"So, you find that your avoidance of your love life has taken a toll on your life and career," Maggie said in a sip of tea, "and you're not sure why you feel the way you do, do you?" ”

"Well, and I'm depressed about that," Jenny said, retracting her legs onto the couch, "It would have been a responsible gesture to do that before I made a decision, but now that things have changed, it's not gone away - and the breakup with Chris seems to have made it worse, and it feels like you're suddenly realizing that the world you're living in is real, and that everything you're doing really has consequences, and you're going to hurt others, and that makes you dreaded - That's how you get along with Salvi, it feels like you're entering a porcelain-covered shop, and you're worried about what you're bringing down with a wave of your hand, you know-"

It has been more than a year since I did counseling with Maggie, and the trust between the two parties has indeed gradually been established, and Jenny has found that psychological counseling is such an experience: when there is no trust established at the beginning, revealing some of your secrets is like a poor ghost being stingy when spending money, but once the trust relationship is established, and you are really sure that the other party will not sell your secret for profit, then the desire to talk is really very turbulent, like you suddenly realize how many things you can talk about, Need to talk - it's really hard to hold back before this quiet, safe tree hole.

However, she still kept her biggest secret, and didn't confide in Maggie, which also made their counseling itself often make Jenny a little anxious, and she felt that she couldn't poke the point, just like now, she really wanted to talk to Maggie about her relationship history, and let her analyze whether her marriage with her ex-husband was the root cause of all this, but because of the irrationality of time, she couldn't say it without making it up, and a distorted experience, not to mention the question of whether Maggie could be aware, Even if it is said that the meaning of counseling is completely invalid.

After a pause, she still didn't mention her past to Maggie in a hypothetical tone, but diagnosed herself in a conclusive tone, "Maybe it's because I haven't made up my mind to start a relationship, so before that, I have feelings for another person, which makes me subconsciously feel guilty - this sin is not against Salvi, but at myself, because I know that I am doing what I shouldn't do, what I am not allowed to do." ”

"Very good self-analysis," Maggie smiled a little teasingly, and after a moment to make sure Jenny wasn't talking any more, "it also makes sense - yes, so your shame is even stronger when you contact Salvi this time, especially when Heath points out that he is aware of your chemistry on the phone, because it's like you're stealing a cookie to you - it's something you shouldn't have done, but you did it, and you found that people all over the world realized it-"

Jenny smiled and nodded, adding, "Of course, because I did something I'm not proud of. ”

"And you've done something you're not proud of, you've stolen a cookie, and you know you can't expect Salvi not to find out." Maggie nodded, "So what we're here to talk about is your engagement with Cesare. ”

Because she was likely counseling Cesare at the same time, it was highly likely that she would be able to deduce from the counseling on both sides - lying would make the counseling completely meaningless, and because of their trust in Maggie, she was one of the few people who knew the inside story.

"We've talked about this before," said Maggie kindly in Jenny's expectant silence, "in fact, your choices shape your life, others are a mirror of you, and your attitude towards Salvi is a mirror of yourself, because there isn't really much effective communication between you, except for chemistry, which does exist in the movies, and it's quite strong, and you can't know exactly what Salvi thinks, So all your attitudes towards your feelings are projections of your own thoughts. You feel weak and evasive about him because you realized you hurt Chris after your last relationship, which is a projection of guilt. -- Of course, you realize that. But at that stage, you weren't ashamed of him, until you arranged the engagement, and at the Oscars you began to avoid direct communication with him, and now you hesitate to call him - because Salvi and you happen to be in contrast to each other in life choices, and both of you have more abundant wealth-"

Jenny had an uncomfortable feeling, but more of a feeling of pleasure, like a pustule had been punctured, and those disgusting things were being squeezed out of Maggie's words, although she was in some pain, but more of a pleasure to finally be able to look directly at the wound and find it. "And we made different choices in life, didn't we, Salvi chose to ignore the glitz and chase the movie he wanted—"

"And you made another choice." Maggie nodded, "There is no right or wrong choice in itself, because it is not illegal after all, and in terms of the content of the star's work, it is not very moral, so I think moral guilt is not the source of your pressure, your shame comes more from your own inclination - deep down, you agree with Salvi's choice, more than for ...... I don't know, commercial interests, a lot of considerations, but further, what you want more is the same choice as Salvi, to put the glitz aside, to jump out of Vanity Fair, and to pursue art and film. You turn your back on yourself under realistic considerations, which makes you feel like you can't face a person who sticks to herself, even though he may not be aware of it at all, or even care, and in your relationship, he unconsciously plays the role of a control group, and you interpret the image of a judge, which is why you are more evasive from him than before. ”

