The Big Boss' Medicine 18

Pretending not to notice the shocked look in his manager's eyes, the assistant, seeing that he wasn't taking the towel, turned around and rummaged through the box himself. After finding it, he bent over diligently wiping the chair until it was shiny and spotless, looking extremely cheerful.

He was just short of humming "Labor is the most glorious".

Manager: "..."

Has this person been possessed?

The two of them busied about for a while and finally tidied up the mini lounge until it was spick and span. The small floral patterned cover was also in place, just waiting for Mr. Yan to bring in his little hamster and put him on it.

The lounge space wasn't large. It was very spacious for two people, just right for three, but a bit crowded for four.

The director probably originally thought that for a role that would only take a few days to film, even if it was Su Duan, he would at most bring a manager and an assistant. So the space was allocated based on three people. But now suddenly four people had come, and the extra one couldn't be sent away. So this small lounge inevitably felt a bit inadequate.

Plus with all sorts of miscellaneous items, it seemed even more lively.

Su Duan was securely held by Yan Shen, curled up in a small corner. He kept worrying that Yan Shen, being so big, would be uncomfortable scrunched up on the small stool, not to mention with him sitting on top. He whispered in Yan Shen's ear for a long time telling him to get up, but Mr. Yan didn't budge an inch, only coaxing him saying it was fine.

If Su Duan said any more, he would be grabbed and kissed, first on the nose then on the chin. After being teased a couple times, he didn't dare make a sound. He just secretly asked the system in his heart if Yan Shen's legs were going numb or something.

System: "...Based on analysis of the data, the physique stats of the healing target are higher than the average human level in this world. Calculating based on the host's weight and the load-bearing angle of the healing target, there shouldn't be any localized nerve numbness caused by impaired blood circulation for the time being."

Su Duan: "Mm, thank you."

The system's analysis was quite reliable. So for now, Su Duan wasn't worried that he would make Yan Shen's legs go numb from sitting on him. He just obediently curled up in his arms reading the script, his back and little butt pressed against the man's somewhat hard thighs, his shoulders leaning against the firm waist and abdomen. When he got tired of reading, he would raise his head to observe the diligently working assistant and manager.

That's when he discovered the lounge space was a bit lacking.

Su Duan pondered hard for a while in his heart.

Why not have the manager go back first? He was only here to play a small role. Even using his toes to think, he wouldn't need three people accompanying him.

No matter how you look at it... there didn't seem to be that many things to keep them busy.

When they first came in, he saw many celebrities only brought an assistant. Very few had their manager constantly following them.

After everything was put away and tidied up, the hard thighs underneath him shifted. Su Duan was helped to stand up.

—And was immediately stuffed into the soft chair covered with a clean small floral patterned cover.

He blinked, just about to say the manager should go back to handle other work first. But the manager who had just been diligently tidying up the lounge with the assistant already spoke: "I'll go discuss the specifics of Mr. Su's afternoon filming with the director and confirm the details."

Su Duan who had just been thinking the manager probably had nothing to keep him busy: "..."

So there was work to do after all?

Since the manager had work and the assistant needed to drive them, the remaining seemingly superfluous Yan Shen he was reluctant to send away. No matter how you look at it, the four of them could only squeeze together like this.

Actually, it wasn't that crowded. Su Duan had just stayed too long in the previous world with Vigter in a house built according to Luota tribe dimensions that couldn't even be described as huge. That's why he reflexively felt the space was a bit inadequate. You have to know these conditions were already much better than the lounges in many other crews.

When it came down to it, if there were two people here, when Yan Shen came to kiss him, Su Duan always felt a bit embarrassed and wanted to push away Yan Shen's approaching face.

This really impacted his treatment plan.

Although the effects of simply kissing cheeks and lips weren't as obvious as kissing his little bud, the little poria spirit who persisted in the two truths of accumulating bit by bit and quantitative change leading to qualitative change still felt that he couldn't let any tiny opportunity slip by.

As long as he put in a bit more effort every day, perhaps Yan Shen could be freed from the troubles of his condition a bit sooner.

