Lady By The Pillow - Chapter 40

Chapter 40: Working (Part 1)

“A touch through the clothes is enough to get a reaction”

Wei Shu’s sudden appearance on the set of The Empress caused a stir in the film city.

Logically, with the constant stream of celebrities and numerous big productions in this huge film city, one would think people would be immune to celebrities.

But this was no ordinary celebrity. This was Wei Shu, the legendary Hong Kong director of the last century, who once dominated the film industry. She had won every major film award in the country with her trilogy: April Flowers, The Woman in the Cheongsam, and Return to the Summer of 1921. The Woman in the Cheongsam even won the Best Director award at the Tokyo Film Festival, and Return to the Summer of 1921 was nominated for the Palme d’Or.

And yet, this gifted and talented director chose to retire at the age of 32, disappearing from the film industry ever since.

A film critic once said of Wei Shu: she was like a spring breeze, bringing bright weather and blooming flowers. You thought she would continue to lead you into a prosperous summer, but she left at that very moment. No matter how much time passes, it’s hard to forget the woman who brought spring to the film industry.

That evening, several media outlets suddenly appeared at The Empress set for a joint visit. Although Director Fan Erhua told them countless times that “Director Wei has already left,” the reporters didn’t give up. They even collectively bought late-night snacks for the entire crew, just to get Fan Erhua to make an exception.

Fan Erhua had a headache. There were a lot of scenes to film these days, and the actors were very tired. She really didn’t want to take up their rest time.

But the head of the publicity department called and told Fan Erhua to accept the visit. The filming was almost halfway done, and it was the perfect time to start the promotions. A joint visit from five media outlets meant a huge amount of exposure—a rare opportunity.

So, Shi Qing and Wei Jiuqi, who were about to take off their makeup, were called back.

“Wei-laoshi, Shi-laoshi, you’re here, hehehe.”

The staff member in charge of arranging the visit was named Lu Shanshan. She beamed when she saw the two of them, for one simple reason: her manager had promised her a 10% raise if this visit went well.

As soon as they arrived, she quickly led them to the interview area.

Shi Qing held her heavy period costume, greeting Lu Shanshan as she always did, with a nod, a smile, and a gentle voice.

“Good evening. You must be tired today.”

Next to her, Wei Jiuqi, who had arrived a moment later, also said, “Yes, thank you for your hard work.”

Lu Shanshan quickly waved her hands. “It’s no trouble at all. This is my job!”

She silently marveled at the leads’ friendliness, completely oblivious to the fact that the moment Shi Qing and Wei Jiuqi’s eyes met, their expressions became a little unnatural.

Even though their acting skills were excellent, their initial reactions were impossible to fake.

They had friction in the lounge that morning, and an afternoon hadn’t been enough to smooth out the bumps in their relationship.

Working in the same crew felt… not great.

Even though the two of them were falling apart and were tired of seeing each other, they still had to pretend they were on good terms in front of others.

Lu Shanshan was completely unaware of their relationship. Her mind was entirely focused on her upcoming 10% raise. After they entered, she quickly took them to the interview area, which had been set up in two hours, and began to introduce everything one by one.

“This is the interview area. You two will sit here.”

She pointed to two tall stools against the wall.

“I specifically got these high stools from the storage room for you. This way, your costumes won’t get wrinkled, and you’ll look taller.”

Then she pointed to the backdrop behind them.

“This poster was made beforehand. It’s a good thing Manager Wen was so foresightful and made several versions just in case. And look, it came in handy today!”

The poster was a group shot. Shi Qing and Wei Jiuqi occupied the center, a promotional photo of them back-to-back, looking diagonally at the camera. Wei Jiuqi was on the left, Shi Qing was on the right, and the other characters from their respective factions were arranged on either side according to their screen time.

Above them was an ancient-style mural of a divine bird chasing the sun, symbolizing how Princess Ji Lan, played by Wei Jiuqi, would eventually create a peaceful and prosperous world.

The poster, with its power-struggle theme, placed Shi Qing and Wei Jiuqi together, subtly hinting at a deeper, unspoken connection between them beyond their rivalry in the story.

“And over here.” Lu Shanshan pointed to the empty space in front of the backdrop. “This is where they will set up their equipment. And this little table here, I’ll be sitting here and in charge of the cue cards for you. If there are any questions you don’t know how to answer, I’ll write something for you. And if a question is about a confidential matter and you can’t talk about it, I’ll just put an ‘X’ on the card.”

Wei Jiuqi nodded in approval. “The cue cards are great. Sometimes I talk too much and say the wrong things.”

For example, “A-Qing, can I?” or “Even if you get on your knees and beg me, I won’t care anymore,” or “Do I look good because I look like her?”… The list was endless.

Shi Qing caught the hidden meaning but just lowered her eyes and said nothing.

Unaware of the deeper meaning, Lu Shanshan thought Wei Jiuqi was just afraid of saying the wrong thing during the interview and generously comforted her.

“It’s alright, Wei-laoshi. This is a recorded interview, not live, so it’ll be edited later. If you say something a little wrong, I’ll talk to them, and they’ll just cut it out!”

Wei Jiuqi gave a polite smile. “Thank you.”

