Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Indeed, it was two words bitten out.

Because He Wei heard a trace of gritted teeth in it.

She became even more afraid to turn around to look at him, lowered her eyelashes and stayed silent.

As soon as Yan Huai said that sentence, the entire set instantly fell into a strange silence. No one spoke; for a moment, there was only the sound of rainwater dripping from the glazed tile eaves onto the ground, clearly audible.

Because it was the last scene today, aside from the main actors and some staff, everyone else had basically wrapped and gone home.

There weren’t many people on site, counting all, only about a dozen.

Some knew Yan Huai, and those who didn’t, seeing him standing together with Cheng Yan, didn’t dare speak recklessly either.

Cheng Yan reacted first, coughed to break the silence. “Take a ten-minute break first.”

He looked at He Wei. “He Wei, come here for a moment.”

He Wei gritted her teeth. She really had no way to refuse Cheng Yan, so she could only turn around under everyone’s gaze and slowly walk over.

Cheng Yan handed over a dry towel. “Wipe your face first.”

He Wei obediently took it, not daring to look at the man standing beside him, and wiped her face casually.

Her hair was also soaked through. The Feitian bun that had been styled earlier was on the verge of collapse. A few loose strands by her ears stuck to her face. The makeup on her face had basically come off clean; now she stood under the lights with a bare face, her skin fair and translucent.

Cheng Yan frowned slightly. “What happened just now?”

He Wei answered half-truthfully, “She kept getting stuck just now. I was in the rain for too long and felt a bit unwell.”

This drama didn’t allow the use of stand-ins.

Moreover, even if stand-ins were used, He Wei probably wouldn’t be able to feel at ease watching someone else stand in the rain for her.

Only then did Cheng Yan remember that her cold hadn’t fully recovered, and she had just twisted her foot yesterday, not suitable for long contact with cold water.

His brows furrowed even deeper. “But you still can’t casually substitute for her to shoot a bed scene.”

He Wei frowned as well.

Did he think she was willing to substitute Mu Sheng for this kind of scene?

Not to mention He Wei didn’t have much experience; even if she had experience, she didn’t want to film this kind of scene.

Her brain wasn’t sick.

He Wei lowered her eyelashes, the force with which she bit her lip growing heavier.

Cheng Yan glanced at her, then turned his head to look at Yan Huai. “What should we do?”

“You’re the director. You still need to ask me what to do?”

Yan Huai’s face was cold, and his voice also cooled down.

He Wei’s hands clenched beneath the wide sleeves. She suddenly felt fortunate that the sleeves were large enough to completely hide her small movements underneath.

Cheng Yan became even more troubled.

With the current situation, it was completely difficult to advance or retreat.

If this scene wasn’t filmed today, it would have to be filmed tomorrow. He looked at the time, then sighed. “How about filming it tomorrow instead.”

The next moment, before He Wei had time to breathe a sigh of relief, the system prompted: “Hos, host… can’t shoot it tomorrow.”

“Why?”

The system started stuttering again: “If, if this scene isn’t finished today, it also counts as mission failure.”

The corners of He Wei’s mouth hadn’t even lifted before they pressed down again. She let out a breath and could only brace herself and say, “No need, Brother Cheng Yan, let’s finish filming it today.”

If she didn’t finish, she would die again.

Cheng Yan stared at her face for a few seconds, worried. “Are you sure you can still continue filming today?”

“I can…”

Before she finished speaking, she was interrupted by a man’s cool, low voice, “Can shoot a bed scene?”

He Wei: “……”

Cheng Yan sighed. “Weiwei, how about we still do it tomorrow…”

As a director, the one who least wanted to delay progress was Cheng Yan, but if they really forced the shoot today, Yan Huai’s side definitely wouldn’t pass.

After painful consideration, Cheng Yan decided to step back. Before he even finished speaking, he was interrupted by He Wei: “I’ll shoot in her place.”

Cheng Yan: “……”

Little sister, are you serious?

