Three hours later. The assistant director barely crawled out from the pile of bodies at the theater entrance, staggered to push open the theater door, and saw a couple standing under a withered tree. They were standing very close, whispering to each other. Could it be a romance on public funds? He walked closer with deep disgust, then suddenly stopped in his tracks, recognizing the backs of the director and Li Ling. A silly smile appeared on his face, and he quietly left. The cold wind rustled, and the withered branches swayed. Li Ling was already sitting beside a tall pile of grain, holding the director's hand and recounting the past three hours. Once she started talking, she couldn't stop. "Mom left very early. Dad... Dad later got married to someone, then divorced, and lived with his next girlfriend for several years. She even brought a son with her..." "Nominally, he was my brother, but we had no blood relation. That kid was full of bad ideas, a violent maniac since childhood, liked to hit me, pinch me, pull my braids..." Li Ling made a funny face as she said this. Her tone was very light, as if what she was saying had nothing to do with her, but her body language revealed another side of her heart. She gently rubbed her arm, as if the bruises from long ago were still imprinted on her skin like tattoos. Jin Jingyao said, "Your dad didn't care?" Li Ling smiled, her tone somewhat indifferent, "He didn't care. What's a little squabble between kids? The older sister should be more generous and let the younger brother have his way. Anyway, he was busy coaxing his girlfriend at that time, of course, he treated her son like a treasure." "But later, when he was diagnosed with cancer, he had already separated from her. In the end, it was just me." Jin Jingyao said, "You don't hate him." A trace of a wistful smile appeared on Li Ling's face, "What's the point of hating? I don't hate him, nor do I forgive him. It's not that he didn't love me, he just loved himself more. In the end, how many fathers really fulfill their responsibilities as fathers?" The sky was gray and cold. The fog was heavy, and occasionally a ray of sunlight would tear through the clouds, shining on her bloodless face. "What about your brother?" Jin Jingyao asked. "We haven't been in contact for many years," Li Ling said, "He probably looks down on me too." At this point, she turned her head and smiled at the young director. It was a particularly innocent and pure smile. Even though the weather was so gloomy, the sunlight seemed to pierce through the thick clouds and pour down directly. Jin Jingyao looked down at her for a moment, then looked away. Li Ling, however, smiled and said, "He's about your age, director. If only he could be like you." Jin Jingyao: "..." He stared at her expressionlessly. Li Ling immediately said, "Sorry, director, I didn't mean to make you call me sister." She thought for a moment, then very obediently added, "If you don't mind, I can call you brother." Jin Jingyao coldly said, "Stop dreaming." Li Ling gave him that somewhat reckless smile again and really called him "Brother Jin." "Are you drunk?" He frowned, leaning slightly closer to scrutinize her face. A faint smell of alcohol wafted over, mixed with a subtle, yet very alluring scent. Like the luster of mother-of-pearl and the spiraling steam described in novels. He was surprised he only noticed it now. Indeed, if she weren't drunk, how could she really pour out her troubles to him? Li Ling recklessly said, "It's okay, director, I just drank a little bit." She made the hand gesture that Korean men love the most. Jin Jingyao: "Who told you to drink?" Li Ling looked terrified: "You can't hit him anymore, something really bad will happen!" Hehe, Xiao Liu. The young director's face showed a cold smile. He glanced at her indifferently and wrapped the disobedient actress's hand in his palm, tucking it back into the thick coat. Her hand was colder than he had imagined, probably because she had been exposed to the wind in the wilderness for too long. If she were still sober now, she might immediately try to pull her hand back. Even if she didn't struggle, she would at least say some pointless things about classes and breaks. But now, she obediently let him hold her hand, like a stress-relief toy custom-made for him. Jin Jingyao held her hand for longer than he had expected, under the pretense of taking care of a drunkard and warming her with kindness. After careful consideration, he decided to move her back indoors. Just as he let go of the drunkard's hand, she suddenly grabbed the corner of his coat again and said earnestly, "Director, you have to keep this a secret for me." Jin Jingyao paused and said expressionlessly, "You