If his own daughter ever acted this desperate in the future, Zhang Li would break both her legs.
Seeing that Xie Chen was really getting up to change and head out, Zhang Li hurriedly said, “Do you know what your status is? And what theirs is? Even if you’ve reached an agreement, they should be the ones coming here to invite you profusely.”
“Just wait. They should already be on their way here by now.”
Who would have thought that instead of calming down, Xie Chen hissed, “How could you agree to let them come to our hotel?”
Zhang Li had to admit that his decision had indeed been rather rash.
It was mainly because, during the phone call just now, Miss Pei had casually suggested it, and he had instinctively agreed. After all, he was the manager of a famous Best Actor and was well known in the industry for being smooth and shrewd.
But thinking back on it now, he realized that throughout the entire conversation, he had somehow been following the other party’s lead.
Even knowing how formidable she was, it was still frightening that a seasoned veteran like himself had been unable to withstand even one move from her and had only realized it afterward.
Somewhat displeased, Zhang Li nodded. “Exactly. A small production like theirs is full of all kinds of people. Miss Pei and Director Liu may be able to keep their mouths shut, but there’s no guarantee the others won’t leak your whereabouts.”
“Now that news of you being in the gambling capital has already gotten out, we need to pay special attention to the hotel’s privacy.”
“How about this? I’ll ask her to wait at that café two blocks away—”
Before he could finish, he saw Xie Chen hurriedly tidying up the living room. In truth, it was hardly messy at all, thanks to the royal-level room service.
The only thing out of place was the coat he had casually tossed onto the sofa after returning that day.
Yet the man was acting like a husband who lived in a pigsty and had just learned his girlfriend was coming over to inspect the place. When he realized there was really nothing else to clean up, he nodded and pointed sternly at Zhang Li.
“I’m going to take a shower. Don’t mess up the place outside.”
“I’m your manager, not some demolition dog,” Zhang Li said.
Xie Chen completely ignored his protest. Once inside the bathroom, he poked his head out again as if he had just remembered something.
“Call room service and have them send up a few bouquets of flowers right away. Didn’t you notice that all the flowers around here have wilted?”
“They were only replaced this morning—”
Zhang Li’s only reply was the distant sound of rushing water.
He had no choice but to make the call. When Xie Chen got fussy, he listened to no reason whatsoever. It was best simply to do as he said, or else he would come out of the shower and start making a scene.
By the time the fresh flowers had been delivered and replaced, Xie Chen had also emerged from the bathroom wearing a bathrobe. His hair was half-dry, and his entire body looked dewy and radiant.
A photographer had once seen him after a shower and had been instantly flooded with inspiration. When the resulting photoshoot was released, countless perfume, body wash, and underwear brands had contacted his studio with contracts offering astronomical endorsement fees.
Xie Chen had rejected every one of them. Yet now, he was allowing a single woman to enjoy this privilege all to herself.
Even a grown man like Zhang Li felt sour about it. What had Miss Pei done to deserve this? That kind of charm represented commercial value that could be turned into cash immediately.
That wasn’t even the end of it. After showering, Xie Chen rummaged through every piece of clothing he had brought with him, then began regretting how low-key he had been on this trip and how he had packed only one suitcase.
He immediately grew irritated by the limited choices and complained that Zhang Li should have reminded him to bring more clothes.
“Or when we passed through the mall after the audition yesterday, why didn’t you remind me to buy something?”
Zhang Li felt thoroughly wronged. “Didn’t I suggest that we look around? You were the one acting like you’d lost your soul. How is that my fault?”
Xie Chen was frantic. He was just about to resign himself to putting on the barely acceptable outfit when the doorbell to the suite rang.
He froze, instantly falling into a flustered panic. Zhang Li, however, stood up, packed away his suitcase, and tossed it into the bedroom.
Then he patted Xie Chen on the shoulder and said, “You actually look pretty good like this.”
Without giving him time to react, he went to open the door for Pei Liang and the others.
As soon as the door opened, the first thing they saw was the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the gambling capital’s extravagant nightscape. A man in a white bathrobe sat lazily in a chair by the window and looked up.
His damp hair fell loosely around his face, adding a few shades of mysterious allure to his presence. His whole body seemed dewy and glowing after his shower.
The bathrobe hung loosely around him, revealing a small portion of his firm chest. A bead of water slid from his hair down his neck and over his collarbone.
