Chapter 73
The next morning, Li Mo was woken by the sound of her doorbell. She groggily got out of bed and opened the door, finding Xu Dao(Director) standing there. As Xu Jie tried to enter, Li Mo blocked the doorway, preventing her from coming in.
“What’s wrong, Mo Mo? Why won’t you let me in?”
Li Mo looked at her awkwardly, glancing back into the room before turning back to Xu Jie.
“Um… Xu Jie, could you come back later? It’s not a good time right now.”
Xu Jie’s mind raced with suspicions, her face darkening. She pushed against the door, preventing Li Mo from closing it.
“Mo Mo, be honest with me. Is there someone else in your room?!”
“Shh… Xu Jie, keep your voice down! She’s still sleeping! Can we talk about this later?”
“Who is it? Why are you making so much noise so early in the morning…”
A voice from inside the room startled Xu Jie. She pushed the door open and stormed in, her eyes widening as she saw Fan Weiqi lying in bed. Li Mo, unable to stop her, closed the door and followed her inside. Fan Weiqi, awakened by the commotion, sat up and looked at Xu Jie, her eyes still sleepy.
“Oh, it’s Director Xu. Good morning.”
“You… You… You! Why are you in Mo Mo’s room?! Are you two…?”
“Xu Jie, calm down! Keep your voice down! You’ll disturb the other guests! Qiqi had a bit too much to drink last night, and I didn’t want her to go home alone, so I let her stay here.”
“Hey, Director Xu, you’re being weird! You’re not Mo Mo’s girlfriend or anything! Why are you acting like this? Even good friends shouldn’t be so intrusive! Are you crazy?”
“Mo Mo is too naive! If I don’t look after her, she’ll be taken advantage of by people like you! Did you get her drunk last night and take advantage of her?!”
“Director Xu, there’s nothing wrong with two consenting adults having a relationship. Mo Mo is an adult. She doesn’t need you to dictate her love life! You’re the one with ulterior motives, trying to control her so you can get her into bed!”
“I’m not! Don’t slander me! Mo Mo, you believe me, right? I’m not like that!”
“You are! Otherwise, you wouldn’t be so jealous of who Mo Mo spends time with!”
“You’re lying! Shut up!”
“Okay, both of you, stop arguing! Xu Jie, please go back to your room.”
“Mo Mo… She’s not a good person! Don’t trust her! You know how I feel about you! I’m not like what she’s saying! I’m not! Believe me!”
“Okay, okay, Xu Jie, I know you’re not like that. But you’re making a scene here, and it’s making me uncomfortable. Please go back to your room, okay?”
“What about her? Aren’t you going to ask her to leave?”
“Director Xu, is our relationship really that unclear to you?”
“Mo Mo, is this true?”
Fan Weiqi’s phone rang. She got out of bed and went to the table to answer it. The other two stopped arguing, their attention drawn to the phone call.
“Hello, Director Wang. Good morning.”
“Hello, good morning. Is this Sister Weiqi?”
“Yes, it’s me.”
“We have the results. Congratulations! You got the role of Su Su! Please come to the studio later today so we can discuss the contract details and the filming schedule.”
“Oh, really? That’s great! I’ll be there on time. By the way, can you tell me who got the role of Yang Jingru?”
“We’ve decided to cast Li Mo as Yang Jingru. I was about to call her and ask her to come with you to discuss the contract.”
“You don’t have to call her. I’m with her right now. I’ll let her know.”
“Oh, really? That’s great! Please ask her to come with you later. Thank you.”
“No problem. Thank you, Director Wang. Bye.”
“Bye.”
“Mo Mo! Congratulations! You got the role!”
Li Mo looked at Fan Weiqi, her eyes wide with excitement. She ran over to her and grabbed her shoulders.
“Are you serious? I really got the role?”
“Hehe, yes! And I got the role too! So, please take care of me! I’m looking forward to working with you!”
“I’m so happy!”
Li Mo hugged Fan Weiqi excitedly, and Fan Weiqi, caught up in her excitement, hugged her back. They jumped up and down, their joy overflowing. Li Mo calmed down and then turned to Xu Jie, giving her a hug.
“Xu Jie, we need to go to the studio now. We’ll be busy for the next few days, so we won’t have time to hang out with you. Why don’t you go back to Beijing?”
“But I… I’m worried about you being alone with her.”
“Director Xu, are you crazy? We’re starting filming soon! We’ll be together on set every day! Do you expect to follow us around everywhere? What kind of friend acts like this?”
“You… You! I…”
“What ‘you’? Am I wrong? You’ve been arguing nonstop since you arrived! We’re in a hurry! Are you leaving or not? If you’re not, we’re going without you.”
“Xu Jie, please go back to your room. We really need to leave.”
“Alright… I’ll go back to my room. Will you join me for dinner tonight?”
“I’m not sure what time we’ll be back. Don’t wait for me, okay?”