"This ...... Sounds reasonable. Jenny couldn't help but admit that Maggie's statement did hit her to a certain point, "It would also explain why I am so weak about him, and indeed he should be the purest of all the people I know—"

Weighing Maggie's words, she said with some reluctance, "But if that means I'm not interested in running a company or pursuing power, I don't think it describes my psychology - because these things are still very attractive to me-"

"Of course, I don't mean that at all," Maggie waved her hand, "I don't encourage my clients to drop everything to go after what they want most, it's not the only answer in life, as you said, it's entirely possible that you're just as interested in these commercial games as you like movies the most, otherwise you wouldn't make that choice, right?" I'm sure you and Cesare don't have the only solution. Nor should a man of adult society insist on a choice very extreme - this is the quality of a saint and a warrior, all we need is to find a solution that will be accepted by ourselves, just like now, after you understand that you are running away from Salvi for this reason, will you still feel confused and ashamed in the face of him? ”

Jenny thought about it for a moment and shook her head, "No, of course I'm not proud of my choice, but I don't feel like a failure anymore because I made this decision, we don't always do what we want, as long as we don't deviate from the direction of the majority, I can be happy with myself - I think I should stop seeing Salvi as an ideal version of myself - it's actually not very respectful to him, because I really don't know what he thinks, it feels like symbolizing him, Pile up a lot of symbolism without taking into account his own personality at all. ”

"That's because he does have a high degree of symbolism for you," Maggie nodded, "he is supposed to be the first person of the opposite sex you have felt strongly attracted to in a few years, and from your description, your attraction is highly romanticized, love at first sight, like a stroke of fate - once Salvi takes off his guard and begins to reveal his true self, you both feel this attraction, and before and after, no matter how privileged the suitor, can only bore you, Like you said Said. Al Bahayan—"

"Oh, you won't believe it," Jenny rolled her eyes, "and he's still not dead - I still get gifts from him every now and then-"

"So, Salvi is not only your projection of ideals, but also your projection of your feelings, and now you can strip him out of self-examination, and look at him again, think about it," Maggie gestured, "Assuming there is no engagement, assuming there is no 'if you find out, it's over', go back to the days when 'Monroe' was filmed, and you've made up your mind to move on with your life—"

When she said 'move on', she had a slightly confused expression, and Jenny couldn't help but feel a little guilty: this was another way she said about choosing to stay.

"Then will you go on the offensive against Salvi, or give him some hints, give him permission to pursue you," Maggie may have noticed something in her expression, so she didn't dwell on the phrase for too long, but overdid it to her own question, "Would you do that?" ”

"I ...... ......I don't know," Jenny fought for a while, and finally said, "Well, probably not. ”

"Can you give a definite reason?" Maggie asked.

"Busy with business? Not ready to settle down? I don't want to be responsible-" Jenny said tentatively, but eventually surrendered, "well, even if you make up a man who doesn't pursue a long-term relationship, but is just ready to enjoy the beauty of love, and can fit my entire schedule, I'm - I probably won't accept it, I don't know why, but when this is no longer a game for me, and I realize that this is completely real life, I really start to avoid my love life-"

"But at the same time, you still retain the need for affection, and your current single state still doesn't make you feel satisfied," Maggie said, "You still need companionship, you crave romance, you feel lonely – and that's a contradiction." ”

Jenny couldn't help but nod in agreement, "Yes, it forms a contradiction. ”

"And I think usually at this time, we start to talk about the impact of your family of origin on you." Maggie looked at Jenny and said slowly. "But it's a topic you're particularly taboo about—"

Jenny made a helpless expression, she felt that she really had to give Maggie an explanation, "It's not particularly taboo, of course I want to say something about it, but—"

"There are some objective reasons."

