A OO Love After Officially Announcing with the Best Actress - Chapter 5

“This upward glance is very important. When the long shot pushes in, I need a close-up of your eyes. The change in emotion has to be clearly visible.” Shen Feng patted Lin Ke’s shoulder. “Do you understand?”

Lin Ke raised her eyes. Lin Bingran was standing by the second-floor window, looking at the scenery. Both her elbows rested on the windowsill, and her gaze was distant and lingering. There was no longer any of the girlish curiosity and innocence that belonged to Li Fengling. She entered and exited character very quickly.

Seeing Lin Ke in a daze, Shen Feng continued guiding her. “Aside from amazement, Chu Feng’s eyes should also contain confusion and the stirrings of affection. This is a love-at-first-sight scene. She doesn’t understand it herself yet and doesn’t know what it means, but the information here has to be fully conveyed. The audience has to feel this emotion so that every emotional fluctuation afterward has a traceable origin. This scene is very important. It lays the foundation for their relationship later.”

Shen Feng’s mouth was dry from speaking. “Got it?”

Lin Ke said, “Director, let’s do another take.”

Shen Feng glanced at the monitor. There was only a sliver of daylight left. She pressed the walkie-talkie and said, “One more take.”

The scene started from after Lin Ke had been drenched all over. Xiao Wang held a small dipper, filled it with water, and helped soak Lin Ke’s hem again before quickly retreating out of frame.

The script supervisor clapped the slate again.

Chu Feng wrung the water from her clothes and looked up. On the gray wall paved with orange light, Ji Fengling leaned against a corner of the round window. Dusk and the setting sun formed a clear dividing line, while the faint shadow of the eaves split the picturesque scene into two images.

Half of Ji Fengling’s body was hidden in darkness, while the other half was bathed in warm, soft light.

The amazement in Chu Feng’s eyes flashed by, then quickly turned into confusion. She clearly saw the girl’s expression shift from holding back laughter to panic. Timid and flustered, the girl took one step back and completely blended into the darkness.

Chu Feng was pulled by the elbow by Granny Zhou and dragged down the steps. She looked back. The figure by the round window had disappeared. A little curiosity was added to her emotions.

The entire scene—blocking, movement, close-ups, long shots, and near shots—was filmed until almost eight o’clock, wearing away the last trace of orange in the sky.

The horizon shifted from warm orange to pale white, then finally to faint gray, until night fell.

“Cut.”

There had been a lot to do today, so no other scenes had been scheduled.

Shen Feng called out, “Wrap for the day.”

The actress playing Granny Zhou was an old veteran actor. She let go of Lin Ke and asked if she had pinched her painfully.

Lin Ke shook her head and spoke gently to the senior actress. She took the towel Lu Tu handed over and wiped off the water.

Lin Bingran came downstairs, followed by a round-faced girl. When the girl passed by Lin Ke, she shot her a fierce glare.

Lin Ke: “…”

Lu Tu said, “That’s Lin Bingran’s little assistant. It’s normal that she doesn’t like you.”

Lin Ke widened her eyes. Filming had not gone smoothly, so her mood was not exactly smooth either. But it was also true that she had dragged Lin Bingran into overtime. So her annoyance carried a bit of guilt as she whispered to Lu Tu, “Then why didn’t you glare back for me?”

Lu Tu was extremely shocked. “She’s the film queen’s assistant! How would I dare?”

Lin Ke nodded in understanding and looked up. As expected of old acquaintances, Shen Feng and Lin Bingran were sitting together, watching the footage they had just shot and chatting back and forth.

Everyone gradually wrapped up and left. Everyone who passed by Lin Bingran praised Film Queen Lin, and Lin Bingran responded calmly, like an expert detached from worldly affairs.

Lin Ke had not performed well tonight. Lu Tu thought she was upset and coaxed her, “Once you become a film queen, you’ll be above tens of thousands of people. Then I’ll be above thousands, beneath only one!”

“Being above tens of thousands of people makes me an empress, doesn’t it?” Lin Ke muttered in disdain. “You’re an omega. Why would you want to be a eunuch from the Western Depot?”

Lu Tu: “…”

“Not bad,” Shen Feng said casually, pointing at the shot and drawing Lin Bingran’s attention to Ji Fengling in the scene. “This dividing line at dusk was an unexpected delight. Your shots were very good—mature and natural. I couldn’t see any trace of acting.”

Lin Bingran frowned slightly. Shen Feng had high standards for filming, and Lin Bingran herself was also obsessed with acting. If her shots were very good, then the “not bad” must have been referring to Lin Ke.

