CHAPTER 14

The next day, Xiang Xiaoyuan finally met the male actor who would be playing her love interest.

Strictly speaking, he couldn't be called an actor, Wang Ji's actual profession was modeling, and this was his first film and television project. Despite his young age, he was quite well-known, having walked the runways both domestically and internationally. All of this was information Lu Jingnian had shared with her on the day they took the promotional photos.

After the makeup artist finished with him, as soon as he stepped out, the eyes of most women on set couldn't help but drift towards him involuntarily.

He was wearing a runway outfit, with a shirt that was a normal length at the back but cropped at the front, revealing his lean, toned abs, paired with a pair of excellently tailored trousers. This somewhat stylish outfit highlighted all his advantages: his athletic, tight physique, perfectly proportioned long legs, and a slender yet masculine aura.

Despite being around the same age as Fang Hao, the vibe he brought was entirely different. Fang Hao exuded a youthful, sunny brotherly vibe, while he belonged to the more masculine, hormone-driven type.

Everyone has an appreciation for beauty.

Xiang Xiaoyuan admitted that he was indeed eye-catching.

"Wow, he's a real catch!" Cai Juan murmured quietly, unconsciously swallowing hard.

Xiang Xiaoyuan shot him a glance. "...Wipe your drool."

Good looks aside, his attitude towards filming was indeed a bit lacking. Hopefully, his skills matched his attitude.

Under the camera, he walked gracefully and lightly, his face expressionless but exuding a strong presence. When he struck a pose, he tilted his chin slightly toward the audience, showcasing his youthful arrogance, and the cheers from the audience were genuinely enthusiastic.

In the storyline, Xiang Xiaoyuan's character, a young lady, was supposed to fall in love at first sight with him.

When the two stood together, even Sun Xin, who had filmed numerous handsome men and beautiful women, couldn't help but praise them, inwardly marveling that this pair had the highest visual appeal he had ever worked with.

However, in a romantic drama, matching looks aren't the most important thing, what truly matters is whether there's chemistry.

As expected, Sun Xin soon encountered a headache.

This Wang Ji was like a 360-degree wooden post with no blind spots. He nailed the runway walk perfectly, but when it came to acting opposite Xiang Xiaoyuan, it was a disaster.

While he had remembered his lines, which weren't numerous to begin with since his character was an introverted model, being introverted shouldn't equate to acting like a robot.

Sun Xin helplessly began teaching acting again, but the contrast in attitude between Wang Ji and Fang Hao was like night and day. While Fang Hao would feel ashamed, apologize, reflect, and practice repeatedly, Wang Ji was completely unmoved, performing the same way he had the first time, no matter what methods Sun Xin tried to explain to him.

Sun Xin was so frustrated that he swore under his breath, "TM, can you even act? If you can't—" [TM is an abbreviation for a profanity that stands for "the f*ck" in English.]

Before the word "get lost" could come out, the assistant director grabbed him, preempting, "Director Sun, calm down, calm down!" He signaled to her discreetly.

Sun Xin furrowed his brow, his stubble shaking with anger, and the assistant director turned him around, announcing to the crew, "Take a break," while leaning in to whisper, "...is...the person..."

Xiang Xiaoyuan watched the backs of the two directors, wondering who they were referring to. She couldn't quite make out the words.

She lifted her eyes to look at Wang Ji, who just shrugged, looking indifferent, and went off to rest.

The script wrote: "Upon seeing him, her eyes lit up, unable to look away. She knew it wasn't right but felt confused about what exactly attracted her to him, making her want to steal another glance."

How was she supposed to act that out?

Xiang Xiaoyuan didn't even want to look at him.

However, she couldn't be as indifferent as him, she needed to learn from Lu Jingnian and have patience.

Xiang Xiaoyuan walked over to him and said, "Shall we rehearse a bit?"

Wang Ji opened his eyes, sizing her up with a dismissive glance, and replied, "No need."

Xiang Xiaoyuan looked at him puzzled. What did this guy have to be proud of?

"You're not bad-looking, and I'll act well." Wang Ji suddenly smiled at her.

Xiang Xiaoyuan's expression immediately cooled slightly. She looked at him, didn't say anything, and just walked away.

When Sun Xin returned, he seemed much calmer. He no longer focused on coaching Wang Ji. Instead, he started filming directly. However, this time, he didn't address Wang Ji but began to focus on Xiang Xiaoyuan, saying, "Xiaoyuan, your gaze isn't right."

"Xiaoyuan, your emotions aren't strong enough."

"Xiaoyuan, that expression isn't good."

.......

Xiang Xiaoyuan felt a growing fire of frustration inside her. It was really difficult to act with someone who seemed like a robot, all her reactions went unreciprocated, and the way he looked at her felt completely devoid of interest—it was more like choosing pork at a market, which made her very uncomfortable.

Sun Xin called for a stop, looking tense and helpless. He let out a breath and walked toward Xiang Xiaoyuan.

Behind him, Wang Ji was smiling and actually left the set to take a break.

Cai Juan glared at him, thinking, 'Tsk, a handsome guy turned into a lump of mud—what a poor judgment!'

Xiang Xiaoyuan gritted her teeth and humbly said, "Director, I'll think about it some more."

"Okay, well, also..." Sun Xin's furrowed brow could crush a fly. "You also..." He turned to look for Wang Ji, only to realize he had already left, leaving him momentarily speechless.

