CHAPTER 5

The leading actress is causing trouble again.

She was unwilling to reshoot the scene with the male lead that had been NG'd multiple times during the day. Instead, she pulled the director aside to whisper for a while, insisting that she wanted to play the role of Xiang Xiaoyuan.

Wu Jiabao was a bit hesitant, and the atmosphere on set was tense. Because the daytime scenes hadn't been completed, no one could take a break—makeup artists, lighting technicians, and crew members all had to stay on-site. The worst off was the coordinator, he was usually the last to finish working each day. After wrapping up, he still had to put in overtime to prepare the next day's notices based on the actors' conditions and filming progress, which had to be delivered to the relevant personnel that same day.

The most exhausted were these behind-the-scenes crew members.

They just wanted to finish today's shoot as quickly as possible, but the lead actress was not cooperating and seemed to think she was part of the "Tonghua" leadership. She absolutely insisted on playing the supporting role.

For the first time一 Chen Yunxiu furrowed his brow.

The original draft of the script featured a pair of twins, with the lead actress playing both roles. The older sister dies from complications after donating a kidney to the younger sister, who later suffers from schizophrenia and ultimately commits suicide by jumping off a building.

Due to Zou Yirui's limited acting ability, the script was changed to feature sisters instead. Xiang Xiaoyuan was brought in last minute to play the older sister, but the ending remained the same.

Chen Yunxiu said, "Miss Zou, leaving the contract aside for now, Xiaoyuan's role will have significantly less screen time. Are you really sure about this?"

Zou Yirui hesitated. It's not that she didn't want to be the female lead 一 who wouldn't want more screen time? The role of the female lead is pitiful but difficult to garner sympathy for. She is physically weak but has been cared for with motherly love since childhood. After receiving a kidney transplant from her biological sister, who subsequently died, it's challenging to make the audience empathize with her, especially in the latter part of the story when she struggles with guilt, develops mental issues, and believes her sister has taken over her soul, acting eccentrically.

This character was contradictory—weak, selfish, naive, yet with a lingering sense of goodness.

Performing this role requires depth and complexity.

She had originally thought it wouldn't be difficult, but during the scenes with Xiang Xiaoyuan, it was she who kept getting NG'd and overshadowed. It was incredibly frustrating! In contrast, the supporting role could evoke a lot of sympathy. Watching how effortlessly Xiang Xiaoyuan performed made her envious.

As soon as Xiang Xiaoyuan walked in, a beam of attention swept over to her.

She stood still, locking eyes with that person. The crew had already informed her of the reason on her way there.

"Hey, do you want to play the female lead?" Zou Yirui asked loudly.

Xiaoyuan raised an eyebrow, crossed her arms, and replied, "I have a name."

The two actresses immediately had a competitive air about them. Zou Yirui was still wearing a white dress costume, while Xiang Xiaoyuan was in a casual short-sleeved T-shirt and shorts.

Both of them had outstanding appearances, similar in height, and generally tall.

The on-set crew held their breath, Wu Jiabao scratched his head, the head of the camera crew remained silent and observant, glancing at Chen Yunxiu.

Cai Juan took a deep breath, raised a hand to adjust his glasses, also looking towards Chen Yunxiu, the only one who could solve the problem on set.

Suddenly, a crisp laugh broke the tension. "You want to play my role? Sure, but this isn't just talk—you'll need to give it a try."

"Let's try then!" Zou Yirui's competitive spirit was ignited.

Did she really think she could outshine a seasoned actress?

Wei Jiabao blinked, exchanged a glance with Chen Yunxiu, who adjusted his glasses, pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Okay, you two can run through it."

The scene was reset, it was still the dining room scene, with Zou Yirui playing the older sister and Xiang Xiaoyuan the younger sister.

Xiaoyuan suddenly smiled, lowered her hands, and walked step by step towards the dining room.

The dining room scene had already been filmed, and the crew had cleared the set, leaving the dining room empty. The cameras weren't rolling, so the crew's focus was entirely on this moment.

As Xiaoyuan sat down, her facial expression softened, her eyes calmed down, like a lake untouched by storms, clear and pure, her arms crossed on the table, scanning the table, leaning forward, her eyes hesitant and curious, "Sister, is there anything you like to eat?"

Zou Yirui took a breath, realizing it was starting.

She recalled the lines from memory, yes, here it was best to remain silent. Right, they were eating, even though everything had been cleared away. Still, performing without props was a lesson every acting student learned.

She coldly "picked up a knife and fork, cutting into the beef"—wait, they were supposed to be eating soufflé here. Zou Yirui quickly dropped the knife motion, "picked up a spoon, took a bite," and pretended to eat, looking indifferent.

Xiaoyuan observed her actions, showing a hint of awkward smile, quickly masking it, lowering her face and speaking in a lighter tone, "That said, I don't know much about you, sister..." She paused, as if reflecting.

Zou Yirui felt a slight sweat at her temples. The lines from her counterpart were handled completely differently, and the pause made her want to lift her gaze to see her expression. But she couldn't. At this moment, the older sister had to show a disdainful demeanor, so she continued to "eat the soufflé."

Damn it, Zou Yirui vaguely felt that something was off. It's fine, it's fine. The latter half is the main stage for the "older sister" character. By then, she should speak her lines like Xiaoyuan...

Wait? Isn't this just copying the other person's acting style? No, she couldn't do that, but how else was she supposed to act?

Zou Yirui was surprised in her heart and subconsciously looked up at her. Unexpectedly, at a glance, it felt like she had hit a nerve. The other party's eyes seemed to light up with just that one look from her. There was hope in her tone, "Sister, can you tell me a bit about your past?"

