"Never mind, maybe he didn't hear it! What are the chances of such a coincidence?" The little assistant didn't understand him, so Zhou could only console himself and picked up the script again, "Come and act with me."
Helping with rehearsals is part of Tang Xiaole's job, something she excels at. Zhou Paihuai's scenes for the afternoon were short, so the two quickly went over them once.
Tang Xiaole noticed that Zhou Paihuai's emotional expression was acceptable when acting opposite her, but as soon as she faced the camera, her true colors would immediately show. This made her start to suspect that Zhou Paihuai might have camera phobia, but that didn't seem right. If she really had camera phobia, why would she have joined the entertainment industry?
"Is there a problem?" Seeing that Tang Xiaole didn't react, Zhou Paihuai thought she had mispronounced her lines. She looked down at her lines and realized she hadn't mispronounced them.
"No!" Tang Xiaole snapped out of her reverie and couldn't help but ask the question she wanted to ask, "Zhouzhou, you're usually quite cheerful, so why do you... ..." when you're acting?
In other words, she had a good relationship with Zhou Paihuai, and Zhou Paihuai was not a petty person, which is why she dared to ask him what was on her mind.
Zhou Paihuai was taken aback by the question. She wasn't angry, but she genuinely didn't know how to answer. She wasn't a timid person, but she felt extremely awkward in front of the camera, especially when there were many people watching. And because she was expressionless, she wouldn't blush when embarrassed; her face would just freeze, making it difficult for her to even smile.
"Well... I'm not quite sure either."
"I guess it's because sitcoms are meant to make others laugh, so they can't laugh themselves!" A sarcastic female voice came from beside me.
Zhou Paihuai turned around and saw a petite woman dressed in a very cool style. Although Zhou Paihuai had never seen this person before, after a moment's thought, she guessed who she was—screenwriter Qin.
Sure enough, screenwriter Qin was in the garage at the time and overheard her comments about the show. Being publicly mocked in front of someone else's face made Zhou Paihuai feel extremely embarrassed. However, this screenwriter Qin looked far too young, only a few years older than her. She'd been famous for a long time; how young must she have been to become a screenwriter?
As a screenwriter, Qin Liya already felt that Zhou Paihuai was unsuitable for the role of the second female lead in her novel. Overhearing Zhou Paihuai's critique of the script in the parking lot only fueled her anger, and she couldn't help but make sarcastic remarks when she saw her. However, she didn't expect that Zhou Paihuai, though not very capable, had quite a temper and would put on a stern face in front of her.
Stared at like that, Zhou Peihuai became increasingly embarrassed, her expression showing no sign of easing, and she couldn't bring herself to say what she wanted to say. In fact, her assessment of the show as a sitcom was genuine, and it wasn't easy to swallow her true feelings, so she simply remained silent.
The two of them were at loggerheads, which made things difficult for Tang Xiaole. She didn't dare to move an inch, relying only on her quick eyes to dart left and right in their sockets.
"I think I've seen you before. Weren't you her assistant before?" Qin Liya suddenly turned to speak to Tang Xiaole.
Previously, because Zhou Paihuai was not up to par, the company dismissed her as an assistant, and Tang Xiaole was assigned to another artist, Yang Jing. Although they were under the same agent, Yang Jing was much more famous than Zhou Paihuai, so she often met with some big-name directors and top screenwriters.
Tang Xiaole had seen Qin Liya when she was with Yang Jing and recognized her, which was why she hadn't dared to speak just now. Now that Qin Liya had taken the initiative to talk to her, she said, "No, it's just that Sister Yang was quite busy with work during that time, so I went to work with her for a few days. I've always been Zhou Zhou's assistant."
"Really?" Qin Liya's gaze fell on Zhou Paihuai again. "Zhou Zhou? Hello, I'm Qin Liya, the screenwriter who likes to write sitcoms!" This time, Qin Liya took the initiative to extend her hand to Zhou Paihuai.
Zhou Huai shook her hand and said, "I'm really sorry, I'm uncultured and ignorant. Please be magnanimous and pretend you didn't hear what I just said."