Bathed in the reflection of the dazzling nightscape outside, he looked like the star of an extravagant, sensual film designed to feast the eyes.
When he saw Pei Liang and the others, he didn’t get up. He merely tilted his chin toward the chair opposite him.
“You’re here?”
“Have a seat.”
This childish, cocky act was surprisingly intimidating. Even though he was trembling inside, his acting skills were good enough to make him appear powerful and composed.
Not to mention Director Liu—even Zhang Li was stunned by the shameless little brat.
For a moment, he almost thought his memory had been playing tricks on him and that Xie Chen’s earlier panic and clumsy flailing had never happened.
Director Liu hurriedly smiled ingratiatingly. “I’m terribly sorry for disturbing Best Actor Xie’s rest so late at night. We really apologize.”
After everyone had taken their seats, Xie Chen cast an apparently casual glance at Pei Liang, forcibly suppressing the embarrassment brought on by remembering that kiss.
Yet his gaze still fell uncontrollably on her lips.
Pei Liang wasn’t wearing red lipstick today, and her makeup was much lighter overall. Her lips were a pale, tender pink.
Xie Chen stared at them for a moment. Because he kept his face stern and remained silent for so long, Director Liu assumed he was still angry about what had happened at the airport. The soft sofa suddenly felt as uncomfortable as a bed of needles.
Pei Liang was the first to speak. Only when her lips moved did Xie Chen abruptly snap back to reality.
“I didn’t expect that little joke at the airport to blow up into such major news,” Pei Liang said.
“This situation is unfavorable for both Best Actor Xie and me. So when your company contacted me, we came up with a solution. I believe you already know what it is.”
“My film happens to be missing a male lead I’m satisfied with, while your company wants to escape this unnecessary scandal as soon as possible. So I’ll have to trouble Best Actor Xie for the next couple of days.”
That was the polite way of putting it, but Xie Chen latched onto her opening remark and immediately took issue with it.
His brows drew tightly together, and the atmosphere around him grew even more oppressive.
“A little joke? Does Miss Pei casually play little jokes like that with everyone?” As he spoke, he tugged at the corner of his mouth, forcing out an ugly smile. “Miss Pei was an idol herself, and it hasn’t even been a month since you left the industry.”
“If you really went around playing this sort of ‘little joke’ with everyone, wouldn’t something like this have happened long ago?”
Over the past two days, Xie Chen had looked into Pei Liang’s background, the news about her, and the works she had appeared in since her debut. Although Pei Liang had been labeled the scandal magnet of her group, as someone in the industry, Xie Chen could tell what was really going on after giving it a little thought.
She had dared to single-handedly expose the ugly underbelly of the industry’s powerful investors and fan circles, making countless enemies. Yet even now, no one had produced any truly solid evidence capable of standing up in court against her.
That meant her record was completely clean.
The only thing that disappointed Xie Chen was that he hadn’t been able to find out who her boyfriend was. He guessed that he was probably an outsider introduced through her family’s social circle.
Originally, everyone had gathered to discuss a solution to the problem. By refusing to let the matter go, however, Xie Chen had made the atmosphere awkward.
Only Zhang Li felt both embarrassed and relieved. If this blockhead kept performing at this consistently stable level, the company really had nothing to worry about when it came to him falling in love.
Sure enough, Pei Liang wasn’t about to indulge his bad habits either. With a faint, mocking smile, she said, “I didn’t expect Best Actor Xie to make that kind of joke with me, either.”
“It caused my babies to misunderstand me when I got back to the hotel, and the whole dinner was unbearably tense.”
“If we’re going to trace the cause back to its source, I’d say Best Actor Xie was the one who caused me trouble in the first place.”
After hearing that, Xie Chen was practically furious. He shot to his feet and glared intently at Pei Liang. “You still have the nerve to worry about how tense dinner was?”
He had treated her like that, and she didn’t even have her heart racing? She hadn’t been unable to stop thinking about it? She hadn’t compared him to her boyfriend and realized there might be an even better choice?
Pei Liang’s attitude was so careless, as though aside from being mildly inconvenienced by the trouble that had followed, she had no feelings whatsoever about the kiss itself.
That made Xie Chen feel as if the distracted fool he had been these past two days was nothing more than a ridiculous idiot.
