After reshooting a few scenes, Li Chu continued to act out the following plot according to the script.
Although the wilderness + cave + wet clothes scenario was quite dramatic, Zhou Xinyuan didn’t intend for anything to happen between Fu Yuan and Lin Lang there.
Zhou Xinyuan felt that the first time between the Regent and the Eldest Princess absolutely couldn’t happen in such a hasty and awkward situation. So, from falling into the cave to walking out of the forest, the plot during this period was basically about the two going from mutual suspicion to reluctantly forming an alliance.
At first, both Fu Yuan and Lin Lang suspected that the other’s people were behind the incident, thinking it was staged for realistic effect.
They tested each other in the cave, trying to figure out whose forces were lying in ambush outside the forest.
They went back and forth, playing the family card and the power card, neither willing to be honest while trying to extract information from the other. In the end, Fu Yuan made a misstep, revealing that she hadn’t placed assassins in this location.
“Aunt, you’re so cruel, actually trying to kill me.”
Fu Yuan scoffed, “Since we’re being open, drop the act. If those weren’t your people, then who else would know our itinerary and set up an ambush?”
“I don’t know. I came down south on your orders, Aunt. Who knows if what you’re saying is true.”
Lin Lang’s constant use of “Aunt” made Fu Yuan’s head buzz.
“Even reduced to this state, believe what you will.”
Fu Yuan was shivering because her clothes were soaked through. Her face was pale as a sheet, and she didn’t have the energy to argue with the woman in front of her.
The camera zoomed in. Li Chu saw the director’s gesture and tilted her head, “fainting.”
“Cut! Perfect! Go change your clothes, you two, and take a break. The later parts of the script might need some adjustments.”
Zhou Xinyuan shouted through a megaphone, then pulled the screenwriter aside.
Because their investor had just made a last-minute change to the scene, Zhou Xinyuan felt that the subsequent plot needed to be adjusted.
Li Chu took a sip of the water Qian Duoduo handed her and waved off the towel.
Li Chu wasn’t actually that cold. It was the height of summer, and although the studio had air conditioning, it was still stuffy.
It was just that the clothes sticking to her skin were uncomfortable. Her pale complexion was, of course, thanks to the makeup artist’s powder.
“Let’s go change.”
Ning Manqing beckoned to Li Chu and walked side-by-side with her towards the dressing room.
Because of the limited space on set, their dressing rooms were next to each other.
Seeing the two walking together, the staff didn’t react. They were used to it.
After all, everyone knew they were long-time partners. If they weren’t on good terms, that would be news. Their close but appropriate relationship didn’t leave much room for gossip.
However, some staff members privately commented that the two looked very compatible, but no one was so insensitive as to say it to their faces.
Li Chu found this quite surprising. Did she and Teacher Ning really seem so platonic?
Could it be that she and Teacher Ning didn’t have wifey vibes?
Li Chu glanced at Ning Manqing’s stunning beauty and nodded to herself. It seemed they really didn’t.
Teacher Ning is too beautiful!
Having such a beautiful woman as her wife was truly a delightful thought.
“Is there something on my face?”
Ning Manqing, seeing Li Chu secretly smiling at her, touched her cheek in confusion.
Li Chu shook her head and, to avoid being subjected to Ning Manqing’s secret mind-reading technique, rushed back to her dressing room.
The revised script wouldn’t be available for a while. During this downtime, Li Chu received an unexpected phone call.
“…Asking for my help?”
Li Chu asked hesitantly. If it weren’t for this call, she would have completely forgotten about Mu Xiao.
The male lead, a person with zero presence in her life.
“Yes. President Mu has a reception in three days and must bring a partner. He usually goes with his assistant, but she’s currently on a business trip. The reception in three days will mostly be people from the industry, so President Mu would like you to accompany him.”
As for which industry, it was, of course, the entertainment industry.
Li Chu remembered Tang Congnan telling her last year at a reception that Mu Xiao was interested in expanding into the entertainment industry. Eight months had passed, and given the male lead’s efficiency, he had probably already started.
“I’m sorry, I’m currently on set and probably won’t have time.”
Li Chu declined. Not having time was an excuse. She didn’t want to have any further contact with the male lead. Last time was already an accident.
The secretary on the other end sounded even more sincere, “We hope Miss Li will make time. President Mu will compensate you tenfold for your time.”
This damned materialistic world was actually trying to corrupt her with money!
Li Chu still coldly refused, “I’m sorry, I have no intention of doing so.”
“Alright then. We still hope you’ll reconsider in the next few days. If you change your mind, feel free to call me anytime. After all, you are the most suitable candidate.”
Li Chu asked curiously, “Why am I the most suitable candidate?”
Could it be that her pure and unpretentious appearance had caught the CEO’s attention?
But she wasn’t pure and unpretentious. She was quick to take the money.
“After all, people like Miss Li, who are beautiful, talented, helpful, and without ulterior motives, are rare.”
