Chapter 32: Almost

The sun had already risen, but the morning fog in the mountains was heavy and the temperature was low. Shen Xici hadn’t walked far before he sneezed twice and was dragged by Sheng Shaoyan back to the dressing room to change his clothes.

The coarse white cloth robe was taken off, and as Shen Xici was buttoning up his washed denim jacket, he noticed Sheng Shaoyan striding over to him. When Sheng Shaoyan reached out his hand, Shen Xici subconsciously tilted his head to make it easier for him to remove the earring.

“Xiao Shan is still at the bottom of the cliff, helping to pack up the life-saving air cushion. He probably won’t be done for a while. A’Shao, you wait here for the makeup artist to hand over the costume. I’m going to find the director, I’ll be right back—”

Feeling the earring being removed, Shen Xici turned his head back as he spoke. Halfway through the turn, his breath instinctively caught, and his heart skipped a beat.

He hadn’t expected Sheng Shaoyan to be so close.

So close that his lips almost brushed against Sheng Shaoyan’s profile, missing by just a little bit!

Sheng Shaoyan held the earring, his gaze lingering on the soft, white, slightly flushed earlobe, as if he hadn’t noticed their proximity. “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

According to the crew’s schedule, the next scene was already in preparation. To find the director, Shen Xici had to go to the set.

The art department staff were bustling about, setting the scene. The team leader was holding a few papers and discussing something with Director Wan. Shen Xici didn’t approach, instead waiting from a distance, planning to go over after Director Wan was finished.

Unexpectedly, Director Wan saw him and called out, “Shen Xici, why haven’t you gone back to rest? Do you have new ideas?”

The role of the mute boy was difficult precisely because he couldn’t speak. In the script, there were usually only broad action words like “smile,” “expression stiffens,” or “nods.” How to act was left entirely to the actor’s own interpretation.

Although Shen Xici was a new actor, he didn’t just rigidly follow what was written in the script; he had his own set of ideas and insights. While the character was created word by word by him and the screenwriter, it was Shen Xici who understood the mute boy best.

Seeing him return, Director Wan Shan’s first reaction was to wonder if Shen Xici had a new idea for the interpretation of the character in the final scene.

Walking forward, Shen Xici said to Director Wan Shan, “I do have a new idea, but it’s not related to the character. It’s about the lighting.”

“Lighting?” Director Wan Shan didn’t inquire further. He waved his hand, signaling for the head of the lighting team to come over. “I still have things to attend to. If you have any ideas, you can chat with Old Fang.”

Xu Lingjia had a part in the scene being prepared. He had come to wait on set after his makeup and styling were done, but an error with the art department meant the set was still not ready, so he could only wait a while longer.

Because he was currently being shipped as a couple (CP) with Zhong Yue, his number of followers was growing at an incredible rate, and his popularity was higher each day. The brand endorsements and scripts coming his way had nearly doubled compared to before.

His godmother had reminded him several times to do more live streams when he had free time to solidify his fanbase. It was best to mention Zhong Yue, intentionally or not, during the streams to generate more content for publicity.

That morning, his and Zhong Yue’s scenes were back-to-back. Xu Lingjia started a live stream, saying he was just chatting with fans for a few minutes while waiting.

As expected, CP fans soon asked in the comments where Zhong Yue was and why he wasn’t there, leaving him to sit alone.

Xu Lingjia read this comment aloud with a sweet smile, his voice full of reverence and intimacy. “Brother Zhong is still in makeup. He needs special effects makeup for his wounds, which is much more complicated than mine, so he hasn’t come over yet. He said the dressing room was stuffy and told me to come out for some fresh air.”

The live stream comments instantly flooded with “Ahhhhh” screams and phrases like “The main ship is giving us candy,” and “Jiajia is so sweet.”

Xu Lingjia pretended not to see the other questions related to Zhong Yue, stopping at the right moment and picking a few other questions that were only about him.

Just as he finished answering, the voices of Director Wan and Shen Xici drifted over. In the comments, a message floated by: “Shen Xici? Is Shen Xici there too! My best friend adores him!”

A shadow of gloom flashed in his eyes, but Xu Lingjia maintained his smile and answered the question. “Yes, Teacher Shen is over there talking to the director. A scene together? Teacher Shen and I barely have any scenes alone together. But I heard Teacher Shen has been working very hard these past two days. There’s a move in one scene that might be a bit difficult. Teacher Shen shot it eight times yesterday and seven times today, and still didn’t pass. Maybe they’re discussing that.”

He stood up and said deliberately, “You want to see Teacher Shen? I’ll take you a little closer.”

