Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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From the airport to the set of “The Fang of Time.”
Si Huang noticed that the way the other crew members looked at her had changed.
The burly Finn, however, was still the same as before, greeting her warmly, “Boy, you’ve become famous!”
“I’ve always been famous,” Si Huang replied humorously.
Finn laughed loudly, “I know, you’re famous in China, but this time you’ve become famous in the US too.”
He waited to see Si Huang’s excited expression, then ask him what had happened, but nothing actually happened.
Si Huang merely curled her lips, “Really? That’s something to be happy about.”
You say it’s something to be happy about, but why don’t I see any real happiness in you? No, there is happiness, but not as much as Finn imagined.
Finn exclaimed in exaggerated frustration, “Is that all the reaction you have? My God! You probably have no idea how popular you are! At your age, there are very few Chinese stars whose names are remembered in the US!”
He took out his phone, tapped a few times, and placed a US forum page in front of Si Huang. “Look closely, your search is trending!”
Si Huang looked at it carefully for a few seconds, then asked Finn, “Will ‘The Fang of Time’ be released in the US after its successful filming?”
“…” Finn felt that compared to Si Huang’s reaction, he seemed to be the younger one.
But Finn wouldn’t admit it; he thought Si Huang was too mature and lacked the youthful energy that young people should have.
“Finn! Come here!” Xiao Jin took off his headphones, turned around, and called out.
Finn shrugged helplessly and walked towards him.
Si Huang followed, greeted Xiao Jin, and then stood aside watching Lei Qie and the other actors touch up their makeup. Lei Qie happened to look at her, his dark gold heterochromatic eyes still filled with provocative sharpness.
Following Xiao Jin’s instructions, filming continued. They were now shooting a scene between Lei Qie and Le Xian, where Le Xian once again saved the male lead, and they would embark on a journey together to find the Fang of Time.
In the scene, Lei Qie, also severely wounded in battle, lay unconscious on the ground, on the verge of death. And his comrades had abandoned him, as he was just an ordinary, low-ranking soldier.
However, Gu Le, a military medic played by Le Xian, happened to recognize Lei Qie among the discarded soldiers’ corpses and discovered he still had a breath of life, successfully saving him.
This scene mainly relied on Le Xian’s performance, as Lei Qie only needed to play the role of a wounded corpse. After filming the scene, Le Xian only had one NG (no good take), and with a few reshoots, he successfully completed his scene with the male lead. As soon as Lei Qie and Le Xian left the set, Xiao Jin told the other supporting actors to prepare.
Si Huang asked, “Don’t I need to prepare?”
Xiao Jin looked at him, “No need, you just got back, wait until tomorrow.”
Before Si Huang could respond, Xiao Jin added, “Anyway, your scenes are usually done in one take, no accidents, no time wasted.”
This praise and trust were a bit too much. So Si Huang laughed, glanced at Lei Qie walking towards them, and said to Xiao Jin, “Saying that puts pressure on me.”
It was worth mentioning that Lei Qie didn’t refute Xiao Jin’s words. However, if you thought he had completely backed down, you’d be naive. No sooner had Si Huang finished joking than he chimed in, “Too much modesty is hypocrisy.”
“Thank you for the compliment,” Si Huang replied with a smile.
Regardless, Lei Qie’s sarcastic remark, taken another way, was an admission of Si Huang’s good acting skills.
Si Huang glanced at the supporting actors’ scenes a few times and quickly lost interest. After greeting Xiao Jin and the others, she went to a nearby awning and asked Yu Xi to bring her a tablet to check on Ace’s photo album.
Ignored, Lei Qie gritted his teeth, feeling it would be embarrassing for him to go over there, and grabbed the bottled water his assistant brought him, gulping it down.
“Lei Qie, there’s a call for you,” his assistant suddenly said, taking his vibrating phone.
Lei Qie glanced at it casually, but his expression changed after seeing the caller ID. He then snatched the phone back, saying, “Don’t follow me!”
The assistant watched him walk alone to a secluded corner, wondering whose call had Lei Qie so concerned about.
This scene didn’t attract much attention.
Si Huang had already found information about Ace’s latest photo album on the tablet.
It turned out that Ace’s photo album was for an art festival competition.
The competition itself wasn’t anything special, but the key point was that the organizer was Queen Elizabeth of Country Y, which made it all the more serious. Photographer Louis had mentioned that this photo shoot was also important to him, and after hearing about the competition’s content, Si Huang understood why— the competition wasn’t really about the actors, but the photographers. According to Si Huang’s understanding, the photographer who shot Arthur Stoker’s photo shoot was none other than Louis’s arch-rival!
Currently, photos from various photo albums had been uploaded, but online viewing was primarily for appreciation, allowing netizens to participate in voting.
Given the immense prestige of the organizers and the presence of celebrities like Ace Mephisto, Arthur Stoker, and Louis, it was impossible for the competition to go unnoticed.