He was so angry that the corners of his eyes had reddened slightly. But a childish brat was still a childish brat. Instead of looking fierce or frightening, he only appeared somewhat aggrieved.
That pitiful expression, mixed with the imposing air he was deliberately putting on, actually made him look rather endearing.
Afraid she might really make him cry, Pei Liang softened her tone and coaxed him with a little patience. “That’s not entirely true.”
“I was just a little surprised that the famous Best Actor Xie doesn’t even know how to breathe while kissing.”
Director Liu and Zhang Li had been watching the two of them trade blows, too afraid to speak as the tension threatened to flare up. But in an instant, the atmosphere suddenly took on a different flavor.
Xie Chen’s face relaxed. His brows smoothed out, and the anger that had been blazing upward vanished at once. His gaze began darting around, while the redness at the corners of his eyes migrated to his ears and cheeks.
The aggressive force of his previous outburst turned sticky and flustered. He stammered at Pei Liang while desperately trying not to let the corners of his mouth curl upward. “W-Who are you looking down on?”
“I was just startled by a shameless woman like you. D-Don’t do that again. Even a grown man like me was scared witless. If you’d done that to someone else, they’d definitely report you for sexual harassment.”
Pei Liang nodded perfunctorily. “All right, all right. Thanks for the advice. I’ll never do anything so illegal and disorderly again.”
Xie Chen immediately looked much happier, with even a faint air of accomplishment about him.
Director Liu and Zhang Li exchanged a glance. The meaning in their eyes was obvious—
Were these two really not flirting?
Zhang Li: She already has a boyfriend, and she’s still flirting with another man.
Director Liu: They’ve only met for the second time, and he’s already lecturing that young woman.
Shameless! What a pair of degenerates.
Once Xie Chen—the kind of stubborn donkey who needed to be stroked in the direction of his fur—had been calmed down, discussing the actual business became much easier.
When he learned that they still hadn’t found a luxurious presidential suite where several girls could wake up after a night of drunken debauchery, Xie Chen even took the initiative to suggest filming it right here.
He volunteered to have his own people negotiate the filming arrangements with the hotel, leaving Zhang Li completely unable to stop him.
All Zhang Li could do was watch this idiot behave as if he wanted to give away everything he owned just to curry favor with the other party.
It was a good thing they weren’t filming in China. It was also fortunate that Xie Chen only had a few minutes of screen time, all of it indoors. Otherwise, the company would probably have to pay them to take him on.
Once everything had been negotiated and the filming date set, they opened a bottle of wine. By the time Pei Liang and the others left, both hosts and guests had enjoyed themselves immensely.
But after Zhang Li saw them out and turned around, he found that Xie Chen—who had been drinking without eating so much as a peanut—had started daydreaming again.
While Pei Liang had been there, the man had still maintained his dignity.
Now, however, he couldn’t suppress the grin at the corners of his mouth. He asked Zhang Li, “Don’t you think she remembers my reaction when we kissed so clearly because she’s been replaying it in her head these past two days?”
Zhang Li felt like an old father about to give his daughter a sex-education lesson. He replied impatiently, “What are you so smug about? Do you have some special skill that makes women unable to forget you?”
Xie Chen glared at him unhappily. “Experience can be accumulated, but the raw materials are innate.”
As he spoke, he even picked up a mirror. “My lips have a sexy shape, and their touch is first-rate. I refuse to believe she couldn’t tell the difference.”
Then, with a distinctly sarcastic edge, he added, “They must be better than her boyfriend’s.”
Zhang Li silently fell apart.
Oh, this was bad. His charge was no longer merely an innocent blockhead. He was showing more and more signs of becoming a calculating, two-faced green-tea schemer.
With Best Actor Xie joining the cast, the entire production crew naturally became even more confident.
Given his box-office draw, even a special appearance would bring the film mainstream attention, rather than leaving it dependent solely on Director Liu and Screenwriter Feng’s usual base of viewers who watched their terrible movies just to make fun of them.
And as industry professionals, none of them wanted the first film Best Actor Xie ever appeared in to be a flop made by their own hands. As a result, everyone worked with twice the usual focus and energy.
Once all the preparations were complete, filming day arrived. Pei Liang and the others brought their equipment and props to Xie Chen’s presidential suite.
They planned to finish all of Xie Chen’s scenes first so they wouldn’t delay his return home.
