Chapter 14 - Chapter 14

Although it didn't show on the surface, Li Ling felt that Jin Jingyao must be even more nervous than she was. She had just discovered his secret. This renowned director, Jin Jingyao, not only disliked physical contact with others, but he also hardly dared to touch her face. It was easy to imagine that helping someone induce vomiting would be even more unbearable for him. Thinking this, Li Ling couldn't help but comfort him, "It's okay, Director. If you can't do it, you should wear gloves." Jin Jingyao said coldly, "Mind your own business." Li Ling blinked, "Director, can I ask you a question..." She wanted to ask him, since he hated physical contact so much, why did he insist on starring in this movie himself. Jin Jingyao seemed to have guessed her thoughts and said, "No, you can't." He turned and walked away. Li Ling: "..." Fine. If she couldn't ask, she wouldn't. She loved her work and read the script again. Zhou Jing was sick, everyone knew that. But how severe his illness was, perhaps only after filming this scene would Li Ling have a personal understanding. During the time he played the role of the teddy bear, Zhou Jing was so silent and humble, catering to A Ling's every whim. Even though she turned his home and life upside down, he still indulged her without limits. In contrast, A Ling seemed to be the worse person. She was lifeless yet reckless. Why did she want to drown herself in Zhou Jing's bathroom? Was she truly intent on dying, or was she using her life to demonstrate to him? Even as Li Ling sank into the bathtub, she didn't get a definite answer. Maybe she was too scared, which made her keep demanding and emotionally abusing him, using the ugliest ways to assert her power over Zhou Jing. A kind of privilege of being loved. In any case, Li Ling found it hard to understand such behavior. Clearly, it was love, yet she chose to hurt. Clearly, she wanted to hold on, yet she pushed him away. Very pathological. She and Zhou Jing were both very pathological. A Ling lay on the edge of the bathtub, raising her head, looking up and down at the young man who had taken off the teddy bear costume. "You finally dare to see me," she said in a hoarse yet sweet voice. She waited to see him wag his tail and beg, or become furious. She couldn't wait to tear apart his calm and enjoy his disgrace. She was soon disappointed. Zhou Jing didn't even curse her. He took a towel, bent down, and wiped her face. His movements were gentle, as always. His gaze was like a pool of dead water. And that pool of water had once silently submerged her face, blocked her breath, and pressed deeply into her lungs... A Ling slapped his hand away with a "smack" and started coughing violently. While coughing, she revealed a pale smile. "Forgot to tell you, I stole your sleeping pills," she said in a weak yet venomous tone, "But, Zhou Jing, why did you hide the sleeping pills in the cabinet?" Because of her action, the towel fell to the ground. The young man calmly picked it up, carefully folded it, and placed it aside. Then, he stood up again. The camera slowly zoomed in from a medium shot to a close-up. Li Ling knew what his next move would be, but she couldn't help her stomach tightening. This kind of scene was hard to rehearse in advance; she didn't know how he would act. And Jin Jingyao had clearly become another person. He didn't show the slightest bit of nervousness about the upcoming physical contact. He approached her.A gigantic shadow was cast on the wall, like a long shot of the Empire State Building, slow, determined, and undeniable. She felt herself enveloped by his shadow, or as if an invisible hand had seized her. The young man looked at her with a cold gaze. He clasped Li Ling's chin with his thumb and forefinger, while his other hand pried open her lips without resistance. The warm oral cavity almost unconsciously clamped down on his fingers, like a fragile pearl oyster being opened. "Mm..." Despite being mentally prepared, Li Ling's eyes immediately reddened, physiological tears welling up, half from acting, half from instinctive resistance. She bit him with her teeth, grabbed his hand, using her body as a weapon. It was too insignificant, instantly suppressed by the other party. His cold fingers were like a hook, deeply piercing into her flesh. He pressed down on her tongue root, bit by bit. The other hand that restrained her was like a sweet candy after a whip, slowly caressing her cheek and neck, tucking her hair behind her ear. He kept looking at her. Until she bent over, coughing forcefully, spitting out all the pills. His hand was still stroking the back of her neck. The slightly cool palm rubbed against her skin, bringing a stinging sweetness and tenderness. - As soon as the assistant director shouted "Cut," the hand moved away from her. Li Ling was still staring at it. When the director shot this scene, he actually didn't wear gloves. However, he might have felt uncomfortable too, so he went to wash his hands as soon as "cut" was called. Li Ling actually wanted to rinse her mouth too, but she had no strength. This scene had drained her more. She maintained her original posture, lying motionless on the bathtub, coughing softly a few times. A cup filled with water was suddenly handed to her. Li Ling gratefully looked up, seeing Director Jin looking at her expressionlessly: "Rinse your mouth." The sun must have risen from the west. Who would have thought, the kid has grown up and knows how to respect elders now. Li Ling took the cup, moved. She almost got scalded to death as soon as she reached out. So hot. This water must be ninety degrees. Li Ling: "..." "Director, most people don't use boiling water to rinse their mouths," she reminded him with mixed feelings. Jin Jingyao glanced at her: "Disinfection." Li Ling: "..." Only a dead pig is not afraid of boiling water. I suggest you disinfect yourself first. Thinking this, she suddenly noticed his lowered hand from the corner of her eye. This hand was pale, strong, with long knuckles. But there were several small scratches on the