Chapter 29
As the weather grew colder, Qi Yaoguang became increasingly busy. The previous accident seemed to have given him a significant opportunity; when registering for events, group leaders always prioritized him. In contrast, Gu Mengzhu wasn't so lucky. She spent most of her time curled up in her rented room on her bed, either staring blankly at the bare street scene outside the window, chatting on the phone with Chen Luo, or watching mindless soap operas.
When he returned home that evening, it had been snowing for a long time. His nose and eyebrows were covered in glistening white snowflakes, making him look like an old man from a distance. Qi Yaoguang looked at himself in the mirror and gradually developed a strange feeling, as if he really would stay here until he grew old, with graying temples, a white beard, and silver hair. He couldn't help but imagine what she would look like when she was old, what it would be like with him. Before he could even come up with a concrete image, he smiled at the mirror, and the mirror surface was quickly covered with a white film.
He washed his hands and followed the aroma outside, letting out a sigh in the steamy kitchen:
"Wow, it smells good! It smells like coconut?"
"Of course it smells good with the addition of five-finger peach."
Gu Mengzhu stirred the chicken soup in the pot with a ladle. Golden oil rose and fell with the surface of the soup, and white yam slices were faintly visible. The sweet aroma of red dates slowly spread with the rising steam. He couldn't help but sniff.
"Wuzhi Maotao, is this kind of fruit available everywhere?"
“A-luo-se-bi-wo-kai.” (Given to me)
"She's very generous to you. If it were me, I'd be worried she'd poison a bag of salt!"
"If you had been nicer to her, she wouldn't have ended up like this."
She turned off the stove, put the lid on, and told him to wash his hands and prepare to eat.
"Be nice to her? Forget it, she's not without men. To be honest, we both hate each other."
Gu Mengzhu put down the soup spoon in annoyance, pouted, and turned to get a bowl from the cupboard to serve rice.
With his attitude, he deserves all sorts of nicknames.
The next morning, she was woken up early to wash up. Gu Mengzhu hadn't slept enough and was holding her anger in her heart, brushing her teeth in front of the mirror with a gloomy expression.
What's the point of filming all this? What's the use of arriving early? We're just sitting there chatting!
He knew what she was thinking even with his eyes closed, and after washing his face with cold water, he comforted her:
"The construction started early this time to ensure good lighting."
"oh."
"It's sunny today, not cold."
"oh."
"I heard the company will close early today."
"oh."
Nobody would believe that!
She spat out the foam from her mouth expressionlessly, washed her chin, and stared at herself in the mirror, looking as sleepy as a dead dog.
I'm so angry! Can't I even complain now? Are you out of your mind from eating too much? Are you risking your life for 20 dollars?!
Qi Yaoguang watched helplessly as the person next to him angrily wiped her face and hair into a mess, then sighed resignedly and went to help her with her handbag.
The two rushed to the film set and, as usual, sat on the ground to wait. Hearing someone swearing again, Gu Mengzhu frowned in disgust, smelled the suffocating smoke, leaned against a pillar, found a comfortable spot, and closed her eyes. Qi Yaoguang, however, was very alert. He watched them intently as they adjusted the lighting, pondering where he could get the best angle and steal a few shots.
Hearing someone speaking Cantonese, she shuddered, groggily opened her eyes, and quipped:
"Free-range chickens roam everywhere."
She couldn't remember what she was muttering afterward. Her eyes slumped, and she leaned against the pillar, fast asleep again. About an hour later, someone seemed to arrive, and the entire crew suddenly became very noisy. She couldn't sleep anymore, so she simply stood up and stretched. Looking up, she saw the lead actress arriving late, leisurely walking towards the dressing room.
Finding it amusing, Gu Mengzhu smiled slightly. The atmosphere on set instantly became harmonious. The director stopped yelling and instead served the big stars and investors with a mix of coaxing and laughter. The staff's efficiency immediately increased, bustling around like ants, except for Gu Mengzhu, who was still standing by the pillar. The sun overhead was very warm, making her head spin.
"I heard them calling for the extras to gather."
She turned her head and saw that it was Xu Zhilu speaking. She still had a long braid, her jet-black hair shining brightly, and her smile, though somewhat shy, was as gentle as the sunlight. Gu Mengzhu only then noticed that the girl had some small freckles on her face, and her cheeks were rosy from the sun, just like the ones drawn in fairy tale books.