He had already heard from the crew a few times that Shen Xici had jumped off the cliff more than ten times between yesterday and this morning, yet not a single usable shot was produced, and he would have to continue tomorrow morning.

Xu Lingjia sneered inwardly. If the role of the mute boy were that easy, passing in just one or two takes, why would he have been so criticized in his past life?

In his premonition dream, although he didn’t have this cliff-jumping scene, he could imagine that if a single jump had to be filmed ten, or even twenty or thirty times, that was some truly “great” acting.

Fortunately, he had extricated himself from the path of the dream early on and hadn’t wasted his time focusing on Shen Xici.

As he expected, someone in the comments soon raised a doubt.

“–Aren’t they all saying that newcomer’s acting is amazing? What’s this ridiculous situation of NG-ing a single move over ten times?”

“–I wonder how much marketing they bought. I knew there was something fishy about his sudden fame!”

“–He can’t get the shot right, but instead of reflecting on his acting, what’s with going to the lighting director? Is he blaming the lights?”

As he walked, Xu Lingjia whispered in response, “Maybe Teacher Shen thinks he didn’t pass this morning because of the lighting. This kind of thing is common on set. Sometimes if the lighting isn’t right, the shot really won’t work.”

He put on a confused expression and muttered under his breath, “But that shouldn’t be it…”

The head of the lighting department came down from a nearby tree, sweating profusely. He dusted himself off, greeted Director Wan, and asked Shen Xici, “Teacher Shen, what did you have in mind?”

“Director Fang, I think there’s a problem with the equipment,” Shen Xici stated his idea. “My thought is, we can’t control the sun’s light, but we can control the light from machines. As long as we adjust the light parameters and—”

“Are you talking about an electronic lighting console?” Xu Lingjia interrupted as he walked closer. “Brother Shen is a newcomer and might not be familiar with film sets. Our crew’s equipment is all top-of-the-line. We have every kind of equipment we might need, and that of course includes something as basic as an electronic lighting console.”

While speaking, Xu Lingjia deliberately left his microphone on. The comments immediately filled with “hahaha.”

“–Wow, isn’t that being called out? My second-hand embarrassment is acting up!”

“–This newcomer is so self-important. Making the lighting director run all the way over just to listen to this nonsense. If you don’t know anything, can’t you just be quiet?”

“–This is a classic case of an amateur trying to direct a professional, isn’t it? Hahaha.”

After listening, Shen Xici said, “I know the crew has one, but that electronic lighting console isn’t very good.”

“But,” seeing the number of viewers in the live stream growing, Xu Lingjia feigned a troubled expression, but still said, “I went with my godmother to Europe and we went to great lengths to special order these machines. It’s because this company’s products are only supplied to foreign countries, with no distributors in our country.”

He then smiled reassuringly at Shen Xici. “Brother Shen might say it’s not good because he isn’t familiar with it, but I can guarantee that this electronic lighting console is the most advanced and technologically superior one available right now.”

“–Jiajia is so warm! Being so gentle and reassuring to someone so clueless, even giving him an out!”

“–So impressive! I didn’t realize Jiajia was involved in purchasing professional equipment. Jiajia really knows everything!”

Seeing these comments scroll by, the smile on Xu Lingjia’s lips deepened.

“It’s the GrandEC5 series console from DMA Lighting, the professional lighting control company, right?”

The smile froze. Xu Lingjia hadn’t expected Shen Xici to actually name it. Old Fang, the burly man standing beside them wearing only a military green T-shirt while everyone else wore jackets, was also surprised. “Whoa, how did you recognize it? Never mind the brand, how do you even know the model number?”

“I’m very interested in these things. I came across some related materials while doing research for the role, so I still remember it and recognized it.”

Different lights create different effects on camera, and the same principle applies to the light source’s position. Sometimes, turning your face just ten degrees to the side can prevent your features from being distorted by the lens, making you look better on screen.

In his past life, while filming, Shen Xici had slowly accumulated a mental checklist of the types of lights, cameras, and the characteristics of the equipment used on set, including the habits of different lighting directors.

Seeing that Shen Xici could identify the machine by sight alone, Old Fang became a bit hopeful. Perhaps Shen Xici really could suggest something useful. He pressed on, “Why do you think that console isn’t good?”

Shen Xici explained, “The terrain by the cliff is complex, which severely limits where we can place light stands. Several of the lights we’re using are incompatible with this electronic console. I noticed yesterday during the close-ups that more than half of the LED lights, PAR cans, and other fixtures placed near me weren’t connected to the console. That’s why the lighting became chaotic as soon as the sun appeared.”

