MQSP - Chapter 1
Chapter 1
June, the height of summer. At Qin Chuan Film Studio, every production was bustling with activity. The crew of 《Half a Lifetime of Peace》, however, were all hiding in the shade, laughing at their frazzled director.
Su Yu squatted on the ground, looking aggrieved as she patted the little tyke who was only as tall as her squatting form. "There, there, Xiao Bao, don't cry, don't cry."
With that, she turned to the child's mother, who was busy comforting her. "Wang Jie, sorry about this."
"It's fine, Director Su, it's fine. She's not usually so timid. I don't know what's gotten into her today. I'll stay here with her for a bit. You go on ahead," the mother said apologetically.
"I'll leave her to you, then." Su Yu stood up, letting out a long sigh. She glanced around and spotted her own gloating assistant, Wang Qiong. Her face fell as she asked sullenly, "Where's that old fellow?"
Wang Qiong quickly covered her mouth to keep from laughing out loud and pointed toward the soundstage.
Su Yu huffed, rolled up her sleeves, and stomped toward the soundstage, muttering curses the whole way. The moment she stepped inside, a wave of stuffy heat nearly knocked her back out. She hurried a few more steps and entered the dressing room.
Inside, a standing fan was whirring and wobbling its head. On the vanity, two small portable air coolers were blowing on either side of the seated figure.
"Lin Yuqing!" Su Yu bellowed. The woman, who had been resting with her eyes closed and head propped on her arm, opened her eyes. For a moment, her brown eyes were vacant.
"Is she placated?" Lin Yuqing sat up straight. The moment she moved, the armor she wore scraped and clanked. Her assistant, Xia Xiaozi, rushed forward to help adjust her costume.
"I'm not trying to criticize you, but she's a six-year-old kid. How could you be so cruel?" Su Yu walked over to the vanity and brazenly snatched one of the air coolers, aiming it at her own face.
Hearing this, Lin Yuqing frowned. "I didn't do anything."
"Right, right. You just gave her one look and scared her into tears," Su Yu retorted with a pout.
"Mm."
At that, Su Yu rolled her eyes dramatically. "Then couldn't you have been a little gentler?"
"A powerful entrance for her first appearance—weren't you the one who said that?"
Su Yu clutched her head and scratched her hair. She had, in fact, said that. Lin Yuqing was playing a female general in this drama, so of course her first appearance needed to be imposing. But she had overlooked the fact that Lin Yuqing's scene partner was a six-year-old child. Between Lin Yuqing's powerful aura and her naturally cold, distant face, one glare was enough to scare the poor girl to tears…
Su Yu stared at Lin Yuqing's face for a moment. She had long, narrow phoenix eyes that were dark and deep. They didn't look particularly large normally, but when this woman got angry, she could open them surprisingly wide. She had a high, well-defined nose and a standard M-shaped Cupid's bow. Her overall impression was one of grandeur and aloofness. Especially in front of strangers, she might as well have had "strangers, keep out" written on her forehead.
Lin Yuqing wore a perpetually cold expression and never smiled or joked. She was lukewarm to everyone. Su Yu had known her for nearly twenty years, and she could count on one hand the number of times she'd seen her show her emotions. Hmm, asking her to be gentle really did seem like a tall order.
Su Yu mulled it over. "Alright, how about this? You go and coax her a little. It's a good chance to build some rapport. She's playing your daughter, and the female lead has a lot of scenes as a child. We can't go on like this."
"No. I don't like children," Lin Yuqing flatly refused.
"Is that so…" Su Yu grinned slyly. She pulled a small notebook from her shoulder bag, extracted a piece of paper from between its pages, unfolded it, and waved it in front of Lin Yuqing's face.
Lin Yuqing's eyelid twitched, and her expression changed. Her assistant, standing to the side, was utterly amazed. Wondering what could possibly make her boss's face drain of color, she shuffled over to Su Yu's side to get a better look.
"Ahem." Su Yu cleared her throat, looking at Lin Yuqing with a smirk before glancing at the assistant, Xia Xiaozi. "Look closely, now. A contract, signed and sealed. Su agrees to Lin's participation in this drama, but under three conditions. One: If Lin is uncooperative in any way during filming, Su may add a kissing scene. Two: If Lin becomes angry out of embarrassment, Su may add a bed scene. Three: If Lin throws a fit and quits—not allowed."
The moment Su Yu finished speaking, Lin Yuqing shot to her feet, startling the director. Su Yu immediately hid the contract behind her back, afraid Lin Yuqing would snatch it away.
Looking up at the 175-centimeter-tall Lin Yuqing, who was a good half-head taller than her, Su Yu puffed out her only presentable asset—her proud chest—to bolster her courage.
Lin Yuqing's face darkened. She glared fiercely at Su Yu, her eyes wide. As she turned to leave, she caught a glimpse of her own assistant covering her mouth, about to double over laughing. That only fueled her anger.
Seeing Lin Yuqing leave, Xia Xiaozi looked at Su Yu with admiration. "Su Jie, when did you prepare a trump card like this! I just love seeing Qing Jie hate you so much she could grind her teeth, but can't do a single thing about it!"
Su Yu raised her eyebrows smugly. "Of course. Don't you know who I am? Stick some fur on me and I'd be smarter than a monkey!"
Speaking of the contract, Lin Yuqing had brought it entirely upon herself.
From planning to scriptwriting to casting, Su Yu had never once considered Lin Yuqing for this drama. She had only mentioned it in passing during a casual chat, and Lin Yuqing had offered herself up for the role.
