The Twenty-Sixth Star
Jiang Chuyi was confused for a moment before reacting.
She somewhat doubted her ears that had been frozen by the overly cold weather in Beijing, causing her hearing to have problems.
She pointed at herself in surprise, “You’re my fan?”
“Is it very unexpected?” Zong Ye said.
Jiang Chuyi forced herself to maintain a calm expression, “A little…”
“I…” Zong Ye seemed to be immersed in memories, his speaking pace slowing down, “started watching your movies in middle school.”
Jiang Chuyi laughed awkwardly.
Because she had debuted early, when socializing, there were quite a few people who would joke with her, saying things like “Teacher Jiang, I grew up watching your movies” or “Teacher Jiang, I’ve been watching your dramas since elementary school.” Every time this happened, Jiang Chuyi would have the illusion that she was their elder.
Hearing the current top star in the industry calling himself her “fan” in person, Jiang Chuyi’s instinctive reaction was disbelief. However, his expression was serious, and he said it in a convincing manner. She couldn’t help but feel a bit of vanity in her heart.
Jiang Chuyi scratched her head, “If you’re not joking with me, I’m quite honored.”
“If I like you, would you feel more honored?”
When saying this, Zong Ye glanced at her from the side.
This question made Jiang Chuyi feel a bit strange. She followed his words and said, with a subtle tone of avoidance, “Yes, after all, you’re also a very outstanding person. Being recognized by an outstanding person is definitely an honor.”
Zong Ye laughed and nodded in agreement. He looked straight ahead and didn’t say anything more.
But his expression seemed to be telling her that he was a bit helpless.
Jiang Chuyi secretly glanced at him from the corner of her eye, wondering if there was something wrong with what she said.
*
Entering the lobby, Jiang Chuyi found that the heating in this hotel was very strong. She felt hot as soon as she entered.
To prevent some overly enthusiastic sasaeng fans from knocking on doors in the middle of the night, the production team had generously booked all the rooms on the thirty-second floor, including temporary dressing rooms and makeup rooms, all on this floor.
After the room cards were distributed, the producer confirmed the wake-up time for the next day with them in the elevator.
When everything was pretty much explained, the elevator smoothly and steadily ascended.
Jiang Chuyi felt hot and couldn’t help but loosen her scarf by a few rounds.
Soon, the elevator reached their floor.
Zong Ye was leaning against the door, very gentlemanly, raising his hand to hold the door open, letting others exit first.
Following the people in front, Jiang Chuyi had just stepped out the door when Zong Ye called out to her, “Teacher Jiang.”
“Ah?” Jiang Chuyi stopped in her tracks.
His long lashes lowered as he stared at her, “Remember to sign an autograph for me when you have time.”
As soon as these words came out, the noisy elevator area fell silent.
Wang Tan’s reaction was swift. He turned his head, coughed, and urged the people beside him to walk quickly.
Jiang Chuyi couldn’t help but look at him, “You really want it?”
“Did I sound like I was joking just now?” Zong Ye curled the corners of his mouth.
Zong Ye chatted with her as if no one else was around. The familiarity in their interactions and the way they spoke to each other couldn’t help but arouse curiosity and speculation in the hearts of others.
Several people who had walked away sneaked glances back at them.
Before she could answer, Zong Ye added, “I saw you wrote quite a long message for that fan. Can you write a few lines for me too?”
Jiang Chuyi was afraid of blocking the way, so she also slightly turned her body, “Write what? Movie lines or blessings?”
“Either is fine.”
After much consideration, she nodded, agreeing to his request.
…
…
Entering her room with the key card, Jiang Chuyi took off her coat and removed her scarf.
She had just put down her luggage when there was a sudden knock on the door.
Little Zhong ran to open the door and found the screenwriter Er Er standing at the doorway.
Er Er had her hands behind her back, poking her head in, “Can I come in to talk?”
Little Zhong responded with an “sure” and stepped aside.
Jiang Chuyi was curious, “Do you need something?”
Er Er raised her hand, waving the script in her hand, “I’m here to discuss this final scene with you.”
Jiang Chuyi poured a glass of water for Er Er, and the two of them sat on the sofa.
Before getting to the main point, Er Er suddenly asked, “Teacher Jiang, are you close with Zong Ye?”
