Flirting

At this hour, Zhou Qishen should have already finished sleeping in. Thinking of this, Jiang Xiao immediately took out her phone to call, but after waiting for a while, it showed the other side was already on a call. Helplessly, she had to give up.

Before she could put away her phone, there was another commotion in the crowd, sounding even more excited than when someone treated them to milk tea.

“What’s happening?” Assistant Xiao Zhang stood on tiptoe, trying to see through the obstacles to what was going on over there.

No one could resist the urge to gossip, and Jiang Xiao was curious too, but she didn’t want to go out and bask in the sun, so she dismissed the idea of ​​going to listen to gossip. After all, any movements on the set would be known to everyone soon.

Sure enough, in no time, two girls who had received milk tea returned. They leaned against the antique window sills, chattering. It was obvious they were discussing the commotion that had just happened.

“Wow, the guy next to Qin Yuanyuan is so damn handsome. Not only good-looking but also rich. Did you see the watch on his hand? At least it’s this price.” The girl made a gesture of ‘six’, although she deliberately lowered her voice, her excitement was still evident.

When beauty and handsome guys were linked together, another girl smelled the scent of gossip and widened her eyes, “Isn’t it rumored that Qin Yuanyuan has a rich second-generation boyfriend? Could it be him?”

“I guess it’s eighty percent him. Qin Yuanyuan hasn’t taken her eyes off him, smiling sweetly and being so attentive.” The girl shrugged.

“Yeah, I thought it was just my imagination.” The other girl nodded repeatedly, her eyes showing a hint of disdain, “What a pity, he’s handsome alright, but his taste in women… looking at Qin Yuanyuan…”

Qin Yuanyuan was known for her arrogance and being difficult to serve. She often showed off regardless of the occasion, and there were few people in the crew who liked her. Jiang Xiao had heard people gossiping about her behind her back more than once.

“It seems that guy also knows Director Zheng. I heard Director Zheng personally went to pick him up…” 

Jiang Xiao covered her face with both hands, listening with relish. Her index finger lightly tapped her cheek, unable to resist being curious about the handsome guy who had become the center of attention for the two girls.

Qin Yuanyuan’s boyfriend was the son of the CEO of Fenghua Entertainment, whom Jiang Xiao knew. He was just ordinary-looking at best, barely meeting the criteria of being “rich and wealthy”, let alone being described as handsome.

Clearly, that guy was not Qin Yuanyuan’s boyfriend at all, but someone else.

Jiang Xiao stood up and called Xiao Zhang to go watch the excitement together, “Xiao Zhang, I feel like having milk tea. Let’s go get a cup.”

Xiao Zhang immediately understood her implied meaning and nodded excitedly, “Sure, let’s go!”

Out of kindness, before leaving, Jiang Xiao specifically asked Ji Changzeng, “Do you want some?”

In response, Ji Changzeng pointed to his face covered in blood and declined, “I’ll pass.”

“Okay,” Jiang Xiao understood.

The place where the gossip happened wasn’t far, just in another temporary blue tent. Jiang Xiao walked ahead, while Xiao Zhang followed with a sunshade umbrella.

Halfway there, Jiang Xiao keenly spotted Qin Yuanyuan. She was dressed in bright rose-red today, particularly eye-catching among the crowd. It was hard not to notice her.

Jiang Xiao stopped at the entrance and roughly scanned the tent. It was filled with a bunch of equipment, with only a few staff members inside. The central figure of the topic was nowhere to be seen.

Could it be that she arrived late and the person had already left?

Thinking of this, Jiang Xiao couldn’t help but sigh with regret.

Just at this moment, Zhou Qishen called.

Jiang Xiao answered and turned around to head back the way she came: “Hello, are you awake?”

“I woke up a while ago.”

Through the screen, Zhou Qishen’s voice, compared to the clear and gentle tone from earlier in the morning, now carried a slight huskiness.

Jiang Xiao could hear some background noise and raised an eyebrow in confusion: “Aren’t you at the hotel?”

“Jiang Xiao, what are you doing here?”

Before Zhou Qishen could reply, Qin Yuanyuan’s voice interrupted both reality and the phone.

