Superstar's Development Diary
Chapter 238 - 239 Silly Smile

Chapter 238: Chapter 239 Silly Smile

The twenty days of role immersion were not in vain, having spent two weeks at the hospital and nearly another week at the orphanage, He Jinxia had entered a state of frenzied acting since officially joining the crew.

While still caught up in the feelings, He Jinxia wanted to shoot everything at once, to fully release her understanding of the character and let out all the emotions that had been building up inside her.

Acting and becoming a part of the story was, for her, a form of release.

With some emotions vented, she felt much more at ease.

Regrettably, while He Jinxia felt much lighter in spirit, others didn’t see it that way; Director Li thought the actress seemed gloomy all day, and Sister Xiao Hua, Jinxia’s assistant, also felt that Jinxia had been smiling a lot less lately.

Sister Xiao Hua glanced at Jinxia, wiped the sweat from her face, and straightened her clothes before asking softly, "Jinxia, what would you like for lunch?"

He Jinxia, her emotions just having erupted, felt extremely tired, and said faintly with her head drooping, "You can decide."

Cheng Xiaohua wanted to say more, but she eventually pressed her lips together and said no more. After arranging for lunch, she turned and made a call to Luo You.

The crew was small and poor; to save trouble, Director Li didn’t hire anyone to cook, but instead gave them food allowances according to the contract, letting them handle their own meals.

Even the director himself simply ordered takeout.

Actually, the crew was quite happy with getting the money directly, feeling that although the production was small, it was a good one, unlike some big productions that claim to provide boxed meals for twenty Huaxia Coins but end up handing out ones not even worth ten Huaxia Coins.

In production crews, the job of cooking can be a lucrative opportunity, and some just look to pocket that money, frequently engaging in bait-and-switch schemes.

"Hello?" It wasn’t long before Luo You answered the phone.

Cheng Xiaohua looked around, then said with evident concern, "Brother Luo, I think Jinxia has been acting a bit off lately!"

Luo You’s eyebrows knitted together as he quickly put down the document in his hand, asking anxiously, "What happened?"

Cheng Xiaohua said in a low voice, "Her mood seems off, quite gloomy, she’s always daydreaming, and I don’t know what she’s thinking about."

A hint of puzzlement flashed in Luo You’s eyes. "Has it been like this since she joined the crew?"

With a confirming hum, Cheng Xiaohua continued, "I wasn’t with Jinxia when she was experiencing the role, so I’m not sure about her temperament, but from yesterday when she started shooting with the crew, it’s like she has become a different person."

A suspicion rose in Luo You’s mind as he asked, "How is she doing with her acting?"

Cheng Xiaohua, recalling the expression Jinxia had while acting, couldn’t help but praise, "It’s excellent, quite shocking, even the director was surprised."

After thinking for a moment, Luo You said, "Then it’s very possible that she’s become immersed in the role, and that depth can cause such a reaction. Jinxia’s character is challenging, after all, representing a special group. Keep a closer eye on her."

Cheng Xiaohua acknowledged with a "Yes", and as she hung up the phone, she turned to look at He Jinxia again, noticing that Jinxia was sitting on a bench in the shade, looking at her phone and suddenly laughing.

The smile seemed a bit goofy.

Cheng Xiaohua, unsettled by the sudden shift from gloom to radiance, worried that such erratic mood swings were the precursors of illness.

She approached and saw that He Jinxia was chatting on WeChat. Jinxia hadn’t changed the chat interface from its default setting, and Sister Xiao Hua recognized it at a glance.

She frowned slightly, who was Jinxia chatting with, and why was she so happy?

"Jinxia?" Cheng Xiaohua called from behind her, but He Jinxia didn’t hear.

"Jinxia!" The second call finally got He Jinxia’s attention. She looked back and discovered it was Sister Xiao Hua, got startled, quickly flipped her phone face down to hide the chat interface on the table, smoothed her hair with her hand, and asked calmly,

"Hmm, Sister Xiao Hua, what are you looking for me for?"

Cheng Xiaohua glanced at the back of the phone and a hint of suspicion arose in her heart. Jinxia’s series of actions were too conspicuous, making it difficult for others not to overthink, as if she were hiding something.

"Who were you chatting with just now, you seemed so happy, and didn’t respond even after I called you several times?" Cheng Xiaohua asked, her eyes twinkling.

He Jinxia blinked, a flash of inspiration struck her mind, and she said, "I was chatting with my mom."

Cheng Xiaohua uttered an "Oh," but still wore a skeptical look, glancing several times at the back of the phone, feeling something was amiss.

Jinxia felt uncomfortable under her gaze and put on an awkward smile. She reached out her hand, grabbed the phone from the table in a few swift moves, and immediately turned off the screen.

Cheng Xiaohua looked up again at He Jinxia, who still carried a smile on her face.

Under the suspicious, confused, and discomfiting eyes of others, He Jinxia harnessed her actor’s instincts and faced everything with a smile while her heart quietly tensed up.

After Sister Xiao Hua left, He Jinxia couldn’t help but sigh a sigh of relief, thinking to herself, "That was close!"

On the other side, unbeknownst to Sheng Yan that his alias was on the brink of being exposed, he saw that He Jinxia had not replied to his message, so he picked up the script to see the scenes they were going to shoot next.

It was now July, and "World" was inching closer to the final wrap. The end was just a matter of days away.

Instead of decreasing as the wrap approached, Sheng Yan’s scenes became increasingly intense. These past few days were filled with action sequences, leaving him feeling as if his bones were crushed after each day’s shoot.

"Sheng Yan, I have a new idea, what do you think?" Suddenly, Director Li’s go-to screenwriter came over, excitedly proposing.

Sheng Yan suddenly felt a headache coming on.

Director Li’s go-to screenwriter was naturally top-tier in the industry. Among the dozens of works he had crafted, two-thirds were blockbusters, and although the remaining third tanked at the box office, they at least won awards.

The screenwriter was very talented, but he also had a downside: he loved changing the script, even while shooting.

Even though he was the writer of his scripts, once they went into production, the changes would be significant. It was one thing to modify a scene, but sometimes even the main plotline was altered!

Outwardly, the screenwriter claimed that shooting the film brought new inspirations, leading to constant tweaks to the script. However, for Sheng Yan, these adjustments were a burden.

Since the start of "World," the movie had been progressing very well. If they had stuck to the original script, he could have wrapped up by mid-last month, but script changes delayed the wrap until July.

"I feel like Prince Chen’s character can be further developed. I want to add more drama scenes for him. We can add a scene by the bridge where he drinks under the moon and converses with King Chu. We could also include a strategist when deploying troops..."

The screenwriter rattled off a bunch, his eyes shining as he looked at Sheng Yan, and asked, "What do you think?"

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