Against the Light - Chapter 68
Chapter 68: It's a Wrap!
Bai Yilan's pretty face flushed from Yu Hua's teasing. She smoothed her hair and shot a glance at Gu Xinran.
That woman was still smiling!
And it wasn't just her. Everyone on the crew was holding back their laughter, vibrating like cell phones. It was too much!
"Why don't you... give it a try, Sister Lan?" Lin Guo's smile was anything but innocent. She thought Teacher Yu's suggestion was brilliant—it was exactly what she'd been hoping for!
"Me?" Bai Yilan froze. "No, no, no, forget it. Acting isn't my specialty."
"Hiss... Hey? Great Screenwriter, don't Sister Ran and I have a kissing scene?" Lin Guo blinked innocently at the screenwriter.
Screenwriter Xiaobei immediately got her signal, looked down to flip through the script, and nodded with great solemnity. "It's more than just a kissing scene. There's also a bed..."
After feeling a death glare, Ye Xiaobei decisively shut her mouth, not even daring to breathe too loudly.
The group burst out laughing at Director Bai's sudden change in expression, unable to close their mouths.
"Look at how she says one thing and means another~" Jin Shuang bluntly exposed her.
"Director, just give it a try! Or you could demonstrate for Guozi how to act this scene well~"
"Yeah, just try it," the crowd chimed in, egging her on.
Bai Yilan put a hand to her forehead and looked at Yu Hua. Surely, Teacher won't let this group mess around like this.
"Hey, makeup artist, what are you standing around for? Get her into makeup," Yu Hua said with a wave of her hand, cheerfully calling everyone over.
"Alright!!"
A crowd instantly swarmed forward, surrounded Bai Yilan, and forcibly dragged her into the makeup room.
Gu Xinran watched the commotion with a smile. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Teacher Yu give a mischievous grin and heard her mutter, "Hmph, that's what you two get for teaming up against me!"
"...?" This old lady? She holds a grudge even better than I do!?
Before long, Bai Yilan was done with makeup. She had also changed into a costume and was escorted out by the crowd.
Gu Xinran turned her head to look, and her gaze was instantly captivated.
She wore a long white dress that perfectly outlined her figure. Her skin, already fair and clear, was adorned with light makeup. A faint blush graced her cheeks, the corners of her eyes were slightly upturned with a soft rosy hue, and her gaze flowed with a captivating brilliance. A single vermilion dot between her brows was utterly heart-stirring.
Her figure was slender and delicate. Standing quietly to the side, she possessed both the gentle grace of a young maiden and the refined elegance of a well-bred lady!
Gu Xinran unconsciously drew in a breath, her heart stirred.
This was the first time she had seen Yilan in a historical costume. It was absolutely stunning!
"Ahhh, so beautiful, so beautiful!! Sister Lan, you should debut as an actress!!"
"Yeah, debut!!"
"I'll sign a petition in blood begging Sister Lan to play this role, ahhh!"
"I second the motion!!"
Bai Yilan felt quite embarrassed by everyone's comments and gave a small smile.
"Ahhh, those dimples! I can't take it! Sister, you're killing me!!"
"Sisters, I'm dead."
With her hands behind her back, Yu Hua circled Bai Yilan twice, sizing her up for a long moment. She looked at her, then at Lin Guo, and called Lin Guo over to have them stand together for a comparison.
You know, she really did look good in that outfit.
"Sister Lan, please play this role, I'm begging you! I don't want the salary, you can have it, it's all yours!!" Lin Guo grabbed Bai Yilan's hands, incredibly excited. She didn't want to act anymore; she just wanted to ship them, ship them!!
"..."
"Don't be hasty. Let's have her try a scene first." Yu Hua waved her hand, signaling for everyone to calm down.
"Hey, hey, you there, are you starstruck?" Yu Hua called for the crew to get into position. When she looked up, she saw Gu Xinran still standing there in a daze, which made her laugh.
"Huh?" Gu Xinran slowly came to her senses. Her old face couldn't help but blush. Well, she was beautiful!
"Alright, everyone get ready. Yilan, it's the same scene Lin Guo just did."
"Oh." Bai Yilan was a little nervous. She was skilled at directing actors, but acting herself was a first for her.
"Alright, action!" At Yu Hua's command, the cameraman immediately focused the lens on the doorway.