Jiang Xiao realized what was happening and abruptly turned her head. A tall figure slowly stood up behind the director’s monitor, blending into the dark clothes and the monitor itself so seamlessly that one might not notice without closer inspection.

Jiang Xiao’s gaze paused on Zhou Qishen’s face. After a brief moment of hesitation, she blinked in surprise and blurted out involuntarily, “What are you doing here?”

Qin Yuanyuan stood in front of Zhou Qishen, thinking Jiang Xiao was addressing her, rolled her eyes dramatically, “Wasn’t that what I asked you first?”

“To see an elder.” Almost simultaneously, Zhou Qishen’s voice came through Jiang Xiao’s earpiece.

Jiang Xiao shifted her gaze away from Zhou Qishen’s lips, which were sometimes open and sometimes closed, and noticed Director Zheng sitting nearby, wearing headphones and carefully watching the filming.

Recalling the words of the two girls just now, Jiang Xiao guessed that the elder Zhou Qishen mentioned should be Director Zheng.

Understanding the situation, Jiang Xiao first hung up the phone, then glanced at Qin Yuanyuan beside her, who was watching her intently. She said softly, “Come tp get the milk tea.”

Upon hearing this, the staff responsible for distribution asked about their preferred flavors and promptly handed them two cups of milk tea.

Jiang Xiao had just received her milk tea and was about to leave when Director Zheng called out to her, “Jiang Xiao, you’re here? Come over, let’s chat.”

Jiang Xiao hesitated for a moment, halted her steps, handed the milk tea to Xiao Zhang, and walked towards the tent under the umbrella.

There were two chairs in front of the monitor. As Jiang Xiao approached, Zhou Qishen finally regained his senses from her stunning ancient costume appearance. He courteously offered her a seat, pulling the chair back slightly, “Sit here.”

Jiang Xiao instinctively wanted to pretend not to know each other, feeling uneasy as she awkwardly thanked him and smoothed her hair. She took the opportunity to mouth silently to him, “You bought the milk tea?”

Zhou Qishen smiled subtly and nodded.

Their small interaction went unnoticed amidst the bustle, like a secret between the two of them.

Director Zheng took off his headphones and first praised her for her recent martial arts performance. Then, he explained and guided her on her upcoming scenes: “This scene where the male and female leads are deeply trapped in the maze is a major turning point, especially the kissing scene later. The eye expression must be on point.”

“A kissing scene?”

When Director Zheng was speaking, everyone was quiet. Suddenly, this sentence came out, causing everyone to look towards the owner of the voice.

Jiang Xiao also turned her head in surprise and glanced at Zhou Qishen standing behind her. The cold white light from the monitor cast a shadow on his profile, accentuating his obscure and ambiguous expression.

Wait, why did he react so strongly to her upcoming kissing scene?

“What’s wrong, Xiao Shen?” Director Zheng glanced sideways.

“Nothing, you guys continue. I’ll wander around.” Zhou Qishen lowered his gaze, avoiding Jiang Xiao’s gaze.

Director Zheng didn’t suspect anything and admonished him like a child, “Don’t wander too far.”

“Okay.” Zhou Qishen simply replied and walked away.

Their interaction seemed quite cordial.

“Mr. Zhou, let me show you around.” Seizing the opportunity, Qin Yuanyuan, who had been watching from the side, suggested with a sweet smile, stepping forward to follow him.

Watching their backs as they walked away one after the other, Jiang Xiao pursed her lips, feeling an inexplicable discomfort.

Somewhat distracted during her subsequent conversation with Director Zheng, Jiang Xiao absentmindedly looked around for Zhou Qishen and Qin Yuanyuan on her way back to the filming location, but to no avail.

As Jiang Xiao sat down in her place, she muttered quietly, “Where did they go…”

“What are you mumbling about?” Ji Changzheng had finished his makeup and was now looking at his phone. He glanced up subconsciously and saw Jiang Xiao looking lost.

Instead of directly answering, Jiang Xiao sighed and changed the subject, pushing the milk tea she had brought back into Ji Changzheng’s arms, “Here, have a cup.”

