Chapter 9
“President Qin, this way please.” The production assistant led Qin Ai and Qin Tian inside with a beaming smile.
Qin Ai nodded slightly, her expression indifferent. Qin Tian, on the other hand, had his eyes wide open, curious about everything and wanting to see everything.
Qin Tian had always been curious about how TV series were filmed. Now that he had finally come to the filming set with his sister, he wished he could turn into a walking question mark, his mouth chattering non-stop with a barrage of questions.
“Won’t they be hot wearing so much?”
“Is that sword hanging on the wall real or fake?”
“Where’s Older Sister Zuo?”
“There are so many people over there! Is Older Sister Zuo among them?”
Of course, Qin Ai wouldn’t answer Qin Tian’s questions. As an older sister, she habitually ignored her younger brother.
Qin Tian also knew that it was already good enough that his sister didn’t throw him out for being annoying, so he didn’t expect Qin Ai to pay attention to him.
Soon, the group arrived at the filming set. Zuo Bian and Zhong Xin were surrounded by a large group of staff members, filming a scene.
Just now, Director Chen had asked Zhong Xin to adjust his emotions. Zhong Xin’s face was a little unsightly, but he also knew that he couldn’t go too far with making things difficult for others, or else it would affect the filming schedule and everyone would resent him.
Zhong Xin took a deep breath and suppressed his dissatisfaction with Zuo Bian.
This take should be fine. After adjusting his emotions, Zhong Xin said to Director Chen, “Director Chen, I’m ready.”
Qin Tian, squeezed behind a group of adults, hopped around trying to see what was happening inside.
“Little Master, please be quiet, they’re filming over there. If you speak too loudly, it will affect the sound recording.” The production assistant crouched down and said to Qin Tian.
Qin Tian immediately covered his mouth and nodded obediently.
Qin Ai grabbed Qin Tian by the back of his collar and walked forward. The production assistant quietly asked the surrounding staff members to make way for Qin Ai and Qin Tian.
After someone made way, Qin Tian finally saw Zuo Bian. He originally wanted to greet Zuo Bian, but then he remembered that he couldn’t speak loudly, so he could only wave his arm vigorously at her.
This scene should have gone smoothly, but Zuo Bian caught a glimpse of Qin Ai and Qin Tian out of the corner of her eye.
Qin Ai looked no different from when Zuo Bian first met her, dressed in a white women’s suit, with straight black shoulder-length hair that complemented her cold and beautiful face. She seemed out of place in this world, like a gorgeous painting forcefully superimposed onto the scene, making the surrounding colors lose their vibrancy.
Beautiful, but distant. As if no matter how hard you tried, you could never truly enter her world.
Even though Zuo Bian had saved Qin Ai from the robbers, Qin Ai’s attitude towards her hadn’t changed significantly. Even now, the progress bar was only at 1.5%.
Others might have given up long ago, but Zuo Bian didn’t take any of this to heart.
The moment Zuo Bian’s eyes reflected Qin Ai’s figure, they lit up. Her originally helpless and restrained tone in the scene instantly turned light and joyful.
Zhong Xin, who wanted to finish this scene quickly, helplessly shouted “Cut!” again. “Director, this time Miss Zuo’s emotions are really off.”
【Host, Host, do you know why Zhong Xin kept picking on you just now?】
‘Why?’
【Because of Hu Miaofu. It turns out that Hu Miaofu is the real Green Tea Bitch. It was clearly her who couldn’t get into character and kept making mistakes, but she implied to Zhong Xin that you were bullying her. Zhong Xin is the kind of hotheaded person who hates the rich and powerful, and he believed her after just a few words.】
‘Oh, I understand. Don’t worry, I’ll get back at her. I’ve been studying the Green Tea Handbook very seriously.’
The conversation between Zuo Bian and the system in her mind only took a second or two.
“Senior Zhong, do you hate me? Why do you call ‘Cut!’ every time I speak my lines? Did I do something wrong?” Zuo Bian frowned slightly, her eyes filled with confusion and unease.
Zuo Bian’s beauty was undeniable. Her elegant and classical temperament made her look so fragile that people wanted to offer her their hearts.
Everyone present knew that Zhong Xin had been making things difficult for Zuo Bian in this scene. This was already the eleventh take. Even if Zuo Bian’s performance was really problematic this time, it must be because Zhong Xin had affected her. Everyone’s hearts had already swayed towards Zuo Bian.