“Me and Zong Ye?” Jiang Chuyi pondered and gave an answer, “We’re okay. We should be… considered friends.”
Hearing her say that, Er Er hesitated slightly, “Just considered?”
“What’s wrong?”
“I thought you and Zong Ye were quite close.” Er Er recalled and said, “Because I work at IM, when I helped write scripts for their MVs before, I also had contact with the members of BloodxGentle. I always felt that Zong Ye didn’t really like communicating with strangers in private. I don’t mean that he looks down on others, but in social interactions, he’s not the type to take the initiative.”
Jiang Chuyi listened and fell silent.
“How should I put it? Zong Ye is very well-mannered and doesn’t act like a big shot on set. Most of the time, he’s very gentle with others. But when interacting with him, he still gives off a sense of distance. So when I saw you two chatting a lot just now, I felt you were quite close.”
Jiang Chuyi pondered, “I see…”
After laying out such a long preamble, Er Er finally got to the main point, “That’s why I came to discuss this matter with you today.”
“Hm? What matter?”
“Recently, the assistant director and I went through the script, and we feel that there’s a part where we still need to add a scene… If this scene isn’t added, it always feels like it’s lacking some emotion.”
“Add what?”
Er Er observed her expression and carefully uttered the words, “In-ti-mate scene.”
Jiang Chuyi was taken aback, “Intimate scene?!”
“Yes, it wasn’t in the script given to you before.” Er Er sighed, “Originally, there was one, but the people at IM didn’t agree. You also know that BloodxGentle has a lot of girlfriend fans now. They were afraid that the fans wouldn’t be able to accept it and would protest or something. There was no other way, so I deleted it. But after discussing it with the director these past two days, he also felt that this scene needed to be added. Fortunately, the director has a big reputation. He personally went to talk to BloodxGentle’s manager, and only then did IM slightly relent.”
Little Zhong, who was sitting beside them, was slow to react. He was shocked and repeated again, “Intimate scene?? Filming an intimate scene with Zong Ye?!”
“Yeah…” Er Er glanced at Jiang Chuyi guiltily and tried to persuade her, “Actually, it’s not very intimate, just a little physical contact. I promise…”
Little Zhong interrupted her explanation, “No, I… You misunderstood me.”
Afraid that his words were inappropriate, Little Zhong lowered his voice, “I wanted to say, how can there be such a good thing?”
“…”
Er Er laughed loudly and turned to look at Jiang Chuyi, “It’s roughly at the level of hugging and kissing. Do you think you can accept it?”
“I don’t have a problem with it.”
If work required it, she had no issues.
Jiang Chuyi hesitated and voiced her concerns, “But BloodxGentle’s fans… Can they accept it?”
“You don’t need to worry too much about that.” Er Er patted her chest, “This kissing scene isn’t the kind of mouth-to-mouth kissing. After all, the overall style of the film is youthful, so there won’t be too much intensity. You just need to hug him and lightly kiss his cheek. You don’t even need to actually kiss him, just suggesting it is enough. We can discuss this further when we film it.”
Jiang Chuyi was silent for a moment and raised a question, “Why suddenly add this scene?”
Er Er explained, “Because Fang Qing is a rather tragic character. In literature, there’s a saying that compared to never having possessed something, briefly obtaining and then losing it is the greatest tragedy. So we feel it’s better to add this segment.”
“I see…” Jiang Chuyi nodded, indicating she understood.
Er Er handed the temporarily revised script to Jiang Chuyi, “Then can you take a look tonight?”
“Alright.”
Before leaving, Er Er stuck out her tongue, “That’s why I asked if you’re close with Zong Ye. After all, he’s not aware of this matter yet. The director wants a more genuine reaction. So I thought that if you two have a good relationship in private, he shouldn’t be too resistant when the time comes.”
Jiang Chuyi was surprised again, “He doesn’t know yet?”
“That’s right.”
“Then what if he pushes me away at that time?” Jiang Chuyi was a bit worried.
It was quite common for directors to pursue authenticity by having the entire crew conceal something from a particular actor, letting them give a real-time reaction on set.
