Chapter 11: Salted Pork and Vegetable Clay Pot Rice
In the eyes of others, Mi Hongdou was a complete newcomer with no acting experience. Without technique, she could only compensate with immersion and empathy. If even empathy couldn’t be achieved, then, based on the requirement for quality in acting, she could only use Pan Xiang’s method of substituting another person. Professionals might see some flaws, but ordinary people wouldn’t notice them. During filming, they could just minimize close-ups.
For Mi Hongdou, she had experienced countless immersions and empathies, with a full ten years of acting experience. However, she had never tried Pan Xiang’s method of looking at one person while imagining something else in her mind to be able to continue filming. Mainly because, in her previous life, both her old company, Mengguan, and her new company, Qiong Yu, were very protective of their actors. She had never filmed a love scene with someone she disliked so much, so naturally, she never needed to use this less-than-ideal method. Now, it seemed that if she couldn’t look at Zhang Zijing and immerse herself in the relationship between the emperor and empress, and her own acting skills couldn’t break through to completely conceal her feelings, then Pan Xiang’s method might be worth a try.
After two spoonfuls of congee, Director Pan waved his hand, announcing a half-hour meal break. Mi Hongdou didn’t go backstage to find food. Instead, she took the script and found a quiet corner, opening the already familiar script once again.
In the script, Qin Muxue was born into a military family and had been summoned to the palace many times with her mother since she was young. When she was still at an age where there were no strict gender boundaries, she had many interactions with Ji Yan, who was still a prince. They gradually developed feelings for each other as they grew up. Since ancient times, being close to the emperor was like being close to a tiger. The Qin family cherished their daughter and didn’t want to send her into the palace, but in the end, they respected Qin Muxue’s wishes. Many twists and turns were summarized in just a few lines of narration in the script. But if it were a real person, a real life, going through so many twists and turns to marry the person she loved, that high and mighty person, what kind of mood would she be in? Mi Hongdou pondered deeply, as if she could see that delicate little girl, for the sake of the person she loved, year after year, learning to read and understand reason, carefully dressing herself in front of the mirror, growing taller and more mature, finally becoming someone who could stand shoulder to shoulder with him. Qin Muxue was only eighteen years old when she entered the palace, still with a hint of childishness. Marrying Ji Yan was the most wonderful thing in the world for her. On their wedding night, that one glance, seeing the person she had been chasing after finally standing before her, he was not only the person she loved, but also her dream of many years. She had worked so hard to get closer to that person who was originally so far away… What kind of mood was that?
Mi Hongdou tried hard to analyze Ji Yan in Qin Muxue’s eyes on their wedding night. As her understanding deepened, her heart felt like it was suddenly struck by something.
She had also experienced that kind of mood, hadn’t she… Although the reasons were different, thinking about it carefully, the mood was the same! The first time she saw her, she couldn’t forget her. She wanted to see her again, wanted to become a better version of herself, to reach the same level, to close the distance between them, to make herself someone who would also catch the other person’s eye. Mi Hongdou’s eyes suddenly became firm, grasping that clear understanding.
Before dinner, every take was an NG. After dinner, it was done in one take! Director Pan was overjoyed to have captured that close-up, which was even better than he had expected. The other crew members were also relieved. This was the last scene of the night. After so much trouble, they could finally wrap up. Their gazes towards the crew’s new NG queen also softened.
“Since you didn’t eat earlier, how about we go grab something to eat together?” Director Pan walked over to Mi Hongdou, who was packing up and preparing to go back to the hotel to continue thinking, and knocked on the table. “Xiaoqiao just sent a message saying that the late-night snacks at a certain restaurant are good. She’s already there holding a table for us and specifically asked me to bring you along.”
Xiaoqiao? Mi Hongdou was still immersed in the scene she had just filmed and almost didn’t react to the fact that he was talking about Qiao Rubai.
“Let’s go, let’s go together. Last time she asked me to work on the script for ‘Reality On Line,’ I still have some things to ask her. I’ll also pack some late-night snacks for my grandma.” Pan Xiang, carrying a giant backpack from who knows where, said as she patted it.
“Didn’t you say your grandma was asleep?” Director Pan raised an eyebrow.
“But President Qiao doesn’t know that. Aiya, she always finds these strange restaurants. Every time I eat there, I want to eat it again the next day. I’ll be the last to leave, I’ll order some takeout myself, I definitely won’t embarrass you.” Pan Xiang scratched her head, “Or, I’ll share some with you tomorrow morning?”
Hearing the last sentence, Director Pan’s expression softened.
Mi Hongdou was a little confused: “‘Reality On Line’ isn’t a reality show? It needs a script?” That couldn’t be right. Would someone like Qiao Rubai create a script for a reality show, turning a reality show into a staged performance? According to common sense, she should be the type of person who would throw the actors onto a deserted island, set up hundreds of cameras, and leave.
“Oh, you’re also going to participate in ‘Reality On Line’?” Pan Xiang covered her mouth, “I won’t reveal any secrets.”
