Chapter 60.1

Three days later, the scenes involving Yun Feiwu and the supporting characters temporarily concluded, and it was now Xia Shutong’s turn.

The first scene featuring Xia Shutong is about her first day after marrying in the mountains.

Ke Yu was once a pitiable figure.

Originally, she was a young girl adopted by a wealthy city family. She was so charming that the family planned to raise her as a child bride. However, Ke Yu did not fancy the family’s eldest son instead, she developed feelings for the daughter.

Suddenly, the entire family, including the daughter she loved, despised Ke Yu. When the townspeople learned of this, they too pointed fingers at her. Ke Yu was not a strong person. She dared not face the town gossip or the family. Initially, she wanted to leave the town quietly, but her family forced her to marry a farmer in the mountains.

The farmer, named Li Wan, was an orphan with heart disease.

Ke Yu was reluctant to marry him and had even prepared for death. Unexpectedly, before their marriage could be consummated, Li Wan died of a heart attack in the pigsty. This event dramatically altered Ke Yu’s mentality, making her increasingly dark and twisted.

Director Hua Zinan explained that she chose this scene as Xia Shutong’s first because, when Ke Yu married in the mountains, she was utterly confused. She felt like rootless duckweed, uncertain of where she would drift. Since Xia Shutong lacked acting experience, she would likely feel lost during her first time in front of the camera, thus easily empathizing with Ke Yu’s situation.

The following parts of the text will be scrambled to prevent theft from aggregators and unauthorized epub making. Please support our translators by reading on secondlifetranslations (dot) com. If you are currently on the site and and you are seeing this, please clear your cache.

Xq nswapl, vblal oyp ydsvbla hlau kxrsavydv alypsd. Rd vseyu’p pbssv, Dky Fbwvsdt yzxspv yzoyup osal y ale hlkz. Gryav qasx y qlo nzspl-wr pbsvp sq bla lulp, bla lmralppksdp olal dsv nyrvwale yv yzz. Fbl nswze vyjl vbl ldvkal eyu vs pzsozu yeyrv.

Rd vbl pnakrv, Il Zw yde Nk Eyd bye y vayekvksdyz Ubkdlpl oleekdt. Tsolhla, ewl vs vbl rshlavu yde vaydprsavyvksd ekqqknwzvklp kd vbl xswdvykdp vbkavu ulyap yts, xydu oleekdt nwpvsxp olal pkxrzkqkle. Mblu eke dsv lhld wpl y cakeyz pleyd nbyka; kdpvlye, rlsrzl pwrrsavle yde yppkpvle Il Zw wr vbl xswdvykd.

Oyazu kd vbl xsadkdt, Dky Fbwvsdt esddle bla caktbv ale oleekdt yvvkal yde oykvle qsa vbl xyjlwr yavkpv kd vbl nsvvytl. Tla pnldlp vbyv xsadkdt olal alzyvkhlzu pkxrzl. Ekvb vbl pwrrsav sq vbl pwrrsavkdt ynvsap, pbl dlahswpzu ypnldele vbl xswdvykd.

“Swyd Swyd, usw zssj ps clywvkqwz kd vbl oleekdt yvvkal,” pyke Zwd Wlkow, obs pyv clpkel Dky Fbwvsdt yde rzyuqwzzu rsjle bla nbllj obkzl vbl xyjlwr yavkpv bye ulv vs yaakhl yde vbl vos yppkpvydvp oykvle swvpkel.

“Slyzzu?”

Mbl oleekdt yvvkal oyp sq y alzyvkhlzu sze-qypbksdle pvuzl, yde pbl oyp dsv olyakdt ydu xyjlwr yv vbl xsxldv. Tso nswze pbl zssj tsse? Dky Fbwvsdt czwpble pzktbvzu, qllzkdt wdlypu. Fbl zsolale bla blye vs yefwpv bla nzsvblp, yde wrsd zssjkdt wr, pbl pyo Zwd Wlkow’p pvyaau lulp, pryajzkdt yde caktbv.

