Chapter 36 - Chapter 36

The agent learned from the assistant that in the afternoon, Luo Mingqing was watching the director shoot a scene on set when his face suddenly changed dramatically, and he stormed out. "I don't know what happened, but Mr. Luo looked like he was about to kill someone. He was extremely, extremely, extremely angry," the assistant said, emphasizing the word "extremely" three times. The agent also felt like killing someone. It was just a film shoot, why did he have to go crazy every few days? There was no one in his room, his phone was turned off, and the agent almost turned the entire set upside down. He was about to lose his mind. Suddenly, he thought of one last place. When he found him, Luo Mingqing was sitting in his car, holding a utility knife against his arm. The agent was scared out of his wits. "Mingqing, what are you doing?" Luo Mingqing lowered his head and smiled peacefully. "If I get hurt, she will feel sorry for me, right?" The agent was horrified, his scalp tingling. "Mingqing, let's talk this out. Are you under too much pressure from filming lately? Put the knife down... don't be impulsive. You're an actor, you have many fans who love you..." Luo Mingqing was unmoved by these words. The knife had already pierced his skin, creating a thin line of blood. He didn't feel any pain at all; instead, he laughed even more excitedly. The agent was about to go crazy. He thought of that "she" and suddenly had a brainwave. "If you want to please a girl, you can't use self-harm as a method!" Luo Mingqing stared at him, his smile slowly disappearing, and said rather sinisterly, "Then what method should I use?" The agent secretly breathed a sigh of relief, glad he had finally found the right direction. But he quickly felt a tingling sensation on his scalp. The gaze opposite him was so fervent that if he couldn't come up with a solution today, he might be dragged down with him. But it would be such an unjust death. The young master changes girlfriends every week, and now he has to teach him how to please a girl? This is a joke. The agent was extremely embarrassed and racked his brains. "Gifts? Money? Resources?" Luo Mingqing's face darkened, and he gripped the utility knife tighter. "She's not that kind of person." The agent said, "It's okay, it's okay, we'll try something else... one thing at a time... Mingqing, how about this, you put the knife down first, and I'll make an Excel sheet for you..." - The next day, Li Ling found a bouquet of fresh flowers and a very exquisite breakfast at her door. It was hard to evaluate. Even her son's kindergarten classmates wouldn't be this tacky. She looked at the tightly closed door opposite and cunningly asked Xiao Liu on WeChat how her day was going. Xiao Liu, without any guile, said, "What do you think? I got up before dawn to scrub toilets, I'm exhausted. Oh, and I ran into that dog Luo in the cafeteria, what bad luck." Li Ling agreed, "Indeed, bad luck." She looked around, and in a flash, placed the breakfast at the director's door. Then, she quietly left and went for a run. This was Li Ling's first morning run since her leg injury had healed, and she felt it was very significant, so she posted a tweet about it. 9787532754335 immediately liked it and commented shortly after, "Sister, be careful while running [triangle turning]." Li Ling was charmed to death again. She really liked her little fan. She decided to send him a gift. The little guy loved drawing so much, how about a sketchbook? But she wasn't very knowledgeable about it, so she decided to consult an art teacher first. After her morning run, Li Ling ran into Jin Jingyao at the door. He expressionlessly threw the breakfast bag into the trash can. Heh, well thrown. "Good morning, Director," Li Ling said cheerfully to him. The other party nodded, his tone both cold and reserved, "Thank you for your hard work." Li Ling, looking puzzled, said, "Running isn't hard... huh?" Oh no. She glanced at the trash can again, wondering if he had misunderstood something. Director Jin frowned slightly, seemingly dissatisfied with her response. Li Ling forced a couple of awkward laughs and asked somewhat guiltily, "Director, um, have you had breakfast?" Jin Jingyao's expression softened a bit, but he still said reservedly, "Next time, don't add so much sugar to the soy milk." Li Ling: "..." This is bad. If she told him now, 'Okay, I'll pass that on to Luo Mingqing,' she wondered if she would be murdered on the spot. Forget it, better not say anything. Living in this world, sometimes you need a few well-intentioned lies. When they arrived on set, the absurdity continued. Luo Mingqing, for once, was not late. Not only that, but he was already made up. They continued filming a scene that they had never been able to get right before. They thought it would be another long day, but who knew it would only take two takes. Li Ling couldn't believe her eyes, "Did the sun rise in the west?" The assistant director said excitedly, "Looks like he was really stimulated yesterday." "Just one night, and he improved so much?" Xiao Liu watched with great interest, "He imitates so well, it's a shame he's not on 'Hundred Changes Big Star Show.'" Li Ling looked at him, bewildered. "Didn't you notice?" Xiao Liu said, "He's imitating you." Li Ling: "..." No wonder. Luo Mingqing's acting skills might not be great, but his ability to mimic was top-notch, almost to the point of exact replication. Not just the actions, expressions, and tone, even the subtle facial expressions were identical. It was downright creepy. Sometimes actors have unconscious little habits when they act, which they might not even be aware of, but familiar audiences can sense it. For example, Li Ling's smile was very unique. She had slightly buck teeth, not usually noticeable, but when she was genuinely happy, her lips would purse slightly, and her eyes would squint a bit, showing a unique, unspoken charm. And now, the identical smile, like a human skin mask, was welded onto Luo Mingqing's face. Even the curve of the upturned corners of his mouth was exactly the same, as if measured with a ruler. The assistant director marveled, "How can he imitate so well? How many times did he watch it?" Xiao Liu said, "Feels like he's playing some new kind of game. Makes me want to punch him." Li Ling also felt weird. But the take was