Lu Wen gradually forgot to bite his bread, his eyes fixed on the screen. After the two clips played through once, the assistant director accidentally pressed the wrong button and started playing an earlier scene.

It was from the first all-night shoot—Ye Shan's solo scene under the grapevines.

Under the grapevines late at night, Ye Shan sat alone, his face turned to the side, his head pillowed on his arm, resting quietly on the edge of the table. The light from the bulb shone down, illuminating his brow bone and the bridge of his nose, while the sorrow in his eyes was hidden in the shadows.

Lu Wen was stunned.

In frame after frame, it was him, but in a daze, he saw someone else.

The first assistant from the camera crew said, "The lighting in this scene is especially good. It didn't waste the actor's performance."

"Yeah, Xiao Lu acted well." Seeing Lu Wen's lack of reaction, Ren Shu snapped his fingers. "Xiao Lu, what are you pondering?"

Lu Wen came back to his senses. "Nothing... I was just zoning out."

The assistant director laughed. "Not concentrating on work, just like Ye Xiaowu. But his portrayal of Ye Shan is quite on point."

Ren Shu deeply agreed but didn't dare take the credit. "It was a bit off at the beginning, and I gave him a good scolding. But Screenwriter Qu has his methods. He explained the scene to Xiao Lu, and he grasped the feeling of Ye Shan in one go."

Lu Wen was stunned. "Director, what do you mean, explained the scene?"

"You've already forgotten?" Ren Shu replied. "Scene 14, your first scene as Ye Shan. You couldn't get it right after several takes that day. Didn't Screenwriter Qu call you into his office?"

Lu Wen murmured, "But he..."

"He what, scolded you? Discouraged you?" Ren Shu said, "If Screenwriter Qu wanted to teach a minor actor a lesson, would he need to do it in an office with the door closed to save the person's face? He was teaching you how to act, helping you experience the character's emotions, understand?"

Lu Wen's eyes stared blankly, his hand full of bread crumbs.

Qu Yanting lied to him that Ruan Feng's pay was higher on purpose?

Qu Yanting's discouragement, humiliation, and use of his status to suppress him were all just part of explaining the scene?

So... Qu Yanting never looked down on him at all?

The frustration that had been simmering in his gut for so long surged up, desperate for release. Lu Wen shot up and yelled at Ren Shu, "Why didn't you say so earlier!"

After just two days of peace, Lu Wen's heart was troubled again.

Ever since he found out about the "scene explanation," his feelings had been complicated. He wanted to say something to Qu Yanting, though he hadn't organized the specific words yet, but at the very least, he had to say "thank you."

However, Qu Yanting was busy with the work handover with Ren Shu and had no time to deal with him at all.

Two days later, Ren Shu went to Beijing, and Qu Yanting took over completely.

Five in the morning, at a private hospital in the city.

Lu Wen got out of his trailer in a patient's gown, already in makeup. His face was covered in bruises and contusions, a thick layer of dried blood caked on his brow bone, and a realistic fatal wound on his forehead.

He took the elevator to the eighth floor of the convalescence department. As the doors opened, he was greeted by a scene of orderly chaos.

Next to the beverage machine, the equipment team was taking a breather. In the rest area sat a dozen extras, dressed as doctors and nurses. The other actors were waiting in the hallway—Tao Meifan, Ruan Feng, Xian Qi, all the neighbors were there.

Lu Wen's gaze swept past everyone until it reached a hospital room door. Through the square glass window set in the door, he saw a room full of people and then spotted the one he had been thinking about for the past two days.

"Thinking about" might be a bit cheesy, but his vocabulary couldn't come up with a more appropriate word.

Lu Wen knocked on the door and entered after getting approval.

The hospital room was decorated in light colors. Qu Yanting stood before the mobile table at the foot of the bed, writing, his back straight. He was wearing the same oatmeal-colored linen shirt he had worn on the day he arrived in Chongqing.

He had taken over Ren Shu's duties, which, when it came to filming, meant he had to oversee everything from shot composition and scene blocking to the creation of space.

The figure in his peripheral vision was too tall. Qu Yanting slanted his eyes upward and met Lu Wen's ghastly appearance.

