Chapter 26
This restaurant is close to the scenic spot. The private rooms on the second floor are separated by screens. The window seats offer a clear view of the Chinese-style pavilion and the lake.
Feeling sleepy after a full meal, Shen Li leaned back lazily in her chair, enjoying the beautiful scenery and letting her mind wander, when she saw Luo Mingxiu holding his phone across the room to take pictures.
She raised an eyebrow slightly and laughed at him, "Who takes a picture after they've finished eating all the food?"
"This makes it feel more like everyday life. I'll post it on my WeChat Moments." Luo Mingxiu took a picture of the table with his phone, then tilted it slightly upwards to include Shen Li's hands and clothes in the shot.
He then cropped out Xiaoyu next to Shen Li in the picture, sent it, and checked Li Nan's Moments to make sure he wasn't blocked.
Shen Li found it intriguing, thinking that this kid was actually willing to update his WeChat Moments. After reconnecting with him on WeChat, she hadn't seen him post a single message.
His WeChat Moments have no restrictions; you can view them anytime because there's only one post, which was published three years ago—a picture of a Samoyed.
Shen Li: "I haven't asked you about your dog yet. Is it being kept by Aunt Luo? What's its name?"
Luo Mingxiu: "Yeah, I'm busy filming and don't have time to take care of it. I'll go back to visit during the holidays and Chinese New Year. The name is my WeChat name."
"Shu?" Shen Li took a second to react. "You named your dog a homonym of your name, 'Shu-Shu'?"
Luo Mingxiu nodded, his ears gradually turning red. He had chosen this name so that he could hear such an intimate way of addressing her on this day.
“Shushu, shushu,” Shen Li repeated twice, not noticing that someone’s face was turning red. She chuckled and said, “It’s alright, it’s quite cute. Luckily, my parents and I have never called you that.”
"Besides the one on your WeChat Moments, do you have any other photos or videos? Send them to me."
Actually, she really likes dogs, but because Ms. Shen is allergic to animal fur, her family didn't allow her to keep them when she was young.
Back then, she thought she would definitely raise a pet when she grew up, but as she grew up, she was busy filming all year round. If she raised a pet, she would have to hire someone to take care of it, and she wouldn't be able to give the pet more companionship, so she gradually gave up the idea.
Luo Mingxiu sent a video of his dog playing. In the video, Xiuxiu was biting a toy chick and having a great time.
Shen Li smiled and said, "So cute."
Luo Mingxiu's heart skipped a beat when he saw her smile. He said, "Would you like to visit my home during the Spring Festival? I'd like it to get to know you."
Shen Li: "Sure, I said I would go before."
As she was preparing to head back, Shen Li remembered that Li Nan's car had broken down, so she sent him a message: "You can take Sun Qi's car tonight. I'll tell her I'm heading back now."
Li Nan replied with "Okay," and then sent another message: "Did you have dinner with Luo Mingxiu?"
Shen Li: Yes, we didn't have any night shoots today, so we ate at a restaurant outside.
A minute later, the reply came back: I'm so sad. It's easy for my brother to ask me out, but it's so hard for me to have a meal alone with him.
Shen Li: I wasn't alone with him. Xiao Yu and Xiao Wen were there too.
Shen Li: How could this be so inexplicable? We can just eat whatever we want after the show. You can have it if you want.
There was a long silence on the other end before a reply came: "I'm sorry, I know what happened."
Shen Li tilted her head in confusion and turned off her phone.
After Yuan Haoxuan returned from the hospital, Shen Li and he went up the mountain to reshoot the previous scenes. Afterwards, all the actors in the crew moved to the village at the foot of the mountain to shoot the final group scene with the four main actors and the villains.
As it approached mid-December, the weather grew increasingly cold. In the dead of winter, the actors memorized their lines, their breath steaming in the cold air.
The first snow in Miao villages usually falls around this time of year. Since the filming here didn't require snow scenes, the crew was worried that snow would affect filming. So, the director and editor discussed streamlining some scenes and speeding up the process.
On December 20th, at 10:00 AM, all groups finished filming, and the staff began dismantling the temporary houses and sets.