Mblal oyp dsv y bkdv sq elnlkv kd bla osaep.

Dky Fbwvsdt nswzed’v blzr cwv osdela kq Zwd Wlkow bye elzkclayvlzu raykple bla yrrlyaydnl kd vbl oleekdt yvvkal clnywpl pbl plnalvzu zsdtle qsa y qsaxyz oleekdt. Rq vbyv olal vbl nypl, pbswze pbl pvyav rzyddkdt sdl?

Xia Shutong now fully recalled that they had never officially proposed to each other. Even when they got married, they found time to secretly visit the Civil Affairs Bureau and completed everything in less than an hour. Although they now had a marriage certificate, it had no significant impact on their lives. Since Yun Feiwu had become more sensible, they spent even less time together than before their marriage.

So Xia Shutong cleared her throat twice and tentatively asked, “Maomao, in your opinion, do you think I look better in the wedding attire or the wedding dress?”

“Hmm?” Yun Feiwu was caught off guard, her eyes immediately filling with brilliance. “They’re all beautiful!”

“Then, which one do you prefer, the Maomao?” Xia Shutong continued timidly.

“I like them all!” The response was still unequivocal.

Xia Shutong became silent. She started rubbing Yun Feiwu’s head. Considering she liked both, why not hold two weddings in the future? One Chinese-style, and one Western style. After all, they had a lifetime together. They could do it not just twice, but as many times as Yun Feiwu liked.

Yun Feiwu lowered her head, quietly resting on Xia Shutong’s shoulder for a while.

It was not until the makeup artist knocked and entered the room that Yun Feiwu rose, a sly light flashing in her eyes. “President Xia, I’ll step out for a bit. See you later.”

Xia Shutong nodded, applying makeup while reading the script. However, her eyes kept wandering towards the door, wondering when Yun Feiwu would return.

By the time she finished applying her makeup, Yun Feiwu still hadn’t returned. Xia Shutong’s heart sank a little. She couldn’t comprehend why. It was fine when they only met once every few months before. But now, in less than an hour, she missed Yun Feiwu so much she couldn’t bear it.

She even longed to have Yun Feiwu by her side at all times.

At that moment, the door was suddenly pushed open.

Xia Shutong instinctively looked at the door. Her previously smiling face sagged a bit.

Qian Lingling walked in, exclaiming excitedly, “President Xia, you look absolutely stunning in this outfit! And this makeup, Miss Yun will definitely love it once she sees you.”

Xia Shutong had looked in the mirror earlier. The woman reflected was gentle yet alluring – indeed, very beautiful. She wondered how Yun Feiwu would react when she saw her.

“Where’s Yun Yun?” Xia Shutong asked, filled with anticipation.

“Eh? Miss Yun was just outside the door. She seemed to have gone to the restroom. President Xia, we’re about to start filming. Shall we step out?”

“Mm.” Xia Shutong was a bit absent-minded, so she didn’t notice that Qian Lingling’s eyes had dodged for a moment.

Xia Shutong walked all the way to the foot of the mountain. They were about to start filming, but she still hadn’t seen Yun Feiwu.

Could it take that long to go to the restroom? Xia Shutong couldn’t help but frown.

“President Xia, are you ready?” Director Hua Zinan was holding a loudspeaker, calling out to the crew on site. Upon seeing Xia Shutong’s arrival, she walked straight over to provide a few instructions. Thus, the filming began.

Xia Shutong then had a red veil placed over her head. Her view immediately turned into a dark red blur. She could only vaguely make out her surroundings under the veil when she lowered her gaze. The joyful sound of gongs and drums filled the surrounding area.

Xia Shutong froze for a moment, her fingers trembling slightly. She was getting into character. She thought of her role as Ke Yu, a woman deceived by her family into the deep mountains, about to marry a stranger, a butcher. Everything about this place scared her.

