In the dark interrogation room, the damp air was filled with the stench of rust and blood. The dim lights cast distorted shadows on the walls, making even the light appear turbid and unclear.

Chaoyang was suspended from a rusted iron frame, the rough hemp ropes digging deep into his bloodied wrists. His tattered clothes were soaked in blood, their original color no longer recognizable. His face was covered in horrific bruises, a hideous wound running diagonally from his brow to his cheekbone, fresh blood still seeping slowly from beneath the clotted scab.

Cheng Xilai fiddled with the cowhide whip in his hand, sticky drops of blood dripping from the tip. The light made his face look like a crumpled piece of paper. Beneath his asymmetrical brows, his eyes held a cruel smile, as if he were admiring a work of art about to break.

"Still refusing to speak?" He suddenly moved closer, the white mist he exhaled spraying on the bleeding wound, "It seems I haven't treated you well enough..."

Chaoyang slowly rose up, and under his blood-stained eyelashes, his eyes were as clear as cold stars.

"That's all you can do." There was sarcasm in the hoarse voice.

A dark tide of violence suddenly surged in Cheng Xilai's eyes. He pressed the handle of the whip against the wound on his collarbone, feeling the spasm in his palm with satisfaction.

"Do you think anyone will come to save you?" He whispered softly in the other person's ear, "You've already been abandoned."

Chaoyang's breathing was heavy and rapid, his chest rising and falling violently, but his voice was remarkably steady: "People like you...how could you possibly understand? Even if my body rots here, there will be millions of people who will continue to fight. This...is our belief."

“Bang!”

The bull whip tore through the air, and Cheng Xilai was like a wild beast out of control. The splattering blood drew strange totems on the wall.

"Faith?" He lifted Chaoyang's chin frivolously with his bloody fingers. "Can your faith relieve pain? Can it save your life?"

"Tell me your plan! Otherwise..." The subordinate exerted force fiercely, "You will regret it."

Chaoyang's veins bulged from being pinched, but he managed a laugh through his teeth: "You... will never understand." He suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood, which sprayed onto the other person's twisted face. "It's really... pathetic..."

Cheng Xilai took two steps back as if he had been electrocuted, and wiped the warm liquid on his face with the back of his trembling hand.

Under the mottled light, he saw the morning sun fragmented, but those eyes were still astonishingly bright—

Like a tempered blade, like an immortal star.

"You think you're a hero." Cheng Xilai roared and slapped him, "You're worse than a stray dog now!"

Chaoyang's eyelashes trembled: "I am just an ordinary person, but ordinary people... can also choose not to surrender."

A cold look flashed across Cheng Xilai's eyes as he turned and picked up another torture instrument. It was a pair of rusty pliers, the tips still stained with dried blood.

"Good, very good." His voice was filled with cruel pleasure. "I want to see how hard your bones are."

He walked up to Chaoyang and raised the pliers. "This is your last chance. Do you want to tell me or not?"

Chaoyang closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Cheng Xilai's eyes flashed with rage, and he suddenly grabbed Chaoyang's neck: "If you want to die, don't blame me for being cruel!"

“Crack!”

After the director called cut, the air was still for a while.

Xia Chi withdrew his hand from Jiang Nan's neck, his knuckles maintaining a ferocious arc. In a trance, he heard the snarling beast within him whimper with contentment, slowly curling back into the darkness.

A piercing chill ran up his spine and Xia Chi shivered violently.

Not far from him, staff were carefully removing a bloody man from the rack.

The palms of his hands were covered with sticky blood plasma, and Xia Chi was a little dazed.

【Oh my god, what have I done! 】

"I'm...I'm sorry."

He stared at Jiang Nan blankly.

Jiang Nan looked like he had just been pulled out of the water. His forehead hair was soaked with cold sweat, and tears were hanging on his eyelashes.

His shoulders trembled uncontrollably, and his thin back arched in a fragile arc, as if he was trapped in the pain just now and unable to extricate himself.

The assistant rushed forward and wrapped him in a thick blanket.

At this moment, Jiang Nan looked up and met Xia Chi's eyes through the dim light.

"It's okay."

He responded to the sorry, his voice as light as a feather, still with a lingering hoarseness, "You acted... really well."

Xia Chi was stunned.

"Ah? Is... is that so?"

[Is my perverted image established? ]

Hearing the idol's praise, Xia Chi suddenly grinned, revealing two rows of yellow teeth——

The ferocious face belonging to Cheng Xilai suddenly showed a bright smile, just like a butcher holding a butcher knife and showing love to you.

Jiang Nan originally wanted to praise him a few more times, but at this moment he froze as if he had been electrocuted. The corners of his mouth twitched and he turned away silently.

Xia Chi: “???”

What's going on? What's going on?

What's with that expression on his face? Why...does he look like he's...afraid of me?

[Is my acting too abnormal? ]

[I was clearly holding back when I pinched my neck just now...]

【Could it be that the injury on his hand was pulled? 】

Xia Chi's heart began to beat fast, and he mumbled, "I didn't..."

【Does it hurt you? 】

[Tsk… Why does it feel so awkward to say that…]

He thought for a moment and spoke again: "Am I..."

[Did I hurt you?]

[Hiss… This still doesn't make sense. Why is it that the more you talk, the more it sounds like an apology afterward?!]

