Despite my despair, I still had to give my best at work. Although my acting was poor, I should still get points for effort, right?
The scene that was being recorded was the scholar, played by me, troubled by love. His love was inexpressible, and he could neither disregard nor handle it properly. After bidding farewell to the second female lead, he turned and drowned himself in alcohol, falling drunk in a pavilion.
After the makeup artist did some touch-ups on my face, I leisurely held onto my cup of plain water. In my mind was Gu Yiliang’s advice, and just like this, I started acting. As the scene went on, my thoughts changed from thinking about Gu Yiliang’s advice to thinking about Gu Yiliang. My thoughts drifted away, and suddenly, I heard the director shout, “Cut!”
The scene passed.
606.
Huh?
607.
Blankly, I listened as the director praised me for having a good understanding of the character, for my quick improvement, for getting my emotions on point, for surpassing my usual standards…
Flattery and praise came one after another, and the only thing the director left out was saying that I was in the running for a top acting award.
When had I ever received such treatment before?!
Looking around, I bent my head down and quietly whispered into the director’s ear. “Director Lu, did President Huang invest in the filming crew again?”
Director Lu and Old Huang had quite a good relationship. There and then, he shot me a look of disdain. “Address him properly, don’t keep calling him President Huang here and there. It’ll cause a negative impact!”
Clicking my tongue, I said, “Umm… What I’m asking is if my father has invested money into the drama. If that’s the case, the impact won’t be any better, right?”
Director Lu was probably pondering over this question himself, and so he did not argue with me. He gave me a pat on the shoulder, saying, “I’m sincerely praising you. In this scene, you acted quite well. Don’t blame me for being a busybody, but do you have someone you like? Which guniang2—
Director Lu: “… You sing quite well. It’s good that you have such a heart, and continue working hard. Go pack up, and get ready for the crew dinner.”
608.
Again, I returned to my state of hopelessness and despair. After changing out of my costume, I returned to the breakroom. Upon looking into the mirror, I suffered a shock.
Who was this person with such a bright red face?! Did he drink eight catties worth of baijiu?!
Did the makeup artist have to be so heavy-handed?!
Using a makeup remover wipe, I wiped my face, then wiped again, and wiped again—
The red colour only faded a little.
609.
I looked at the person in the mirror, whose blush spread from the tips of his ears to his neck, and slowly sat down on the sofa.
Alright, I’ll admit it, I’ll say it. It seems like I do have someone I like: Yiliang of the Gu family.
610.
Niangzi’s progress to becoming real was now at 50%.
There was also a fatherly good night kiss last night, so we’d leave it at 55%!
In a trance, I recalled that goodnight kiss that only lasted a second. Out of habit, I went onto Weibo, looking at all the fluff that had been dug out over the past few days. Every single post in my eyes changed in flavour.
— They. Were. Even. Sweeter.
Gu Yiliang’s post, his interactions with my account, his replies to fans… It was no longer simply just fluff given by the main character in the pairing to fans of that pairing, but it included the responses and benefits my crush was giving me—
Song of Waves had only started filming for a few days, and the PDF of 139 pages had another 50 pages added to it. All the fluff that the Niangzi Army treasured was actually only just the tip of the iceberg.
At the end of the day, they still underestimated the possibility of things that could happen between two people.
611.
I followed Niangzi Army’s newly presented timeline, and then recalled all the details that happened when interacting with Gu Yilang — both behind and in front of the camera, what was included in the PDF and what was not, what the fangirls imagined, real and actual incidents that happened, and even things that they did not manage to imagine… Sitting there, I smiled, I grinned, I smirked, then I could not help but laugh out loud.
As I laughed and laughed, I heard a short conversation coming from the door.
One was Gu Yiliang, sounding puzzled. “What is going on with him?”
The other was Little Chen’s worried voice. “I don’t know. He’s been like this after the scene was over.”
Gu Yiliang asked, “Which scene?”
Little Chen replied, “It’s that scene with An-jie — Gu-ge, say, could it be that he’s too deep in the act, and because of the plot of the drama, he’s developed feelings for An-jie?”
612.
Fucking hell, I developed feelings toward your Gu-ge thanks to the fanservice we’d been performing!
Before I could even object, Gu Yiliang had strode over to me, picking up my bag. “Let’s go, it’s time to eat. The rest have already departed.”