Sun Qi had to go back to City B to record the TV station's New Year's Eve gala. After finishing work, she ran over to say goodbye to Shen Li and then hurriedly went to catch her flight.
Shen Li turned and walked towards the guesthouse. Seeing Luo Mingxiu following her, she asked him, "Do you have any New Year's Eve plans?"
Luo Mingxiu shook his head and walked alongside her: "No, what about you?"
“I didn’t get a New Year’s Eve party invitation, but I did get a red carpet invitation. Cheng Qingqing turned it down. We can talk about less important events after filming wraps up.” Shen Li said, looking at Luo Mingxiu. “Brands are all very active at the end of the year. You really didn’t receive a single event invitation?”
“No, I’m not good enough for big events, and I don’t think filming is as important as small events,” Luo Mingxiu said, glancing at Shen Li. She had one hand in her pocket and was looking down at her phone with the other, her exposed hand red from the cold.
A hint of heartache flashed in Luo Mingxiu's eyes. He stepped forward, covered her hand, and said, "I had Brother Liang decline the small event. He scheduled all my more important business deals for after the New Year."
A warm feeling enveloped her, and Shen Li's eyelashes fluttered slightly as she looked around. From time to time, fellow actors from the same group passed by and greeted her.
"Oh right, I forgot to put them on after filming," she said, pulling away from Luo Mingxiu, taking out her warm gloves from her pocket and putting them on, then gently scolding him, "There are so many people outside, don't always cover my hands like that."
Luo Mingxiu lowered his hands and blinked twice.
So, is it okay to do this when no one is around?
The next morning, the film crew announced their departure for the next stop: Hengdian World Studios in Southwest China – Cangyun Film and Television City. It would only take five hours to drive there from the Miao village, much closer than the previous trip from H City.
The actors packed their luggage and got into the cars. As their convoy drove out of the intersection of the Miao village, snow began to fall from the sky.
Shen Li sat inside the RV, looking at the snowflakes outside through the glass.
“My God, the timing was so precise. It started snowing right after we left,” Xiaoyu said beside me. “The driver told me this morning that it was a good thing we finished early and set off, otherwise it would have been difficult to drive here after the snow and the roads were paved.”
"This must be metaphysics," Shen Li exclaimed.
As she watched the snow fall thicker and the scenery of the Miao village outside the window rush past, a strange feeling welled up inside her.
Based on weather forecasts and calculations from previous years, we could roughly guess that it would snow around the end of the month, but we didn't know the exact date. So, we sped up the filming and were lucky that we didn't encounter any snow.
Miao villages are inherently mythical places. From the opening ceremony to the completion of filming, the crew did a thorough job in every aspect, protecting the local environment and respecting local customs.
If you don't have any conflicts with people, and you pay homage to this deity, you will receive blessings.
At 12:30 PM, we arrived at Cangyun Film City and checked into the hotel we had booked. Shen Li entered her suite, took a sip of water, and sat down to rest for a while when her stomach started growling.
She turned to Xiaoyu, who had just come in, and said, "I'm too hungry to clean up. Let's order food delivery."
Xiaoyu nodded.
Shen Li looked at her phone. Cheng Qingqing had sent her a message: Li Nan's team agent contacted me to discuss a collaboration. He's planning to cast you as the female lead in a movie next year.
Shen Li: What? He doesn't seem to have mentioned this to me.
Cheng Qingqing: It's a confidential project. We might have been trying to secure investment beforehand, so we can't disclose any information. The screenwriter is Li Fangyuan.
Li Fangyuan and Shen Li knew that it was the screenwriter of her previous period drama. She won the Best Actress award for that drama, and the writer Li also won the Best Screenplay award.
Cheng Qingqing sent me an article: adapted from a true story.
When Shen Li clicked on the news report, it was about a dancer who had an accidental amputation and, after experiencing the pain, returned to the stage with the help of family and friends.
She watched for a while, and then Cheng Qingqing called.
"Hey, I just read it. I'm interested in the story, but..."
Before Shen Li could finish speaking, Cheng Qingqing interrupted her: "It's good that you're interested. Li Nan's last film was nominated for Berlin. It's been so many years since a Chinese-language film was nominated. He's a pretty good director."