Xia Chi scratched his face awkwardly, feeling that Jiang Nan opposite him seemed a little speechless.

"Um...did I just...use too much force?"

“!!!”

The tips of Jiang Nan's ears turned red at a speed visible to the naked eye.

“Ahem…”

What a lewd and vicious word.

Director Luo Jian cleared his throat heavily and glanced meaningfully between the two of them.

He finally realized that although the filming was strictly carried out to clear the area, there was still one big fish that slipped through the net.

He strode forward and stood in front of Jiang Nan calmly, like an old hen protecting her cubs.

"Thank you all for your hard work," Luo Jian said, raising his voice. "Today's shoot was a great success. The emotional tension completely exceeded my expectations."

He turned around and gently pressed Jiang Nan's shoulder, his voice a little gentler: "Thank you for your hard work, Jiang Nan. Go back to the RV and rest first. Drink some hot water and don't catch a cold. Once the lighting is adjusted, we have another set of shots to shoot."

He turned around and called Xia Chi aside.

"Today's performance was truly outstanding. The emotions were spot on and the details were handled with precision. It completely exceeded my expectations. It was truly outstanding!"

"Really?" Xia Chi responded absentmindedly, but his eyes stubbornly passed over the director's shoulder and stuck to Jiang Nan.

The assistant was leading Jiang Nan out. Jiang Nan was wrapped in a large towel, looking cold and thin. A faint blush floated on his fair cheeks, like an early cherry blossom unexpectedly blooming in the snow.

Xia Chi suddenly felt dry mouth and confused.

[Did you hit him?]

[Although those movements just now were borrowed, it seems that they still touched.]

The memory flashed back to the moment when Jiang Nan frowned.

【scare!】

[Isn't that his expression of pain just acting? He was really hurt by my beating.]

【It’s over, it’s over.】

Xia Chi closed his eyes in despair.

[I actually used such a heavy hand against my own master...]

[Ah... drag me out and shoot me for five minutes.]

[I'm not a human. I'm going to commit seppuku! ! ! ! Puff——]

“Cough cough cough…”

The director's cough suddenly rose an octave, as if he had a fishbone stuck in his throat.

"Xia! Chi!"

Do you think I'm air?!

"Huh? What's wrong, Director?"

Xia Chi reluctantly turned his neck 180 degrees and looked at Luo Jian with clear eyes.

"What did you just say, Director?"

I didn't hear anything at all!!

Director Luo Jian's forehead veins were throbbing. In his forty-plus years in the industry, no newcomer had ever dared to be so blatantly distracted while he was speaking.

But Director Luo Jian still held back his temper and repeated what he had just said: "I said, I talked to your agent yesterday, and I think you..." The director suddenly paused, as if choosing his words, "have great potential, we can continue to work together."

"real?"

Xia Chi was a little bit unconvinced. He originally thought that Director Luo Jian had to let him come in to play a supporting role just for Du Binquan's sake.

[But I didn’t even have a single scene yesterday. How did the director see that I had “great potential”?]

[Could it be that Sister Man has drugged this old man? ]

[Tsk tsk tsk…Sister Man is so capable, she even managed to climb the high ladder of Director Luo Jian! He's known in the industry as Luo Yanwang. He relies on his many awards and seniority to look down on everyone. He's so arrogant and stubborn.]

Director Luo Jian's mouth twitched slightly.

Who are you calling smelly and stubborn?

You are the stone in the toilet.

But there is no need to be too picky with a junior, Luo Jian changed his words.

"Ahem, Du Binquan recommended you to me many times, saying that you've shown great potential at such a young age. If you just seize the opportunity, you'll have great potential in the future."

[How many minor roles did I play and still stand out? ]

Xia Chi understood this exaggeration.

"Oh, I knew it. It's just a commercial compliment. How could a famous director possibly be interested in me? But why are you being so polite to me, an 18th-tier star?"

【I'm also polite. 】

Xia Chi immediately flattered me, "It's an honor for me that you, Director, have taken a liking to me. If you need extras in the future, just call me. I'll definitely be there whenever you call."

Luo Jian: “???”

Has this guy been beaten too much by society? He can't understand good words or bad words?

He had to produce some results.

"By the way, I'm currently preparing to film the martial arts movie 'Lou Xin Yue'. It will officially start shooting at the beginning of next year. We're in the casting stage now. There's a very crucial swordsman role in it with a lot of scenes. Are you interested in coming and trying it out?"

【???】

【!!! 】

【What did you say?!】

Xia Chi looked at Luo Jian seriously, and the old man also looked at him seriously.

[Holy crap! Did I hear that right? Luo Yanwang actually handed a notebook to an 18th-tier unknown person like me.]

Can I appear on the big screen?

【Oh my God, you finally remembered me, your grandson! 】

[This old man... could it be that someone has cast a spell on him? ]

Luo Jian: “!!!”

What nonsense are you talking about! Even if I give you some benefits, you won’t get any benefits.

You are Lao Deng.

He frowned and asked, "How are you thinking about it?"

"Don't think about it. I will definitely seize the opportunity given by the director."

Xia Chi responded, but he felt unreliable in his heart, and looked at Luo Jian's face again and again.

[It doesn't seem like she's been cursed, it's more like...]

Xia Chi's expression became more and more twisted.

Early next year?

[Director, are you sure you can survive until the day filming starts?]

Luo Jian: “!!!!”

what? !