The assistant, Lu Man, followed after Mo Rui Han, his feet having to take two steps for every one stride of Rui Han's. Although Lu Man was a tall and rather dashing man himself, he paled in comparison to Mo Rui Han. Truthfully, everyone did.
Mo Rui Han stood at over 6 feet tall, which just helped to add to his domineering image. Online, he was known by his fans as God Rui Han, because everything about him was just overpowering.
With his jet black hair that he had left slightly long and messy for the role, his toned physique and piercing eyes, Mo Rui Han exuded masculine beauty from every pore on his body. Even his education and background was the best of the best. He came from the Mo family, which was prestigious even amongst the elites. Despite his privileged background, Mo Rui Han had long proven that everything he had— his CEO position, his acting roles, his wealth— were things that he deserved.
It was no wonder that despite his prickly personality, Mo Rui Han was a force in the industry that no one dared to oppose. If it wasn't the overwhelming fame that he has amassed, then the amount of wealth that he possessed would both attract people to him and deter people from going against him. Despite the constant attention, he always wore a stoic expression that made those around him uncomfortable.
It was because of this that Lu Man was a little unsettled. He had been by Mo Rui Han's side for a long time. In fact, they had grown up together and gone from elementary school to college together. This history was what allowed Lu Man to have a decent understanding of Mo Rui Han. it was the reason why Lu Man was feeling unnerved.
Although Mo Rui Han had a perfectly calm expression plastered on his face, Lu Man noticed the way he seemed to walk even faster than usual. When he observed that the President's fists were clenched tightly, Lu Man felt his stomach drop.
What disaster happened for Mo Rui Han to be so worked up?
Before he could open his mouth to ask, Mo Rui Han stopped in his tracks abruptly. They had already reached the main filming area.
Seeing that the Mo Rui Han wasn't making a move, Lu Man stared at him intently, trying to figure out what he was doing.
For a split second, Lu Man saw a look of pure yearning on Mo Rui Han's face before he covered it up. It was something that he had never seen before. They had been together for 20 over years and this was the first time!
Trying to pick his jaw back up, Lu Man followed Rui Han's line of sight and his gaze landed on the bunch of extras who were getting ready.
Although there were many of them, Lu Man could immediately guess who had caught Mo Rui Han's attention.
She was dressed in rags and looked dirty, and her hair was extremely messy and tangled. Despite this, if you observed properly, you could immediately tell that the girl underneath the costume was a beauty.
But Mo Rui Han was immovable. Even the most beautiful women couldn't shake him, so why this girl? She was pretty but.. this entertainment had many like her. And having been by Mo Rui Han's side for so long, Lu Man had seen all sorts of women approach him, only to get rejected.
"Lu Man." Mo Rui Han's deep voice cut through the air and broke Lu Man's train of thought.
"Yes, Boss," Lu Man replied eagerly, interested to know what Mo Rui Han would say next. He had insisted on calling him that when he started working as his assistant, and Mo Rui Han had passively left him to it.
"Find out everything about that girl."
Although Lu Man had a clear idea of who Rui Han was talking about, he still wanted to double check.
In response, Mo Rui Han only gave him a hard stare. It seemed like he was saying, 'Isn't it obvious?'
"Understood, Boss. I will update you with everything by tomorrow." They were close friends, but Lu Man had proven himself to be surprisingly professional despite his usual playful attitude. He was extremely skilled at switching between playfully teasing his best friend, and turning on his employee mode. It was why Mo Rui Han never made a move to change assistants, not just because they were old friends, but also because there was no one as capable as Lu Man!
Upon finishing his sentence, Mo Rui Han's stare grew even more intense.
"..." Even Lu Man was not immune to Mo Rui Han's presence. Sighing, Lu Man corrected himself.
"I will update you within the hour." This woman better be the queen of some country to make Mo Rui Han so eager!
Mo Rui Han didn't say anything at first, then opened his mouth to speak. His words were firm, almost like an emperor giving out decrees.
"30 minutes."
"..." A sweat bead formed on Lu Man's forehead. His mouth opened but no sound came out, before Lu Man pursed his lips. Mo Rui Han! You really know how to work people! Inside, he was crying, but outside, Lu Man gave Mo Rui Han a simple response.
"Got it, Boss...."
-
Xing Yu has just arrived back on set for her shoot. By this time, everyone had already gathered and were getting ready to start filming officially.
Although it was the first day, they were already filming a scene that's past the halfway mark, which is very common during the filming process.
Xing Yu couldn't help the excitement and slight anxiety that bubbled up from inside her. After five long years in the industry, she finally managed to land a part in such a prominent film. Plus, although she would only appear for at most 10 minutes, it was an impactful 10 minutes. Xing Yu was hoping that her performance in this film could open up a lot more opportunities for her... opportunities that were kept locked away, out of her reach, by her own entertainment company.
Although the thought of that caused her mood to dampen briefly, Xing Yu quickly focused and got into the right mood for filming. She wanted to make sure everything was done in as little takes as possible.
She greeted her fellow extras humbly and waited for the director's instructions. However, Director Li was clearly still holding on to the previous incident, as he immediately raised his voice upon seeing Xing Yu.
"YOU!" He shouted, shoving his finger right in her face. "You troublemaker. I don't expect you to act well, just don't act badly, or I will remove you!"
Saying that in front of everyone, Director Li was clearly letting everyone know how little he thought of Xing Yu. Although he was petty, Director Li was a well-known director who had filmed many hit blockbusters. Although most of them had gotten bad reviews, they did extremely well in theatres and had a lot of watchers, which was enough for investors. For such a big director to say something like that, basically told everyone that he held no expectations for her...
Some of the extras who had seen Xing Yu's earlier dispute with Xia Ting snickered, enjoying the show. They knew of Director Li's short temper, so they were waiting to see if he would kick her off the set.
"Yes, Director Li," Xing Yu said calmly. She was already in character by then, and could barely hear the disrespect in Director Li's words.
The more unresponsive Xing Yu was, the more annoyed Director Li got. He was told specifically by Xia Ting not to remove her, so he couldn't possibly do that. After all, he knew that Xia Ting had the backing of some powerful members on StarTime entertainment's board of directors... and StarTime entertainment was a big sponsor for this film! Even if he personally couldn't stand her, he wouldn't replace her.
He felt slightly better about his decision when Xia Ting had previously told him about Liu Xing Yu's acting ability, or lack thereof. At least he could watch her humiliate herself. He was planning on yelling at her the moment she had an NG. He would make sure to embarrass her so much to the point that she would beg to quit herself!
Meanwhile, Director Li vented his anger by yelling at Liu Xing Yu even more, berating her for every little thing from her makeup to her appearance. Everyone around knew that he was just finding faults with her, but no one was going to speak up. Who would want to offend Director Li for a nobody like Liu Xing You?
Off in a distance, Mo Rui Han observed the scene before him with stormy eyes.