Bai Yilan stepped over the threshold and walked in. Upon seeing Gu Xinran sitting dazedly on the floor with vacant eyes, her expression shifted slightly, and she unconsciously pressed her lips together.
Her steps faltered for a moment. She walked closer and slowly knelt, looking at Xinran's state. A slight movement in her throat, a furrow of her delicate brows—her worry was plain to see.
"Tsk." Yu Hua casually raised an eyebrow, pleasantly surprised. She hadn't expected this woman to show no stage fright at all. Moreover, her handling of the details was very meticulous.
The crew members exchanged glances, each of them breaking into an unconscious "auntie smile." They would have never imagined in their wildest dreams that they'd one day see their director act, and with Gu Xinran, no less!! This wife-wife duo was truly invincible!
Just as everyone was smiling, they suddenly noticed the director making another move!
Bai Yilan knelt beside her. Her gaze swept to Gu Xinran's collar, pausing slightly when she saw the edge of the bloody mark. She lifted her hand, hesitated, and then curled her fingers as if conflicted.
Yu Hua signaled the cameraman to push in for a close-up of her hand.
She hesitated for a second, then her fair, slender fingers reached for Xinran's collar. After a glance at Xinran's expression, she smoothed the fabric and gently pulled it open.
When she saw the bloody mark, her expression changed, and she stared at Xinran with a burning gaze.
"Tsk, interesting," Yu Hua nodded in approval.
"Wuwuwu, why do I feel like I'm about to lose my job!?" Lin Guo was a little panicked after seeing Yilan's performance.
"Hahahaha, weren't you just offering to give her the role? Still want to?"
"No, no, Sister Lan, please give me another chance!!"
"Alright, cut," Yu Hua called out. The crew immediately burst into applause.
"Sister Lan, didn't she just say she wouldn't let anyone see the wound on her collarbone? How come it's okay for you to look?"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, so protective of her food~"
"Exactly, hahaha." The crowd roared with laughter.
Bai Yilan shot the crowd an annoyed glance.
"Guozi, in a bit, try to act it the way I did. You can leave out the part where you pull open the clothes," Bai Yilan said seriously.
"Aren't you going to act, Sister Lan?"
"I'm a director, why would I act?" Bai Yilan said as she returned to the dressing room to change out of her costume.
"Director, let Sister Lan act! She was so good," someone protested.
Yu Hua smiled with her hands behind her back. "She knows what her job is. Unlike all of you, who've gone red-eyed from shipping your CP."
Everyone sighed, calling it a real shame.
After that, through a combination of threats and bribes, Bai Yilan made the screenwriter delete all the upcoming kissing and bed scenes that could be deleted. For those that couldn't, they would just fade to black during filming. Although the crew was helpless, they could only let her have her way. Who could argue? She was the director, after all~
Two months flew by in the blink of an eye.
Bai Yilan watched Xinran's final scene on the monitor and nodded in satisfaction. "Cut."
The crew immediately erupted in loud cheers.
Thanks to the cast and crew working overtime, filming for Never Parting wrapped up a full half-month ahead of schedule!
Gu Xinran let out a sigh of relief and let the staff help her remove the heavy costume. The white T-shirt she wore underneath was completely soaked with sweat, clinging tightly to her body. She went back to the dressing room to change into a shirt before she finally felt refreshed.
In the evening, while other crews were still bustling with activity, the Never Parting crew had already begun preparing for their wrap party.
The crew was setting up for the banquet while the actors sat together, remarking on how quickly time had passed. In the blink of an eye, it was time to say goodbye again.
Gu Xinran overheard them and sighed to herself. It was true. The scene from over two months ago, when Yilan returned from Berlin and led everyone to save the day, was still deeply etched in her mind.
"Yo, what are you all doing here?" A commotion came from outside the studio. Gu Xinran heard it and went out to look. It was the crew from next door; Liu Ping was leading a group of seven or eight people over in a grand procession.
"What's going on?" Bai Yilan also came out. She exchanged a look with Xinran, and they walked toward Liu Ping together.
Although they'd had a very unpleasant start with the neighboring crew, they had gotten along quite harmoniously lately. Those big guys from the other crew would greet them with cheerful smiles and often offered to help them move heavy objects. After getting to know them, they weren't all bad people. Liu Ping, on the other hand, would take a detour whenever he saw anyone from Yilan's crew, afraid they would bring up the bet, which was quite amusing.
