Exiting the set, Xu Qiao thought it was already late, but to his surprise, the neighboring “Hundred Ghosts” crew was still working under bright lights. It seemed they wouldn’t wrap up anytime soon.
At a glance, the props team, production assistants, and even the actors inside all wore tired expressions. Working overnight like this, weren’t they afraid of burning themselves out?
Li Feifei, following Xu Qiao’s gaze, sighed. “They’re really shooting through the night. Luckily, my idol has a good body and stamina, or else filming like this every day might make him fall ill.”
His idol, of course, was the one Xu Qiao encountered in the afternoon, Xu Siyi.
Yawning, Xu Qiao asked, “Am I not as good-looking as Xu Siyi?”
Li Feifei answered without hesitation, “How can it be the same? You might be good-looking, but fragrance smells good from afar, while bad odor stinks up close. Distance creates beauty.”
“If you don’t know how to use idioms, just don’t use them,” Xu Qiao lazily drawled.
Chuckling, Li Feifei leaned in. “Big Brother, did you finally see the light? Today, Director Jiang couldn’t stop smiling.”
Xu Qiao walked to the hotel with his hands in his pockets. The road was deserted, and the surroundings were quiet, with only faint sounds coming from a few studios in the distance.
Li Feifei, beside him, kept talking, “If I tell Big Sister Yang about your performance today, she won’t believe it unless she sees it herself. Your acting has improved dramatically.”
A smattering of stars clung to the vast, inky canvas of the sky, offering scant comfort against the winter’s relentless chill. The wind seeped itself beneath clothing, sending needles of ice down the necks. Each breath formed misty clouds, drifting in front of the eyes, obscuring the night sky.
The young man who used to be nervous in front of the camera, unsure how to pose and could never master facial expressions, had disappeared through repeated experiences in different worlds.
He had seen red spider lilies blooming on the rotting corpses by the blood-red river, and he had also heard the prayer songs sung by the girls in the far north. He experienced life as a commoner and a peddler, but he had also ascended to the pinnacle of power. He received the worship and adoration of millions, yet found himself compelled to stand against the entire world at times…
Numerous fantastical worlds with their unique wonders. The warmth and cruelty of human relationships, the myriad facets of the world – perhaps no one had experienced more than him.
Those experiences as different individuals with varied identities allowed Xu Qiao to effortlessly grasp the innermost psychological states and behaviors of a character. This was probably what Li Feifei referred to as “acting.”
Seeing Xu Qiao silent, Li Feifei’s voice lowered, sounding somewhat dejected. “I feel like something’s different about you, Big Brother.”
Xu Qiao asked quietly, “Is that so?”
Li Feifei nodded, feeling that the usually slow-witted him shouldn’t continue this topic any longer.
He played with his phone for a moment, then jumped up excitedly, “Big Brother, today I took quite a few photos for you. Pick a few to post on Weibo when you get back. Let me see which ones are better. This one reading the script is perfect, the lighting is just right. And this one dozing off is so cute! Oh no, I can’t decide. Every shot of you looks great…”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Listening to his chatter, Xu Qiao yawned again. “Just pick two. Choose whatever you like.”
Efujgvifrr bo ktfatfg la kjr yieggs bg cba, yerlcfrr kjr ralii yerlcfrr.
Cr atf akb kfgf ajixlcu, j ojlca rbecv bo obbarafqr mjwf ogbw yftlcv atfw, rbwfktja lcvlralcma lc atf kjlilcu klcv bo atf mbiv klcafg. We Hljb tfjgv atf rbecv jcv rabqqfv. Aera jr tf kjr jybea ab aegc jgbecv, tf yewqfv lcab j kjgw kjii. Ktf jgw tjculcu ja tlr rlvf kjr rflhfv ys atf qfgrbc yftlcv tlw.
Hearing the commotion, Li Feifei looked towards Xu Qiao. When he saw the newcomer, his eyes abruptly widened. Whether due to excitement or nervousness, his expression resembled an overturned palette. “Xu—”
Turning his head, Xu Qiao’s nose brushed against the thin jaw of the person. A distinct scent of rum aggressively surrounded him, occupying Xu Qiao’s nostrils.
This fragrance carried a potent blend of sharp ginger, infused with a hint of intense spiciness and a smoky undertone. It exuded a strong masculine scent, tempered by the warmth of honey, creating a spicy yet cozy tone that, amidst its boldness, revealed a touch of playfulness.
Lifting his eyes, Xu Qiao met a face with no concealed sharpness.
It was Xu Siyi.
He slightly lowered his head to look at Xu Qiao. From this angle, his exceptionally beautiful brow bone appeared even more exquisite. The curve between the brow bone and the nose was as beautiful as if it had been carved by the hand of a master sculptor.
Li Feifei, standing nearby, looked closely at his idol for the first time. His breathing became rapid, his mind dizzy, completely unsure how to react.
Xu Qiao moved his arm, signaling him to let go. The grip was strong, and his arm felt a bit sore.
Xu Siyi looked at him and released his hand. “Sorry.”
The scent of male hormones, accompanied by a slightly spicy and subtle perfume, was very distinctive. Every syllable he uttered carried a charm that could tantalize one’s heart.
For a brief moment, Xu Qiao felt a faint sense of familiarity from this person. But soon, he dismissed this inexplicable feeling.
Previously, he had no interaction with this person named Xu Siyi.
Xu Qiao’s lips curved in a polite yet distant manner. “Is there something you need?”