Old Fang crossed his sturdy, tanned arms, his expression serious. “That is the problem. We’ve been trying to figure out a solution.”

Different opinions began to appear in the live stream’s comments.

“–Was this newcomer a lighting technician before? He sounds pretty professional.”

“–Huh?? So he’s not an amateur?”

“–Could it really be a problem with that console? But didn’t Jiajia say it was specially bought from Europe?”

The string of anxiety regarding Shen Xici in Xu Lingjia’s heart tightened abruptly. He clenched his fists, his tone no longer as gentle as before. “Since Teacher Shen knows this is a GrandEC5 series console, then you must know that it’s DMA’s latest flagship console, right?”

He deliberately stressed the word “flagship.”

Shen Xici nodded. “I know. DMA Lighting’s products are indeed excellent and famous, but it’s a fact that domestic lights of different brands and models often use different protocols, and this console cannot support multiple protocols.”

Xu Lingjia had no idea what “protocols” or “multi-protocol support” meant. Seeing that the lighting director didn’t deny it, could Shen Xici be right? A sense of panic rose in his heart. “DMA’s console technology is the best there is. If it can’t do it, could any other company?”

This was Shen Xici’s goal. Waking up at 4 a.m. for work was torture for anyone. “I know a domestic company—”

“Impossible!” The panic in his heart expanded. Xu Lingjia blurted out without thinking, “Domestic? Do you know why DMA only supplies to foreign countries and not domestically? It’s to prevent those small domestic workshops from secretly copying their technology. And then you get some ignorant people using the junk produced by thieves to try and compete with their flagship.”

Shen Xici heard the disdain in Xu Lingjia’s words and turned directly to Old Fang. “Director Fang, there’s a newly established domestic company called ‘Zhu Long Guang Qi’ (Candle Dragon Light Revelation). They’re very impressive, a true tech-driven company. A month ago, they launched an electronic lighting console called ‘Jin Wu Zhi Kong’ (Golden Crow Smart Control), which can perfectly support sACN and other control protocols. All the light fixtures you have can be connected to it. This console can also directly drive a wrap-around LED screen to generate realistic desert environment lighting in real-time, replacing the need for post-production green screen synthesis.”

In his past life, he had seen a movie with incredible visual effects. To find out which company provided the equipment, he had specifically waited in the theater until all the credits finished rolling.

Xu Lingjia also looked at Old Fang, acting cute. “Uncle Fang, you don’t actually believe that some ‘Zhu Long’ or ‘Jin Wu’ could be better than DMA’s flagship, do you?”

The camera effects had been consistently poor, and as the head of the lighting department, Old Fang was under immense pressure. He didn’t say whether he believed Shen Xici, only that, “I’ll contact ‘Zhu Long Guang Qi’ and ask for their specs to take a look. Even if the chance is slim, we have to try. Otherwise, having that scene stuck is not a solution.”

Xu Lingjia’s smile stiffened. He hadn’t expected Old Fang to directly challenge him like that. He forced his expression and tone. “I’m just worried that Uncle Fang, who is already working so hard, will waste his effort on a useless task.”

Unexpectedly, an hour later, a hashtag #ZhuLongGuangQiSellsEverythingForATrendingTopic suddenly appeared on the trending list.

The company’s officially verified Weibo account posted several times in a row.

“@ZhuLongGuangQi: Who understands this feeling!! We sold our pots and pans, went bankrupt to buy this trending topic!”

“@ZhuLongGuangQi: Director Wan Shan, please see this! We have a lighting console in our warehouse that is perfectly compatible with all control protocols, an LED wrap-around virtual studio that can generate realistic environmental light, and a virtual production system, all super easy to use! The machine’s specs are below!”

“@ZhuLongGuangQi: We’re really too poor. After buying the trending topic, our boss has no money for lunch. The security guard at the warehouse gave the boss a cup of instant noodles. Why are trending topics so expensive! We have to post more, we can’t let this money go to waste!”

“@ZhuLongGuangQi: Although we’re a small workshop, we are genuinely a domestic independent R&D company. We really didn’t copy foreign technology. After all, our tech is already better than the foreign companies’. A student who scores 100% wouldn’t need to copy an 80% answer, right?”

Under the topic, netizens who loved watching entertaining drama immediately joined in.

“–This official account is so loud. They bought one trending topic and posted twenty times. My whole feed is them making noise. They really aren’t wasting a single cent.”

“–@WaliJuexingInstantNoodles: Give us an address and we’ll send you instant noodles. We’re also a domestic independent R&D brand, here to support a sister company!”