Didn’t you see the expression of this big Buddha beside you sink like the night?

He Wei pretended not to notice Cheng Yan and Yan Huai’s expressions. She took a deep breath. “I’ll try to pass it in one take.”

When she got the script, she had also analyzed the female lead’s role. The heroine at the beginning was a pure little white lotus rising unstained from the mud, innocent and lovable, and ignorant of worldly affairs; only then could she stand out among many scheming women and be noticed by the emperor.

He Wei had no experience, so she was most likely to act out this kind of feeling of the female lead.

Cheng Yan’s face was complicated.

He Wei nodded to him, turned, and was about to return within the camera frame. But before she had even taken half a step, her wrist was grabbed. The person called her name in a low voice: “He Wei?”

She had been drenched in cold water for a long time, and her wrist was icy now.

Yan Huai’s brows knit slightly. “Didn’t you hear what I said just now?”

He Wei answered in a muffled voice, “I heard it.”

Not only did she hear it, she heard it clearly.

But what could she do?

She was about to reload and start over again; what was there left for her to dare or not dare?

Yan Huai lowered his eyes to look at her. From his angle, he could only see He Wei’s profile.

She was petite, with a small face. Her facial lines were very soft, and her chin wasn’t too sharp. Paired with this classical hairstyle, she looked gentle and mild.

Yan Huai suddenly had no way out.

He even felt that the “you dare” he said just now had been too harsh in tone.

He Wei pulled her hand back slightly. “President Yan—”

As soon as the words fell, Yan Huai loosened his grip. He glanced in the direction of Mu Sheng, then looked at Cheng Yan.

Cheng Yan immediately understood. “Weiwei, go rest for a few minutes first. Help me call Mu Sheng over.”

He Wei responded, then walked over without looking back.

Mu Sheng was touching up her makeup. In the cold weather, her shoulders weren’t fully covered by her clothes, leaving a few inches exposed to the air.

The warmth in He Wei’s body gradually evaporated along with the cold rainwater. She hadn’t noticed it when she was still in the rain, but once she came out, she immediately felt the cold. Her teeth trembled slightly, and even her voice shook. “Director Cheng is calling you.”

Mu Sheng lifted her eyes upon hearing this, gave a soft “oh,” and then rose gracefully.

After taking a few steps out, she turned her head back to glance at He Wei. “Didn’t expect you to know President Yan, huh?”

Know him, my ass.

He Wei didn’t even lift her eyes. “Not familiar.”

“Putting on airs,” Mu Sheng sneered. Her voice was small and thin. She suddenly stepped back half a step and leaned close to He Wei’s ear, saying, “I just said, how could a newcomer suddenly land a female fourth role in such a big production—so it turns out it’s still…”

Mu Sheng didn’t finish her sentence, leaving her with a meaningful look before turning to go find Cheng Yan.

He Wei clenched the towel in her hand. Only after the footsteps completely faded from her ears did she turn her head to look.

A few meters away, Cheng Yan and Yan Huai were sitting on chairs. Mu Sheng stood beside them, her lips curved in a charming smile.

The lighting over there was strong. The woman’s shoulders were half exposed, and He Wei could even see the deep hollow between her chest.

Without a doubt, she was a woman with an excellent figure.

He Wei’s gaze shifted and landed back on Yan Huai.

He was sitting angled sideways toward her, a cigarette still burning between his fingers. His expression was hard to make out clearly through the swirling smoke and the moisture left from the earlier rain.

The man’s chin was slightly raised, his jawline smooth and striking, his Adam’s apple distinct. From the angle of Yan Huai’s gaze, He Wei could roughly infer where he was looking.

Most likely, he was looking at Mu Sheng’s chest.

This damn man. Yesterday he was still so gentle with her, and now, in just one day, he was already looking at another woman’s chest.

He Wei let out a breath and turned her gaze away expressionlessly.

She wasn’t angry at all.

