I Became Famous in the Entertainment Industry with High Martial Arts Skills - Chapter 37

Chapter 37: Dinner Episode

In this restaurant located not far from the filming base in B City, the decoration of the walls and staircases could not be called magnificent, but the subtle details were exquisite. Coupled with privacy that was considered upper-middle among surrounding restaurants, many production crews chose to have their gatherings here.

Inside the bustling private room, a round table covered with a dark red tablecloth stood in the very center, already laid out with tableware and steaming tea.

Xie Ci took off his heavy coat, revealing the fluffy light grey lapel sweater he wore underneath, and took a seat along with the rest of the crew.

“Everyone has worked hard during this period. Once the entire crew wraps up, I’ll give everyone a big red envelope,” Ming Yang sat in the seat of honor, the small glass in her hand filled with transparent liquor.

“Director Ming is boss!” “Sister Ming is mighty!”

Several staff members holding important positions in the Han River Crossing crew were old partners who had collaborated with Ming Yang many times; they immediately offered enthusiastic support, making the atmosphere in the room very hot.

Among them, Jiang Bo, the head of the editing team, directly downed a glass of wine.

Since Han River Crossing was filmed while airing, his department was under the greatest pressure. As soon as a scene finished filming, his team had to turn into “octopuses,” quickly throwing themselves into extremely heavy work.

Jiang Bo had a straightforward personality; he started drinking with his acquaintances from the crew. The orange-yellow beer foam splattered between clinking glasses, emitting the primal aroma of wheat.

“I won’t say more polite words. Everyone eat and drink well, just don’t delay tomorrow’s filming!” As soon as Ming Yang finished speaking, the carved wooden door of the private room was knocked by a waiter. The delivery cart was packed with over a dozen delicacies.

Steaming water-boiled fish with bright red oil, braised pork with thick sauce that was soft and savory, two palm-sized steamed king crabs, and various regional specialties sweet, sour, salty, and fresh were neatly arranged across the table.

Because the crew had to rush the schedule, often filming late into the night, Ming Yang, as the director, would arrange a luxurious wrap-up supper every once in a while. It served both to reward everyone and to finalize the adjustment plans for the next day’s filming; it had become a crew tradition.

“Try this, it’s not fattening and it’s delicious.” Qiao Mingyue pushed the plate in front of her to Xie Ci.

As actors with on-screen requirements, they ordered separately when attending these wrap-up supper gatherings.

The plate Qiao Mingyue just pushed to Xie Ci contained six regularly shaped pieces of grilled cod, with a thin layer of teriyaki-style glaze and a rich aroma.

Not to be outdone, Yan Feng also placed a dish of black pepper ribeye steak he had ordered in front of Xie Ci. “And this, it’s incredibly delicious, my favorite.”

Ever since Yan Feng had seen the footage of Xie Ci practicing with a whip in the rehearsal room, he had completely abandoned his previous stereotypical impression of Xie Ci and become a loyal follower.

The whip was like a spirit snake; every flick brought a sharp sound of breaking air. The five-meter-long whip could precisely strike the wooden bullseye in the corner; the angle was unerring, hitting the center and looking so cool it practically blinded Yan Feng’s eyes.

He was now fully convinced by the results of that previous live archery competition. He could hit a ten because his maximum strength was a ten, but Xie Ci hit a ten because the target only went up to ten.

How was this a delicate “little white flower”? This was clearly a fierce man-eating flower!

The martial arts instructor sparring nearby was equally stunned. He came from a traditional opera background and was a very famous wusheng (martial role) in his youth before entering the industry as a martial arts director. The reason he came to the Han River Crossing crew was that Director Ming Yang had personally visited and invited him several times, which managed to secure him for over a year to design and adjust the actors’ fight scenes.

When Xie Ci was practicing the whip, he witnessed the full set of movements. After watching, he took Xie Ci to find Ming Yang, applying to modify a fight scene for the second male lead to use a whip as a weapon instead.

At that time, the instructor was gesticulating wildly while talking. Xie Ci, who had just finished warming up and had been pulled over, stood by with a bewildered face, staring blankly at Ming Yang.

From then on, Yan Feng’s impression of Xie Ci was completely overturned. Now, when he looked at Xie Ci, he had “fanboy” stars in his eyes.

In a corner of the dining table in the private room.

