The Movie Queen’s Secret Stand-In Lover [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 14

Zhou Ning’s eyes darted around excitedly, fascinated by everything on the set.

First came the makeup and styling. Inside a makeshift tent set up in an open space, rows of simple tables and chairs were arranged, the surfaces cluttered with wigs, hairpins, hair ties, and other miscellaneous accessories.

“Got work for you. Everyone, bear with it.” The assistant director pointed at Zhou Ning and addressed the crew’s makeup artist, “Xiao Wang, her head needs to be shaved cleaner.”

The young female makeup artist named Xiao Wang picked up a razor and nodded.

Zhou Ning touched the prickly stubble on her scalp. Honestly, her hair grew surprisingly fast—it hadn’t been long since her last shave, yet tiny sprouts were already emerging.

The assistant director clapped his hands and announced loudly, “Once your hairstyles are done, head to the next tent to change into your costumes, then gather back here. I’ll brief everyone on the scene together. You’re all experienced actors—no need for me to say much, right?”

The cold razor touched her scalp, sending a shiver down Zhou Ning’s spine.

“Your head shape is really nice,” Xiao Wang praised sincerely as she deftly scraped away the remaining stubble, leaving Zhou Ning’s scalp smooth and pale.

Zhou Ning smiled shyly. “When I first shaved my head, I was pretty amazed by myself too.”

Xiao Wang chuckled. Having worked on the fringes of the entertainment industry for years, she found Zhou Ning’s straightforward and honest personality refreshing compared to the usual crowd of slick talkers and schemers.

“All done.” Xiao Wang brushed away the stray hairs from Zhou Ning’s face and shoulders, then patted her lightly. “Hurry to the next tent and change. The assistant director’s temper is great when he’s in a good mood, but terrifying when he’s not.”

“Got it. Thanks, Sister Wang.” Zhou Ning stood up, thanked her, and dashed toward the neighboring tent, slowing her steps as she neared the entrance before stepping in cautiously. “Hello, I’m here to change.”

The crew member in charge of extras’ costumes glanced at Zhou Ning’s shaved head, rummaged through the racks of hanging clothes, and pulled out a white undergarment and a gray robe before tossing them to her.

More people trickled in—men and women alike—after finishing their hairstyles. Clutching her costume, Zhou Ning felt a bit lost.

She had arrived in Y City wearing a turtleneck, a trench coat, and jeans. The jeans could stay on since the robe would cover them, but the turtleneck and coat had to go—otherwise, the collar would give her away.

Zhou Ning was baffled. No matter how hard she looked, there didn’t seem to be any private changing area in the tent. Not even a makeshift curtained partition?

Just as she was puzzling over it, the girls who had come in after her to collect their plain palace maid costumes started stripping down on the spot—until they were left in just their undergarments. Male extras and crew members walked past without batting an eye, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Maybe this was what professionalism looked like!

As Meditations wisely said—Despise not the flesh. It is but bl00d and bones and a woven mesh of nerves, veins, and arteries.

Zhou Ning adjusted her mindset. The body was merely a vessel for the soul—what truly mattered was the spirit! Only a tainted soul should feel shame, not the flesh.

With that, she swiftly stripped down to her undergarments, feeling as though she had achieved some profound personal growth. Chin up and chest out, she proudly surveyed her surroundings.

“The one playing the nun!” The wardrobe staff member urged impatiently. “What are you standing around naked for? Showing off your figure? Don’t you worry about catching a cold? Hurry up and get dressed so you can go out.”

“Oh, right.” Zhou Ning quickly pulled on her undergarments.

The assistant director counted heads—there were exactly twenty-six newly recruited extras. “Alright, let’s go over the scene. This is a funeral scene. Those playing palace maids and eunuchs just stand in the back looking expressionless. As for the nuns…” He glanced at Zhou Ning, who was grinning broadly. “Wipe that smile off your face. When we start filming, you’ll kneel beside the coffin with your eyes closed, pretending to chant sutras. For specific blocking and other details, listen to Director Qin when we begin shooting.”

Yuan Zhi had just returned to the hotel from an event when she spotted a familiar face in the lobby.

