Vase cannon fodder is pampered by the group again

Chapter 73.2

Editor: Princess

Just as Shen Ci was panicking, his phone rang.

He rolled over to grab his phone, and his eyes lit up when he saw the caller. He cleared his throat and answered. “Little Uncle!”

“You’re full of energy, it seems I was worrying too much.” Lu Xiao said warmly.

Shen Ci lay on his stomach. “Worrying about what?”

Lu Xiao: “Worrying you’d be wronged.”

Shen Ci giggled. “Dad, Brother Zhang, and Xiao An are all here. What could I be wronged about?”

“If you want anything, just tell me and I’ll have it sent to baby.” His deep voice sounded especially magnetic, making ears tingle.

Especially the word “baby”. It was heart-stirring.

Yesterday after the livestream, Lu Xiao had intercepted him from Qinggua and taken him home, holding and petting him like a little cat.

His feet barely touched the ground as they spent the whole night being lovey-dovey.

Now with that familiar deep voice right in his ear, when Shen Ci closed his eyes, he could almost smell Lu Xiao’s bitter smoky scent…

But only cold blankets were beside him.

He slowly curled up like a shrimp on the bed and said half-jokingly, “Then pack little uncle up and send him over.”

The talking from the other side paused, then came several light laughs, brushing against Shen Ci’s ear like feathers.

Lu Xiao coaxed him gently. “I’ll come visit the set after this busy week, okay?”

“Mm…”

Actually, Shen Ci wanted to throw a tantrum and make Lu Xiao come accompany him right now, but he only thought about it.

Being so unreasonable would annoy his little uncle… The former cannon fodder Shen Ci was quite timid.

But he didn’t want to hang up, and so kept pestering Lu Xiao to continue chatting.

Lu Xiao was helpless and could only coax him to cover up properly and turn off the lights, patiently accompanying the little one in conversation.

Lu Xiao had his phone on speaker, and who knows how long he rambled on.

Gradually he heard the voice on the other end getting quieter, speech becoming more slurred, until only even breathing and occasional grunts from turning over remained.

Lu Xiao’s smile was gentle as he lowered his head and planted a kiss on the phone’s microphone, making a soft “pop” sound.

“Baby, good night.”

• Shen Ci was shaken awake by Brother Zhang at 3 AM. Fortunately he’d slept early the night before, so he could barely crawl out of bed.

He held Brother Zhang’s hand and was led to the hotel’s first floor with his eyes closed.

The makeup room had been set up the night before.

As soon as Shen Ci entered, he was pulled to sit down by the makeup artist who began applying makeup.

This scene had to be shot before dawn, so the crew had been setting up since the night before, probably pulling an all-nighter.

“Teacher Lu, please sit next to Teacher Shen! Your manager can sit over there!”

“He’s an assistant.”

“Oh, okay! Sorry about that.”

Shen Ci vaguely heard voices and turned to look at Lu An with sleepy eyes. “Xiao An, morning.”

Lu An reached out and scratched Shen Ci’s nose. “Morning.”

Shen Ci was drowsy, closing his eyes as his face was worked on for a long time before gradually waking up.

“Xiao An, when are you planning to sign a contract?” Shen Ci kept his eyes closed as the makeup artist styled his hair and asked casually.

Without an agency or connections, it was quite difficult to get by in the industry.

Lu An was getting his makeup done, gazing calmly at the mirror. “After finishing this film.”

Shen Ci smiled. “Come to our big Yunxiao! Your brother will cover for you.”

Lu An: “You’re silly – I doubt you can manage that.”

“What?!” Shen Ci immediately opened his eyes, but the makeup artist quickly stopped him gently. “Teacher Shen, stay calm, the curling iron could burn your scalp!”

Shen Ci could only glare at Lu An angrily. “I’ll deal with you later!”

“Whatever you want.”

Lu An closed his eyes to rest, his lips curving slightly.

Who would have thought that the pretty vase he once looked down on most had become his best friend after three months.

When they first met, he was amazed by Shen Ci’s talent and fantasized about meeting a kindred spirit who could reach the pinnacle together.

Then he impulsively added him as a friend and, like a madman, gave him notes on how to study acting.

However right after sending them, he regretted it.