knuckles, and... faint bite marks. Like bright lip prints on a marble statue, cold and ambiguous. Li Ling was stunned: "Director, your hand..." Jin Jingyao said: "Dog bite." Translation: Bitten by Li Ling during the shoot. Li Ling suddenly felt that Jin Jingyao not killing her and even politely pouring her water was quite an all-around development in moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic, and labor education. She was silent for a long time, then asked with even more complex feelings: "Can the insurance company cover rabies vaccines?" Jin Jingyao looked at her like she was an idiot for a while, then got up to check the monitor. Li Ling found a cup of cold water to rinse her mouth, then silently followed him. At this moment, a group of people was gathered around the monitor, lavishly praising the director's acting skills. The assistant director said: "The director's skills are as good as ever. My daughter would definitely be scared to tears watching this." Cameraman: "Your daughter is almost twenty..." Another person clicked their tongue: "Not just twenty, even an eighty-year-old would be scared to tears by such a perverted performance."The director suddenly appeared from behind. Several burly men were almost scared to tears. Li Ling curiously leaned forward and found that the visual impact of this scene on the monitor was indeed quite shocking. The close-up shot magnified that physiological sense of pain. Red-rimmed eyes, a pale face. Lips forced open, jaw gripped. She really looked like she was in pain. But in fact, when filming this scene, Li Ling wasn't in that much pain. Jin Jingyao's actions were quite restrained. After the initial physical discomfort, what she felt more was a psychological suppression. She originally thought he would be the type to make the fake real, relying on inflicting pain and treating the actor as a tool to extract genuine reactions from her. However, he had a strict pre-design and control over the storyboard, and during filming, he would precisely coordinate with the angles and shots. He knew what he wanted and didn't need to torture her to get it. Just like the most genius magician would never actually cut his female assistant in half on stage. But saying it like this, it seemed to make him even more terrifying. Jin Jingyao completely controlled the rhythm of this scene, to the point where, for a moment, she almost thought his gaze would kill her. He looked at her so calmly. As if he was torturing her, and also as if he was baptizing her. He shoved an invisible cross down her throat. He was executing a gentle strangulation. And that fear and trembling, even now, still flowed secretly in Li Ling's blood like some kind of toxin. "Damn it." She lowered her head and sent a message to 9787532754335, "He got me." 9787532754335 seemed to have his phone on him 24/7 and quickly sent back a question mark. She typed expressionlessly: "The actor I'm working with [crying] his acting is too good [crying] I lost, I lost again [crying]" 9787532754335: "." Li Ling: "Today was our first day acting together, and he already gave me a hard time. I'm so pissed off. How can he act so well? I need to learn a lot from him in the future [crying] humbly seeking advice [crying]" 9787532754335 was silent for a moment and sent a piece of encyclopedia annotation: "Humbly seeking advice means not considering it shameful to ask for guidance from those of lower status or knowledge." Li Ling: ? "You should use 'not afraid to ask superiors.'" the other party explained. Li Ling: "..." "Your kid is in elementary school, right?" she said sulkily. 9787532754335 was silent for a moment and sent another question mark. Li Ling said sadly, "Forget it, do you also think I'm too competitive? You don't understand, women must strive to be the best." 9787532754335: "No." 9787532754335: "You are very cute." The world spun around. The square Chinese characters suddenly turned into colorful fireworks. Crackle, crackle. Li Ling stared at the screen for a full five minutes, not understanding why her heartbeat suddenly sped up. The assistant director suddenly said, "Ms. Li, who are you messaging that's making you so happy?" "Could it be a boyfriend?" another person joked. Li Ling looked up. She happened to meet Jin Jingyao's gaze. His brows and the corners of his mouth were slightly downturned. Perhaps it was an illusion, but she suddenly felt that this person looked a bit nervous. - A staff member came over and said, "Director, Mr. Mai is looking for you." Jin Jingyao got up expressionlessly to take the call. "Director Jin."Mai Hongcheng said triumphantly over the phone, "I heard you had a very intense scene with the actress today. Are you okay? Do you need me to call an ambulance for you?" Usually, it was fine, but when Producer Mai was in a good mood, his Cantonese accent would slip out. Jin Jingyao replied, "I'm not dead." Mai Hongcheng: "Wow, that means the shoot went smoothly..." "Are you very idle? Go find some work to do." Jin Jingyao hung up the phone directly. On the other end, Mai Hongcheng: "..." Jin Jingyao didn't return to the set immediately but went to the restroom and turned on the faucet. Amid the sound of rushing water, he recalled the scene that had just ended. It indeed went very smoothly, even more so than he had imagined. Maybe he had to thank Li Ling for the "lessons" she gave him on set, or perhaps he had long been certain: no one else could do it, only she was different. Otherwise, he wouldn't have come to her to make the film. Just like Zhou Jing was sick, A-Ling was his medicine. The only medicine. But he didn't plan to tell her this. Jin Jingyao looked down at his palm. She said she would teach him how to act, so let her continue teaching. In the empty set in the morning, he actually wanted to ask her if she would selflessly offer help whenever the co-actor had issues. Besides him, who else had she helped? But as long as he didn't ask, he wouldn't hear the unwanted answer. As long as he played the role of someone who needed help, she would continue to stand in front of him.