportunity to reciprocate—"

He actually raised the corners of his lips a little teasingly, "I haven't inherited this - her love for revenge, maybe this is a common problem of women." ”

"Sexism Alert: Beep." Jenny said absentmindedly that she was still thinking about Virgilia's plan, and indeed, if, as Cesare had guessed, Virgilia had deliberately made it so obvious that it could be easily discovered, then everything could be explained, "Now that I think about it, she's really ...... Smart, if our trust wasn't as strong as it is now - as long as my friendship with you is a little shallow, basically you are unlikely to be in the position of CEO, at least not so securely, and the hidden danger of Virgilia's promotion has of course been ruled out, and more importantly, she has also taught you a lesson to understand that you have to be a good son to have candy-"

She stuck out her tongue, "Then I think she must be blown up by now, and I actually knocked her rearview mirror off - Cesare, deep down you still tend to your mother, do you?" You've really managed to make me feel guilty—"

Cesare stared at her speechlessly, which was his usual reaction when she was playing tricks, and his expression would normally make Jeanne laugh even harder, but his expression was still a little different today, perhaps because his eyes no longer had a faint glint of humor, or perhaps because his speechlessness was a little reluctant—she quickly gave up the joke and said solemnly, "but seriously, don't be upset about it, I know it's probably excusing her,-don't doubt it, I'm angry that she's doing it, too, But to be honest, she also has a little angry position in this matter, after all, it was you who took the initiative to start squeezing her space, and to be fair, when you decided to join the big dream, you should also have some communication about this matter. ”

"That's really where I made a mistake," Cesare nodded, "but if you're trying to comfort me by making excuses for her, to make me think that her previous actions were driven by anger, and that there is still a relationship between us, then good intentions are in place." ”

They weren't talking about a pleasant topic, so unlike the occasional time when the two of them talked about something personal, Cesare didn't put on the relaxed, faintly smiling expression he usually has, but he didn't look confused, angry, or sad, he propped up the side of his face with one hand, his slender fingers hanging over his cheekbones, and even a light absent-minded smile on his lips, if Jeanne were to describe it, perhaps his expression would be closer to melancholy, which was perhaps not the first time he had admitted it, It wasn't the first time he had discussed this with others, so there was no pain or frustration, and it was evident that he had accepted the fact that he did not have a deep affection for his mother, or, in other words, that his mother did not have a deep affection for him.

"I don't know whether to praise you for your ease of care, or feel sorry for your ease of life." Jenny also propped her chin and looked at Cesare.

Cesare lowered his head and laughed, picking up his plate and walking to the sink, where Jenny reminded him, "Uh, remember, the food waste processor is broken, so, if you're going to use the dishwasher—"

"The dishwasher is broken, too, and it must be a problem with the overall power supply," Cesare said, rolling up his sleeves and turning on the faucet, and Jeanne put the salad box in the sink, standing beside him and holding her hands crossed, watching with curiosity as Cesare washed the dishes—a degree of seriousness worthy of his reputation for cleanliness.

"So, didn't let her in for a thorough business?" She asked, "Instead of you not wanting to see her?" Actually, there's no shame in admitting that you're still a little disappointed in her—"

She thought about it, shook her head and smiled and stopped, "Maybe many people when they encounter family disputes, their first reaction is mediation, even if the parties may not accept this idea at all, I used to think that I would be an exception, but I didn't expect that it was almost inevitable." ”

"Why do you think you're going to be an exception?" Cesare wiped the detergent foam from his hands and turned on the faucet again, and in the sound of the water, he glanced at Jenny with some curiosity, "Because you're also disappointed in your family and don't want anyone to comment on it?" ”

“…… That's pretty much it. Jeanne hesitated, and she felt the familiar nervousness again, as every time she confessed more of her secrets, and despite Cesare's proven loyalty, there was still such an emotional resistance, only a difference, "I suspect you were quite distant, and for that matter, I guess you were quite distant, and so am I. ”