Liu Ping wasn't a bad person, really. At least he had honored the bet. For the past two months, he hadn't come looking for trouble again, which had significantly improved their impression of him.
Liu Ping walked up, looked at the two of them, and his gaze landed on Bai Yilan. "I heard you've wrapped. This bunch of traitors from my crew wanted to come see you off."
The members of Bai Yilan's crew gathered around, looking at them curiously.
"Ladies, we brothers won't be able to help you carry equipment anymore. You're a group of girls, don't work yourselves too hard. If you all become tough women, it'll be hard to find a partner, hahahaha~"
"That's right, girls should take care of themselves. Don't work so desperately."
The members of Yilan's crew looked at each other.
"Cut the crap. I bet you're just here to freeload a meal."
"Hahahaha."
"You're not welcome, get lost!"
The members of Liu Ping's crew, feeling rebuffed, took the initiative to run over and help the young ladies move prop boxes.
"We're really not here for a free meal. Look, our two crews have been competing for almost three months now. We've developed a bit of a friendship, haven't we? Now that you're suddenly leaving, we're actually a little sad to see you go..."
Seeing the two crews getting along so well, Bai Yilan smiled and looked at Liu Ping.
"Director Liu, don't you forget our bet."
Liu Ping's old face flushed. "Aiya, I remember!"
At the wrap party, the group went from laughing to crying.
"Wuwuwu, we won't be able to get any fresh, hot content anymore..." Lin Guo said unhappily, playing with a wine bottle in her hands, her face mournful.
"Yeah, we won't get to see Sister Lan getting jealous and sulky anymore."
"Look, the two of them get along so harmoniously. Why haven't they remarried yet?" The group stared eagerly at the pair sitting alone in a corner, looking like they were on a date.
"Sigh, with things like this, it doesn't matter how anxious we get. It's still up to the two of them to decide."
"True."
"What are your plans after this?" Bai Yilan asked.
"I'll go back to the company. It's just starting out, and I've been busy filming. Qu Qi has been managing everything, so I need to go back and check on things."
"What about you?" Gu Xinran asked.
"I haven't decided yet. I'll think about it after this film is completely finished."
The two looked at each other, words left unspoken.
Gu Xinran picked up her glass. She looked at the color—purplish-red, not quite like wine. She sniffed it. It had a strange smell, very sweet, but with a faint, sharp scent of alcohol.
"What is this?"
"Blackcurrant. You can't drink alcohol."
"Hm? Why?" Gu Xinran was confused. They clearly had a wine cabinet at home, filled with quite a few vintage wines.
Bai Yilan glanced at her without answering, but her eyes were filled with disdain, leaving Gu Xinran even more bewildered.
Bai Yilan also picked up her glass. She had to drive, so hers was filled with orange juice.
"You've worked hard."
"You too."
They gently clinked their glasses and smiled at each other.
Gu Xinran took a sip of the drink. It tasted like juice, sweet and pleasant. She tilted her head back and drained the glass.
"Tomorrow, I'll..."
Bai Yilan was listening intently when she suddenly saw Gu Xinran's head droop and slam onto the table with a thud.
"Xin-Xinran!?"
Bai Yilan was terrified. She quickly got up to help her, only to see Xinran's cheeks flushed red and even her neck tinged with a faint pink. She realized what had happened in an instant. Grabbing the wine glass from the table, she sniffed it, then tasted the little bit of "juice" left inside. Her expression immediately turned ugly.
Lin Guo and the others, who had been watching the two of them, were baffled and exchanged confused looks.
"What happened to Sister Ran? She didn't get drunk, did she?"
"No way. Her glass was blackcurrant juice, not wine. She has zero alcohol tolerance—one sip and she's out. Everyone on the crew knows that; no one would dare give her alcohol," Jin Shuang explained with a frown, quickly running over.
Qin Qiong looked worried and was about to get up when she caught sight of Lin Guo beside her, frozen like a wooden chicken. Lin Guo's big eyes darted left and right before she silently hid the wine bottle she'd been fiddling with under the table.
"??? What did you do?" Qin Qiong asked.
"...Heaven is my witness! I honestly didn't know her glass was full of blackcurrant juice. The color was almost the same, so I thought it was red wine and... topped her off..."
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