Extreme Pampering-Chapter 91 - Will want to rely on him

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Will want to rely on him.

Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Will want to rely on him.

After the holiday, the crew resumed work, and sure enough, as soon as Shen Zhiyi looked at the script, Director Meng had changed the play again.

“Director Meng really is something,” Xiaodong couldn’t help but complain upon learning that the entire crew would soon be moving to a forested mountain to shoot the film, “Why go to a mountain? Wouldn’t it be better to just create the scenes in post-production? No wonder the budget keeps soaring with all this fuss.”

But Director Meng was just that particular; he insisted on using real locations over post-production whenever possible. He was picky – if the place didn’t align perfectly with the script’s description, he wouldn’t use it. He had to have some deep, secluded woods.

“The screenwriter said the same thing,” Shen Zhiyi smiled, “and then got scolded by Director Meng.”

Xiaodong shivered and sighed with frustration, “Alright, I’ll prepare more mosquito repellent, and I need to bring warmer clothes too. It’s probably quite cold in the mountains now.”

Upon arrival, they found they had still brought too little; the place was uninhabited, with only the occasional hiker or trekking enthusiast coming through for an excursion. For accommodations, they had to set up their own tents.

Fortunately, Director Meng had also made adequate preparations, at least he had hired many professionals to offer guidance on the side. Once everything was set up, it looked quite like a large-scale camping site.

Returning from the portable toilets, Xiaodong was concerned about the night scene they were shooting that evening, “How late will we be filming?”

The scene to be shot was an action sequence of fleeing through the mountain forest, which even involved horseback riding in the first half—and it was at night. Xiaodong was anxious, fearing that something might go wrong.

“Hard to say.”

Shen Zhiyi had already familiarized herself with the terrain for the scene alongside the director and the action choreographer. The action scenes had long been rehearsed, so that was not a big issue, but the forest paths were not even, and riding horses on them could be quite challenging. Despite her training in jumping obstacles on horseback, she still wasn’t completely confident.

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“Can we use a stunt double?”

Anxious to the extreme, Xiaodong began to ramble, “Or not use a real horse? I feel it’s too dangerous.”

This was the kind of thing that would earn them another round of scolding from Director Meng.

Shen Zhiyi reassured her, “We have safety consultants here, and an ambulance will be on standby just in case. Even if an injury occurs, it won’t be a big deal.”

Xiaodong almost cried, “Sis, just getting injured is already a big deal, okay?”

“Nothing will happen.”

Shen Zhiyi smiled, trying another way to comfort her, “Director Meng is especially confident about this scene. He says it’s award-winning material. Does that make you feel a bit better?”

“Much better,” Xiaodong’s eyes sparkled, “I can already picture you giving an acceptance speech on stage.”

However, no matter what she thought, once Director Meng had made up his mind, it wouldn’t change. They started rolling the cameras even before it got dark.

The scene was destined to be shot several times over. Shen Zhiyi filmed from dusk until dark, then from night until early morning, as the sky began to hint at dawn.

The most challenging first half of the scene, involving horse riding, had been successfully completed. The latter part of the chase had a few action sequences revised, with adjustments and reshoots being quite taxing, but everyone was accustomed to Director Meng’s style and persisted through the process.

The last take was a group fight scene where the pursuers dismounted and engaged in combat. The previous takes had gone rather smoothly, and Director Meng had made a few adjustments to the extras’ movements.

“This is the last take, everyone, give it your all, and once it’s done, we wrap up.”

Everyone took their positions, and at the director’s signal, the extras immediately set off on horseback in pursuit. The practiced dismount was fluid and full of menace. Shen Zhiyi gripped a specially made prop sword in her hand, which would not injure anyone, yet was substantial enough to avoid looking fake.

She was already in character, ready for the confrontation, when the mishap occurred – a horse that was supposed to stay still suddenly ran towards her at high speed, far outpacing the extras. As soon as the horse moved, everyone knew something was wrong, and horse trainers rushed over to intervene.

But the horse showed no signs of stopping, and Shen Zhiyi had to dodge to the side. However, the mountain trail was narrow, and the stones underfoot, having been dislodged, sent her twisting to the ground and tumbling backward over a two-meter-high sheer drop.

Her head hit the ground, and Shen Zhiyi immediately passed out.

The film crew was in complete chaos now.

By the time Shen Zhiyi woke up, it had been over two hours, and she was still in the tent set up by the film crew. There was a dull pain at the back of her head, but luckily she was wearing protective gear, so aside from some minor abrasions, there were no other issues.

Xiaodong was keeping watch over her, and seeing that she had finally awakened, he could finally relax. His words came out in a non-stop torrent, “Sis, how do you feel? Do you feel terrible? The doctor said you might have a concussion—are you feeling nauseous? Do you have pain anywhere else on your body?”

Because the mountain path was uneven, and since Shen Zhiyi had injured her head, the doctor didn’t immediately send her to the hospital after the examination but decided to wait for her to wake up before observing her condition further.

Shen Zhiyi did feel a bit uncomfortable, but she could bear it. “I’m okay. What about that horse?”

“The Horse Trainer took it away. You really scared me to death. I just knew I had a bad feeling today.”

Shen Zhiyi managed a weak smile and then asked, “What about Director Meng?”

The last shot in the end hadn’t been completed. She wondered if Director Meng was angry.

Xiaodong perked up at the mention, “He’s getting scolded right now!”

Getting scolded?

Who dared to scold Director Meng?

When faced with Shen Zhiyi’s perplexed look, Xiaodong realized there was something important she hadn’t mentioned yet. She began hesitantly, “Well, sis, don’t be mad, but he’s here.”

Shen Zhiyi instinctively tried to sit up, but dizziness washed over her again. “Pei Yu?”

Why would Pei Yu come?

“Here’s what happened,” Xiaodong stuffed a pillow behind her, “When you got injured, Qin Xiaoran happened to call to invite you to dinner. I was so scared at the time, I told her about your injury and then…”

And then Pei Yu came.

Shen Zhiyi was at a loss. Things had turned out so coincidentally, but what was Pei Yu doing here with so many people around…

Xiaodong excitedly said, “He’s chewing out Director Meng right now, and Director Meng doesn’t dare to say a word. It’s so satisfying, haha.”

“Don’t talk nonsense,” Shen Zhiyi said helplessly, “Director Meng is an elder after all. Would he scold Director Meng?”

“It’s not really scolding,” Xiaodong admitted she had exaggerated a bit, emphasizing, “But he’s really fierce—truly. Director Meng, with his explosive temper, could only stand there listening. I felt intimidated just watching from the side.”

Pei Yu had always had a sharp and cold demeanor, and with his long-standing authority, when he actually got angry, it was formidable—much more so than swearing.

“Oh, right,” Xiaodong hurried to the door, “he said to let him know once you woke up.”

“Wait!”

She didn’t manage to stop her, as Xiaodong had already run out.

Shen Zhiyi sighed. Whose assistant was this, anyway?

She wasn’t actually ready to face Pei Yu, especially not looking like this.

Her head was spinning, and the abrasions stung. Shen Zhiyi could endure that, but she did not want to appear weak and disheveled in front of Pei Yu.

Moreover, she didn’t have confidence in herself. If Pei Yu showed up now, she’d become whiny and want to rely on him.