Who knew if it was because of Feng Yuanlin’s words, but the atmosphere on the way to the set was very good. Although Qi Zhenbai was taciturn and aloof, at least he didn’t give off a cold air. Feng Yuanlin and the others also heaved sighs of relief, and so did Ruan Shenglin.
The village wasn’t big, but it wasn’t small either. After walking for about ten minutes, they arrived at the film crew’s location. The crew had chosen a mountain village with mountains and rivers around it, and the scenery was indeed good. Afraid that outsiders would barge in, they had specially cordoned off the area, and there were people who kept special watch over it.
Thanks to Ruan Shenglin’s identity, the group went straight in. As soon as they entered, they saw a group of people bustling around a table with offerings and a Buddha statue on it.
After confirming that the Buddha statue on the table wasn’t the black one they had seen before, Chi Shuyan and the others relaxed, but there was some curiosity in their eyes.
Ruan Shenglin was about to explain, when the director sent someone over to tell him to go and pay his respects. Before the person left, he looked at Chi Shuyan and the others in bewilderment. However, Ruan Shenglin was with them, so it wasn’t good for the person to say anything.
Ruan Shenglin agreed, but wasn’t in a hurry to go over. He patiently explained to Chi Shuyan and the others that this was a customary practice before a shoot. In order for filming to be completed smoothly, everyone would worship together.
What Ruan Shenglin didn’t say was that he hadn’t believed or thought much of this practice in the past, but after what happened at home, he couldn’t help but believe more. He wanted to ask Master Chi directly for her opinion, but he was afraid that the director and the actors wouldn’t believe him.
If he hadn’t seen those absurd and strange things with his own eyes, how could he believe it? Besides, it was the director who had the final authority in this crew, not him. That was why he wasn’t in a hurry to bring Master Chi to the director. However, he made up his mind to have the director get to know Master Chi and take a good look at her.
Chi Shuyan didn’t know what the other party was thinking. She happened to see an argument taking place not far away, and Ruan Shenglin also realized that Director Wang was part of it.
He was about to find an excuse to go over, but before Ruan Shenglin could do so, Yang Kun, Ruan Shenglin’s manager, came over first and let him know what was going on.
It turned out that while the villagers were also Buddhist, the Buddha statue they believed in was different. The villagers knew about this worship ceremony, and the village chief specially sent people over to take a look. After seeing the Buddha statue which the crew was using, they strongly objected and said that if the crew wanted to film in the village, they had to worship the Buddha statue which the village worshiped.
This wasn’t a big deal, but the villagers’ unyielding behavior was quite repugnant.
Afraid that the matter would blow up, Director Wang had already agreed. It just so happened that they were quite close to the temple, and the villagers said that they could carry the Buddha statue over for them to worship.
Yang Kun actually felt that this village was quite strange. The villagers already said that outsiders couldn’t enter the temple, but they insisted that the other party worship their Buddha statue.
In the end, Yang Kun could only blame it on the fact that some villages did have their quirks, so it was better to get used to them.
As soon as Yang Kun finished speaking, he saw Master Chi. He didn’t expect Shenglin to bring her here.
At that moment, Yang Kun was even more excited and happy than Ruan Shenglin had been when the latter first saw Master Chi. He was about to go over and greet her, when someone hurriedly informed him, “The Buddha statue has been brought over. Everyone, prepare to worship it.”
Yang Kun could only look away. Before he left, he didn’t forget to exchange pleasantries and said in a very good tone, “Master Chi, take a seat first. We’ll come over immediately after paying our respects!”
After Yang Kun and Ruan Shenglin left, Wu Haoming and Xiao Shan were very curious about why Film Emperor Ruan was especially respectful toward Master Chi. However, the two of them had some guesses. Wu Haoming couldn’t help but say, “Rather than worship that Buddha statue, they might as well come over and ask Mas…” He paused, looked at the calm President Qi, and corrected himself. “They might as well ask Miss Chi directly about feng shui.”
Chi Shuyan pursed her lips and smiled faintly. “I only know a thing or two about feng shui. I’m not good at it, so I really can’t help much.”
Xiao Shan, Wu Haoming and Feng Yuanlin were all curious. They didn’t think Shuyan would be bad at something.
Seeing their “that’s impossible” expressions, Chi Shuyan couldn’t help but smile. Qi Zhenbai’s eyes immediately burned when they fell on her face, and he kept staring at her. Chi Shuyan wasn’t blind; how could she not see the man’s burning gaze? She hurriedly restrained her smile and stood at a distance as the film crew held the worship ceremony.
It was just that when the villagers carried a black Buddha statue that was the size of two human figures to the table, its features could be said to be extremely familiar. It was just that it was too big, so there was no sense of mercy on the Buddha statue at all. The huge Buddha hand was raised in front of the face, and its features exuded a ghastly strangeness no matter how one looked at it. At first glance, it made one subconsciously panic and feel terrified. Chi Shuyan’s face subconsciously darkened with a hint of solemnity.
If Chi Shuyan’s face was solemn, Ruan Shenglin and Yang Kun, who had seen this black Buddha statue before, were immediately scared out of their wits when they saw it on the table.
Director Wang was the first to notice that Film Emperor Ruan Shenglin’s face was deathly pale, and he wondered what was wrong with him. Director Wang and Ruan Shenglin were old friends. Although he wanted him to go and rest first, the worship ceremony on the first day on set was still very important. He could only pat Ruan Shenglin’s shoulder and tell him to persevere while the others paid their respects together. After the ceremony was over, Director Wang couldn’t help but ask, “What’s wrong, Shenglin? Is something wrong with your body? Why don’t you rest first today?”
