Chinese entertainment: Top stars have no holidays

Chapter 80 Sister Xue, who is missing a front tooth

At noon, the plane landed smoothly at Qingdao Jiaodong International Airport.

The cabin door opened, and Jiang Bai, wearing a simple black mask and baseball cap, followed the staff out of the VIP passage in a low-key manner.

At the airport exit, the crew of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" had been waiting for a long time and immediately recognized Jiang Bai, who was tall and had an outstanding temperament, in the crowd.

Without any further pleasantries, the crew members quickly stepped forward to take Jiang Bai's light luggage, their attitude both respectful and enthusiastic.

Jiang Bai was not only the lead actor, one of the screenwriters, and an investor in the "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" production team, but also the entire team dared not neglect him in the slightest.

The group did not linger at the airport, avoiding the scattered fans waiting outside, and went straight to the pre-arranged business vehicle, heading towards the hotel where the film crew was staying.

The production team had everything arranged perfectly long ago, including accommodations for all the main cast and crew, script readings, and preparations for filming.

The staff briefly informed Jiang Bai while he was in the car.

The script reading session for the entire cast and crew of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" was held directly in the hotel's conference room.

The event was scheduled to start promptly at 2 PM, saving everyone the trouble of traveling back and forth.

Once the car arrived at the hotel, a staff member led Jiang Bai into the lobby and casually suggested, "Mr. Jiang Bai, why don't you go back to your room to rest and freshen up a bit before heading to the conference room?"

"There is still more than an hour before the 2 o'clock reading session, so there is plenty of time."

3

Jiang Bai waved his hand, his tone casual and lazy: "No need, there's no need to go through all that trouble."

"Anyway, I'll be going to the conference room later, so going back and forth would just be a hassle."

He doesn't really care about these things in private; he doesn't have much of an idol image to maintain and is lazy whenever he can.

Today I'm wearing a simple and clean casual outfit, and since I'm already very good-looking, going bare-faced doesn't look bad at all.

Script readings are just a meeting between the main cast and crew to get to know their characters and work out their lines. It's not a formal red carpet event, so there's no need to go back to your room and tidy up your appearance.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Bai turned to his assistant and instructed, "Go downstairs to the hotel restaurant and get me a packed lunch. Just something simple and light will do. I'll wait in the conference room; you don't need to bring it back to my room."

The assistant nodded quickly and went downstairs to buy food.

Then, guided by the crew members, Jiang Bai walked through the elegant and quiet hotel corridor and headed straight for the conference room on the third floor of the hotel.

The conference room door was ajar, and the corridor was quiet, with only the faint sound of turning pages coming from inside.

Jiang Bai subconsciously thought that since he had deliberately arrived early, he should be the first member of the main creative team to arrive.

After all, everyone here is very busy and most people are used to arriving right on time. Arriving half an hour early is considered early.

But when the staff gently pushed open the conference room door and Jiang Bai stepped inside, his gaze swept across the room, and he was slightly surprised.

The interior decoration of the conference room was quite ordinary.

The most eye-catching thing is a long solid wood table in the center, on which mineral water, script materials, paper and pen have been prepared in advance.

On the side of the conference table by the window, a slender and gentle figure was already seated.

The woman was wearing a simple off-white dress, her long hair casually draped over her shoulders. Her eyebrows were curved, and she exuded a gentle and quiet temperament. She was sitting quietly in a chair, looking down at the script in her hands, her expression focused and serious.

She is Li Yitong, the female lead in "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star".

Jiang Bai was somewhat surprised, not expecting that even though he had come early, he wasn't the first one there.

It's clear that Li Yitong takes her work very seriously, arriving at the meeting room early to familiarize herself with the script and study her character.

Hearing the noise at the door, Li Yitong, who had been looking down at the script, looked up and her gaze fell directly on Jiang Bai, who had pushed the door open and entered.

For a moment, a hint of surprise flashed in Li Yitong's eyes, followed by a touch of awkwardness and shyness on her face.

Everyone in the industry knows just how incredibly popular Jiang Bai is right now.

In the past two months, his popularity has been approaching that of Lu Han, the undisputed top idol.

She has hit acting works, and her singing covers can go viral online. She has the looks, the talent, and the public's affection.

The two had never collaborated before, nor had they ever met privately; this was their first real in-person meeting.

At the time, Jiang Bai, who had only gained some popularity for his role as Lu Zhiang in "Rush to the Dead Summer," was someone Li Yitong considered an honor to work with.

Now, facing Jiang Bai, whose fame has risen several notches, Li Yitong inevitably feels the same restraint one might feel when facing a top star.

Even though she was actually the senior who debuted earlier and was five years older than Jiang Bai.

She quickly put down the script in her hand, stood up from her chair, and greeted him with a gentle and polite smile, slightly hesitantly saying, "Hello, Teacher Jiang Bai."