“… Okay.”
Xu Jie finally left Li Mo’s room. Li Mo breathed a sigh of relief and closed the door, turning to see Fan Weiqi making faces at her. She burst out laughing.
“Qiqi, you’re quite fierce when you’re angry.”
“Of course! You know, the newcomers I’ve scolded behind my back call me ‘The Demon Queen.’”
“Pfft, hahaha! Really? They actually call you that?”
“Of course… not! If anyone dared to call me that, I’d crush them! See if they’d dare!”
“Hahaha.”
“But seriously, Mo Mo, I think there’s something wrong with Xu Dao. No normal person would barge in here and yell at me like that. She’s not your girlfriend or your wife. I think she’s fantasizing about you being her lover. I suggest you set her straight and make it clear that you’re not interested.”
“I’m starting to think she’s a bit delusional too. I’ll try to avoid being alone with her when we get back to Beijing.”
“Okay, if you need my help, just let me know. I’ll be there for you.”
“Thank you, Qiqi. I guess I’ll have to offer myself to you as a token of my gratitude. Hahaha.”
Fan Weiqi walked over to Li Mo and pulled her into a hug, gazing into her eyes. She whispered in her ear,
“Come to me, honey.”
Li Mo pushed her away, and Fan Weiqi burst out laughing. They quickly changed into their work clothes and had Ah Zhong drive them to the studio. In the car, Yu Wenqian gave Li Mo some advice on how to behave during the meeting with the director and producers. Li Mo listened attentively.
Fan Weiqi had decided to ride with them to the studio and then call her own agency to inform them of her schedule. When they arrived, Ah Zhong dropped them off at the entrance and then went to find a parking spot.
Fan Weiqi told Li Mo that she would go find her assistant. Li Mo nodded and then continued inside with Yu Wenqian. They entered the meeting room and waited. A few minutes later, Director Wang and Qiang Ge entered the room. Director Wang, noticing that only Li Mo and Yu Wenqian were present, asked,
“Where’s Sister Weiqi? Didn’t you come together?”
“She went to find her assistant. She should be here soon.”
“Okay, let’s wait for her.”
“Hello, Director Wang. I’m Yu Wenqian, Li Mo’s agent. Shouldn’t we be having separate meetings? Contract terms are usually confidential.”
“Hello, Sister Wenqian. We’ve asked you both to come together because we need to discuss some changes to the script with both lead actresses. If you’re both okay with the changes, we’ll proceed with signing the contracts separately.”
A knock on the door interrupted him. Director Wang called out, “Come in.” Fan Weiqi entered the room with her assistant and sat down.
“Sorry I’m late.”
“It’s fine. We were just about to start. Now that you’re here, let’s begin. We’ve decided to make this a dual-lead film. The basic story remains the same, but Sister Fan’s role as the second female lead will be expanded. Do either of you have any objections?”
“I’m fine with it. What about you, Mo Mo? Is this okay with you?”
Li Mo and Yu Wenqian exchanged glances. Li Mo shrugged, indicating that she didn’t mind and that Yu Wenqian could decide. Yu Wenqian, understanding, asked,
“Director Wang, we’re generally okay with it, but will Mo Mo’s screen time be reduced?”
“No, it won’t. That brings us to our second point. We’re changing the film to a lesbian romance. There will be some intimate scenes between the two female leads. Are you both okay with that?”
“How intimate are we talking about? Kissing? Can we use camera angles to imply intimacy?” Yu Wenqian asked.
“I prefer realism in my films, so I expect the actors to portray the emotions authentically. Even for the sex scenes, I’d like you to be fully nude. Of course, we won’t show anything explicit. We’ll use camera angles to avoid that.”
“There are sex scenes?!”
“Yes, there are.”
“But Director Wang, Mo Mo is still a newcomer. Exposing her to such roles so early in her career might affect her future prospects. We need to consider this carefully…”
“Sister Qian, I want to do it.”
Yu Wenqian paused, looking at Li Mo, who nodded, her expression resolute.
“Are you sure? This might affect your image…”
“Sister Qian, I don’t care about that. Fame doesn’t matter to me. I love this character, and I don’t want to give up this opportunity.”
“… Alright, if that’s what you want.”
“Sister Fan, are you okay with this?” Director Wang turned to Fan Weiqi.
“Of course! I was expecting this. Hee hee hee, I even practiced with Mo Mo beforehand! Right, Mo Mo?”
“Yes.” Li Mo smiled and nodded.
“That’s great! I was worried you might object, since we didn’t discuss this beforehand. The assistant director will go over the contract details with you both. Here’s the revised script. You can take it home and review it. I’d like to start filming as soon as possible. If you’re both available, I’d like to start next week.”
“Next week?!” Everyone, except for Fan Weiqi, who had worked with Director Wang before, exclaimed in unison.
They discussed the details further, signed the contracts, and then left the studio.
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