46: Phone Exchange
Sun.
Oh, how Xia Ruyun despised the sun at times.
Sunset?
Wonderful. Sublime. Perfection. What else could she say? The pink-gold dying embers of light never failed to pluck at her heartstrings.
Now, if those same pink-gold rays were waking her up at the bright and early hour of six am before a shoot, she just... couldn’t appreciate them the same. The wuxia-like romantic light felt less like the dawn of a new age and more like the sun having a pink eye infection.
Her breaths filled the room, light inhales, light exhales. A shadow crossed her face as her mind sank into the past.
I’ve been talking too much... My throat hurts.
Reminds me of that time...
Her back bent as she sank into the past. Yet, she casted a relatable image because—having gone to bed at one in the morning—she now sat on the side of her bed like a divorced man who had gone to bed the previous night blackout drunk.
More succinctly, without much life.
She leaned, reaching towards the nightstand and wrapping her fingers around her phone. After she unlocked her phone with a swipe, she stared down at the screen. The phone’s artificial glow reflected in her eyes. News articles, fresh off the presses populated her screen.
[Xia Ruyun’s budding return to acting, what we know, and what we don’t. Will she be able to make an impact or will she fade back into obscurity?]
[What happened three years ago? A look back towards the poisoning incident that snuffed Xia Ruyun’s candle!]
[The Flame of Heaven’s Mandate, Li Feiling’s upcoming movie release. Who is Yang Guiying? Who is Long Fei? Who is Murong An? A historian answers.]
[Chen Wenhui to host Celebrity Slow Living, a new variety show to show a glimpse into the true lives of celebrities. Will this conflict with her advertising for The Flame of Heaven’s Mandate? Will she ever climb the ladder to be a true tier one actress?]
[Will Xia Ruyun be good in The Flame of Heaven’s Mandate? We think not, and here’s why.]
[The Dragon’s Maw, a new TV show funded by and starring Chu Changfeng has begun filming. Here’s a first look at the set! Li Feiling, Xia Ruyun, Ma Xiaotian all set to participate as well!]
[From almost homeless to box office success: Who is Chu Changfeng’s new director, Feng Wei?]
[Wu Linjie’s advertising hot streak continues! Young magnet announces two new sponsorship deals in a week! Is he the next movie king? Movie Prince Ma Xiaotian might have some competition.]
They really have so much to say about every little thing...
A frown tugged at the corners of Xia Ruyun’s lips. Even if she didn’t mean to, her eyes gravitated back upwards to the second news article.
I shouldn’t look.
[What happened three years ago? A look back towards the poisoning incident that snuffed Xia Ruyun’s candle!]
Her hand trembled.
She tore her eyes away from the screen. Locking her phone and tossing it back onto the bed in one smooth motion.
I’m fine. It’s in the past.
She pushed herself up, trudging to the bathroom. As the door to the bathroom clicked closed, her phone lit up with a message from Gao Qian. A second later, it lit up again. Another message from Gao Qian.
[Gao Qian: Sorry, the new artist under me is starting an important project. I know I said I’d swing by, but I won’t be able to make it to the shooting of The Dragon’s Maw this week. I trust that you’ll be able to do it! Fight on!]
[Gao Qian: On a side note, the company rejected your request for a personal assistant. As mentioned earlier, if The Flame of Heaven’s Mandate pulls in good box office numbers, they’ve mentioned they’re open to reconsidering.]
===
“Chop! Chop! We don’t have a lot of time! Come on people! Let’s get moving! I don’t care that it’s seven!” Feng Wei clapped his hands together, calling out at the top of his lungs; even he didn't look too good. His eyebags had gotten larger, and his cheekbones more gaunt. His steaming cup of coffee, it seemed, held his body together more than anything else.
Staff members ran around on set, their paths crisscrossing to form a web covering every corner of the space. One woman would run by with a set of makeup brushes, and a second later, another woman would be running in the opposite direction with an office set piece.
