Crossover Actors - Chapter 20
Qu Yanting didn’t know how to respond. He opened and closed his mouth several times, the five thin sheets of paper rustling in his fingers, which only highlighted the quietness of the atmosphere.
In fact, he wasn’t angry. His reaction at that time wasn’t directed at Lu Wen; he just lost control of his emotions. As for the reason, it wasn’t something he wanted to share with others.
Seeing Qu Yanting remain silent, Lu Wen began to explain, “Last night, I was just focused on the scene and didn’t think too much. Director Ren waved at me, and I didn’t notice. I don’t even know what happened—I just rushed over to you.”
Qu Yanting thought it would be awkward not to respond at all, so he simply replied with a concise “Mm.”
Lu Wen said, “I didn’t do it on purpose.” After saying that, he reconsidered and corrected himself, “Well, since I did it, I guess it was on purpose. But I… how should I put this? I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, really, I swear. After all…”
Qu Yanting: “After all what?”
Lu Wen: “After all, with my brain, I couldn’t deceive anyone even if I tried.”
Qu Yanting pressed his lips together, his front teeth gently biting his lower lip with increasing force; otherwise, the corners of his mouth would have uncontrollably curled up.
“Director Ren already criticized me. I’ll be more mindful from now on.” To show his sincerity, Lu Wen even brought up Ren Shu. “Actually, I wanted to knock on your door last night, but it seemed like you were resting.”
Qu Yanting asked, “So today, you decided to press the doorbell like your life depended on it and even slipped notes under the door?”
Lu Wen nodded. He had made up his mind that no matter what, he had to apologize today. When pressing the doorbell didn’t get a response, he switched to knocking, and when that didn’t work, he had no choice but to slip notes under the door.
Qu Yanting was a bit puzzled. Ever since their conversation in the office, Lu Wen’s attitude towards him had been very clear—at best, it was sarcastic, and at worst, it was argumentative. So why was he being so nice this time?
Lu Wen felt a bit embarrassed. He was reckless and immature, but he had his principles. For instance, he believed in keeping things separate. Although Qu Yanting had hurt him and brushed it off with a smile, this time it was Lu Wen who had offended Qu Yanting, and he couldn’t just act like nothing had happened.
“Besides,” Lu Wen added, “I did something wrong. If I don’t apologize, it’ll bother me.”
Saying “a lump in my heart” sounded too serious, so he toned it down.
Qu Yanting couldn’t hold back anymore and turned his head, letting out a small laugh.
Lu Wen immediately asked, “So, are you not mad anymore?”
Qu Yanting, still holding the pieces of paper, wondered what Lu Wen’s next move would have been if the notes hadn’t worked. He asked, “What if the notes hadn’t worked?”
Lu Wen hung his head in defeat, his backpack still slung around his neck. He unzipped it, reached inside, and, like a magician, pulled out a yellow carnation.
Before slipping the notes under the door, Lu Wen had planned it out. If that didn’t work, he would have gone back to write a formal apology letter and attach the carnation to the envelope to make it look nice.
Qu Yanting was stunned. Anyone would have been.
Lu Wen handed it over. “I’ll just give it to you directly.”
Qu Yanting, often addressed as “Teacher,” had never been given a carnation before. He took it, thinking that the flower looked oddly familiar, as if he’d seen it somewhere before.
Lu Wen breathed a sigh of relief. Since Qu Yanting had opened the door, and he had apologized in person and even given a flower, he figured this matter could finally be put to rest. Once it was over, those rough-edged sheets of paper wouldn’t be important anymore.
But he guessed that Qu Yanting would probably throw them away, so there was no need for him to worry about it.
The two of them negotiated in the hallway for a long time, until the floor manager led a team of staff on their nightly rounds, prompting them to return to their rooms. Qu Yanting closed his door. There was a slender vase on the entryway cabinet behind the door, and one flower would fit perfectly.
He went to the bathroom to get some water, then returned to the door and placed the carnation’s stem into the vase.
There was some commotion in the hallway as the manager and five or six staff members stopped outside room 6206. The manager reached up and fiddled with the flowers in the wall vase by the door frame, saying, “Why is there one less carnation?”
The flowers in the vases were changed every other day, and the arrangement was fixed: one main flower and four supporting ones. For the past two days, the main flower had been Bernhardt peonies, with light yellow carnations as the supporting flowers.
A staff member checked the inspection report from the morning round, confirming that the flowers had been checked off with no issues. He said, “Maybe someone just took one.”