"Alienation is a somewhat negative word," Cesare said, placing the dishes in the drain tray and picking up a kitchen towel to wipe his hands, "I wouldn't use it to describe my childhood relationship with my parents—it sounds like you're curious about these things." ”

"It's really hard for me to imagine your milky voice." Jenny smiled and said, "So I'm curious—didn't I just ask?" I want to hear you talk about your childhood. ”

"I don't mean to avoid this question, it's just that, in my concept, there's not much to say," Cesare also crossed his hands, looking at Jenny with a knowing expression, "Like all my cousins, and my childhood friends, we were almost all brought up by nannies, and unless mothers don't work, it's objectively difficult for them to take on the responsibility of raising children, but in my family, the average woman has the habit of keeping a job, and she's a lot busier than the average person, So since almost everyone is like this, and there is only a slight difference from your life, then you don't feel that there is anything wrong with all this, of course, they are divorced, but this is really normal, almost all my friends live in broken families, many of them live with my grandparents, like me, maybe my grandparents also have their own busy social lives, but there is nothing wrong with that, because they always make sure that I am under the guardianship of the right people - compared to those who have inherited a large amount of property, But for peers of my age who have one of their parents deceased, or who can only fly back and forth between the cities of their fathers and mothers like migratory birds, I sometimes even feel that I am lucky to be able to stay in New York forever. ”

Of all my friends, the only exception is Lilian, who is actually the only one of all my friends who is not directly involved in the film and television industry, her parents are both lawyers, so their whereabouts are relatively fixed, and at the same time most of the fathers are photographers, directors and producers, even if their parents are still the parents who gave birth to them - this is really rare in our industry, and it is almost common to be separated and combined - but parents also often have to leave home for work, in my memory, There is no family in my world, and the children whose father comes home for dinner every day are except Lillian.

"It's rare that you didn't hate Lillian for that," Jenny couldn't help but laugh at the thought of the small, happy, sweet Lillian, "children always like to crowd out different partners. ”

"I don't hate Lillian for it, but I do dislike her." A smile appeared on Cesare's lips, "You can't imagine how arrogant she was when she was a child, she was a spoiled little princess, and she couldn't understand why someone didn't know what country her parents were in now, and she kept asking, 'But when are they going to pick you up?' And you just pull her braids a little and she'll start crying—"

Jeanne laughed, and she could feel the pleasant vibe emanating from Cesare's body, "So you don't think it's normal to be alive like her." "

"Yes, it's not normal—behold, how strange and indecent she is." "She couldn't even learn to read the expressions of adults, she couldn't learn to speak on occasions—"

His tone was self-deprecating, as if he were looking back at his past self, and Jenny was still smiling—she thought it was a more appropriate expression to laugh at this time.

"But I remember you went to boarding school afterward," she said, "and you lived there for a long time—"

He leaned against the edge of the table with Jenny, folded his long legs, and said in a somewhat nostalgic tone, "This life continued until my third grade, and after that, because my grandmother had cancer, and they thought 'it would be impossible to perform the guardianship function well in such a situation,' so my mother had to take over my custody - it was a bit complicated, she did get custody when she first got divorced, but soon found that she couldn't do it, so she left me with my grandparents to pay my living expenses every month, but,' To make it worth every penny she spends, she has been changing my last name, and I had changed about four before she met Mr. Vijri - so you can tell very well how many times she was married. ”

"And then you went to your mother's side and left New York? But I'll still go back on vacation once in a while, I guess - otherwise you'll have a hard time keeping in touch with Lillian. Jenny tried to paint the picture: a young boy naturally living alone in the mansion, maintaining professional ties with everyone, without noticing anything out of the ordinary, not even knowing what he was missing—her voice choked before she continued, "It feels like you've been familiar since childhood." ”