Qiao Mingyue’s eyes narrowed slightly, sparks flying as her gaze collided with Yan Feng’s.

Xie Ci lowered his head to take a bite of the ribeye steak Yan Feng recommended, completely oblivious to the “gaze attack” between the two.

The taste of black pepper granules spread in his mouth. Xie Ci squinted his eyes with satisfaction, noted the name of the dish, and silently shared it with Ji Xiuheng.

The phone in his pocket chimed. The car was filled with the smell of alcohol. Ji Xiuheng sat in the back row; after seeing the screen light up showing a message from Xie Ci, his furrowed brows finally relaxed. His fingertip swiped twice to unlock the screen.

Xie Ci: Brother Ji, the crew is having a gathering today. I ate a very delicious dish.

Below this pop-up message was a slightly tilted photo; a piece of steak with a small bite taken out appeared on the phone screen. It looked very tender and juicy, with crushed black pepper evenly sprinkled over the steak.

He replied: “If you like it, I’ll make it for you next time you come to my house.”

The phone screen dimmed, reflecting the upturned corners of the man’s lower face. His jawline was clear and sharp, showing a hint of indifference, but his protruding Adam’s apple bobbed up and down with his breath, tracing out unreleased desire and restraint.

A few small beads of sweat condensed on his forehead. Within the fifty percent pain he felt, three parts of sweetness were forcefully filled in by Xie Ci.

Yan Feng clinked his glass against Xie Ci’s drink cup, tossed him a smile, and then began joking with the person next to him.

Before Xie Ci could see Ji Xiuheng’s reply on the other end, he was pulled by the crowd at the table to join in a collective toast, leaping into the cheerful mood.

Through the thick wooden door, the sounds of toasting, laughter, and clinking dishes in the room intertwined into a lively scene. The night outside the gap in the curtains was as thick as ink, quietly watching the clamor inside the private room.

“Hello, sir, do you need any help?” The smiling waitress, Xiao Xia, bowed slightly and politely inquired of Hu Quan, who had been lingering outside the private room door.

Xiao Xia’s eyes were curved in a smile, but her rehearsed polite words struck Hu Quan’s ears like a thunderclap, giving him a start.

“Ah, oh, I’m just resting here for a bit.” A flash of panic crossed Hu Quan’s eyes, which then turned into a blustering accusation against Xiao Xia, “Mind your own business. I don’t need service here, get lost.”

“Alright sir, so sorry to bother you.”

Despite cursing a thousand times in her heart, Xiao Xia maintained her smile as a waitress and walked toward the other side of the corridor.

Tch, what kind of person is that!

As soon as she turned around, Xiao Xia rolled her eyes in exasperation, thinking he was probably some fanatic fan of an actor in the crew inside, who got startled because he had a guilty conscience.

The second-floor corridor of this restaurant was very long. Just as Xiao Xia passed the doors of two private rooms, another waitress came out of the next room. After quietly closing the door, she excitedly grabbed Xiao Xia. “Is that the Han River Crossing crew in that room? Xiao Xia, did you see Xie Ci!”

Her eyes were full of excitement, and her tied-up hair wobbled a few times.

Xiao Xia lowered her voice and said with a smile, “He’s even better looking in person than on TV. I almost stared blankly when I was delivering drinks just now. His face is tiny and super white!”

“Ugh, I’m so jealous of you. I’ve been busy in the lobby and only heard it from the front desk.”

The two girls started chattering away, discussing what was happening in the room while walking downstairs.

Hu Quan stayed in the corridor for a while, feeling unreconciled, his face turning various shades of blue and white. Seeing that the walls of the restaurant wouldn’t leak a single sound, he gritted his teeth and returned to his own room.

Unlike the room Xie Ci was in, the room Hu Quan entered was filled with smoke, the oily stench of nicotine drilling straight into one’s nose. Hu Quan’s newly fixed nose had only recently recovered and was very sensitive to this smell, but at this moment, he could only put on a smile and say flattering words.

“President Zheng, guess who I just saw?” He sat on the man’s lap with a fawning smile, his tone carrying an undetectable malice.

If Xie Ci hadn’t refused to accompany Zheng Ping, how could he have been pushed out by Wang Mingde and sent to Zheng Ping like an apology gift?

