Envy is envy, but you still have to walk your own path. Shang Yechu felt she had said everything she could, and unable to resist the drowsiness any longer, she tilted her head and fell fast asleep.

Gu Wenhua stared blankly at Shang Yechu, and for some reason, slowly put down the trophy he had been holding in his arms.

----------

Shang Yechu returned to the film crew.

The Best Newcomer Award at the Ying Shi Awards caused a small ripple in the industry—mainly among Shang Yechu's fandom. At this difficult time, any small piece of positive news is a tremendous encouragement to her fans.

Before leaving, Ji Juntao mentioned to Shang Yechu that the war between Yeya and the ivy sisters had turned into a protracted tug-of-war. Although Yeya was being beaten to a pulp, she was very tenacious, and there was always a group of people who did not run away and persisted on the front line.

The ivy vines haven't encountered such a tenacious opponent in a long time, since Luan Qing's fans. The battle gradually shifted from an initial one-sided domination to a situation of frequent urination, urgency, and incomplete urination.

All fan wars eventually turn out like this, which doesn't surprise Shang Yechu.

The first person to warmly welcome Shang Yechu back to the crew was Shi Shan. He was also the only one in the entire crew who still treated Shang Yechu well.

"Here, an autograph." Shang Yechu handed over the card signed by director Park Se-jin.

It was rather impolite of Shang Yechu to give Shi Shan an autograph but have it signed on Gu Wenhua's business card. To avoid making the autograph seem too perfunctory, Shang Yechu asked Gu Wenhua for another business card, put the two sides with Gu Wenhua's name together, and glued them on.

In this way, the autograph card became a slightly thicker double-layered white card. Park Se-jin's name was neatly laid out on it, and it looked quite presentable.

Shi Shan held the card in his hand, turning it over and over to examine it: "Why does this autographed card have two layers?"

Shang Yechu blurted out, "Would you like some of the special autographed cards that were specially provided for the Ying Shi Awards gala? My boss has a few left."

Shi Shan was well aware of his image in Ji Juntao's eyes, and pleaded, "Forget it. Consider this a small souvenir for you. My participation in the fun is enough."

Shang Yechu remained noncommittal. Shi Shan carefully examined Shang Yechu for a moment, then suddenly smiled and said, "You look much better now than you did two days ago. Are you in a better mood?"

“Yes,” Shang Yechu said slowly, “Power is the best tonic for officials, and box office and awards are our best tonics. I’m so good at it.”

Shang Yechu seemed more at ease in front of him than before.

Shi Shan realized this and couldn't help but smile even more gently: "Would you feel better if I told you some more good news?"

Shang Yechu turned her head and brushed her gaze from Shi Shan's toes to his face: "What good news?"

Despite being scrutinized by Shang Yechu, Shi Shan showed no discomfort and continued to smile calmly: "Director Xu meant that you kept getting stuck in that scene before, probably because the set was too simple and you couldn't get into character. During the two days you were gone, the crew specially rented the Ruguan Grand Theater for actual filming, and they even invited—guess who they invited?"

Shang Yechu cooperated, asking, "Who?"

Shi Shan didn't keep anyone in suspense: "A Kunqu Opera master, Teacher Hai Shang Ke."

Shang Yechu vaguely remembered the name. After reading the script, Shang Yechu had searched online for the lines that appeared in the script, and the search results included the phrase "sea guest".

Hai Shangke is a renowned contemporary Kunqu Opera performer, specializing in Kunqu martial arts roles and red-faced roles, a truly distinguished performing artist.

Ruguan TV is really rich and powerful.

Shang Yechu murmured these words involuntarily, and Shi Shan smiled upon hearing this: "Actually, the production team had already invited Mr. Hai Shangke before filming even started. However, he was very busy and couldn't make it. So, he just finished attending the opera festival and came straight to our production team."

Shang Yechu pinched her palm, revealing a hint of nervousness: "I was feeling much better, but after you said that, my heart is starting to race again."

“Although I don’t want to say it like this…” Shi Shan put his hands in his pockets and chatted with Shang Yechu as they walked, “However, I heard that Teacher Hai Shangke is leaving Ruguan the day after tomorrow to participate in a Peking Opera event in Shengjing. You really should be in a hurry.”

Shang Yechu turned her head, her breathing becoming more rapid: "So rushed?"

"It's just a rumor." Shi Shanchong cast a sympathetic glance at Shang Yechu. "I checked, and Teacher Hai's name is indeed on the list for that Pear Garden Competition."

Cutting out the beginning and end, the sea traveler spent less than a day on the set!

--------

"Cut!"

"NG!"

"Stop, stop, stop! What are you acting out?"

"If this is all the quality we have, I think we should just call it a day. Anyway, there's practically no difference between calling it a day now and calling it a day later!"

The change of environment did not make filming this scene go smoothly. On Shang Yechu's first morning back at work, they had to do four takes.

Now, without anyone asking, all the actors and staff present looked at Shang Yechu differently.

Xue Haodong, who plays Lu Huaizhang, is already quite old, and all this back-and-forth is taking its toll.

"Xiao Ye," Xue Haodong's tone carried a hint of complaint, "you need to really understand the script! It's fine if I have to repeat my lines a few more times, but our production schedule has already been delayed quite a bit!"

In fact, Shang Yechu already knew every word of this script by heart. Among the people present, even Zheng Bohan was not more familiar with this plot than Shang Yechu.

Shang Yechu lowered her head slightly, her voice tinged with guilt: "I'm sorry, Teacher Xue, I need to get back into the right mindset."

The crew took a short break, and as Shang Yechu was engrossed in reading the script, a small gasp of surprise rang out.

Shang Yechu peeked out and saw an elderly man with white hair and beard, leaning on a cane, walking in through the main entrance of the theater, accompanied by Xu Hanwen and Shi Shan. The crowd parted automatically, as if brushed aside, making way for them.

The renowned Kunqu Opera master, Hai Shangke, whom Ruguan TV had spent a great deal of money and effort to invite, has finally arrived at the film crew.