Chapter 63 Chapter 63 Film Investors
Chapter 63
Xia Nuan quickly got out of Ji Mian's arms. She looked around and gave Ji Mian a rather unpleasant look. "Hey, this is a public place, be careful of the camera."
Ji Mian blinked. "Only the director and I know about your itinerary this time. Not even my assistant knows. If someone could even come to arrest you, then the traitor must be either the director or me."
Xia Nuan was amused by his tone, "Okay, okay, I can't argue with you."
Ji Mian took Xia Nuan's luggage and the two walked out of the airport side by side.
Xia Nuan looked around and looked at Ji Mian in confusion, "Where's my assistant? Have you seen her? Wasn't she following behind just now?"
A sly smile flashed across Ji Mian's eyes. He coughed twice and avoided Xia Nuan's gaze. "I just sent her a red envelope and told her to take a taxi there. Don't blame her. I was the one who threatened her."
Xia Nuan rubbed her temples, not knowing what to say. Finally, she gave Ji Mian a speechless look, quickened her pace, and passed him.
Ji Mian's smiling voice came from behind Xia Nuan, and he kindly reminded her, "Ah Nuan, you're going the wrong way. My car is over there."
The filming location this time was a small town, over 70 kilometers from the airport, a two-hour drive. The closer we got to the location, the more desolate the scenery became. Even though it was still late summer or early autumn, the colors here were darker than elsewhere.
Ji Mian introduced the current situation of the crew. The scenes in the small town are nearing completion, and including Xia Nuan's scenes, it will be completed in about a week.
Ji Mian jokingly said, "Teacher Xia is a super star now, so all the scenes will have to be filmed with Teacher Xia first. According to the director's plan, we will then move to the capital, and finally to the university town to shoot the remaining scenes."
Xia Nuan glanced at him, shrugged, and said with a smile, "Since it's Teacher Ji who's picking us up personally, if I'm not a big shot, wouldn't that be a disgrace to Teacher Ji?"
The air conditioning temperature in the car was just right. The two talked for a while, and Xia Nuan fell asleep unknowingly.
When she woke up, she was only a dozen kilometers away from the town where the crew was located. Xia Nuan stretched and yawned.
"It'll probably be there in half an hour. If you're still sleepy, you can sleep a little longer."
Xia Nuan rubbed her eyes, her gaze focused as she suddenly remembered something and instantly woke up. "I was thinking about something on the plane just now, but I forgot it as soon as I got off. Did you carefully review the character design of the male lead before accepting this movie? I don't know if I'm overthinking it, but the male lead's lines are fine in other parts of the script, but why is there something inexplicably strange when it comes to his stepmother?"
Ji Mian was silent for a few seconds, then smiled and sighed, "Teacher Xia is worthy of his name. Actually, the original script didn't have the issues you mentioned. You probably don't know, but this play has a prototype, and that prototype is the investor of this play. When the screenwriter wrote the first draft and gave it to him, the CEO personally directed the changes to the parts that weren't quite right. After the revisions, Director Zhang felt that it was more dramatic and exciting than the previous one, so he chose this version of the script."
Among the investors, the only one with a connection to the original is the real estate tycoon surnamed Xu. He's incredibly wealthy, and since the director agreed, the script probably has to stay that way.
Xia Nuan also sighed and complained, "What do you mean this version is better? Because the one who pays is the boss."
Ji Mian smiled and did not refute.
Xia Nuan filmed for four consecutive days, and now the only scene left is the one where she confronts the male lead and kicks him out of the house.
Last night, she dreamed of the initial system appearance again, and woke up from the nightmare directly. Therefore, she arrived nearly an hour earlier than the scheduled shooting time today. However, when she arrived at the crew this morning, she found the atmosphere a little strange. Everyone was dressed up, as if they were going to fight a tough battle.
Just when she was about to ask what was going on, Ji Mian arrived, but he didn't know what was going on either.
A little while later, Director Zhang hurried to the set, "I think you two have received the news."
"What news?" The two of them looked puzzled.
"Boss Xu will be coming to the set to supervise this scene. This is his first time on set. He's the biggest investor in this film. We have to act well and don't mess it up."
Xia Nuan's eyelashes fluttered as she exchanged glances with Ji Mian beside her. This film had already been filming for quite some time, and why had he chosen this very moment to inspect it, rather than earlier or later? This CEO wouldn't really have had any feelings for his young stepmother when they were younger, as one might suspect.
Everything is ready, "Act 4, Action!"
The male protagonist Kong Qingping's college entrance examination scores came out. His scores were good enough to get him into the best school in the country. He originally returned home happily to announce the good news.
But his father fell into a coma again due to illness. When his stepmother heard the news, instead of being surprised for him, she accused him of spending money recklessly again.
The stepmother played by Xia Nuan is named Liang Lanshuang.
Liang Lanshuang was only in her early twenties, and she wore the most popular floral dress. She didn't look like a married woman at all, but more like a fashionable girl of that era.