Seeing Su Duan suddenly fall into deep thought, the manager who had just casually found an excuse to slip away and didn't want to continue hurting himself paused for a moment. Without changing his expression, he repeated: "Then I'll go first?"

Only then did Su Duan snap out of it. "Mm, thank you for your hard work."

The assistant, who had straightened up after putting Su Duan's cup in place, glanced at the manager and suddenly said: "Mr. Su, I'll go together with him."

Su Duan blinked again, feeling in his heart that the manager and assistant were really too earnest and responsible...

But before he could say okay, the manager beside him had already spoken, neither lightly nor heavily blocking the assistant's words: "No need, it's hot outside. I can handle it alone. You stay here where it's cool."

Weren't you very happy just now?

—Then keep being happy.

And stay cool too, how nice.

Sensing the manager's intention to trap him, the assistant's expression stiffened for a moment. But he quickly loosened up and smiled again, explaining: "Actually, it's like this. I've grown up to this age but have never been to a film set. I want to see how they film, just to watch the bustle."

Although for the sake of his salary he didn't mind eating a bit more dog food, now that there was a chance to eat less, only an idiot wouldn't take it!

Moreover—

The big boss probably also wanted to send them out right now.

"With the boss here, I definitely wouldn't dare to sneak out and slack off if he wasn't present." Revealing his "little thoughts", the assistant seemed a bit embarrassed.

Manager: "..."

Seems this person's level of shamelessness was far greater than he imagined, and his skill in flattery too.

Ugh.

Su Duan said very good-naturedly: "It's fine. You go. I probably don't have much to keep me busy here."

"You can both go. If anything comes up, I'll call you," Yan Shen said mildly.

The implication was: if nothing comes up, don't come back.

The manager and assistant understood his meaning and felt relieved. They looked at each other with complex expressions and left.

The lounge quickly became a space with just Su Duan and Yan Shen. But they didn't do much. After reading the script several times, Su Duan ate a bit of lunch. Yan Shen held him again and he napped for a while on the soft chair.

He only slept for an hour before Yan Shen gently woke him up to film.

This was Su Duan's first scene, and it was the shot he had auditioned for a few days ago.

Last time was just an audition, and he was wearing casual clothes. Even then, the effect was already very good. This time, with the special costume and makeup, when Su Duan stood there, it almost made people feel as if he had walked out of the drama itself.

Although he looked a bit dull and foolish, his clear black eyes, like a tranquil lake bottom, carried a purity that many people lacked.

No matter what, there was no fault to be picked with his appearance.

When this scene started filming, quite a few actors in the crew gathered around, wanting to see just what level this Su Duan, who had made the director forcibly add a character for him through connections, was at.

To their surprise, and yet also somewhat expectedly, Su Duan's acting was also flawless. Although it couldn't be called stunning, it was very natural.

This naturalness was precisely what many "traffic stars" and "little fresh idols" nowadays lacked.

The more they watched, the more they felt that the fool in the story should be just like this in every movement and even the crisp trailing tones when he spoke.

Su Duan's voice was very good, perfectly matching the character, and his pronunciation was standard and clear. Recorded like this, there would be no need for dubbing in post-production. Using the purified on-site sound should produce an excellent effect.

Some observant actors thought back and recalled that when Su Duan was still acting as Xie Zhu's stand-in some time ago, although he only performed fragmented clips that didn't show much of his acting skills, it could be seen that Su Duan had a solid foundation, much more stable than Xie Zhu. He was likely professionally trained.

Now it seemed this was indeed the case. Su Duan's acting couldn't be said to blow everyone away, but it surpassed most people in the crew. Most importantly, it had spirit. If given the opportunity in the future, he should be able to make a name for himself.

Thinking this, everyone's gazes unconsciously shifted to the man in the silver suit not far away, who was intently watching the performance.

The "opportunity" was right there, wasn't it?

This person, whether Su Duan's elder or older brother, was really dedicated to him. In such hot weather, wearing a full suit here to watch Su Duan act, who knows if he would sweat profusely.

