"Why are you always focused on fighting and killing?" Qi Yu asked with a detached attitude. "The young lady didn't do it on purpose, and neither did Wang Lili. You all spend your time not practicing your performances, but eavesdropping. That's not good."
Si Qing's face showed disbelief, but it quickly returned to normal, as if she had seen through Qi Yu. "Sister, I get it. You must be up to some trick again, right? I knew you wouldn't let go of someone who badmouthed you so easily."
Qi Yu shrugged, neither explaining nor nodding, and changed the subject. "How was the scene you just filmed? Was it easy? Actually, I think you should also take on a formal role. Filming here is really fun, even more interesting than the palace intrigue in our world."
In their world, humans often fought fiercely over the position of the emperor's favorite consort, with several women vying to kill each other. Although Qi Yu wasn't curious about these things, as the Heavenly Dao, she often heard the prayers of those women. Over time, she had come to understand a little. But she never expected that even though this world had no throne to fight for, these women still fought endlessly, refusing to give up.
Chen Xi walked over, rubbing his neck, and sat down on a chair, sighing. "Although the wire work didn't feel tiring, and I didn't even need to exert much strength, just doing a few fake moves, my shoulders still feel quite sore. I just heard them… no, I mean, I just heard the other actors chatting nearby. They said there's something called a spa in the human world that can relieve fatigue. Should we go try it later?"
Qi Yu's curiosity was piqued, and she immediately agreed.
Wang Lili happened to be walking out of her dressing room and, upon hearing them mention going to the spa, couldn't help but chime in. "Hey, you young actors, you can't stand even a little hardship. You've only been working for one day and you're already talking about going to the spa to relax? How can that be? We older actors from my generation have all gone through hardship."
Wang Lili was about to start boasting about her past again. The actors present all showed expressions of annoyance, but out of respect for Wang Lili's highest status there, they had no choice but to listen attentively. So, Wang Lili sat in the center of everyone and recounted her arduous training experiences as a trainee. The others offered appropriate words of praise.
Wang Lili proudly shook her script. Feeling that she had said enough, she couldn't help but frown and urge, "Ugh, honestly, when will Director Wang start filming? I must finish today's three scenes by noon. I have other things to do this afternoon."
Others immediately ran outside to urge Director Wang. Director Wang was discussing the upcoming filming schedule with Director Li. They had originally planned to film all the important scenes of the main characters first, according to the plot. However, today there was a scene where Qi Yu, as the antagonist, had a confrontation with the female lead. According to Wang Lili's usual practice, most directors would film this scene in two parts, first filming Wang Lili's part and then letting the supporting actor film their scenes separately. This was to avoid delaying the precious time of the big star, Wang Lili.
But now, Director Wang didn't want to follow the old rules. The confrontation scene to be filmed today was very exciting, and he wanted the two of them to film it together to see how it went. If they collaborated well, it would save a lot of time switching between shots and avoid piecing together edits in post-production.
However, when Wang Lili heard the director's intention, her face immediately darkened. "What do you mean? Are you saying I have to act alongside some insignificant, low-tier supporting actress? Does Qi Yu deserve that?"
"Director Wang, I joined the crew because I believe in your reputation. Otherwise, I wouldn't want to film this drama. I'm doing this to save face for you, as we are old friends. Since that's the case, you know my rules for filming, and you can't humiliate me like this."
The other staff members in the venue showed signs of impatience, but they dared not speak out. After all, she was popular and had a sugar daddy behind her. Director Wang's expression also grew increasingly unpleasant. He had been suppressing his anger, trying to reason with Wang Lili and not embarrass her. But as Wang Lili's words became more offensive, Director Wang finally lost his patience and explained with a frown, "I wasn't necessarily looking for you to film this drama. It's just that your image perfectly suits the role of the female lead in this play."
"Miss Wang, I'm not asking you to give me face. If you feel this drama doesn't meet your expectations and you cannot respect our filming rules and requirements, you are free to break the contract and leave."
When Wang Lili heard Director Wang publicly put her in such a difficult position, her eyes widened. No one in the venue dared to speak, and the atmosphere became incredibly heavy.
Qi Yu, however, remained leisurely and at ease, sitting nearby with Si Qing and the others, playing a match-three game on her phone. This was a new way of passing the time they had discovered after arriving in the human world, thanks to Wang Lanqing's introduction. That is, playing mobile games. These touch-screen games were completely different from computer games. Wang Lanqing said that she had only started playing these touch-screen games after not returning to this world for over a decade. Regardless, Qi Yu found it quite fun.
However, Qi Yu's understanding of mobile phones wasn't very advanced, and she didn't know how to mute the sound. Therefore, the music from the match-three game was exceptionally noticeable in the silent atmosphere. Director Wang and Wang Lili, who were in a standoff, both turned their heads to look at Qi Yu when they heard the game music. Qi Yu could feel their gazes on her even with her back turned, so she looked up and asked curiously, "What's wrong? I don't have a scene to film right now, so I'm not allowed to play games?"
Director Wang was momentarily speechless. It wasn't that she wasn't allowed. It was just that this girl seemed to lack awareness. With such a heavy atmosphere, she still dared to play games. Wang Lili, however, could not tolerate it. Upon hearing Qi Yu's rhetorical question, she immediately slammed the table and complained to Director Wang, "Director Wang, look, look! This Qi Yu is so inconsiderate. If she delays my time when we act together later, can you afford it? Let me tell you, I have other jobs besides this one, several others that haven't been filmed yet. If you delay my time and cause me to be late and breach my contract, how much compensation will you pay me?"