204: Chapter 204 Hotel Bed Eavesdropping

...

The filming had been going on for nearly two weeks, and Zhou Shiyun was slowly becoming more lively.

It felt like she was the type of person who was quiet in front of strangers but could only open up in front of people she was familiar with.

Furthermore, she actually had a lot of talent, and her acting skills were quite good. At least in Lin Chuyan's opinion, she played the role of JOJO in "a moment of romance" really well; that feeling of being both fragile and strong... Honestly, if not for the final scene where he smashes the bridal shop and takes her for a motorcycle ride, Lin Chuyan's role definitely wouldn't have been as brilliant as hers.

The next scene Lin Chuyan had was quite interesting.

The premise was that the villainous gang leader Laba had sent people to kill JOJO to silence her, but fortunately, Wah Dee saved her, and then the two of them found an apartment to hide in.

This scene was filmed in a shoddy, cheap little hotel called "Zhushan Apartment."

Director Mu Sheng came over to explain the scene to them.

"In this scene, I only want one kind of atmosphere, and that is ambiguity."

"Today's scene takes place before the initial explosion and embrace. At this moment, you don't yet understand each other's feelings, so you must definitely be restrained."

"Each of you needs to have two emotions, and then the second emotion will wash away the first."

"Take Wah Dee, for example. He is actually feeling very uneasy inside, worried that Laba's people will pursue them—of course, they do chase them later. This is one emotion: unease."

"The second emotion is that you start to become interested in the girl in front of you—you really appreciate her innocence and cuteness, like a little lamb that doesn't understand anything. It's a type you've never encountered in your underworld circle. And then, this emotion will wash away the unease."

"And for JOJO, she has been brought to a hotel by a strange man. She even has to lie to her mother, saying she isn't coming home tonight because she's going to a classmate's house—this is the second time she has lied in her life; the first time was this afternoon at the police station when she didn't identify Wah Dee. This emotion is also unease."

"The second emotion is that she also starts to become interested in the boy in front of her—he saved her, he is good-looking, he seems to have many magical experiences, and he is full of an alternative sexual charm. This is also a type of male you have never encountered before; in your circle, they are all refined and gentle boys. This emotion also washes away the unease."

"You are both curious about each other, and you start to probe each other with your gazes."

"To deepen this ambiguous atmosphere, there will be some ambiguous little music coming from the room upstairs... It's a shoddy little hotel, after all, so it's very normal."

Hearing this, Lin Chuyan really couldn't hold it back: "Director, look into your heart—is that music?"

"What, orchestral music doesn't count as music?"

Fine, fine, fine. What a great 'orchestral music'. Lin Chuyan had nothing to say.

"Alright, alright, don't interrupt." Director Mu Sheng continued, "In short, the effect of these rising and falling sounds is to expose your inner emotions. Even if you thought you didn't have feelings for each other before, under these 'oohs' and 'ahhs', you will quickly associate it with that aspect, and thus realize your truest heart—that you have a crush on each other."

"Also, when the orchestral music starts playing, you have no Lines here; everything must rely on eye contact. The camera will capture your eyes, so don't be expressionless. Give me the right look, and the awkward emotion must come out too."

"Any other questions?"

Lin Chuyan raised his hand: "Director, can I improvise a little? For example, utilizing some props in my hands or something..."

Changing the script, huh? Very good, I support it.

Director Mu Sheng was quite interested: "How so?"

"Oh, because Wah Dee feels awkward, holding something in his hand to alleviate it is quite normal."

"Very good, that makes a lot of sense. What about you, Xiao Jun?"

Zhou Shiyun thought for a moment: "I won't need to. I'll be sitting on the edge of the bed; having nothing in my hands will make me seem more helpless..."

"Very good, that's it. Don't rush, let's shoot this scene a few more times."

...

"Alright, quiet, lights and camera ready... Action!"

The hotel room was on the second floor, facing the corridor. The room was very small; pushing open the door led straight to a large bed, and with the addition of a nightstand, vanity, and sofa... the space seemed even more cramped.

