Chapter 7: The Midnight Female Visitor! (Please continue reading)

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Yang Mi stared at Zhang Li, her eyes filled with a mix of anxiety and anticipation. This nervousness wasn’t entirely an act; she feared making mistakes again in this place. Perhaps it was because of their "deep eye contact" earlier that afternoon, which still stirred her emotions. Zhang Li’s gaze was hard for her to withstand, causing her lines to come out awkwardly, even making her forget them altogether.

“Miss Tang, you flatter me,” Zhang Li smiled gently. His tone was calm and steady, neither elated nor distressed, yet remarkably captivating.

Yang Mi’s heart skipped a beat, and she hurriedly began to explain, “Actually, it’s just that my grandfather hopes—”

“Miss Tang!” Zhang Li interrupted, his eyes shining with admiration. “Changqing has a question for you.”

“W-what?” Yang Mi hesitated, her eyes darting away nervously.

Witnessing this, many around silently shook their heads.

“Is it really that bad?”

In front of the monitor, Li Guoli frowned slightly. This part of the script wasn’t supposed to be performed this way. Xue Jian had no lines here; instead, she was meant to gaze at Xu Changqing with a look of anticipation mixed with doubt. After all, in this situation, Xue Jian depended on Xu Changqing and cared deeply about his thoughts and attitude. Given her character, she wouldn’t shy away.

Of course, this small change didn’t have much impact. The real concern was whether her pacing and subsequent performance would falter.

At that moment, Zhang Li suddenly shifted his eyes and looked diagonally across the room.

“What do you think about your own marriage?” Zhang Li asked seriously.

“Why do you ask that?” Yang Mi looked back at Zhang Li. Without meeting his gaze, she felt a sense of relief.

“You keep saying what your grandfather hopes for, but you’ve never spoken about your own feelings. Isn’t this marriage your own choice?” Zhang Li retorted.

This sentence revealed the gentlemanly nature of Xu Changqing. He wasn’t just refusing; he was also subtly guiding Tang Xuejian on what to do. But he was unaware of Tang Xuejian’s background—that she was the orphan raised solely by her grandfather.

“Changqing, you might not know, but Xuejian has never seen her parents since childhood...” Without Zhang Li’s intense gaze, Yang Mi began to perform with ease.

After a back-and-forth dialogue, Yang Mi suddenly stood and paced back and forth, turning her back to Zhang Li to deliver a lengthy monologue. She spoke of her childhood, the kindness of her grandfather, how important he was in her heart, and finally summarized that all she wanted was for her grandfather to be happy and satisfied.

“So, being with you, Changqing, is what my grandfather wishes for, and also what I want to give him.”

Having finished, Yang Mi’s expression was one of complete surrender.

But when she turned around, she saw that Zhang Li had closed his eyes without her noticing, as if he had fallen asleep!

“Changqing?” Yang Mi hurried over and waved her hand in front of him, receiving no response.

“How could this be? I finally gathered my emotions to say all that.”

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Yang Mi placed her hands on her hips, glaring at Zhang Li with a displeased expression.

She threw caution to the wind and declared, “Marry me, or I’ll marry you!”

Scene one, a classic, complete!

“Cut!”

“Passed!”

Li Guoli’s satisfied voice echoed through the speakers across the crew.

“Phew,” Yang Mi exhaled deeply. The first scene was finally done, a nearly two-minute continuous shot.

If she hadn’t passed this time, she feared she would follow Tang Yan’s fate—the lead role replaced by someone else.

Turning to meet Zhang Li’s gaze, Yang Mi lifted her chin slightly. “Stinky little brother, I told you I’d get through it this time.”

“Is that so?” Zhang Li slowly stood and met Yang Mi’s eyes closely. “If I hadn’t stopped looking at you later on, are you sure you could’ve held on?”

Yang Mi wanted to stubbornly say yes, but recalling how she almost forgot her lines after changing them, she decided not to argue.

But she wasn’t one to admit defeat easily. Her eyes flashed as she caught the key point: “You knew perfectly well that as long as you didn’t look at me, I could keep acting. Why didn’t you do that the first four times?”

“Are you purposely trying to make me look bad?”

