Shen Xuanrun was a little surprised when he saw Gu Weichen on set.
Oh, hey, the investor is actually Gu Weichen! Looks like Gu Weichen has pretty good taste. After all, Battle in the Sea of Commerce is a very promising drama.
Hearing the young man's thoughts, a trace of amusement entered Gu Weichen's eyes.
But having that scumbag Jiang Yi play the male lead will only ruin this drama, Shen Xuanrun lamented silently.
Gu Weichen glanced at Jiang Yi, and his expression darkened again.
The producer standing beside Gu Weichen was panicking. Why is President Gu like an LED color-changing light, his face turning red one moment and green the next? I'm under a lot of pressure here, okay? _(:з"∠)_ I'm just a lowly producer! T_T
After the character photos were taken and the accommodations were quickly assigned, the director, producer, investors, and several principal cast members all went out for a meal. Gu Weichen, the investor, had specially booked out a large hotel.
When they arrived at the venue and Gu Weichen took his seat, the investors and director sat beside him.
"Haha, today marks the start of our production. Our President Gu, Mr. Gu Weichen, has specially booked out a large hotel to celebrate with us. Come, let's raise a glass to President Gu," said the director, Cheng Hao, with a jovial smile.
Jiang Yi's eyes instantly widened, then slowly turned calculating. He had never met Gu Weichen before and had initially assumed the investor was just an ordinary rich man.
After everyone had offered their toasts, the director introduced the principal cast members.
"President Gu, this is our male lead, Jiang Yi. He plays Lin Jiexuan."
"Hello, President Gu. I heard about you while I was pursuing further studies abroad," Jiang Yi said obsequiously, hoping to highlight his abilities by mentioning his further studies.
Gu Weichen merely gave a faint nod.
Next came the introduction of the female lead, Deng Yingying. She was a rising young actress who was currently enjoying great popularity, but she knew her own limits very well and scoffed at Jiang Yi's flattery. In her eyes, President Gu wasn't someone who could be attracted by pretty faces like theirs. But why did she feel that President Gu and Shen Xuanrun looked so good together? ✪ω✪
After the female lead's introduction, Jiang Yi saw that Gu Weichen again gave only a faint nod. Deciding that Gu Weichen treated everyone this way, he felt reassured.
"President Gu, this is our second male lead, Shen Xuanrun, who plays Zhao Ziru."
Ignore me, ignore me, Shen Xuanrun chanted inwardly.
"I know. I had the good fortune of meeting him before," Gu Weichen said with amusement in his eyes, deliberately going against Shen Xuanrun's wishes.
Deng Yingying: Why is this a little sweet? I'm shipping them. ✪ω✪
"I had the good fortune of meeting President Gu before," Shen Xuanrun could only echo.
Waaah! You just had to say it, didn't you? Now everyone's looking at me! How am I supposed to concentrate on eating? My beloved big lobster, my most beloved big crab, my most, most beloved braised pork! Why do you have such a big mouth? ⊙﹏⊙
Shen Xuanrun switched into nonstop grumbling mode.
Gu Weichen raised his eyebrows, visibly pleased.
Deng Yingying stole a look at Gu Weichen, then another at Shen Xuanrun: Please cue up some background music for me-This Is Love.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yi's face was full of gloom, and he shot Shen Xuanrun a vicious glare.
See? See? Now that scumbag Jiang Yi is glaring daggers at me like he has a grudge! It's all because you diverted his attention. He's definitely going to stir up trouble in a minute. I could have eaten in peace! Waaah!
Shen Xuanrun wailed inwardly.
Gu Weichen glanced at Jiang Yi without betraying anything, meeting the eyes of Jiang Yi, who had been sneaking a look at him.
Jiang Yi was frightened by his dark expression. Gu Weichen looked at him as though he were a rat in a gutter, as though he wasn't fit for polite company. Jiang Yi broke into a cold sweat.
The producer beside him: President Gu, why have you switched back into LED color-changing light mode? Your expression changes so fast, my poor little heart can't take it! T_T
The director, Cheng Hao, hadn't noticed a thing and was just wolfing down his food. Oh man, this is delicious.
Looking at the utterly oblivious, dopey Cheng Hao, the producer suddenly began to envy his obtuseness. Boohoo, fools really do have all the luck. _(:з"∠)_
Jiang Yi had no idea why Gu Weichen looked so hostile toward him, since they had never met before. After being frightened by his dark expression, he didn't stir up any trouble, and Shen Xuanrun enjoyed a good meal.
Once everyone had finished eating, they all planned to return to their accommodations and prepare for filming to officially begin the next day.
Shen Xuanrun silently wished, Ignore me, ignore me. Better yet, leave quickly. Even better if you draw Jiang Yi away with you.
Gu Weichen, however, followed them, telling the director that he wanted to visit the actors to understand the standard of their accommodations. Any problems could be solved in advance with money (our President Gu had no other faults, just too much money), which would also help them film better. As the name suggested, Comrade Moneybags was simply willing to spend money to watch Shen Xuanrun bristle.
The dopey director, Cheng Hao, naturally agreed with great pleasure. With money falling from the sky, why wouldn't he?
Gu Weichen declined the director's offer to guide him and walked into the actors' lodgings himself. The director hurried after him.
Shen Xuanrun lived on the fifth floor. He entered the stairwell and discovered that Gu Weichen was following him the whole way, with the director and producer behind him.
Waaah! Why do you keep following me? I ate too much, and I need to burp! I can't hold it in much longer! Turn off somewhere already! Shen Xuanrun wailed inwardly, his face perfectly calm.
Hiding the amusement in his eyes, Gu Weichen stepped onto the fourth floor, and the director and producer followed him. Shen Xuanrun breathed a sigh of relief too. Thankfully, nothing had slipped out, and he had maintained his gentle, taciturn persona. Burp, burp...
On the fourth floor, Gu Weichen sent the director and producer away, then took another route and went back up to the fifth floor.
Shen Xuanrun had Little Li clean the room while he went out to throw away the trash. On his way back, he failed to notice a puddle around the corner. Both feet slipped, and he landed solidly on the floor. No beauty descended from the heavens to catch him around the waist in a melodramatic moment, but the suffocating Gu Weichen was standing nearby, mocking him.
Gu Weichen had just left the stairwell and turned into the corridor when he saw Shen Xuanrun with all four limbs on the floor, his face toward the ceiling.
"Heh." Gu Weichen let out a short, mocking laugh.
Gu Weichen, xxx (censored)! What did that "heh" mean? Why is he here? I've lost all my dignity! I can't face anyone anymore! Waaah!
With nothing left to live for, Shen Xuanrun sat on the floor, bawling inwardly.
To lessen the young man's anger toward him, Gu Weichen extended his right hand to Shen Xuanrun, intending to pull him up.
However, Shen Xuanrun merely glared at him and got up from the floor himself. Before he could steady himself, though, his foot slipped again. At a speed still acceptable under Newton's laws, Gu Weichen caught Shen Xuanrun and wrapped his arm tightly around his waist.
Melodrama never disappeared. It was only late.
Their eyes met, and the belated background music-This Is Love-drifted faintly from afar, little hearts gradually bubbling up in the atmosphere.
"Burp." Shen Xuanrun _(:з"∠)_: I gave myself away in the end.
The background music cut off abruptly, and the sound technician's furious shout came from afar: "What kind of crappy sound system is this? It's so hard to adjust!"