Shrine - Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Passing through the tight crowd, Ruan Ruan was led to the film set.

Having worked for so long, she was no stranger to the environment. She navigated around the tripods and stabilizers, stopping beneath the camera jib. The camera assistant was checking the equipment, and the on-set assistant director was explaining the scene to her.

It was a studio set of a high-end boutique. The female lead was sitting on a sofa trying on shoes. Ruan Ruan needed to squat down to serve her. After the female lead finished an important phone call, the saleswoman would look up and ask, "Ma'am, should I wrap these shoes up for you?"

The female lead would lower her head, look from side to side, and ask, "What do you think? This pair or the last one, which looks better?"

The off-screen saleswoman would say, "The champagne-colored ones. They're elegant and really complement your ankles."

The female lead would smile and say, "This pair, then."

The saleswoman's back would be to the camera for almost the entire conversation. She wouldn't be on screen, but she still needed to act opposite Shi Ran. No wonder they didn't just grab a regular extra for the foreground.

They had originally wanted to find someone even more obscure than Ruan Ruan, but they hadn't expected her to volunteer to fill in.

Ruan Ruan had already changed her clothes. She carefully memorized her lines and the lighting positions before finally looking at Shi Ran, who was seated on the sofa.

Unlike her casual attire from the morning, she was now in a professional suit—a finely tailored women's blouse and trousers. Her hair was slightly curled, framing a face full of cool indifference.

Shi Ran had very conventional features, yet everyone said she had a unique look. She had an oval face with an excellent head-to-shoulder ratio, and her skin was so flawless it looked like it had been airbrushed with a Photoshop tool. Her nasal bone was delicate, lending the center of her face an ethereal quality. However, she had eyes that seemed to disregard everything, with slightly sharp inner corners and gently upturned outer corners. The moment she rolled her eyes upward, a sense of cool aloofness would emerge.

The most captivating part of her face, and also its most contradictory point of desire, was her lips.

No lips looked more kissable than Shi Ran's. Even when she casually bit her lower lip, it was as if she were kissing herself.

Back when Ruan Ruan paid to attend an actor's training course, a photography teacher had said, "What does it mean to be blessed by the heavens? A face like Shi Ran's is what it means to be blessed by the heavens. If you want to give her an innocent role, you focus on her nose. If you want to give her a sexy script, you aim the light at the corners of her mouth."

The memory was still vivid in Ruan Ruan's mind.

Shi Ran's gaze first landed on the edge of the coffee table, then shifted to Ruan Ruan with the same detached expression she had used for the table.

Ruan Ruan's heart skipped a beat, as if a handful of pearls had been scattered inside her.

They say fame nurtures a person, and Shi Ran was undoubtedly a flower watered by renown and ambition. After two years apart, her aura was even stronger, and even more intimidating.

Shi Ran's movements didn't pause. She gave a casual nod and continued to drink the dark plum soup in her hand.

Ruan Ruan also nodded and smiled at Shi Ran.

From the look in her eyes, she clearly didn't remember her at all. Ruan Ruan felt a little dejected, but seeing Shi Ran happily drinking the dark plum soup she had made, she felt a little spark of joy.

They prepared to shoot. The lights were set.

Ruan Ruan walked over to Shi Ran, rolled up her sleeves, and brought her legs together to kneel. Shi Ran uncrossed her legs, reached out to take hold of the wrist Ruan Ruan was using to change her shoes, and moved it away. She bent over and slipped the heel on herself, then whispered to her, "Sorry."

Her expression was cold, and the word was uttered so quickly that Ruan Ruan almost missed it.

Once it registered, she smiled at Shi Ran and mouthed, "It's okay."

Shi Ran looked at her, then suddenly frowned and let out a soft "hiss." "Aren't you…"

Ruan Ruan's heart leaped into her throat.

Shi Ran leaned back against the sofa, turned her head, and said to the on-set assistant director, "Isn't she playing my college classmate?"

"Huh?" The on-set AD, holding a walkie-talkie, immediately went to find the extras casting director.

The extras casting director had just found his phone and came jogging over to explain. "Yes, yes, she's the one playing your classmate. But we had to replace someone for this part, and we couldn't find anyone suitable on such short notice. She happened to say she could do it, and since her face won't be in the shot anyway…"

Ruan Ruan nervously bit her lip, kneeling in the center of the lights, listening to them discuss her.

There were so many supporting roles of all sizes on a set. Did Shi Ran remember every single person? She was truly professional.

Shi Ran didn't say anything more, just nodded. "Let's begin."

Three, two, one.

Cameraman: "Rolling."

Sound recordist: "Sound speed."

Director: "Action."

Ruan Ruan removed her hand from Shi Ran's shoe. While Shi Ran was on the phone, she discreetly tidied up the nearby shoeboxes.