Shen Feng said, “Film tests a director’s skill. I’ll teach her. Maybe it’s because she hasn’t acted in a film before, so she still isn’t used to the big screen.”

Lin Bingran’s expression could not be called warm. “Please put more effort into it, then.”

Shen Feng sensed something off. “Stop saying useless things. You invested half the money in this film. Teach her when you have time. I’ll push that scene’s call sheet back a little later.”

Lin Bingran hated teaching juniors the most. She said, “I’m going back first.”

Once Lin Bingran left, Shen Feng waved at Lin Ke, who had been squatting nearby for ages, signaling her to come over.

Lin Ke mumbled, “Director Shen…”

Shen Feng had someone take away the equipment and said casually, “It was passable.”

Lin Ke’s wilted expression immediately regained some light.

But Shen Feng was not a gentle mother. She said, “Yours was passable. But the evaluation I gave Bingran was wonderful.”

Lin Ke choked on her words and nodded slowly. Emotional scenes were her weak point. She had not hidden that from Shen Feng during the audition either. Now, her very first scene had gone poorly, and she was curious about Shen Feng’s reason for choosing her.

“Director Shen, I’m sorry. I’m not good at emotional scenes.”

Lin Ke lowered her head. She had dragged down the progress of the entire group.

Shen Feng lit a cigarette and casually handed it toward Lin Ke.

Lin Ke stretched out her long fingers and took it between them. Judging by her posture, she looked like an old smoker.

Shen Feng paused, then asked in confusion, “I’m used to offering cigarettes to people. Do you smoke too?”

Lin Ke awkwardly withdrew her hand. “No. Smoking is harmful to health.”

Shen Feng: “…”

If Lu Tu heard this, she would definitely pinch Lin Ke’s thigh. Lin Ke slunk away in disgrace.

On the way back to the hotel, the atmosphere inside the RV was very low.

Xiao Wang was driving in front. Lu Tu was on the phone, flattering a producer. Lin Ke sat in the car in a daze, thinking about this and that until her mind landed on the great demon king.

When they arrived at the hotel, Xiao Wang went to park the car. Lu Tu was even busier than a big star. She pressed the floor button for Lin Ke and let her go back to the room by herself. In a spare moment, she covered the receiver and comforted her, “Don’t overthink it. Rest early.”

Lin Ke rode the empty elevator upward. Just as she was about to reach her floor, her phone rang. Lin Ke answered, “Dad, Mom.”

Lin Bingran stepped out of the elevator, carrying a takeout order of dumplings. The hallway was not wide, and a figure was standing right in the middle, blocking the way.

Lin Ke said, “I’m doing okay…”

It seemed she was deeply engaged in the phone call. Lin Bingran quietly waited. She did not feel like kindly reminding her either, so she took out her phone, lowered her head, and scrolled to pass the time.

“Keke, people online are saying you’re filming that kind of movie. Is it true?”

Lin Ke’s parents were in their fifties. Ever since she stepped into the entertainment industry, they had slowly learned how to use Weibo and search on Baidu.

Lin Ke held her forehead, trying every possible way to comfort them. In reality, her face had already flushed red all the way to her ears. “It’s an art film. There are no intimate scenes. If there are, a body double will do them.”

On the other end of the phone, her father snatched the phone away and poured cold water on her in displeasure. “A body double?! How much are you getting paid? They’d hire a body double for you? It’s not like you’re some big star!”

Lin Ke was struck right in her weak spot and argued with little confidence, “After I finish this movie, I’ll be a big shot!”

The phone was snatched away by her mother again. “Keke, don’t say things like that carelessly. When you’re a celebrity and filming movies, you need to be even more low-key…”

The phone was taken away again.

Lin Zhen said, “You still need to keep yourself clean and behave properly!”

Lin Ke nodded repeatedly. Realizing she had been standing in place for ages, she began taking small steps toward her room.

After turning the corner, she was only a few steps from her door. There were not many people staying on this floor.

In her ear were her parents’ noisy but warm voices. In the background, there was also the deliberately lowered volume of the television.

Lin Ke was completely immersed in the phone call. She walked and stopped, acted spoiled for a while, and for one instant, even sounded a little choked up.

Lin Bingran operated her alternate Weibo account and searched her own name to see what her haters had been doing recently.

She held grudges. She screenshotted a pile of accounts and sent them to her assistant, telling Guo Rongrong to package them up and give them to the studio so the studio could send lawyer’s letters to each of them.

As she scrolled, she found one fairly popular little anti-fan.