“Director Qin?” She walked over with a smile and extended her hand. “What brings you here in person?”

Director Qin shook her hand warmly. “You’re a busy woman, and you won’t be staying in Y City for long. The schedule is tight, so I thought I’d go over the scene with you while they do your makeup—save some time.” He gestured to the young man beside him and the group behind them. “This is our screenwriter. The others are our makeup artists.”

Yuan Zhi smiled sweetly. “Hello, everyone.”

Once in the suite, Yuan Zhi flipped through the script, her demeanor shifting instantly from the gentle grace she’d shown in the lobby to focused professionalism.

Frowning slightly, she said, “Let me summarize the plot to see if I’ve got it right. The funeral scene centers on my character’s younger sister. They entered the palace together years ago—the sister fell in love with the emperor, but the emperor loved me instead. To avoid damaging their sisterly bond, my character chose to live secluded in the inner palace, practicing Buddhism and staying out of the harem intrigues. Meanwhile, the sister threw herself into the emperor’s service for love, even wielding power ruthlessly, becoming his right-hand woman—only to end up sacrificed in one of his grander schemes. My character goes to see her sister one last time, berates the emperor, then kills herself by smashing her head against the coffin.”

“Exactly. It’s a political drama—the emperor is the male lead’s rival,” Director Qin explained. “Your role isn’t large, but it’s closely tied to the emperor’s second major turning point. The first was when his mother died, and he raged at his inability to protect her.”

“If my character represents the last soft spot in the emperor’s heart, wouldn’t it be more dramatically powerful if he destroys her himself? Instead of growing through passive loss, he grows by actively cutting out what he loves.” Yuan Zhi circled a large chunk of dialogue in the script. “And here—rather than having the character berate the emperor, wouldn’t silence be more effective? She doesn’t want to speak to him at all. She just wants to kneel before the coffin, quietly chanting sutras with the nuns to guide her beloved sister’s soul to peace.”

The screenwriter scribbled furiously in his notebook.

Director Qin closed his eyes, visualizing the changes, then opened them with satisfaction. “That is better. Ha! You really should have been a screenwriter.”

Yuan Zhi smiled modestly. “Most importantly, it means fewer lines for me to memorize. You know how much I struggle with that, Director Qin.”

“It’s been years since you last took on a TV drama, hasn’t it? The industry’s atmosphere is truly terrible these days. Dialogue? Many young actors nowadays can’t even speak clearly—everything’s dubbed in post-production.” Director Qin shook his head in disappointment. “For this production, I refused to accept investors’ forced casting choices, which has left us somewhat tight on funds. The actress they pushed for your character’s younger sister—such an important role—couldn’t even stand up straight, let alone act.”

“Director Qin truly takes responsibility for his work.” Yuan Zhi smiled admiringly. “If there’s a suitable script in the future, I’d still love the opportunity to collaborate with you properly.”

Zhou Ning found life as an extra incredibly difficult. Never knowing when her scene might be called, she could only stand around waiting foolishly, with nowhere to sit. She didn’t even dare squat for fear of dirtying her costume.

The physical exhaustion was one thing, but the mental torment was even harder to bear. That self-proclaimed extras coordinator kept harassing her.

“Little girl, you’re not with anyone yet, are you? Stick with Brother Fang here, and you’ll never lack for acting jobs.” The scruffy middle-aged man persistently followed Zhou Ning as she kept trying to avoid him. “Going it alone like this, you’re bound to run into bad people. Not getting paid would be the least of your worries…”

Zhou Ning frowned angrily at the man. “I already said no! Thank you! I don’t plan to be an extra long-term anyway!” She really wanted to say: Please, mister, stop lecturing me.

“Brother, why don’t you stop bothering this young lady?” A handsome young man dressed as a eunuch stepped forward, positioning himself between Zhou Ning and the coordinator called Brother Fang.

Brother Fang looked at the young man, then back at Zhou Ning, saying meaningfully, “Little girl, Brother Fang warned you. On a film set, there are plenty of bad people. Going it alone is dangerous.”

Fuming, Zhou Ning grabbed her bag that she’d casually tossed on a flowerbed and moved further away.