Shi Ran pointed her toe slightly as she ended the call. Ruan Ruan waited until Shi Ran had put her phone down and her attention was on the shoes before delivering her line at the right moment: "Ma'am, should I wrap these shoes up for you?"

Shi Ran examined them carefully, asking nonchalantly, "What do you think? This pair or the last one, which looks better?"

Ruan Ruan offered her suggestion earnestly. "The champagne-colored ones. They're elegant and really complement your ankles."

Shi Ran smiled and said, "This pair, then. Thank you."

Ruan Ruan placed the shoes in the box, feeling very happy. "Of course, ma'am. One moment."

It was a one-take wonder. The director was quite satisfied. With the shots for this scene completed, the crew had to change locations and set up again, and the whole set buzzed with quiet activity.

After the camera was off, Ruan Ruan put the several pairs of shoes back into their boxes to make it easier for the props master to collect them later.

Shi Ran watched from the side. Even though it was only a few lines, she found acting opposite Ruan Ruan very comfortable. Ruan Ruan had a great sense of rhythm, was present in the scene, and knew when to speak and when to pause.

Furthermore, she had memorized her lines perfectly, almost without changing a single word, except for…

"You said one word differently from the script," Shi Ran suddenly said softly.

Ruan Ruan was slightly startled. She blinked and looked at her, pondering for a few seconds. "Teacher Shi, are you referring to the 'I'd say'?"

"The champagne-colored ones, I'd say."

"The champagne-colored ones."

Such a subtle difference, yet Shi Ran had noticed.

Ruan Ruan explained, "I felt that adding the particle made the distance between the saleswoman and the customer a bit too close. It didn't seem right."

Her face flushed slightly as she lowered her head anxiously. Did Shi Ran think it was bad?

But she hadn't raised any objections when the director had called "cut."

Shi Ran didn't continue the discussion. She waited until Ruan Ruan was finished and was about to stand up, using the sofa for support, before saying, "Thank you for your hard work."

"Not at all. Thank you for your hard work, Teacher Shi," Ruan Ruan replied crisply.

Shi Ran glanced at her slightly reddened knees but said nothing.

Ruan Ruan exited with composure, only starting to feel giddy once she was through the doorway. Wu Mei was already waiting for her and asked how it went. She said Shi Ran hadn't recognized her, but they had exchanged several sentences.

Her face lit up as she added, "She even drank the dark plum soup I made! I didn't expect Xiao Lin to give it to Shi Ran instead of drinking it herself."

"Do you think Xiao Lin gave it to her directly, or did Shi Ran see it in her hand, think it looked good, and ask for it?"

"Shi Ran probably wouldn't just ask for someone else's dark plum soup, right?"

Ruan Ruan changed out of her costume and took the small fan from Wu Mei's hand, chattering nonstop.

It was clear she was thrilled. The poor girl had been starting to wilt from the long wait.

Wu Mei teased her, saying it wasn't their first time working together, so why was she so happy? A supporting actress downgrading her status to play an extra, and she seemed quite proud of it.

Buoyed by this small incident, the two of them waited for a few more hours. Just after seven in the evening, Shi Ran wrapped up for the day. She came out of the studio, passed by Ruan Ruan and the others who were enjoying the cool air in the courtyard, and got into her RV to wait for the rest of the crew to leave.

"They're staying at Jingyue International, right?" Wu Mei asked.

It was the best hotel in the area, where all the A-list stars stayed.

Ruan Ruan shook her head. "I don't know. Probably."

"What about the hotel the production team arranged for you?"

"It's nice too. Atour."

As they were chatting, Xiao Lin suddenly got out of the RV. She said she thought she had seen them as they passed by, and sure enough, here they were.

"Yeah, it's cooler out here in the evening than in the break room," Ruan Ruan said with a smile.

"We're heading back now. Teacher Shi said your dark plum soup was delicious. Thank you."

"Really?" Ruan Ruan felt a little embarrassed. "If Teacher Shi likes it, I can bring some more tomorrow."

"Wouldn't that be too much trouble?"

"No trouble at all. We make it for ourselves anyway."

Wu Mei nodded beside her.

Xiao Lin thanked her again, then said, "Oh," and handed a small object to Ruan Ruan.

"We were just tidying up in the RV, and Teacher Shi saw this. A partner gave it to her a while ago. When she saw I was coming down, she asked me to bring it to you. Thank you for your hard work helping out today."

"What is it?" Ruan Ruan took it, puzzled. It was dark, and only when she brought it closer could she see what it was.

"Black Cat Detective," Xiao Lin smiled. "Teacher Shi said, 'Thank you, Little Cat Officer.'"

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