Forget it. He shook his head and instructed the crew to film another scene.

"Director Sun, if you're not shooting my scenes, I'll take my leave." Wang Ji said, without waiting for the director's consent, smiling at Xiang Xiaoyuan, "Goodbye." And he walked out of the set just like that.

Xiang Xiaoyuan noticed that Sun Xin was squeezing the script so hard that it was becoming crumpled.

The set fell silent.

"I have no idea who that guy is..." Lu Jingnian leaned in during makeup, whispering gossip to Xiang Xiaoyuan, "I could look into it."

Xiang Xiaoyuan forced a smile at her.

Initially, she had some resentment towards Sun Xin, a director who couldn't even handle actors, bullying the weak and fearing the strong—what kind of future could he have?

Seeing him looking so dejected and helpless, she felt a bit of sympathy for him, he had bowed to the capital, and she, too, had to shoot a script she didn't like.

What good would it do to find out about Wang Ji's background background? What could she do? Wasn't she still going to act with him?

This was actually her first time in a romantic role, and with such poor results, even if the multiple NGs weren't entirely her fault, she still felt a sense of defeat.

She had thought this would be an easy TV drama. She had never experienced a passionate love, so she assumed she could imagine this level of storyline.

It should have been possible, but her co-actor was simply unreliable and quite off-putting.

She really didn't feel any chemistry, making it impossible to portray this relationship.

Lu Jingnian had been waiting for her to say something, and when she didn't, she glanced over at her.

Xiang Xiaoyuan had her eyes closed, her face slightly tilted up, as the makeup artist was applying makeup to her. The brush gently tapped her skin, with fine powder floating in the air, blending into her snowy skin like mist.

Lu Jingnian always knew she was attractive, there were countless beautiful actresses in the entertainment industry. However, upon seeing Xiang Xiaoyuan, she genuinely felt a bit inferior.

For some inexplicable reason, Lu Jingnian felt a twinge of softness and jokingly said, "Hey, don't worry, I'll perform well, I won't hold you back."

Xiang Xiaoyuan opened her eyes, somewhat surprised. Not only was she surprised, but Lu Jingnian was also a bit taken aback by her own comforting words.

Although they were in the same production, they weren't familiar with each other. Everyone here had their own background, and Lu Jingnian was well aware of this.

Xiang Xiaoyuan's studio was relatively unknown, and she herself wasn't very famous. This was the strange part— how could someone who started with indie films suddenly have access to resources for such mainstream commercial TV dramas?

Without a solid background, it was certainly impossible.

"Mhm." Xiang Xiaoyuan smiled at her, and her smile seemed quite sincere.

Lu Jingnian smiled back.

She was genuinely curious and wanted to uncover this girl's background.

In the script, the characters played by Xiang Xiaoyuan and Lu Jingnian were originally middle school classmates who were once good friends. After graduation, Xiang Xiaoyuan went abroad to study, and they lost contact.

Many years later, the two unexpectedly meet.

"You..." Lu Jingnian squinted from a distance, as if trying to confirm something. As she gradually approached, her eyes lit up with surprise. "It really is you! I almost didn't recognize you!"

Xiang Xiaoyuan was a bit slower to respond and didn't greet her immediately. She had just been annoyed by a blind date arranged by her family and used it as an excuse to step outside, not in the mood to reconnect with an old classmate.

So her initial gaze was somewhat impatient, but then she focused and opened her eyes slightly, a hint of hesitation appearing on her face. Lu Jingnian was assessing her, and she was looking back at her.

Lu Jingnian's character was a young white-collar worker, while her character was a rich young lady. The contrast in their attire was evident, with Xiang Xiaoyuan momentarily showing a sense of unfamiliarity and observation.

Lu Jingnian sensitively caught onto this, her mouth twitched unnaturally, but quickly relaxed. She gestured backward with her hand, "Oh, we really don't recognize each other." she tilted her head sweetly, "I'm XX, by the way."

Xiang Xiaoyuan suddenly realized, her eyelashes fluttered lightly, touched by a hint of joy, and a slight curve appeared on her lips. It was a genuine smile, "I really almost didn't recognize you."

"Oh! Come here for a hug!" Lu Jingnian, being lively and proactive, opened her arms and stepped forward without hesitation to embrace her. "Wow, you're so much taller than me!"

Xiang Xiaoyuan was taken aback by her enthusiasm, feeling a bit unaccustomed to such warmth. Then, amused by Lu Jingnian's words, she let out a light laugh, her expression softening as she put an arm around her shoulder. "I'm wearing high heels."

The two of them laughed in unison, gently swaying as they held each other.

"Let's go, let's find a place to chat."

"Okay, let's go. You choose the place."

The streetlights cast a warm glow on them, as if sharing in their laughter.

"Great! Cut!" Sun Xin called out, satisfied.

This scene, whether in terms of the rhythm between the two or the performance, flowed smoothly without any flaws. The entire crew felt considerably more relaxed because of his words.

"If every scene could be like this, I'd have peace of mind." Sun Xin sighed.

Xiang Xiaoyuan thought the same, but things often didn't go as planned.

Once the scene was wrapped up, the crew finished for the day.

The deep winter night was heavy with darkness, the dim light flickering. In the freezing cold, she blew into her hands, her breath forming a mist that clouded her vision, leaving her feeling somewhat dazed.

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