I made a sound of acknowledgement, and followed him out the door. While walking next to him, I secretly studied him.
Just now… It couldn’t be that he was jealous after hearing what Little Chen said, right?
Warmth instantly engulfed within my heart, and I added a 1% to our progress. However, looking at how his expression was just like usual, and not like someone who was jealous, in disappointment, I removed that 1%. Still, thinking about it from another angle, this was an expression of his trust towards me!
As such, smiling brightly, I added that 1% back.
613.
Perhaps my expressions alternating between joy and sorrow had been too obvious, so Gu Yiliang turned his head and asked me, “What happened?”
Finding the right tone, I joked, “Why didn’t you think that I had been too deep in my role, and started developing feelings for An-jie?”
“How could that be?” He chuckled, “For you to be able to get into the role itself is already very good.”
Me: “…”
He patted me on the head. “Mr. Patrick Star.”
Me: “…”
Niangzi’s progress of becoming real was at 0%! Goodbye!
614.
Aggrieved, I got into his car. Aggrieved, I reached the restaurant where the crew dinner was held. Aggrieved, I entered the private room.
Pretty much everyone had arrived, and they were all gathered in small groups, standing around and chatting. There were three big round tables in the center of the room, and while I was looking for an empty seat, An-jie waved at me. “Xiao-Wei, Xiao-Gu, come, sit here!”
Nodding, I was about to head towards her, but my wrist was suddenly caught.
Gu Yiliang led me to an empty seat on another side. Bewildered, I looked at him. “You…”
His expression could not be any more natural. “Huh?”
Me: “An-jie asked us to go over and sit there.”
Him: “Huh? Is that so? I didn’t hear it. Then let’s go over now.”
The words came out from his mouth, but it was clear that he had no intention to move. In our state of motionless, just like this, someone else took the seats by An-jie.
Him: “Ai, the seats are already taken. Let’s just sit here then.”
I cast him a doubtful look, while he tilted his head with an unperturbed expression. “What’s wrong?”
Forget it, I never understood what he was thinking in the first place.
I waved my hand. “It’s nothing. Who’s treating today? To host the crew dinner here, who is so generous?”
He answered, “It should be Director Lu. He said that there was a big boss who waved his hand and gave him another big sum as an investment. As the production crew is currently not in need of funding, he might as well take the money out and let everyone have some fun.”
Me: “What boss is that? He’s so charitable. Does he have too much money to burn?”
Him: “I heard Director Lu said that his surname is Wang.”
615.
Thinking about Director Lu’s indistinguishable drawl where he could not differentiate the pronunciation between Huang and Wang, I descended into a long period of silence—
I knew it! His intentions behind his compliments were not simple at all!
And he even tried to bait me into exposing myself!
And he actually succeeded!
616.
One by one, the dishes were served, and bottles and bottles of red wine were opened as well.
With resentment in my eyes, I chewed forcefully on every single bite, as though I was chomping away on Old Huang’s money. I then gulped down the red wine, as though I was replenishing all the blood Gu Yiliang had stolen from me over the past few days to make blood sausage.
The relationships among the production crew were not too bad. Many people were walking around with their glasses, toasting each other and persuading each other to drink more. Everyone drank quite a bit, and even Gu Yiliang, who never seemed physically affected while drinking, turned red from the alcohol. He turned his head, smiling once he saw me. With his flushed face, his smile nearly drained away all the blood I had just replenished.
Him: “Xiao-Wei—”
Me: “… Hmm?”
He again started smiling.
617.
What was this?!
I tugged at his sleeve. “Don’t drink anymore.”
He looked at me, blinking. As his eyelashes fluttered, he negotiated in a very kind tone, “I’m only slightly drunk, slightly drunk, I can drink a little more.”
Fine, if he uses this sort of drunken gaze to look at me again, I’ll—
Earn money to buy him alcohol.
I must endure my urge to just let him drink all he wants! Drink to his heart’s content!
Just as I wanted to persuade him a little bit more, an eighth-rate, unpopular actor who had just entered the production crew came over with his glass.
618.
The eighth-rate actor had his eyes curved adorably in a smile. Raising his glass at me, he asked, “Yan-ge, which drama do you plan on accepting next?”
I thought about it, then replied, “I haven’t planned to take up any yet. Why?”