The one safe zone—other than the small circle around Feng Wei which felt like his military command center—lay with the actors and actresses getting ready. Sat in chairs, each had an artist or two doing their makeup for the upcoming scenes.
Xia Ruyun, half-dozing in her chair, felt her head get righted for the fifth time as the makeup artist prevented her from falling asleep. Her half-murmured apology, though, disappeared in her throat as she noticed Ye Shuhua, Li Feiling’s manager, walking up beside her. Sleepiness? Gone. Attention? Here.
“Good morning, Xia Ruyun,” Ye Shuhua nodded as the makeup artist continued their work. “Don’t mind me, Feiling doesn’t have any scenes this morning, so she’s sleeping in. I came early to just have a look around.”
Unable to talk, or to do much beyond move her eyes, Xia Ruyun tried to convey a response through slight facial twitches.
Only to earn another reprimanding head-righting from the makeup artist.
Today just isn’t my day...
“Anyway, nice to see you, I’ll be heading off,” Ye Shuhua smiled, understanding Xia Ruyun’s situation. “I’ll be around for the rest of this show’s shooting, so feel free to reach out whenever. I’m sure Feiling will want to get a meal, just the three of us sometime.”
With her last invitation, she walked off, weaving through the crowds of crew members, unfettered. Her gray hair made her stand out, yet her fluid movements made her seem like a fish in water.
A side-step here, a side-step there, and like an undercover agent, she had disappeared into the crowd and into the floors below. Her presence, in the end, registered as just a blip as the crew focused on preparing the final touches for the first scene of the morning: The Xia Ruyun – Han Jingyi phone handoff.
---
7:00 am. Two hours before work.
Du Ruolin walked into the coffee shop. Dressed in a pair of long beige pants and a puffy jacket, she seemed every bit a businesswoman. Coffee in hand, she settled in the corner of the shop. Unfolding her laptop, she began to... work.
She began to coordinate.
She began to collude.
7:30 am.
As rush hour came, the coffee shop filled, and as the last empty tables became occupied, a hurried woman rushed into the coffee shop. Messy hair, jeans, and a mis-matching scarf. Bookish and fitting for a university student.
Gong Huayi fixed her round glasses, fidgeting with the tape holding the central bridge together as she did. Seeing no open tables, her shoulders deflated and she walked further into the coffee shop.
No luck.
Seeing an open chair across from a businesswoman, she waved to get her attention. “Is this seat taken?”
“No, not at all,” The businesswoman replied, tapping away at her keyboard.
“Thank you so much... I have such a long report I need to get done today,” Gong Huayi sighed, easing herself into the chair before pulling out her own laptop. “Nice to meet you though, what’s your name?”
“Du Ruolin, you?” The woman smiled, propping her chin on her hands.
“Gong Huayi, fresh college graduate, really just settling into a job right now,” Gong Huayi cracked open her laptop. Rolling her shoulders, she settled down and they both began to work on their respective pieces.
And so began a montage.
7:45 am.
Typing.
The two worked.
8:00 am.
Typing.
The two worked.
Du Ruolin took a sip out of her coffee.
8:15 am.
Typing.
Gong Huayi stretched back in her chair and grumbled about her report once more.
“Want me to take a look?” Du Ruolin offered, folding her own laptop down.
8:30 am.
The two began talking.
8:45 am.
And from there, the scene continued into what they had practiced the night before.
---
“Cut! Cut! That was wonderful. Amazing, I just want to say,” Feng Wei clapped his hands. “I can tell you two have practiced together. That type of smoothness just doesn’t come without running the scene through together a few times. I applaud your effort.”
“Thank you, director,” Han Jingyi nodded, her slight gleeful smile peeking out through her calm facade.
Xia Ruyun, nodding as well, sat back and listened as Feng Wei continued. “I just want a couple more takes of that last exchange scene. Just so the editors have a little more choice since this is an important part to subtly show. So, let’s just rewind a bit back to when Du Ruolin packs her bag. Sounds good?”
““Yes, director.””