good, and Luo Mingqing, far from being ashamed, even came over to thank her, "Teacher Li, you acted so well before. I watched it all night yesterday." He no longer called her "sister," but formally addressed her as "Teacher Li," just like everyone else, which felt a bit uncomfortable. Li Ling had no choice but to pretend to be polite. Unexpectedly, he immediately took advantage of the situation, first saying, "Why don't we add each other on WeChat?" and then, "It seems we haven't followed each other on Weibo yet." Li Ling responded instantly, "I don't have a phone." Luo Mingqing stared at her, a flash of cold and displeased emotion in his eyes. In the past, he would have been angry by now. But now, he forcibly held back his temper, smiling somewhat naively, "Is that so? How about I give you one? What brand do you like?" Li Ling: "..." Hold on, Li Ling, don't bend for a phone! But if it were cash, she might waver. Luo Mingqing turned on the front camera: "Shall we take a selfie?" "For what?" "I want to post it on Weibo," he said more gently. Li Ling: "..." He really wants her dead. Fortunately, at that moment, the assistant director came over to call the actors to standby. Luo Mingqing reluctantly left, looking back three times with every step. Li Ling breathed a sigh of relief and mouthed "thank you" to the assistant director. Xiao Liu came over and said, "He's so disgusting. What's gotten into him today?" "I don't know either," she said, still shaken. Xiao Liu looked disdainful: "Is a phone such a big deal? I'll buy a whole factory and give it to you." Li Ling: ? A 1.65-meter-tall domineering CEO, really adorable. She gave Xiao Liu a thumbs up: "Much respect, much respect." After hesitating for a moment, she quietly told him about the breakfast incident. Xiao Liu looked horrified: "Damn, you didn't eat it, did you? What if it's poisoned?" Li Ling glanced guiltily at Director Jin, who was working energetically in front of the camera, and said, "It should... be fine." "What does that mean?" Xiao Liu was even more confused. "Could he be repenting? Trying to apologize to you?" "Impossible," Li Ling said. Xiao Liu: "I think so too." Li Ling pondered for a moment: "Maybe he just wants to act nonchalant, make me guess his intentions, and exhaust me mentally. When I can't take it anymore and confront him, he'll turn the tables on me." Xiao Liu looked at her with newfound respect: "You're absolutely right." After a pause, he hesitantly said, "Li Ling, can I hug you?" Li Ling found it a bit strange: "Why?" "I just feel that having so much experience in these matters isn't a good thing," he whispered. For some reason, this sentence was even more touching than buying a whole factory. Li Ling was deeply moved and bent down to give Xiao Liu a light hug. Then, she felt a chill at the back of her neck. It was as if the doors and windows of the set had suddenly opened, letting in a bone-chilling wind. Following some instinct, she looked up. On the set, two tall young men were staring at her expressionlessly. The filming was still ongoing, the camera hadn't stopped, but time seemed to freeze because of her. They simultaneously broke character, staring dully and strangely at the actress outside the camera. The sense of oppression filled the air. Xiao Liu shivered: "Is it just me, or do they look like they want to kill me?" Li Ling snapped out of it, thinking she might be overthinking. "You're overthinking, dear. They might just be too deep into their roles." She patted his head. Xiao Liu got even more scared, trembling as he said, "Sis, can you stop patting me? My head's about to fall off." - The next morning, Li Ling found breakfast and fresh flowers at her door again. Learning from past experience, she planned to throw them away directly. But as she passed the director's room, the door opened by itself. Jin Jingyao took the breakfast bag from her hand and politely said, "Thank you." Li Ling: "..." She really didn't intend to give it to him. However, some people are reserved in words but incredibly strong. Clearly capable of snatching it, yet still saying thank you—what a good person. Li Ling looked at him, wanting to say something but stopping herself, feeling like her nose was growing longer. "Anything else?" Jin Jingyao asked. She mustered up her courage: "Director, I..." He was silent for a moment, then said, "Your pajamas are very cute." With a "bang," the door closed. Li Ling: ??? Her heart was racing a bit. She might have blushed for 0.1 seconds. But the door really closed just in time. A cold gust of wind swept across Li Ling's face, as if the air had slapped her, and she immediately sobered up, her few lingering fantasies dissipating like smoke. Then, she seemed to understand something and silently lowered her head. Sure enough, her collar was not turned up properly, and her sleeves were a mess. She opened the front camera again. What an abstract hairstyle. Damn it, what's cute about this? Where's the cuteness? They were definitely mocking her. Ha. - Back on set, Li Ling became Yang Yuanyuan No. 2 again. She was acting opposite Jin Jingyao, and Luo Mingqing, who had previously been on edge, was now watching intently. In the scene, Li Ling's character transformed from Zhou Jing's lover to his enemy. She faced Zhou Jing's hatred head-on. Sharper than a bayonet, more intense than blood. He hated her so much. When love and hate reach their extremes, they lose their meaning, leaving only the emotions themselves. He wanted to destroy her with his anger, jealousy, and murderous intent. Malice was fire, ash, poison, and appetite. He hated her so much it was as if he wanted to consume her. Off-screen, Luo Mingqing stared at her intently. He was analyzing her, learning from her, spying on her. He should have disliked her, but he was never a genius actor and couldn't hide the attachment and admiration in his eyes. Her every move, every smile, was his vitality and nourishment. He also wanted to consume her. Li Ling was very tired. The pressure on set was too intense, and after acting, she would fall into a state of withdrawal, wanting to be alone. Before leaving, Jin Jingyao looked at her with dissatisfaction: "Why is the soy milk still so sweet?" Li Ling: ? She hadn't walked far when Luo Mingqing stopped her again. Without thinking, she snapped at him, "Don't add sugar to the soy milk anymore.""