Huayu: The young actress is heavily dependent on me

Chen Li shouted "Cut!" one last time.

Old Zhou shut down the machine, the lights were retracted, and the stagehands started loading equipment onto the bread cart.

The group of people were exhausted and staggering, but their faces were full of relief as they finished work.

After filming wrapped, Xiao Tian took Chen Li and Li Yitong for a stroll around the mountain city.

The streets of the mountain city were bustling with activity during the May Day holiday.

Tian Xiwei held Li Yitong's hand and walked ahead.

Chen Li followed behind, watching the two girls laughing heartily under the neon lights, and felt great.

Bai Mengyan followed at the back, clutching a folder, yawning as she thought to herself, "How come the boss is still so energetic today, acting as both director and tour guide?"

When it was time to part ways, we arrived at Guanyin Bridge.

The hem of Tian Xiwei's floral dress swayed gently in the night breeze.

"Are you leaving already?" she asked knowingly, her eyes filled with reluctance.

Chen Li looked down at her, smiled, and raised his hand to brush away the stray hairs that had been ruffled by the wind:

"We'll have a chance to meet again in the future, right?" He took out his phone, opened WeChat, and handed it over.

Let's add each other on WeChat.

Tian Xiwei frantically pulled out her phone.

Li Yitong also leaned over to scan the QR code, adding her as a friend while reaching out to pinch her cheek:

"Xiaotian, I'll teach you to dance next time we meet."

"Okay, okay!" Tian Xiwei nodded vigorously.

She looked down at the two new profile pictures on her phone screen, clutched the phone tightly to her chest, and pursed her lips into a thin line.

Seeing her like this, Chen Li couldn't resist teasing her:

"Xiaotian, once I set up my own studio and start making movies, I'll call you over to act in them."

He laughed first after he finished speaking.

In his mind, those words were just a joke.

Part of it was because the little girl was so cute that I wanted to leave her with something to remember her by.

Half of it was because he genuinely believed that Tian Xiwei, this rising star, could indeed act alongside him in the future.

Tian Xiwei suddenly raised her head, her eyes lighting up:

"Brother Chen Li, are you serious? Can we make this agreement?"

"Of course it's true."

Tian Xiwei took a deep breath, stepped forward half a step, extended her right hand, and raised her slender little finger:

"Let's make a pinky promise."

Chen Li looked down at the little finger she had extended, paused for a second, and then carefully hooked it onto her finger.

"Pinky promise, a hundred years from now." She recited it with great emphasis.

Chen Li looked into Xiao Tian's clear eyes and her heart softened.

After saying goodbye to Xiaotian, Li Yitong left with a smile.

Watching the two figures walk away together, Bai Mengyan turned to look at Chen Li:

"Boss, are we going back now?"

"Hmm...we have one more person to interview next."

"Huh? Who is it?"

"Fashion designer, Zhou Qisi."

......

Mountain city, 7 pm.

The motion-activated lights in the hallway turned on and off in response to footsteps.

When Zhou Qisi pushed open the door, a pungent, spicy aroma that made one's nose itch immediately filled the lungs.

"Dad, did you make spicy chicken today?"

The sound of stir-frying came from the direction of the kitchen.

Mr. Zhou was standing in front of the stove, his spatula flipping a pile of bright red dried chilies and chicken pieces flying around. He turned around and smiled.

"Your mom said she's craving these crunchy ones. These bird's eye chilies were sent from Chongqing, are they strong enough?"

The mother lay on the sofa watching TV, waving her hand lazily.

"You're back? Wash your hands and eat."

Zhou Qisi looked around: "Where's my sister?"

Mother chuckled and gestured towards the bedroom:

"Your sister is in her room. She said today is the finale of 'The Palace: The Lost Daughter,' but I've been calling her for ages and she hasn't responded."

Zhou Qisi pushed open his sister's bedroom door and was greeted by a sea of ​​pink.

Pink bed sheets, pink curtains, even the desk lamp has a fluffy pink lampshade.