"Heh~" Qin Liya chuckled briefly and said, "I don't think you're ignorant. Even someone ignorant can be so insightful. Yes, you're not the only one who thinks this show is like a sitcom; I think so too. But isn't the point of watching TV to have some fun? If you're good at acting in this kind of show, you can attract a lot of fans. Zhouzhou, don't you agree?"
That makes sense. Domineering CEOs can manipulate people from eighty-year-old mothers to eighteen-year-old girls, and they can become popular from one world to another. Making money this way is very fast.
"You're right!" After saying a few words, Zhou Paihuai's expressionless face eased a lot, and he was able to put on a standard smile, making him look much more likable.
Her attitude only made Qin Liya more unhappy. As a well-known screenwriter in the industry, she had a lot of resources at her disposal, so many actors would subconsciously try to curry favor with her. Originally, she thought Zhou Paihuai was different from others, but she didn't expect that she had misjudged him.
Just as the atmosphere was about to become awkward again, the director finally appeared.
"Old Qin, you're here!" The director patted Qin Liya on the shoulder casually, indicating that the two were indeed quite familiar with each other.
However, the director is so old, yet he calls Qin Liya "Old Qin," and the two of them are actually on friendly terms (or perhaps on sisterly terms). Qin Liya's level of maintenance is just too good!
"You two know each other?" After greeting Qin Liya, the director realized that she seemed to be talking to Zhou Paihuai. "I was going to introduce you two, but now I'm spared the trouble!"
"I don't know him!" Zhou Huaihuai suddenly denied this statement loudly, then added in a low voice, "In fact, we just met. We didn't know each other before."
Qin Liya glanced at her and said, "Yes, we just met. Zhouzhou is very interesting."
"Alright, I know you two hit it off right away." The director believed him and didn't notice anything wrong. "We'll have time to talk properly later. Right now, you need to come with me to discuss the script."
When it came to work, Qin Liya put on her sunglasses again and said, "Let's go!"
Watching the director and Qin Liya leave, Zhou Paihuai let out a long sigh and said, "Why don't you take some time to go to the temple and pray to Buddha for me?" Otherwise, dealing with these things every day is too much for her, even if she had three heads and six arms.
Tang Xiaole comforted her, saying, "It's okay. Although screenwriter Qin is very talented, she's not the only screenwriter. Even if you don't act in her plays, Sister Cheng will definitely be able to find a suitable script for you."
Whether or not there will be further cooperation is completely unimportant. The key issue is that she's currently acting in someone else's script, and it seems the script will be revised later. Qin Liya doesn't like her now, and who knows how she might use the script to get back at her later! It's really a headache!
"I'll deal with whatever comes my way, and I'm just waiting for the day we wrap up filming!" Zhou Huaihuai encouraged himself, then spread out the script and pushed it to Tang Xiaole. "Come on, let's continue rehearsing and try to get it right in one take!"
Chapter 46 I Want to Visit the Set
The director invited Qin Liya to revise the script mainly because new policies have recently been introduced, and the original ending of the script had some minor conflicts with these policies. Revising the script now is the best option to facilitate subsequent approval.
However, initially, the screenwriter was the sole decision-maker when the script was written. Now, after so much filming, the script is no longer solely the screenwriter's responsibility. Therefore, the director, assistant directors, and others have all participated in rewriting the script, leading to numerous arguments among them. They even brought in the two lead actors, Yang Anqi and Chu Jingchen, to discuss which solution was more reasonable.
Zhou Paihuai didn't participate in the discussion, just listened and enjoyed it. However, she could occasionally feel Yang Anqi's gaze glancing in her direction.
Was Yang Anqi trying to get her involved in the discussion? Zhou Paihuai really had no intention of getting involved. She had already offended Qin Liya terribly, and there was no need for her to get close to her now. However, being stared at like that was really uncomfortable, so she stayed to the side, and when no one was looking, she would move away little by little, and find another chair to sit down.
The sun was shining brightly at that moment. If she weren't on set, she would definitely have found a rattan chair to take a nap. It was just a pity that she was under someone else's roof. Although she didn't have to film for the time being, she still had to be on standby at all times, waiting for them to come to a conclusion in their argument.
