Jiang Yu was the main investor. Because of that, Yan Hongyun said he “had to listen” to his opinion. He immediately took out his phone and turned around to contact the screenwriter.
“Wait, Director Yan!” Yu Rong couldn’t believe it as he watched Yan Hongyun walk away. He turned to Jiang Yu and said urgently, “You can’t do this!”
Jiang Yu calmly sipped his water and asked in return, “Why not?”
“Because—” Yu Rong suddenly got stuck. “Because…”
Jiang Yu said, “Go warm up. Training is about to begin.”
“Brother Jiang Yu, please, since we’re all Qingyuan artists, have some mercy and let me off this time!” Seeing Jiang Yu wasn’t going to show mercy, Yu Rong quickly took a step forward and softened his tone.
Yu Rong was an omega. As soon as he started acting cute, Yu Shiqing quietly took a step back.
Jiang Yu immediately noticed: “Stop right there!”
Yu Rong flinched in fear. “Huh? I’m standing still!”
Jiang Yu gave him a cold glance. “I wasn’t talking to you.”
Yu Shiqing put down his water cup without changing his expression. “Time to return to the team.”
To improve the film’s realism, the production team had hired real soldiers to train the actors starting today. From standing posture to how to hold a gun, everything had strict standards. To meet those standards before shooting started, they had to make the most of every minute.
“I know,” Jiang Yu replied, then turned to Yu Rong with a cold voice. “Didn’t you hear? Get back to the team.”
Yu Rong still hadn’t solved the bigger problem. He couldn’t focus on training at all. Noticing that Jiang Yu seemed to treat Yu Shiqing differently, he quickly said, “Brother Jiang Yu, I know I was wrong. I spoke carelessly just now. I apologize! I apologize to my senior!”
As he spoke, he bowed deeply to Yu Shiqing. “I’m sorry, senior.”
Yu Shiqing stepped aside to avoid the bow. “It’s not—”
“It is related,” Jiang Yu interrupted him. “A mistake is a mistake. If you know you’re wrong, then you must pay the price.”
Yu Rong bit his lip, looking upset. It had only been a casual remark. Besides, Yu Shiqing was already washed up and not worth building a relationship with. Jiang Yu was clearly overreacting. He had even apologized already. What more did Jiang Yu want?
But, of course, he didn’t dare say that in front of Jiang Yu.
“Brother Jiang Yu, what do you want me to do so you’ll forgive me?” Yu Rong asked.
Jiang Yu said, “I already told you. Since you’re so busy, your scenes can be reduced. This will also take pressure off you.”
“But—”
Jiang Yu’s patience ran out. “Enough. It’s decided.”
Seeing Yu Rong’s unwilling expression, he added, “More talented actors than you aren’t as lucky. You should learn to cherish your chances.”
Hearing that, Yu Shiqing looked at him.
Jiang Yu kept his gaze straight ahead, as if he hadn’t noticed. “Let’s go.”
Just as the two of them turned around, Yu Rong couldn’t hold back any longer and shouted at their backs, “Jiang Yu, I know you’re more famous than me, but the company invested in this movie. They won’t let you do whatever you want! If you insist on this, I’ll report it!”
“Oh?” Jiang Yu slightly turned his head but didn’t fully look back. He chuckled lightly. “Then I’ll wait and see.”
“Just wait!” Rage burned in Yu Rong’s chest. He couldn’t stop himself from slamming the table with his fist.
Yu Shiqing heard the noise behind him and said to Jiang Yu, “Thank you.”
Jiang Yu looked to the side. “No need to thank me. I just can’t stand unprofessional actors. Helping you was just a bonus.”
“I see.”
Jiang Yu waited.
There was no second sentence.
Jiang Yu: “…”
That’s it? Just “I see”?
He couldn’t help turning to look at Yu Shiqing—only to suddenly meet a pair of deep, black eyes filled with a soft smile.
Yu Shiqing looked at him with a gentle expression. “Still, thank you.”
Jiang Yu paused slightly. “You…”
Just then, the whistle blew. Yu Shiqing said, “It’s time. Let’s go.”
He didn’t notice Jiang Yu’s expression. After speaking, he returned to the training ground following the instructor’s command.
The exoskeleton armor the actors had to wear was already set up in the center of the training field. The design even included details of wear and tear. The film had started planning long before the actors were cast, and a lot of effort went into set construction and costume design.
The armor was made of metal, so it was very heavy.
After a whole afternoon of training, Yu Shiqing needed help from the staff to get out of the armor. His clothes were soaked with sweat.
In the movie, he played the most iconic soldier, so the coach gave him extra attention. Every instruction required double the time to help him improve quickly.
The behind-the-scenes photographer was filming Jiang Yu. When the camera swept past Yu Shiqing, who was nearly exhausted, it moved to Director Yan Hongyun and Yu Rong, who were walking over.
Yu Rong hadn’t joined the afternoon training. He had left looking smug, but returned looking defeated. When he saw Yu Shiqing and Jiang Yu, his face turned red, then pale. He quickly avoided eye contact.
It was clear that his company, Qingyuan Entertainment, couldn’t help him this time.
Yan Hongyun originally came to discuss the script. Seeing Yu Shiqing’s condition, he was startled. “Teacher Yu?”
Jiang Yu handed his saltwater bottle to Yu Shiqing to help him rehydrate. Then he frowned and said to Yan Hongyun, “Director Yan, Yu Shiqing’s training is too intense.”
Yan Hongyun hadn’t expected that either. He apologized, “Let’s follow the regular standard, then.”
But Yu Shiqing said, “No need. Today is just the first day. I’ll get used to it.”
Jiang Yu was helping him stand up. When he heard that, his frown deepened. “Are you crazy? Your body can’t handle this.”
“I know what I’m doing.” Yu Shiqing looked at him and said calmly, “Since I’m doing it, I’ll do it well. I don’t like giving up halfway.”
Jiang Yu also looked at him, frowning even more.
Yu Shiqing didn’t “know what he was doing”—he clearly didn’t care about his own body. During the time they had lived together, Jiang Yu could already see that acting was the only thing in Yu Shiqing’s eyes.
Training during the day, studying the script at night—Yu Shiqing had no room for anything else in his life.
No matter how dedicated he was, this kind of lifestyle wasn’t healthy.
Yan Hongyun quickly tried to smooth things over. “Well, Teacher Yu, Teacher Jiang is right to worry. We’re officially starting in two weeks. If you get sick now, it’ll affect the filming schedule.”
Before Yu Shiqing could answer, he added, “How about this—we compromise. Let’s go with 1.5 times the regular training. That should be just right.”
Yu Shiqing hadn’t agreed yet.
Jiang Yu said, “We can try that.”