Xie Chen’s first scene involved waking up beside Gu Fei, played by Pei Liang, wearing nothing but his underwear.
When Zhang Li first read the script, he had demanded that the scene be changed. Put bluntly, this tiny little production didn’t deserve to have an internationally acclaimed actor sacrifice himself like that.
Xie Chen had never appeared naked on-screen. It wasn’t that he lacked professionalism; it just so happened that none of his previous roles had required it.
That made this particular first time all the more precious. How could some insignificant little production, one that had only been lucky enough to get him for a few minutes as a favor, be allowed to take his screen nudity virginity?
They were getting far too good a deal. Zhang Li even suspected that Pei Liang, Director Liu, and the others had changed the script at the last minute after securing Xie Chen’s participation, intending to use his name as a gimmick to save their lousy film.
He had therefore refused outright.
But Pei Liang was just as unyielding. “What I need is the sense of tension that comes with waking up after a night of drunkenness and madness.”
“There’s no room for compromise or restraint in this scene. There can’t be even a trace of rationality left behind. Manager Zhang, you’re a seasoned talent agent with a sharp eye for scripts. Surely you know how so many terrible movies get made these days, don’t you?”
How could he not?
These days, there were plenty of young actors who took their image too seriously and made endless demands. Never mind the logic of the plot or the language of the camera—no matter what, they had to be filmed looking handsome or beautiful.
The traffic and popularity of these stars had brought with them inflated salaries, while the production teams received nowhere near the professionalism their investment deserved. How could the domestic film industry not keep declining?
Zhang Li understood that perfectly. But, to be blunt, he simply felt that this little production ought to be grateful enough just to have Xie Chen show his face. It didn’t deserve the sacrifice of his professionalism.
Besides, this was merely work meant to clean up the mess caused by a rumor. As far as Zhang Li was concerned, it didn’t even count as real work.
He argued his case with Pei Liang, but she refused to give way. She would rather abandon the publicity Xie Chen could bring than compromise. If they wouldn’t film it this way, she declared, they could find someone else. The scene had to be shot exactly as written.
“This shot is the entry point for the entire film. It’s the table of contents for everything that follows from the climax. We absolutely cannot handle it carelessly.”
Zhang Li was about to say more when Xie Chen spoke up. “Enough. I’ll do it.”
“You!” Zhang Li whipped around. A rare severity and anger appeared on his face. “Do you know what you’re doing?”
“This isn’t just a matter of casually helping rent a venue. If this movie turns out to be terrible, you, Xie Chen, will have made your screen debut in the nude in a lousy film. Have you thought about what that would do to your flawless reputation?”
“This is completely different from an ordinary cameo where you just show your face.”
“It won’t be a lousy movie.” Xie Chen stood up and waved the script in his hand. “That cameo did a great job of making me curious about what would happen next, so I asked Screenwriter Feng to send me the full script. It’s a very high-quality comedy.”
“The plot structure, pacing, and jokes are all solid. If they stick strictly to the script, there’s no way it’ll turn out badly with Director Liu controlling the camera.”
“The only things to worry about are possible cuts to the story caused by funding problems during post-production, cheap props, and rushing the filming to save time.”
“I had Miss Pei show me the production’s budget breakdown. It’s more than sufficient, and she’s even prepared a reserve fund to deal with possible emergencies. Unless something completely unforeseeable happens, the problems I mentioned basically won’t occur.”
“The last issue is the cast’s acting. To be honest, for a comedy without much profound substance, the performances don’t need to be particularly layered. They just need to be smooth and natural.”
“I’m sure Miss Pei has already taken that into consideration as well.” Xie Chen had asked Director Liu about it.
Apparently, the actors playing several of the major roles were all performers with plenty of acting experience who, for various reasons, currently had no work and were therefore willing to accept low fees.
Although not everyone had arrived yet, Director Liu had told him that one of the female leads was Xia Yu. She had worked with him on the same set several years ago, so Xie Chen naturally knew what she was capable of. She was more than qualified for this role.
That meant Pei Liang had thought everything through.
At this point, even Xie Chen, who had initially been far from optimistic, had to sincerely say to Pei Liang—
“You’re very professional as a producer.”
Although most of the details were being handled by the seasoned industry veteran Director Liu, that only proved how well she knew how to use people and how effectively she was coordinating the production as a whole.
