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Just after 12 o’clock, Huo Lianshan, the actor who was to play Li Jiancheng, arrived on time.

While having his makeup applied Luo Ding had heard a lot of people talking about Huo Lianshan. Thus, although he had never worked with this actor before he now had a deep impression of him.

It was common in any cast for there to be actors who act like prima donnas. As for this fellow, as soon as he arrived in the crew, he requested that his residence be changed and brought his own chef to serve the three people in his retinue.

It was a pity that this was a crew full of amiable people and the lead actors, Wu Yuan and Pan Yiming, were both easy going and conducted themselves well. Naturally, junior actors at the bottom of the hierarchy also dared not act otherwise, because behaving like other as casts normally did would instead have appeared odd.

Li Jiancheng played an important supporting role in the drama. His part was very critical prior to Li Shimin’s ascension to the throne. Thus, naturally, to play this role, Huo Lianshan’s background was not small.

In a sense, he actually held a bit more power than Wu Yuan.

Well … in simple terms, Huo Lianshan’s wife was a top-tier actress whose status in the entertainment circle was only slightly inferior to that of Yuan Bing. When a man becomes immortal, his chickens and dogs become immortal too, therefore by relying on his wife’s support, whether it was in terms of exposure to the public or his status in the entertainment circle, he was slightly better than Wu Yuan.

Of course, Huo Lianshan also had quite good acting skills. From the start of his career till the present he had only played villainous roles and sometimes, it required more skill to play the villain than to play the hero.

But it was precisely for this reason that he had few fans. Because he had only played the villain from an early stage he had been typecast to this day. His situation was like a comedic actor playing a serious role, as long as he appeared on screen he would make people laugh. Similarly, Huo Lianshan almost did not need to speak for the audience to assume that the role he played must be that of a bad person.

It was a pity that an actor with such a solid foundation had ended up this way.

And yet, the moment Luo Ding saw Huo Lianshan, he felt that his sympathy was unnecessary.

Huo Lianshan instructed Assistant No. 1 to clean up the table in the dressing room which was cluttered by miscellaneous items and to put down not two or three but four large thermal insulation containers that he had brought with him on the table. Then he sat down heavily on the sofa with a long sigh. Immediately, Assistant No. 2 took an iced bottle from the soup container, twisted the lid open and handed it over.

“I’m so hot.” Huo Lianshan complained with a long sigh, frowned and glanced around the room. His eyes fell on Luo Ding and he looked him up and down, “Who are you?”

“…” Even in his last life Luo Ding had never been treated like this. For a moment he was deeply shocked by Huo Lianshan but he still nodded in a show of respect on the surface: “Hello Huo laoshi[1], my name is Luo Ding, I play Fu Zhu and I will be acting a few scenes with you. “

Huo Lianshan stared at him and suddenly turned his head and said: “Oh, you. I have heard of you. You are the one that’s popular on the internet. From the Ya … Yaxing company.”

Huo Lianshan had a pair of triangle-shaped eyes[2] and whether he laughed or smiled his expression remained bad, yet Luo Ding still keenly felt that the other party did not seem to like him very much.

Luo Ding thought about it carefully. He had never had any interaction with Mr. Huo. He couldn’t figure out where this hostility came from. Thus, he only smiled calmly and nodded.

Huo Lianshan seemed to have no intention of interacting further with Luo Ding. After sitting for a while, he complained about being hot and hungry. The air conditioner in the makeup shed was not up to his standards. His assistants who were obviously accustomed to his complaints were holding on to several other insulated containers while talking gently to him. Following which Huo Lianshan hurriedly left the dressing room.

Luo Ding vaguely heard them mention a lounge. After the group of people left the quiet dressing room gradually became lively again.

“Pan jie and Wu ge have no airs about them but this guy is very egotistical …” Because the staff members did not rely on the actors to keep their jobs they complained very straightforwardly. They gathered in two and threes to discuss Huo Lianshan who had just left.  

“Character comes from one’s heart, if you look at his eyes you will know that he is not easy to get along with.”

