CH 65

Shifu, as a matter of course, didn’t listen to Lian Qing’s explanation.

Before Lian Qing could explain, the master snorted angrily and said, “Traitor! If you weren’t out of my sight, I would have beaten you with a broom!”

“No, Shifu, please listen to me…” Lian Qing urgently tried to defend himself.

“I won’t listen! You, brat, recite the Heart Sutra ten times for me! If you can’t finish reciting it, don’t contact me again!”

As soon as the master finished speaking, he cruelly hung up the video call without giving Lian Qing a chance.

Lian Qing: “…” 

He was so wronged! He just wanted to ask if the master knew any reliable Taoists, hoping they could help him get a talisman to solve his love problem. Since the Buddhists couldn’t help him with his emotional difficulties, he was desperate!

Tiny Monk Lian Sang sighed like an adult, resting his chin on his hand. “Shixiong, you made Shifu angry.”

Lian Qing hugged him and comforted him, “It’s alright. As long as I have you, I’m not afraid that Shifu won’t initiate a video call with me.”

Tiny Monk, “Shixiong, you’re mischievous.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. I’m a good person! Unfortunately, good people are often wronged…” Lian Qing said, and Lian Sang didn’t quite understand it, but he didn’t mind. He was more concerned about something else.

“Shixiong, do you like Rourou Jiejie?” Zhao Rourou was the sister who had a romantic relationship with his shixiong in the drama, and of course, the little guy thought of her.

Lian Qing rubbed his little bald head and said, “No, it’s not her.”

“Then who is it…? Is it Yu gege?” 

Lian Qing was surprised and asked, “How did you think of him?” Had his thoughts become so obvious that even a three-year-old could see through them?

“Because you dreamt of Yu gege a few days ago and called out his name,” the little guy hugged his own foot and said, “Shixiong, do you like Yu gege? Are you in love with him?”

Lian Qing fell silent for a while before saying with a bitter smile, “Uh-huh…”

“Boys can also like boys…” The little guy innocently touched his own little bald head.

“All sentient beings are equal,” Lian Qing replied.

The little one nodded in understanding and said, “I also want to talk to big brother on video. Can we do that?”

Lian Qing naturally refused, “No, Xiao San’er.”

“Why not? Shixiong, don’t you like Yu gege?” 

Lian Qing sighed, “But liking him is my own business. If he accidentally finds out, it will bring him trouble.”

“But I think big brother also likes Shixiong.”

Lian Qing smiled and pinched the little one’s nose helplessly, “It’s not the same. Just like how I like you and like him, they’re both likes, but they’re different.”

The little one didn’t fully understand and could only express disappointment, “Okay…” He couldn’t talk to big brother on video anymore.

After some thought, Lian Qing reminded the little one, “I like big brother, but don’t tell anyone, okay? I don’t want to bring him trouble.”

“I know, Shixiong. I’ll keep your secret!” The little one patted his chest.

“Good boy, go to sleep.”

The little one crawled under the covers and muttered to himself as he covered himself, “The world of adults is really complicated!”

Lian Qing, who could hear everything clearly, felt complicated inside.

After the little one fell asleep, Lian Qing reluctantly got up and went to find the screenwriter for a blank notebook and a pen.

“Don’t work too hard. You can read the script during the day. You need enough sleep to make better works.” Jianghu Qingchang reminded him as she handed him the paper and pen.

Mainly because Lian Qing had a history of always holding onto the script. She even heard from his shidi, that kid, that Lian Qing would still read the script before going to bed at night.

Dedication was a good thing, but she always worried that Lian Qing would tire himself out. Since entering the crew, this person’s already thin build seemed to have lost even more weight. Although it would look better on camera, it still made people worry, especially since he had just recovered from an illness before joining the crew.

Seeing the caring look from the young lady, Lian Qing didn’t have the heart to lie and say he was going back to read the script. He looked around and whispered, “Actually, I’m not going back to read the script now. I’m going back to recite Buddhist scriptures.”

“Reciting Buddhist scriptures? Is this your morning and evening class as monks?” The young lady widened her eyes and couldn’t help but chuckle.

“Don’t laugh, I’m serious. I have to copy the scriptures, otherwise my Shifu won’t talk to me.” 

“Haha, okay, I won’t laugh. Hurry and go then!” 

Lian Qing thanked her and hurried back to his room to slowly recite the scriptures. He didn’t have to write too much since his master knew him well enough. As long as he did the superficial work, it would be enough to give his master face. If he really copied a lot, his master might feel sorry for him.

Given the fierce reaction of the master when he asked for the talisman, Lian Qing didn’t dare to mention this kind of thing again.

After pleasing the master, he once again devoted himself wholeheartedly to acting. However, as he became more and more proficient in portraying Zhao Rourou as Yu Wenning, his longing for Yu Wenning grew stronger.

Originally, he threw himself completely into acting to keep himself from thinking about his big brother and to cool off his inappropriate thoughts. But now, it had backfired. The feelings he had kept bottled up were now fermenting and intensifying. What a mess!