“–This is brilliant. The official account not only put Shen Xici’s words of praise in glaring red text over that photo set of him as the Mountain God’s Son to make a meme, but they also clipped the audio and paired it with behind-the-scenes footage from Shen Xici’s movie. Hahaha, it’s so addictively bizarre, they’re masters of this!”

“–The official account said the boss made the meme himself with a photo editing app because the company can’t afford a graphic designer hahaha!”

After finishing his scene, Xu Lingjia was walking to the dressing room when he opened his phone and saw that pathetic company all over the trending list.

With a dark expression, he was about to toss his phone aside to get it out of his sight, when a call came in.

There was still no smile on his face, but Xu Lingjia’s tone was cheerful. “Godmom, did you miss me?”

Ye Mei, however, didn’t play along. Her tone was serious. “You knew you were live streaming. Why would you say something like that?”

Xu Lingjia knew those words were a bit inappropriate, but he hadn’t taken it to heart. Besides, he was telling the truth. What good could these small domestic workshops produce? It was all just junk, wasn’t it?

He whined as he usually did, “Godmom, are the anti-fans attacking me again? Help me suppress it, it’s so annoying to see.”

“Jiajia, it’s not about the anti-fans. Someone deliberately bought a negative trending topic about you, with the title #XuLingjiaCallsDomesticProductsJunk#.” Ye Mei sounded disappointed and sighed. “Did you forget? You’re in talks for an endorsement with a domestic tech product brand.”

Shen Xici never expected that Xu Lingjia was live streaming during their conversation on set, and he was even more surprised by how quickly ‘Zhu Long Guang Qi’ reacted.

Furthermore, before making the meme and short video, the company’s boss had specifically asked for his opinion, saying they would use a different promotional method if he wasn’t comfortable with it.

Shen Xici already had a very positive impression of the company, so he readily gave them free rein.

Thanks to that freedom, he took a nap, and by the time he woke up, the topic was in the top three of the trending list.

Rushing out of his bedroom in slippers, Shen Xici pointed at his phone. “A’Shao, how did they climb the ranks so fast!”

Sheng Shaoyan came out of the kitchen, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing the smooth lines of his arms. He put some cut mango into a bowl, speared a piece with a fork, and fed it directly into Shen Xici’s mouth as he was talking.

Surprised, Shen Xici’s eyes widened like a startled little animal, looking very cute. Sheng Shaoyan summarized for him, “The topic exploded. It has the ‘domestic independent R&D’ label, which resonates with national pride. Then there’s the ‘poor’ persona, the memes, and riding on the popularity of ‘Mountain Range Line.’ Several other domestic brand accounts also joined in. On top of that, there’s clearly another group buying a water army to target Xu Lingjia. With fans from all sides arguing fiercely, the popularity naturally shot up.”

His attention diverted, Shen Xici followed Sheng Shaoyan, scrolling through Weibo. He swallowed the mango and marveled, “The boss of this company isn’t just a genius at R&D, he’s also maxed out his marketing skills!”

As he swiped the screen, Shen Xici didn’t notice that the atmosphere around Sheng Shaoyan, who was walking ahead of him, was far from sunny.

He continued, talking to himself, “It’s just that his photo editing skills are a bit poor.”

The surrounding low pressure dissipated.

Sheng Shaoyan thought to himself that he knew how to edit videos, and he was very good at it. Shen Xici had even praised him as a ‘growing expert.’

He placed the bowl of mango on the coffee table. Seeing Shen Xici already settled on the sofa, the low, wide collar of his long-sleeved V-neck shirt revealed most of his collarbones, a dazzling white that brought to mind the beautiful muscles of the back he had once seen.

An emotion sprouted in his heart, and like a bud in the spring rain, it quickly grew branches and vines. Sheng Shaoyan found it novel. He never imagined he could feel down because of one sentence from someone, only to be lifted up by the next, his emotions pulled by invisible strings.

Shen Xici leaned against the sofa, scrolling through Weibo. The ‘Zhu Long Guang Qi’ official account had updated again. After reading it, he felt this boss really knew how to play the game.

“@ZhuLongGuangQi: Because we can’t afford to pay wages, we still haven’t dared to hire anyone for our marketing department. @ShenXici, you even researched us for your role? For the sake of this mysterious fate, just tell us what machine you want, and the boss will ship it to you from the warehouse immediately! Cash on delivery!”

Was this their way of making sure the trending topic wasn’t wasted, and letting him share in some of the hype?

But, cash on delivery?

As if he wasn’t a poor wretch himself.

If you want to have a poverty contest, you’re still a little short!

Shen Xici reposted and replied coolly: “Don’t send it, no money.”