Seeing that she was bored, Tang Xiaole secretly handed her her phone and said, "Here you go!"
"If this were ancient times, you would be the kind of treacherous minister who bewitches the emperor!" That's what she said, but Zhou Paihuai took the phone without hesitation. Anyway, there was no rule against using your phone on set, so she just browsed the news for a while.
Not long after, she heard the director call her: "Zhou Zhou, come here quickly."
Zhou Huai put away his phone, walked over, and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Your scenes this afternoon will be cancelled. The rest of the scenes need to be revised. We'll continue after Lao Qin revises the script." The director briefly explained the afternoon's arrangements and then praised their discussion results. "I thought revising the script would take several days to discuss, but thanks to Anqi's ideas, it was all done this afternoon, saving me a lot of trouble."
At that time, the director and Qin Liya were still arguing, neither of them willing to give in. Unexpectedly, they ended up using Yang Anqi's idea, which made Zhou Paihuai very curious. How exactly did Yang Anqi revise the script to convince both of them at the same time? "What was it changed to in the end?"
In the original script, Cheng Ya was ultimately humiliated by someone sent by the second male lead, played by Zheng Xinyu. In fact, in many dramas, the villainous female supporting character doesn't have a good ending, but this method does have the suspicion of deliberately vilifying women. Therefore, the latest censorship policy does not allow such plots to appear in dramas, and even subtle appearances are not allowed.
The director wanted to cut the scene entirely and replace the daughter's punishment with legal repercussions. However, Qin Liya disagreed. She knew her own script well enough that if the second female lead needed to face legal consequences, then the actions of others might not be entirely reasonable or legal, creating an inextricable plot hole. But in this kind of drama, the second female lead couldn't escape punishment, as it was one of the most satisfying parts of the show, hence the ongoing argument between the two.
The main change was to Cheng Ya's ending, and as the person who played Cheng Ya, Zhou Paihuai was certainly entitled to know the general direction of the script revisions.
"Anqi, talk to Zhouzhou and see if she's satisfied!" The director directly asked Yang Anqi to repeat her thoughts.
"Cheng Ya's final fate has been changed to... ... to... ..." In front of Zhou Hei Pai, Yang Anqi was no longer as eloquent as she had been during the previous discussion.
The director burst into laughter and said, "You two are so familiar with each other, why are you still embarrassed? I'll put in a good word for you..."
Actually, most of the other characters' scenes remained largely unchanged. However, Cheng Xin, who hadn't initially forgiven Cheng Ya, decided to demand an apology. The male lead and the second male lead sent their men to capture Cheng Ya and bring her back to apologize to Cheng Xin. But Cheng Ya's personality dictated that she wasn't one to apologize easily, so she fell into the sea during her escape. Later, after the area was thoroughly searched, Cheng Ya was nowhere to be found; she seemed to have vanished from the face of the earth. Whether she's dead or alive remains a mystery for the audience.
Upon hearing about the revised plot, Zhou Paihuai felt that this direction was damn familiar. She glanced at Yang Anqi and was surprised that she had the same idea as her. Fortunately, she had not participated in the discussion at the time.
However, Cheng Ya's ending is the one Zhou Paihuai finds most acceptable. In this drama, no one is purely good. Even Cheng Xin has done bad things for her own benefit. It's just that Cheng Ya's evil is even more unacceptable, so she is the one who ultimately suffers punishment. In the first version of the ending, Cheng Ya was physically punished. The director wanted to change the ending so that she would abandon evil and embrace good. But how can a bad person repent just because they did wrong? If they were to whitewash her, there would be no point in slandering her from the start. This ending, which seems to show that Cheng Ya did not receive punishment or redemption, is actually a punishment for all those who have done wrong.
"I think this is a good thing!" Zhou Paihuai truthfully expressed his inner thoughts.
This drew another round of praise for Yang Anqi, but her smile seemed somewhat forced, not as happy as everyone had imagined. Not only Zhou Paihuai thought so, but the director and Qin Liya also noticed. However, they assumed that with this script change, Cheng Ya's character was clearly much more compelling than Cheng Xin's, so it was normal for Yang Anqi, the undisputed female lead, to be unhappy.