“I was just thinking that since you won the Cannes Best Actress award, you haven’t made a film for two years, so it’s a good time to come back and get back into the swing of things.”
Cheng Qingqing finished speaking quickly, and then static came through the receiver: "I'm in the elevator, I'm hanging up."
The call has ended.
Shen Li was speechless. She still had something to say, so she typed a message: "But there are quite a few dance scenes in it. I've never studied dance. When I took the art exam, my physical performance was based on a dance I learned from scratch, which didn't add much to my score."
After typing it, she deleted it. Oh well, she'd talk to Li Nan about it in detail, since they were filming together anyway.
Li Nan didn't leave with the group in the morning; he went to pick up the car, so he'd be a little late. She checked her messages and asked him: "Cheng Qingqing has already told me about the movie. Shall we talk about it sometime? How long will it take you to get there?"
Li Nan: Okay, around six o'clock.
Li Nan: Filming doesn't start until tomorrow, how about we make up for the dinner you owe me tonight?
Shen Li: Great! Perfect timing, we don't have to wait for filming to wrap up. My treat.
Upon arriving in the southwest region, Shen Li's craving for hot pot was rekindled, and she typed: Let's have hot pot, it'll keep us warm.
As soon as the message was sent, a link to a hot pot restaurant was sent over.
Li Nan: I knew you would choose hot pot.
Shen Li smiled and sent a facepalm emoji to end the conversation.
After having lunch with Xiaoyu, Shenli returned to her room. Feeling sleepy, she decided to take a nap to catch up on the sleep she had missed due to her continuous work these past few days.
She set her alarm, making sure she had time to get up and get ready before dinner, then collapsed onto the soft bed and slowly closed her eyes.
In room 702, Luo Mingxiu woke up, turned to his side, reached for his phone on the bedside table, and checked the time. It was 6:10. He got out of bed, walked to his suitcase, and took out a fluffy light yellow scarf.
This is something he crocheted little by little with a crochet hook every day after work or early in the morning when he was in the Miao village.
I wanted to give it to Shen Li so she could wear it.
He opened WeChat and sent a message to the pinned post: "Sister, want to come out for dinner? I have something to give you."
Shen Li replied: I made an appointment with Li Nan for dinner. What is it?
Upon seeing this reply, Luo Mingxiu paused for a moment. Sure enough, that person would have to eat sooner or later.
He tried to ignore the gloom in his heart and replied: "A scarf, which I knitted myself."
Shen Li: When did you knit this? I'll come back and get it from you. I have to go out now.
Luo Mingxiu tightened his lips, took a picture of the scarf, sent it, and quickly typed a message trying to persuade the girl to stay.
Luo Mingxiu: I want to see you wear it; it's very warm.
Luo Mingxiu: Your support color suits you very well.
Shen Li looked at the picture, then at herself, who already had a camel-colored scarf draped over her shoulders. She reached out, took it off, tossed it onto the sofa, grabbed her bag, and went out.
As she walked, she replied to Luo Mingxiu: Okay, I'll come downstairs to get it.
Shen Li pressed the room number sent by Luo Mingxiu, pressed the seventh floor, and saw him standing there waiting as soon as she got out of the elevator.
Luo Mingxiu turned around at the sound and saw Shen Li wearing an apricot-colored down jacket, her makeup exquisite and radiant. He was slightly taken aback, then pursed his lips and looked away.
He walked over and put the scarf on her. Seeing her beautiful neck covered, he felt a pang of sadness at the thought of her dressed so beautifully, yet going to have dinner with Li Nan.
"Satisfied?" Shen Li's lips curled up slightly, a hint of helplessness in her expression. "Are you a knitting man descended to earth? You're so busy filming, yet you still have time to knit me a scarf. Aren't you tired?"
"Not tired." Luo Mingxiu stared at her, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Beautiful."
"Alright, I won't say any more thanks," Shen Li patted him on the shoulder, "I'm leaving."
Luo Mingxiu opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something, but the elevator doors opened and the woman left like a gust of wind. He stood alone in front of the empty space and said to the closed metal door, "Come back soon."
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