158 The Wire is Nothing

The acrobatic fighting scenes were complicated. They had to repeat the same scene many times.

The first time, Qin Guan looked alive and happy as he was watching them. The second time, he was serious. The third time, it was really hot. The fourth and fifth time, it was like a dried fish was lying on the throne under the sunlight.

God! Who would save poor Yang Lianting? People seemed to guess his heartfelt wish. Finally, Xu Qing rolled Qin Guan up. In the next scene, he would be hanging up from a wire.

It was his first time trying high-tech props. The special effects group tried to move the mobile block, but Qin Guan felt uncomfortable. The audience would just see the handsome actors on the screen, but the actors themselves felt terrible while filming it.

In the scene, Qin Guan had to slide backwards and hit a pillar. To make the strike look more horrifying, he had to spit a mouthful of water.

Before the director could shout "Camera!", Qin Guan gestured for a break. Sister Xue, who was standing beside him, hastened to give him a bottle of water.

After drinking more than half of it, Qin Guan felt refreshed. If he had been dehydrated like that, he would not have spit out water, but blood.

Qin Guan turned around and saw that all the actors had taken this chance to rest. He had to hold on to the equipment though.

He leant weakly against the artificial hill and waited for a full 10 minutes before the crew was done. Then they moved on to the next scene.

This was the last scene for him. When it was over, he would get another bonus.

"On your marks! Special effects! Three, two, camera!"

The machine rolled at high speed, pulling Qin Guan backwards. Bang! Qin Guan's back hit the pillar hard.

Director Zhang looked through the lens. Qin Guan had not spit the water out in time. He waved at everyone. Another take!

Bang! Another heavy hit. Teacher Mao couldn't bear to watch. Fortunately, Qin Guan had learned something from Mou Xiaoliu. He tightened the muscles on his back. His back was slightly red after the hits, but there was no wound.

The scene was repeated three times before Director Zhang was satisfied. The onlookers now had a better opinion of Qin Guan. He was a good-looking, smart, hard-working boy after all.

Anyone who was steadfast in their work was welcome everywhere. Teacher Mao seemed concerned about Qin Guan, while Ren Woxing patted his shoulder in encouragement. Was I just unintentionally accepted by another teacher? Yay!

Then Qin Guan's character died. A sword went through Yang Lianting's heart, and he fell down gracefully before he was covered by petals. Dongfang looked down at him. Yang died with a calm expression on his face, as if he had just fallen asleep. Flowers were still floating around him. It was a visually beautiful scene.

Fresh red blood flowed out of the corners of Qin Guan's mouth. The dying Dongfang caressed Qin Guan's chest and uttered his final words on earth, "I love you, Brother Lian."

Then he collapsed into his lover's arms with a smile, and they died in each other's embrace.

Dongfang had to fall into Yang's arms from a high place, but as a dead man, Qin Guan had to remain still.

The stunt double hit Qin Guan hard.

Bang! Qin Guan's small feet jerked slightly, which satisfied the director. See? He is really devoted to his work, even when he’s pretending to be a corpse!

I’m really jerking from the hit, not because that’s the normal reaction of a corpse. Qin Guan closed his eyes and endured the pain, waiting for Teacher Mao to replace the stunt double. Luckily, her weight was more bearable.

"Hold on till Dongfang dies!" Sister Xue encouraged Qin Guan in a low voice. Qin Guan held his breath. Mao's face touched his chest for a few seconds before Director Zhang shouted, "Cut!"

It was the most beautiful voice he’d ever heard. Qin Guan stood up immediately, holding his stomach dramatically. The most difficult scene had finally been finished.

He looked at the other actors. Judging by the progress of the shooting, the play would most likely finish in late September.

Sister Xue went to get Qin Guan’s bonus. It had taken several days to finish his two short scenes. It was really hard work.

Teacher Mao’s scenes were also finished at the same time. The two of them had become friends in a few days.

As a newcomer from the modeling circle, Qin Guan had gotten to know Director Zhang, and he felt proud of himself for that. After receiving the crew’s praise, he returned to the capital without a stop.

His girlfriend was waiting for him at home anxiously. He wondered if Cong Nianwei had been longing to see him while he’d been gone.

He was obviously overthinking. He sneaked inside his nest only to find that the rooms were clean. There were no living traces inside his bedroom.

There was no one in the bathroom either. There was only a bowl of leftover fried rice in a plastic wrap in the fridge, indicating Cong Nianwei's presence.

Qin Guan smelt it. It's fresh. It must have been cooked recently. He noticed that the groceries in the fridge were different. He had been gone for more than ten days after all.

The light of the sunset was shining down on the balcony outside the living room. The lock was opened with a clang, and Cong Nianwei opened the door slowly with two bags of fruit and vegetables in her hands.

Qin Guan opened his arms wide for Cong Nianwei, who was dressed casually, and shouted enthusiastically, "Surprise!"

"God! You scared me!" Cong Nianwei looked frightened. Her bags fell down and several potatoes rolled out of them.

She stared at Qin Guan angrily. "Come help me!"

This is not in the script. Generally speaking, when a male actor on TV opens his arms, his girlfriend runs up to him like a bird! Yet this is what I get!

Cong Nianwei went into the kitchen as if she was in her own house. "Wash and clean the vegetables. You can steam the fried rice that’s in the fridge. I made it this noon. I thought that if you returned late this evening and I was not in, you could have some homemade food," she told Qin Guan.