Pei Liang smiled. “Thank you!”
She was becoming more and more fond of this childish little chicken.
Xie Chen had made up his mind. Since this was a proper film, he would approach it with a proper professional attitude. Without another word, he went to the bathroom and changed into a pair of black briefs.
The moment Pei Liang saw him, she couldn’t resist giving a wolf whistle.
This guy wasn’t merely blessed with a devilishly handsome face. His physique was top-notch too.
It was obvious that he worked out regularly. His natural body lines and muscle shape were already exceptionally rare, and with the effort he had put in afterward, it was no wonder that when he had walked the opening show for a blue-blood fashion brand during Fashion Week the previous year, his aura and physique had stunned the fashion world. He had looked no less impressive than the European and American male models.
Xie Chen was the rare type whose skin and bone structure were both exquisite, while also appealing equally to Eastern and Western tastes—whether in looks or physique.
Pei Liang made no attempt to hide the admiration and amazement in her eyes. This left Xie Chen shy, but even more pleased with himself.
Zhang Li simply couldn’t bear to watch. That bastard had sounded so high-minded just moments ago, but he hadn’t even started filming and had already changed clothes to make his intentions clear. Who didn’t know that he was dying to show off his charms?
Damn it, what a Dior Green Tea.
Just as Pei Liang’s gaze was about to slide down to Xie Chen’s long legs, another group of production staff arrived.
Pei Liang’s eyes passed over Xie Chen and landed on the people behind him. She smiled and called out, “Sweetheart, you’re here?”
Xie Chen’s body stiffened. The smug, self-satisfied expression vanished from his face in an instant. He glared resentfully at Pei Liang, who had shifted her gaze away without the slightest hesitation.
Then he turned around and looked at the newcomers provocatively.
What he saw was a round-faced, slightly plump young woman. She wasn’t particularly beautiful, but she had a very distinctive appearance—and looked oddly familiar.
The moment she saw him in his current state, her eyes lit up. She grinned excitedly and said, “President Pei, you should’ve told me there was something this good going on! Even if I had to squeeze in, I would’ve gotten into the car ahead of yours.”
Director Liu hurriedly said, “Baobei’s here? Hurry and go get your makeup and styling done. You’re the only one missing.”
So she was Baobei?
Xie Chen’s fighting spirit vanished at once, replaced by a wave of shame and embarrassment.
He clenched his fists, resisting the urge to turn around and run. On the surface, he calmly picked up a bathrobe and draped it over himself. His air of nonchalance made the others feel too embarrassed to look at him.
Hmph. Small scene, he thought.
But he also remembered who she was. Lu Baobei had been an actress in a hugely popular sitcom when he was a child. Xie Chen had watched her show every day back then. She just hadn’t made much of an impression after growing up.
What people remembered most about Lu Baobei was the name of her character in that show. Practically everyone recognized it, while her real name was largely unknown.
That was why Xie Chen hadn’t made the connection. Earlier, when Director Liu had told him about the three main female actresses, he had used the names of their characters from their representative works to help him understand who they were.
Once he realized that Pei Liang had never meant an actual “Baobei,” the delight on Xie Chen’s face became impossible to conceal.
When filming officially began, he slipped effortlessly into his role: sexy and languid, with the blissful air of a newlywed.
As for Pei Liang, Director Liu had originally assumed that she would need some time to get used to being in front of the camera. He had already prepared himself for a long day of rehearsals and retakes.
Unexpectedly, she got through the first scene in a single take. Everything went so smoothly it was almost unbelievable—not even the tiger they had borrowed lost its temper at any point.
And although comedies didn’t demand especially high-caliber acting, Pei Liang already showed far more instinct than the average performer.
For example, she was the first person to discover the tiger in the bathroom. She had to portray the entire emotional progression from bleary-eyed sleepiness to sudden shock, wanting to scream but quickly realizing that, given her character’s personality, she had to remain rational and suppress the scream.
That scene was no easy task for a complete newcomer like Pei Liang. Even many actresses with prior acting experience would make an awkward mess of the shocked expression alone, let alone a total novice.
That was why comedy films were not particularly kind to female actors, especially beautiful ones. Often, it wasn’t that actresses were unwilling to let go of their dignity. It was that, when faced with exaggerated, theatrical performances, many people simply couldn’t produce the kind of effect that made an audience want to laugh out loud.