A staff member couldn’t help but whisper, “There’s a reason why Zhong Xin isn’t popular. With this attitude? She’s just a newcomer filming for the first time. This isn’t the way to give guidance.”
These words reached Qin Ai’s ears without missing a single syllable, but Qin Ai’s expression didn’t change.
Zuo Bian knew that Qin Ai could see that she was acting, but this didn’t affect Zuo Bian’s ‘performance’.
Zuo Bian rubbed her eyes, pretending to wipe away tears, but in reality, she was just making her eyes red.
“You’re here.” Zuo Bian smiled at Qin Ai and Qin Tian with red eyes.
It had to be said that the sight of a beautiful woman forcing a smile was truly heartbreaking.
Zhong Xin, who was still standing there, was looked at with condemning gazes by everyone, feeling utterly speechless. He wanted to explain, to say that he really wasn’t making things difficult for Zuo Bian this time. However, the more he explained, the worse it got. Was he implying that the previous ten times were indeed him making things difficult for Zuo Bian?
“We came to see you.” Qin Ai said.
The small Qin Tian next to her glared angrily at Zhong Xin. “Such a big person bullying a girl, how outrageous!”
Zuo Bian nodded in agreement. “Mm-hmm, outrageous.”
Qin Ai crossed her arms and tilted her head, her tone slightly cold. “Is bullying newcomers so common in this production crew?”
Director Chen felt cold sweat dripping down his forehead. He laughed awkwardly and said, “President Qin, this is a misunderstanding. There’s absolutely no bullying of newcomers in our ‘Ascending to Immortality’ production crew. It’s just that Zhong Xin is a bit stubborn and likes to nitpick when it comes to acting. No one can persuade him otherwise.”
Qin Ai’s gaze shifted to Zhong Xin, who felt all the hairs on his body stand on end.
Zhong Xin could feel the pressure emanating from Qin Ai, the kind of coldness that sent shivers down his spine, making him subconsciously take a step back.
President Qin? Was this the legendary, mysterious, and ruthless President Qin?
Zhong Xin suddenly regretted what he had done today. Although he looked down on people who used power and money to get roles, he also knew in his heart that he couldn’t afford to offend them.
“I’m sorry, Miss Zuo, it was my fault just now. You’re a newcomer after all, I shouldn’t be so strict as a senior.” Zhong Xin bit the bullet and walked down the steps Director Chen had laid out for him.
A sneer suddenly appeared on Qin Ai’s lips. “Since Mr. Zhong has been acting for many years, I think more opportunities should be given to newcomers.”
Director Chen immediately nodded in agreement. “Yes, yes, yes, President Qin is right. I’ll have someone revise the script later. Come to think of it, the second male lead’s role seems to be too much. It’s time to cut it down.”
Qin Ai’s expression softened slightly, and everyone around her breathed a sigh of relief.
Only Qin Tian, who was completely oblivious to the awkward atmosphere, clapped enthusiastically for Qin Ai. “Sister is so cool! This is the domineering CEO from the novels!”
Zuo Bian subconsciously clapped along, although she still didn’t understand what a domineering CEO was.
Qin Ai ruffled Qin Tian’s hair unceremoniously. “Don’t read those weird novels, or your phone will be confiscated.”
Qin Tian timidly hid behind Zuo Bian. “Then I’ll ask Older Sister Zuo to protect me. If all else fails, I’ll just watch Older Sister Zuo play games.”
Zuo Bian stared at Qin Ai’s face. In order to win over Qin Ai, she ruthlessly sold Qin Tian out. “Xiao Tian should listen to his sister. Children shouldn’t read random things.”
“Is it because I’m not as pretty as my sister?” Qin Tian said sadly, touching his little face. At such a young age, he already had the heart of a drama queen.
Zuo Bian nodded seriously. She glanced at Qin Ai’s face and said, “Your sister is much prettier than you.”
“Wuwuwu, Sister, this world that judges people by their looks is too cruel!” This time, Qin Tian threw himself into Qin Ai’s arms.
Qin Ai helplessly pressed Qin Tian’s head down, preventing him from throwing himself around.
“I’m just here to check on the production today, I won’t stay long. My assistant brought desserts from Li Ji, you can try them during your break.” After saying that, Qin Ai grabbed Qin Tian and left.