The director also comforted her, saying, "Anqi, don't worry. Although only Cheng Ya's part of the script has been drastically changed, Cheng Xin's character will also be altered accordingly to ensure consistency. You are still definitely the female lead." Although it wasn't appropriate to say these things in front of Zhou Huipai, it was the truth. In addition, Yang Anqi was now a hero, so the usually tactful director didn't choose to comfort both sides.
Zhou Paihuai also thought so. After all, she was the one who played the second female lead, so she was immersed in Cheng Ya's inner world. That's why she was able to explore more of Cheng Ya's character and come up with such an ending. It's just a mystery why Yang Anqi thought so too. Did she actually prefer the second female lead's character?
"Actually... actually... actually you've misunderstood me. I wasn't worried about the amount of screen time. I was just worried about whether the scenes that were filmed earlier needed to be reshot." Yang Anqi gave herself an excuse.
That is indeed a problem, because when filming, the script isn't followed sequentially from beginning to end. Instead, scenes are filmed as they come along, and although there's a plan, it's frequently changed. Rewriting the ending now will inevitably affect the content already filmed.
"Don't worry, Qin is here!" The director trusted Qin Liya completely. Although Qin Liya didn't say anything, her composed demeanor made everyone feel at ease.
"That's good!" Yang Anqi acted as if she was really worried about the filming schedule, but upon hearing this reassuring answer, she immediately returned to normal.
But Zhou Huahuai always felt something was off; Yang Anqi didn't seem like the type of person who would consider the production budget at all.
"That's enough for today. I'll trouble our great screenwriter Qin to work overtime tonight. Tomorrow we'll follow the new script!" The director waved his hand, giving everyone a half-day off.
I just had a three-day break—oh wait, actually, I haven't been to the set for three and a half days. I didn't film a single scene this afternoon, so I got another half-day off. I have to say, this kind of life is pretty good.
"Zhou Zhou, wait a minute!" Just as Zhou Paihuai finished packing up and was about to go home, Yang Anqi suddenly called out to her.
"What's wrong?" Zhou Huaihuai thought that after what happened last time, she wouldn't contact him alone again, but he didn't expect her to come again.
Yang Anqi glanced at Tang Xiaole and realized that this person was incredibly oblivious and didn't even know how to avoid her, so she had no choice but to be direct and say, "Can you come with me for a moment? I have something to tell you."
Zhou Paihuai glanced at Tang Xiaole, who understood what she meant and said, "I'll drive the car out and wait for you."
After Tang Xiaole left, Zhou Paihuai asked, "What did you want to tell me?"
"Thank you!" Yang Anqi suddenly blurted out.
"Huh?" Zhou hesitated, puzzled. "Why are you suddenly thanking me?"
"Thank you for not calling me out earlier. I really didn't mean to steal your ideas. It's just that you haven't been involved in the discussion, so I..." Yang Anqi said what was on her mind. She really didn't intend to say these things at first, but seeing the director and screenwriter arguing endlessly, she was momentarily blinded and blurted out the idea that she had written in the script about the timing of the debate.
"How did you know?" Zhou Paihuai finally understood why Yang Anqi's thoughts were the same as hers. But how did she know her thoughts? She didn't recall ever mentioning the script to her. Wait, could this girl read minds? Zhou Paihuai suddenly tensed up because she didn't even know what kind of world she had come to. What if Yang Anqi really could read minds? Wouldn't she be... No wonder her attitude towards her was always so uncertain... It has to be said, Zhou Paihuai's imagination ran wild.
"Didn't you write it in the script before?" Yang Anqi's words immediately pulled her thoughts back from where they had been wandering.
The tense Zhou Paihuai finally calmed down. It turned out she had seen Yang Anqi's notes, which had really scared her to death. She had actually thought Yang Anqi had some kind of mind-reading ability. However, Zhou Paihuai really didn't expect that Yang Anqi would actually tell the truth.