“Alright, stinky little brother, I didn’t expect you to become so mean.”

“I’m telling you, no forgiving you without ten late-night snacks.”

Zhang Li: “...”

Women really are creatures who must argue even when unreasonable.

“You’re older, so you’re right,” Zhang Li said, unwilling to continue the debate.

Yang Mi: ?

“Are you saying I’m old?”

“I’m only three years older than you—just 21!”

Zhang Li blinked. “Is it possible I meant ‘big-hearted’ instead?”

He pictured Yang Mi’s performance in “Isolated Island Horror.”

This woman held the truth!

“Alright, you’re good with words,” Yang Mi nodded in satisfaction, obviously missing his subtext.

Perhaps she wasn’t “big” enough yet, so she didn’t think much of it.

“Change location, keep the momentum and shoot a few more scenes,” Li Guoli urged.

The group moved to a new set and began filming the next scenes.

They continued until past eleven at night before Li Guoli announced the day’s wrap.

After passing the first scene, Yang Mi seemed to have unlocked some secret power. The number of takes for subsequent scenes never exceeded three, often passing on the first try without any retakes.

“Are you a genius?”

Inside a barbecue restaurant, Yang Mi raised her disposable cup at Zhang Li, her eyes curious.

After today’s shoot, she had reviewed the footage with Li Guoli.

Most people might not notice, but as an experienced actress with formal training, she could tell Zhang Li was holding back in his performance, otherwise the footage would feel disjointed.

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But Zhang Li was younger, had entered the industry later, and hadn’t studied at Beijing Film Academy.

How could he be better than her?

“Obviously,” Zhang Li said, clinking his cup with hers. “I’m a talent-type performer, just like Sister Xun.”

Yang Mi was an artist under Rong Xinda, whose top star was Zhou Xun—one of the “Double Ice Four Dan” actresses.

Among the “Double Ice Four Dan,” two graduated from Beijing Film Academy, one from Shanghai Theatre Academy, and one from Central Academy of Drama. Only Zhou Xun and Pang Bing came from lesser-known university art schools.

Yet Zhou Xun’s acting subtly ranked highest among the four, a classic case of natural talent rewarded.

“Compared to Sister Xun?” Yang Mi laughed. “Then you still have work to do.”

Zhang Li didn’t argue, changing the subject: “How’s it going at the Dream of the Red Chamber set?”

Yang Mi glanced around to make sure no one was listening, then lowered her voice: “A lot of nonsense. I’m actually happy to be loaned here, a nice break from the chaos.”

She whispered gossip about the Dream of the Red Chamber cast to Zhang Li.

He listened patiently, names like Jiang Mengjie, Bai Qi, Li Qin, Yao Di flashing through his mind.

Meeting so many female stars—if he could get to know them all, imagine how much future information he could gather!

When Yang Mi returned to the Dream of the Red Chamber set, he’d definitely visit her on set.

“Mi Jie, drink up.” Zhang Li’s tone grew warmer.

Yang Mi eyed him suspiciously. “You’re not trying to get me drunk to take advantage, are you?”

Zhang Li twitched at the corner of his mouth. “We both have scenes tomorrow morning. What could I possibly do?”

“Hehe~” Yang Mi put down her cup, eyes playful. “So you mean if there were no scenes tomorrow, you’d be planning something?”

Zhang Li: “...”

Fine, no more drinks then.

They didn’t drink much more, had some late-night snacks, and returned to the hotel arranged by the crew.

“Good night, Mi Jie.” Zhang Li left the elevator first.

“Good night, good night.” Yang Mi yawned and waved.

Riding the elevator to the next floor, she headed straight to her room.

Bang!

Click.

As soon as Yang Mi’s door closed, the door opposite hers opened immediately.

Liu Shishi, dressed in a long gown, stepped out, glanced at Yang Mi’s door, then turned toward the emergency stairs.

She took the stairs down a floor and pressed the doorbell to Zhang Li’s room.

“Hmm?”

Just as Zhang Li was taking off his shirt, preparing to shower, he raised an eyebrow.

He walked to the door and cracked it open slightly.

“Sister Shishi?”