“Why are some soft rice[3] men in the entertainment circle like this? I was with another group last time, and that ****[4] also had this character …”

After talking, someone came to ask Luo Ding’s opinion, Luo Ding looked into the other’s eyes and could tell that the question had not been asked in goodwill nevertheless he smiled and kept silent. Instead, he stared at the other party till the expression on the latter’s face gradually stiffened. Finally, he grinned and twisted his head.

Over time, Luo Ding had already learned not to express his opinions casually while in the crew. Now maybe it was just an unintentional word uttered but it could be fatal if used by the wrong person. Currently relationships in the crew were superficial, and there were probably more people who were watching him secretly than he was aware of. Acting with caution was the safest and most effective way to cope.

Luo Ding silently committed the face of the person who asked him the question just now to memory and recalled Huo Lianshan’s disdainful attitude towards him and that he had also deliberately mentioned Luo Ding’s brokerage company. This left him feeling a little uneasy.

After finding a secluded corner, Luo Ding called Gu Yaxing and asked whether Huo Lianshan had ever had trouble with the company.

“No!” Gu Yaxing’s tone was very wronged. “The company’s business and that man have no conflict. Even Wu Yuan has not worked with him before. Is he making things difficult for you … wait, is he an artist of Global Entertainment?”

Luo Ding paused: “I don’t know.”

“Go ask.” Gu Yaxing’s tone was heavy and laced with a little bit of anger, “Find out. If he’s from Global Entertainment, then I know what is going on.”

Luo Ding found the number of a staff member in his phonebook and asked. Indeed, Huo Lianshan was an artist of Global Entertainment and so was his wife Yan Jingjing.

Luo Ding was really surprised. He had spent so much time in the entertainment world in his last life. As a big brother[5] in Global Entertainment, he had never heard the name Huo Lianshan. However, he knew Yan Jingjing. They had collaborated on several movies and he had encountered her across the wine table a few times. Though he was not very familiar with her, in his impression, she was a bright girl who was very open and a good drinker.

As soon as Gu Yaxing received his answer, he hung up the phone and then called back after a few minutes. In the background the clacking of the keyboard as he slammed on it could be heard: “To be honest I was originally unwilling to tell you this but if Global Entertainment is truly involved then you need to be careful.  Earlier I had asked someone to check the origin of the water army that had attacked you on the internet. Currently, there are several suspects, one of which is Global Entertainment. They have regular contacts with several studios who are known to accept payment and do things without considering past affections. The style of the attack on you was really similar to their mode of operation.”

Luo Ding was puzzled: “What is the reason for this?” He had no conflict with Global Entertainment yet they were trying so hard to harm him?

“…” Gu Yaxing was silent for a while before he said, “Before I opened Yaxing studio, I was an artist under Global Entertainment. Later … the fall out was an ugly mess. It has been ongoing until now.

“…”

A fire had broken out at the city gate and brought disaster to the fish in the moat[6]. Luo Ding didn’t know what to say.

“In the past, Hu Xiao was troubled by several artists from Global. When filming, he was targeted by the male lead star An Jing and forced to shoot more than 20 scenes in the rain after which he suffered a high fever and almost went into shock. That group of people have eaten their fill and have nothing better to do[7].”

“Alright, I see.” For no rhyme or reason Luo Ding was now caught up in this private revenge so he interrupted Gu Yaxing and hung up the phone.

Gu Yaxing squatted in the room alone and sulked. He held his head in his arms and cried out. His stomach was full of bitterness and grievances.

After all these years, had Global not retaliated enough? How many artists had they poached from him? How many activities had they ruined? Since they had the means they should attack him was it not useless to attack the artists under him?  

Luo Ding stayed alone for a while and recalled. He did not think the senior management of Global in his last life had ever deliberately mentioned Yaxing Entertainment. It was just that the process of bringing Su Shengbai out of Yaxing was really too easy and abnormal. Senior management had only said a few things implying that they agreed with him promoting the younger generation. Later, when signing with Su Shengbai, the process was also very refreshingly simple. At that time, Cao Dingkun had thought that it was because he was a big brother of Global. Now Luo Ding’s experience combined with Gu Yaxing’s words caused him to think more deeply. Could he have inadvertently been used as a high-level tool for revenge?