Hu Quan’s heart was itching with hatred. He completely forgot that he had blown plenty of “wicked wind” about Xie Ci in Wang Mingde’s ear back then, and had even shamelessly snatched someone else’s audition opportunity later. Even ending up with Zheng Ping was because he couldn’t stand the life of struggling without a backer and had dropped hints to Wang Mingde several times.

Zheng Ping pushed him down impatiently, moved his pot-bellied body, and leaned back against the chair.

“Stop playing riddles with me. Who was so unlucky that you ran into them?” Zheng Ping didn’t give Hu Quan any face either. Having kept Hu Quan for these few months, he understood the other’s character somewhat.

Sure enough, the malice and jealousy in Hu Quan’s eyes could not be suppressed, and his words were exceptionally passive-aggressive. “Who else could it be? Weren’t you pining for him just last week?”

He raised his eyebrows and pouted, “I just ran into him entering a room with a crowd of people. The waiters even brought in a lot of alcohol!”

The instigation in these words was very strong. Zheng Ping immediately remembered the last drinking party where he saw Xie Ci.

In front of all his subordinates, Xie Ci had severely shamed him. He didn’t drink a single drop, and after causing an uproar, he simply walked away. Thinking back on it now, Zheng Ping still felt his face burning. He only hated that Xie Ci had some stroke of luck and managed to terminate his contract under Wang Mingde using Zhang Yunjiang’s influence, even taking that Mo Li away. It made it so Zheng Ping couldn’t find any leverage to retaliate for a while.

Furthermore, Zhang Yunjiang was considered deep-rooted in the circle, not someone Zheng Ping could afford to offend.

“You ran into Xie Ci?” Zheng Ping’s tone was cold.

“I sure did! He looked very successful. It’s nice to have a backer!” Hu Quan continued to fan the flames nearby.

The other people at the table were minor investors who followed Zheng Ping. seeing Zheng Ping’s bad expression, they tactfully shut their mouths.

Zheng Ping had already been drinking, and lately, he kept seeing various recommendations for Han River Crossing online. Thinking of the beauty he failed to get his hands on, his heart felt like it was being scratched by a cat.

He lowered his voice, “Doesn’t Old Wang have anything in his hands?”

Hu Quan’s eyes darted around, and he gave a laugh. “You don’t say, Brother Wang really did mention to me that Xie Ci’s family situation is quite troublesome.”

When Zheng Ping asked this, Hu Quan remembered the complaining words Wang Mingde said in the office after being rejected when he first hinted at Xie Ci going for drinks.

“Truly a wooden head. No wonder his adoptive parents treated him as a burden. If he dares to act haughty with me again, I’ll make sure he can’t earn a single penny!”

At that time, Hu Quan had just stepped over his peers to rise, gaining Wang Mingde’s favor. Knowing Wang Mingde had “high hopes” for Xie Ci, he was full of wariness toward Xie Ci. When he heard this, he kept it in mind and asked a few more clever questions, which was how he learned about Xie Ci’s family background.

Hu Quan leaned into Zheng Ping’s ear and smilingly revealed everything he had heard from Wang Mingde about Xie Ci, leaving nothing out.

“Good! Isn’t he some ‘rising star’? I want to see just how much longer this ‘rising star’ can stay glamorous!” Zheng Ping’s tone was ruthless, but in his heart, he was calculating that once Xie Ci fell hard, he would have a chance to get his hands on him.

Hu Quan was also playing his own little game, thinking of taking another turn in the corridor later; perhaps he could run into Xie Ci.

But he had the wrong idea this time. Xie Ci didn’t stay in the private room for long at all.

While eating, Xie Ci glanced at his phone, immediately said goodbye to Ming Yang, and had Mo Li drive him home early. Mid-way, he put on a hat and mask and hurriedly got out of the car at a pharmacy to buy a large bag full of medicine.

Reaching the complex, before Mo Li could even close the car door, Xie Ci was already running toward the elevator, his jacket zipper not even done up.

“Wait for me, Xiao Ci!” Mo Li called while locking the car and running behind him.

“I’m going to see Brother Ji. You go home and rest early!” Xie Ci didn’t even look back, carrying the bag of medicine into the elevator.

With a ding-dong, the sound of the door opening was accompanied by Ji Xiuheng’s slightly pleasantly surprised yet weak voice, “Xiao Ci, why are you here?”

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