Chapter 25: Stone
Xu Yuanmeng stood there, occasionally dipping her hand in the basin, hoping to cool down the warm water inside.
Time was tight, and the temporary set had been changed. The interior lining was still wet, but luckily, her hair, firmly secured by a hair mask, remained dry. Nevertheless, the cold wind at this temperature was enough to make one shiver all over.
However, Lou Ting’s pace remained steady, as if his movements were no different from the first time he walked.
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.
Gp bl oyp ycswv vs alynb vbl okdeso, Nsw Mkdt’p lulp zkqvle pzktbvzu, yde bkp qkdtlavkrp zkqvle okvb vbl pokdtkdt xsvksd sq bkp yaxp.
“Gb!”
—’Uaypb!’
Dw Zwydxldt pweeldzu qlzv y pbyar rykd kd bla byde. Mbl cypkd vkzvle yde oyvla rswale swv wdnsdvaszzyczu.
Lou Ting halted his steps and looked indifferently at the ground, about half a meter away, now soaked with water.
“What happened to you?!” The director became angry at first sight. He slammed the table with a ‘bang,’ pointing at her and shouting, “Why did you pour water when he’s still so far away?!”
“Sorry, director,” Xu Yuanmeng said anxiously, in a flustered manner. “I just…”
The director interrupted, “That’s enough! I don’t want to hear your explanation!”
Tears welled up in Xu Yuanmeng’s eyes. She covered her right hand with her left, clearly feeling a dent on it. It still hurts.
By now, Lou Ting had already walked back. There had been two accidents during the ad shoot, but Lou Ting showed no sign of anger. On the contrary, he advised the director, “Slow and steady wins the race. Don’t rush it, let’s do it again.”
The person who got splashed was him, yet he was speaking so kindly now, while that idiot who couldn’t even remember the plot was still fake crying up there.
The director sighed. When these two were compared, the difference was clear.
Rubbing his hands together, the director felt cold, especially considering that Lou Ting’s clothes were still damp inside.
He beckoned and took the hot water handed over by his assistant, passing it to Lou Ting without a second thought. “Have some hot water, we’ll finish shooting soon, just hold on a little longer.”
“Okay.” Lou Ting took a sip and held the cup to warm his hands.
The director glanced at Xu Yuanmeng from a distance, his eyes filled with a warning.
Xu Yuanmeng stiffly averted her gaze, no longer daring to look at the director. She knew her little scheme had been discovered and she couldn’t use it anymore.
“Third take, start!”
Lou Ting continued walking as usual, while Xu Yuanmeng’s fingertips turned pale. She tightly grasped the rim of the basin, waiting for Lou Ting to approach.
However…
‘Crash!’
“Xu Yuanmeng! Can’t you continue shooting?! If you can’t, then get off the set!” The director couldn’t suppress his anger anymore as he watched Xu Yuanmeng start pouring water when Lou Ting was still several meters away.
“I…” Xu Yuanmeng’s hands trembled, and she was on the verge of tears.
She really wanted to shoot properly this time! The director had already warned her. If she continued to trouble Lou Ting, wouldn’t she be indirectly causing trouble for herself? However, Xu Yuanmeng lowered her head and glanced at the back of her hand. Despite the pain that had almost numbed her, there was no trace of injury!
If she were to tell the director that her hand hurt and she couldn’t hold on, he would probably replace her on the spot.
Xu Yuanmeng clenched her teeth and said, “Director, please give me one more chance, I beg you.”
The director tapped his finger twice, pointing at her. Lou Ting raised an eyebrow in response, turned the stone in his hand, selected a suitable size, and continued walking.
Xu Yuanmeng encouraged herself in her heart. This time, she absolutely couldn’t make any mistakes. Otherwise, the director would really kick her out!
As Lou Ting moved forward, he wondered how Xu Yuanmeng would steady herself this time. However, when he saw Xu Yuanmeng precariously placing the basin on the edge, preparing to pour it down early, he laughed.