Though having to remain passive after suffering a beating upset Luo Ding, he was now even more wary of Huo Lianshan in his heart, especially because there were other artists from Global Entertainment in the crew. Thinking about it, that person who came over to ask him for his opinion …

Luo Ding returned to the group and found a gossipy person to inquire from. Indeed, that man was from Global Entertainment.

Was this an attempt by that fellow to make himself more popular with his agency’s senior management by helping to get rid of the company’s enemies? Luo Ding could not help laughing.

He flipped through his own script. Only five or six scenes were left un-filmed, two of which were with Huo Lianshan. Fortunately, these scenes were not long ones.

The equipment was in place and Luo Ding’s mental state was good. With his original acting skills, the several personal shots filmed which focused on his eyes and body movements were quickly given the ok.

Zheng Kezhen was smoking a cigarette behind the monitor. Seeing Luo Ding cozying up to his side in order to view the playback he looked over and laughed: “You this boy, for half a month since you left I couldn’t find the feeling when I filmed.  Originally NG-ing was normal but after filming you occasionally I’m more and more impatient when NG’s happen.”

Luo Ding smiled. One could not perceive even a little bit of pride in that smile: “I only pondered over the scenes at home otherwise I wouldn’t get through filming that fast.”

“Come on, you’re being modest.” Although Zheng Kezhen dismissed Luo Ding’s words on the surface, he became a bit more fond of Luo Ding in his heart. Talented people were rare and what’s more he was willing to work hard.

Before, while Luo Ding was in the crew, Zheng Kezhen really did not dare go too far with his praise. He was afraid that this young man would get carried away and fail to make progress. However, now he had personally heard Luo Ding say that he rehearsed the script in private. He knew how busy Luo Ding currently was thus as a director, he naturally appreciated and respected such an actor.

Zheng Kezhen moved aside to let Luo Ding sit next to him while the make-up artist followed Luo Ding to touch up the powder on his face.

“Currently the filming of the show is about half finished and while we will need to pick up the pace to catch up later, no matter how fast we go the finale will definitely be dragged to the end of the year.” Zheng Kezhen took a deep breath of his cigarette and said slowly, “I will gradually release trailer clips later one of which will definitely be broadcasted in September. I will give you as many shots as possible, but you also need to cooperate. Go back and discuss with your agent to spare some time for you to participate in the crew’s publicity activities at the end of the year.”

Luo Ding’s existence was already bound to be a blockbuster hit. Before this TV series had finished filming, Luo Ding had already finished filming a movie. It had been less than half a year and there was already was another E.P. with an unprecedented lineup coming out. Who knew how many other opportunities will follow? In the entertainment circle there were not many people like Luo Ding who not only had popularity and talent but also worked hard.

Luo Ding nodded: “Sure.” At the same time, in his heart he understood the implicit meaning buried in Zheng Kezhen’s words. In September, with the popularity of the film “Wolong” it was estimated that there will be a publicity stunt involving him. These kinds of things could not be said outright so these few words could be regarded as a measure of reassurance.

Seeing that it was almost three o’clock, Zheng Kezhen narrowed his eyes. He had been waiting for one person for a while, so he couldn’t help but to become furious. He turned his head and shouted, “Where is that person? The whole crew is waiting for one man, how important he is!”

Luo Ding heard Zheng Kezhen yelling and cursing but he pretended to be absorbed in looking at the scenery and then started to scroll through his Weibo. His homepage was basically calm and most of the comments below were confession messages from fans. As for the popular posts, a makeup artist’s verified account had been pushed to the Top 3 trending position, Luo Ding saw his name and clicked on it. Though he did not immediately recognize the avatar he vaguely realized that this was likely the account of the make-up artist that was acting crazy earlier.  

The make-up artist had posted a gif and Luo Ding smiled after seeing it. For the few short seconds in the gif he was seated in the make-up chair with a very young and toothy smile while blinking at the camera. The resolution of the camera was pretty good. His eyelashes had been filmed clearly and his intentionally widened eyes also looked very naive and fresh. When those eyes blinked, Luo Ding couldn’t help but reach out and touch his own face. Were his eyes so big? He couldn’t tell when he looked in the mirror.