She had nothing to be angry about.

At that moment not far away, Cheng Yan checked the time on his phone for the third time.

It was past nine.

Before filming, He Wei had specifically asked him when they would finish. Cheng Yan had been in the directing industry for several years; estimating time was not a problem.

He had told her they would definitely finish before ten.

But it was already nine o’clock now.

Cheng Yan turned off his screen and looked up at Mu Sheng. “What happened with the repeated takes just now? I feel like with your acting skills, it shouldn’t have required so many retakes.”

“I was a bit out of state…” Mu Sheng lowered her head, a faint blush quietly creeping onto her face. “After all, it’s a bed scene… I don’t know how to shoot it.”

He had always been strict about visual presentation and the actors’ performance. For the two takes just now, they didn’t even meet the passing standard. But this wasn’t the kind of scene where “just acting properly” would necessarily make it work.

Cheng Yan sighed.

Before he could figure out how to speak, Yan Huai lifted his eyes slightly. The corner of his lips curved. “What did you just say?”

He didn’t intend to wait for Mu Sheng’s answer either, continuing on his own. “Can’t shoot bed scenes?”

Mu Sheng lowered her head even further, nodding shyly as if embarrassed.

Yan Huai let out a faint scoff. He tapped off the ash from his cigarette, then put the cigarette back into his mouth and bit it lightly. Lowering his head, he glanced at his phone. “Mu Sheng, right?”

Mu Sheng quickly responded, “Yes.”

“Full-time bed scene double for the past two years,” Yan Huai said as he casually tossed his phone onto the table. His voice wasn’t loud or soft, but his tone suddenly turned cold. “And you’re telling me you can’t shoot bed scenes?”

Mu Sheng’s eyes widened in disbelief. “President Yan…”

“You can shoot it now?”

Mu Sheng broke out in a cold sweat all over. She bit her lip hard before replying, “I can… I can…”

The shift was too abrupt. Cheng Yan was stunned for several seconds. Only when Mu Sheng had already returned to the side to continue touching up her makeup did he react. He suddenly turned to look at Yan Huai. “How do you know she’s a bed scene double?”

“From Yan Corporation’s subsidiary.”

“…Oh.”

He almost forgot—Yan family enterprises were centered around media.

Cheng Yan rubbed his nose. “…No wonder.”

Yan Huai said nothing more. He finished his cigarette, then stood up. “I’m leaving.”

He Wei felt like Mu Sheng had been cast under some kind of spell.

By the third take, the entire scene was shot smoothly without a hitch.

At around nine-thirty, He Wei finally returned to the dressing room and changed back into her own clothes. She roughly blew her hair until it was half dry, then took out her phone to glance at it.

Yan Chen had sent messages two hours ago: 【Ah Wei Wei, come eat dinner at my place tonight?】 There were also several follow-ups asking why she wasn’t replying.

Looking through the call log, Yan Chen had also called her several times.

He Wei put on her coat, then walked out of the dressing room while calling him back.

Yan Chen’s call didn’t connect the first time.

A few minutes later, as He Wei came out of the film set area, the second call finally connected.

The man’s voice came through, carrying a hint of grievance: “Wei Wei, why didn’t you pick up just now?”

“I was filming just now.”

He Wei sneezed.

Yan Chen immediately asked with concern, “Is your cold getting worse again?”

He Wei sniffled. “No.”

She was walking while talking on the phone, preparing to hail a taxi by the roadside. Just then, Yan Chen said, “Come eat at my place. I’ll come pick you up.”

He deliberately didn’t mention that today was his birthday.

He Wei let out a breath and naturally refused to miss the opportunity. “I’ll just take a taxi.”

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end, and he didn’t insist further. After reminding her a couple of times to be careful, he hung up.

He Wei rubbed her temples, just about to reach out to stop a taxi, when a black sedan stopped right in front of her.

The window rolled down, and a man’s voice came from inside—cold and obscure: “Get in.”