Chapter 74: Not My Type p1
With a shortened filming schedule, the daily workload increased. The most difficult scene to film was always the first one in the morning. The high-intensity filming, coupled with the frequent NGs, exhausted both the actors and the crew. Waking up early was a struggle, and even after waking up, they looked like they could collapse from exhaustion at any moment.
This had been going on for two months. They said it took twenty-one days to form a new habit. Although everyone was still sleepy every morning, they had gotten used to dragging themselves to the set.
Many envied the glamorous life and high income of actors, but few knew that a few seconds of footage on screen might be the result of an entire morning of NGs on set. There was no such thing as effortless success, only unseen hard work.
During the early palace scenes in Shudian, there were many love scenes between the emperor and the concubines, or scenes of the concubines scheming against each other, interspersed throughout the script. So, despite the tight schedule, Ji Junxin and Mi Hongdou could sometimes sleep in. But the estate scenes were different. The young empress and Miao Qianye were the main characters, forget about sleeping in, almost eighty percent of the scenes involved them, they had no time to rest.
The two, who hadn’t slept well despite the comforting meatball soup and hot water bottles, dragged themselves out of bed when the alarm rang. Fortunately, they had returned early the previous afternoon and had a long nap, otherwise, they would definitely have dark circles.
They had to wake up early to make it to the remote estate location. When Ji Junxin and Mi Hongdou arrived, the crew was already there, the hardest working group of all. Everyone looked tired. Mi Hongdou flipped through the script, saw that Jiang Duo was in several of the morning scenes, and understood the reason for their grim expressions.
The first person Ji Junxin and Mi Hongdou saw upon arriving was Jiang Lingling. There was no way to miss her. She was surrounded by a table laden with food, waving at them enthusiastically. She was too conspicuous to ignore.
Having filmed together for two or three months and shared several meals, they were much more familiar with each other now. So, they walked over to Jiang Lingling.
“Have you had breakfast? Join me!” Jiang Lingling, holding a chicken roll, greeted them enthusiastically.
Mi Hongdou stopped by the table and saw several clay pots filled with wontons, noodles, and various kinds of congee. There were also steaming baskets, neatly stacked, with labels indicating their contents: steamed buns, dumplings, cakes, even sticky rice chicken, steamed pork ribs with black bean sauce, and chicken feet.
“Congee, soup, dim sum, take whatever you like.” Jiang Lingling patted the table laden with breakfast items. “This table is custom-made, it can heat the food, so everything is still warm.”
Mi Hongdou hadn’t noticed earlier, but now, looking closely, it was true… the table looked like a large stainless steel box, not an ordinary table.
“Lots of variety, help yourselves. Want some shrimp dumplings? I just gave Pan Xiang two baskets.” Jiang Lingling pointed towards the set. “There’s a lot, there should be several baskets left. Want to try some?”
“Pan Xiang? Didn’t she go back to Jiang City yesterday afternoon?” Mi Hongdou looked in the direction Jiang Lingling pointed and saw Pan Xiang next to Director Pan.
Jiang Lingling chuckled. “That little girl, she’s so unlucky. She was notified that there was something at school this morning, so she took Qiong Yu’s car back to Jiang City yesterday afternoon. But after driving for about an hour, the school informed her that it was postponed. So she had to drive back. Two hours wasted. Heh, that’s why I offered her shrimp dumplings earlier.” Jiang Lingling looked smug.
“…” Mi Hongdou forced a smile.
“Bai Tang bought us breakfast.” Ji Junxin, after examining the food on the table, pointed at the chauffeured car nearby, politely declining Jiang Lingling’s offer.
“Who’s Bai Tang?” Jiang Lingling was first shocked that Ji Junxin would refuse so much food, then surprised by the name. It sounded… strangely fitting with Mi Hongdou’s name, like a bowl of red bean soup with a sprinkle of sugar. Could it be… Mi Hongdou’s new girlfriend? Jiang Lingling looked at Ji Junxin sympathetically, then her speculative gaze landed on Mi Hongdou.
“Bai Tang is my assistant.” Mi Hongdou smiled at Jiang Lingling and explained gently. “She bought us glutinous rice balls and soy milk for breakfast. We were just taking a walk before going back to eat.”
Jiang Lingling’s expression was suspicious. “Mi Hongdou, you have an assistant? I thought you were always alone. Last time, it was that manager, Yang Lianyi, and now it’s this assistant, Bai Tang.”
Heh… it was all because of Yang Lianyi, who had been neglecting her for months, she didn’t even know what she was busy with. But it hadn’t been inconvenient. Mi Hongdou kept her complaints to herself and maintained a gentle smile towards Jiang Lingling. “Bai Tang was mostly at Mengguan for assistant training. She recently finished and came to work with me. I don’t have much for her to do, just helping me with errands and things.”
An assistant who was being trained at the company instead of working with the artist? Jiang Lingling looked at her own assistant, who was gnawing on a steamed bun in the distance. Shouldn’t assistants always be with their artists? A single dog couldn’t understand the CP life, which didn’t require light bulbs.
Something felt off… Jiang Lingling thought about Mi Hongdou’s words, but couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was. So, she let it go and continued her enthusiastic invitation, “Just glutinous rice balls and soy milk is too simple, why not eat here? There’s so much food, there must be something you like.”