can retract it." "Oh, okay," Li Ling said obediently. She raised her hand obediently, as if an invisible transparent screen appeared in mid-air, and very rigorously held it for three seconds to retract. The person pushing the wheelchair suddenly stopped. The inertia was too great, and Li Ling almost fell forward like a soft bullet hitting the ground. "What's wrong, Director?" she said, dizzy. Jin Jingyao: "You really retracted it." Li Ling said, confused, "Huh?" She was both sleepy and drunk, increasingly losing her clarity of mind. Even if she were still sober, her brain, comparable to that of a goldfish, would have long forgotten that not long ago, she had confided her secret to a Weibo user named 9787532754335 one night. Afterward, 9787532754335 told her, "You can retract it." Not only did she not retract it, but she also sent him three roses. Now she retracted it quickly enough. Jin Jingyao bent down and stared at Li Ling's face. Her face was very pale from the wind, but for some reason, her eyes and lips were moist, faintly tinged with a hint of red. Like the shyest sunrise, the bright pink dawn piled up at the horizon. He saw the luster of mother-of-pearl and the spiraling steam again. "Forget it," he said irritably in a low voice. As if convincing himself, he shouldn't have had any expectations of her in the first place. Driving back was too troublesome, so Jin Jingyao simply carried her back to the set, into Zhou Jing's bedroom. Li Ling lay on the narrow bed without any guard, falling into a deep sleep in less than three seconds. Her sleeping posture was childish and docile, the kind that lacked a sense of security, curling herself up and instinctively shrinking into the corner of the bed. Like shattered rose petals, scattered across the dim bed. Jin Jingyao stared at her for a long time. There was no sunrise here, but there was also no pre-dawn darkness. No memories, no humiliation, and no harm. In Zhou Jing's basement, she was safe. - When Li Ling woke up, the room was empty. She stared blankly at the dirty ceiling, taking a long time to recall what had happened before: filming, kissing scenes, birthday... such a long day. She vaguely remembered that in the latter half of the night, she had talked a lot with the director. Although she had forgotten what she had said, thinking back now, she didn't seem to regret it much. She became more convinced of one thing: the director was a good person. Li Ling habitually opened Weibo, went straight to the private message page, and found that her dear fan 9787532754335 had sent her a "Have you eaten?" at one o'clock in the morning. Li Ling: ? The mental state of this brother is worrying. Despite this, she still sent him several [birthday cake][birthday cake][birthday cake] emojis. And cheerfully told him, "Today is my birthday." 9787532754335: Mm. 9787532754335: [birthday cake] In the private message page, there were also a few other fans sporadically wishing Li Ling a happy birthday, with quite enthusiastic wording, at least five exclamation marks, hearts, and roses. In comparison, the lone [birthday cake] emoji from 9787532754335 seemed particularly pitiful. Li Ling thanked the other fans one by one, then turned back to 9787532754335 and said, "You know today is my birthday, right?" 9787532754335: "Mm." "Then why do you never say happy birthday to me?" 9787532754335: "You seem to not like it." 9787532754335: "You delete the birthday wishes Weibo posts every year." Li Ling was stunned for a moment, staring at the two short lines of text on the screen, suddenly feeling a faint warmth flowing through her heart. Indeed, every year Weibo would automatically post a birthday wish for her, and she didn't like it, so she would delete it as soon as she saw it. She didn't expect 9787532754335 to be so attentive, noticing even this and always silently caring for her. Li Ling remembered that at the very beginning, she had misunderstood this person as her anti-fan for a long time. She felt deeply guilty and remorseful, and sent him three [rose][rose][rose] emojis. "I'm fine now," Li Ling said, "I'm not afraid of those four words anymore." 