"Yes, there are objective reasons." Jenny laughed almost ashamedly, "I can't confide in you, though you can believe I want to—"

"Actually, it's not about whether I can hear your story," Maggie mused, "at least not right now—it's about whether you want to talk, and if you want to talk, find someone." ”

Jenny remained silent and didn't answer, but Maggie seemed to find the answer in her expression, she smiled and said gently, "If you feel that the proper confiding will help you sort yourself out, then I encourage you to do it, and there is nothing special to say today." ”

Before she knew it, an hour of counseling had gone by quickly, and Jenny felt more organized than before she came to the consultation, as if she had learned more about life, but at the same time, Maggie's 'homework' also made her feel like she couldn't speak, and this made her reluctant to continue exposing her expression in front of her: she lowered her head and packed her bag, and as she stood up, she asked Maggie, "Are you interested in the reception, dear?" If you want, we can give you a place close to the main table and connect with some of, uh, wealthier potential customers—"

"My hour is full at the moment," Maggie smiled, her eyes glinting with humor, "and you know, psychiatrists tend to shy away from personal contact with their patients, so thank you for your kindness, though I have to admit that the offer to see you and Cesare up close was quite tempting, and it felt like a private show." ”

Jenny laughed, she also liked the way people around her entertained her, so that she could reduce the feeling that she was cheating the world and insulting a sincere vow, "Well, if there is a video, I will definitely send it to you, I think this will also be a good psychological counseling material or something, it is rare to see so many mental patients in the same room." ”

"I guess there will be some of my former clients in there." Maggie also laughed, "It's not convenient to nominate it, but here's a piece of advice for you: don't use too precious utensils, really, you will definitely be surprised to hear the real data, but there are indeed quite a few stars with kleptomania." ”

"Oh, I'm starting to worry because we're going to use silverware." Jenny moaned. "Maggie, you've added another source of stress to me—"

After a joke, Jenny walked out of the psychiatric clinic, Woody and the others were waiting for her at the elevator, they got into the nanny car directly, and the paparazzi did not follow the camera, allowing the car to pass smoothly through the traffic in Los Angeles and drive in the direction of Malibu.

Mary is busy for the reception, and so is Judy, which makes Jenny often alone recently, but she is not idle in the car, and she is still on the phone one after another, giving instructions to the major studios that have been waiting for a long time: Now Jenny is in any of the six major VIP treatment, she no longer has to cooperate with anyone's time, all the schedules are up to her, any time a phone call is made, the other party will leave what she is doing and listen to it, and there is no distinction between going to work and leaving work- will even worry that Jenny will reduce communication because of this, and repeatedly promise to be 24X7 for advice, Jenny is even a little worried about others: If it is just now, the arrogant style of those big studios has disappeared in front of her and Big Dream, then what will happen after the release of "Avatar"? Can they kneel and lick more?

"Yes, Brad, as I said, Mission Impossible can't continue to do one movie and one team anymore," she said, holding the phone, putting her feet up and pedaling, "In fact, if I had to comment, it was really hard to understand before - how hard it is to make people like a supporting character?" It's a waste of time for you to do that in a movie, and then you change all the people right away......"

"Yes, I've already seen the first draft of the script." She changed her position and leaned lazily back on the couch, "Georgia, what do you think?" I think it's a really good outline, it makes me interested in seeing the details, and I think it's cool if it all can be visualized...... What, you think it's a little too surreal? Especially the final bank robbery? - Well, that's a normal idea, because it's really going beyond the physical limits of the first four parts, which is an exaggeration. But I think it's a reasonable imagination, because it looks like it's very likely to happen -- it's not like a person jumping off a cliff and then getting out unscathed, and the audience will think it's impossible, it's too, and then play it, because it's against their common sense of life, it's an instinct that doesn't need to be calculated. And the two cars use inertia to drag the safe to speed, which seems ambiguous, it seems to have a certain feasibility, you need to calculate to confirm whether it is possible, this level of exaggeration is not for the audience, but cool...... Yes, that's my personal opinion......"

"Yes, Jos, what do you think of my thoughts? Have you talked to Zachary about it? Yes, I'll arrange a time tomorrow to come over and do a scene...... In the video interview, his insights into the role made me feel very good, I think he needs a good eyebrow shaper, and he should be thinner, yes, but his acting skills should be good enough to pass, and he did quite well in Star Trek...... It would be great if we could settle on him, so that the shooting could start next month, and yes, the whole puzzle would be complete......"

"I don't want James. Frank, I know, he's the object of CAA's recent push, but I don't want him, I know he has a funny air and good acting skills...... But he's too exciting for Disney, you see, his usual weird image is so vivid and eye-catching, which will directly affect the audience's impression of the character, of course, OZ has no lower limit at the beginning, but I just don't think his performance will be too good, this is my intuition...... If you can't invite Depp, try Donnie, the salary can be higher, it doesn't matter, OZ has to have a very convincing actor to play, otherwise the story will be boring, this is the key point: when OZ was a bastard at the beginning, he also had to be likable, James didn't have a similar role before, as for whether he usually has to be a bastard...... Maybe there are some people who like him, but I don't think the public is so accepting of him, otherwise according to his resources, he would be even hotter than he is now...... If you can't invite Depp and Downey, you can try to find similar actors, don't be vulgar and hanging, be good at self-deprecation, and have this kind of ......"