“Didn’t I say I didn’t want it?” Ji Changzheng raised an eyebrow.

Jiang Xiao asserted confidently, “I’m on a diet, can’t waste it.”

Ji Changzheng chuckled, “I’m also on diet.”

“Do you want it or not?” Jiang Xiao pouted in grievance.

“Fine, fine, I’ll drink it. Is that okay?” Ji Changzheng had no choice but to accept, tore open the straw packaging, and took a big sip of milk tea, exclaiming, “Oh, Jiang Xiao’s treat is so delicious, unbelievably delicious.”

Jiang Xiao was amused by him and retorted, “It’s fake to death.”

The atmosphere immediately lightened up. Just as they were getting ready to shoot the next scene, Ji Changzheng suddenly bumped Jiang Xiao’s hand with his arm, “Isn’t that your… roommate?”

Ji Changzheng almost slipped up and said “husband”. He had to change his words on the spot, unable to think of a suitable term to describe their relationship, so he awkwardly settled for “roommate”. They slept together every day, so they could be considered roommates, right?

Following his gesture, Jiang Xiao looked over.

Several people were approaching from not far away, led by Director Zheng, with Zhou Qishen standing side by side. The two of them were chatting quietly, their tall stature and graceful demeanor emphasizing their noble bearing.

As if sensing the gaze from this side, the man looked over casually.

His gaze stopped at the point where Jiang Xiao and Ji Changzheng’s arms touched, his black eyes cold and clear, narrowing dangerously.

Ji Changzheng received an unfriendly gaze from the other party, awkwardly stepping aside and asking the person next to him, “He’s visiting so openly like this? Aren’t you afraid of exposure?”

Jiang Xiao glanced at Qin Yuanyuan, who was only half a step away from Zhou Qishen, feeling restless. Unable to wait any longer, she walked straight towards the filming location, remarking, “He’s not here to see me anyway.”

With her gone, Ji Changzheng naturally had no reason to stay put. He caught up and asked the question he had been curious about, “So, can I ask what your roommate does?”

“He runs a company,” Jiang Xiao replied expressionlessly.

“Which company?”

“…,” Jiang Xiao paused, glancing at him lightly. “Why are you interested in my roommate? Asking so many questions?”

“How could that be? I only like girls,” Ji Changzheng frowned.

“Hmph, if that’s the case, what does it matter to you? What’s there to ask?” Jiang Xiao retorted.

Ji Changzheng rubbed his nose, understanding that she found him annoying and wisely stayed silent.

Suddenly, a handsome man appeared on the set, sparking intense discussions. Speculations about his identity and spreading rumors about him and Qin Yuanyuan were rampant, especially since she was always by his side except when filming.

Jiang Xiao observed quietly from afar, noticing how Qin Yuanyuan was solicitous towards Zhou Qishen, who remained silent with a cold, contemplative expression, as if he were an icy sculpture in the midst of the commotion.

Soon, it was time to film the kissing scene. It was a subtle kiss, just lips touching without any extra movements. As directed by Director Zheng, the crucial aspect was the expression in their eyes: three parts deep affection, three parts pain and struggle, and one part resentment.

Both Jiang Xiao and Ji Changzheng were in good spirits today, nailing other scenes in one take. However, this scene took over half an hour and still lacked something.

They spent the entire day outdoors, with rising temperatures making everyone’s heads dizzy. Everyone constantly wipes sweat from their faces and foreheads.

Because the previous scenes went smoothly, it meant everyone was waiting for this one to pass so they could wrap up early.

There was definitely pressure. Jiang Xiao wasn’t trained formally and wasn’t a naturally gifted actor. Despite having a coach, she often blamed herself for not being professional enough, feeling like she was holding back the team.

Standing shoulder to shoulder with Ji Changzheng, they watched the final satisfactory take while Director Zheng instructed on further improvements.

“I think this take is good, but we should strive for perfection. Let’s do a few more,” Director Zheng said after taking a sip of water to soothe his throat, gesturing for them to adjust their states again.

Jiang Xiao nodded obediently, discussing with Ji Changzheng strategies for improvement before they returned to the camera.