The Movie Queen’s Secret Stand-In Lover [Entertainment Industry] - Chapter 17

Zhou Ning finally managed to shake off the pickpocket and arrived at the filming location, only to find it packed with people—so crowded that she couldn’t even squeeze in. She stood on tiptoe and craned her neck, but being too short, all she could see were more heads.

“You won’t be able to see anything,” a young girl kindly reminded Zhou Ning. “Usually, everyone can’t wait to go home after work, but today, a big star is here. Everyone’s waiting around to get autographs and photos.”

“Are you also a fan of Sister Yuan Zhi?” Zhou Ning smiled. “Me too.” And this wasn’t a lie. Based on what she’d learned about Sugar Daddy these past few days, if she were to idolize someone, it would be someone like Sugar Daddy—stunning looks, incredible talent, and a great personality. She couldn’t even think of a single flaw.

Sugar Daddy had once said she wasn’t that great, just not entirely bad. Too humble.

“Not really,” the girl shook her head. “But my friend likes her, so I wanted to get an autograph for them.”

“Oh… but it looks like filming will take a while.” Zhou Ning rummaged through her bag and pulled out the autograph she’d gotten earlier in the break room, handing it to the girl with a smile. “Here, I got this from Sister Yuan Zhi earlier. You can have it—I’ll just ask for another one later.” After all, she had easy access and could get an autograph anytime.

The girl’s feet were already sore from waiting, so she hesitantly took the small note and asked, “How… how much?” She knew some people resold celebrity autographs at high prices. If it was too expensive, she’d rather wait a bit longer.

“How much?” Zhou Ning was confused.

The girl was equally puzzled. “Aren’t you reselling the autograph?”

“Autographs can be resold?” Zhou Ning couldn’t comprehend this world. It was just something Sugar Daddy scribbled—not a calligraphy masterpiece. What was there to resell? Setting aside her bias, objectively speaking, Sugar Daddy’s signature was kinda ugly, like some weird doodle. Could it ward off evil spirits or something?

“Of course!” Seeing Zhou Ning’s genuine confusion, the girl relaxed and smiled. “Take Yuan Zhi’s autograph, for example—it can easily go for a small four-digit sum. If it’s a signed photo, it might even reach five digits.” She waved the note in her hand. “You can still take it back if you want.”

Good grief! Five digits for a doodle? Zhou Ning understood the world even less now. Then why was Sugar Daddy working so hard filming? She could just stay home writing all day.

Wait, no. If she didn’t act, she’d lose fame, and then her autographs wouldn’t sell. Just like Zhou Ning’s own signature—no one would pay a cent for it.

With mixed feelings, Zhou Ning smiled. “It’s fine, you can keep it.”

“Thank you!” The girl gave her a grateful look and happily walked away.

A short while later, the girl returned and handed Zhou Ning a bread roll and coffee as a gesture of goodwill. “The director’s treat for the night. I heard it was originally your Yuan Zhi who wanted to pay. I passed by and saw them handing these out, so I grabbed a set for you. Bye~”

Zhou Ning took a sip of the warm coffee. Holy moly! So bitter! There wasn’t a speck of sugar or milk in it! Turning away, she stuck out her tongue like she’d just bitten into a ghost pepper.

But she was hungry, and the bread was too dry, so she ended up finishing the coffee.

The palace scene took many retakes and still wasn’t approved.

“I’m sorry, Sister Zhi.” Sun Mingyue, who kept messing up, was on the verge of tears.

“Are you nervous?” Yuan Zhi sat on the rest chair, took a sip of the coffee handed to her by Yuan Xiaoyuan, then closed her eyes to let the makeup artist touch up her face.

Sun Mingyue stood beside Yuan Zhi’s chair with her hands hanging, nodding uneasily. “Yeah.”

Yuan Zhi, wearing youthful makeup, opened her eyes and tilted her face slightly. “Is it because of me?”

Sun Mingyue didn’t dare to speak.