"yes, I totally agree with Ann, with 3D, it's the magic weapon for this movie, listen, Kevin, if you trust my instincts, then you'd better shut up, really, because that's my instinct, you don't need to worry about Ann not doing well in 3D for the first time, I promise he'll blow your ass off, yes, trust me, you'll be crazy when you see the finished product - it's enough to get him to James for a class and do a training - I know, I know, Kevin, This sounds like the kind of literary film that is destined to hit the streets, but you have to believe me, this film will really be Fox's winning work in the past few years, otherwise why would Big Dream invest money in? This film will solidify Fox's position - it will be the kind of classic that transcends time, and if you don't want it, you can give the copyright to Big Dream, Big Dream to make it......"

I called each project and followed up, and when the nanny car drove into the mountain road occupied by the cliff mansion, Jenny was calling Cesare: When Big Dream was open to the outside world for cooperation, Sony obviously wanted to join in the fun, but the cooperation negotiations between the two sides did not go too smoothly, because Big Dream was only interested in Sony's Spider-Man, and was obviously on Marvel's side, wanting to get Spider-Man to join the Avengers program, which was of course resisted by Sony, And Big Dream doesn't mean to push hard, because Jenny didn't appear in "Iron Man 2", and now Marvel doesn't belong to Disney, Big Dream is too enthusiastic about it and has a bit of a hot face and a cold ass.

Compared with the absolutely high-quality "Spider-Man" IP, at present, Sony hopes to get the guidance of Big Dream on "007", but Big Dream doesn't have much interest in it, because although "007" has exploded later, it is completely based on marketing, in terms of film quality, there are no earth-shaking changes from the previous ones, and it can even be said that it may be slightly inferior, since Big Dream has no dry goods, then this money is not at ease, and it may ruin its reputation, so the cooperation between the two sides is slow, and Jenny is gradually losing patience, Today Cesare would be at Sony headquarters for a meeting with the other party, and she wanted to know how it went.

"Why don't you answer the phone?" Jenny pressed the phone and said to herself, suddenly feeling the car slow down, thinking that the business call was also over, she lowered the baffle, "What's wrong, Woody?" ”

Before Woody could reply, she had already seen the white BMW parked near the door, Jenny narrowed her eyes, "This is—"

Because it is a private mountain road, the road is not very wide, if the two cars are parallel, the width of the road is a little tight, plus Jenny's nanny car is a very wide and domineering Ford, the white BMW no longer moves to the side of the road, and the nanny car can't pass, so the driver stopped when there was still some way to go from the door, and Woody's hand was vigilantly pressed to his waist. "You sit back first, Jennifer, and put the baffle up."

"Uh, no, I've already recognized who that is," Jenny knew Woody was worried about her safety, and she waved her hand, "Is Cesare back already?" ”

"I asked," Woody heard something, and after a pause, he turned on the intercom businessman, "Sam, is the man already home?" ”

"The Black Hawk has arrived," a rough voice came over the intercom, "the eagle wings are low, repeat, the eagle wings are low." ”

“Copythat。” Woody pressed the walkie-talkie, glanced at Jenny inquiringly, and raised an eyebrow with his thumb to the middle-aged white woman in the driver's seat who was looking down and pressing her phone.

Jenny nodded, "It's his mother......"

She measured the distance between the BMW and the iron gate again, "Let her move a little away, and we can just drive in." ”

"Okay." Woody's greatest advantage is that he never asks why, he opens the passenger door and walks to the BMW, after a while, the BMW opens the roof, Virgilia turns around, and looks at Jenny sitting in the back seat through a layer of glass for a while - because the distance is a little far, she can't see Virgilia's expression clearly, Virgilia turns back after a while and continues to talk to Woody.

Judging from her inaction, Jenny already knew that the negotiation was not so smooth, and sure enough, Woody shook her head and returned to the car, "She said she has the right to stay here." ”

"Does she have power?" Jenny wondered, "I thought this was already our private road. ”

"Technically, she's in a position of threat to the inside of the estate, and she has the intent to coerce us into letting her in, or taking the opportunity to rush in, so we can ask her to leave." Woody said helplessly, "But theoretically this is still a state highway, and she can really stay here, just like those paparazzi." ”

- He said as he watched Jeanne's face, apparently having his own opinion of the situation, and hoping that Jeanne would allow him to contact Cesare.