9787532754335: "Mm." 9787532754335: "Happy birthday." Li Ling didn't know why she suddenly smiled foolishly at her phone screen. - The crew had a day off, all thanks to Li Ling's birthday. Therefore, when she went to the cafeteria for dinner in the evening, she was warmly welcomed again. However, most people looked rather listless due to hangovers. The injured Xiao Liu sat down next to her, seriously scrolling through his phone while eating, and suddenly asked her out of the blue, "Do you think actors can develop feelings because of their roles?" Li Ling: ? She looked at him warily, "Why are you asking this all of a sudden?" Xiao Liu showed her his phone, "It's not sudden, it's been trending all day." On the Weibo trending list, a deep red tag with the word "explosive" was prominently displayed: #BigStarDevelopsFeelingsFromRole# Clicking in, it turned out to be the popular young actor Luo Mingqing, who was once again caught by paparazzi going to a hotel with someone, and it was revealed that the woman was a small supporting actress from his last movie, a sophomore at the Film Academy. If this were a movie—Li Ling should now give some physical reaction, like knocking over a cup or hugging herself, to provide the audience with ample dramatic hints. But life and drama are completely different. In reality, when she saw this name, Li Ling didn't even raise an eyebrow and continued reading. —Impressive, Luo Mingqing, you used to only have scandals with leading actresses, now you don't even spare the extras. ——Although, really, I wonder if there has ever been a time when he finished a shoot and left cleanly. ——He's an actor, not an idol. What's wrong with an adult openly having a relationship? ——Is it possible that Mr. Luo never actually dates anyone and just books rooms every time? [dog head] ——Little brother is handsome and so charming. No wonder people keep throwing themselves at him. ——Exactly, little brother is just too dedicated to his roles, too immersed in his acting. Some people should reflect on themselves, stop taking advantage of him, and stop having delusions of grandeur! The more she scrolled, the more absurd the comments became, and Li Ling gradually showed an expression of discomfort. "…Such ridiculous fans." Xiao Liu: "Right? When other male actors get caught in candid photos, they get scolded for days. But every time Luo Mingqing gets photographed, only the woman gets scolded." Another person said, "There's nothing we can do. He's so popular that his popularity gives him power." Xiao Liu eagerly looked at Li Ling again: "So, you haven't answered my question yet. Do you believe in falling in love because of acting?" Li Ling answered without hesitation: "No." Xiao Liu was surprised by her straightforward answer and asked, "Why not?" "A role is a role, and an actor is an actor. The difference between the two is clear-cut and should never be equated." She lowered her eyes, but her tone was serious. "If someone says they live their whole life in a role, then they're crazy." Xiao Liu looked at her with reverence: "You suddenly became so serious and philosophical, like my high school homeroom teacher…" Li Ling: "…" "In any case, it's a matter of principle," Teacher Li said sternly. Someone nearby listened to her words seriously and nodded in agreement: "Actors should protect their boundaries and not let their roles invade their real lives." Another person, however, looked puzzled: "But falling in love because of acting is quite common. Many people fall in love with their co-stars after filming a romance movie." Xiao Liu: "Right, isn't that what we're filming… Ow, who kicked me! That hurts!" The atmosphere at the table was harmonious, and it was impossible to tell who the culprit was. After a moment of silence, Li Ling nonchalantly said, "Who knows if they love the actor or the character." Xiao Liu: "Uh, what's the difference? It's the same face… Stop kicking me!" He angrily crawled under the table, trying to find the sneaky perpetrator. Meanwhile, the conversation at the table grew more philosophical. A voice said, "It seems that when actors are on set, it's easy to develop the illusion of being in love. The script wants them to fall in love, the director wants them to fall in love… But who can say if it's really love or just a form of hypnosis?" "Maybe they just sacrifice their bodies and emotions to complete the work. Ultimately, everything about an actor is a vessel, including their emotions, all for the sake of the role," another voice added. "That's true. I've heard many stories about couples from film sets. But there are very few who can stay together openly after the shoot." "Even if they do, most of them break up after a few months," Xiao Liu chimed in gleefully from under the table. Li Ling glanced disdainfully at the trending topic about Luo Mingqing: "So, actors using the excuse of 'being too deep into the role' to mess around in their private lives are just shameless." Xiao Liu echoed: "Exactly, shameless!" ——I envy those who get to act with little brother. ——Who is little brother's co-star in his next film? They're so lucky =v= Li Ling said, "I wonder who Luo Mingqing's next co-star will be. How unlucky."A furry head suddenly popped out from under the tablecloth, startling Xiao Liu: "Didn't you know? Luo Gou is joining the team tomorrow!""