"ah!"
She gasped and was about to run away when she turned back to look at the little girl, said "thank you," and then dashed over. Since there was no need to change costumes for a modern scene, Gu Mengzhu straightened the wrinkles in her clothes, took a breath, patted her face, and walked over to the assistant director.
“You guys, when the male lead comes out, you all swarm him and scream as loud as you can. Remember, you're playing the roles of die-hard fans, so scream as loud as you can! You, you, and you, stand on the left, and you guys stand on the right. Don't say anything, just pretend to be passersby whispering to each other…”
She nodded along with the others, relaxed her shoulders, and prepared to start filming.
"Come on, let's test the camera first. Where's the apple box? Quickly, bring it over for the main character to sit on. Hurry up, we need to catch the daylight!"
During a break while the box was being adjusted, Gu Mengzhu's legs went numb from standing, so she couldn't help but tiptoe. She didn't know what she'd done to offend someone, but she inexplicably received another insult. After the close-up was finished, the director called for a wide shot. The male lead, dressed in clothes several levels above the others, emerged from the doorway. The female extras immediately chased after him and surrounded him. She was pushed aside and then pulled back by others. In the shoving, she saw Qi Yaoguang, dressed in a security guard uniform, his arms outstretched, protecting the male lead behind him as they left. He looked arrogant, but he didn't have a single line.
"Ahhh, so handsome!"
"So handsome!"
"XXX, I love you! Cha la hey!"
Gu Mengzhu had tried her best to hold back, but she still couldn't help but burst out laughing.
That's so stupid, so incredibly stupid.
Meeting the surprised looks of others, she inexplicably laughed even harder. Her laughter seemed contagious, and soon all the actresses present were laughing. She tried her best to stop laughing, but she just couldn't stop; it was as if she had to laugh until all the air in her lungs was expelled.
"What are you laughing at! Is it funny?"
The moment the director spoke, the set fell silent. Wearing a fisherman's hat, he glanced at the huddled group of extras, then pointed to someone:
"Laugh, what are you laughing at? You're the one laughing the loudest. It's your turn now."
The flushed face froze, blinked, and blurted out:
"Clam?"
"What the hell? You!"
Like a public punishment, she and the others pushed and shoved each other, shouting phrases like "So handsome!", "So handsome!", "He's incredibly handsome!" For some reason, the director seemed to be watching her intently as he began giving instructions:
"Speak louder!"
"What's wrong? Gang'er, weren't you laughing so loudly? Why are you shouting like a mosquito now? Shout again!"
"Louder! Shout louder!"
Gu Mengzhu kept shouting, and finally let out a roar, instantly silencing the entire audience. The director sneered:
"That's more like it. Remember to shout that when filming starts!"
The hushed laughter gradually reached her ears. She lowered her head, silent, half her face flushed red. Strangely enough, after all that commotion, the scene was perfect in one take. The director nodded in satisfaction, picked up the walkie-talkie, and launched into another round of shouts:
"Okay, let's shoot a close-up this time. Yes, yes, photographer, zoom in! Number one! Number one, zoom in! Okay, now number two, zoom in..."
They filmed several more takes, turning the scenes over and over, until it was almost dark before finally calling it a day. Qi Yaoguang was about to take off his costume, so he asked her to wait a moment while they walked back together. When he came out, she was already chatting enthusiastically with a girl, seemingly annoyed by his presence. He gritted his teeth and walked over, his eyelids half-raised, and, taking advantage of his height, he even raised his chin, looking down at the two of them with a forced smile:
"You seem to be having a great chat, aren't you going to introduce us?"
"Hello, Xu Zhilu."
He nodded:
"Qi Yaoguang."
As soon as he finished speaking, he used a little force to pull the person close, covered their mouth, and whispered in their ear:
"Master Gu, it's not that the show is good if you don't shout." (No, it is.)
The words were addressed to Gu Mengzhu, but the person was staring intently ahead. Xu Zhilu sensed a strange hostility, glared at her, and timidly took a step back.
This person is so strange.
He didn't even bother to say hello, turned around and ran away, rolling his eyes as he went:
It's like he has a serious illness.