Mi Hongdou’s gaze lingered on the chicken roll in Jiang Lingling’s hand, and she asked with a smile, “Did your restaurant send all this breakfast?”
Jiang Lingling nodded. “Yes, I bought a restaurant, I have to make use of it.”
“Besides chicken rolls, have you tried anything else from your restaurant? I mean, dishes they actually make, not the ones I cooked.” Mi Hongdou’s gaze was patient and gentle.
“Let me think…” Jiang Lingling didn’t quite understand Mi Hongdou’s sudden change of topic, but she still thought about it and replied, “The first time, I had a chicken roll. The second time, yesterday at lunch, I had some fried chicken, and… a chicken roll. The third time…” She held up the half-eaten chicken roll in her hand.
A conversation with a chicken roll addict was truly exhausting. Mi Hongdou’s expression and voice were gentle. “Why don’t you try something else? Besides fried chicken and chicken rolls?” Thinking that she had subtly hinted at it, Mi Hongdou smiled at Jiang Lingling. “We’ll go back and eat our glutinous rice balls. Ji Junxin has been craving it for days.” She glanced at Ji Junxin and turned to leave.
Jiang Lingling froze, then suddenly realized what was off today!
“Mi Hongdou!”
Just as Mi Hongdou and Ji Junxin took a few steps towards the chauffeured car, Jiang Lingling’s voice came from behind them.
Why… so enthusiastic?
They turned around.
Jiang Lingling waved at Mi Hongdou. “Mi Hongdou, come here, I need to talk to you.” Then she waved at Ji Junxin. “You go eat your glutinous rice balls, it won’t be good when it’s cold!”
Ji Junxin looked at Mi Hongdou hesitantly.
“You go ahead and eat, I’ll be there soon.” Mi Hongdou’s voice was soft and gentle, incredibly comforting to Ji Junxin.
Okay… Although she wasn’t happy about going alone, Ji Junxin obediently returned to the car.
Mi Hongdou walked back to the table, her gaze gentle, her expression friendly, waiting for Jiang Lingling to speak.
But Jiang Lingling, after calling her over, didn’t say anything, just walked around Mi Hongdou, scrutinizing her.
Mi Hongdou frowned, then relaxed, her gentle gaze following Jiang Lingling’s movements. “What’s wrong? Didn’t you say you wanted to talk to me?”
Mi Hongdou’s voice was calm and gentle, her words clear and measured, like she was reading aloud.
Jiang Lingling shivered uncomfortably. “Mi Hongdou, did you take the wrong medicine today?”
“…” Mi Hongdou’s lips twitched, but she maintained her smile. “No.”
“If you didn’t take the wrong medicine, then why are you looking at me like that!” Jiang Lingling suddenly jumped back a few steps and looked at Mi Hongdou warily. “Tell me, what are your intentions!”
That suffocating gentleness was usually reserved for Ji Junxin. Why was Mi Hongdou looking at her with the same gentle gaze today! Could it be… Jiang Lingling’s imagination ran wild.
“No intentions…” Mi Hongdou’s smile almost cracked. “If you have nothing to say, I’ll be going.” She smiled at Jiang Lingling and turned to leave.
“Wait…” Jiang Lingling jumped back, blocking her way. “Did something happen to you? Why are you looking at me so strangely? Do you have a problem? Tell me, and I’ll help you.” Mi Hongdou must have encountered something very difficult, a huge emotional blow, to be acting so strangely today! She had to save her! Jiang Lingling praised her own friendship.
“Nothing happened.” Mi Hongdou smiled patiently.
“…” Jiang Lingling was silent. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink… “Okay, if you need anything, you can always come to me.” She sighed and stepped aside, no longer blocking Mi Hongdou, and went back to her chicken roll.
“Hey…” This time, it was Mi Hongdou who called out to Jiang Lingling.
Jiang Lingling turned around.
“Is my gaze really that strange?” Mi Hongdou asked hesitantly, her expression no longer just gentle.
Jiang Lingling stopped and answered seriously: “Very strange.”
“…” Mi Hongdou’s expression was a mixture of confusion and anticipation. “What kind of strange? I mean, what do you think my gaze towards you is like?”
Jiang Lingling looked at Mi Hongdou with disdain. “Don’t think that just because you looked at me gently, I would have any ideas about you. You’re not my type.” All inappropriate feelings should be nipped in the bud. Jiang Lingling ruthlessly rejected Mi Hongdou. There was no possibility between them. She should go back to pursuing her little foodie!
Mi Hongdou was shocked: “Jiang Lingling, are you crazy!”
“No, I’m serious.” Jiang Lingling’s expression was firm. “Although Ji Junxin seems a bit slow, you can’t just give up so easily. I was rooting for you two, don’t change your target midway. And I really don’t like your type.” She looked at Mi Hongdou, whose face had suddenly turned pale, with concern and added, “I’m flattered to be your target. We can still be friends.”
Mi Hongdou, looking at Jiang Lingling’s serious expression, felt a mix of heat and cold, almost spitting out blood. … If she could spit blood, she would spit it on this narcissistic lunatic!
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