madnovel Chapter 34 The Thoughts of Three Girls
Chapter 34 The Thoughts of Three Girls
The dinner was arranged at a nearby Minnan cuisine restaurant, with three tables set up in a private room.
"Director Lin, try this sea worm jelly, it's a local specialty." The veteran actress who plays Tao Yinghong picked up a piece for him. "You might not like it at first, but it gets better and better the more you eat it."
"Thank you, Teacher Zhang." Lin Feng took a bite. It was bouncy and smooth, with a hint of vinegar sourness. It was indeed quite good, but the thought that it was made of "insects" inside made him feel a little uneasy.
Li Yitong chuckled to herself and whispered, "Boss, your face is all scrunched up like a bun."
"Really?" Lin Feng glared at her, but wasn't really angry.
The atmosphere at the table was lively. Alumni of the Beijing Film Academy chatted about interesting things that happened at the school, and veteran actors shared their filming experiences. Occasionally, someone would raise their glass, but only take a small sip of red wine. They had to start work tomorrow, so no one dared to drink too much.
"Xiao Lin," Zhou Ming said, holding his wine glass, "I have to tell you, your script is really good, especially the loop setting. It's fresh and natural, and every supporting character has a role to play. That's not easy."
"It was still the teacher who helped me with the quality control," Lin Feng said, clinking glasses with him. "I'll have to trouble you again later."
"Don't worry, I've got your back."
Li Yitong sat quietly to the side, occasionally serving food to Lin Feng, but mostly listening to their conversation.
She had never met so many industry veterans before, and only now did she realize that Lin Feng's success today was not only due to his talent, but also to his character and conduct.
It was almost nine o'clock when the dinner ended. Li Yitong helped a slightly tipsy Lin Feng walk towards the hotel. She had also drunk some red wine today, and her face was flushed, like a ripe apple.
"Boss, slow down."
"I'm fine, I'm not drunk." Lin Feng's steps were steady, but his cheeks were a little hot.
When they arrived at the room door, Lin Feng took out his room card to open the door. Li Yitong was about to follow him in to tidy up when he grabbed her wrist.
"Want to come in and have a seat?" His voice was a little hoarse, with a hint of the effects of red wine.
Li Yitong's heart skipped a beat, and she nodded.
The room was dark, with only the moonlight streaming in through the window, creating a hazy atmosphere. Lin Feng closed the door behind him, then turned and kissed her.
Their soft lips touched, carrying the rich aroma of red wine and... watermelon-scented lipstick. He couldn't help but smile; this girl had actually obeyed and changed her lipstick.
Li Yitong's body stiffened for a moment, then relaxed. She stood on tiptoe to respond to him, her hands slowly climbing up his neck. Lin Feng's hands wrapped around her waist, pulling her into his arms, and the kiss deepened.
Just as their breathing became erratic and Lin Feng's hand slowly slid down, his phone suddenly rang, its shrill sound particularly jarring in the quiet room.
Li Yitong reacted as if she had been burned, pushing him away abruptly, her cheeks flushed red as if they could bleed.
Lin Feng, panting, picked up his phone with some impatience. When he saw the name on the screen, he almost threw the phone away: Tian Xiwei.
"Take...take it." Li Yitong's voice was barely audible, and she kept her head down, not daring to look at him.
Lin Feng took a deep breath and pressed the answer button. Before he could even speak, Tian Xiwei's voice exploded out like a firecracker: "Brother Feng! Brother Feng! How was your first day of filming? Was Xiamen fun? Was it hot? My classmate told me the beach in Xiamen is super beautiful!"
"Smoothly, all good." Lin Feng leaned against the wall, trying to make his voice sound normal.
"That's great!" Tian Xiwei's voice was even more excited. "Brother Feng, I want to visit you on set during the May Day holiday! Okay? You can take me to eat seafood and go for a walk on the beach. I've never seen the ocean before!"
"...Okay." Lin Feng rubbed his temples. "Just come when the time comes, I'll take you."
"Yay! That's great! Feng-ge, you're not kidding me!" Tian Xiwei cheered. "Then I won't disturb your rest anymore. Go to sleep early! Good night!"
"Good night."
After hanging up the phone, an awkward silence fell over the room. The romantic atmosphere from before was completely gone, leaving only the lingering warmth of the red wine and the faint blush on their faces.
Li Yitong twisted her fingers and said softly, "Boss, I... I'll go back to my room first. You should get some rest."
"Okay." Lin Feng nodded and didn't stop her anymore.
Watching Li Yitong flee as if she were running away, Lin Feng leaned against the door and smiled helplessly. Xiao Tian was truly a "timely rain," calling at just the right moment.
He glanced at his phone; the screen showed it was Saturday. No wonder Tian Xi was free; that girl always liked to pester him on weekends.
He took out his phone and sent Li Yitong a message: "Get some rest early, and do your best tomorrow."
I quickly received a reply: "You too, goodnight boss." It was followed by a shy emoji.
I had just tossed my phone onto the bed, ready to complain about this "troublesome" Saturday, when the screen lit up again.
He glanced at it, thinking it was still Tian Xiwei, and picked up his phone to make a joke, but he was stunned when he saw the name: Liu Haochun.
"Haochun?" He answered the video call, his tone slightly surprised.
Liu Haochun's face immediately appeared on the screen. She was still in the dance studio, wearing a black practice uniform. Her bangs were soaked with sweat and stuck to her cheeks. Fine beads of sweat hung on the tip of her nose. She had obviously just finished dancing.