Qin Tian reluctantly whined, “Sister, I haven’t seen enough yet, I haven’t played games with Older Sister Zuo yet, you’re heartless! You’re cruel! You’re being unreasonable!”
Qin Ai’s headache intensified.
“Come again next time!” Zuo Bian waved at their retreating figures.
Qin Tian desperately turned around. “Older Sister Zuo, I’ll come often!”
Qin Tian wanted to continue talking to Zuo Bian, but he was quickly dragged away by Qin Ai.
Just now, Qin Ai had stood up for Zuo Bian, giving everyone a clue. People in the production crew actually knew that Zuo Bian was brought in because of her investment, but they didn’t know who was behind her.
Now they saw that the person behind Zuo Bian was actually Qin Ai. No one believed that it was the little kid Qin Tian who had a crush on Zuo Bian, that would be ridiculous. So it was Qin Ai who had a crush on Zuo Bian?
Although same-sex relationships weren’t shocking in this day and age, and were even legalized and allowed to get married, this was Qin Ai! Would Qin Ai actually fall for someone? It seemed impossible.
Zuo Bian didn’t notice the complicated thoughts of the others present. She just asked the director if they could continue filming.
Director Chen nodded blankly and then asked Zuo Bian and Zhong Xin to finish the scene they hadn’t finished filming just now.
During the break after filming the scene, everyone ate the Li Ji desserts brought by Qin Ai’s people, praising them endlessly.
Two people were not in a good mood: Hu Miaofu and Zhong Xin.
Hu Miaofu was jealous of Zuo Bian. She had always wanted to climb the social ladder, but it never went smoothly. Even when she did manage to climb, it was always with some good-for-nothing rich second generation who couldn’t help her career.
And Zhong Xin looked dejected. How could he be happy?
He already had a hard time in the entertainment industry due to various reasons. He had only managed to stay afloat for so long because of his seniority. This time, he finally got a second male lead role, and if he performed well, he might even gain some popularity. But because of Qin Ai’s words, this hard-won opportunity was ruined.
Who would dare to offend the CEO of Qin Group? She was their investor.
Hu Miaofu pretended to want to comfort Zhong Xin, but Zhong Xin seemed to feel too ashamed. Before Hu Miaofu could say anything, he said he was feeling unwell and left.
Watching Zhong Xin’s fleeing figure, Hu Miaofu clenched her fists, her sharp nails digging into her flesh.
Why was the world so unfair? What was the difference between her and Zuo Bian? Why could Zuo Bian, a newcomer who appeared out of nowhere, play the female lead in her first drama? While she, after two years of debuting, could only play a third female lead?
Hu Miaofu suppressed all the resentment in her heart. She was still rational. A woman’s best weapons were beauty and tears. Hu Miaofu knew how to use her advantages to achieve her goals, she couldn’t be impulsive.
On the other side, Zuo Bian sat at a small table and ate several delicate desserts, thinking about how to get to know Qin Ai better.
Zuo Bian felt that she didn’t understand Qin Ai enough. She could chat non-stop with Qin Tian, but she could barely say a few words to Qin Ai.
【I’m afraid I can’t help you much with that, Host. Recently, our system world has undergone reforms. Many people have complained with negative points about us not respecting the privacy of the characters during our conquests, so our system can now only give hints to the host at critical moments. The rest is up to the host’s own efforts.】
“Hey, I heard my brother’s girlfriend came to see you?”
An arrogant voice interrupted them. It was Chang Wensi, who had returned after taking half a day off. Chang Wensi stood with her arms crossed, looking at Zuo Bian with scrutinizing eyes, as if trying to find something on her face.
Zuo Bian looked up at Chang Wensi. Chang Wensi was beautiful, but her face always carried an air of arrogance, as if she looked down on everyone. It was as if her nostrils were on her forehead and her eyes were on top of her head.
“Yes, she came to see me.” Zuo Bian replied calmly.
Chang Wensi slammed her hand on the table. She stared into Zuo Bian’s eyes and lowered her voice. “Hey, I’m warning you, stay away from my brother’s girlfriend. That’s not someone you can afford to offend. Besides, do you even understand Qin Ai? There are countless people who try to get her attention and seduce her every day. You’re just one of them. I advise you to give up early, before you get burned.”
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