Glancing over Xu Siyi, he noticed a subtly designed chauffeur car not far away, the engine still running, emitting a faint hum in the night. Clearly, it was waiting for this person.
Xu Siyi saw Xu Qiao’s soft hair blending with the night. The young man’s gaze was calm, like the sea under the moonlight, devoid of any emotion.
Reaching into his pocket and pulling out something, Xu Siyi’s well-defined fingers revealed a room key card.
He handed the card to Xu Qiao and said, “Yours? Found it in the dressing room.”
During the day, Xu Qiao undressed in his dressing room under the dim yellow light, revealing fair skin, along with a dropped room key card. For anyone else, it would have seemed like a deliberate invitation.
But Xu Siyi was confident that the person in front of him had no such intention.
Xu Qiao stared at the room key card, furrowed his brows, and felt his pocket. The well-placed room key card was mysteriously missing.
He pursed his lips, took the room key card from Xu Siyi’s hand, and placed it back into his pocket. “Thank you.”
“Siyi, are you okay now?” Someone in the chauffeur car leaned out and shouted to Xu Siyi.
Pulling up the cashmere scarf around his neck to cover the lower half of his face, Xu Siyi nodded at Xu Qiao and Li Feifei. “My manager is waiting for me, I’ll go first.”
Watching Xu Siyi’s departing figure, Li Feifei took a while to snap out of it, not bothering about how his big brother was connected to Xu Siyi. He lamented, “Ah, forgot to ask for an autograph.”
Sitting in the chauffeur car, Xu Siyi’s manager, Mo Chenghong, glanced outside and asked, “Is that Xu Qiao from Chasing the Spotlight?”
Xu Siyi nodded, fastening his seatbelt with a crisp “click” sound.
“How did you get involved with him?” Mo Chenghong adjusted his glasses. “Avoid associating with such person. It’s not good for your image if someone sees it.”
Xu Siyi closed his eyes, leaning tiredly against the seat back, repeating indifferently, “Such person?”
Mo Chenghong glanced at him. “Don’t you think, with your popularity, getting close to anyone is a form of charity? I know Xu Qiao too. He’s just a vase. Who knows what tricks he might use to gain benefits from you.”
Xu Siyi opened his eyes and furrowed his brow. “Don’t overthink it. I’m just returning something.”
In the subsequent days, any scene involving Xu Qiao witnessed a considerable boost in both filming efficiency and visual pleasure. Combined with thoughtful ginger soup for the winter and occasional snacks, the entire crew’s fondness for Xu Qiao soared.
The professionally retouched stills were also released by the official Weibo account of the “Chatting About” crew.
A set of six images depicted a young man in red looking into the camera, with sleeves and skirt seemingly about to flutter through the screen.
In the pictures, he displayed either a deep and sinister expression or a decadent and stunning smile.
Each image had neatly written small characters, presenting classic lines from Jin’er in the original work.
“I am born to stay in this Drunken Joy Pavilion, watching with a smile, greeting and bidding farewell.”
“What’s wrong with being a courtesan? Splurging with abandon, summoning servants at will, what’s wrong with that?”
“Why have you never been willing to cast your gaze upon me?”
………
Since the incident of Xu Qiao getting drunk last time, he had almost disappeared from the news. As soon as the stills were released, many of his anti-fans and the fans of the book flooded in.
「The mouth is too big, the clothing is garish, and you can’t block that cheap smell no matter what.」
「Rare to snag a role, yet ending up as a brothel attendant at that, tsk tsk.」
「Only a mediocre actor from a small production crew could produce such tacky and ugly character stills.」
「I don’t understand the mentality of those who call these stills ugly… I may not understand lighting and composition, but my first impression won’t lie to me. I find it beautiful, not just beautiful but also full of charm. Even though aesthetics are subjective, calling it ugly is too harsh.」
Stills with stiff, flat lighting against stark white background were notoriously difficult to capture in a flattering way. Yet, the young man in red in the photo was aggressively and provocatively beautiful.
「Honestly, I have to admit, I’m impressed by this look.」
「I’m speaking from the perspective of a fan of the book, but Xu Qiao’s portrayal is quite authentic.」
「As a student majoring in calligraphy, let me go off-topic a bit. The small characters on the picture are written really well! The strokes are agile and clever, every character is well-placed, and the more you look, the more charming it becomes.」
This comment was liked by the official account and received a reply: “The small characters were written by Jin’er’s actor, @Xu Qiao~”
「…Ha, you think I’d believe that??」
The midday sunlight was perfect. Xu Qiao sat in the courtyard with a small stool, surrounded by several actors taking a break in pairs.
With a hot water bag on his lap, Xu Qiao’s slender fingers scrolled through the comments. His expression remained unchanged as he handed the phone back to Li Feifei and resumed reading the script.
Li Feifei sat next to Xu Qiao, looking at the comments under the weibo, and snorted with dissatisfaction. “Wait until the drama airs. Let them be amazed.”
After Xu Qiao’s excellent performance in the past few days, Li Feifei felt a sense of pride.
Watching Xu Qiao diligently memorizing lines, Li Feifei hesitated for a moment before saying, “Big Brother, in a couple of days without your scenes, let’s go back to the company. Big Sister Yang mentioned discussing the termination of the contract.”
Xu Qiao paused in flipping through the script, and a shadow fell over his eyes with his long eyelashes. “Okay.”
Just waiting for the big face-slapping hahaha
Thank you for the update ☺️
I can’t wait for all of these people to eat their words!
Thank you for the chapter!
💖✨💖✨