"Brother Feng." Liu Haochun's voice was a little soft, her eyes darting around, unlike her usual composed demeanor when sending messages. This was the first time she had taken the initiative to video call, her fingers unconsciously rubbing the edge of the screen.
"What made you decide to video call me? Did you just finish dance practice?"
"Hmm." Liu Haochun nodded, her gaze fixed on the curtains behind him, avoiding eye contact with the camera. "I heard from Brother Feng yesterday that filming starts today. I wanted to ask... is filming going smoothly?"
"It went quite smoothly," Raymond Lam leaned back so the camera could capture a corner of the room. "We filmed the opening scene this morning, and we got it in one take. Your 'senior sister,' Li Yitong, did a great job."
When Li Yitong was mentioned, Liu Haochun's eyelashes trembled, and he whispered, "Yes, my senior sister is very outstanding."
"You're excellent too," he said, his tone softening as he noticed her emotions. "Don't overwork yourself, take care of yourself and get some rest."
"Okay, Brother Feng."
"Oh, right," Lin Feng remembered his promise to Tian Xiwei, "Xiao Tian said she wants to come to the film set for the May Day holiday. Do you want to come? We can go to the beach together and eat seafood."
Liu Haochun's eyes lit up, then dimmed again: "May Day...it might depend on the rehearsal schedule. I'll see then?"
Actually, she really wanted to come, but the thought of being with Tian Xiwei made her hesitate.
"Okay, just let me know if you want to come. You can also contact Oda later and I'll book the tickets for you."
"Okay." Liu Haochun responded softly, twisting the hem of his practice clothes with his fingers. He still had so much to say, wanting to ask him if the weather in Xiamen was hot, if the movie he was filming was interesting, if he had...
But what came out of his mouth was: "Brother Feng, you should get some rest. Don't work too late."
"Okay, you should go home early too, and be careful on the road."
After hanging up the video call, Liu Haochun was still stunned in the dance studio. The girl in the mirror had a flushed face and her eyes still held a hint of shyness.
She stomped her foot in frustration. Why hadn't she asked him how his hotel was? Why hadn't she mentioned that she had learned a new dance and wanted to show it to him? How could she have forgotten to even say "good luck"?
The phone screen was still lit, showing her chat with Lin Feng. She stared at his profile picture, tapping the "end call" button repeatedly, her heart pounding like a deer.
At the same time, in Li Yitong's room, the video call was still going on. Tian Xiwei's face filled the entire screen, her eyes wide open.
"Sister Xue! Are there many young actresses in your crew?" she asked in a low voice, a hint of nervousness in her tone. "Are there any girls who keep glancing at Brother Feng?"
Li Yitong couldn't help but laugh when she heard this: "How can it be so exaggerated? Most of the actors in the crew are veteran actors, there are not many young actors, they are all busy memorizing their lines, they don't have time to 'glance' at your Feng-ge."
"That's not necessarily true!" Tian Xi snorted. "Brother Feng is so handsome and a director, he's bound to have girls eyeing him! You'd better keep a close eye on him and report any suspicious individuals immediately!"
"Okay, okay," Li Yitong shook her head helplessly, "I'm your 'covert informant,' how could I be incompetent?"
"That's more like it!" Tian Xiwei immediately beamed, then leaned closer and asked mysteriously, "By the way, Sister Xue, since you and Brother Feng are playing the male and female leads, do you have any romantic scenes? Kissing scenes? Hugging scenes?"
Li Yitong's face flushed instantly. Remembering the kiss in Lin Feng's room, her heart raced. "No...no! It was just normal collaboration, discussing how to rescue people!"
"Really?" Tian Xiwei was a little doubtful. "That's great!" She paused, then started complaining again, "Speaking of which, that girl Liu Haochun is really unreliable! I told her to go see Brother Feng on the weekend, but she didn't go even once. She probably forgot what I told her long ago."
Li Yitong didn't respond. She knew that Tian Xiwei considered her "one of her own," but the feeling of being close to Lin Feng secretly, without telling her, was both exciting and a little guilty.
"Sister Xue? Are you listening?"
"Huh? I'm here," Li Yitong snapped out of her daze. "Don't worry, I'll be keeping an eye on things."
"Mmm! I'll bring you some pickled chicken feet my mom made for May Day, they're super fragrant!" Tian Xi smiled brightly. "You should get some rest too, you have filming tomorrow!"
After hanging up the phone, Li Yitong leaned against the headboard, staring blankly at the ceiling. The warm light from the table lamp shone on her face, reflecting a complex expression.
"Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore." She patted her cheeks. "Focusing on filming is the most important thing."
In the mountain city at night, Tian Xiwei hung up the phone, immediately jumped out of bed, ran to her desk, flipped through the calendar, and poked at the "May Day" page with her finger, muttering to herself, "There's still so much time... Why is time going by so slowly..."
She took out her notebook and started making a "May Day Wish List". The first item was to eat all the seafood in Xiamen. The second item was to take Brother Feng for a walk on the beach. The third item was to watch Brother Feng filming and, by the way, "inspect" all the actresses in the crew. The fourth item... she smiled while biting the pen. The fourth item was "Liu Haochun is not allowed to get too close to Brother Feng".
"Hmph, once I get to Xiamen, let's see who dares to mess with Brother Feng." She raised her chin triumphantly, hiding the notebook under her pillow as if that would make time pass faster.
Meanwhile, Lin Feng had just finished showering and was drying his hair with a towel. He had no idea how much turmoil he had stirred up in the hearts of three girls in different cities.