Luo Ding’s eyes blinked, and the young toothy expression soon disappeared. His smile recovered its usual calm from the initial playfulness and his eyes narrowed into a more adult expression. He opened his mouth and said something to the side while the camera swiped around, and the gif ended.

The Weibo caption was also hilarious: “The drama highlight of the year; this master loves to take medicine!”[8]

The howling and screaming flew up in the comments below: “This is abuse! I love my husband’s double personality, I choose to not be afraid of it ! Its best to think this way!”

“This is a mother’s victory! My son is too cute! Extremely cute!”

“God- level cute!”

“Lick lick lick lick, licking the screen, this month, my screensaver has been changed three times. As Mama once said the cost of chasing stars is really huge!”

“What the hell kind of male spirit is this? Ha ha ha ha ha! His ability to wander freely between ages 18 and 28 are unrivaled!”

“Changing my avatar! Does my avatar not look good?”

At the end of the page, the latest comments on the weibo page were filled with people who had changed their avatars to Luo Ding’s cute and blinking screen shots. Luo Ding looked at those people rolling around with his face saying all kinds of unruly words and was immediately dazed.

Suddenly, there was a young man’s voice softly saying, “I am so sorry Director Zheng, Huo ge went to bed late last night after studying the script. After eating at noon, we took him to the lounge room for a nap and got up late ……”

Regardless of whether this reason was true or not, it sounded reasonable. Huo Lianshan was so exhausted after rehearsing the script that he overslept thus it was not good for Zheng Kezhen to stubbornly hold on to his anger. Zheng Kezhen waved his hands and frowned. “Alright, its fine that he’s here now. These scenes have to be filmed before it is dark, we all need to try our best to finish work early!”

Huo Lianshan was surrounded by a large group of costume designers. He was wearing a gold knitted soft armor that glistened in the sun. Of course, this armor was not truly made of gold. It was just that in order to depict Li Jiancheng’s luxury all the props used by Huo Lianshan had this quality. Even the crown on this head was specially customized with gold.  With his seemingly sharp and insidious eyes, he really came across as a little arrogant and supercilious.

Zheng Kezhen was satisfied with his style. Seeing that the costumes were in place he felt better, and for a while he took the initiative to explain to Huo Lianshan the details of filming.

In one scene, Li Jiancheng rode on a horse while the young Fu Zhu led the horse for him. Li Jiancheng on a whim talked about his disagreement with Li Shimin. Fu Zhu quickly spoke to Li Jiancheng, saying that Li Shimin had a deep mind and thoughts and that if not removed soon, he will become a serious problem.

Li Jiancheng asked Fu Zhu how he compared with Li Shimin.

At this age, young Fu Zhu had a high IQ but a low EQ and thus he was a bit annoying.  He directly responded that if one were to compare strategizing and buying people’s hearts then it was Li Jiancheng’s win but Li Shimin was definitely better in terms of waging war and fighting experience.

As a result of this remark, Li Jiancheng hit him with his whip and rode away on his horse so fast that Fu Zhu could not tell that the former had been aggrieved to tears.

When Luo Ding saw this scene in the script he had laughed till his intestines were knotted and he still had a queer little smile. In films most people liked seeing someone who could render people silent and speechless while remaining clueless about their annoying character. Thus, Luo Ding was looking forward to acting out the part.

Huo Lianshan was mounted on his horse. The strong man was covered with a layer of protective armor. Though he was not as good in terms of fighting, with his soldierly bearing he could still definitely be called an extraordinary martial arts hero.

Because the horse was tall and big, in comparison, Luo Ding seemed a little small standing next to it. With his deliberate childishness it could be believed that he was a green and naïve youth.

Everything was ready. Zheng Kezhen stared at the monitor and said loudly, “Ready, 3, 2, 1, action!”

Luo Ding’s was in perfect shape. He immediately took a step toward the reins with a slight bow.

Here again, Zheng Kezhen’s frowned brows gradually relaxed as he stared at the monitor for a while. Luo Ding steps were not too far or too near. They were just right. For a director, encountering such a worry-free actor was like a chef meeting a sharp knife. It was hard to express how much joy he had while chopping vegetables.