The executive director, Kang Daning, said, "Rehearsal. Camera, test the blocking."

Qu Yanting withdrew his gaze. "Use the soft light screen for camera 1, then switch to low-angle mode."

Lu Wen took off his shoes, got into bed, lay down, and closed his eyes. He heard the footsteps of people getting into position, the door opened, and the other actors came in one by one.

A chaotic mix of scents filled the room: the floral perfume of the actresses, the juniper and leather scent from another, and the smell of disinfectant inherent to the hospital room.

Suddenly, a clean, crisp scent invaded his nostrils. It was the faint smell of aftershave. Lu Wen opened his eyes. Qu Yanting had walked to the bedside to grab the working script from the nightstand.

He stared at the man, having not called out to him for a long time, hesitating whether he should call him "Teacher Qu."

Qu Yanting looked down at him from above, with no time for greetings. He pinched a corner of the blanket and draped it over Lu Wen's head, instructing through the layer of cotton, "Don't move."

Lu Wen's voice was muffled from underneath. "What if I can't help it?"

A sharp pain on his head. Qu Yanting had hit him with the script, threatening him that a sedative was on standby, ready to be injected at any moment.

Rehearsal, filming, enacting the script one shot at a time. Several hours passed quickly.

Lu Wen lay in bed the entire time, nearly falling asleep in the middle. When they wrapped up for lunch, everyone started to leave. He lingered by the monitor in the corner. Qu Yanting was still behind the table, packing up his things.

The script supervisor opened the window to air out the room, and a cool breeze blew in, scattering the forms on the table.

Lu Wen was the first to pick them up and handed them over. Qu Yanting took them and said, "Hurry up and get your makeup off. The paint is bad for your skin."

Before Lu Wen could reply, Qu Yanting started to cough dryly. He hadn't had a chance to drink water all morning while directing. He gathered his things and walked out, covering his lips with the script.

Lu Wen followed him out of the room, calling, "Teacher Qu—"

But Qu Yanting stopped the script supervisor, his voice hoarse as he instructed, "Tell the camera crew to gather in the garden. I'll be down right away. We'll shoot some scenery shots while there are fewer people at noon."

After speaking, he went to take the elevator. Lu Wen chased after him. "Teacher Qu, when will you be free?"

Qu Yanting said, "Do you need something?"

Lu Wen said with great solemnity, "I have something to say to you."

Qu Yanting couldn't understand why the young man was so clingy. He looked at his watch and estimated a time. "I should be done around one-thirty. Come find me by the lake."

In the garden behind the convalescence department, there was a semi-circular corridor, a lake, lush camphor trees, and a large lawn covering the central square. They were using two cameras, with Camera A leading and Camera B assisting. The first take was a test to see the effect.

Qu Yanting reviewed the footage, judging the color grading, light and dark contrast, and dynamic movement. "The sky is too overcast. Raise the EI. Brother Duan, for shot number 3, that tracking shot, isn't the frequency a bit low?"

This was a polite way of asking. The camera operator, Duan Meng, immediately said, "It's less than six percent. It is a bit low."

Qu Yanting said, "Control it between eight and nine percent. Just maintain that frequency when cutting to the rendering shots."

Duan Meng hastily agreed. Qu Yanting had a gentle appearance but a sharp style. When working, he was decisive and didn't waste a single word. Once the adjustments were made, they began filming officially.

In the trailer, Lu Wen was eating his boxed lunch after removing his makeup.

Sun Xiaojian returned from buying fruit, carrying a plastic bag. From it, he pulled out two large, ripe persimmons, yellow with a reddish tinge. An old man at the hospital entrance was selling them, all perfectly ripe.

He washed and dried the persimmons and placed them on a plate. Lu Wen touched one. The skin was thin, the fruit was juicy and soft, and it was more than half the size of his palm.

Sun Xiaojian said, "My mom buys a box every year."

Lu Wen said, "No wonder you have such a sallow complexion."

"Bullshit," Sun Xiaojian offered some irresponsible health advice. "It's dry in the north. Eating persimmons soothes the lungs and stops coughs."

Lu Wen thought of Qu Yanting's cough. After he finished eating, it was about time. He had to go to the lake for their meeting, and he took the washed persimmon with him.