It was a small matter. The manager instructed them to replace the missing flower as soon as possible and reminded them to ensure that the flowers in each room were replenished in a timely manner. The group then continued their inspection.
Inside the room, Qu Yanting was speechless.
Life on set continued as usual. The kissing scene was now a thing of the past, and no one mentioned it anymore, although the gossip had spread to every corner.
The evening was just right. Lu Wen walked out of Unit One, bathed in the soft red glow of the setting sun. He had just finished touching up his makeup and was preparing for the next scene. After this scene, they wouldn’t wrap up; they were scheduled for a long night of back-to-back shooting, which promised to be another grueling night.
At this hour, everyone was eating boxed meals, but since the next scene involved eating, Lu Wen had to keep his stomach empty. He stayed downstairs, using the sunset’s light to review his lines.
He had learned a lot since the start of filming. For example, in a scene involving eating, the speed of chewing, how much to take with each bite, the accompanying expressions, and the timing of the lines all needed to be carefully planned and controlled.
For the upcoming scene, Lu Wen had practiced through several meals just to make sure he could deliver a lively and natural performance.
Ten minutes later, the clapper called from upstairs, “Lu Wen, come on up!”
Lu Wen responded, “Got it!”
Lu Wen ran into Building Two, Unit Three. In the drama, 302 was the home of Ye Shan and Ye Xiaowu, an old two-bedroom apartment where the brothers shared a room, and their mother had the other.
This scene was a dialogue between Ye Xiaowu and his mother. After the monthly exam, Ye Xiaowu’s mother checks his test papers, and the scene takes place at the dining table.
The door to 302 was open, with the monitor positioned at the entrance, aimed directly at the small dining table in the living room. Director Ren was giving instructions over the walkie-talkie, and non-essential personnel quickly found spots to stay out of the shot.
Tao Meifan, who played the mother, was dressed simply and practically in dark, durable clothing, with an apron tied around her waist. She sat at the table, where a bowl of white rice, a dish of stir-fried peppers with meat, and a bowl of soup were placed.
Lu Wen took his seat, sitting at an angle across the table from Tao Meifan. She could easily reach out and touch his head. In fact, the mother character did frequently like to touch Ye Xiaowu’s head.
The food on the table was steaming, the rich aroma mingling with the spicy scent of the peppers. Lu Wen glanced down and saw a bottle of milk placed by the table leg, which instantly put him at ease.
The clapper was ready with the slate, preparing to start.
Meanwhile, on a nearby street, a Porsche slowly pulled over. Qu Yanting got out of the car.
Qu Yanting hadn’t been to the set in four days. First, his studio work had been busy and needed his remote attention. Second, he was thin-skinned and had stormed off in public that night, needing some time alone to cool down.
Tonight’s shoot was one of the major scenes, and Ren Shu had urged him to come several times, so he decided to come and oversee it.
Qu Yanting walked through a narrow alley, where moss grew along the base of the walls, slick and slimy. The thin rays of twilight draped over the area, blending the bright reds and greens into a vivid burst of color.
There were rusty bicycles, deflated balls, and halfway down, a cracked flowerpot on the ground. Qu Yanting stepped around it, walked out of the alley, turned onto the street, and after five or six more steps, reached the entrance of the complex.
Not sure if the scene would need rehearsing, he figured he might have arrived too early and decided to check out the set first. He kept his eyes down as he climbed the stairs, thinking to himself that as long as he avoided making eye contact with anyone, he wouldn’t have to say hello.
Qu Yanting wasn’t sure if he needed to prepare for the scene, so he decided to check out the set since he had arrived early. Keeping his gaze down as he ascended the stairs, he thought to himself, *As long as I don’t make eye contact with anyone, I won’t have to greet them.*
When he reached the entrance on the third floor, Qu Yanting slowed his pace, stopping behind Ren Shu.
Ren Shu slowly turned his head and said, “I thought so, I felt a chill down my back.”
Qu Yanting asked, “How many takes have they done for this scene?”
“Just started,” Ren Shu replied, “but it should go smoothly.”
The room and its surroundings were crowded with people, making Qu Yanting feel uneasy. However, since the evening’s shoot was also in Room 302, he figured he might as well get used to it. Conveniently, Ren Shu added, “Since you’re already here, might as well take a look.”
Dragging a chair over was too much trouble, so Qu Yanting simply stood, placing his hand on the back of Ren Shu’s chair. From his height, he had a clear view of the two actors in the living room.