Huo Lianshan’s voice came from the side: “That idiot, learning my tricks is just three points[9], Fu Zhu, between him and I who do you think is better or worse in my father’s eyes?”

Luo Ding’s voice sounded softly with some excitement that could be noticed by his admirers. On camera his shy and bashful look appeared like that of an unworldly young man: “Lang Jun[10] is naturally the best. However, although his highness Li Shimin seems to be in adversity now, he is very unwilling to concede defeat. In recent days, his news has reached everyone’s ears. Now that Lang Jun is highly respected by the sages, it’s best for you to take action earlier to prevent him from making trouble.”

Huo Lianshan said lazily, “I’m tired of hearing this, if you can’t tell me the truth then what is the use of you all here?”

This was originally said as a way to be self-effacing and to show that he was so good that his own people could not even pick out any shortcomings. Who knew that Luo Ding’s eyes in the camera were flustered. After a while, the child really dragged out: “What Lang Jun taught me is …”

Huo Lianshan’s display of self-satisfaction was suddenly cut short by this sentence, and he raised an eyebrow uncertainly: “… oh?”

The child stuttered and began to analyze the methods employed by Li Jiancheng and Li Shimin. His eyes sometimes cautiously glanced at the horse and sometimes at his feet. On his face his expression showed that he wanted to be praised for his efforts. At the end, he gave his conclusion…

Li Jiancheng was furious. Although he always knew that he was not as good in waging war as Li Shimin, but could knowing be the same as being told? By putting it this way, he became an incompetent person who could not do anything practical but form alliances. Why was this child so unpleasant to listen to?

His gloomy eyes fell on the thin back side of the youth’s body. In anger he raised his hand and lifted his whip.

When he heard the whistling wind in his ear, Luo Ding knew that it was not good. He responded very quickly and dodged the whip from behind. The whip moved forward along its original trajectory and hit the horse’s neck. The “pia” sound was loud and crisp. The horse screeched, and its forefoot was raised high. Huo Lianshan, who had failed to stabilize the reins directly fell to the ground.

“Cut, Cut, Cut !!!!” The director’s group was suddenly in a mess. When Zheng Kezhen made a sound, everyone hurried over. Luo Ding and Huo Lianshan who had both fallen to the ground, were both carefully lifted up. Huo Lianshan’s Assistant No. 1’s sharp voice rang out of the crowd: “What’s going on! What’s going on? Some people intentionally changed their movements!? Was that intentional or unintentional? Did they plan for the whip to hit the horse? Who is responsible for my brother Huo’s injury?”

Huo Lianshan was not popular in the crew and the people around Luo Ding were more than those around than him. After getting up, Luo Ding patted his clothes and squinted for a moment at the assistant No. 1 who was preparing to make trouble. He suddenly smiled at the crowd, raised his hand to signal them to let go and walked towards the subdued horse.

The horse was hurt and was still whinnying in a low voice. Luo Ding touched its back and neck, took out his mobile phone from the pocket of his costume and took a picture of the whip mark on the horse’s neck.

Later, people swarmed towards the horse following his footsteps. When they saw the bleeding wound on the horse’s neck, they looked back at Huo Lianshan incredulously.

Even a rough-skinned horse had been beaten like this. How severe would the wound be had this whip fallen on a person? Needless to say, a scar would definitely have been left. Fortunately, Luo Ding had dodged quickly. As the person who’s skin and flesh would have been broken open Luo Ding did not need explain further.  

Was Huo Lianshan crazy?!!

At the start, Assistant No. 1 did not know what the look in the crowd’s eyes meant and he followed them aggressively. When he saw the injury on the horse’s neck, he immediately became dumbfounded, and his eyes were flustered.

“What’s wrong? What happened?!” In the last scene, Luo Ding suddenly changed his movement and a lot of chaos had ensued. Zheng Kezhen knew that he must have done so for a reason and so he was not angry. After cutting through the crowd he walked directly towards Luo Ding and saw the horse’s neck.