Almost three million followers. A while ago, this person had liked her black material. Now, that person was standing right in front of her, speaking in a sweet voice and acting spoiled with her family.

A WeChat message suddenly popped up. Lin Bingran stood in place and began replying.

It was her manager, Du Yi.

Lin Bingran: What is it?

Du Yi: Some fans are going to visit the set tomorrow. I already told Rongrong. You should also pay attention.

Lin Bingran pondered for a moment and replied: Is it safe?

Du Yi: They’re all long-time fans from the support club.

Lin Bingran replied that she understood, then was suddenly drawn by a loud sputtering sound.

At some point, Lin Ke had already reached the door of Room 602. Her hand was on the door handle, and her face looked like she had almost spit out her food.

“Dad! Mom! That’s just a persona!” Lin Ke growled in a low voice.

Lin Zhen was displeased. “What persona? When I went out today, the neighbors blocked me and asked for the seventeenth or eighteenth time whether I’d gone abroad, whether I was the richest man of some state or another. Your eldest uncle even came over yesterday to borrow money!”

Lin Ke: “…”

Lin Ke explained, “A persona. My persona means the company hides some of my real information and fabricates a fake identity for me. Saying I have a billionaire father is… to protect me, and also to attract fans.”

Lin Zhen half understood and half did not. He said, “You must clarify it! Where does our family have that much money to lend everywhere?”

Lin Ke pressed her temple. “I know.”

After hanging up, Lin Ke leaned against the door and panted. From the corner of her eye, she caught sight of a shadow and abruptly turned her head.

Lin Bingran?

Why was she here?!

How much of that phone call had she heard?!

Lin Bingran crossed her arms and smiled. “This isn’t a small piece of gossip.”

Lin Ke’s scalp tingled. She gripped the door handle and twisted the door open. “I don’t understand what you’re talking about!”

Lin Bingran did not linger. She also did not like making small talk with people she was not familiar with. She walked straight toward Room 601. She was staying across from Lin Ke.

“Wait.” Lin Bingran turned around.

Most of Lin Ke’s body was hidden behind the door, with only her head exposed. Remembering her fan persona, she said, “…Teacher Lin, I’m sorry I made you work overtime today.”

Lin Bingran was a little surprised. After guessing for a moment, she asked, “Are you afraid I’ll expose your gossip?”

All of Lin Ke’s guilty feelings had been wasted on the wrong person. Her expression almost cracked. Her chest rose and fell, and a little pheromone leaked out, drifting in front of Lin Bingran.

Lin Ke said, “Teacher Lin, please rest early. See you on set tomorrow.”

Lin Bingran smiled. After bullying someone, she still had to pretend to be refined scum. “It’s fine, little fan. Keep your pheromones under control.”

Pheromones were so private, yet Lin Bingran casually brought them up!

So annoying! Lin Ke could not help slamming the door shut two minutes after Lin Bingran entered her room.

There was no more sound from behind the door. Lin Bingran placed the dumplings on the living room table and was about to open them to eat when Shen Feng called.

Lin Bingran swiped to answer.

Shen Feng asked, “How’s the new room?”

Lin Bingran turned on speakerphone and placed the phone aside. She took out disposable chopsticks and said, “It would be better if the person next door weren’t a little girl still wet behind the ears.”

Shen Feng laughed. “Nothing I can do. There were too many people coming and going on the floor you originally stayed on. I was afraid you’d feel uncomfortable. The sixth floor is pretty good. Fewer people, quieter.”

Lin Bingran thought of the scene in the hallway. She picked up a dumpling, dipped it into the separately packed chili sauce, rolled it around twice until the dumpling turned from white to red, then fed it into her mouth.

Shen Feng was still on set, watching several shots they had filmed today in the director’s workroom.

From the corner of her eye, she saw a fruit dessert and remembered that Lin Ke had sent it. She opened it and ate while taking the lunch box away to wash. With a Bluetooth earbud on, she suddenly said, “Why is there another lunch box?”

Lin Bingran said, “Mm?”

Shen Feng said, “The lunch box from the fruit dessert. Did Xiao Lin not take it back?”

Lin Bingran narrowed her eyes and thought for a moment. Oh, it was the one she had snatched from the kid today. After eating, she had washed the box and set it aside, then forgotten about it.

Her phone flashed, accompanied by a ding.

Lin Bingran picked it up and looked. One dumpling was still tucked in her cheek as she chewed slowly and calmly.

Little Anti-Fan: Teacher Lin, does your assistant know you secretly bought late-night snacks to eat?

Lin Bingran froze. Her eyes narrowed slightly.