Zhao Yu Jiao defected to another prince who was preparing to raise an army against the Crown Prince. Xiao Liu Yun brought his own men, and the prince naturally saw no reason to refuse them. Xiao Liu Yun stated that he would submit to Zhao Yu Jiao's disposal once the dust settled. Both sides temporarily set aside their hatred to jointly oppose the Crown Prince and Ming Yue Lou.
Just as they were leading a large army towards the imperial city, the Crown Prince threatened people from the Long Qin Wang Manor, including Zhao Yu Jiao's mother, forcing Zhao Yu Jiao and Xiao Liu Yun to go to the palace. With her mother in enemy hands, Zhao Yu Jiao could not stand idly by. Xiao Liu Yun followed her to the palace, only to discover that the Crown Prince wanted them to deal with the Master of Ming Yue Lou.
The two had no choice but to comply. With the cooperation of the imperial army, they fought their way to Ming Yue Lou, forcing the Master to appear. Although Zhao Yu Jiao was highly skilled, she was no match for the Master of Ming Yue Lou. Xiao Liu Yun stepped forward to help. Out of consideration for their past relationship, he did not initiate an attack on Ming Yue Lou. However, the Crown Prince's men took the opportunity to strike, severely wounding the Master.
The Crown Prince emerged at this point, believing Ming Yue Lou was finished. With Zhao Yu Jiao and Xiao Liu Yun under his control, the prince who had joined them midway was no longer a threat. However, there was a twist. The severely wounded Master of Ming Yue Lou was merely a fake. No one had expected the true Master of Ming Yue Lou to be a woman. This revelation shattered the rumors of the Master of Ming Yue Lou being a homosexual, and it also dashed the Crown Prince's hopes. The true Master of Ming Yue Lou was beyond the capabilities of Xiao Liu Yun and Zhao Yu Jiao. In fact, amidst the vast army, she effortlessly killed the Crown Prince.
Just as she triumphantly returned to her young lover, she was stabbed through the heart by him. He was initially an agent of the Crown Prince, then of the Master of Ming Yue Lou. With both masters dead, he also committed suicide.
With the deaths of the Crown Prince and the Master of Ming Yue Lou, the prince who had joined them reaped immense rewards and became the Emperor. He offered Xiao Liu Yun titles and honors, which Xiao Liu Yun refused. He wished to bestow the title of princess upon Zhao Yu Jiao, but she also declined. There was the deep enmity of a murdered father between them. Zhao Yu Jiao could not kill Xiao Liu Yun, nor would she be with him. Although they survived this conflict, the story did not have a happy ending. Ultimately, Zhao Yu Jiao became the true Princess of Yu Cheng, while Xiao Liu Yun continued his wanderings across the land.
Examining the script alone, many plot points felt rushed. This was an area where the actors needed to fill the gaps with their performances. In the original script, the Master of Ming Yue Lou never revealed their true face, only appearing at the end with a face identical to the Crown Prince's, explaining his aversion to the royal family. However, this felt somewhat cliché. Zhuo Ni asked Yao Chong to design a CP for them. After discussing with the screenwriter, Yao Chong decided to change this aspect. For those in the martial world, love and hate did not require so many reasons. Furthermore, by deviating from the royal bloodline, the character of the Master of Ming Yue Lou would be more fleshed out, portraying them as an ambitious and ruthless individual. The dramatic death at the hands of the knight errant played by Chong Yan fulfilled the CP requirement and added a twist to the story, making the ending less predictable.
Zhuo Ni finished reading the script. Apart from her dissatisfaction with the tragic ending where they both died, she had no other objections. Hearing her discontent, Yao Chong chuckled and said, "She's a major villain, and you still want her to live forever? Let me tell you, this character has a lot of fight scenes. If you don't perform well, I'll find someone else."
Zhuo Ni immediately replied, "No, no, no, I'll definitely act well. When do we start shooting? I can go now."
"Go where?" Yao Chong cursed in exasperation. "I brought you here to look at the script. If there are no issues, we'll finalize it. Go to the makeup room and get your makeup done. We haven't released the character photos yet, so this is perfect."
Zhuo Ni and Chong Yan were led to the makeup room. Chong Yan was playing a handsome knight errant, who was saved by the Crown Prince. The Crown Prince selected him to get close to the Master of Ming Yue Lou because of his good looks. As for Zhuo Ni, she was to wear a half-mask, and her overall appearance should be androgynous, creating a sense of confusion for the audience not only in the film but also in the character photos.
The makeup process was quite involved. Primarily, Zhuo Ni's current face was rather soft, and her demeanor differed significantly from that of the Master of Ming Yue Lou. Zhuo Ni grew impatient and asked, "Is it almost done?"
"Teacher Yao's eyes are quite soft, so the eye makeup is difficult to apply."
Zhuo Ni's gaze suddenly changed, her entire demeanor shifting from soft to sharp. The makeup artist, startled, almost dropped his tools. "Does this still look soft?"
After a moment of stunned silence, the makeup artist shook his head repeatedly. "Not soft, this is it. This is perfect."
Zhuo Ni then stood up. "Then let's go." She was wearing a black brocade robe with intricate gold thread embroidery, making her look luxurious and mysterious. Her facial features were deliberately sculpted to appear more angular, and her eye makeup was leaning towards masculine. For now, she wore a wig, but for the official shoot, she would need to have long hair with complete styling. Her hands were also meticulously worked on by the makeup artist. Since her face wouldn't be fully visible, other areas needed careful attention.
The character photos for the others had already been taken. Now it was their turn. It didn't take too long, although the photographer was amazed at how well-matched they looked and couldn't resist taking a few extra shots. After the photoshoot, that evening, the production team of "Yu Lou Jiao" released all the character photos. However, apart from the protagonists, the other characters were unnamed.
The female lead of the world, Qiao Yi Yi, played a seductive female assassin from a brothel under the Master of Ming Yue Lou. She was infatuated with Xiao Liu Yun. Her character's billing was third female lead. In the early stages, she did many things to coerce Xiao Liu Yun and almost became Zhao Yu Jiao's "madam," which is why Xiao Liu Yun was initially very repulsed by her. Later, she was executed by the Master of Ming Yue Lou for concealing information about Zhao Yu Jiao and Xiao Liu Yun. Her character became less detestable. This was Yao Chong's film, and as a newcomer, she was fortunate to receive such a role. If she had any sense, she wouldn't cause trouble.
The actress playing Zhao Yu Jiao was nurtured by Yao Chong. The actor playing the male lead, Xiao Liu Yun, was known for his good temper in the industry. With Yao Chong, a great director, at the helm, the atmosphere on set was excellent. Almost everyone was a seasoned actor. Except for the occasional instances where Yao Chong would obsess over certain shots, demanding multiple takes with a compulsive nature, the filming proceeded very smoothly. He noticed that his daughter's acting had improved. There were almost no retakes.
The Master of Ming Yue Lou's character was defined by their combat prowess, and Zhuo Ni handled it with ease. While others were suspended by wires to fly, she pulled the wires herself, making Yao Chong sometimes suspect she could actually fly and was just pretending to surprise them. Chong Yan, as a newcomer, also surprised everyone with his performance. Similarly, in terms of fight scenes, he grasped them instantly, his movements fluid and unhesitating. Sometimes, his casual actions were better than what the instructors taught, leaving the instructors dumbfounded. Today's filming involved his first fight scene with the Master of Ming Yue Lou.