Chapter 83
In a simple work shed, there was only a light bulb hanging in the room, emitting a dim light.
The room was not big, with only an old bed, a chest of drawers with a missing leg and supported by bricks, and a low round table.
Huo Mingzhou sat shirtless on a stool beside a low table, his shoulders, waist, and back covered in bruises. Tan Qiu was sitting behind him, applying medicated oil.
Tan Qiu first applied the medicated oil to the wound with a cotton ball, then gently rubbed it until he felt a slight warmth beneath his hand. He then moved on to the next wound. His movements were slow, yet meticulous.
Huo Mingzhou sat silently with his head slightly lowered. The dim light shone on his rather three-dimensional facial features, casting a small shadow on his face.
After applying the medicine, Tan Qiu put the bottle on the table and stared blankly at Huo Mingzhou's back covered with bruises... After staring for a while, he suddenly lunged forward, hugged Huo Mingzhou's waist tightly, and rested his forehead on that broad back.
Huo Mingzhou was startled, then he straightened up slightly and turned his head to call out, "Tan Qiu?"
"...I'm sorry..." Tan Qiu choked up, "It's all because of me... Cao Dafu hated you because you helped me... That's why he asked people to cause trouble for the orchard... I'm sorry..."
Huo Mingzhou frowned slightly, pried Tan Qiu's hands apart, turned around, put his hands on his shoulders and looked at him.
"Don't say that about yourself, it's not your fault!"
Tan Qiu still lowered his head and shed tears: "No, it's all my fault that you got into trouble..."
"Tan Qiu, look up at me!" Huo Mingzhou growled sternly, "Do you regret saving Yang Xiaojuan?"
Tan Qiu raised her head, looking back at Huo Mingzhou with tearful eyes, and said softly but firmly: "I don't regret it. I would still save her if it happened again. But I don't want to implicate you because of this..."
"That's enough!" Huo Mingzhou interrupted him, smiling gently. "You don't regret saving Yang Xiaojuan, and I don't regret helping you. This isn't your fault. The one who should be blamed is the culprit, Cao Dafu! Moreover, a village bully like Cao Dafu, who never gets enough of taking advantage, would have targeted the orchard sooner or later even if this incident hadn't happened. So stop talking about whether you're involved or not."
Tan Qiu stared at Huo Mingzhou blankly.
Huo Mingzhou raised his hand to wipe away the tears from his eyes, his expression becoming gentler. "If you're not afraid of provoking him, then I certainly am not either. There will always be a way to deal with him. Stop crying and smile. If the children in the village see that their most admired teacher, Tan, is crying because of me, they'll probably throw mud at me when I go out tomorrow."
Tan Qiu burst into laughter and naturally turned her face to rub Huo Mingzhou's palm.
After this collision, both of them were stunned.
The atmosphere suddenly became ambiguous.
Huo Mingzhou's eyes grew deep. His palm slid across Tan Qiu's smooth face, gently pinching her beautiful chin. He leaned his head slightly closer and whispered, "Tan Qiu, I..."
He quickly shut his mouth after he had just begun to speak - his voice was so hoarse that it was completely different from before.
Tan Qiu's eyes, moistened by tears, trembled slightly.
Huo Mingzhou couldn't help but lean over and kiss her, his lips pressed against hers and he sucked gently.
Tan Qiu's eyes suddenly widened, and he couldn't help but open his mouth slightly and let out an "ah".
Huo Mingzhou took the opportunity to kiss him deeply.
The two kissed for a long time before separating breathlessly.
Tan Qiu's fair face turned bright red, and her eyes, which had just stopped crying, were filled with moisture again. Her lips, which were kissed until they were shiny, were trembling slightly.
Huo Mingzhou brushed his lips with his thumb, took a deep breath, and spoke softly again: "Tan Qiu, I like you."
Tan Qiu's long eyelashes trembled violently.
Huo Mingzhou looked at him affectionately: "Will you be my boyfriend?"
Tan Qiu's wide eyes blinked slowly, and the corners of his lips gradually rose, finally settling into a faint smile: "I like you too, Mingzhou. Be my boyfriend."
Huo Mingzhou's face seemed to brighten up instantly, and he immediately stretched out his hands and hugged Tan Qiu tightly in his arms.
Tan Qiu also opened his arms and hugged him, closing his eyes with a happy look on his face.
◆
"Card!"
After Ou Jing called out "Cut", He Tong and Ye Yuze let go of each other, stood up and stretched out a bit - it was quite tiring to sit on the short stool all the time.
Ou Jing pondered for a while behind the monitor, said a few words to the screenwriter next to him, and then waved to call the two over.
"Why did you kiss first and then confess?" he asked He Tong.
