1869 I have someone waiting for me at home.

Though the oversized military jacket was draped on her flimsy filming outfit, the actress was still shivering from the cold.

Just then, her assistant came storming back and stomping her foot in rage. "Shishi, it won't be your turn anytime soon. Right now, the director is giving Lin Zhi a good dressing-down for her incompetence and for slowing the filming progress. No one dares to utter a word due to the tense atmosphere on set. We don't know how long it's gonna take, so why don't you return to the dressing room first to hide from the wind? It's freezing out here. We don't want you catching a cold."

"It's fine." She shook her head as she wrapped her hands around the cup of hot beverage. "It might end anytime soon. The director is bound to fly into a rage again if he can't find me when it's my turn to act."

Mu Xi felt exasperated and heartache for her. "The weather is so cold, though, and you have a weak body constitution. What happens if you fall sick because your body can't withstand the cold?"

The artist, however, said, "I'm not the only one waiting—everyone else is, too, but I don't see them complaining about it. Let's just patiently wait for our turn!"

"That's true; if you go seeking comfort in the dressing room, someone might start spreading rumors of you saying that you're being self-important!" As she spoke, the assistant shot Lin Zhi's aide, who was standing nearby, a meaningful glance.

The two assistants snorted upon noticing the other looking over.

Being assistants of the main lead and the supporting character, they naturally never saw eye to eye and were at loggerheads with each other. As such, conflicts often arose among them whenever they met one another on set.

In any case, the rookie actress had already decided to remain on her spot as she waited patiently for her turn.

Still, one could really not help but be impressed with the female lead's dilly-dallying and her slow progress. Three or so hours had already passed, yet she was still not done filming that one simple scene.

Her low tolerance level for the harsh, cold weather condition had the actress shivering throughout the filming. Her voice even trembled when she read her lines, which infuriated Gu Shaoyang so much that he gave her a harsh tongue-lashing in front of the rest of the crew.

When Mu Xi witnessed this, she warned her charge in a hushed voice, "You'd better be at your best condition later! With the director in a foul mood, you'll be flayed alive if he vents his anger on you!"

"Understood! I'll try to wrap things up in one take."

The artist thought, My man is at home waiting for my return; I'll have to give it my best shot and strive to finish the shoot in one take.

Meanwhile, her co-actor remained silent throughout the wait, and no one knew what was on his mind.

It was already midnight by the time Lin Zhi finished doing her scene.

The assistant snickered to her charge when she noticed that. "Look at her; her reconstructed nose is about to fall off from the cold!"

"Watch your words, Mu Xi!"

"He he. Alright!"

Moments later, the log-keeper came over to notify them. "Please get ready for your scene. Filming will commence in ten minutes."

"Got it. Thanks!" replied the actress.

The log-keeper returned a smile before rushing elsewhere to inform the extras about it.

When it came to her turn, the rookie actress fully concentrated on her acting. Everything was on point, be it placement, line-reading, facial expression, or acting.

The filming ran smoothly until it was Hua Jin's turn to act. The problem laid with him either being distracted or having forgotten his lines.

He did not have many lines for that scene, though, and given his usual capabilities, he could easily get through it with one take.

This time, however, he had three bad takes in just a span of half an hour.

The director exploded in fury right there and then.

"Just what is wrong with you?! What's with your line-reading and positioning? Have you no eyes to see where you're going?! Has the cold weather rendered your tongue stiff and cold, too?! How many repeats have you done for those few lines?! Are you bent on making us suffer the cold with you?!"