The eyes of the eighth-rate actor were very bright, and he looked very guileless. “No no, I just feel that Yan-ge is really just too lucky, to have such a smooth-sailing path ever since you debuted. So, I want to gain some experience from—”
This man was already an old, experienced fox. Why was he still putting on a show and trying to lure me into his trap? Didn’t he just think that I had a sugar daddy, and so he decided to come and throw some subtle jabs at me? At the same time, he was also hinting for me to pull some strings for him, to connect him to some big backer.
I laughed. “Fate is determined by the heavens, while luck is determined by oneself, and happiness needs to be fought for. I’ll recommend that you go to Nanpu Temple, light some joss sticks and make some prayers there. It’s said that your prayers there will often come true.”
The eighth-rate actor: “… Is that so? Haha, I’ll definitely go. Then, here, I’ll raise another glass to you again!”
I clinked my glass with his. Out of nowhere, expressionless, Gu Yiliang spoke up. “How about sitting down and joining us.”
619.
I had no clue as to what was going on right now, and could only watch as the eighth-rate actor delightedly sat down in the empty seat next to Gu Yiliang. He even smiled adorably, “Thank you, senior!”
No, wait, we both debuted at the same time, but I’m Yan-ge, and he’s “senior”?
And Gu Yiliang even dared to nod to acknowledge the address?
Hello? Your official fanservice partner is still sitting here, and you’re already eagerly accepting a concubine? You are sure broad-minded, aren’t you?
Conducting a face-to-face NTR is very fun, huh? The feeling of being cuckolded was taking over me.
With a feeling that could not be put into words, I watched as the eighth-rate actor clinked glasses with Gu Yiliang, and felt that I was being stamped all over with the label of being cuckolded.
620.
Gu Yiliang’s hand that was raising his glass paused. “Did no one ever tell you that you have to place your glass lower when clinking glasses with your seniors?”
The eighth-rate actor froze. “Huh?”
Gu Yiliang: “Have some food.”
“Oh.” The eighth-rate actor quickly put down his glass. Reaching out with his chopsticks, he hesitated over which dish to pick from.
The scene made me a little confused. Did one still need to hesitate over something like this?
Gu Yiliang: “Did no one ever tell you that you shouldn’t swing your chopsticks back and forth over the dishes when taking food?”
The eighth-rate actor stuck his tongue out, swifting picking up some celery and placing it in Gu Yiliang’s bowl. He smiled falteringly, and said, “I don’t know which dish senior prefers…”
Amused, I raised a brow. What a coincidence. Celery was the thing he disliked the most.
Gu Yiliang: “Did no one ever tell you that when giving food to others, you should use serving chopsticks?”
Stiffly, the eighth-rate actor stuck his tongue out again. “… Ah, sorry, I didn’t notice it.”
He stuck his chopsticks into his rice, reaching out for the serving chopsticks on the turntable.
I could no longer bear to watch it any longer.
621.
Gu Yiliang took the chopsticks out of his rice, slapping them onto the table. “Did no one ever tell you that when you’re eating, you cannot stick your chopsticks in your rice?”
The eighth-rate actor: “…”
Gu Yiliang: “If you don’t know what manners to have while eating, then don’t eat outside. Go back home and learn them well before coming out.”
Wow, just look at his tone. This was entirely an attitude of “If it doesn’t belong to you, don’t even try”!
I watched as the eighth-rate actor stood up stiffly and made his farewells, then turned my eyes back onto Gu Yiliang. “You…”
Within a second, he returned to his drunken, cutely whiny self. “I’m only slightly drunk, slightly drunk, I can drink a little more.”
Me: “…”
I unlocked my phone, summoning Little Chen to immediately look for “A Little More” tea3.
I’ll definitely take good care of him!
622.
Biting on the straw of the milk tea, Gu Yiliang looked at me with half-lidded eyes.
I was about to melt from his gaze. Then, recalling his recent overbearing, protective attitude, I softly asked, “Just now, why did you embarrass him so much? Beating around the bush to say that he was impolite and rude, aren’t you afraid of him sending trolls to attack you?”
Him: “Who?”
Me: “… That eighth-rate actor.”
Him: “Eighth-rate actor?”
Me: “… Mn.”
Him: “He’s five ranks lower than a third-rate actor?”
Me: “…”
Him: “And he’s six ranks lower than a second-rate actor?”
Me: “…”
Me: “You’re not allowed to drink any more alcohol.”