Since the last time Xiao Liu pushed open a door he shouldn't have in the bathroom, his sentence had been extended by another month. Why should the cousin of the great Director Jin endure such grievances? Unable to bear it any longer, he secretly called his parents at night to complain, only to be questioned for three hours about "why he was so disobedient and made his cousin unhappy again." Both his family and work environments were suffocating, so Xiao Liu decided to sneak to the set while his cousin was filming to slack off. But for some reason, even though he actively joined conversations and tried to blend in with others, they kept staring at him with strange looks. Could it be that they also noticed he was slacking off? Feeling guilty, Xiao Liu left. The remaining group of mundane people continued to stare at the monitor, engrossed in their work. The assistant director said, "So it turns out what they said was true. Some people can even make fighting look like XX." The script coordinator replied, "You don't understand. Some people can even make breathing look like XX." "We used to be such a serious crew, and now we have to use censored words in our conversations. Sigh." "..." "To be honest, I never expected the director to shoot this well," the assistant director suddenly said. "I thought this film was definitely going to flop." Others looked at him in surprise, "Huh? Didn't you say the script was super touching and made you cry several times?" The assistant director replied meaningfully, "Otherwise, how do you think I became the assistant director?" "... The workplace is really dark." The assistant director coughed twice, his tone somewhat weary, "Actually, my first reaction after reading the script was that the director is still too young and doesn't understand emotions." "Why do you say that? Doesn't Zhou Jing love A-Ling very much?" someone else asked, puzzled. "He does love her, but can you tell if he loves a person or a symbol?" "What he wrote is just a young person's imagination of love. The director's script only writes about himself, never about others, and he can't write it." The script coordinator suddenly understood, "Now that you mention it, I get it. I also felt that some parts of the script were strange. It turns out the problem lies with the female lead." "A-Ling has always been too passive. Compared to Zhou Jing, she is more like an empty vessel. Her existence is just to carry Zhou Jing's pathological emotions." The assistant director stared at the monitor, "But now the vessel has been given emotions. She is no longer a vessel; she has come to life." "And so has this play." "That's right. I seem to see how Zhou Jing gradually fell in love with A-Ling." "The director does have an eye for talent," the script coordinator sighed. "I originally thought he chose an unknown actress because she was more obedient and easier to control. I didn't expect Li Ling to be so suitable for this role. Sometimes I even feel like it was written for her..." Someone else asked curiously, "She's really good, and her acting is great. Has she really only acted in bad films before?" "Yes, I checked her background. She doesn't have any notable works, just a bunch of web films." "That's really a pity," the assistant director said. "But once this film is released, her future will be limitless." "Oh, stop it. I'm getting emotional again," the script coordinator suddenly said. Others looked at her strangely, "You can get emotional over this too?" "Hehe, hehe," she clutched her chest, her eyes shining, "Didn't rival fans always say the director couldn't shoot people, especially women? This will show them how the director's actresses can be so..." The dignified script coordinator thought for a long time but couldn't come up with a suitable word to describe it, so she silently swallowed. Maybe this is what it means to regret not having enough words when you need them. "Wait a minute," the assistant director said suspiciously, "Since when does the director have a rival?" The script coordinator rolled his eyes. "It's that Luo Mingqing." "Oh, him." The assistant director also rolled his eyes. "As if he deserves it." - After crying for a long time, she felt a bit tired. Li Ling secretly opened her eyes a sliver, planning to ask someone for a tissue. A whole box of tissues was immediately thrown into her arms with perfect accuracy. The aim was so good that Director Jin must often practice air basketball in his free time. As Li Ling thought this to herself, she said, "Thank you, Director," and tilted her face up, covering her swollen eyes with a tissue. Jin Jingyao stood up and turned