Chapter 91 (The End of Filming)

Back in her room, Yu Shuling didn't rush to sleep. Instead, she opened her laptop and started thinking.

Lyra has been in the industry for five years.

Most idol groups in the Chinese entertainment industry are formed through talent shows, and they usually disband and go their separate ways after two years of debut. Some even start acting shortly after their debut, spending far less time on stage than on set. Although Lyra has achieved remarkable success, her company has decided that she should also focus on her solo career.

Kawana specializes in dance and has participated in many choreography projects. Lin Yujie, Li Song, and Zhong Xinfan are all involved in composing music, but Yu Shuling has not yet been involved in songwriting.

According to her agent, Sister Qian, once the filming of this drama is completed in the first half of the year, she plans to prepare a solo album for her as a trial run. The album will be officially released after the new drama airs, taking advantage of the drama's popularity. The two will complement each other.

The company has always respected their ideas and doesn't make decisions unilaterally. It will definitely give Yu Shuling some freedom in terms of solo performances and provide her with a stage to showcase herself as much as possible.

Yu Shuling herself is skilled in many classical instruments, after all, she was the daughter of a wealthy family, and learning the arts was a must. However, she is still catching up on modern music theory. Sister Qian gave her the opportunity for her first solo performance, not only because she valued Yu Shuling's popularity, but also because she had some expectations for her. Yu Shuling was quite excited.

This means that she can release songs that are entirely her own and produce her own albums.

I feel quite happy no matter how I look at it.

**

After that night, Yu Shuling noticed that Jiang Wenxi's attitude towards her was a bit strange.

That day, Jiang Wenxi made a rare trip off the set. When she came back, she brought back several boxes of apples, which her assistant carried behind her with great effort. She gave two apples to each of the lead actors. They were beautiful red Fuji apples, large and round, with a moist red color, and they looked very sweet.

"This is a specialty from my hometown. Please try it and see what you think." Jiang Wenxi smiled very approachably. "My family will be visiting the set in a couple of days. If you like it, I'll bring you some other things then."

The apples looked beautiful, clearly carefully selected and packaged. Each one was sealed in a bubble wrap box, so it would be perfectly acceptable to give them individually. Yu Shuling received not only two apples, but also a simple red heart-shaped greeting card, adorned with tassels—simple yet elegant.

Yu Shuling stared at the machine-printed greeting card, bewildered. She eventually tossed it aside and munched on two apples for dinner. The next day, she saw Jiang Wenxi with a resentful look in his eyes.

"Yu Shuling." Taking advantage of a break in today's filming, Jiang Wenxi, still wearing her makeup, walked straight up to her and asked bluntly, "Do you have a problem with me?"

"You have a problem with that?" Yu Shuling was reading the script when she heard this. She looked up, her clear eyes clearly showing her confusion. "What do you mean?"

Jiang Wenxi was taken aback by her words.

He asked directly, expecting Yu Shuling to at least engage in some rounds of witty banter before he could answer as a joke. However, he was surprised to find that Yu Shuling was also very direct, seemingly gentle but actually giving him no room for maneuver.

Jiang Wenxi could only bite the bullet and say:

"I just feel that as the male and female leads, we should at least have some interaction, not only in the drama but also outside of it." He paused, thinking that Yu Shuling would rather play cards with the second male and female leads than even participate in his vlog interactions, and a faint gloom appeared in his deep eyes, but he still found a high-sounding reason for himself, "I want to be responsible to the audience."

Yu Shuling listened attentively with her hands folded, and by the end she couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing, but she was afraid that Jiang Wenxi would find fault with her if she laughed out loud, so she pursed her lips and held it in.

"Hmm, what you said makes some sense."

She put down the script, picked up her phone, switched to selfie mode, and gestured for Jiang Wenxi to be in the frame. The moment he got close, she suddenly hooked her arm around Jiang Wenxi's neck.

Even in the drama, the two rarely had such intimate moments. Jiang Wenxi could smell the faint perfume on the girl, which was fresh and rich like Darjeeling tea, perfectly matching her temperament. The wisps of tea fragrance drifted into his nostrils. The girl's slender arms were wrapped around his neck, intimate and tight.

Jiang Wenxi subconsciously took a few photos with a stiff body. When Yu Shuling parted from him, the warm touch had a lingering feeling.

According to the company, since Jiang Wenxi had already accepted the role, they should simply create hype with Yu Shuling to generate buzz and further boost his popularity. He's been in the industry longer and finally climbed to the top tier; to maintain that position, he needs to constantly generate buzz, whether it's positive or negative attention.

After some hesitation, Jiang Wenxi agreed, but Yu Shuling didn't really appreciate it, and her so-called "business" was limited to sending out some photos.

After the campus storyline ended, there was a scene where the group went on a trip to Northwest China, riding horses across the grasslands. This was a sweet moment after the male and female leads confirmed their relationship, and also a turning point where the second male and female leads reconciled after their argument. To make the scenes more realistic, the production team didn't use a green screen but filmed on location.

