While Lu Youze repeatedly practiced his martial arts moves, time passed quickly, and before he knew it, night had fallen. The film set was ready, and they were about to start shooting the night scenes.

The early autumn night was a bit chilly, and the lake water felt even colder. The first scene Lu Youze had to shoot tonight was a water scene.

“Lu Youze, are you sure you want to do this yourself?” Once everything was in place, Wu Liyi asked again, his voice carrying a hint of mockery. “You do know that Gu Xuanze has prepared various stunt doubles for you, right?”

As a director, he naturally preferred actors to perform their own stunts—it resulted in the best possible effect. But… Wu Liyi glanced at Lu Youze’s slightly rounded stomach. Given his situation, he could understand if he used a double.

He wasn’t even sure where Gu Xuanze had found all these stunt doubles. Their body shapes were eerily similar to Lu Youze’s, and if their faces weren’t shown, they could pass as him. But it still wouldn’t achieve the effect he wanted.

“No need,” Lu Youze rejected coldly.

He felt like a monkey in a zoo, with everyone just waiting for him to make a fool of himself.

Why would he need a stunt double for a simple water scene? Lu Youze glanced at the group of stunt doubles standing nearby. Other than An Xin, there were four left, all personally arranged by Wu Liyi, and their salaries came directly from Gu Xuanze’s pocket.

Utterly ridiculous! Lu Youze was livid but couldn’t afford to lose his temper in front of everyone. Was he an ancient emperor being offered concubines?

Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down and focus on filming.

After getting into the right emotional state, Lu Youze threw himself into the scene. In this scene, his character, Yuan Zheng, was supposed to retrieve a supposedly important jade pendant that Ou Yan’s character, Yao Qi, had dropped into the lake.

What a foolish protagonist.

Lu Youze knew he would never do something so ridiculous in real life.

But he was playing Yuan Zheng, a young, ambitious, and passionate man who believed that perseverance always led to success.

Yuan Zheng was the type to act without considering the consequences—failure never even crossed his mind. He was a proud young man, someone who didn’t believe in losing.

Sometimes, fools were the ones who ended up restraining lunatics.

Yao Qi was the cunning and demonic villain of the story, yet this foolish young man managed to ensnare him.

The moment Lu Youze jumped into the lake, he realized he had messed up. Yuan Zheng wouldn’t have had that expression—his reaction just now was instinctive, not something that belonged to his character.

The water was colder than he expected, biting into his skin. After the director called “Cut,” Lu Youze couldn’t help but sneeze.

“Lu Youze, did a dog eat your acting skills? How the hell did you win Best Actor? Did you buy that award?” Wu Liyi had no mercy when it came to work. “Do it again.”

Lu Youze knew he had made a mistake. Wrapping himself in the coat handed to him by his assistant, he awkwardly apologized to the crew.

No one knew how many takes they went through. By the time they were done, Lu Youze’s lips were turning purple. As Wu Liyi explained the details to him, he was shivering from the cold, but he still listened attentively.

An Xin watched with a mix of distress and anger, on the verge of tears. What kind of “renowned director” was this? He was clearly targeting Lu Youze!

Even the other actors, who had initially been waiting to see Lu Youze embarrass himself over the stunt double issue, were now intimidated by his professionalism. They had thought his earlier performances were more than acceptable, but both Wu Liyi and Lu Youze seemed to be pushing for something even better.

Now they understood why Lu Youze was a Best Actor winner.

“Lu Youze, your expression and movements were spot on, but your eyes weren’t right.” After explaining the details, Wu Liyi told him, “Yuan Zheng’s gaze should be more arrogant and self-assured.”

“I understand.” Lu Youze nodded. Then, with the same proud and confident gaze as his character, he added, “Thank you, everyone. This time, we’ll get it in one take.”

Ou Yan had been silently watching the entire time. His expression was complicated, and his gaze unconsciously lingered on the white-clad young man standing in the water.

At that moment, he felt like he was also getting lost in the story.

Just like Yao Qi in the script—his heart was thrown into disarray at first sight.

“Cut!” Wu Liyi finally called out, satisfied. “Not bad. That’s a wrap for this scene. Everyone, get ready for the next one.”

Ou Yan snapped back to reality. He quickly averted his gaze and clenched his fists, seemingly frustrated with himself. It was as if he was reminding himself not to make the same mistake twice.

He wasn’t Yao Qi, and Lu Youze wasn’t Yuan Zheng.

“Ou Yan, the next scene is your nighttime conversation with Lu Youze,” Wu Liyi called out. “Go over the lines together—we’re shooting soon.”

Lu Youze had planned to change out of his wet clothes, but it looked like there was no time. Since the two scenes were connected, he had to stay in his soaked costume a little longer.

He rubbed his hands together for warmth and prepared for the next take.

In this scene, Yuan Zheng had successfully retrieved the jade pendant and arrived at Yao Qi’s residence. It was a slightly ambiguous scene—this was the moment when Yao Qi’s emotions started to waver.

According to the script, after spending the entire night searching the lake, Yuan Zheng was shivering when he arrived at Yao Qi’s place.

Lu Youze was indeed shivering—but not because of acting. His head was starting to feel dizzy, and he could barely hear what Ou Yan was saying.

Seriously? Just from staying in the water a little longer? Lu Youze couldn’t believe how weak he felt. He had completely forgotten one crucial fact—he was currently pregnant.