Mi Hongdou’s face was covered in black lines: “Then let’s go eat…”
Director Pan, Pan Xiang, and Mi Hongdou, just the three of them, got into Director Pan’s car. She had seen Ji Junxin earlier, she wondered if she would also go… Thinking about how Ji Junxin had seen her embarrassing multiple NGs, Mi Hongdou felt a little gloomy. Pan Xiang, sitting next to her, peeked at her several times, feeling a little regretful. Had she hurt her with her overly guarded behavior earlier?
“Aiya, don’t be unhappy. It’s not really a secret. It’s just that President Qiao asked me to revise the script for ‘Imperial Secrets’ before, and we talked about how she wanted to do a reality show after this movie, with the main characters from ‘Imperial Secrets’ participating. Then I was curious about what kind of reality show she wanted to do. Guess what she said… She said, ‘I haven’t decided yet. Maybe find a primeval forest or a small island, the kind where they can find their own water and food, set up cameras everywhere, and then just leave them there?’ It’s just…” Pan Xiang trailed off.
Just as perverted as I thought… Mi Hongdou wanted to break the contract.
“It’s so cool!” Pan Xiang, after all, was still a child, and her face was full of excitement as she spoke, “But later, after planning for a while, she said that this method might be too simple and crude, and might not work in our country, and the safety wasn’t guaranteed either. The participants are all celebrities, and even if they aren’t all pampered, they definitely won’t last long if it’s too difficult. They’ll probably go on strike in the end. Also, because they are celebrities, bonuses and prizes won’t be very attractive to them. They care more about their image, so President Qiao’s previous plan of turning everyone into cavemen definitely won’t work. So don’t worry, although I can’t tell you the specific content now because it’s confidential, I guarantee that the ‘Reality On Line’ that I helped improve will be so fun that you won’t be able to stop!”
Please stop! Please stop your brain from running wild! Mi Hongdou couldn’t look directly at Pan Xiang’s sparkling eyes. Did she think that by wearing big, round glasses and acting cute, she wouldn’t recognize her as the Fragrance Master who could create worlds with her imagination? The meticulous and realistic Qiao Rubai, combined with the overly imaginative Fragrance Master… Mi Hongdou felt that it would be better to just throw them onto a deserted island.
Hearing the news, Mi Hongdou’s face became even more gloomy, and she temporarily forgot to dwell on the fact that she had just channeled her years of fan love for Ji Junxin into Qin Muxue’s devotion to Ji Yan in the drama.
In the restaurant, after receiving the message that Director Pan had left, Qiao Rubai ordered the food. Calculating the time, it would be ready just as they arrived.
“Here.” Qiao Rubai took out several pieces of peanut candy and peanut brittle from her pocket and placed them in front of Ji Junxin, “The actress who plays the little empress, Mi Hongdou, will also be here later. If you like it, you can ask her how she made it.”
“I don’t know why, but I always feel that you’re treating this little empress differently. I heard from Director Pan that this is her first drama, and you recommended her to join the crew. Now you’re specifically asking her to join us for dinner.” Ji Junxin skillfully put the candy into her pocket.
“It’s not really her first drama. The one she signed with Mengguan, ‘Divorce, So Be It,’ is her first. It’s just that we’re filming ours first. That one starts filming tomorrow, and the set is not far from ours. I think she’s a good actress. You just saw her acting with Zhang Zijing, what do you think?” Qiao Rubai had already heard from the crew members that Mi Hongdou had many NGs today, but seeing that she finally got the last scene right, she still hoped that Ji Junxin would give her a good review.
Speaking of this, Ji Junxin, who wasn’t used to gossiping behind people’s backs, hesitated a little: “I think… does she dislike Zhang Zijing?” “After we arrived, she had three NGs. I think her look at Zhang Zijing was a bit unfriendly. But the last scene was very good. I was standing by Director Pan and saw the close-up shot of her. The empress’s love for the emperor, you could even see the satisfaction of a wish fulfilled. If it were me, I probably couldn’t have acted it out. Because the change in her eyes between the two takes was so significant, I asked Director Pan what he had said to her earlier. Pan Xiang told me that she asked the little empress to substitute someone she liked for Zhang Zijing, to act as if she was looking at that person. That makes sense.” At this point, Ji Junxin smiled faintly, “I think this little empress must have a boyfriend she really likes to be able to portray that kind of love and admiration so vividly.”
Just as Mi Hongdou reached the door of the private room and was about to knock, she happened to hear the last two sentences. Her face flushed, and she froze!
No… Goddess, you seem to have misunderstood something! Goddess, listen to my explanation…
Suddenly, a huge tray floated past Mi Hongdou, pushing open the door of the private room. Mi Hongdou, whose brain had crashed, and Ji Junxin, who was feeling guilty about talking about someone behind their back, locked eyes. One red face became two…
“Five servings of salted pork and vegetable clay pot rice, five bowls of steamed egg, your order is complete!” The tray was unloaded and floated away.
Oh, what did you say? The tray wasn’t floating, it was being carried by a waiter? Don’t be ridiculous, at this moment, there was no one else in their eyes~
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