"Little Shen, are you alright?"
Shen Jingwei raised his head and looked at Zhu Dongyi, who looked at him with a face full of concern.
"Yes, why?"
Shen Jingwei carefully pressed a cold but dry towel against his forehead, careful not to ruin his make-up.
"You have black circles under your eyes. Your eyes are sowhat swollen too. Did you not sleep well last night?"
h.
"If you can see the black circles under my eyes, it ans I need to go back to the makeup tent for a touch-up. Excuse ."
"Hey... Hey, hey, Little Shen!"
Ignoring Zhu Dongyi’s frantic calls, Shen Jingwei walked away. The scorching sun beat down rcilessly, the heat distorting the air around them.
The crew had to sprinkle cold water on the fresh flowers to keep them from wilting.
It would be good if they could sprinkle water on Shen Jingwei too.
Unfortunately, they did not want to risk being murdered by the creative team.
To add salt to the wound, Shen Jingwei truly did not sleep well the previous night. He believed himself plagued by nightmares. Their details were hazy but their draining effect undeniable.
These dreams, like shadowy specters, crept into his sleep, sapping his energy and leaving him feeling as if he had been wrestling with an invisible enemy the entire night.
Despite his weariness, he knew he had to push through the scenes. The faster they finished, the sooner he could go back and rest.
Shen Jingwei coughed.
He rubbed at his throat and frowned.
He should get himself sothing to drink, keep himself hydrated...
"Shen Jingwei."
Shen Jingwei turned to look at Yan Renzhong, who was walking in his direction with a bottle of cold water.
"Drink this."
Shen Jingwei took the bottle from him.
"Thank you."
Yan Renzhong watched the other man unseal the bottle. When Shen Jingwei tilted his head backward, the curve of his neck, white and slender, was exposed to Yan Renzhong exclusively.
His mouth opened slightly, his moist lips like twin petals of a flower, laced with pure, intoxicating nectar. They longed for a touch, a kiss.
The knot at Shen Jingwei’s throat bobbed up and down seductively with each mouthful of water. The more Shen Jingwei drank, the drier Yan Renzhong’s mouth grew.
So dry that he had to lick his lips. Yan Renzhong cleared his throat in discomfort.
"If it’s too hot in here, you should go back to the preparation room," he advised Shen Jingwei.
Shen Jingwei shook his head.
"I don’t want to inconvenience anyone. If everyone else can endure the heat, so can I."
Yan Renzhong heaved a sigh.
"Alright. You do look very pale, though. Are you sure that you don’t need to rest elsewhere before the shoot begins?"
Shen Jingwei let out a frustrated groan.
"First Zhu Dongyi told that I had black circles and now you tell that I am pale. I should get so touch-up, excuse ."
"Shen Jingwei."
Yan Renzhong grabbed Shen Jingwei’s wrist, stopping the latter from advancing.
"Did sothing happen last night?"
"..."
Shen Jingwei’s right eyelid twitched once when hearing the question.
He turned around and gave Yan Renzhong an unknown look.
"I should ask you that," he said. "Did sothing happen last night?"
The two n locked gazes, neither willing to give in to the other.
Although Shen Jingwei usually wore his emotions on his sleeves, Yan Renzhong was unable to read Shen Jingwei this ti around.
He wasn’t sure what to perceive when looking at Shen Jingwei’s impassive face.
Anger?
Pain?
Sadness?
What was it?
He did not know.
It was that impenetrable barrier between them again, the one that shut out Yan Renzhong completely.
Shen Jingwei broke the stalemate with a wry smile.
"If there’s nothing else, I need to go. See you soon, Yan Renzhong."
The edge of his robe dragged behind him, making a swishing sound as he moved. Frustration welled up within Yan Renzhong, clawing at his insides to no end.
Sothing was off, but he did not know what.
Did sothing happen to Shen Jingwei on his way to the apothecary?
Or did he maybe listen to sothing he should not have listened to?
Yan Renzhong’s face twisted into a complicated expression.
Impulsively, he would like to chase after Shen Jingwei and tell him that it was all a misunderstanding.
But he already did it once, and Shen Jingwei’s response at that ti was clipped and clear, "I don’t care."
If he didn’t care back then, why would he care now?
Just like that, the impulse to confront the issue dissipated like mist in the morning sun, and Yan Renzhong chose to let it fade into oblivion.
Shen Jingwei was fine, he convinced himself.
He was probably just tired from the trip back to the Peak Point Shooting Studio.
A good night’s sleep would do the magic for sure.
The day passed uneventfully, with no one getting maid by the wild animals.
The shoot ended close to dinnerti.
Yan Renzhong dismissed invitations from fellow CNC Studio cast mbers to join their small dinner party, because he needed to rehearse the lines for the next day’s shooting.
Tomorrow marked the second to last day of shooting before the production entered another break period.
Yan Renzhong had a quiz show appearance in two days, so he couldn’t afford delays. Tomorrow’s shoot needed to be flawless.
The act to shoot was the trial by the Three Realm Spear. It took place on a vast battlefield, where Zhang Fengxi played the role of Li Guang and went through the scenario set by the Three Realm Spear.
In place of Li Shan, Li Guang’s brother, Xie Jianyu was cast into a lover’s role. One who ended up betraying Zhang Fengxi the sa way Li Shan betrayed Li Guang.
At first, everything went smoothly according to the script.
Drunk in blissful love, Yan Renzhong put his arms around Shen Jingwei and pinned him down on the bed.
But as he leaned in for a kiss, the serene expression on Shen Jingwei’s face shattered in an instant, replaced by a look of raw terror. With a violent push, Shen Jingwei broke free from Yan Renzhong’s grasp.
"NOOOO!" He cried out, his voice broken with anguish. "DON’T TOUCH !"
And then, hugging himself, he collapsed into a heap of trembling ss and let out a bloodcurdling wail.
A wave of dread washed over Yan Renzhong when the horrifying realization struck him.
He was right all along.
Sothing was terribly wrong with Shen Jingwei.
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