In her early years, Su Yu had been a rather famous director. However, her sexual orientation was a bit bent, and she always wanted to film works with same-sex themes. Back then, society was completely unaccepting of such things, so she could only dream. It wasn't until the scandal thirteen years ago, which sent massive shockwaves through the entertainment industry and pushed the LGBTQ+ community into the spotlight, that she herself suffered a considerable blow. She fell silent for a time. When she finally made her comeback, she decisively ignored the opinions of others and threw herself into the cause of filming same-sex stories. Now, her fame had plummeted, and many even considered her a cancer in the industry.
Although hostility toward same-sex relationships had lessened in this era, it was still a niche topic. Many people, even if they knew they were gay, didn't dare to admit it. Some would even hypocritically condemn and attack homosexuals. Su Yu's high-profile actions naturally made her a prime target for gossip and criticism. That was why she hadn't wanted Lin Yuqing to get dragged into this mess. But Lin Yuqing was a stubborn person with her own convictions. Su Yu knew her well, so she had no choice but to draw up that contract, hoping it would make Lin Yuqing back down. To her surprise, she had agreed to it without hesitation.
As for Lin Yuqing, she had fought hard to get where she was today. She started doing odd jobs and playing bit parts in the industry at sixteen, clawing her way up for nineteen long years.
Her path to stardom had been unusually rocky. Her shows were often popular, but she wasn't. This was partly due to her low-key nature and rare public appearances. Aside from acting, she refused all other programs, even interviews. On top of that, she had been implicated in the incident thirteen years ago, which cost her every bit of her public appeal, sending her career to rock bottom.
Yet, over the years, she had ignored the voices of doubt and taken one solid step at a time, starting from scratch, accumulating experience, maturing, and honing her craft. In recent years, her reputation had gradually grown. It seemed to be related to the audience's changing tastes. For some reason, in the last two years, viewers had developed a fondness for women in their thirties who were sophisticated, mature, and coolly aloof. And so, Lin Yuqing rode the coattails of this trend. At a recent film festival, she had even been nominated for Best Actress.
But back to the present. Fuming, Lin Yuqing walked with her hands behind her back toward the little tyke she had frightened into tears. She couldn't figure it out. Was she really that scary? One glare was enough to make a child cry?
She walked over to the canopy, her face a cold mask. The little girl was holding a bottle of herbal tea, sitting obediently on a small stool. Her big, dark eyes sparkled with an intelligent light. The child was in costume—a white martial arts uniform—and her sparse hair was neatly gathered into a small topknot, which at first glance looked like a bun.
Lin Yuqing watched her for a moment. From this angle, she was actually quite cute.
Xiao Bao was licking her lips, trying to twist the bottle cap, when a dark shadow suddenly fell over her. She quickly tilted her little head up and saw the very fierce auntie from before standing in front of her, hands clasped behind her back. She froze instantly, puffed up her cheeks, and opened her mouth, but ultimately said nothing. She quickly lowered her head, avoiding the woman's gaze while searching for her mother.
"Am I that scary?" Lin Yuqing asked in what she thought was a very gentle voice, though in reality, it was only a little quieter than usual.
The little girl didn't answer, keeping her head down.
"I'm talking to you. You should look at me." Lin Yuqing patiently crouched down to be at eye level with the child.
【Xiao Bao: I don't want to see you at all! Mommy! The weird auntie is gonna eat kids!!!】
"Am I that scary?" Lin Yuqing asked again.
Xiao Bao secretly peeked at her. She wanted to nod but didn't dare. She wanted to shake her head, but that would be dishonest. Her little brows were knitted together in a tangle of indecision.
Suddenly, a large hand reached out and pinched her chin. The little girl jumped in fright, her eyes widening as she stared in terror at the fierce auntie before her.
"Did I pinch you too hard just now?" Lin Yuqing recalled the scene they were filming earlier. She had held the girl's chin, and right after that, she had started crying. She must have accidentally used too much force. With rare good temper and patience, she began to gently rub the child's chin.
However, the little girl wore a look of utter despair as she was being massaged, and tears once again welled up in her eyes.
Lin Yuqing promptly removed her hand and sat down on a small stool nearby. Su Yu had told her to build rapport. Sitting with the child for a while should count as building rapport, right?
And so, the two of them, one big and one small, sat on their stools. Neither spoke nor moved. The little girl was completely frozen with fear. As for Lin Yuqing, she rested her cheek on her hand and quietly watched the child.
Seeing the girl's timid little appearance, Lin Yuqing's mind drifted to another child. Back then, she had been about Xiao Bao's age, her big, bright eyes filled with terror and unease. She had clearly been scared to death of her, yet she had mustered the courage to ask for a hug. She was so small then, her soft body feeling boneless as she curled up in her arms, as pitiful as an abandoned kitten.
She would move her dirty cheek away slightly to avoid soiling her clothes. She would wipe her tears and tell her that she could live just fine on her own, that she didn't need to worry. She was always so sensible, never wanting to trouble others, just like…
"Auntie? What are you smiling at?"
Lin Yuqing frowned slightly and looked toward the source of the voice. Xiao Bao was watching her curiously.
Was I smiling???
She let out a breath, reined in her thoughts, and pushed the image that had surfaced in her mind away for the time being.
"I don't like that form of address," Lin Yuqing's tone unconsciously turned cold.
Xiao Bao's mouth trembled, her face a picture of bewilderment.
Afraid she would start crying again, Lin Yuqing said, "Call me by my name in the drama."
Xiao Bao blinked, thought for a moment, and said, "A-Niang?"
Lin Yuqing didn't respond.
"I-I called you A-Niang!"
"Mm. In the drama, I don't like you calling me that, either," Lin Yuqing said faintly.
【Xiao Bao: I'm still so little, why do I have to go through so much!】
Comments
Post a Comment