off another light. The bathroom became even dimmer. Li Ling came back to her senses and realized how quiet it had become around her. The cameras had stopped, the other staff had left, and the waterwheel outside the window was gone. The scene was over, and the remaining water trickled down the drain, making a soft dripping sound. The mist on the glass had turned to frost, and the only remaining dim nightlight looked like a hazy moon embedded in the wall. It was actually a very safe environment. The only thing that didn't feel safe was the young man still in the room. He was half-leaning against the wall, his face hidden in the darkness, with colorful, vintage-style floral tiles behind him. His breathing was heavy, his expression unclear, and it was unknown how long he had been watching her. "Done crying?" he asked. Despite her red eyes, Li Ling stubbornly lifted her head and said nasally, "Well, Director, I was still waiting for you to call 'cut.'" "I called it a long time ago." Li Ling played dumb. "Oh, I didn't hear it." Jin Jingyao, in a very flat tone, expressed pure confusion. "Is your character missing a leg or just doesn't have ears?" Li Ling: "." She sniffed harder. Actually, it was quite good. Most people, after performing such an intense crying scene, would find it hard to come out of the emotion immediately. But now, Li Ling felt she had no emotion left at all. She felt very, very calm. Thank you, Director Jin. She stood up resolutely, and Jin Jingyao asked from behind, "What are you doing?" Li Ling said, "I'm going to check the monitor." In the previous scene, Li Ling wasn't quite sure what had happened. She had been crying too earnestly, not entirely acting. She vaguely remembered that Jin Jingyao seemed to have helped wipe her tears, and his actions were very gentle. 'Gentle.' Wait a minute. Li Ling was startled by her own thoughts. How could she use the word 'gentle' to describe Jin Jingyao? Gentle was impossible. Director Jin could never be gentle in his lifetime. However, she was quite confident that she had performed very well just now. She wondered if Director Jin could keep up with her performance. If he couldn't, that would be interesting. Her competitive spirit rose again, and Li Ling said in a very sweet tone, "I want to see how the director helped me wipe my tears just now." The person opposite her was silent for a moment, then suddenly said in a somewhat vague tone, "No need to look." Li Ling was taken aback. "Why?" "Deleted," Jin Jingyao said coldly. "I don't like actors improvising." Li Ling: "..." Fine. It's confirmed. He's embarrassed and angry. This guy must have messed up his performance and couldn't keep up with her, so he was in a hurry to destroy the evidence. Despite thinking this, she was still a bit disappointed. Li Ling let out an "oh," walked to the sink, and washed her face clean. In the foggy mirror, Jin Jingyao was still standing behind her, watching her with an expressionless face.The floral-patterned tiles behind him were so old, they seemed like a layer of peeling oil paint, damp and swaying. In fact, Li Ling still really wanted to know what kind of look Zhou Jing had in his eyes when A Ling was crying during that scene just now. Unfortunately, the answer had already been erased, and she would never know. Li Ling blatantly drew a cross on Jin Jingyao's face in the mirror, then slowly apologized to him, "Sorry, Director, I'll be more careful in the future and won't make random changes again." She thought her words were perfunctory and insincere, not realizing how pitiful she looked to others at that moment. Although she was no longer crying, her eyes and lips were very red, and her expression was blank and hollow, as if she had exhausted herself and overdrawn all her emotions. Why draw randomly on the mirror? Was she waiting for someone to come and hug her? Jin Jingyao leaned half against the wall, staring at Li Ling. The dim light cast a line of demarcation between light and dark on his face. He lowered his eyes and suddenly asked in a low voice, "Why were you crying just now?" Li Ling hesitated for a moment, then revealed a tear-streaked smile. In a pitiful tone, she said, "As for why I was crying just now, actually, I don't know either, but that's just how it is. So, like the director, I was very shocked..." Jin Jingyao: "." "Just go." He opened the bathroom door. - Jin Jingyao returned backstage and was immediately welcomed by the other main creators. They used all sorts of flowery language to praise the scene just now, secretly hoping the director would send a few big red envelopes in the work group. "Where's Teacher