Her voice is soft and sweet. Although she is from Shandong, her voice is gentle and approachable, and she looks like a typical sweet and gentle girl.

With delicate features and a gentle, elegant demeanor, she makes a good first impression.

Upon seeing this, Jiang Bai immediately put on a warm and gentle smile and quickly walked towards her.

He is naturally insightful and easy-going, and always treats people with gentleness and politeness. He never puts on airs just because he has become famous.

"Sister Yitong, no need to be so polite, just call me Jiang Bai." Jiang Bai spoke in a relaxed and natural tone, and took the initiative to extend his hand.

Li Yitong quickly reached out and gently shook hands with Jiang Bai.

While shaking hands, she slightly raised her head to look at Jiang Bai.

Upon closer inspection, Jiang Bai's clear and bright eyes, which seemed to hold an even brighter future than Li Yitong's, and his sincere and genuine smile instantly dispelled the inexplicable restraint and nervousness in Li Yitong's heart.

After a brief initial greeting, the atmosphere became subtly quiet.

The two actors were working together for the first time and were not familiar with each other.

If you're sitting face to face and suddenly run out of things to say, you're bound to fall into an awkward silence.

Jiang Bai naturally noticed the slightly awkward atmosphere.

Having worked as a fund manager, he was always adept at defusing social awkwardness. He pulled out the chair next to him and sat down next to Li Yitong in a relaxed manner, taking the initiative to start a conversation.

"I watched the new version of 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' that you starred in a while ago, and it was really great."

Jiang Bai immediately offered a complimentary remark: "Your portrayal of Huang Rong is so spirited!"

"She has both the charm and liveliness of a young girl and the boldness and courage of a woman from the martial arts world, bringing Jin Yong's Rong'er to life."

Upon being praised by Jiang Bai, Li Yitong's expression immediately brightened, her previous awkwardness dissipated considerably, and she couldn't help but smile with her eyebrows curving upwards.

She is by nature a carefree, cheerful, and straightforward person. She was a little reserved at first meeting, but after being praised, she relaxed a lot.

"No, no, Teacher Jiang Bai, you're exaggerating." Li Yitong waved her hand, laughing happily, but her tone was very modest.

"I was under a lot of pressure when I was filming this drama."

"After all, Huang Rong is a classic character, and the versions played by the older generation are so deeply ingrained in people's minds. I've always been afraid that I won't play the role well and will let everyone down."

"I didn't expect to receive so much recognition after it aired; I was quite surprised myself."

Does it have a lot of audience approval?

Jiang Bai muttered to himself, "It seems that this version of 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' has only achieved mediocre results and hasn't made much of a splash."

As soon as Li Yitong finished speaking, she quickly changed the subject and immediately began to praise Jiang Bai enthusiastically.

"You're really something else! I watched every single episode of 'A Love So Beautiful'!"

"The atmosphere of the whole drama is absolutely amazing. It perfectly captures the youthful innocence and sweet romance of campus life. It's the best campus drama I've ever seen."

When talking about "A Love So Beautiful", Li Yitong clearly became interested, and her tone became a bit lighter.

Getting carried away with the conversation, Li Yitong even brought up Tian Xiwei, saying, "And isn't Tian Xiwei just so adorable!"

"Her portrayal of Chen Xiaoxi is absolutely lovable."

"Full of energy, charming and lively, she captures every little emotion and gesture perfectly, exuding youthful charm."

"I became a fan of her the whole time I watched the show, she's so lovable!"

As Jiang Bai listened to her praise and watched her eyebrows and eyes move up and down with each word, he felt that she genuinely liked the show.

It has to be said that Li Yitong's personality is really likable.

She has a sweet and delicate appearance and a gentle and ladylike temperament, but she is completely different when you get to know her.

She has the kind of goofy, straightforward vibe of a Shandong girl.

Especially when her eyes are brimming with smiles.

It's quite endearing in its contrast.

The two gradually started chatting about movies and TV shows, and the atmosphere became more and more relaxed and harmonious.

While chatting, Jiang Bai secretly observed Li Yitong beside him.

Based on the few glimpses of Li Yitong's personality he gleaned from variety shows in his previous life, it seems she is, at heart, a genuinely funny woman.

The straightforwardness and boldness of Shandong girls are fully embodied in her; she has no idol baggage whatsoever and has a cheerful and open-minded personality.

While they were chatting casually, Jiang Bai suddenly recalled an interesting old news story about Li Yitong that he had seen online in his previous life.

It seems that when Li Yitong was filming "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" last year, there was a very difficult fight scene.

She had an accident during filming, breaking a front tooth on the spot, with the root even shattering into three pieces.

In order not to delay the filming schedule, she endured the pain, carefully put away the broken tooth, and insisted on finishing all her scenes for the day before going to the hospital to get it fixed.