"It's okay, the director won't pay extra for this idea anyway. It doesn't matter who says it, it's still an extra scene for me." Zhou Paihuai was already satisfied that she told the truth. After all, he initially thought they were just brainstorming ideas and never considered the possibility that she had seen his manuscript. "Wait a minute, you insisted on taking me home that day not because you were impressed by my acting, but because you saw my manuscript?" Things he couldn't understand before suddenly became clear.
Yang Anqi nodded. She had initially disliked Zhou Paihuai; she had no acting skills, no interpersonal relationships, and wasted her naturally beautiful face, failing to gain many fans in an industry where looks mattered. If Zhou Paihuai had remained utterly useless, she certainly wouldn't have bothered adding her as a friend. But then she saw Zhou Paihuai's manuscript. If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes—only Zhou Paihuai writing and drawing—Yang Anqi wouldn't have believed it was her work. "You're really amazing."
"...You flatter me!" Looking at Yang Anqi's starry eyes, Zhou Paihuai felt extremely embarrassed. "Did you call me just to say this? If there's nothing else, I'll be going now?"
Just then, Yang Anqi's driver arrived. After seeing her get into the car, Zhou Paihuai also walked towards the entrance of the parking garage, where Tang Xiaole was still waiting for her.
Let's go!
Seeing Zhou lingering up, Tang Xiaole started the car and asked her, "What did Yang Anqi say to you?"
Yang Anqi definitely couldn't tell her assistant what she had said to herself. She said, "I didn't say anything, but I just felt that I was still very charming in some ways, and that I should actually change careers."
"What? What are you going to do after changing careers?" Tang Xiaole really didn't understand what she was saying.
Zhou Paihuai felt that being an actor was exhausting. He had a lot of online traffic but no fans. He thought that even if he didn't go back to his old profession, but instead learned to be a screenwriter, he might have gained more fans than he does now.
"Nothing, I was just saying." Zhou Paihuai checked the time on his phone. It was still early, and he probably wouldn't get back until before six o'clock. So, what should he do?
Seeing the game icon on his phone's home screen, Zhou Paihuai realized it had been a long time since he'd played games with Xiao Heifen. He wondered if she wanted to join. The thought had barely formed in his mind when his hand involuntarily sent her an invitation: "Want to play a game later?"
A stream flows in front of the door: What time is it?
The hater replied quite quickly, so it seems he has time now. Zhou Paihuai estimated how long it would take him to get home and sent a message: "Twenty minutes from now, I'll log in and invite you then."
Zhou Paihuai had arranged a time to play games with Xiaohaifen, so as soon as she got home, she sent Tang Xiaole away. By the time she changed into her pajamas and washed her hands, it had been exactly twenty minutes. She really is a master of time management.
After entering the game "Peak of the Sky", Zhou Paihuai found that Xiao Heifen was already waiting. As soon as she entered, he immediately started inviting her, without even giving her time to collect her items.
Neither of them had been playing the game for a long time, and there had even been a season update, so their ranks had dropped significantly. However, this had one advantage: they could get into the game very quickly. Zhou Paihuai particularly liked to use her microphone while playing, but to avoid being overheard, she only used her friend's microphone during the game.
"How about I play support today, and you pick a marksman and I'll play with you?" During the hero selection phase, seeing Xiao Heifen wavering between several support heroes, Zhou Huapai suddenly had the idea of playing support.
"Okay!" Ji Anxi typed incredibly fast, replying almost instantly. Then he locked in Tai La Yang, a stationary marksman who was sneaky in the early game but unstoppable in the late game. He was one of the few marksmen that Ji Anxi was relatively good at.
Zhou Paihuai chose Kuqiu as support, a pure support hero with no attack power but abundant healing. However, Zhou Paihuai never played passively when using this hero; he always liked to harass the enemy. Kuqiu's healing was excellent throughout the early, mid, and late game, and almost no one could kill him in the early game. Although he didn't protect the marksman in the early game, he disrupted the enemy jungler's rhythm by harassing them, making Tailaiyang very safe alone in the bottom lane. In less than five minutes, he had already completed a major item.
"Can I visit the set?"