Yan Shen, who naturally didn't sweat much and had a clean head, focused his attention on the filming site. While mainly watching his little hamster, he didn't forget to spare some attention for Xie Zhu as well.

But it wasn't for any other reason, just because of the long sword Xie Zhu held in his hand.

Although it was blunt, it still posed some danger. If it accidentally hit Su Duan, the consequences would be hard to say.

Therefore, Yan Shen kept watching Xie Zhu and the sword in his hand with a very wary gaze.

Under this pressuring stare, Xie Zhu's hand gripping the sword hilt became almost too stiff to hold it.

Compared to the satisfactory performance of Su Duan, Xie Zhu, who played opposite him, was in poor form. Under everyone's subtle spectating, Xie Zhu only felt their gazes contained ridicule for him. Filled with embarrassment, his performance was even worse than the day Su Duan auditioned.

It was a complete mess.

After his fourth mistake in positioning, the director finally couldn't help but irritably called for a stop: "Stop, stop, stop! Xie Zhu, come over here for a moment!"

With a clang, cold sweat slid down from his forehead. Xie Zhu, already on edge, was startled by the director's shout. The long sword he could no longer grip fell to the ground, colliding with the bluestone tiles and making a crisp sound.

Yan Shen, who had some paranoid delusions during his episode, saw this and his pupils slightly contracted. He hurriedly stepped forward, pulling the dazed Su Duan into his arms, and coldly glanced at the blunt long sword lying on the ground.

The director was startled by his action. After a moment of blankness, he quickly asked, "What happened? Is Little Su feeling unwell?"

Yan Shen held the little hamster's head against his chest and gave a vague grunt of assent.

Su Duan, pressed against his chest, wanted to say he was fine, but was held down. His entire face was buried in Yan Shen's chest, unable to make a sound.

The director became anxious and urged Yan Shen, "Then quickly go rest and see if it's heatstroke."

Yan Shen nodded. Maintaining this posture that prevented Su Duan from speaking, he took him to the break room.

The director was also preparing to pause and communicate with his male lead again, so it didn't delay matters.

Arriving at the break room, Su Duan, finally released, let out a breath. He asked in a daze, "I'm not feeling well?"

How come he himself didn't feel anything?

Yan Shen stroked his soft black hair, warmed by the sun outside, and said as if it were the case, "Four scenes in a row, I was worried you'd be tired, so rest first."

The concern in his heart didn't need to be voiced, lest it make Su Duan anxious too. Saying it this way could more or less explain it.

Su Duan wanted to say he wasn't that weak, but very quickly, a crew member came over with a bowl of soup and placed it in front of them, saying attentively, "This is mung bean soup the director had me bring. Our crew boiled it ourselves to relieve summer heat."

Su Duan swallowed his unspoken words and quietly thanked the crew member.

Yan Shen also politely expressed his thanks, but due to his habitual wariness of the outside world, he didn't touch the bowl of soup. He just busied himself with tidying Su Duan's hair and clothes, then wiped the fine beads of sweat from his forehead that the sun brought out, and reapplied sunscreen on his cheeks and neck.

Doing all the work an assistant could do made the real assistant beside them seem very superfluous.

After watching for a while, seeing Yan Shen meticulously take care of Su Duan, the crew member, who had heard all sorts of gossip versions all morning, finally couldn't restrain the raging curiosity in her heart. She couldn't help asking, "May I presumptuously ask... is this your younger brother?"

This attitude was a bit too intimate and earnest. This man, full of the aura of a superior that couldn't be concealed despite trying, put aside his lofty position to attentively take care of a thin youth, even more carefully than looking after a child. The atmosphere between them was ambiguous yet not lustful, but pure and warm.

Other than an older brother with a brother complex, she really couldn't think of a more fitting situation.

Hearing her question, Yan Shen paused for a moment. After a while, for some reason, a somewhat dark flicker passed through his eyes, and the corners of his lips also curved up slightly. His mood suddenly became cheerful as he nodded, "Yes."