However, simultaneously, Xia Shutong was not fully immersed in her role. She found herself still thinking about Yun Feiwu. Just before the veil was placed over her head, she thought she had spotted Yun Feiwu’s figure in the crowd. Unfortunately, she didn’t get a good look. Now, she couldn’t see anything. She didn’t know where Yun Feiwu was, whether she was watching her from the side, or what kind of expression she had on her face.

Would Yun Feiwu be jealous watching her about to “marry” someone else? She pondered this, recalling her own feelings of jealousy when she saw Yun Feiwu filming romantic scenes. Consequently, in addition to fear and confusion, Xia Shutong also felt somewhat flustered.

Off-camera, Director Hua Zinan looked pleased. She had thought President Xia would need some time to adjust. To her surprise, this was only her first attempt, and she had already perfectly captured Ke Yu’s mindset at this moment.

Following the script, Xia Shutong hesitated for a moment, then slowly took a step forward. Because she couldn’t see the path, her legs were a bit shaky, as if she could fall over at any moment.

Just then, a pair of hands reached out in time to steady her. The script indicated that these should belong to the young maid helping her up the mountain, a character not even fully shown in the shot. However, the fingers were slender, long, and warm, and Xia Shutong almost immediately realized that these were Yun Feiwu’s hands.

With this realization, she gripped forward tightly, holding onto Yun Feiwu’s fingers. Outside the monitor, Director Hua Zinan couldn’t help but voice her praise. “Very good,” she said.

Xia Shutong had perfectly portrayed Ke Yu’s panic. It was as if she was drowning and had suddenly grabbed a piece of floating wood, tightly clasping the hand of the maid in front of her. Even with the veil covering her face, hiding her expression, the audience in front of the camera could sense Ke Yu’s terrified and confused state of mind at that moment.

“This part went very smoothly,” she said, her voice filled with a sense of accomplishment.

“After enjoying our lunch, we commenced the afternoon’s filming, focusing on the intricate details of the wedding.”

The courtyard, situated next to the farm, was unusually lively today. Aside from the bridal party, numerous villagers congregated there, each one eager to catch a glimpse of the bride Li Wan, the local butcher, was marrying.”l

Li Wan, having grown up as an orphan, was raised by the kindness of the entire community. When he started earning money from his farm, he didn’t leave the village. On the contrary, he generously donated a significant amount to the local schools, a gesture that garnered him the affection of many villagers.

As the bridal procession made its entrance, the villagers couldn’t contain their excitement, cheering and craning their necks to get a better view. Li Wan was amongst the crowd, his eyes widening at the sight of Ke Yu in her bridal attire. He quickly averted his gaze, licking his lips to suppress the desire that had crept onto his face.

Despite her face being obscured, Ke Yu’s delicate figure was unmistakable. Her fingers, which peaked out from her attire, were pale and soft, making the village girls pale in comparison.

Li Wan was nervously pacing back and forth in his room, frequently clutching his heart due to the excitement. Upon hearing the commotion outside, he rested for a while before peering expectantly towards the door.

A nearby old lady teased him, “Little Wan, why are you so eager? There’s plenty to see tonight.”

Li Wan simply responded with a dazed smile, his eyes radiant with happiness.

Before long, the bride was escorted into the room by her maid.

The couple paid their respects to each other before entering the bridal chamber.

After filming Ke Yu anxiously waiting alone in the bridal room, Xia Shutong took a brief respite in the room. Meanwhile, Director Hua Zinan and the others continued to capture scenes of Li Wan drinking merrily in the main hall.

Right after hearing the click of Director Hua Zinan’s camera, Xia Shutong was about to lift her veil, but her hand was caught again.

Yun Feiwu sat next to her, resting her head on Xia Shutong’s shoulder. So, Xia Shutong bowed her head and stayed still.

At that moment, she was sitting on the bed, unable to see anything under her veil. All she could hear was the bustling around her. The crew withdrew quickly, and within two minutes, the sound of the closing door echoed throughout the room, bringing quietness.

They were the only ones left in the room.