Zou Yirui stared at her blankly, her mind going blank again, and she found herself unconsciously halted in her actions.

Suddenly jolted back to reality, her heart raced. That familiar feeling of being suppressed returned—no, she had to fight back!

She furrowed her brows and spoke, "You want to know about my past?" Her voice was a bit stiff, and she couldn't help but think of Xiang Xiaoyuan's earlier performance. Without realizing it, her rhythm was thrown off, and she hurriedly added, "Do you know where I used to live?"

"Where did you live?" Xiaoyuan slightly widened her eyes, the hope in her eyes becoming more intense, along with a hint of curious innocence, looking completely like a sheltered young lady who was inexperienced in the ways of the world.

"I've lived in several welfare homes," Zou Yirui felt a bit of anger in her heart, almost gritting her teeth, "It was completely different from here! Do you really want to know?"

At that moment, Xiaoyuan straightened up, her eyes shimmering with curiosity and tension. She bit her lip and nodded slightly.

Zou Yirui forged ahead, "What kind of children live in a welfare home? Most of them are unhealthy children, like those with Down syndrome..." She felt a tightness in her chest, just recalling the lines was exhausting, and she couldn't spare any attention for her facial expressions. "And, and..."

"And Down syndrome," what came after that? She couldn't remember!

The audience could see clearly that Zou Yirui was clearly struggling, she didn't have to continue acting, but their gaze shifted to Xiaoyuan, who surprisingly hadn't stopped performing.

Unaffected by the other side, Xiaoyuan's large and expressive eyes were focused on Zou Yirui, her body slightly leaning forward. Gradually, her eyes filled with shimmering tears, her shoulders subtly trembling. Her facial expressions, eye movements, and body gestures conveyed shock, fear, guilt...

Her lips parted slightly, and she slowly raised her fingers to cover her mouth as tears fell from her eyes. Her gaze transformed into one of heartache, with all her emotions displayed one by one, eventually merging into a complex expression filled with intricate feelings.

There were no lines, just a monologue, yet it was still a moving performance.

Without comparison, there is no pain.

Zou Yirui trembled all over, a deep-seated fear of being overshadowed enveloped her heart, covering her entire being. She couldn't bear it anymore, overwhelmed, covered her face and ran away.

Her assistant hesitated for a moment before hurriedly chasing after her.

The expressions of the onlookers were quite entertaining.

Cai Juan struggled to hold back laughter. 'Ah, who told you to keep provoking our Xiaoyuan? You brought this on yourself, hehe.'

Xiang Xiaoyuan stood up, her emotions already bursting out, she raised her voice to Chen Yunxiu, "Director Chen, I'll be leaving now. I haven't finished my meal."

"Oh, then hurry back." Wei Jiabao responded instead.

Xiang Xiaoyuan shot him a glance, nodded, and turned to leave. "Let's go, Cai Juan."

Cai Juan followed her amidst the stares of the surrounding people, whispering, "You should be a bit more polite to Director Wei."

"Mm-hmm."

"Ah!" Cai Juan praised her, silently applauding her. After all, Xiaoyuan had only had the script for a week. When she loves a script, she immerses herself in it, exploring not just her character but all the roles. It might not be perfect, but it's more than enough to handle someone like Zou Yirui, with her mediocre acting skills.

"She's really boring!" Xiang Xiaoyuan pursed her lips, not even bothering to evaluate.

"Shh... don't let anyone hear you!" Cai Juan leaned in quietly, his eyes filled with laughter, "But you did great, Yuan'er! Haha, that felt good!"

Xiang Xiaoyuan chuckled lightly, her face illuminated from behind, pale and pure like the petals of a lily blooming in the night. She glanced at her, her eyes sparkling with amusement, like pearls scattered across flower petals.

"I think so too."

Neither of them cared at all about the reactions on set. The lead actress had a breakdown and left, while Wei Jiabao was a beat slow but still chased after her. The crew, following Chen Yunxiu's instructions, realized they wouldn't be able to continue filming and started packing up. The bright lights in the studio illuminated tired faces, as people moved about, hurriedly tidying up to wrap things up.

Chen Yunxiu pressed his forehead against the wall, feeling the weight of responsibility. He was deep in thought when he heard a familiar laugh flowing through the air like a stream.

Hearing that laugh brought him joy, and he turned to look.

He Chenying, in her late thirties but looking no more than thirty, had a tall and graceful figure. Her most distinctive feature was her charming, phoenix-like eyes that sparkled with a hint of mischief, like a spring breeze brushing past flowers—captivating.

Chen Yunxiu was momentarily stunned, then smiled, "When did you arrive?"

He Chenying chuckled, "I've been here for a while, I've seen what I needed to see."

"Are you alone?" Chen Yunxiu looked around her, "Where's your assistant?"

"Xiao Huang went to handle my luggage. I just wandered around since I had nothing to do," He Chenying said. "Those two girls were going to play my 'daughters,' right?"

"Yes, that's right..." Chen Yunxiu sighed. "We've been filming for three days now, and this is the current situation..."

The script was good, but the two actors were a mixed bag—one not good enough and the other too good—yet neither was an easy character to manage.

He Chenying squinted her eyes playfully. "Don't worry. At the end of the day, we're all working for 'Tonghua.' As long as we can report back to Wei Zhuang, that's what matters."

Chen Yunxiu looked at her, "Then it's up to you to hold things together!"

He Chenying smiled lightly, a hint of meaning in her expression.

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