Involuntarily, he quickened his pace.
As Lou Ting approached, Xu Yuanmeng slowly lifted the edge of the other side of the basin.
‘Thud.’
‘Crash…’
“Ah!”
The collision of the three sounds was overshadowed by Xu Yuanmeng’s scream. No one noticed the subtle sound of the collision.
Before she could pour the water, the basin unexpectedly flipped over and poured a full basin of water directly onto Xu Yuanmeng’s face!
Xu Yuanmeng was in a sorry state, but at that moment, the camera from above suddenly approached, as if it wanted to capture a dramatic shot. She slapped away the camera, shouting, “Ah, ah, don’t film, don’t film!”
“Xu Yuanmeng!!!” The director couldn’t take it anymore. He pointed at his assistant and said, “You, take Lou Ting inside to change clothes. Xiao Wang, bring Xu Yuanmeng down to me. I want to ask her what she’s thinking! Can she still continue shooting?!”
“Yes, yes, I’ll do that right away,” Xiao Wang replied obediently.
The two assistants split up, one taking Lou Ting and the other going to find Xu Yuanmeng.
Lou Ting had an extra thick cotton jacket wrapped around him in addition to his coat. He turned around and looked at Xu Yuanmeng, who was crying and explaining to the assistant. The assistant ignored her completely, coldly reprimanding her, and then dragged her over without even giving her a coat.
Xu Yuanmeng noticed Lou Ting’s gaze and looked up suddenly, realizing something. Her eyes widened in an instant.
“Lou—”
“Shut up! Lou what? How dare you call him that? He can’t save you either!” The director interrupted him before he could finish speaking.
After that, Lou Ting followed the assistant to change clothes and didn’t continue listening. However, Xu Yuanmeng’s crying voice could still be heard from quite a distance.
“I’m really sorry for this happening under our watch.” The assistant, a gentle Omega, brought Lou Ting back to the room, turned on the heating, and handed him a freshly packaged lining. “Go change into this.”
Lou Ting took it and said, “Thank you.”
There were many jackets prepared for the show, but there was only one lining. It seemed that the original plan was for him to finish shooting wearing the wet one, but Xu Yuanmeng disrupted the rhythm, prompting the director to have someone take him to change clothes.
As Lou Ting took off the damp lining, he felt a chilling sensation all over his body, and his nose was a bit itchy.
After changing into fresh clothes, Lou Ting returned to the shooting location. Xu Yuanmeng had stopped crying, but she kept raising her hand and saying, “Someone hit my hand earlier, and that’s why I couldn’t hold onto the basin. I didn’t intentionally cause trouble.”
“Really? Then what did you say the first time?” the director said. “My eyes were right there. You didn’t even think about moving away!”
“I… I…” Xu Yuanmeng truly had a hard time explaining. The first time, she did intentionally cause trouble, but the subsequent incidents were definitely not intentional!
Xu Yuanmeng was extremely anxious.
Lou Ting approached and didn’t even spare a glance at Xu Yuanmeng. He directly spoke to the director, saying, “Director, since Miss Xu can’t remember, why don’t we switch roles?”
The director didn’t immediately refuse. After all, he had a responsibility for the problems that arose under his supervision. Speaking now carried a sense of guilt. He asked, “How do you propose we switch?”
Lou Ting said, “I’ll go up and pour the water.”
“No!” Lou Ting’s suggestion to pour the water himself was definitely a revenge against her! Xu Yuanmeng shouted, “Absolutely not!”
The director hadn’t even spoken yet, but Xu Yuanmeng skipped over the director’s refusal, completely disregarding him.
The director himself was momentarily stunned. He had been debating whether or not to make the switch, but seeing Xu Yuanmeng’s reaction, he immediately made up his mind, “We’ll switch!”
“You said your hand was shaking and you couldn’t hold it. You can still walk, right? If your leg is also injured, I’ll replace you.” After saying that, the director rolled his eyes in annoyance. What was this? How dare she make decisions ahead of him?