“I’m no different from anyone else—I don’t have extra eyes or a nose.” Yuan Zhi stood up and gave Sun Mingyue a reassuring look. “Let’s try one more time. If it doesn’t work out, don’t take it to heart. We can always do it again. And don’t worry about Director Qin—I’ll put in a good word for you.”

“Mm-hmm.” Sun Mingyue nodded gratefully and firmly.

With her nerves eased, Sun Mingyue finally stopped stumbling over her lines. They got it in one take.

Director Qin came over apologetically. “You’ve worked hard, really hard. Let’s call it a day here. Pushing any further would be too much for your health, but we might need to trouble you to come back tomorrow.”

“When are you wrapping up, Director Qin?” Yuan Zhi blinked her dry eyes.

“Two or three more scenes.” Director Qin took a bouquet handed to him by an assistant and gave it to Yuan Zhi. “This is a small token of appreciation from the crew. Haha, thanks to you, I heard our drama is trending.” He then took another bouquet from his assistant and handed it to Sun Mingyue. “Congratulations on wrapping up your role. For your first drama, your performance shows great promise!”

Yuan Zhi also congratulated Sun Mingyue.

“Come, come! Let’s all take a group photo!” Director Qin cheerfully called everyone over.

Hearing about the group photo, Zhou Ning eagerly joined in.

The front row’s center spot was reserved for the director. Yuan Zhi, as the biggest star, stood to his left holding a bouquet, while Sun Mingyue, celebrating her wrap, stood to his right with hers. Zhou Ning, being petite, couldn’t even get her face in the shot from the back, so she crouched at the far, left corner.

After the photo, the waiting crew and actors quickly swarmed around Yuan Zhi, asking for autographs and selfies.

Sun Mingyue, also holding a bouquet, stood alone on the side, watching enviously. When would she ever be as admired as Sister Yuan Zhi?

“Mingyue!” Zhou Ning ran over with a smile, pulling a lucky charm from her bag and handing it to Sun Mingyue. “Congratulations on wrapping! I don’t have anything fancy, but I picked this up while visiting the temple this afternoon. Wishing you peace, happiness, and a shining career!”

She had bought seven charms—originally planning to keep one for herself, one for Sugar Daddy, one for Xiao Yuan, one for the driver, one for Sister Feifei, one for little Song Yin, and to mail one to Si Tian. Now that she’d given one to Mingyue, she decided to forgo keeping one for herself.

Huh… come to think of it, so many wonderful people had unknowingly entered her life!

“Thank you, Ningning.” Sun Mingyue’s eyes reddened with emotion. Zhou Ning’s well-wishes felt especially precious to her at that moment. While crowds surrounded Sister Zhi, Zhou Ning was the only one by her side. Even if one day she became the brightest star in the crowd, she would always remember this warm moment.

Zhou Ning adjusted the wig draped over her shoulders. “I should be the one thanking you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t know how to get back to the hotel.”

Over in the crowd.

“Zhi-jie is really exhausted today, but she’ll be back tomorrow. Please make way~ Ouch, my foot!” Yuan Xiaoyuan was nominally an assistant but did half the work of both a manager and a bodyguard, occasionally doubling as a driver.

Yuan Zhi walked through the path Yuan Xiaoyuan had painstakingly cleared with a mix of charm and pitiful pleas, stopping before Sun Mingyue with an air of finality. “Mingyue. You’re riding back with me. I need to ask you something about your character—it’ll help with my shoot tomorrow.”

Sun Mingyue was tempted. If she could leverage this chance to build a connection with Zhi-jie, her future path would become much smoother. But she had promised Zhou Ning they’d ride back to the hotel together in the lead actors’ car. If she abandoned Zhou Ning now and something happened… She glanced at Zhou Ning beside her.

Zhou Ning kept her head bowed deeply, not daring to look at Yuan Zhi.

