As the director had not yet cut the scene, Yan Huan continued to chew on the sunflower seeds, an enigmatic smile on her lips. Qi Haolin, too, continued to act; he was a veteran actor and knew he had to remain in character as long as the camera was rolling.
Director Jin was impressed: it was apparent to him that Yan Huan was a highly proficient actress despite being only 20 years old. She had the entire set under her spell with her easy confidence.
Since the camera was still rolling, Yan Huan continued to act. The actors around her automatically followed her lead, they remained in-character even as they quietly withdrew into the background to allow her to shine.
Yan Huan dropped the remaining sunflower seeds in her hand. “Sir, I know that you’re a high-ranking officer, but that doesn’t mean you can do whatever you like. The military police is supposed to serve the people.” The smile on her face was extremely seductive. “You barged in here, wrecked the place, and now you want to leave, just like that. Surely you can do better than that?”
Madame Huang’s heart skipped a beat. She resisted the urge to wipe the drops of cold sweat rolling off her forehead.
Jiang Chao stared at Hong Yao for a long while. Hong Yao, however, was entirely unfazed. She did not fear death; she was aware that her life had no meaning and was of no value to anyone. She was nothing more than a waste of oxygen and water: alive, dead, what difference did it make?
But she would not stand aside and let these soldiers push her sisters at the brothel around. So what if they had to earn their living by spreading their legs? It was a dishonorable job, but not illegal. They were citizens, and had rights. Hong Yao was not about to let the soldiers walk away scot-free after wrecking the place. You break it, you pay for it— that was the universal rule.
Jiang Chao extended a hand to his side. One of his soldiers immediately walked over and placed a small box into his open palm.
Jiang Chao opened it to reveal gold pieces.
“Is this enough for you?” His eyes were filled with contempt.
“Y-Yes…” Madam Huang quickly ran over to him, grabbed the box, and pressed it into her bosom. She cooed to it under her breath, My precious gold, oh, look at all these little “goldfish!” She made sure no one was looking, and furtively bit into one of the gold pieces to make sure it was real.
“Thank you, Sir.” Hong Yao hopped off the table easily, landing lightly on both feet. She walked over to Jiang Chao and leaned forward seductively as she traced his chest with a finger. “You should ask for me sometime. I’ll be waiting…”
She winked seductively at Jiang Chao. Her acting was absolutely flawless, it was the look of a shameless, degenerate prostitute.
No, it was an insult to call it “acting”—at that moment there was only Hong Yao; Yan Huan had ceased to exist.
Jiang Chao slapped her hand away. He said impassively, “Have you been to a hospital to get tested?”
Hong Yao withdrew her hand. She turned around; the other actors could not see the melancholic smile on her face, but the camera did not miss it.
She continued to smile as she hummed a nostalgic melody. Her quiet humming was seductive, but her heart was in pain. A solitary tear rolled down her cheek.
“Cut,” Director Jin finally shouted.
Yan Huan dried her tears. She was already back to being Yan Huan; she slipped in and out of character as easily as changing into costume.
“Good job.” Director Jin patted Yan Huan on the shoulder. He said cheerfully, “You can go home and take it easy now. I’ll give you a call when it’s time to shoot your scenes for the second half of the show.”
Director Jin was in a good mood because he enjoyed working with Yan Huan. She rarely made mistakes, and most of her scenes had been completed in a single take. He was thankful for that since they were running on a tight schedule and did not have time to waste on retakes.
“Oh, by the way,” Director Jin interjected suddenly. “Ms. Yan, have you signed with an agent yet?”
Yan Huan shook her head. “No, not yet.” She did not have enough roles under her belt to look for an agent just yet. No entertainment agency worth their salt would give a nobody like her the time of day.