Xu Yuanmeng wanted to say something, but no one was listening to her. They all went their separate ways, busy with their own tasks. Xu Yuanmeng felt extremely frustrated but had nowhere to express it.
Lou Ting didn’t want to be a counselor. He went directly to the designated spot, preparing to pour the water.
Xu Yuanmeng saw the excitement in his eyes and quickly caught up, “Lou Ting, you plotted against me!”
“Hmm?” Lou Ting raised an eyebrow, sidestepping Xu Yuanmeng’s hand and calmly said, “What did I plot against you?”
“You did it on purpose. All of this was part of your plan! You deliberately caused trouble during my shoot, making me unable to hold the basin, and even took the opportunity to suggest the director switch our positions. It was all planned by you!” As Xu Yuanmeng spoke, her thoughts gradually became clear.
Yes, it was all Lou Ting’s fault. He deliberately framed her!
“I just don’t want to be in the same group as you. Don’t I have the right to dislike you?” Xu Yuanmeng shouted, “It’s my personal freedom! It’s not an excuse for you to frame me!”
“The first time you forgot to move away, was that also my doing? I…” Lou Ting paused for a moment, then suddenly laughed, “If you lack intelligence, don’t make a fuss.”
“You—” Xu Yuanmeng gritted her teeth, “You quickly go tell the director that you were just joking and switch our positions back. Otherwise, don’t blame me for not being polite.”
“Threatening me?” Lou Ting gestured for her to turn around.
As Xu Yuanmeng turned her head, she saw the director and the assistant staring at her. The awkward feeling of being surrounded by their gaze made Xu Yuanmeng feel suffocated.
When she turned back, Lou Ting had already reached the top floor and was smiling at her from the window.
Although there was a smile on his face, the smile didn’t reach his eyes. Xu Yuanmeng felt aggrieved and targeted by Lou Ting.
She even went with the mindset of being deliberately put in a difficult situation and didn’t pay much attention to her walking movements. She continued walking as usual, striding past him.
After reaching the designated spot, Lou Ting stood still, and the water above his head cascaded down with a ‘crash’ sound. He briefly showed a surprised expression and hurriedly ran down. However, at that moment, Xu Yuanmeng remained motionless, her eyes closed.
Looking at the feedback from the camera, the director said, “…”
Are you trying to drive me crazy?
“Let’s do it again! Xu Yuanmeng, your facial expressions and movements need to be on point!”
Xu Yuanmeng was startled and instinctively wanted to shout that it was Lou Ting’s fault. However, she realized that Lou Ting was already standing behind her!
He was actually following the script!
Realizing this, Xu Yuanmeng quickly ran back, hoping to finish filming sooner.
But…
“Action! Is your hand useless? Put it up properly!”
“Your leg, make the movements smaller! Are you still an Omega?!”
“For heaven’s sake, what’s wrong with your face? Is the left side too shy to show itself?!”
…
Every time they poured the water, every time they walked, the director could always find flaws.
Lou Ting poured the water from above, feeling like he had become an emotionless water-pouring machine.
Xu Yuanmeng was soaked from head to toe, even the hair mask on her hair was washed away clean. After walking a few more times, her emotions erupted, and she shouted, “Ah! I’m done shooting!” Then she turned and ran away.
The director held the megaphone, dumbfounded in place.
Then anger rushed to his head, and he immediately wanted to throw something and chase after her.
The assistant quickly intervened, “We need to finish shooting today. If Xu Yuanmeng runs away, how can we continue filming?”
The director tugged at his hair, feeling quite distressed. Coincidentally, at that moment, Lou Ting walked over.
Suddenly, the director’s eyes lit up, and he said, “Retrieve the footage of Lou Ting getting splashed and running down!”
**********
Other Novels:
Managing a Divine Beast Kindergarten in the Immortal Realm
Thanks for the update