Li Chu understood. Translated, it meant she was the perfect tool. Mu Xiao didn’t have to worry about her clinging to him.
“Thank you for the compliment. Have President Mu find another candidate.”
Li Chu hung up the phone and added the number to her blocked list.
If she wasn’t in a relationship, with the lure of money, Li Chu might have wavered a little. But now that she had a girlfriend, she wouldn’t waver at all.
Li Chu didn’t tell Ning Manqing about this and quickly put the matter behind her, immersing herself in the new script.
In the love story between the Regent and the Eldest Princess, the Regent was at a disadvantage.
This wasn’t because Zhou Xinyuan believed that Dikun should be weaker than Tiangan, but because it stemmed from their personalities.
Although they both had new memories and seemed to have become new people, their personalities and subconscious behavioral judgments were influenced by the personalities shaped by their previous memories.
It all had to do with Fu Yuan and Lin Lang’s personalities. The script Li Chu received was for Fu Yuan, and the entire story’s perspective was focused on Fu Yuan, so Li Chu understood Fu Yuan better.
Fu Yuan was someone who had a very turbulent life. If she had to make an analogy, she was like the man with the monkey’s paw in Jacobs’ story.
The man who made a wish with the monkey’s paw would have his wish granted in the most unfortunate way imaginable.
In the story of “The Monkey’s Paw,” the paw came from India and could grant three wishes. The man who obtained it wished for 200 pounds, and his only son was caught in a machine at work, with the company sending 200 pounds in compensation.
Fu Yuan hadn’t received such a monkey’s paw, but it was as if the paw was watching her, smilingly fulfilling her wishes.
Fu Yuan was initially a wealthy young lady, the kind of spoiled miss who wasn’t very likable. She was pampered growing up, unaware of life’s hardships. She only knew that her parents and brother would always get her what she wanted.
She unscrupulously mocked those whose backgrounds were far inferior to hers, always preferring to hear compliments. In her extravagance, she bathed in wine worth hundreds of thousands, and eventually did what rebellious teenagers wanted to try.
She fell in love with a bad alpha, willingly letting him take advantage of her, and even wanted to be marked by him and bear his children. This angered her father, who stopped it all before it became irreversible.
For the spoiled young lady, this was her father not understanding her pursuit of true love. So, she angrily wished her father would shut up and stop controlling her.
That night, there was a chain car accident, injuring dozens of people, but only one fatality.
Upon learning of her father’s death, Fu Yuan was dumbfounded.
No one attributed her father’s death to Fu Yuan’s angry words, but Fu Yuan blamed herself.
It was a dark period in her memory: her always busy brother, the relatives who came to claim shares of the company, and her mother, weary of dealing with it all.
Fu Yuan realized she was incapable of anything, and trying to help might only make things worse. No one cared about her anymore. She wanted to find her lover, but saw him with someone else, telling dirty jokes about her.
This was a collapse for the young girl at the time. Fu Yuan blamed herself even more. If she hadn’t been rebellious, her father might not have chosen to go out, and everything wouldn’t have turned out this way.
Because her brother didn’t have his father’s ability and connections to run the company, it quickly fell into trouble. Her brother and mother had to sell their assets, but this only reduced their income. The money in their accounts was still enough for them to live comfortably.
Fu Yuan thought all the chaos would end there, but the “monkey’s paw” hadn’t let her go.
After moving to a new home, she was stalked because of her appearance.
Fortunately, she ran into her brother coming home, so she avoided disaster. While taking a bath at home, she cursed the stalker, wishing he would die.
The man really died. The next day, the killer was revealed to be her brother.
But her brother hadn’t intended to kill. He only went to threaten and warn the man, to teach him a lesson.
But no one knew the railing at the man’s house was damaged. In his panic, the man fell from the upstairs, with marks of her brother’s beating on his body.
Her brother went to jail. To find a good lawyer for her brother and reduce his sentence, Fu Yuan’s mother paid a large sum of money.
Fu Yuan was devastated. She didn’t know why things had gotten worse again. It was because of her, always because of her.
After her father’s accident, Fu Yuan was no longer the spoiled young lady. After her brother’s accident, Fu Yuan had changed from an extroverted person to an introverted one.
Although there was still money in the family account, Fu Yuan’s mother started working. She had to pay for her daughter’s university tuition and provide some living expenses for her son after he got out.
Fu Yuan studied music, a very expensive major. Her mother was earning money, and Fu Yuan was also working hard, using her looks to do part-time jobs.
Everything seemed to be slowly getting better, but because her mother was very busy, Fu Yuan sometimes wouldn’t see her for days. So, she wished her mother could get some rest.
So, the monkey’s paw showed its power once again. Fu Yuan’s mother became seriously ill.
After three wishes, the monkey’s paw successfully retreated.
In the worst of times, Fu Yuan met Lin Lang, someone who wasn’t originally from her world but became part of it.
If you’d like to read ahead and support me, you can request extra chapters or get the full novel as an EPUB.