“Huo Lianshan! Who were you aiming for?!” Zheng Kezhen was a relatively high-ranking person in the entertainment Industry. The thing he hated most was someone destroying his work. Furthermore, he could clearly see the darkness of human nature. On seeing this scene, what couldn’t he understand? This must have been a case of private revenge. He had no idea where Luo Ding had offended Huo Lianshan. “The set is not a place where you can play such games! Did I not tell you I borrowed this horse for filming? Why don’t you whip yourself on the legs with such a fierce whip?”

Huo Lianshan had fallen so badly that it felt like he had broken his tailbone yet the whole crew didn’t care about him and had surrounded Luo Ding. He immediately became angry: “I didn’t do it on purpose!”

Punishing a celebrity who was popular on the internet could only be done on set, so his attack was a little heavy. Although he felt that he was a bit out of control when raising his whip, this was intended to be just a little lesson. Yet did he not also did he not fall? Were they all fucking blind?

Huo Lianshan did not have any idea about the whip’s accuracy. He had not used a whip very much before. He just felt that it would be very painful when used on a person. However, he forgot that there were barbs on the whip so when he pulled on the flesh and lifted it, it had taken off a large layer of meat with the lash.

Supported by the arms of several assistants his face was dark and he limped towards the other side. He wasn’t stupid. In any case he was in the wrong. It was indeed a pity that he had gone for wool and come home shorn. The whip had failed to harm Luo Ding but he had fallen instead.

When Huo Lianshan saw the scar from the whip he also froze a bit, and his original sense of injustice and courage suddenly deflated.  

In the crowd, Luo Ding’s clear eyes did not show any of the childishness from when he just started filming. With a faint smile, his speed was slow and calm: “Huo ge‘s whip is well trained but it’s unfortunate that this horse probably cost a lot of money to rent. I don’t know how we would explain it when we return it. “

When this was mentioned Zheng Kezhen, who had remained relatively calm till then became even more angry. In order to make sure his films were sufficiently detailed, he always rented the best horse. This horse was a thoroughbred with a proven pedigree. It was high and brave enough and had won prizes in competitions worth seven figures. The appearance fee for the horse was worth that of a junior actor. When the horse was rented, the owner of the horse farm had asked him to pay attention to how much feed it ate. It even had to be bathed every day and he had hired a special person to accompany it.  Such a precious baby. It’s shiny and slippery fur had been harmed like this by Huo Lianshan, will the horse farm owner not be angered?!! Would it be possible to cooperate again with the horse owner in the future? Probably not!

Zheng Kezhen whispered to the people around him to find some medicine for the horse. He also looked around and felt sorry for the animal so he stroked its back to comfort it.

Huo Lianshan observed the gazes of the people around him. He was so angry that he could almost shoot fire with his eyes: “I didn’t mean it!”

“Huo Lianshan you know the truth yourself.” Zheng Kezhen was too lazy to play along with him. The other party had violated Zheng Kezhen’s own bottom line. If the film contract wasn’t already signed, he would have changed actors. Thus, he spoke impolitely. “I don’t care about any personal grievances you have with Luo Ding. It was also not him who caused this fuss. My film set is not the place for you to take revenge. If you can’t film well you can terminate the contract. We can’t afford actors from Global in this crew. “

Huo Lianshan’s surprise was completely displayed on his face.

He was a big and famous actor. In the past, even when he put on airs, Zheng Kezhen was tolerant. If he wanted to take a nap, he would be given time to sleep. It didn’t matter if he wanted to change his place of residence. The crew also never said anything about him taking care of his own meals. This had caused him to forget about Zheng Kezhen’s reputation as a famously strict director.

But now, in front of everyone’s eyes, Zheng Kezhen actually gave him no face!

Huo Lianshan’s legs began to shake. He was so angry. Since he became popular he had not been criticized like this for many years!

But it wasn’t until this moment that he found that there was no way he could berate Zheng Kezhen.

Give up? Li Jiancheng’s role was not too difficult to perform. If he took the initiative to cancel the contract, the crew would not have to be responsible for the termination and they could even find a suitable replacement actor.  Make big trouble over this? How could he? Just because of one Zheng Kezhen standing on Luo Ding’s side Huo Lianshan was in a lot of trouble. Didn’t Luo Ding also take a photo just now? He did a good job of storing first hand evidence. Was he not readying himself for a fight?  