Shen Ci was a spoiled rich kid who probably entered entertainment just for fun. Coming to class was likely just for show to get on trending topics.

But he never expected that Shen Ci would not only seriously reply to messages but also persist in studying for three months, being earnest and hardworking in every class.

He even included him in his inner circle, chatting and eating with the quiet loner, treating him like a brother.

Not long after Shen Ci burst into his life, Min Shoubei’s film invitation unexpectedly came too.

Min Shoubei said he valued his temperament and acting skills. But Lu An knew clearly – he was just finding familiar newcomers to partner with his little son.

The reason didn’t matter anyway. He had gotten his opportunity and gained a friend.

Shen Ci harbored no ill will toward him whatsoever. Because of his family background, he was naively bright, unlike all the industry people Lu An had met before. Being with him made Lu An completely relaxed.

From this perspective, signing with Yunxiao for his new friend… was also acceptable?

At least with Shen Ci around, it would be much more pleasant.

---

The first scene started from the school gate. Shen Ci and Lu An had to run toward the gradually rising sun like Kuafu chasing the sun.

Shen Ci needed to start with a face full of smiles, then gradually begin crying, and finally hug Lu An while crying and laughing in the dawn light.

The two sat quietly on the roadside building up their emotions. All the crew members around minimized their presence to avoid disturbing them.

Shen Ci closed his eyes and concentrated for nearly ten minutes.

When he finally opened them, his gaze had obviously become much more peaceful, better matching his intentionally plain, rough makeup.

He took a deep breath and began entering character at Min Shoubei’s direction—

“Cut! Start over. Shen Ci’s transition from crying to laughing was too fast. This take, just focus on the laughing.”

“Cut! The lighting wasn’t done well! Lighting crew, open your eyes wide! Work seriously!”

“Cut! Lu An looked at Shen Ci one time too few! Do it again!”

“…”

Min Shoubei stood at the monitoring station, holding a megaphone and speaking ruthlessly time after time. Shen Ci and Lu An had no choice but to accept their fate and reshoot repeatedly.

Besides the close-up shots of their facial expressions, the two actors also had to expend physical energy running, which was truly somewhat exhausting.

After more than ten NGs, this segment finally passed with acceptable quality.

The filming paused for a break, and the entire crew breathed a sigh of relief.

“That’s his own son, yet he’s being so strict with the requirements? I personally thought every take was perfect!” A crew member who was watching said casually.

“Please, it was clearly Shen Ci dragging Lu An down!” Yu Yang chimed in with his complaint.

“Are you blind? Shen Ci acted quite well. It’s just that Old Min’s standards are too damn high.” The scriptwriter rolled his eyes.

Brother Zhang laughed and said, “There’s no helping it. Xiao Ci has worked hard for so long, and he feels sorry for him too. If he doesn’t produce a perfect work in the end, then Xiao Ci would have suffered for nothing.”

Starting right off with such high intensity, Shen Ci really couldn’t handle it. He plopped down on the ground and leaned against Lu An.

The assistant and makeup artist rushed over, handing him water and touching up his makeup. Shen Ci had a look of complete despair on his face.

He hadn’t expected the first scene to stump him like this. He inevitably felt a bit discouraged.

Movie filming indeed had an enormous gap compared to web dramas. Even the most subtle expressions at the corners of the eyes needed to be controlled perfectly. The director would tirelessly pursue the best shot effects repeatedly.

When filming dramas before… they would pass casually, and post-production filters would flatten out all the good and bad acting performances.

Movies had much higher requirements. Almost every inch of skin needed to express the protagonist’s emotions.

Shen Ci secretly felt grateful that he had gone to study hard for a period of time. Otherwise, he estimated that he would have been kicked off set within one second of entering the camera frame.

However, even such a simple segment had caused him to make so many mistakes… The emotional scenes in the later parts would be progressive and would only become increasingly complex.

His heart started beating like a drum.

“Shen Ci, come over here for a moment.” Min Shoubei patted Shen Ci’s shoulder, his face dark and unpleasant. The atmosphere around them immediately became tense.

Shen Ci’s heart instantly jumped to his throat, and he gulped down his saliva nervously.

Calling him by his full name meant trouble was coming…