People from Country M, Country Y, Country F, and Country D were all very interested, which meant more people saw Si Huang’s appearance in Ace’s photo shoot— a truly resounding debut for Si Huang on the Western stage!
Judging from the numerous inquiries about Si Huang in the official voting comments section, it was clear she performed very successfully, leaving a deep impression on these Westerners.
How could she not?!
Yu Xi was also looking at the photos.
He had been present when Si Huang had her photoshoot before and was equally stunned by her performance.
He just hadn’t expected that Si Huang’s photos, after post-processing, would have such a breathtaking effect.
The first photo, with its silhouette outlined in the pool and the night scene created through post-production, even he, a man who knew Si Huang was a man, found the photo incredibly beautiful and sexy, full of spirit.
The subsequent photos of Si Huang and Ace interacting, culminating in the demon god’s magnificent transformation— the black twelve wings unfurling, the scarlet cloak billowing— all these grand gestures were merely a backdrop for Si Huang. The first thing people noticed was the figure in the photos: a pair of dark green, demonic eyes, a smile playing on her lips, mysterious and powerful enough to drag one into the deep sea, a suffocating despair that seemed to steal one’s breath, yet one from which you couldn’t escape or look away.
Thankfully, having spent a considerable amount of time with Si Huang, seeing her face every day, had increased his immunity to her.
Yu Xi rationally withdrew his gaze, began working on his laptop, and, using a pseudonym from a foreign forum, pretended to “accidentally” leak some information about Si Huang to the foreigners who kept inquiring about her background.
During this time, he also contacted Ace’s agent, James, asking him to introduce him to American online trolls and hype companies, specifically to leverage this situation to create buzz about Si Huang abroad.
This wouldn’t harm Ace, so James was happy to help him.
Yu Xi was busy running around, and an hour passed in the blink of an eye. He then glanced at Si Huang, assuming she would also be busy with her own things.
But then he inadvertently saw the message Si Huang had just typed:
“Lucky members are selected by the technical department. You take a joke seriously? I didn’t know you were so jealous.”
Good heavens! It was obvious who this was addressed to. Yu Xi silently mourned for the technical staff in Fenghuang Entertainment’s ZZ technical department.
As a result, Si Huang glanced at her sideways. He calmly looked away, “James just texted me, asking if you’d be interested in attending one of Ace’s events.”
Si Huang put her phone away, thought for two seconds, and said, “No, thank you.”
The wave of fame from Ace’s photobook had only just begun. Attending an event for Ace would be counterproductive, making her seem opportunistic and raising suspicions that she was climbing the social ladder by clinging to Ace’s coattails.
Besides, she had taken Grandma Yu’s advice to heart. These few days were enough for filming “The Fang of Time,” and it was better to decline other engagements unless absolutely necessary.
However, reality often didn’t go as planned. Si Huang rested well and went to work the next day full of energy, but after only one day of filming, problems arose on set.
“Lei Qie is missing!? We can’t find him anywhere!”
“Yes…”
“What about his phone? Didn’t you call?”
“The phone is unreachable…”
“What’s going on? He didn’t leave a single trace!?”
Faced with Xiao Jin’s questions, Lei Qie’s manager and assistant were speechless, clearly having no clues or recollection whatsoever.
As the male lead of “The Fang of Time,” this drama was practically tailor-made for him, with important supporting actors having scenes with him. Without him, the film simply couldn’t continue shooting. Si Huang, observing the oppressive atmosphere on set, didn’t participate but sat to the side, her brows slightly furrowed.
Yu Xi sighed, “I knew that man was unreliable a long time ago, but I didn’t expect him to be this unreliable, leaving without a word. He was fine before, how come he…” His words suddenly trailed off.
Yu Xi looked at Si Huang, a hint of suspicion in his heart. Could this be another trick to deliberately make things difficult for Si Huang?
Si Huang guessed what he was thinking. “He’s not that childish.”
Yu Xi still detected a hint of dissatisfaction in her indifferent tone.
“Before Lei Qie disappeared, did he do anything unusual? Like meeting someone special, or not allowing anyone to follow him when he went out alone?” Xiao Jin’s question rang out again.
The assistant and manager were both thinking back, and then the assistant said, “There was a phone call the day before yesterday, and Lei Qie’s reaction was a bit strange…”
The assistant recounted the situation, and Si Huang noticed that Xiao Jin’s expression was off, as if he had sensed something.
It seemed that this matter was not as simple as Lei Qie running away without permission.
Si Huang’s mind raced, but she still had no intention of getting involved.
A morning passed quickly, and the filming schedule was brought to a standstill due to the incident.
The atmosphere was still gloomy when everyone ate lunch together. While Si Huang was eating, she suddenly heard Yu Xi ask in surprise, “Si Huang, where’s your pet master? Doesn’t he usually come out on time for meals?”
Si Huang was stunned: “…”
She touched her pocket.
Empty.
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