The script said they confessed their love first and then kissed, and that was the end of the scene, without a hug.
He Tong scratched his head: "It's just a feeling... In that kind of atmosphere, shouldn't we go first and talk later?"
Ou Jing looked at him helplessly: "What if the other party doesn't mean that?"
He Tong shrugged and said nonchalantly, "Then just push him away. He's a grown man after all, so the difference in strength shouldn't be too great."
Ou Jing stroked his chin and thought for a moment, then asked Ye Yuze, "What do you think, Xiaoye?"
"If it were Tan Qiu, he would definitely confess first." Ye Yuze watched the replay on the monitor, his lips curled slightly. "Huo Mingzhou's personality is more aggressive. He takes action first and then confesses, deliberately creating an atmosphere that will make it difficult for the hesitant opponent to refuse. It really suits this character."
Ou Jing stroked his chin and looked back and forth at Ye Yuze and He Tonghao for a while. "So, one of you is a theoretical analyst, and the other one just goes with the gut feeling?"
He Tong chuckled and said, "How about we perform it again according to the script, and you can use it when editing?"
The screenwriter next to him laughed and said, "No need for that. Actually, when I was writing this, I felt something was amiss. Now that you're acting it out, it's flowing much more smoothly."
Ou Jing waved his hand: "Alright, let's call it a day. You two should keep up the good form, because tomorrow we have the sex scene."
He Tong responded with a smile, took Ye Yuze in his arms and walked ahead.
The screenwriter watched them leave in a friendly manner and sighed to Ou Jing, "It's been years since I've seen such a pair of film stars. I feel like they're destined to be famous. I can't say whether this film will win Best Director, but it will definitely be a box office hit."
Ou Jing slapped him in anger and scolded him with a smile, "Can't you just think of me? They are the ones who made the money from the box office, and our share is only a few points."
The screenwriter tutted, "They're so generous. They didn't reduce their salary even after giving me their share. You don't care about the money, but I do."
◇◆◇
There wasn't much to do in the village at night, and the internet signal was unstable. After a day's work, almost everyone went to bed early.
When He Tong came out of the shower, he saw Ye Yuze leaning against the head of the bed, reading a book and waiting for him.
He pulled the light cord at the door, and the room suddenly became much darker, with only the table lamp clamped on the bedside lighting up the area.
He Tong walked over, lifted the quilt, and climbed into bed. He leaned over to Ye Yuze and kissed him. Ye Yuze adjusted his posture and leaned against He Tong to continue reading. The temperature here was quite high during the day, but there was still a chill of late autumn at night. A natural heater like He Tong was just the right thing to do.
He Tong smiled and hugged his brother Ye, resting his chin on the man's shoulder. He tilted his head and sucked on the slender neck.
Ye Yuze didn't take his eyes off the book. He just reached out and patted his head: "Don't leave any marks. It's hard to cover up."
He Tong licked it again before turning away and said with a smile, "Honestly, when we were doing the last scene today, you blushed so beautifully that I almost wanted to push you over. I've never seen you blush like that before."
Ye Yuze answered nonchalantly, "Not even in bed?"
He Tong thought about it and chuckled: "Yes, I have been popular occasionally, but not to this extent, and I never looked shy."
"Oh. So you like the shy kind."
He Tong burst out laughing, hugged her and turned around to fall on the bed: "As long as it's you, I like you both shy and hot."
Ye Yuze patted his hand and said, "Stop it, I'm only a few pages away from finishing it."
"There's no rush to finish it, let's read it tomorrow."
He Tong took Ye Yuze's book and put it aside, then turned over and pressed the man under him, with his nose touching his.
"It was during today's performance that I suddenly remembered that I've never properly confessed to you."
Ye Yuze looked up at He Tong and smiled slightly: "It doesn't matter. How could I not know where your heart is?"
He Tong lowered his head and rubbed his face: "I still have to say it - Yu Ze, I love you."
Ye Yuze raised her hands and hugged his shoulders back, then tilted her head and kissed him lightly on the cheek: "Yeah, I love you too."
The corners of He Tong's mouth unconsciously rose higher and higher.
He pressed his lips against Ye Yuze's and said, "Now that we've confessed, let's rehearse tomorrow's sex scene..."
◆◇◆
Although there are several hints of the two protagonists sleeping together throughout the play, there is only one serious sex scene, which is their first time, and the scene takes place in the teacher's dormitory where Tan Qiu lives.
The storyline unfolds after the orchard's first online sales campaign went incredibly well, leading Huo Mingzhou and Tan Qiu to drink heavily at a celebratory banquet. Afterward, Huo Mingzhou escorted Tan Qiu back to his dorm room, but Tan Qiu, having mustered the courage to stay, eventually decided to stay.