But Zong Ye’s primary profession wasn’t acting after all. If he wasn’t informed in advance and didn’t have much acting experience, and she suddenly took advantage of him out of the blue, he probably wouldn’t have the dedication to sacrifice for art. He might only feel very offended.
“Right, then we’ll have to discuss it further on set at that time.” Er Er frowned, “Anyway, let’s try this method first. If Zong Ye shows too much resistance, we can reshoot it then.”
Jiang Chuyi nodded.
…
…
After Er Er left, as soon as the door closed, a scream erupted in the room.
Jiang Chuyi was drinking water and was startled by Little Zhong, “What are you screaming about?”
Little Zhong’s emotions were already out of control. She paced back and forth, clenching her fists, “I’m so excited!”
“Excited about what?”
“You’re going to film an intimate scene with Zong Ye! How can you still be so calm, sis? Teacher Jiang, are you still a woman?”
“Can you not be so amateurish?” Jiang Chuyi continued to calmly drink water, “Intimate scenes are very common. Everyone in this profession films them. Moreover, this level can’t even be considered intimate. Didn’t the screenwriter say that it doesn’t necessarily have to involve kissing?”
“But, but it’s Zong Ye.” Little Zhong kept repeating, “This counts as his first on-screen kiss, right? And it’s actually being taken by you?”
“The screenwriter said it’s not a mouth-to-mouth kiss, so it doesn’t count as an on-screen first kiss.” She emphasized again.
“But it’s still a kiss!”
“It’s just a hug.”
Jiang Chuyi’s calm expression finally started to crack. Not knowing who she was trying to convince, “It’s not even certain if he’ll let me kiss him.”
At night, Jiang Chuyi tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep.
She stared at the ceiling, silently praying in her heart, hoping that Zong Ye wouldn’t blame her when the time came, considering their somewhat decent relationship…
After struggling for half an hour and still not feeling sleepy, Jiang Chuyi turned over, fumbled for her phone on the bedside table, and went to search for BloodxGentle’s previous MVs on Bilibili, wanting to see if there were any similar intimate scenes in Zong Ye’s past cuts.
However, after searching, she only found one scene where Zong Ye interacted with a woman.
This scene had been edited into a top list of teasing and seductive jerks.
The setting was on an abandoned rooftop. Zong Ye, in a shirt and trousers, was slightly leaning forward, resting on the railing.
He was looking into the distance with a cigarette between his lips, the edge of his white shirt fluttering in the wind.
A seductive-looking girl was leaning beside him, her mixed-race features creating a stark contrast with the reserved and handsome man next to her.
She held a lighter, trying to light her own cigarette.
After a few attempts, the flame flickered in the wind. The girl suddenly gave up, reached out, and tried to take the half-smoked cigarette from his mouth.
Zong Ye grabbed her wrist, stopping her action. After a brief pause, he glanced at the girl with a perfunctory smile.
But the smile only lingered on his lips. Those gentle eyes, looking down from above, held no affection.
It seemed like he couldn’t be possessed by any woman.
If one wanted to know the taste of kissing him, they could only rely on that half cigarette.
But he wouldn’t even give the chance for that half cigarette.
Jiang Chuyi watched this scene a few times and suddenly discovered a very unfamiliar and dominant side of Zong Ye after he shed his gentleness.
She felt her throat was a bit dry and got up to drink some more water.
Jiang Chuyi couldn’t sleep at all. She sat on the bed, sometimes punching the pillow, sometimes grabbing her hair in frustration.
It was over. She must have been influenced by those comments.
For a moment, she actually became curious about what it would feel like to kiss Zong Ye.
*
This final scene would take three days to film.
Due to BloodxGentle’s immense popularity in the country, they couldn’t be as casual as when they were abroad, finding a random street to shoot. The production team had set up a large tent in advance, but it still couldn’t stop the paparazzi who climbed up the utility poles.
The next day’s scenes needed to be filmed outdoors. The director was afraid of the schedule being leaked, so he decided at the last minute to wake up at five or six in the morning and take a bus for a few hours to a resort in the suburbs.
The first few scenes were parts with Xin He, Ji Kai, and Wang Tan. The others were temporarily resting.
Zong Ye was crouching on the ground with his back hunched.
Not far from him, there was a stray cat.