Originally, the lead actors had all been taught how to ride horses, and the scene would be cut off when it reached a distant shot, so the filming time was not long. But an accident happened at this crucial moment.

Yu Shuling and Jiang Wenxi rode together on a horse. The horse was beautiful, but it had a rather unruly temperament. They had already made preparations for the day and everything was fine until the horse trainer stepped back for a moment, at which point the horse threw a tantrum.

The two on horseback didn't take any safety precautions because they were filming; they only added some soft cloth to areas prone to injury. Jiang Wenxi had ridden horses before, but had never encountered this situation before. Startled by the sudden, violent jolting, she was about to fall. She could only instinctively grip the horse's sides tightly and hold onto Yu Shuling in her arms, pushing her forward.

Yu Shuling quickly shook off his hand, yanked the reins sharply, and instead of holding the saddle with her other hand, stroked the horse's mane to soothe it. In the midst of the dangerous and ever-changing situation, Jiang Wenxi stared intently at her profile, his breathing ragged, but he miraculously calmed down a little.

"Jiang Wenxi!"

Ever since seeing Jiang Wenxi getting close to Yu Shuling on set, Qi Xiuxiu couldn't stand it anymore and cut off all contact with Jiang Wenxi. She originally thought Jiang Wenxi would take the initiative to coax her, and Jiang Wenxi did seem to have that intention at first, but for some reason, when it came time to put it into action, he lost that impulse.

The tension between the two gradually cooled down.

But seeing Jiang Wenxi in danger, Qi Xiuxiu couldn't help but cry out, and tears almost welled up in her eyes.

The crew was equally frightened and rushed to their aid, but Yu Shuling had already calmed the rampaging horse before them. Following her instructions, Jiang Wenxi held her tightly around the waist from behind, his heart filled with mixed emotions.

When the production crew led the runaway horse away and let the two rest and adjust, and apologized repeatedly, Qi Xiuxiu couldn't help but impulsively run forward, but then stopped in place, biting her lip.

Jiang Wenxi didn't notice Qi Xiuxiu standing not far away, staring at him. He used to always look at her, but his habit had changed without him realizing it.

Yu Shuling did see it, but since she was a vicious cannon fodder, she naturally wouldn't remind him. She simply responded to Jiang Wenxi's concern with a faint sound.

This was the first time Jiang Wenxi had felt genuine guilt towards her.

He was the one riding the horse at the time, and if it weren't for Yu Shuling, he might already be in the hospital. Shame and a complex mix of emotions—the feeling of being rescued by a girl—gradually began to grow within him. It wouldn't have mattered if it were any other girl, but it was this one whose feelings were so complicated for him.

Qi Xiuxiu stared greedily at Jiang Wenxi for a long time, but received no response. Her initial enthusiasm gradually cooled down that day. She felt somewhat wronged and almost suspected that Jiang Wenxi had fallen for Yu Shuling. However, although she didn't like Yu Shuling, the female lead was, after all, the female lead, and she didn't have any bad intentions at heart. Her dislike was just that—dislike.

As the timeline progresses in the script, the relationship between the male and female leads grows increasingly passionate, as sweet as honey. However, the actress playing the female lead is always able to decisively withdraw after each cut, leaving the other in the sweet utopia she has constructed.

Jiang Wenxi felt like she understood why so many actors develop feelings for each other while filming. Two people who spend every day together are acting out a sweet script, and all the intimate emotions have to be carefully experienced. This has nothing to do with professionalism. On the contrary, it is cruel to quickly separate them.

Perhaps it was long ago, when his misunderstanding of Yu Shuling was cleared up, and he watched Lyra rise little by little to a height that was comparable to or even competitive with his, that he had a different feeling.

Perhaps because of her rich experiences in both past and present lives, Yu Shuling, while immersing herself in her roles, always maintains a clear distinction between her own life and that of the character. She doesn't let this blur the lines between reality and fiction, and she dislikes creating unnecessary fantasies for the audience before the on-screen pairing becomes an ugly mess.

However, on the day of the wrap party, Yu Shuling still clinked glasses with Jiang Wenxi and Qi Xiuxiu.

The system notification indicated that the female lead had lost her original aura. As she sadly left the stage, the male lead was the one chosen by her. Jiang Wenxi had also lost her special treatment, and everything returned to the normal world.

She no longer needs to worry about the absurd things from the original storyline happening.

After filming the TV series ended, Yu Shuling began to devote herself to her creative work. She only rested for two days during the holiday before she started to get restless again.

The entertainment industry is much more fun than the old, square palace. Yu Shuling is enjoying it immensely and wishes she could become a workaholic, dedicating 48 hours a day to it.

Time flies by in the midst of busyness, and just as the new album and new drama are about to be released, a storm of rumors also arrives.

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Author's Note: Countdown to the End