Rong Guang and Chacha, who was holding a water cup, stood in a row at the door of the dressing room. They looked like two elementary school students being punished by the dean for being late.
Their heads were hung low, their expressions utterly dejected.
Chu Feiliang’s smile started to become playful. She spoke slowly, “How long have you been here?”
Rong Guang quickly raised her head, glanced at Chu Feiliang’s expression for a second, then swiftly lowered it again, saying in a small voice, “Not… not that long…”
Maybe just a few dozen seconds or… a few minutes?
She lowered her head and secretly met Chacha’s eyes, only to find that Chacha had already spontaneously entered a meditative state. Her gaze was unfocused, openly letting her mind wander as she studied the ceiling light.
Rong Guang ground her teeth.
As she spoke, she tried her best to reduce her presence, inching her way into the room step by step.
Although she was sharing the dressing room with Chu Feiliang, Rong Guang was very self-aware. She only planned to consciously occupy a small corner, content to just be able to nestle there peacefully.
She didn’t ask for much. As long as she could see Chu Feiliang anytime, anywhere, it was better than anything.
Besides, unless they were on the soundstage, she wouldn’t have much of a chance to stay with Chu Feiliang if they were shooting on location. Even makeup would be done on the spot.
So this time was all the more precious.
Chu Feiliang simply stopped having her makeup done.
Seeing her turn around, the makeup artist also stopped what she was doing. She glanced amusingly at Rong Guang, who was shuffling in from the doorway, and said, “I’ll go ask Sister Shi how the selection of your clothes is coming along.”
After dragging the daydreaming Chacha away with her, only Rong Guang and Chu Feiliang were left in the room.
Rong Guang stood timidly before Chu Feiliang, cautiously sneaking glances at her from time to time, head down, wringing her hands, looking incredibly well-behaved.
Chu Feiliang suppressed a laugh and cleared her throat. “You were standing at the door and not coming in. Were you trying to eavesdrop?”
“No.” Rong Guang quickly denied it. Remembering what had just happened, she couldn’t help but feel so embarrassed her toes curled—she had originally intended to knock.
But she happened to hear Chu Feiliang talking to the makeup artist, and she froze for a moment, unable to resist listening for a bit longer.
Later, when someone was about to enter the room, Chacha poked her awake. Just as she was about to knock, she accidentally stepped on her shoelace and ended up tumbling into the room.
As a result, she looked exceptionally disheveled.
Thinking of this, her eyes grew even more moist and pitiful.
Chu Feiliang couldn’t help but rub her fingers again and said in a faint voice, “Then let me ask a different question.”
“How much did you hear?” She took the opportunity to stand up from her chair and slowly stretched her body.
Rong Guang’s eyes unconsciously followed Chu Feiliang’s movements to her waist. She couldn’t help but blush, and the words that came out of her mouth weren’t very well thought out anymore. “I didn’t hear much, just… just that you said you like little kittens…”
Her clasped hands began to squeeze each other. Rong Guang’s eyes sparkled as she recalled that bewitching, gentle touch.
“You heard wrong.” Chu Feiliang seemed much more comfortable after stretching, letting out a satisfied sigh.
Rong Guang’s eyes went blank, her ability to function completely gone. All she could see was the black bodysuit on Chu Feiliang, which faintly revealed the soft lines of her waist. “Wh-what?”
“I said,” the captivatingly slender waist drew closer and closer. Rong Guang subconsciously touched her mouth and felt a puff of warm air by her ear, accompanied by Chu Feiliang’s voice, so light it almost drifted away, “you heard wrong. I don’t like cats.”
Rong Guang finally snapped back to her senses. The puff of air made her flinch and cover her ear, which she was sure was bright red without even looking. “Th-th-then what is it…?”
Chu Feiliang let out a soft laugh but said no more, only looking at Rong Guang gently.
Finally, seeing Rong Guang grow more and more afraid to look at her, Chu Feiliang took pity. Almost perfectly timed with the footsteps of the staff entering, she said with a light laugh, “You guess?”
Rong Guang’s face was a mask of conflict. Her whole being was in disarray.
This conflict lasted all the way to the set. She couldn’t get into character at all and squatted on the ground in frustration.
Chacha sidled up to her and said, “Sister Guangguang, you’re up soon. The director said for you all to prepare your emotions and get into character.”
Rong Guang poked her own head in frustration. “I can’t figure out what she wants me to guess.”
Chacha stared at her.
Rong Guang rested her chin on her hand. “She said she doesn’t like cats, but what she said to the makeup artist earlier didn’t sound like dogs were her favorite either…”
She had known Chu Feiliang for so long and had even been a guest at her house. There was indeed only a pure black Labrador named Zaixiang. Other than that, there wasn’t a single cat hair to be found.
“Then just stop thinking about it.” Chacha patted her shoulder. “Once you get to know her better, you can just ask her directly. I really don’t get you little girls with crushes, how… Ouch!” Chacha clutched her head, her eyes welling with tears. “You hit my head.”
“I didn’t hit you, I just tapped it.” Rong Guang mercilessly withdrew her hand. “Classmate Chacha, you haven’t even had your fifteenth birthday yet. Even if you add the year you were in your mother’s womb and count your nominal age, you’re still not as old as me.”
Chacha lowered her head, pouted, scratched the ground, and dug a hole, her movements fluid and seamless. “I know, I know. Get ready. Are you still thinking about cats and dogs?”
Rong Guang: “…”
She looked at Chacha, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. She adjusted her slightly cumbersome costume and said, “I’m not thinking about it anymore.”
In a way, Chacha was right.