Most of the family fortune was lost, and her husband became seriously ill from anger. After that, she was responsible for everything in the household, and the remaining money was almost spent on medical treatment. She married a man more than 20 years older than her for the sake of comfort, not hardship. After enjoying comfort for less than six months, she suffered a year of hardship.
Her unpainted face was filled with indifference, and her eyes held a hint of annoyance. "Your father is also ill now. His illness costs so much. I'm already exhausted taking care of him. How can our family afford to send you to college?"
She threw a wad of money at her stepson, who was more than half a head taller than her, squinted her eyes, and pulled the corners of her mouth together. "This is the last time I'm going to give you money. When I was your age, I didn't know how many years I had been working."
The person opposite did not move, letting the money slide to the ground. The paper rope that tied the money broke under the weight.
Kong Qingping's anger gradually gathered in his chest, unable to go up or down. The joy that had previously filled his heart instantly petrified and turned into a huge stone blocking his chest, making it difficult for him to breathe.
Liang Lanshuang looked at the banknotes scattered on the ground, took a deep breath, and suppressed her emotions: "Since you don't want the money, then just leave. You are an adult now. If you really have backbone, don't live at home. Work and earn money to support your own education."
Kong Qingping clenched his fists, the flames in his eyes ignited, his eyes slit, and the veins in his neck bulged as he roared, "Why? What qualifications do you have to chase me away!"
"Why?! Because in this family, I have the final say now!" Liang Lanshuang's voice burst out from her chest word by word, her eyes bright astonishingly. Her tone was not high, but it hit everyone present heavily.
The assistant director was astonished. He had been with Director Zhang in all of his films in recent years, and it wasn't the first time he watched people perform on the spot. However, Director Zhang had been shooting commercial films in recent years, and had invited a lot of famous stars. He had to teach him every scene one by one.
This level of acting, done in one go, with that instantaneous emotional catharsis and release, is so exciting to watch.
Director Zhang called out "Cut," and then he said, "Let's change the camera position and reshoot that scene. Let's take a break first. Xiaoxia, come here for a moment. I need to tell you something."
Xia Nuan let out a breath, pulling herself out of her previous emotions, and walked towards the director. Although she had worked with Director Zhang five or six years ago, she had not forgotten his filmmaking style. Although his tone had been normal just now, she had the impression that if an actor's performance was flawless, Director Zhang would be generous with his praise.
Director Zhang looked at Ji Mian who was following behind Xia Nuan with amusement, "Mian, I'm talking to Xiao Xia, what are you doing here?"
Ji Mian shrugged and said jokingly, "I didn't get the money just now, and now I regret it and want to ask for it again."
Director Zhang chuckled, "Then I don't think you'll get it. Liang Lanshuang values money more than her life."
Is that so? Xia Nuan lowered her eyes, "Director Zhang, was there anything wrong with my performance just now?"
Director Zhang sighed, his tone somewhat euphemistic. "How should I put it, Xiaoxia, your acting is absolutely flawless, and your scene just now was also very exciting. But—the most important thing is your understanding of the character. There were no problems with your scenes in the past few days, but why is it that in today's explosive scene, your portrayal of Liang Lanshuang is so much calmer than I expected? Liang Lanshuang isn't that calm, is she?"
Director Zhang personally demonstrated how to act out the outburst scene just now.
The assistant director kept his mouth shut and didn't dare to say anything. The gap between Teacher Xia Nuan's understanding of this character and the director's was too big.
Even when Liang Lanshuang is furious, Xia's performance is one of confidence and without a trace of guilt. But the director's intention is to present a hysteria that is both insane and arrogant.
He has been following Director Zhang since he graduated from university five years ago. In recent years, Director Zhang has been shooting commercial films. Although the ratings are not particularly high, the box office sales are good, so making a lot of money is not a problem.
He also knew why Director Zhang wanted Teacher Xia Nuan to act this way. After all, commercial films are all about having fun. The more arrogant the villain is, the happier the audience will be when he gets slapped in the face later.
But it is obvious that Teacher Xia’s understanding is more profound, and it is also more in line with Liang Lanshuang’s character in the later period.
The assistant director held his breath and glanced at the investor next to him. He had no idea what this person was thinking. He had clearly said that he was coming to supervise, but now he was dressed in disguise and didn't let others know.
Ji Mian's gaze quietly fell on Xia Nuan's face. While Director Zhang was performing, she always kept a polite smile on her face.
If this character is interpreted according to Director Zhang's understanding, even if the lines remain unchanged, Liang Lanshuang will be completely different from the person in the script when performed.
Xia Nuan pursed her lips, her eyes darkening, and then she smiled, "Director Zhang, my understanding is indeed somewhat different from yours, but if Liang Lanshuang is really as irritable and hysterical as you think, a crazy woman who only relies on men to get ahead—"
Ji Mian also curled the corners of his lips, his eyes flickering. He was worrying too much. It seemed that he didn't need to worry about her anymore.
However, Ji Mian glanced at the middle-aged man in a baseball cap behind the director without leaving any trace. There was a hint of annoyance between his brows, and he looked away in an instant, as if he felt uncomfortable to look at him for even a second longer.
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