Seeing how fragile Lu Youze looked, Ou Yan wasn’t sure if it was Yao Qi getting flustered in the story or if it was just him. Instinctively, he pulled Lu Youze into an embrace and whispered, “Yuan Zheng, you really are a fool.”

There was no hug in the original script, but Wu Liyi didn’t call for a cut. He felt Ou Yan’s improvisation fit perfectly in the moment.

Lu Youze was grateful for the gesture. This sharp-tongued guy wasn’t so bad after all. Leaning against Ou Yan’s warmth, his body finally started to feel better. He gave a trademark Yuan Zheng grin.

“A fool and a lunatic—we’re a perfect match, aren’t we?”

“Cut!” Wu Liyi called out. “Take a break before we continue.”

“You’re not going to rest?” Ou Yan asked, his captivating peach blossom eyes holding a hint of concern.

“I’ll just change into dry clothes,” Lu Youze smiled. “Thanks for earlier.”

Ou Yan froze. He hadn’t expected a thank-you. Realizing he was getting caught up again, he grew frustrated. Whenever he was annoyed, his words became sharp.

“Thank me?” Ou Yan sneered. “No need. To someone like you, I’m not even worth mentioning.”

With that, he flicked his sleeves and walked away to rest.

Lu Youze forced a bitter smile, knowing that the other party was still holding a grudge. Their relationship wasn’t going to improve anytime soon, but at least it didn’t affect work.

A gust of cold wind blew past, and Lu Youze couldn’t help but shiver again.

He should go change his clothes first. There were still several scenes to shoot tonight—his body wouldn’t hold up otherwise.

By the time Gu Xuanze finished his work at the company, the sky outside was completely dark. He didn’t have any scenes to shoot today, but he still couldn’t stop worrying about Lu Youze. After all, tonight’s scenes were all action-heavy. He had arranged for a stunt double but hadn’t found a chance to tell Lu Youze yet. He just hoped the other wouldn’t get angry.

But when he returned to the set, what he saw was a shocking sight—Lu Youze was completely drenched, his face pale as he leaned against Ou Yan… It seemed like he didn’t use the stunt double Gu Xuanze had prepared for him.

Gu Xuanze stood motionless at the side, his expression unreadable as he watched Lu Youze finish the scene. Only then did he walk over.

“Youze.” Gu Xuanze grabbed Lu Youze’s arm. The icy touch made his eyes darken slightly, but he forced himself to remain calm. “Come with me.”

“Ah Ze.” Lu Youze could sense Gu Xuanze’s subtle anger, but he was confused. Shouldn’t he be the one who had the right to be upset? “If you have something to say, wait until I’m done with work. I still have a few more scenes tonight.”

“You’re not planning to use the stunt double I prepared for you?” Gu Xuanze asked, his tone firm. He remembered every scene of Lu Youze’s schedule clearly. “Are you planning to do the wirework stunts yourself too?”

“Is there a problem?” Lu Youze countered.

“No.” Gu Xuanze, who usually gave in to Lu Youze, was unexpectedly adamant this time. “You must use a stunt double for the wirework. If you’re not satisfied with the ones I found, I’ll find you another.”

The two stared at each other, neither willing to back down.

Gu Xuanze was the first to avert his gaze. Instead of continuing the argument, he turned and walked toward Wu Liyi.

“Director Wu, that’s enough for today’s shoot,” Gu Xuanze said emotionlessly. His tone was flat, but it carried an inexplicable chill and pressure, making those around them uneasy.

Everyone on set had the same thought: Today, President Gu was scary.

Wu Liyi wasn’t the type to be intimidated. He glanced at Gu Xuanze and sneered, “Gu family brat, let me make something clear to you—this is my set. I decide when we wrap up, not you.”

Gu Xuanze was clearly in a terrible mood. Maybe this was the real him in the eyes of the public—someone who would ruthlessly strike at his opponent’s weakness to get what he wanted.

“Director Wu,” Gu Xuanze looked at Wu Liyi with a calm expression. “Did you already forget about Madam Lu’s accident? Oh, right. You never had him in the first place, so forgetting is only natural.”

“You—!” Wu Liyi’s face turned pale with anger. Wan Renmi had always been his forbidden topic. He stood up, sneered at Gu Xuanze, and said, “Gu Xuanze, what the hell are you throwing a tantrum for? If you’re mad, take it out on your man.”

With that, he turned and left.

No point shooting when he was already fuming.

The surrounding crew members were still struggling to process what had just happened. The director and the financial backer had just argued? Could the production still continue? Why were they even fighting in the first place? The onlookers were thoroughly confused. But one thing was clear—President Gu’s presence was intimidating. No one dared to make a sound.

After all, the senior actors who would usually step in to ease the tension weren’t on set tonight. And the only person who might have had the guts to challenge Gu Xuanze, Ou Yan, merely furrowed his brows and chose not to get involved.

Gu Xuanze, however, acted as if nothing had happened. He glanced at the crew and, without a change in expression, announced, “That’s it for tonight. Everyone, thank you for your hard work.”

With the director gone and the financial backer calling it a night, the rest of the crew naturally scattered. This was obviously the calm before the storm—only a fool would stick around.

Ou Yan glanced at Lu Youze. He was quite interested in staying to watch the drama unfold, but that would make it seem like he actually cared about Lu Youze. So, after standing around for a moment, he left with his assistant.