Li? Why didn't she come along?" someone suddenly asked. Another person said understandingly, "She must be tired." "Oh, my goddess." Jin Jingyao glanced at the person, "That's your goddess?" "Yes, how can a goddess look so beautiful when she cries? Is she a fairy..." Another person laughed foolishly, "Hehehe, the director is also good at acting. Love her, eat her tears, Zhou Jing, you really..." The assistant director nervously covered the person's mouth, but the indecent words had already been spoken. The atmosphere became a bit awkward for a moment, only Jin Jingyao remained calm as he walked to the monitor and picked up a bottle of water from the table. His expression was calm, but the way he twisted the bottle cap was a bit too forceful, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. The assistant director quietly walked over and whispered, "Director, don't be angry." Jin Jingyao looked at him somewhat puzzled. The other person asked sneakily, "You don't plan to cut the last take we shot, do you?" The mineral water bottle in Jin Jingyao's hand suddenly made a "creak" sound, as if someone had squeezed it hard. "Was the set recording still on?" he asked. "The sound engineer left a long time ago?" The assistant director looked at him confused, "No, Director, although Li Ling didn't follow the script in the last take, her improvisation was really good..." Jin Jingyao said, "I'll take another look." He sat down in front of the monitor. The assistant director watched him nervously, afraid that he would delete the take if he got upset. Fortunately, the director didn't seem to have such intentions. For some reason, though, his usually high work efficiency was particularly slow today. At first, the other main creators stayed by his side out of dedication, but later they all left yawning. At night, only Jin Jingyao was left working alone. He opened his private messages on Weibo. 9787532754335 said to Li Ling, "Good evening."He typed "How was the shoot today" in the chat box, then deleted it word by word, changing it to "How was the filming today." He stared at these words for a while, and after some deep thought, he still didn't click send. 9787532754335: "How's the weather today?" Half an hour later, Li Ling replied: "Not great." She sent a photo she had casually taken of the sky outside. A gloomy sky, with thick clouds, like someone with red-rimmed eyes unhappily smearing the mirror. Jin Jingyao opened the photo, zoomed in and zoomed in again, and found that the reflection in the window glass showed half of Li Ling's face. What a lousy phone, the resolution is so low. Thinking this, he saw Li Ling say again: "Show me yours." Jin Jingyao: "..." He glanced at the sky outside. No matter how many times he looked, it wasn't much different from Li Ling's photo. He opened WeChat and told a friend: "Take a picture of the starry sky." The other party, quite indignant, said: "It's true I'm a PhD in astronomy, but I don't tell fortunes, nor do I help people with their love lives." Jin Jingyao initiated a transfer. The other party: 1 Moments later, Jin Jingyao sent a beautiful and magnificent photo of the Milky Way to Li Ling. Li Ling was very touched and said that next time he didn't need to use Baidu. They chatted sporadically for a while, then Li Ling suddenly said: "I cried while filming today." Jin Jingyao looked at the screen expressionlessly, his eyebrows slightly raised. 9787532754335: "Why did you cry?" Li Ling: "Suddenly remembered a sad past." Li Ling: "Forget it, I won't say it." 'You better not say a single word.' Jin Jingyao typed word by word in the chat box, then deleted it again. 9787532754335: "If you want to talk, just talk." 9787532754335: "You can retract it." Li Ling was silent for a moment, then sent a message that Jin Jingyao couldn't quite understand. She said: "You actually know how to retract [thumbs up]" Jin Jingyao stared at the screen, feeling slightly puzzled. Is retracting such an amazing feature? Why would she think he didn't know about it? But her thoughts were always so erratic, often saying things he couldn't understand. He calmly sent her a question mark. Li Ling: "Hahahahahaha" Li Ling: "Actually, I'm still a bit afraid of water." The abruptness of these two sentences was very much in Li Ling's usual style. Jin Jingyao looked at the screen, patiently waiting. After a while, a long voice message came through. Li Ling and 9787532754335 had known each other for a long time, and this was the first time she was willing to let him hear her voice. 