He didn’t focus on Tao Meifan; after just a glance, his eyes were drawn to Lu Wen.
The dining table was small, and Lu Wen’s long legs were tucked underneath it, fidgeting restlessly. He was wearing a pair of jeans that were blue with white undertones, the rips extending from the thighs to the calves, with his entire knee exposed, and loose threads fluttering with every movement.
The belt was made of canvas, buckled but intentionally left hanging out of the loops. His upper body was even more eye-catching, with a cartoon hoodie in a fresh, ginger-yellow color, topped with a black jacket adorned with studs.
Qu Yanting asked, “Why is he dressed like this?”
Ren Shu said, “Wasn’t the last scene Xiao Wu went to a dance? He was dressed like that. Don’t even mention it, Xiao Lu refused to wear the costume, and it took a good scolding from the wardrobe supervisor to make him comply.”
Qu Yanting was a bit taken aback by this, and he glanced over again.
The old and the young were sitting at the table. The mother was holding several test papers, while Xiao Wu was holding a bowl of rice in his left hand and picking at the meat slices on his plate with chopsticks in his right.
He glanced sideways at his mother and said, “Mom, I saw an old man on the road today, looked like he was over sixty, wearing a tank top and jogging.”
His mother shot him a disapproving look. “Don’t change the subject.” Shaking the papers, she got to the point. “Look at your scores. How did you fail every subject?”
Xiao Wu picked up a piece of meat and shoved it into his mouth, then buried his head in his rice.
His mother said, “I’m talking to you.”
“I’m listening,” Xiao Wu said evasively. “Mom, your stir-fried pork with chili is getting better and better. It smells amazing.”
His mother was annoyed by his diversion and pulled out the math test, pointing to the top of the page. “How did you score 36 points? Even guessing, you should have gotten 50. Your brother could score more than you with his eyes closed.”
Xiao Wu muttered, “The only time you praise my brother is when you’re scolding me. I suspect he works so hard to come first just to hear you praise him.”
The table was so small, but his mother seemed not to have heard him and continued, “You filled out the big questions completely, so why are they all marked wrong, with zero points?”
Xiao Wu chuckled. He couldn’t solve the problems and didn’t want to leave them blank, so he had randomly copied parts of the questions, intertwining them in the answer space.
His mother, exasperated, gave him a light slap on the shoulder. It wasn’t hard, and after the slap, she even straightened his hat. Her tone wasn’t angry but rather filled with concern. “Son, you’re in your final year of high school. If you don’t start studying hard now, it’ll be too late.”
Xiao Wu said, “The problem isn’t whether I study or not; it’s that I just can’t learn this stuff. The teachers sound like broken record players; I don’t understand a word.”
His mother, worried, stroked his head.
Xiao Wu stuffed another mouthful of rice into his mouth. “I should never have been sent to this top high school. It’s pure torture.”
His mother picked out some meat and placed it in his bowl. “Stop talking nonsense. You have no self-discipline. If you went to a less demanding school, you’d be completely ruined after three years.”
Xiao Wu replied, “Then I wouldn’t be able to get into college anyway, unless—”
His mother cut him off, “Just eat. The food’s getting cold. Eat more.”
Lu Wen had no more lines; all that was left for him to do was eat. He vigorously picked at the food with his chopsticks, shoveling it into his mouth bite after bite. The spiciness numbed his tongue, sweat beading on his temples. His legs stopped shaking, and he discreetly clamped the milk bottle between his ankles under the table.
He lifted the bowl to his lips and, with his lips touching the rim, scraped the remaining rice into his mouth. While chewing, he glanced up, his gaze crossing over the camera to the front. To his surprise, he saw Qu Yanting standing outside the door.
Their eyes met, and it was clear Qu Yanting was looking right at him.
Lu Wen, suddenly energized, gripped his chopsticks tighter and started eating and chewing even more furiously.
He finished every last grain of rice, then set down the bowl and chopsticks with a loud “clack,” his mouth gleaming with oil. In a spontaneous move, he gave the camera a loud, realistic belch.
That wasn’t in the script; it was improvised.
Three or four meters apart, in front of a room full of people, one was sitting inside, while the other stood outside the door. Qu Yanting watched Lu Wen’s ravenous behavior, moved his lips, and silently mouthed a single word—
*“Pig.”*
Lu Wen was slightly stunned, wondering if the spiciness had gotten to him and he was hallucinating.
—Qu Yanting actually pouted at him.
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kdjfskldfjsjf oh god i already love them so much!! thank you for the chapter!!