The walls were covered with movie stills and posters clipped from entertainment magazines:

In "Scarlet Heart," Nicky Wu and Liu Shishi embrace in the snow; in "Empresses in the Palace," Sun Li wears a phoenix crown and gorgeous dress; and in "Swords of Legends," Yang Mi and Li Yifeng stand side by side.

Each one was neatly pinned together with colored thumbtacks.

Her younger sister, Zhou Ye, was sitting cross-legged on the bay window.

Her long, black hair was loose and hung down over her shoulders.

She had a small face, a delicate and upturned nose, and was holding a plush bear that was about half her height, while muttering to herself.

"Lu Yi is so handsome..." She flipped to a still from "Palace 3: The Lost Daughter" and poked Lu Yi's face with her finger.

"But Fucha Hengtai's character is just too tragic. Did the screenwriter have a grudge against him?"

Then she turned another page, stared at the double-page poster of "My Love from the Star," and sighed:

"Do Min-joon can stop time, but what can Hang Tae do? He can only ride horses..."

Zhou Qisi leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, and first looked around at the newly added "Gu Jian Qi Tan" posters on the wall, then couldn't help but laugh out loud:

"Zhou Ye, if Lu Yi and Kim Soo-hyun were to fight, who do you think would win?"

Zhou Ye suddenly looked up, her delicate face tense, her almond-shaped eyes wide open:

"Sis! When did you get standing at the door? You startled me!"

"While you were swooning over Lu Yi," Zhou Qisi said, walking over and casually ruffling her hair.

Zhou Ye immediately bristled and slapped her hand away:

"I'm not swooning! I'm studying acting! Lots of girls in my class like his portrayal of Emperor Fucha Hengtai!"

"So what results have you found in your research? How many times did Hengtai ride a horse in total?"

"You—" Zhou Ye jumped down from the bay window angrily, the drawstring on her hoodie swaying with her movements.

"You don't understand at all. I'm going to be an actor someday, and watching more good dramas now is how I learn acting. Didn't you hear what my teacher said? This is called film analysis. I'm doing film analysis."

"Film analysis?" Zhou Qisi raised an eyebrow.

"Last week you said you were studying the aesthetics of costume dramas, and the week before that you said you were analyzing the lighting in Korean dramas."

"What was your physics score again? Did you get 30?"

Zhou Ye's face flushed red instantly: "Mom! My sister is bullying me again!"

My mother's voice drifted in from outside the door, carrying a familiar, indifferent tone:

"Stop making noise, come out and eat!"

At the dining table, Zhou's father brought out the spicy chicken. The aroma of dried chilies and the numbing spiciness of Sichuan peppercorns mingled together, filling the entire house with this pungent yet tempting smell.

He picked up the largest piece of chicken and put it in his eldest daughter's bowl, casually asking:

"Sisi, how's the job search going lately?"

Zhou Qisi picked up the piece of chicken, then put down his chopsticks and sighed.

"I've applied to several clothing design companies, but haven't heard back yet. However, I had an interview this afternoon for a clothing design position at an artist's studio..."

Her expression was somewhat subtle when she said this.

Zhou's mother paused, her hand still scooping soup. "A film and television company? What's its name?"

"Uh..." Zhou Qisi hesitated for a moment.

"He hasn't set up his studio yet... He said he'll set it up next year, but this year he'll first establish his own team..."

There was a silence at the table for about three seconds.

Zhou's mother frowned: "What do you mean? You mean you don't even have a company yet? You're hiring people first, then starting the company?"

"Isn't this just a young guy who's all talk and no action? What's his name? What has he acted in?"

"He's a newcomer," Zhou Qisi quickly added.

"However, he acted in 'Nirvana in Fire' and 'Ban Shu Legend,' although they haven't aired yet—"

"A newcomer? Not even on air?" Zhou's mother raised her eyebrows even higher.

"The company doesn't even exist, and the project hasn't even aired yet, but they dare to hire people? Isn't that just trying to get something for nothing? No way, that doesn't sound reliable at all."