However, at this moment, the door was open, which gave the cramped space a brief exit for release.

Wah Dee's look today was a black hoodie without a hood, paired with jeans and sneakers. At the moment, he had a cigarette in his mouth and was making a call in the corridor.

After finishing the call, he returned to the room and casually closed the door.

Thus, the exit tightened, and inside the enclosed space was a young man and woman, alone. The ambiguous atmosphere had already been created by the opening and closing of the space.

He didn't look at JOJO, instead starting to look out the window at the street, checking for suspicious people passing by. After looking for a few moments, he walked past JOJO and sat on the sofa, smoking on his own.

JOJO was wearing a white shirt paired with a brown long skirt, with a bag placed between her legs. She sat on the edge of the bed with her head lowered obediently, and finally spoke: "When can I go home? I didn't call the police; it's because the police found my handbag that they found me."

JOJO was talking about identifying the robber at the police station earlier that day.

The camera cut to Wah Dee; his gaze was scrutinizing, not really believing her.

JOJO continued speaking, her voice soft and sounding weak: "Then can I call home? I have never been out this late without going home; I'm afraid my family will worry about me."

Wah Dee took a puff of his cigarette, and finally, his heart softened.

So he stood up, walked to the door, and let her go to the corridor to make the call.

The door was opened again, and the ambiguous atmosphere relaxed a little.

JOJO made the call home, using the excuse of a gathering with classmates to be able to temporarily hide in the hotel.

Returning to the room, Wah Dee closed the door again.

The director used the repeated closing and opening of the room door in this way to stir up the audience's emotions.

Wah Dee spoke: "First time lying?"

JOJO kept her head down: "Second time. I said it once this afternoon at the police station."

A slight arc appeared at the corner of Wah Dee's mouth. He didn't speak, walked past her again, and returned to the sofa.

The camera cut to JOJO; her eyes followed his figure.

She was secretly looking at him.

Wah Dee sat back on the sofa, casually picked up a can of beer, opened it, and took a sip.

At this moment, the little music from upstairs also started to play, rising and falling.

A harmonious and beautiful piece of orchestral music was playing.

Two camera angles began to give close-ups of Wah Dee's and JOJO's faces, respectively.

Wah Dee's hand holding the beer stopped in mid-air—the purpose of the prop had arrived.

JOJO's eyes began to search for something to look at, as if only this could make her feel less awkward.

Wah Dee seemed to want to find something to do, so he started looking for the source of the sound, but his eyes couldn't help but glance at JOJO.

JOJO was clearly very flustered, and seeing her flustered state, Wah Dee clearly calmed down, and a smile began to appear on his face.

At this moment, the two made eye contact, and the prop—the beer can in Wah Dee's hand—came into play again. He moved the beer can to his cheek, blocking the half of his face facing JOJO.

It both blocked the smile in his eyes and blocked the awkwardness between them.

And as the music upstairs got louder and louder, JOJO finally couldn't help but rush to the bathroom, letting herself escape the awkward atmosphere.

"Alright, cut. Very good, let's do another take. Xiao Jun, your hand movements were a bit too much; sit still and don't fidget, and focus more on your expression."

...

The hotel scene played a big role in advancing their relationship. Director Mu Sheng was surprisingly serious; with just a few simple Lines and a few looks, they filmed it several times in a row.

After the scene, Zhou Shiyun was still a bit embarrassed: "Brother Chuyan, if it weren't for me holding us back, I feel like our progress could have been even faster."

"Hey, hey, don't say that. Our progress is already very fast, and you've acted very well too. When the movie is released, you will definitely be praised."

Zhou Shiyun was a complete newcomer and had zero self-confidence, so she was naturally very happy to hear him say that.

The young girl had recently shown a tendency to become his little fangirl, but Lin Chuyan was very discreet—although the two were quite familiar with each other now, he wouldn't interact with her alone outside of the set, with one goal: to avoid rumors...

However, things went against his wishes; he was still too naive and underestimated the shamelessness of the Hong Kong paparazzi.