Given the national situation, this sex scene can only be a hazy, aesthetically pleasing stream of consciousness. Even so, the full version will most likely only be screened at film festivals and within a small circle, and will have to be cut when it is released nationwide.
Even so, Ou Jing did not take it lightly. He still drew the storyboards carefully and negotiated with the two investor fathers for a few more close-ups.
The teachers' dormitory wasn't large. Near the back sat a single iron bed with a blanket casually placed on it. Beside the bed was an old desk, almost as wide as the bed itself, piled high with books. Opposite the foot of the bed was an old, one-meter-tall cabinet.
Due to venue limitations, Ou Jing and the lighting and camera staff spent a lot of effort to set up the lighting and even managed to squeeze in four cameras.
He Tong walked into the room and saw a small camera hidden under the chair in front of the desk facing the bed. He was speechless.
"Director Ou, you really have no blind spots."
Ou Jing snorted: "You should be laughing if I don't give you a whole transparent bed to take the camera under the bed."
The cameraman nearby couldn't help but laugh when he heard this, and then he mediated, "Teacher He, you asked to only take one take, and Director Ou also wanted to get more footage. And since it was all shot against the light, it will actually look like a silhouette, so don't worry."
He Tong nodded and asked, "Which machine are you standing at?"
The cameraman pointed to the corner of the room and said, "I'll be responsible for capturing the close-ups."
He Tong walked over to the iron bed again, stretched out his hand to shake it, frowned and said: "Is this bed strong enough to withstand the pressure? Don't let it collapse halfway through."
Ou Jing rolled his eyes: "Please hold back a little, I can't get you a mahogany bed!"
He Tongyi spread his hands and said, "Director Ou, you're really putting me in a difficult position. I want the movements to be big and beautiful, but I can't use too much strength. It's too difficult for me."
Ou Jing coughed guiltily and changed the subject, "Alright, both of you should get your emotions together and start filming. The set has been cleared for quite some time. Xiao Wang, turn on the cameras. Our investor dad has money, so there's no need to save memory for them."
The cameraman held back his laughter and turned on the camera.
He Tong walked out of the house, looked at Ye Yuze who was waiting, smiled gently, and extended his hand to him.
◆
Huo Mingzhou helped Tan Qiu into the house and asked him to sit on the chair in front of the desk. The dim room was illuminated only by the moonlight shining on the bed.
Huo Mingzhou turned around and wanted to turn on the light, but was stopped by Tan Qiu behind him.
Tan Qiu raised his head and seemed to say something, and Huo Mingzhou's body trembled slightly.
Tan Qiu stood up again and hugged Huo Mingzhou's waist from behind. After a while, Huo Mingzhou turned around, hugged Tan Qiu tightly and kissed him.
The two of them stumbled towards the bed while kissing, and both fell on the not-so-strong single bed, making the bed creak with a long sound.
Under the moonlight, two figures overlapped. At first, there was no movement, but gradually, the outlines of the figures began to rise and fall, and the amplitude became larger and larger...
◆
After filming for about twenty minutes, Ou Jing called cut.
Then he continued with a smile: "Do you want Xiao Wang and I to go out and give you some time to deal with yourselves?"
On the bed over there, He Tong rolled over and pulled Ye Yuze up again, smiling and saying, "Director Ou, you underestimate our professionalism."
In the darkness, Ye Yuze glanced at He Tong's lower body inconspicuously, and did not expose him out of respect - the two of them had indeed made some preparations in advance that were not easily noticed by others.
He Tong stood up and walked towards the monitor in front of Ou Jing: "No, I have to see if you guys have captured anything you shouldn't have."
Ou Jing rolled his eyes again: "Don't worry, all the shots were taken according to the requirements of the two bosses."
He Tong leaned over to watch the playback and discovered that, aside from the full shot, the close-ups were mostly of hands and feet, with a few chins, necks, and shoulders thrown in. While the camera under the chair captured some of the two people's profiles, the backlit shot made it almost impossible to discern their expressions, which made the scene look quite aesthetically pleasing.
Ou Jing deliberately asked: "Is it okay?"
He Tong smiled and applauded: "You two have great skills."
As they were talking, Fang Chen suddenly poked his head in from outside and asked, "I heard someone talking. Is the filming over?"
Seeing that the filming was indeed finished, he pulled the light cord by the door and said with a smile: "Good news, "The End of the Sky" has been shortlisted for Moon City."
The author has something to say: Thanks to the little angel "Zhuagu Daren" for the nutrient solution~~
Thanks to the little angel "twilight" for the nutrient solution~~
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