Jenny thought for a moment, then visually measured the width of the road, "Can you just brush it over?" Don't be afraid of scratches on her car, she won't call the police. ”

“…… It might knock off the rearview mirror," Woody was visibly startled, swallowing before he replied with difficulty, "but you can give it a try......

"Oh, then run into it," Jenny nodded, "Say hello to the doorman, and don't give her a chance to follow up." ”

She rolled up the baffle, no longer giving Virgilia a chance to look at her through the glass, and didn't bother to look at the expressions that Woody and the driver might have, but Jenny herself felt something - she probably has become one of the spokespeople for the 'rich people', even in Europe and the United States, the daughter-in-law hitting her mother-in-law's car can be on the social news, of course, the son who locks his mother out of the door is indeed rare......

After a while, the car was started, followed by a slight bump and a piercing scraping sound, the nanny car pinned the BMW in the corner, stopped in front of the iron gate, Woody and others fully understood the intention, but the remote control iron door opened a door on their side, the angle was not particularly large, the nanny car just passed, did not wait for the BMW to start, the iron door was closed, the car also stopped deliberately, so that Jenny could go back and check the results, without waiting for further instructions, then drove forward quickly to the garage, She hadn't been given any more time to observe Virgilia's expression - at least from the sound she had just heard, the rearview mirror must have been knocked off......

＃

According to the usual practice, Woody and the others began to work after sending Jenny home, except for one person on night duty in the podium, the rest of the bodyguards could go home from work - if in normal times, they sometimes would not leave immediately, but would play on the tennis court and basketball court of the manor, Jenny and Cesare also welcomed this, but tonight, even if there is no need for the reminder of the colleagues 'eagle wings down', after the scene at the entrance of the manor just now, no one dares to stay here longer, Jenny only got out of the car, Everyone flashed out of the manor almost instantly, even the gardener, housekeeping assistant, and others disappeared somewhere, and it seemed that only Jenny and Cesare were left in the whole mansion, and she really didn't know where Cesare went, so it was basically the same as being alone at home.

After searching around the house, Jenny still found nothing, the swimming pool and tennis court were empty, and Jenny had even been to the pavilion where the only use was to blow the wind and pretend, and to take wedding photos, although she thought Cesare would not be so pretentious - but it was hard to guarantee that it was an exception when it came to family. When she really began to suspect that Cesare was driving out on her own, and was about to go to the garage to find out, Jenny suddenly had a flash of inspiration, returned to the main house, and opened the wooden door to the basement room.

Hearing the faint sound of the sound, Jenny really felt like she was winning hide and seek, and as she walked down the stairs, she met Cesare opening the door and walking out, and the two met in front of the door, and Jeanne had to stand on tiptoe to get over Cesare's shoulder to see what he was watching.

"Shrek?" She looked at Cesare suspiciously, "This is the healing movie after you and your mom quarreled?" ”

"What healing movie?" Cesare looked back puzzled, "What are you talking about?" ”

"Your mom is outside the door, don't you know? If it's not because of this, then why did you suddenly start watching Shrek. ”

"The director of this film is the screenwriter of "Dragon and Tiger Boys", and they want Mao Sui to recommend himself as a director." Cesare began to walk upstairs, "I know she parked the car at the door, by the way, how did you guys get in?" ”

"Crashing in," Jeanne kept glancing at Cesare, and as his eyes widened, she said defensively, "what, or else?" How do you expect me to get in? ”

"I thought you'd come in the way around the underground garage......," Cesare's voice could be described as faint, and in Jenny's eyes, his tone quickly became firm again. Of course, crashing into it is also an option - a brilliant choice. ”

Jenny really forgot that she could take a detour, she coughed, and observed Cesare's expression with a little weakness, weighing whether she should take the initiative to poke and comfort him, but Cesare looked good, of course, not as calm and comfortable as usual, but in general the mood was much stronger than that night, so she was not sure whether she should take the initiative or not, whether it would make the atmosphere worse.

"Is the starring role of 'Shero' already set to be Zachary?" Cesare took the initiative to break the brief silence and walked with her to the kitchen.