Huo Lianshan stared at Luo Ding and suddenly found that until now the young man who he had not valued still had a faint smile on his face as if this incident had nothing to do with him at all. He didn’t complain from beginning to end yet at the start of the matter, he had turned the situation to his own advantage. He had calmly taken everyone to see the wound on the horse’s neck and then used the issue of compensation for the horse, which had nothing to do with being attacked, to easily mobilize Zheng Kezhen’s anger from the crew’s perspective. Relying on Zheng Kezhen’s support, Luo Ding and the whole crew were tied to one boat.

Huo Lianshan suddenly thought of Li Jiancheng’s role.

It was written clearly in the script that Li Jiancheng was a character who looked kind and honest, but in fact, he was a man who firmly controlled his network of relationships.

And the person in front of him surprisingly fit that character.

Huo Lianshan swallowed his saliva. His palms were covered in sweat. He was truly old. Seeing Luo Ding’s smiling expression caused the hair on the back of his neck to stand up.

He waved away his assistants’ hands which were helping him and whispered again, “I really didn’t mean it.”

Seeing that Huo Lianshan was short of breath, the haze in the bottom of Luo Ding’s eyes gradually dissipated: “I know, Huo ge definitely did not do this intentionally. This was his first time using the whip and he was unskilled.”

Zheng Kezhen glanced at him. Observing the simple look on his face Zheng Kezhen knew that Luo Ding was willing to swallow his, anger for the sake of the crew. In his heart he was even more annoyed at Huo Lianshan and snorted coldly.

Huo Lianshan twitched: “Thank you for believing in me. I’m sorry just now, and I will pay attention next time.”

Luo Ding nodded at him, his expression sincere. However, when he turned his back to touch up make up he put down the smile on his lips for the first time, pursed his lips and tried to endure his grievances. The makeup artist who was filled with righteous indignation gritted her teeth and accompanied him with reddened eyes.

“Bear with it. It will affect you if you quarrel with him.” The makeup artist whispered, “We are all on your side.”

Luo Ding nodded slightly and thanked her with a smile. At this point the motherly feeling in the other’s heart became even stronger.

Naturally, he had other thoughts in his mind.

Recently, there had been too much negative news related to him. Furthermore, Huo Lianshan came out of Global group. It was clear how influential Global’s public relations group was. Even if it was just for the sake of Huo Lianshan’s wife, Global must try to keep Huo Lianhan from falling behind. Thus, should this come out, the dung spilled from the red lips of the water army would have to be suffered by Luo Ding.

Rather than let himself fall in that situation, it was better to take a step back. He wasn’t injured anyway and after this incident the whole crew would be supporting him. At least in the next two scenes, Huo Lianshan, would definitely not dare play any tricks.

But the evidence must be kept. Luo Ding was not generous enough to allow a person who wanted to harm him to retreat?

How is that possible?

[1] Meaning teacher. An appellation used to show respect to seniors.

[2] In Chinese face reading “When you see a person with a firm triangle shape they will have a harsher appearance overall as the shape of the eye will affect their entire face” “The same effect is true of a person with a soft triangle; however, they will seem more approachable. An interesting note is that harsh triangle eyes tend to be seen on men’s faces and softer triangles are usually on women’s faces… thus the looks can be “masculine” or “feminine” in effect.” Source: https://www.auntyflo.com/face-readings/triangle-eyes

[3] A man who eats soft rice’ is a Chinese insult. When a man is told, or is spoken of, that ‘he eats soft rice, it means that he relies on his wife or girlfriend to feed him.

[4] This was how it was in the raws.

[5] Main star/ earner for an entertainment company

[6] Idiom referring to innocent bystanders who get caught up in a disturbance

[7]  They have no worries because they are supported by a big company thus they can get up to mischief

[8] Not sure what this means :/

[9] A move in chess

[10] Referring to Li Jiancheng

Translator Notes:

This was, for some reason, an unusually difficult chapter to translate. I don’t think I did it justice.

EDIT: For the sake of continuity I have changed all references to Universal Entertainment in this chapter to Global Entertainment after realizing that in prior chapters the name of this agency had been translated as Global Media/Entertainment. Apologies.

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