"Well, my childhood will probably end at this point, but you're right, I'm going back for the winter and summer vacations, and basically my parents and I haven't lived together - shortly after I got to Virgilia, she thought there were too many children in the house, because my stepfather also had his own children, which made the atmosphere in the house a little awkward, because we didn't know each other well." Cesare laughed, "Although Will was very opposed, she quickly sent me to boarding school, and before I finished my first semester at school, my grandmother died, and my grandfather realized that he needed the company of his grandchildren, so I decided to always go back to New York for the winter and summer vacations, and only occasionally symbolically go to Los Angeles for a few days - so, if you think I had a very unhappy, longing for family affection, but repeatedly disappointed childhood, then it is not, because you need to be nurtured to desire, You need to recognize that this kind of thing is necessary to exist in order to desire it. ”

He shrugged his shoulders, "I realized that for the average person, family represents a time of warmth, tolerance and care, and that it was a difficult time, and you had to learn to deal with the fact that you were growing up with something missing compared to the average person - for me, I realized this when I was in boarding school, you grew up, you met more people, your horizons broadened, you started to see the world, and it wasn't until then that you realized that everything you got was missing, But because you were doing well before, because materially—"

"Of course it's abundant," Jenny nodded and agreed, "so you won't be disappointed by this, but you won't have very intense emotions, and even for your parents, because you didn't have expectations, you don't have a strong hatred, do you?" ”

"That's pretty much it," Cesare thought for a moment, nodded, picked up an apple, and tossed it up and down in mid-air, "Actually, I agree with you on that point - Virgilia probably doesn't have too much subjective malice, she doesn't want to hurt me, otherwise she has too many other options, she's just-"

He shrugged, "She just doesn't care that much, that's what she was born to be, you can't expect her to be a different person just because she's a mother, right?" She was already a good mother to her, she provided for my living expenses, checked my grades regularly, cared about my career plans, and in her own sense she did her part - as for the changes that have occurred since she gave birth to Aiden, it is mostly due to Will, and for her she has not deliberately mistreated me...... And I shouldn't have been too rude today. ”

He walked over to the walkie-talkie on the edge of the kitchen and pressed the check button—and when she saw that the white BMW was still there, Jenny was slightly surprised: it had been almost an hour and a half, and it was getting dark, and she had no idea that Virgilia was still there.

"You should go home, Virginia." Cesare pressed the intercom button, "If you want to ask me if I said anything to Bob: no, we didn't say anything." You don't need to worry about any retaliation after that—"

He glanced at Jenny inquiringly, Jenny nodded, and Cesare continued, "This contest is over, maybe there will be a chance to cooperate next time, now go home, there is no need to meet." ”

Jenny whispered, "If you don't mind—she promises to behave well, she can come to the reception." ”

"You can also come to the reception if you wish." Cesare added, "Provided, of course, that you're friendly enough. ”

On the small, somewhat blurry screen, Virgilia makes a helpless gesture to the camera, as if expressing dissatisfaction with Cesare, who unfazedly releases the intercom button, but does not end the check, still observing the main entrance.

Visibly irritated, Virgilia got out of the car and walked towards the iron gate, flapping and shaking it silently in the frame, but the manor was fairly well secured, with a high-voltage grid on the railings around it in addition to the iron gate, so it didn't seem likely that she would break in.

- The remaining security remained silent, Virgilia tried alone for five minutes in the silent twilight, and finally had to give up, she got into the car, sat down for a while, lowered her head and used her phone again, but finally started the car with one less rearview mirror, turned the corner, and quickly disappeared from the view of the surveillance camera.

“Whatashow。” Cesare let go of the button and said dryly.

"Anyway, she's done what she's done, and she's still a member of the Vijri family at the reception - and at least she's saved face." Jenny commented from a pragmatic point of view - as for her career, if Virgilia wanted to go further, she would be tempted to move to television, a big dream that she hadn't set foot in for the time being, and it was the best option for her to try to move Cesare after failing to do so.