Director Liu had assumed Pei Liang would be the same. His original intention had been to use this scene to gauge her limits, then arrange the performances that followed accordingly and consider how to help her deliver several particularly important shots in the way he wanted.
In fact, Director Liu had already prepared a backup plan. If Pei Liang couldn’t pull it off, he would have Lu Baobei play the scene in which the character opened the bathroom door and saw the tiger first.
Lu Baobei had acted in comedies since childhood. Her face itself carried a naturally comic quality, and her acting was not bad, so she would have had no trouble with the scene.
But Pei Liang surprised him.
Her portrayal of fear wasn’t an exaggerated widening of the eyes accompanied by bared teeth and a contorted face.
Instead, her eyes suddenly snapped open as if someone had splashed them with ice water. There was no vacant, camera-facing stare. Her pupils contracted, while her nostrils fluttered faintly as she instinctively drew in a sharp, startled breath.
She bit down hard on her lips just as she was about to scream, forcing the breath she hadn’t managed to let out through her nose, which was barely daring to breathe at all.
After staring wide-eyed at the tiger for several seconds, she lifted a trembling hand and prepared to close the door as quietly as possible.
Third, who knows when she had woken up, squeezed past her from behind. “Are you going in or not? If not, I’m going first.”
Still bleary-eyed, she walked into the bathroom. Pei Liang hurriedly reached out to grab her as if the girl were scalding hot, but Third was desperate and had already taken off her pants and sat down on the toilet beside the tiger in just a few quick steps.
As the relief of finally letting go washed over her, she opened her eyes and saw the Boss wearing an expression of unbearable agony, as if she had just smashed her little toe against the leg of a table.
“Boss, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Just use the toilet and come out when you’re done.”
“Really? Then why do you look like that? There’s another bathroom in the bedroom. If you were in such a hurry, you could’ve gone there.”
Pei Liang forced out a stiff, twitching smile. “Don’t ask. Some things are better left unknown.”
Third looked utterly baffled. At this point, the camera presented the scene from Gu Fei’s perspective.
Lu Baobei’s naturally comedic face and the tiger’s ferocious expression were both turned toward Gu Fei. The room was silent except for the sound of Third urinating.
It was a static yet perilous scene, brimming with absurd contrasts and unexpected comedy.
What made it even funnier was the way Third seemed to grow embarrassed under the Boss’s gaze. She was the first to look away and began glancing around the bathroom at random. Just as the Boss tried to warn her but was already too late, Third suddenly locked eyes with the tiger.
The continuous sound of running water abruptly stopped.
After a full two-second pause, there came the unmistakable sound of someone wetting herself in terror.
Third stared at the Boss with a comically horrified expression. The Boss remained impassive. “Don’t ask, don’t scream, and don’t die.”
Second squeezed in from behind. “Who died?”
The moment she saw Third sitting on the toilet with a tiger beside her, tears instantly streamed down her face.
“Third, we’ll come back to pay our respects this time next year.”
Third began crying silently too, tears and snot streaming down her face.
“I couldn’t bear to let you die with regrets, so there’s something I need to tell you. The one-terabyte collection on your college laptop? I accidentally spilled water on it and burned it out.”
The fear vanished from Third’s face, replaced in an instant by a twisted, murderous expression.
“You son of a—Lu Qiu! No wonder you even washed my socks for me—”
She had already forgotten about the tiger and was heading for the door. The Boss reacted quickly, grabbed her, and slammed the bathroom door shut.
After filming, Pei Liang played the scene back once. The result was excellent. The actors’ performances were convincing, the comedic effect came through perfectly, and the transitions within the entire shot were wonderfully coordinated.
Next came Pei Liang and Xie Chen’s scene.
Xie Chen stood up, took off his bathrobe, and said to Pei Liang, “Come on!”
His dazzling male beauty, his near-perfect physique, and those words, which invited all sorts of suggestive fantasies, made quite a few men and women on set feel their noses itch, as if a hot rush were about to start flowing.
Pei Liang’s gaze settled on his back muscles. She thought that grabbing him from the front and giving them a squeeze would probably feel fantastic.
Xie Chen could feel that unusually focused gaze. He knew it belonged to Pei Liang, and every place touched by her line of sight tensed inch by inch. He nearly reacted out of sheer embarrassment.
