Superstar's Development Diary
Chapter 104 Busy

Chapter 104: Chapter 104 Busy

The actors weren’t given much time to rest and adjust. After He Jinxia and Luo Sifang changed into a new set of costumes, they started a new round of filming.

Using the same set, the scene they now played was one that took place not long after the story began.

He Jinxia sat gently and quietly on a chair, embroidering with thread winding round and round. She appeared so skilled; it seemed as if she truly knew how to embroider.

At that moment, Su Qingying rushed in from outside, panting, "Water water water!"

Su Qingwan immediately set down her embroidery and handed over the tea that was on a table nearby to Su Qingying.

Gulping down a few mouthfuls of tea, Su Qingying set the cup down and wiped her mouth, still breathing heavily, "I just found out some news. The Ciming Family, who have guarded the border for many years without returning, has come back to the Capital!"

Frowning, she paced back and forth anxiously, "Ah, of all the times they could have returned, why did they have to come back just as I’m about to be considered unmarriageable!"

"Cut!" Gu Qiao furrowed his brows and said, "Luo Sifang, you’re moving too quickly, too anxious. Let’s reshoot!"

The reshoot started from the moment Su Qingying began drinking the tea, because at that time, the camera was only focused on her. This allowed for a direct cut to the previous scene, while the scene featuring He Jinxia before had been completed in one take.

Luo Sifang had to redo the "anxious pacing" action three times before Gu Qiao was satisfied.

The play continued from there.

After hearing Su Qingying’s words, Su Qingwan’s eyebrows knitted ever so slightly, as if reminiscing about something. Suddenly, her eyes lit up, and she looked at her sister curiously, asking,

"Sister, the Jingdu’s Ciming Family is a first-class noble household. I’ve heard father talk about a marriage arrangement between our family and the Ciming Family. Is it the same Ciming Family he mentioned?"

Su Qingying replied reluctantly, "Yes, it’s that Ciming Family."

Sitting down, she muttered, "I don’t like that Ciming Family at all. What’s there to like about a coarse military officer? The man I like should be a graceful young master, well-versed in literature, as refined as the gentle breeze and bright moon..."

Su Qingwan’s eyebrows furrowed and she said, "But the talk out there about Young Master Ciming isn’t bad. Although the Ciming Family is far away at the border, Young Master Ciming’s reputation has reached the Capital. Everyone says he’s a man of integrity—"

"I don’t care!" Su Qingying interrupted, turning her head away, "Anyway, I won’t marry into that family."

Thinking of something, Su Qingying turned to look at Su Qingwan with anticipation, "Sister, if someone from the Ciming Family comes with the marriage proposal, how about you marry the young master of the Ciming Family in my place?"

Su Qingwan’s eyes darkened, she lowered her gaze, the embroidery in her hands involuntarily clenched, and she whispered, "Sister, you’re the eldest, father values you the most. He wouldn’t possibly betroth me to the young master of the Ciming Family..."

"Cut!" Gu Qiao shouted, this time moving on crisply from that scene.

He gave He Jinxia a deep look, then summoned the actors playing the Su sisters’ parents to enter the set. They would film the same scene next.

While the new actors were getting into position, He Jinxia had her makeup touched up by the makeup artist accompanying the crew, managing to get a rare moment of rest.

Cheng Xiaohua had been watching carefully, and as soon as Jinxia was free, she quickly came over and stuffed a peeled tangerine into He Jinxia’s mouth.

Acting in movies is truly busy work, with takes, retakes, and rehearsals... Sometimes a scene of less than a minute can take several hours to get right, a clear testament to the director’s stringency and the immense pressure on the actors.

He Jinxia chewed slowly, savoring the rich juice filling her entire mouth, sweet and refreshing, providing her with a moment of relaxation and relief.

A thought that had first surfaced in her mind at noon flashed through her mind again, and she decided to ask Luo You and Sheng Yan about it when she had time in the evening.

Quietly, Cheng Xiaohua said, "The public opinion has been brought under control. Although it’s been clarified, your popularity has still been affected, with your Weibo followers dropping by several tens of thousands. Brother Luo is considering whether to buy followers for you."

He Jinxia’s eyes sharpened. When the Water Army started the rhythm saying she was acting like a diva, she had guessed that despite the public relations effort, some fans and passersby would still misunderstand.

Moreover, her popularity had skyrocketed recently, and she was constantly in the public eye. Too much exposure would also make people feel annoyed, which is a downside of dominating the screen.

After thinking for a moment, she shook her head gently and spoke softly, "Forget it, there’s no need to buy followers. It’s normal for the number to drop, and while buying followers might fool outsiders, it won’t fool those in the know."

Seeing that her mind was made up, Cheng Xiaohua didn’t press the matter and comforted her, "It’s very common in the circle for people to pull each other down and chase clout. What happened to you isn’t the first time, nor will it be the last. Just take it easy and don’t mind the trolls."

"He Jinxia!" The stage crew’s voice rang out from a distance, and Cheng Xiaohua hurriedly responded for her.

He Jinxia stood up, patted Cheng Xiaohua on the shoulder, and a smile crossed her lips as she said, "Sister Xiao Hua, don’t worry, I won’t overthink. I’ve been dissed before, and being accused of acting like a diva is nothing new; every star has dealt with such rumors."

Seeing that He Jinxia was in a good mental state, Cheng Xiaohua felt relieved, but also somewhat melancholic.

Alas, wasn’t it as if her hard-earned Level Two Psychological Counselor certification was going to waste?

He Jinxia’s mindset was indeed very stable, with early to bed and early to rise, a love for exercise, no bad habits, and the ability to endure hardship... Cheng Xiaohua felt that if the entertainment industry could have a truckload of such artists, it would definitely purify the environment within the circle.

In the set, as the clapperboard was struck, He Jinxia once again immersed herself in the intense acting.

The shoot continued straight until evening.

According to the contracts, actors must participate in nighttime shooting if there are night scenes. If they have already worked for eight hours in a day and continue to shoot, they will receive overtime pay, just like regular employees.

But actors don’t really care about overtime pay. It’s calculated based on the standards set by the Actors’ Union, with specific rates for A-list stars, B-list stars, and C-list stars, all clearly stipulated.

Take He Jinxia for example; even if her popularity is soaring, as long as she’s still considered a B-list star, her overtime pay is the B-list rate, the same as that of B-list stars past their peak.

For some actors who are paid per episode, or for someone like He Jinxia who has a package deal for the entire show, earning hundreds of thousands or even millions, a few dozen yuan per hour for overtime is negligible to the actors.

The first day of shooting "Small Bridge, Flowing Water, People" was filled with intense dramatic scenes. Many actors were exhausted from shooting throughout the day, and their condition wouldn’t have been good if they had to continue into the night.

Fortunately, Gu Qiao wasn’t so callous as to make them continue shooting at night. Having established his authority during the day was enough. When evening came and the last scene of the day wrapped up, he promptly announced that everyone was dismissed.

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