"Yes, the problem is solved, and you know basically everything about my poor childhood," said Cesare, who put the apples back in the basket and walked to the door first, and said in a chatty tone, "-- then, when are you going to talk about your childhood and your family?" ”

Jeanne was stunned for a moment, not because Cesare asked, but certainly after he had said this, it was natural to ask—and his tone at the time was not at all surprised, as if he had expected it—

"I'm Maggie's client too," Cesare said, his blue eyes flashing with that familiar glint of pleasure for the first time tonight, "Come to think of it, it's not a difficult math problem, is it?" Lately you've been hesitating about Salvi's new film, you've gone to Maggie's, and all of a sudden you've started to wonder about my childhood - sometimes you do that often, when you're forced to do something, you like to behave differently, how can I describe it-"

“…… Suffer. Jenny said depressedly, "Well, you're making me look stupid right now - but Maggie didn't tell me you're her client too, so it can't be considered my obtuseness." ”

"If I hadn't consulted with her, how could I safely recommend her to you?" Cesare asked rhetorically, "Of course, if you mind—"

"Logically I can't do anything," Jenny shook her head, "of course I don't mind, Maggie has proven herself, and it's not that she knows more than you do—I've guessed that it's not the first time you've talked about your childhood, and you have too little time to think and reminisce, is it with Maggie?" ”

"Maggie likes to associate emotional distress with elements of family origin," Cesare doesn't deny, "so we did go back to this for a while, but her theory does make sense, if you don't build this feeling-feedback mechanism for love when you grow up, then when you grow up, no matter how hard you try, you still can't enter into an intimate relationship as much as everyone else, which is very typical of classical psychological theory." ”

As they talked, Cesare led Jeanne into the conservatory, where all that could be seen was the night sky—Jenny's favorite place to relax, with a view of the sea, but without the unsavory sea breeze.

"But you can still find out what your problems are from these experiences, and even if you can't cure them, you'll still lose a little more clearly - more willingly," Jeanne said, smiling at Cesare - that's Maggie's exact words, "that's what I like about her, she won't tell you you you can be cured, but you will believe that if you do what she says, things will improve." ”

She didn't ask Cesare why she was sure she wouldn't tell Maggie directly about her childhood, or why she knew that Maggie encouraged her clients to confide in her friends - which would make her think, Cesare resisted at the time (which was normal, although it wasn't the first time he had told it, so he might have disguised himself emotionally, but Jenny still felt that Cesare wasn't as breezy as he appeared), and after Maggie gave her options, he finally chose to confide in Maggie, Does this mean that Cesare at the time, after breaking up with Lillian, was like her, and couldn't find someone who could fully open his heart?

No, Jenny didn't ask, she just took a deep breath and prepared for herself, she hadn't looked back on it for many, many years, and it wasn't easy to mention it in itself, and it wasn't easy, even if there was someone sitting next to her who knew her best.

"Well," she took a deep breath after a pause, "you're right, tonight is time to share, and since I've heard your sad story, I should tell a story in return—believe me, it's a reward, because after listening to this...... After the hypothetical story, you'll find out that you've actually been lucky enough, really, compared to ...... The girl in the story, you should simply feel happy. ”

Cesare's fingers began to slide down his chin again, as he had every time Jeanne had shaken his worldview, and his attitude was a little uncertain, and therefore more silent—he had always liked to listen more and talk less about things he wasn't sure about, and this time it was the same, he nodded, and said with some noncommittality, "And I'm listening." ”

Jenny took a breath and tried to compress the information as concisely as possible, "Like you, the girl in the story, of course, has a very good relationship with her parents, in fact, you and her mother do prefer the younger son, but, of course, because of the different backgrounds, the story unfolds differently, first of all, you must know that her parents are from traditional East Asian peasant families, so they have always wanted a son......"

MINGTIANHUIJIA

HUIJIAJIAN!!!!!!!!!!