So he immediately strode over, lifted the covers, and lay down on the bed.
He couldn’t help feeling secretly pleased as he reproached Pei Liang in his heart. How could this woman be so shameless?
Even if she didn’t have a boyfriend, he wasn’t some cheap man who would jump at the first flirtation, either.
What mattered most was sincerity. Did she really think she could possess him just by tossing out a few vague, flirtatious hints? There was no such thing as getting a good deal that easily.
His thoughts were being melodramatic, but his body was remarkably honest. Director Liu watched the brief scene through the camera and saw that the chemistry between the two of them was explosive, despite lasting only a few seconds.
It wasn’t merely the sexual tension created by Xie Chen’s perfect, seductive body. Director Liu wondered if this was the formidable acting ability of a Best Actor.
However, Pei Liang hadn’t performed the scene well at first.
Instead of conveying Gu Fei’s tightly controlled reaction—a disciplined single woman suddenly confronted by a naked man first thing in the morning—Pei Liang looked as though she wanted to give his firm, pert buttocks a squeeze.
It took several retakes before they finally achieved the desired effect.
Xie Chen was both delighted that his charm had made her lose composure and disappointed that he would receive such treatment only in this one scene.
Get it straight: it wasn’t his benefit, of course. It was Pei Liang’s. She would probably be thinking about it long after the rest of the filming was over.
He therefore adopted an air of condescending magnanimity and said, “Newcomers are such a hassle. Even a scene like this can affect your state.”
“Don’t look at me. I’m a professional. Even if you stood in front of me completely naked, I still wouldn’t be affected in the slightest—”
Xie Chen’s words grew slower and slower because Pei Liang had begun unbuttoning her shirt.
With one hand, she undid the buttons in swift, sexy movements. As the silk shirt parted and slid slowly from her shoulders, it revealed her exquisite collarbones one after another, then gradually continued downward—
Xie Chen jolted and immediately reached for a piece of clothing to drape over her.
As he moved, he said, “How can you do that in front of so many people—”
But once the shirt came off, it revealed a black camisole underneath, so there was nothing awkward about it after all.
Pei Liang looked at him. “My clothes got wet, and they were uncomfortable against my skin. What were you saying just now?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all!” Xie Chen’s expression fell.
He never dared to boast about being able to remain unaffected in the presence of a beautiful woman again.
Apart from this scene, Xie Chen had several other scenes to film, so they shot his parts first.
They finished everything in less than three days. That was with Pei Liang slowing them down as well—she was, after all, a complete newcomer with no acting experience. Even so, the pace was remarkably fast.
Once filming for that portion was complete, the interview results for the major intellectual-property adaptation came in.
After discussing it, the production team decided to cast Xie Chen as the film’s second male lead.
Both Zhang Li and Xie Chen were delighted. Zhang Li in particular felt that the days Xie Chen had spent stranded in the gambling city were suddenly much easier to tolerate. After all, the result had been settled, and Xie Chen’s long stay there, his work on the small production, and even his help in identifying and correcting its problems no longer seemed like such a burden.
Since the decision had been finalized, there was no longer any need to keep it so tightly under wraps.
More importantly, Xie Chen wanted to see Pei Liang congratulate him. So during a group dinner, he told her, along with Director Liu and the others.
Director Liu and the rest were envious yet proud on his behalf. They offered their congratulations and raised their glasses again and again.
Xie Chen drank two cups with little enthusiasm. When he saw that Pei Liang showed no reaction at all, he became displeased.
Holding back his irritation, he said, “Aren’t you happy for me?”
“What’s there to be happy about?”
“You—”
The joy of having his dream come true had failed to receive the blessing of the person whose approval he wanted most. It felt as though a basin of cold water had been poured over him.
Unwilling to accept that, Xie Chen said, “Did you not hear the name of the film clearly? Or are you so ignorant that you don’t even know who the director is? As a producer, you should at least learn a little more about film history.”
Pei Liang was still thinking about how to avoid getting involved in this matter when this man’s smugness conveniently handed her an opening.
She followed the momentum and said, “I’ve been studying film history lately. Since this is the biggest intellectual-property adaptation of the year, I wanted to get an early sense of the director’s style for his new project. So I looked into the style of his previous works, as well as some of his personal preferences and tendencies.”
