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墨書 Inktalez
The term "secret base" flashed through my mind, instinctively bringing forth many images related to that memory, a secret base defined by myself that the other party did not know about.
Finding a suitable location as the focal point of this production required much consideration and selection. The entire team referenced many places but still did not meet their ideal standards. Xu Youning suggested exploring the area around a rural school, as buildings away from the city often provide unexpected surprises.
The crew was working diligently, making it difficult to change plans at will. After much thought, the director earnestly spoke up:
"Chen, why don't you go with Screenwriter Xu? After all, you're the professional and can provide direct and expert opinions quickly, which would save a lot of trouble and be more efficient. I just don't know if you have the time." The director understood that this project was merely a small favor for their team, which had many larger projects lined up.
When the director made the suggestion, Xu Youning discreetly observed his reaction. He was sitting at the table, leisurely flipping through design sketches without looking up, as if what the director said had nothing to do with him. She guessed he probably wasn't willing and was mentally organizing how to decline this collaboration. Suddenly, the person at the table lifted his head, closed the sketch in his hands, and replied cheerfully:
"Sure, and Director He need not be polite. Regardless of whether I have time or not, this is our job. Since we've taken on this project, we'll arrange our time according to its schedule. That's how it should be." After speaking, he seemed to smile at the director, but that smile appeared magnified in Xu Youning's eyes. Before she could react, she heard the director's voice beside her: "Screenwriter Xu, should be no problem for you either?"
"No problem, Director He; it's part of my job."
The director was pleased with this arrangement and felt in high spirits. With a wave of his hand, he announced an early wrap for the day and a group dinner at their usual place.
The people present were excited and cheered.
Everyone tidied up and prepared to head to Old Place Restaurant. There were quite a few people going; no one wanted to share a confined space with Chen Jahan, who was serious and aloof. They all hurriedly found rides they could hitch a ride on or decided to take a taxi to the restaurant. Just as Xu Youning was about to catch a ride with the male lead Cen Rui and his assistant, the director called out to her from behind.
"Screenwriter Xu, go with Chen; it’ll help you get familiar with each other and facilitate your future work communication. Besides, you two are old friends and must have plenty to talk about." The director smiled understandingly, seemingly very satisfied with his decision.
Xu Youning felt lost and internally rejected this idea but did not show it on her face. She simply told the director that she still had some details to discuss with Cen Rui regarding his character and wanted to take advantage of their waiting time for an in-depth conversation.
The director seemed to have not listened, waving his hand and directly concluding that this was not an important matter, certainly not as important as establishing a good working relationship with Chen Gong. He canceled the proposal outright and seriously stated that actors also need to comprehend the thoughts of the script themselves, understanding the characters' ideas through their own interpretations. Only by truly immersing themselves can they bring the characters to life.
Xu Youning was left speechless by this insight.
She could only hesitantly search for Chen Jiahua's car. The director, seeing her expression, kindly reminded her, "Chen Gong is waiting for you in the parking lot. His car is... I think it's a Land Rover. The license plate is... oh dear, I've forgotten. You can find it yourself. Hurry up."
Feeling quite helpless, she turned back and gave the director an awkward smile before quickening her pace toward the parking lot.
When Cen Rui changed his clothes and got into the van, he did not see Xu Youning as he had expected. He turned to his assistant and asked, "Where's Screenwriter Xu? Is she still not here?"
Just as he was about to tell the driver to wait for a moment for Screenwriter Xu, the assistant answered first, "Screenwriter Xu came and then left. It seems she had something urgent to attend to; the director called her."
A sense of disappointment was very evident until the assistant inquired, "Rui Ge, are we leaving now? Um, Rui Ge?"
"Um, let's go," he replied.
Xu Youning quickened her pace, even sneaking in a couple of small runs in less crowded areas of the parking lot before slowing down to start searching for the Land Rover mentioned by the director. However, there were indeed many cars in this parking lot; at first glance, she couldn't spot any Land Rover logos. After searching for a while, she finally saw a Land Rover emblem in Zone C, but there were three cars parked in close proximity. The dark windows were tightly shut, and standing at an angle in front of one of them made it impossible to see if anyone was inside. She knocked on one of the windows but received no response. When she moved closer to check another car...
A car diagonally across honked its horn. The sound was not harsh but loud enough; the vehicle turned on its hazard lights.
Lifting her head, Xu Youning saw the man sitting in the driver's seat.
He was looking at her, and through the car's windshield, she could see his gaze fixed on her. This was probably the first time since their meeting that he looked at her so seriously—not out of polite courtesy, not just a glance from the corner of his eye, but solely focused on her.
She felt the same way.
He appeared so serious that she couldn't decipher his expression.
Yet she nodded at him and walked toward the car.
In fact, he had noticed her long before—probably as soon as she stepped into Zone C—but he hadn't honked to alert her. He simply sat in the car quietly, watching her diligently search for her vehicle. He observed her furrowed brow when she couldn't find it, her disappointment and confusion when she made a mistake, and how she tried to regain her composure after being startled. He hadn't intended to remind her until his assistant, Fu Meng, spotted her.
As she approached the car and looked at Chen Jiahua in the driver's seat, dressed in a black shirt without his gold-rimmed glasses, his sharp phoenix eyes were now fully exposed to her view. She suddenly felt a bit shy about making eye contact with him and quickly shifted her gaze away.
Just as she was about to open the back door, the rear window rolled down. It was his assistant Fu Meng. "Screenwriter Xu, hello!"
"Hello."
"Um, Screenwriter Xu, why don't you sit in the front passenger seat? The back is filled with our blueprints and their models; there's no more space."
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