Chapter 60: Joining the Cast

“Take care, Ran! If anything comes up, let your sis know!” It was midday when Li Mi drove Zhou Ran to the film set.

“Alright, bye!” Zhou Ran waved farewell to Li Mi as she got out at the gate, then strode into the set alone.

Choosing to join a film crew at this moment was, frankly, a rather eccentric move. Most singers, upon releasing an album, rush to every publicity event they can, but Zhou Ran opted to step straight into filming the very next day after her album dropped.

As for the album’s affairs, Zhou Ran handed everything over to Li Mi. Since she trusted Li Mi, she let her handle all the important matters.

This time, Zhou Ran would not leave the film crew until the movie wrapped. Before then, she would not accept any invitations to events.

The last time Zhou Ran attended Chef Huang’s acting class, she learned a crucial lesson: a qualified actor must maintain their emotional state during filming at all times.

The meaning was simple—if you’re filming a tragic scene, you must keep yourself at an emotional low point, never allow yourself to be cheerful all day, and learn to immerse yourself in the character.

After all, if an actor is always cheerful, it’s hard to slip into character at a moment’s notice—unless you’re someone who can act on cue instantly, but that’s just wishful thinking.

Zhou Ran considered herself not particularly gifted; even after over a month of intensive training under Chef Huang, she still felt her abilities barely reached the threshold of competence.

Therefore, she chose to join the crew as soon as her album was released. This film meant a lot to her, and she wanted to give it her best.

After Zhou Ran left, Li Mi didn’t head home immediately. Instead, she rushed straight to the airport.

A few hours earlier, Xi Hanwei from Huayu Entertainment had called Li Mi early in the morning, waking her from sleep.

Initially annoyed at being woken, Li Mi’s irritation vanished instantly when she heard what Xi Hanwei had to say.

Xi Hanwei shared news that shocked Li Mi: Zhou Ran had already caught the attention of higher-ups, and as long as she performed well, she would receive strong support.

Li Mi had always suspected Zhou Ran might attract notice from above, but she hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly.

Upon hearing this, Li Mi didn’t immediately tell Zhou Ran; she decided to fly to Shanghai herself to discuss matters with Xi Hanwei before passing the news on.

Not long after Zhou Ran entered the set, she spotted Chef Huang at the entrance.

“Hello, Mr. Huang! You’re here early!” Zhou Ran greeted Chef Huang with genuine delight. During their month-long intensive training, they spent much time together, and their relationship had warmed quickly, becoming one of mentor and friend.

“Oh, Ran, you’re here!” Chef Huang waved her over.

With a mischievous grin, he whispered, “Ran, how’s your script reading going?”

There was something off about his smile, Zhou Ran thought, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Ah, the script? I’ve gone through it pretty thoroughly these past few days, no worries!” Zhou Ran answered honestly, flashing an OK sign.

Chef Huang nodded, satisfied. “Good. We’ll start filming this afternoon. I’ll assign you a relatively easy scene first, alright?”

“Sure, I’m fine with anything. I trust your arrangements,” Zhou Ran replied sincerely.

To her, whether a scene was major or minor, easy or difficult, it deserved the same seriousness. Every scene must be performed with care, so for Zhou Ran, the difference between simple and challenging scenes was minimal.

“Good, Ran!” Chef Huang patted her shoulder approvingly and then wandered off to inspect various parts of the set for anything that might have been overlooked.

With Chef Huang gone, Zhou Ran headed off with her script to the designated rest area, reading it over carefully to adjust her state of mind. She was still unaware that Mr. Huang’s so-called “easy scene” might not be as easy as it sounded.

Before any film crew officially began shooting, a start-up ceremony was held—typically, rituals to invoke the blessings of Lord Guan for safety.

Though Chef Huang didn’t personally believe in such rites, for peace of mind and to follow tradition, he organized a simple ceremony.

In a spacious area, Chef Huang had a feng shui master locate an auspicious spot. Whether it truly was auspicious, Chef Huang couldn’t say; he just went along with whatever the master claimed.

They arranged offerings on the chosen spot, set off some firecrackers for a couple of minutes, and under the feng shui master’s guidance, the “Drummer” crew commenced the opening ceremony.

The ceremony itself was nothing elaborate—despite the fancy talk, it was just the feng shui master reciting a prayer, then the crew members lighting incense, and that was that.

Chef Huang intended only a simple ritual, not a grand affair, so it concluded swiftly.

He didn’t invite any paparazzi or reporters either, clearly preferring a low-key approach, focused on efficiency. He just had a staff member snap a few photos for the record, and that was it.

Soon, the “Drummer” crew was ready to shoot their first scene.

Yet even as filming was about to begin, Chef Huang hadn’t told Zhou Ran which scene would be shot first, leaving her bewildered. She also noticed Zhang Xiaofeng was looking at her strangely.

There was shyness in Zhang’s gaze, but also tension, which left Zhou Ran baffled.

What was Chef Huang up to? Was he really going to keep the first scene under wraps as a surprise?