“Then, in his past public statements and obscure interviews, we found evidence of his political views.”
At that, Xie Chen and Zhang Li’s expressions turned solemn. When working with people like these, the last thing they wanted was to get caught up in some issue involving political beliefs.
Sure enough, Pei Liang said, “He has repeatedly used insulting terms to describe Asians during parties and interviews. He has also openly mocked our culture, political system, and citizens, and expressed support for separatist forces within our country.”
Zhang Li drew a sharp breath. “B-but he wasn’t arrogant during the audition. He was actually quite polite.”
Pei Liang smiled. “Of course. Our country is currently the second-largest box-office market in the world—a market any big-budget commercial film has to fight for. Xie Chen is the male actor with the strongest box-office pull in the country, with countless achievements to his name. Setting aside his personal interests, this role would merely be the icing on the cake for him. If they want to rake in more at the box office, naturally they’ll show a great deal of sincerity when dealing with you.”
With that, she took the tablet from Fang Yuan and handed it to them. “Take a look. The information was so shocking that I had my assistant compile it all.”
Zhang Li practically snatched the tablet from her. He and Xie Chen read through the material together, and their expressions grew grimmer by the second.
Xie Chen inhaled deeply before finally saying, “I’m not signing tomorrow.”
Zhang Li, however, felt it was a shame. “Don’t do that. If you think about it, maybe it’s not that serious. Even if he’s made some inappropriate statements in the past, how many white people actually respected us before? And now they still have to lower their attitude, don’t they?”
“Quite a few international superstars have problematic political views. That hasn’t stopped their films from being brought into the country, and it hasn’t stopped fans from liking them either.”
Xie Chen was growing impatient. “I said I’m not signing. Why are you going on and on? If it were just some ordinary political stance, I’d let it go. But didn’t you see what this bastard said? He clearly thinks Asians are inferior. The thought of working with a moron like that makes me sick.”
“Hey, you—” Zhang Li was unhappy as well.
But Pei Liang cut in. “Manager Zhang, if you’re holding on to a hopeful attitude, I suggest you give up on it.”
“As far as I know, this director has caused scandals more than once because of his inappropriate remarks. Someone who can’t control his mouth will eventually reveal his true face.”
“And if he happens to say something at a particularly sensitive time, the consequences could be fatal.”
Zhang Li still wanted to say something, but Xie Chen had already decided.
The next day, Xie Chen boarded a plane back home. No one would feel good after investing so much time, energy, and enthusiasm into pursuing an opportunity, only to have it end this way.
Not long after Xie Chen left, the production announced that the role had gone to a Korean-American actor.
But none of that had anything to do with Pei Liang. As everyone grew accustomed to working together, the production proceeded more and more smoothly.
After filming wrapped, they immediately threw themselves into post-production.
Sure enough, the occasional two-second glimpse of Xie Chen in the trailer left everyone stunned.
No matter how they tried to make sense of it, they couldn’t understand why Best Actor Xie would choose to work with the infamous “trio of terrible films.”
Once the movie entered its promotional period, the fact that Pei Liang was both an investor and the lead actress could no longer be concealed.
A female lead from a girl group, paired with the two golden partners who had set records for the lowest-rated films in cinematic history—wasn’t this exactly the “trio of terrible films”?
Still, there was no denying that these elements together had whetted everyone’s appetite.
Although people shouted that it was garbage and a terrible movie, swearing they would never contribute to its box office, quite a few of Xie Chen’s fans either trusted his judgment or wanted to find out who had kidnapped him and why he had agreed to appear in the film. They planned to make a trip to the cinema when it was released.
In the end, Pei Liang’s film, The Missing Bride, was scheduled to premiere during the May Day holiday, on the same day as Director Ke’s Immortal Path.
But the two films received vastly different screening allocations. Even with Xie Chen as a selling point, The Missing Bride secured less than ten percent of the available showings, while Immortal Path received more than forty percent.
Of course, that was partly because Immortal Path’s massive promotional campaign had led many other films to deliberately avoid the period.
That intimidating lineup had also scared away most of its competitors. In the original storyline, this was why Immortal Path did not flop quite as spectacularly as it might have.
Pei Liang had chosen the May Day release specifically because she intended to take advantage of the opening left behind by the competition.
With such a start, audiences carrying all sorts of bizarre motives for buying tickets began filing into the theaters.