Before, because she had never thought about it and had never heard Chu Feiliang mention it, she had subconsciously assumed that since Chu Feiliang had a dog, dogs must be her favorite. She had even bought many nice things for Zaixiang because of this.
Of course, Zaixiang was also quite cooperative. He had been sent to a special school when he was young, and after he returned, Rong Guang always felt it would have been a waste not to send that child to school—because Zaixiang would even secretly open the door for her in exchange for the beef jerky in her hand.
It had brought her quite a bit of convenience.
Thinking of this, Rong Guang rubbed her hands together.
No owner would refuse to have their furry child praised. The matter of pleasing Zaixiang still had to be on her agenda.
Rong Guang cleared her mind of distracting thoughts, sat down in her lounge chair, opened her script, and carefully reviewed it from beginning to end.
Director Zhang was beside her now, repeatedly emphasizing, “There’s no main focus in this scene. You’re having a bit of trouble keeping up with Xiao Chu’s scenes right now. I’ll have her hold back a little, but in this scene, you can improvise as much as you can. Yesterday’s scene was very good—how did your discussion with Xiao Chu go? Do you have any more ideas?”
As Rong Guang listened, she suddenly froze. “Huh? What?”
Director Zhang’s eyes widened. “This afternoon, weren’t the two of you discussing the script in the dressing room?”
Rong Guang: “…”
Chu Feiliang promptly came to her rescue, saying, “We have a little design. We’ll try it out on set later.”
Only then did Director Zhang let Rong Guang off the hook, nodding in satisfaction.
Rong Guang looked nervously at Chu Feiliang. Taking advantage of a moment when Director Zhang was talking to someone else, she whispered, “Teacher Chu, what little design? I… I haven’t rehearsed it with you. Will it be a problem?”
“It won’t be a problem.” Chu Feiliang’s lips curved into a smile. “You’ll know in a bit. Relax, you can handle the scene. Don’t be too nervous. You’ll have more camera focus than me later. When it’s your main shot, just give it your all. You don’t need to worry about me.”
Rong Guang nodded cautiously and focused on her script, trying her best to find some new insight in the script that had already been revised many times.
After Director Zhang finished his business, he came back to talk to Rong Guang.
It was already around eight in the evening, and the sky was darkening, which perfectly matched the background time Director Zhang required.
“Wen Mou is currently in the most chaotic period of her memory. What you need to portray doesn’t have to be overly calm, but it can’t be too frenzied either.” Director Zhang flipped to Rong Guang’s page and said, “Because of her injuries, her mind is not clear, but she still has the instinct to seek advantages and avoid harm. She knows to fight back. Pay attention to the fight scene later. You need to control the intensity yourself.”
Rong Guang frowned and nodded, her expression very serious.
Director Zhang continued, “Your part in this scene isn’t a big problem. The main thing is the scene with Xiao Chu—we’ll shoot your scene together first. There’s a problem with the extras.”
Rong Guang was taken aback, then nodded and said, “Okay.”
Changing the shooting order was a common occurrence. Moreover, her scene required dozens of extras, including at least ten with some acting foundation and a bit of fame, as well as five stunt actors with a background in martial arts.
Normally, these people could be gathered with a single shout on set.
But because Director Zhang was extremely picky, and there had been a major adjustment within the production services department, it would probably be difficult to gather so many people on short notice.
Chu Feiliang also nodded, having no objections.
“Remember, you must control your state. Don’t be overwhelmed by Xiao Chu’s presence.” Director Zhang was also sweating a little, worried about Rong Guang’s actual performance. He nagged tirelessly, “In that brief moment of clarity you have, what you need is not to shrink back timidly, but to be on equal footing with Ji Ying, as Jiang Wenmou herself, with the strength to struggle free with all your might.”
Rong Guang nodded, indicating she understood.
She pursed her lips, let the makeup artist fix her makeup and hair, and quickly walked to her position.
Chu Feiliang was still getting a touch-up nearby.
There were three costumes to be filmed today.
One was the blood-and-mud-stained battle uniform Chu Feiliang wore when she first entered the city and saved her. The second was the casual attire she changed into after being carried back to the general’s manor. The third was the court attire to be worn for an audience with the emperor.
Right now, Chu Feiliang’s look was unrestrained and rugged. Her face and hands bore the marks of special effects makeup. She wasn’t wearing her helmet yet, and her hair was not neat. A few strands fell messily across her face, but the moment she got into character, her roguish smile, tinged with a hint of wickedness, was enough to make anyone watching melt to their bones.
Rong Guang’s legs unhelpfully went a little weak.
Once Chu Feiliang’s makeup and hair were done, she walked over to Rong Guang, waiting for the final adjustments to the cameras and lighting.
Rong Guang wanted to distract herself, so she took the initiative to speak. Looking at Chu Feiliang, who, despite being covered in mud, looked even more dashing, unconventional, and incredibly handsome, she said, “Teacher Chu, if I don’t perform well later, please feel free to criticize me. I can take it.”
“Okay.” Chu Feiliang smiled upon hearing this.
Seeing Chu Feiliang’s smile, Rong Guang couldn’t help but grin foolishly along with her.
Suddenly, she saw Chu Feiliang’s hand fastening her helmet, and a sentence escaped her lips without passing through her brain, “Later… do I still have to bite you?”
Chu Feiliang’s movement paused.
Rong Guang immediately realized what she had said and was so ashamed she didn’t know what to do.
Chu Feiliang lowered her hand, letting the stylist who had rushed over make the final adjustments. It was clear that even her mood had improved significantly.
She slowly extended her finger, gestured near Rong Guang’s lips, and said, “Of course you have to bite. The harder, the better.”
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