Thinking Zhou Ning was afraid of being left behind, Sun Mingyue steeled herself and asked Yuan Zhi cautiously, “Zhi-jie~ Could my friend come too? I don’t feel comfortable leaving her alone. She’s also part of our crew, staying at the same hotel—it’s on the way.”

Oh? A mutual attraction? Yuan Zhi shot a glance at Zhou Ning, her voice cooling. “Fine.” So much for her unnecessary concern. She’d only invited Sun Mingyue because she was worried about Zhou Ning, but it seemed the two were already smitten, probably thinking she was the awkward third wheel.

Well, she’d be that third wheel. Zhou Ning was spending her money, then flirting with another woman right in front of her while wearing that face? The audacity!

“Let’s go.” Yuan Zhi led the two toward the dressing room, her mood foul.

After changing out of their costumes and getting into the car.

Yuan Zhi sat on the left side of the backseat, Sun Mingyue in the middle, and Zhou Ning on the right. To avoid crowding Yuan Zhi, Sun Mingyue pressed close to Zhou Ning.

“Not too cramped for you?” Yuan Zhi eyed the near-embracing pair coldly, exhaling through her nose. The backseat was spacious—there was at least a meter between Sun Mingyue and herself.

Sun Mingyue smiled politely. “Not at all.” She was growing nervous. During their afternoon rehearsal, Zhi-jie had been quite amiable, but by evening, she’d turned distant, and now every word carried a chill. Was it because of sleep deprivation? That had to be it—lack of sleep made people irritable.

Zhou Ning kept her head down the entire time, not daring to look or speak. What was happening? Why had she somehow ended up in Sugar Daddy’s car?

“Mingyue, what’s your friend’s name?” Yuan Zhi studied Zhou Ning, who was curled up like a quail.

Zhou Ning’s mind flooded with questions. Sugar Daddy knew her name—what was this about? Please don’t talk to her! If this led to bad press and affected Sugar Daddy’s career, whose fault would it be?

Assuming Zhou Ning was starstruck, Sun Mingyue soothingly squeezed her hand and answered for her. “Her name is Zhou Ning. But she’s very introverted and shy—too embarrassed to speak to you.”

Up front, Yuan Xiaoyuan couldn’t hold back a snort before quickly covering her mouth.

Yuan Zhi also laughed. “Introverted and shy?” If Zhou Ning could be considered introverted and shy, then there wouldn’t be any outgoing people left in this world.

“You mentioned earlier you wanted to ask me about the character…” Sun Mingyue cautiously steered the conversation back on track.

“Oh.” Yuan Zhi casually made up a question: “I haven’t read the full script. What were the upbringing experiences of my character and yours before marriage? Director Qin only gave a rough explanation. Could you elaborate a bit more?”

Sun Mingyue, having read the script countless times, answered Yuan Zhi’s question earnestly: “When they were still at home, the elder sister was more favored by their parents, but the younger sister was deeply cherished by her elder sister. So the bond between the sisters was very strong…”

“Mmm.” Yuan Zhi closed her eyes to rest, listening half-heartedly.

Suddenly.

“Snore—grunt—snore—”

What was that noise? Yuan Zhi opened her weary eyes.

“Snore—” Not only had Zhou Ning fallen asleep, but she was also snoring from exhaustion.

Sun Mingyue awkwardly smiled apologetically at Yuan Zhi. “Sorry, Sister Zhi. She’s an extra, probably exhausted after filming. I’ll wake her up right now.”

“No need.” Yuan Zhi stopped Sun Mingyue, giving a brief glance at Zhou Ning, who was dozing with her head drooping. She took a cushion from behind her waist and handed it over, saying, “Let her lean on this. Sleeping in that position will ruin her neck.”

“Thank you, Sister Zhi…” Sun Mingyue accepted the cushion with pleasant surprise, gently lifting Zhou Ning’s head to rest it on the pillow. Then she continued, “Shall I go on with the plot?”

“No need.” Yuan Zhi turned her head to look out the car window and instructed the driver in front, “Uncle Hei, slow down a bit.”