“Hey, it’s nothing! Don’t be so formal with me! Are you happy with how everything looks? If so, I’ll call them in!”

Shi Qing was momentarily surprised. “Is it just Wei-laoshi and me?”

Lu Shanshan nodded. “Yes. We were going to have Lu Zhen-laoshi and Writer Guo too, but Writer Guo suddenly had a stomachache and couldn’t make it. And Lu-laoshi’s rheumatism is acting up. It’s raining right now, so her assistant asked for a day off for her.”

She explained as she tried to gauge Shi Qing’s thoughts. She asked cautiously, “Shi-laoshi, are you worried that it might be a little boring with just the two of you? Do you feel uncomfortable? I can call and ask if any other teachers are free.”

Shi Qing didn’t want to ask other colleagues to work overtime after wrapping up, so she said, “No, I was just asking.”

Lu Shanshan breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t want to lose her 10% raise because the interview didn’t turn out well.

“Okay, good, that’s fine then! Wei-laoshi, any issues with you?”

Wei Jiuqi, of course, said, “No issues. Thank you for your hard work.”

Lu Shanshan said, “It’s no trouble at all” as she went to the door to call the reporters in.

Soon, ten reporters came in with their equipment. They set up their cameras around the marked spots Lu Shanshan had pre-arranged for them, then adjusted the angles and lighting.

There were three other staff members besides Lu Shanshan, two women and one man, all with experience working on sets. One of the women was in charge of coordinating the questions with the reporters, while the other two helped with the lighting boards and microphones.

They were all busy and didn’t notice the subtle, surging undercurrents between Wei Jiuqi and Shi Qing.

Shi Qing’s robe was very heavy. When she walked, the outer layer would trail on the ground for half a meter, so it was difficult for her to sit on the tall stool.

Wei Jiuqi saw this and wanted to say something, but she held back. After watching Shi Qing try several times to sit on the stool without wrinkling her clothes, she couldn’t help but whisper,

“Why don’t you take off the outer layer?”

Shi Qing pursed her lips. “It’s fine.”

She tried to sit up again, but the silk fabric was too slippery, and she nearly fell off.

“Be careful!”

Wei Jiuqi was quick to grab her arm. When their eyes met, she quickly let go as if she had been burned. After a moment of internal struggle, she said,

“The inner layer is also formal wear, so it’s okay to take off the outer cloak.”

Lu Shanshan agreed. “That’s right, Shi-laoshi. The cloak hides your figure in the camera. The inner layer has a corset, so it’ll look great on camera.”

Shi Qing had no reason to be stubborn. She found that whenever she was in the same space as Wei Jiuqi, she easily got annoyed. Even though she had initially thought of taking off the cloak, the moment Wei Jiuqi said it, she didn’t want to anymore.

Shi Qing, when did you develop such a terrible mood?

The cloak weighed a full six kilograms. To show the imperial family’s extravagance and dignity, the materials used were all thick and heavy, and the embroidery on the surface was all done by hand, stitch by stitch. In addition to the ties at the front, there was a hidden button at the back of the neck to prevent the heavy cloak from pulling back and to reduce the pressure on her neck.

However, Shi Qing’s hair was in an elaborate updo, and her formal attire was stiff, so she couldn’t reach the hidden button at the back of her neck.

She tried to lift her hand with all her might, but could only feel the golden hairpins hanging from her updo.

“Let me help you.”

Wei Jiuqi’s voice came from the side. She wasn’t asking; she was telling.

Not only did she reach for the hidden button, but she also held Shi Qing’s hand that was trying to reach back and gently moved it forward, placing it on her thigh.

Shi Qing’s emotions fluctuated again. She almost abandoned the composure and peacefulness she had always been proud of, almost told Wei Jiuqi to “stay away from her,” and almost yelled “I’m not doing this” in front of the five media reporters.

But it was impossible.

She couldn’t joke around with a hard-won job opportunity, and she couldn’t tell Wei Jiuqi to “stay away from her.”

If she really said that, Wei Jiuqi would truly start to hate herself. And by then, she would be unforgivable.

The skin on the back of her neck was sensitive, especially since she had taken off her scarf after coming inside. Wei Jiuqi’s fingers felt like they had an electric current. Even through the collar, the current could still pass through the fabric to her skin, sending a tingling sensation down her spine and throughout her body, causing her to shiver involuntarily.

“Are you cold?”

Wei Jiuqi noticed her shiver. She held the fallen cloak and asked, “Do you want a hand warmer?”

Shi Qing didn’t look at her or turn to give her any chance to observe her expression. She simply pretended to smooth the wrinkles on her skirt.

“I’m not cold.”

Wei Jiuqi was confused. She wanted to walk to the front to see Shi Qing’s expression, but she sensed her avoidance. So she just stood behind her obediently, but her gaze made a small hole in the wall of her heart and landed on Shi Qing’s flushed earlobe.

In an instant, she understood everything.

Shi Qing’s earlobes only turned red in one situation. Not her whole ear, just the earlobe, or at most, the small patch of skin connected to it—

When she was moved.

A-Qing, I touched you through your clothes and you had a reaction. Does this mean your body actually loves me?