In the forest where the thick fog had dispersed, the sunlight shone brightly. The mottled light shone on the young girl's confused face. The corner of her mouth moved into an awkward arc. She looked at Liu Buqun's gossipy eyes and shook her head.
"No?" Liu Buqun shrunk his neck and looked at Li Zhen in shock. He lowered his voice and asked, "She can't be underage, can she?"
"I'm nineteen."
"Nineteen years old and you've never been in love?"
Although it was just an ordinary question, Song Qingli could smell a hint of judgment from it. She thought about it and there was no experience of being in love in both her lifetime.
"I haven't."
Liu Buqun snapped his fingers and laughed, "That's good! Your character, Nangong Li, has never been in a relationship as well but young one, you might not have been in a relationship, you must have had a crush, right?"
"When you're acting as Nangong Li, you have to be clear. You have to show the affection that you have for the other person through your eyes. The overflowing love isn't something that can be said aloud but others should be able to feel them. Only then will there be a chemical reaction and that's when the audience will be able to empathize with you."
Liu Buqun still had a scene to film today so he had to leave soon. Before he left, he patted Song Qingli's shoulder and encouraged her. "It's okay, little girl. You still have a long way to go. It's not a bad thing for us actors to have some relationship experience."
The young girl blinked her eyes and watched the old actor disappear. She turned her head and saw Li Zhen's jaw drop. "Sister Li, Teacher Liu told me to date more."
"Don't even think about it. You're my artist now. If you want to date, you'd wait until you're famous." Li Zhen flipped through the script again and fiddled with it in front of the camera. "Qingli, let's do it again."
——
After yesterday's incident, Su Qinqin had become much more low-key. She no longer dismissed the opinions given by the director and producer. Xiao Yi also gave her a lot of advice from the side. Although she did not know much about acting, she was good at cooperating with others and so she was able to make progress by relying on the director's superb shooting skills.
"Alright, all actors and crew members, let's have lunch and get a 2 hours break." Director Zhang announced it with his walkie-talkie.
There were plenty of parking spaces in the village and most of the celebrities would drive their camper cars there. After all, the conditions were tough and it would be too inconvenient if they had to follow the traditional customs of the village.
Xiao Yi's RV was parked under the shades. The people on his team were all elites. They had everything from being able to have meetings with their clients to taking care of their daily meals.
The man had long, flowing silver hair and a Jade crown that held them together. His face was angular and he looked like an experienced actor with makeup on. Male actors would usually have heavy eye makeup. However, for someone like Xiao Yi, who was born with good facial features, he only needed a small amount of eyeshadow and eyeliner. With minimal makeup, he could already portray the character to a certain degree.
The white immortal robe was made of the best silk and a Jade-colored belt wrapped around the lean waist paired with spotless white boots. In order to show the unique characteristics of the prime celestial, the crew put a lot of effort into the costume.
At this moment, Xiao Yi's current manager, Sister Xia was so angry that there was smoke coming out of her head. She had been holding back her anger for a long time. The news about Xiao Yi and Su Qinqin's affairs had already been spread among the production crew. If it wasn't for the fact that there was no signal in this old village, the internet would have been a mess by now.
"Xiao Yi, you're not a rookie anymore. Do you think you're protecting Su Qinqin by doing this?" Sister Xia gritted her teeth, her bangs unable to cover the blue veins on her forehead. She had short, neat hair, and a chubby figure, and was dressed in a bright red suit. One could tell at a glance that she was a strong woman and her temperament was a little similar to Li Zhen's.
"I'm sorry, Sister Xia. I can't leave Qinqin alone. I brought her into this industry and so, I have to be responsible for her."
"Take back all those ridiculous excuses." Sister Xia spoke in a low voice. After all, they were still on set. Although there was no one nearby, the walls had ears. Once the news gets leaked, it would set off a storm.
"Don't you understand? That little girl is just using you. Her parents raised you but that's their business. You should just be filial to her parents. Don't you know how hard it was for you to get here?"
Xiao Yi looked worried. Every time he thought of what Uncle Su and Aunt Su had entrusted to him before they died, his heart would feel extremely heavy. If he could really do it as easily as how Sister Xia wanted it, he would not have caused so much trouble.
"Sister Xia, I can't repay Qinqin's parents. They've already ..." The man's throat felt like it was stuffed with cotton. After a long time, he said, "They've just passed away. Just last month."
Sister Xia was suddenly at a loss for words. She took a step back and turned her back as if she was trying to think of a way. She had been losing hair these few days. She has dealt with many cases of artists under her management who have gotten into trouble. However, a movie star like Xiao Yi was the money-making machine of the company. If he got into trouble, it would probably cause a storm in the entertainment industry.
"We'll talk about this later. Right now, I just want you to keep your distance from her. I've already asked my assistant to check on everyone on the production team. Those who took photos of you and Su Qinqin will not spread it. However, you have to know that in this era of social media, traces will be left behind. If you continue to act irrationally, all your achievements will be destroyed."
Xiao Yi's eyes were red as he sat up straight. Even Sister Xia could see how he was struggling deep inside but she had no choice. He had to be ruthless in order to flourish in this industry.
"I understand, Sister Xia." Xiao Yi reluctantly agreed to this matter. Sister Xia sighed and left. She hadn't slept for days. This was all she could think of all night but up till this moment, she still hadn't found a way to deal with it. The company still was still unaware of it. If the news of a member of a girl group being involved with a national movie star got out to the public, the public's opinion would crush them to death.
Su Qinqin noticed that there wasn't a single piece of meat in the lunchbox and angrily threw her chopsticks on the ground. She kicked the lunchbox over and shouted at Xiao Yu, "What rubbish is this? Are you trying to starve me to death? There are only vegetables here!"
Little Yu quickly picked up the lunchbox and whispered, "My dear, anyone in the crew can complain about the food except for you."
"I ... " Su Qinqin was reminded that the entire crew already found out about it yesterday, that their expenses have been cut over and over again because the female lead had asked for an increase in her pay. It was no surprise that all of them who had this lunchbox were actually cursing at her.
Su Qinqin's anger was stuck in her throat. In the end, she crossed her arms and turned around. "Make me some instant noodles."
Xiao Yu came back with a bowl of instant noodles in two to three minutes. When Su Qinqin was about to eat, Xiao Yu reached out and stopped her. "I'll take a photo first. I can post it on Weibo later to update your fan club."
Su Qinqin only had to play along, she forced a smile and posed a few times before finally losing her patience. "Are you done?"
"Alright, alright." Little Yu sat at the side and retouched the pictures. He made her face smaller, her eyes bigger, and her waist slimmer.
Su Qinqin had just taken a mouthful of instant noodles when she saw a pair of pink slippers in front of her. She looked up and saw Song Qingli's annoying face. "What are you doing here? Do I look like I really like you? That would explain why you keep appearing in front of my face."