9787532754335 should be very happy. Jin Jingyao was not very happy. He unhappily opened the long voice message. Li Ling said: "The first time I filmed a water scene, I actually couldn't swim. I originally planned to learn in advance, but the director wouldn't let me. He said he wanted me to not know how. However, he said there would be lifeguards on set, smiling and assuring me it was safe, no problem, just jump." She must have been very close to the receiver. He could hear her breathing, like a faint breeze flowing through his fingers. On the phone, her voice wasn't as clear as usual, even a bit tight, like cold ripples swaying under the moonlight. He looked up at the window; it was clearly a moonless night. The second voice message came through. Actually, Jin Jingyao could already vaguely guess what happened next. It's not uncommon for directors to deceive actors on set. To keep the filming going, they can go to any lengths. "I just jumped in. I didn't know the water was so cold, I couldn't breathe at all, and I almost drowned. After getting ashore, I thought it was over, but the director said to do it again, and they pushed me back in." "In the sea, I looked everywhere for the lifeguard, staring into his eyes, desperately signaling to him. But from start to finish, he never responded to me. Until the scene was over, he told me that unless the director nodded, he wouldn't come over." "Later, I found out that the director did this to see me cry out of fear. But I didn't cry. In the end, he had no choice but to end it. Haha, how about that, am I impressive or what?" Jin Jingyao listened while watching Li Ling on the monitor. She lay in the bathtub, under overexposed lights, the image had a kind of wet, gritty texture. She cried so sorrowfully, yet looked so beautiful. Her face was like a book that couldn't be read. She had gone through so much to get to this shot. His fingers gently brushed the screen. After a while, the private message page remained unchanged. 9787532754335 said: "Why not retract it?" Li Ling: "Forget it. I won't retract it." "You'll keep it a secret for me, right?" Jin Jingyao almost sent a question mark. He restrained himself. 9787532754335: "Mm." Li Ling: "[Rose][Rose][Rose]" He suddenly felt unhappy, perhaps because the cyber roses were too ugly and didn't match his aesthetic. He closed his phone expressionlessly. - The next morning, the assistant director learned that the director had worked overtime through the night to complete a rough cut of the footage. Li Ling's impromptu performance was almost entirely preserved, uncut. And this difficult bathroom scene had only one small segment left to shoot. After A-Ling finished her bath, Zhou Jing brought her clean clothes. He pulled the shower curtain and waited outside. He waited for a long time without hearing any sound. He reopened the curtain and found A-Ling still in her original position, slumped in the bathtub, looking up at him. Their eyes met. She said, "Aren't you going to help me?" Zhou Jing shook his head and placed the folded clothes in her hand. A-Ling suddenly let out a cold laugh and threw them in his face. "You're useless," she said. Her pale fingers fumbled for the first metal button on her camisole. "Isn't this what you want?" A-Ling's tone grew more contemptuous, "If you want it, just say so, I'll give it to you." The clothes were too wet to unbutton easily. She angrily tried to rip the button off. Zhou Jing leaned down, silently fastening the button she had messed up. Then, he picked up a jacket, gently covered her with it, and carried her out of the bathroom. A-Ling lay in his arms, her head resting against him, her breathing soft, almost as intimate as a lover. She whispered, "So you also look down on a crippled body." Zhou Jing's steps halted. He looked down at her, a slight anger flashing in his eyes, but he hid it well. He still gently placed her back in the wheelchair. Li Ling felt that Jin Jingyao's acting was getting better and better. A few days ago, he might have felt uncomfortable with such physical contact. But now everything felt so natural. He knelt on the ground, looking up at her from below. It should have been a submissive posture, but his gaze was too gloomy, too oppressive, like an inescapable sea, exuding a suffocating, deep blue madness. She suddenly found it difficult to distinguish whether it was Zhou Jing or Jin Jingyao looking at her at that moment. Jin Jingyao silently held her leg and kissed the scar on her mutilated calf. His warm lips pressed against the ugly, uneven skin. The heat was heart-wrenching. Li Ling was stunned for a moment, then placed her other leg on his shoulder and gently kicked down. She smiled and said, "You are truly disgusting.""