Later, this incident gradually spread and became a popular and amusing piece of gossip in the entertainment industry.

The two were chatting amiably, and the atmosphere was exceptionally relaxed, which piqued Jiang Bai's curiosity.

He felt a stirring in his heart, wanting to ask the truth of the matter in person, but he hesitated.

After all, girls are particularly concerned about their image, and breaking a front tooth is a rather private matter.

Asking a question abruptly might seem presumptuous and abrupt, and it would be bad if it embarrassed or upset the other person.

Jiang Bai hesitated for a moment, looking at Li Yitong's carefree, cheerful and easy-going appearance, and felt that she was not the kind of person who was pretentious or affected.

After hesitating for a long time, he couldn't suppress his curiosity and asked tentatively, "Sister Yitong, I saw some gossip about you online before, I wonder if it's true?"

Upon hearing this, Li Yitong blinked and looked at him curiously: "What gossip? Just tell me, I don't mind."

Seeing her calm expression and lack of resistance, Jiang Bai slowly spoke: "I heard that you accidentally knocked out a front tooth while filming action scenes for 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes' last year. Is that true?"

After asking the question, Jiang Bai silently prepared himself for the other party to either awkwardly avoid the question or give a perfunctory answer with slight displeasure.

To everyone's surprise, after hearing this, Li Yitong was not angry or embarrassed at all. Instead, she laughed so hard that she bent over, her eyes curving into crescent moons.

"Haha, I didn't expect you to know about this!" Li Yitong laughed so hard her shoulders trembled slightly as she frankly admitted, "It's true, absolutely true. It hurt me so much back then."

She made no attempt to shirk her responsibility regarding the grain issue.

Instead, she enthusiastically reminisced with Jiang Bai about the scene: "Back then, when we were filming Huang Rong's fight scenes, the movements were particularly large."

"When the wire was thrown, I didn't control the distance well and crashed head-on into the metal shoulder armor of the other actor. At that moment, I tasted a metallic sweetness in my mouth, and I knew I was in trouble."

"Afterwards, I touched it and found that half of my front tooth was broken off, and the root was broken into three pieces."

"The assistant was terrified and immediately wanted to call an ambulance."

"I thought the crew's schedule was packed with filming, and I couldn't let my actions delay the whole crew's progress, so I put away my broken tooth and gritted my teeth to finish filming all the scenes for the day."

"Looking back now, I admire the ruthlessness I had back then."

As Li Yitong spoke, she had a look of bewilderment on her face, speaking in a relaxed tone as if she were talking about someone else's funny story, not taking the matter seriously at all, showing great magnanimity.

After listening, Jiang Bai exclaimed sincerely, "That's incredibly dedicated! Anyone else would probably have stopped working and gone to the hospital by now."

"It's all part of filming, I'm used to it."

Li Yitong waved her hand, then changed her tone and revealed a mischievous and sly smile, "It's funny when you think about it."

"The doctor said at the time that my tooth root was too badly broken and that it was impossible to get a fixed ceramic crown."

"And even if you get porcelain veneers, they're prone to breaking when filming action scenes or eating hard foods, which is really troublesome."

Jiang Bai was taken aback and subconsciously asked, "So how was it resolved later?"

Seeing Jiang Bai's curious expression, a mischievous glint flashed in Li Yitong's eyes, and she grinned mysteriously, "Guess how I solved it?"

"I simply didn't get a fixed denture; I just got a removable temporary front tooth."

"It's just like a denture model. You can put it on by simply snapping it on. You can't tell it at all when you're on camera. You can easily take it off when you don't need it."

"It's extremely convenient and saves a lot of trouble."

As soon as she finished speaking, Li Yitong, as if deliberately demonstrating to Jiang Bai, raised her hand slightly and gently picked at her front teeth without any hesitation.

With a soft, subtle click, she easily removed the realistic, detachable front tooth and held it between her fingers.

The next second, a small gap appeared between her originally neat and white teeth.

Li Yitong didn't care about her image at all. She just grinned at Jiang Bai with her missing front tooth showing, looking both playful and innocent.

Her bright, goofy smile was both adorable and endearing.

You wouldn't guess she's a mature woman who's almost 27.

Jiang Bai was initially trying to maintain a polite expression and suppress his laughter, maintaining a slightly aloof demeanor.

But looking at Li Yitong's carefree attitude and silly yet adorable appearance...

Seeing the contrast between her missing front tooth and her serious, silly grin, I just couldn't hold back anymore.

The next moment, Jiang Bai could no longer hold back and burst into laughter.

"Ber, sis, you really have absolutely no concern for your image!"

"Is this something you can just pick and show to anyone?"

Li Yitong didn't mind his loud laughter; instead, she laughed along with him, still holding the small false tooth in her hand, her eyes crinkling as she waved it at him.

"How is it? Is it convenient?"