In his palm were crumbled pieces of bread. He adjusted to the height of the little stray cat, placing the back of his hand directly on the ground, patiently trying to lure it to eat.
But cats were timid and sensitive by nature, always hesitating and wandering a few steps away, never daring to approach.
“It may feel a bit unsafe.”
Noticing someone approaching, Zong Ye turned his head.
Jiang Chuyi softly suggested, “You can put the food on the ground and walk away. It will come and eat it afterward.”
Zong Ye did as she said.
During the break between filming, Jiang Chuyi sat on a folding chair and had been secretly watching Zong Ye for a long time.
The suddenly added scene was scheduled for today, but Zong Ye was completely unaware.
She struggled internally for a while and finally decided to come and communicate with Zong Ye in advance.
Jiang Chuyi squatted down beside him.
“Coming over specifically to find me?” Zong Ye looked at her.
Jiang Chuyi didn’t dare to look at him, feeling guilty, “Yes.”
“What a rare occurrence.”
“What’s rare?” She was absent-minded, thinking about how to phrase her words.
His tone was relaxed, “Nothing.”
Taking a small breath of the cool air into her lungs, Jiang Chuyi started, “So, you and I have a scene together later.”
“I know.”
Jiang Chuyi casually grabbed a handful of snow from the ground, carefully probing, “Did you read the script?”
“I did.” Zong Ye seemed a bit puzzled, “You’re leaving, coming to say goodbye to me, but I don’t seem to have any lines. What’s wrong?”
Jiang Chuyi hesitated.
“Your expression… seems a bit strange?” Zong Ye imitated her, using his finger to scoop up a flake of snow.
Jiang Chuyi stammered, “Can I gossip a little?”
“About what?”
She lowered her voice even more, “You… have you been in a relationship before?”
Zong Ye was taken aback for a moment, then nodded.
“Then…” Jiang Chuyi continued asking with difficulty, “You don’t have a fear of germs or anything like that, right?”
Zong Ye laughed, “In what aspect are you referring to?”
Jiang Chuyi shook her head, deciding to give up. If she asked any further, he would guess it.
She brushed the snow off her hands and stood up, “Never mind, it’s nothing.”
…
…
Soon, the snow gradually intensified. The set was almost ready. The crew called for them to change into their costumes and get prepared.
The director looked at Zong Ye and casually instructed, “This scene is very simple. You two try to get it done in one take.”
Zong Ye nodded.
Just like any other scene, when each team was ready, the young man from the production department slapped the clapperboard.
“‘Catching Stars,’ Scene 130, Shot 7, Take 1, action!”
The surroundings were a vast expanse of white, with heavy snow falling.
According to the script, Fang Qing was saying her final farewell to Lin Xiangyuan in the snow.
Lin Xiangyuan didn’t try to make her stay. He just stood there quietly, watching her retreating figure.
The lines were quickly finished, and no one called to stop from off-screen.
The two of them continued acting.
Jiang Chuyi looked at him with reluctance. Then she turned around and slowly walked away.
She kept her head down, watching the footprints she left behind, silently counting in her heart. Just as she was about to walk out of the frame, Jiang Chuyi took a deep breath and suddenly turned around, running towards the person standing in the snow.
It happened suddenly. She ran very fast, as if she was pouncing towards Zong Ye.
When she was still a few steps away, he had a moment of surprise and helplessness. He instinctively reached out to catch her.
She opened her arms and hugged him tightly. Because she ran too fast to stop, Zong Ye stumbled a few steps after being hit. Several seconds later, he finally remembered to hold her shoulders.
Snowflakes fell as Jiang Chuyi raised her head and silently gazed at him.
Her heart was pounding. With trembling hands on Zong Ye’s shoulders, she tiptoed and prepared to kiss his chin.
Almost immediately, Zong Ye sensed her intention, but he only froze and surprisingly didn’t dodge.
In fact, Jiang Chuyi felt his hands fall and gently hold her waist.
The director promptly called “cut” and shouted, “Zong Ye, what’s with that reaction?”
“What?” Zong Ye was half a beat slower and turned his head.
“When Fang Qing was about to hug you, it’s fine that you reached out to catch her.” The director looked puzzled, “But when she was about to kiss you, you looked like you were going to kiss her back. What were you doing?! Do you like her?!”