Gu Mengzhu was unaware of their secret exchange. She squinted and gave him a hard elbow strike. Qi Yaoguang groaned in pain, forced to release his grip, and bent over to the ground. As he squatted down, he looked up at her and held out five fingers, beckoning her not to leave.
He even put on an act in front of her.
She glared at him, her face so sour it seemed to ooze black liquid, wishing she could smash her head against him and kill him. Once he was gone, he straightened up deftly, feigning confusion as he looked around.
"Where's your girlfriend from just now? How rude of her, leaving without even saying goodbye."
“She’s very busy. She still has to work after the film crew finishes filming, unlike you. She can only spare a little time to chat with me, so don’t talk about her like that.”
"Wow! In the end, I'm the bad guy."
If the target doesn't fall for his tricks, all his schemes are useless. So, Qi Yaoguang, being a bit of a rascal, put his arm around her shoulder and dragged her toward the night market.
"What are you doing?"
"I made two hundred today, what a great deal! I'll treat you to something to eat."
"Please be frugal, you still owe me money, not just one or two hundred dollars, but a lot, a lot, a lot of money!"
"Don't worry, I won't cheat you out of your money." He pointed to the freshly baked, sizzling meat pies next to him. "Boss, two, please."
"Okay, that'll be six yuan for both."
Qi Yaoguang took a large bite of the meat pie and continued walking. The pie was oily and crispy, the scallions on top were fried until fragrant, and the meat filling, though not much, was perfectly seasoned. Eating it hot left him feeling utterly satisfied. He quickly took another big bite and began talking to her:
"You did a great job today! The director praised your acting and your loud voice. You're talented! You'll be aiming for the Oscars sooner or later!"
I knew this person had no kind words to say.
She bit down on the biscuit in her mouth resentfully, glancing at him with a sidelong glance.
"Stop making fun of me, or I'll charge you extra interest."
He turned her around by the shoulder and pulled her toward the rented room.
"You're quite smart. Hey, let me teach you, so you won't be so rude next time."
"Hey, do you think you're so great? You're so eager to teach others!"
"So, do you want to shout that loud again next time? I don't mind. You say I'm handsome, so the louder the better! I've always known that I'm handsome."
Gu Mengzhu didn't understand why he was acting so arrogant today, but since he was in a good mood, she let him pretend. If the big shot needed her as a crutch, then she would be it. What did face matter? It didn't exist for him.
"Hey, I meant the male lead is handsome, not you. Are you old and hard of hearing?"
"I don't care, I had a great time listening to it live anyway."
"You're going to die!"
She shook off his hand and walked quickly ahead. Qi Yaoguang took a bite of his pancake and leisurely followed after her.
"You really don't want to? Next time you embarrass yourself, don't tell them I know you! Don't even walk next to me, it's so embarrassing."
Gu Mengzhu chewed on her biscuit and thought about it. What he said made some sense. What if she was made an example of again next time? She hesitated for more than ten seconds before reluctantly speaking:
Wow, you're so handsome!
It's devoid of emotion and primarily just a perfunctory response.
Qi Yaoguang curled his lips into a smile, raised an eyebrow, and asked exaggeratedly:
"Is he really that handsome?"
Yes.
She couldn't help but cover her face and laugh out loud. His mouth also stretched into a wide grin, and he reached out to shake her shoulder.
"Stop laughing, hey! You're serious."
Am I handsome?
"Yes."
"Speak loudly!"
"Tie!"
People in the night market all looked over, and Gu Mengzhu suddenly realized what was going on, so she delivered several hard punches to his back:
"Oh, you bastard, you're taking advantage of me!"
Qi Yaoguang bent over, letting her vent her anger, and at the end, he even smiled and provoked her with words:
"Why did you become my fan before? Wasn't it because you liked my looks and said I was handsome? Now you're denying it! Wow, times have changed, and people's hearts are fickle."
She curled her lip in disgust, and only responded after finishing the last bit of meat pie in her hand:
"I don't think you're handsome, I just think you're cute."
"That's it?"
That's it.
Upon hearing this answer, the person was greatly disappointed.
But he didn't know that "cute" is actually the highest form of adjective in the world. (From the Japanese drama "The Full-Time Wife Escapist")
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