This time Brother Fang didn’t follow, but the young man who’d helped her approached instead, standing at a polite distance to strike up conversation. “You’re here to experience life, aren’t you?”

Zhou Ning looked surprised.

“Haha, it’s obvious.” The young man spoke amiably. “If you have any questions, feel free to ask me. I’ve been in this business long enough to know most things.”

“Thank you,” Zhou Ning replied politely. “Could you tell me where the restroom is?”

The young man pointed in a direction. “Just go around that way. Do you want me to show you?”

Zhou Ning shook her head and ran off with her bag.

As soon as Zhou Ning left, another man dressed as a eunuch came over and slung an arm around the young man’s shoulders. “What’s going on? I thought you only liked curvy girls with big chests and round bottoms. Since when you developed a taste for this plain porridge type?”

The young man crossed his arms, a predatory grin spreading across his face. “Did you see the bag she was carrying? Chanel. And a model worth over a hundred grand. She’s no ordinary extra—she’s a rich girl slumming it for experience! I’d be a fool not to seize this opportunity.”

“Couldn’t it be a fake? What rich girl would shave her head just to experience this life?”

“No way it’s fake. My eyes are razor-sharp! Did you see how casually she treated that bag? Tossing around something worth over a hundred grand without a care. That doesn’t just mean she’s rich—it means she’s filthy rich!”

Zhou Ning glanced back with lingering fear. Thank goodness, that young man hadn’t followed her anymore. She had a feeling that Brother Fang from earlier, despite being a bit talkative, wasn’t a bad person. His final words were clearly meant as a warning to her!

As for the young man who seemed to have helped her out of the situation, she suspected he was a thief! She wasn’t blind—he had been eyeing her bag the whole time, clearly up to no good. Nowadays, people rarely carry cash, so the only things worth stealing were phones.

Zhou Ning rummaged through her bag and saw both her old and new phones lying safely inside, finally putting her mind at ease. She found a corner to hide in and played on her phone until she heard the assistant director calling outside. By then, four hours had passed since she entered the set, and it was already completely dark.

“Hello, Sister Zhi.”

The male and female leads of the drama, along with the supporting male and female actors who had scenes with her, all came to the rest area specially prepared for Yuan Zhi to greet her.

Yuan Zhi smiled amiably, checked her makeup in the mirror, and said to the supporting male actor, “Let’s run through the scene first.”

“Sure,” the supporting male actor nodded shyly.

Yuan Zhi’s expression suddenly changed. She glanced at him with numb indifference, then shifted her gaze toward the supporting female actor, her eyes filled with barely restrained grief.

The supporting female actress shivered. The award-winning actress truly lived up to her reputation—the way she looked at her made her feel like she was already a corpse.

The male and female leads, who didn’t have scenes now, watched intently from the side, not daring to make a sound.

When it was time for the supporting male actor to endure his inner torment and strangle Yuan Zhi with resolve, she held his hand and said, “You can use a bit more force. Yes, yes, that’s about right—enough to make me feel suffocated but still able to deliver my lines.”

The set was already prepared, and all the extras were in position.

Before the actual take, they had to rehearse the blocking.

The supporting female actress lay down in the coffin, and the supporting male actor took his place nearby. Yuan Zhi, dressed in plain white robes, slowly stepped over the threshold and stared straight at the coffin.

Suddenly! She froze completely.

The nun extra chanting sutras with her eyes closed beside the coffin… why did she look so much like Zhou Ning? She blinked hard from where she stood by the door. It must be an illusion! The image of Zhou Ning with a shaved head must have left too deep an impression on her!

“What’s wrong, Sister Zhi? Is there anything else that needs adjusting?” the assistant director hurried over to ask.

Zhou Ning, hearing the familiar address, cautiously opened her eyes—only to meet Yuan Zhi’s gaze, which was fixed directly on her. She immediately lowered her head, her mind full of questions but firmly remembering to act as if she didn’t know Sugar Daddy at all when outside.

Yuan Zhi sighed heavily as she watched Zhou Ning avert her eyes. This was bad! It really was Zhou Ning! She was probably about to face the biggest Waterloo of her acting career.