The more Lian Qing acted, the more distressed he became. His face grew colder, and his aura became more chilling. Fortunately, as the plot progressed and the character of Shuang Chi was separated from his lover,Lian  Qing’s behavior was interpreted as getting too into character, and no one suspected anything.

It wasn’t until he acted in that scene where Shuang Chi stood under the withered tree in the moonlight, looking up at the unattainable moon and whispering, “Will you… come back?”

As the words fell, a tear rolled down his cheek. The sorrow, the love, and the faint hint of despair were all there.

Even after the director yelled cut, Lian Qing couldn’t snap out of character. For a moment, he couldn’t tell if he was Shuang Chi or himself. But one thing was certain – he missed Yu Wenning too much.

Jianghu Qingchang approached him and asked softly, “Are you okay?”

Lian Qing nodded silently, his eyes red.

“That tear you shed just now was perfect. Why don’t you go wash your face and calm down?” Jianghu Qingchang suggested.

Her script didn’t call for tears, but Lian Qing shed one naturally during the performance. Just one tear, not too many, not too few.

As the original author, Jianghu Qingchang couldn’t help but think that after the broadcast, this tear would drip straight into the audience’s hearts…

Shuang Chi’s character was young, handsome, and powerful, with a cold and stern demeanor. However, after meeting his destined lover, the unique tenderness he showed made people fall in love with him.

Who wouldn’t want a lover like that – someone who’s aloof to others but tender and indulgent to you, willing to do anything for you, and willing to break the rules for you?

Everyone wants to be the one and only person in someone else’s heart, and that’s also one of the reasons why there are so many fans of Master Shuangchi.

Lian Qing acted better than she imagined, and was even more in tune with Master Shuangchi. She couldn’t help but think about the love in the world, and with just that one tear, all the voices of doubt disappeared.

The director came over, but didn’t comfort Lian Qing much, and just asked him to take a break on the side. Immersing oneself in the role is something that actors have to learn to do on their own sooner or later.

Lian Qing didn’t rest for too long, as he couldn’t keep the whole crew waiting for him! So after taking a deep breath and adjusting his mindset, he went back on stage again.

Several days passed before they finished filming the indoor scenes, and the director waved his hand to move everyone to the outdoor set.

After much hesitation, Lian Qing brought Little Lian Sang along. With Chen Qi watching, nothing should go wrong.

Their first outdoor scene was one that is unavoidable in ten historical dramas – falling off a cliff.

This scene is not easy to shoot. Firstly, there is a high risk factor, and secondly, it’s easy to have NGs due to various reasons.

Zhao Rourou happened to be on her period and didn’t want to take the risk, so she asked the director to use a stunt double for this scene.

This is very common in the industry, as stunt doubles exist to complete difficult scenes on behalf of the actors. Zhao Rourou is usually quite dedicated to her work and rarely uses stunt doubles, so the director didn’t make things difficult for her.

The director looked at Lian Qing and asked, “Do you need a stunt double?”

Lian Qing shook his head and said, “No, I can do it.”

The director was quite confident in Lian Qing, as he is much better at martial arts than the martial arts instructor hired by the crew. He never used a stunt double for fight scenes, and he learned the movements faster and fought better than the stunt doubles.

He’s a star who doesn’t need stunt doubles!

After all safety measures were in place, including the wire rigging, the director shouted “action”. The female stunt-double jumped backwards off the cliff.

The handsome man dressed in white showed a rare look of panic on his face and followed the woman, jumping off the cliff…

This scene took five NGs to get right. Two were due to the stunt double not being able to control her body well and having an awkward posture. One was because the wind was too strong and blocked Lian Qing’s face, and the other two were because the wire rigging was released too quickly, causing Lian Qing to miss the stunt double.

Everyone was mentally prepared for multiple NGs, but no one showed impatience. When the director shouted “action” again, Lian Qing jumped off the cliff once more.

This time, he successfully grabbed the waist of the stunt-double in mid-air. Feeling happy, he was about to change his position, but unexpectedly the female stunt-double moved, causing her to lose control and swing back and forth in mid-air along with Lian Qing.

The person on the tightrope tried hard to control the stand, but the stand held by Lian Qing kept moving uncontrollably, making it difficult to maintain balance.

Lian Qing quickly shouted to the stand, “Don’t move, calm down…”

But the more he shouted, the more agitated the stand became.

“I can’t do it. It’s even more difficult than last time. I’m scared…”

“Relax, I’m here. Don’t move…”

The female stunt double wouldn’t listen to Lian Qing’s words at all. Using both hands and feet, she kept struggling and ended up entangling herself with Lian Qing on the tightrope. It was now completely out of control.

The female stunt double became more and more panicked and struggled even harder, accidentally causing both her and Lian Qing to hit the cliff.

In a critical moment, Lian Qing quickly grabbed onto the cliff with one hand, while using his other hand to turn his body and pull the female stand in front of him.

Accompanied by a muffled friction sound, Lian Qing couldn’t help but groan in pain.