"Well, he's probably not as good as Heath, at least in terms of what he's achieved so far, but I think he has a good potential in that type of role. ――Do you think that "Dragon Tiger Boys" can already enter the stage of preparing for the crew? ”

"The script still needs to be worked out, but I think maybe you don't need to look for a director - so you've already decided to do Salvi's new film? By the way, did you ask him why he didn't invest in us? ”

"I'm not sure yet, maybe I'll say yes...... But she hasn't made up her mind yet," Jeanne followed Cesare to the kitchen, dragged out a chair and sat on the edge of the bar, and watched with her chin propped up as Cesare opened the fridge, tossed her a box of salad, took out two more eggs and put them in the cooker, and turned out a box of pasta herself and put it in the microwave. "By the way, has the kitchen waste machine been disposed of?"

"It's been repaired, and the day after tomorrow someone will come and do the whole renovation of the kitchen," Cesare said, "and by the way, remember to sign the retainer agreement, and we'll have another lawyer to deal with it, and he'll charge a little cheaper." ”

"In the future, you still can't buy a model house directly, you still have to renovate it yourself to make people feel at ease - Salvi said that his new film may not be profitable," Jenny opened the salad box and couldn't help laughing, "The original words: 'Since there are companies willing to invest money, I don't have friends' - from the perspective of the subject matter, it is true that the possibility of profit is not very high." ”

Cesare raised an eyebrow and cast a look, and Jenny nodded, "That's one of the reasons for my hesitation, you know, Big Dream has been able to keep the pace of development at this pace in part because my films almost never lose money, but now, from a producer's point of view, Salvi's usual shooting habits are very expensive, you know he always likes extravagant scenes - but the chances of this film making a box office are too low." ”

"But you're still hesitant." Cesare looked at the ketchup on his thumb, he hesitated, put his thumb to his lips, and licked it off.

"Like Hiss, I was really intrigued," Jenny picked up a spoonful of salad and waited for Cesare to bring out the pasta before putting it in her mouth, "It was supposed to be a beautiful movie, but it didn't have any conflict in content, and the story was not strong, a bit like Life of Pi's fantasy drifting version of wilderness survival. Pan's 2007 film is a bit like a mild version of Pan's Labyrinth, in which Heath plays the male protagonist who strays into a fantasy kingdom on a road trip, and he drives through several small towns, but each town is actually a projection of a fantasy world at different times, which is a bit like- "

"The wife of the Time Traveler." Cesare said, "Is this a romance? If so, maybe the box office won't be too bad. ”

"No, it's more like 'Survival in the Wilderness' at its core, it's a philosophical expression, and Salvi is also curious about 3D, and he said that there are a few studios that are in contact with the producers, maybe they will really play a big one, make it in 3D, if not, Fox Searchlight and Paramount Focus are also interested in co-investing," Jeanie Toucheek said, "Heath is willing to star, so they are very confident, and he hasn't announced that he wants to contact me to perform, otherwise of course funding won't be a problem - for him, There was no need to hesitate to make this film, and the same was true for Hiss, but for me—"

She flattened her mouth and shrugged her shoulders as Cesare nodded, "Yes, this needs to be carefully considered, after all, this is a literary film, and you said that you-"

Exchanging a look with Jenny, Cesare didn't go on, but continued, "It's hard to meet a character that appeals to you, though, isn't it?" Since you've said that your next literary film only needs to measure one thing, and that is whether it will make you feel the urge to perform - you want to make a film that is simply acting because you want to act, then it is a little pointless to hesitate for the box office now? ”

Cesare's memory was sometimes too good, Jeanne rolled her eyes, feeling that she had lost all excuses, and the conversation with Salvi once again passed through her mind, Maggie's analysis, her homework......

"Speaking of which, you really don't mind if Virgilia is waiting for you outside?" She cupped her cheeks, lowered her fork, changed the subject abruptly, and said to Cesare, who raised his eyebrows in surprise, "I mean—if you don't mind, can you tell me about your family life, Cesare?" ”

To be honest, she didn't intend Cesare to agree, she couldn't even imagine him agreeing, in her imagination, Cesare would remind her that she had crossed the line, would tell her that the question was too personal, that doing so might ruin the atmosphere and make dinner awkward, and that Jeanne was actually even secretly expecting him to do so, as if that way she would be able to shift the blame to him-

But to her surprise, Cesare tilted his head for a moment, and then shrugged his shoulders indifferently.

"Okay."

Without the unhappiness of being offended in the private sphere, without the impatience of reluctant cooperation, he naturally asked, "What do you want to know?" ”