Time quickly advanced to the end of October. More than two months had passed since filming began, and roughly half of the story had been shot. All that remained for Yi Xing were the scenes of a grand wedding and his death by poisoning. Once those were filmed, he would have gloriously wrapped up his part.
The relationship between the four main actors, however, grew better and better. Since they were all young, they had many common interests and got along very well outside of filming. When there were no night scenes, they would arrange to go out and have fun.
For example, they would go to KTV to sing or play murder mystery games nearby. But they only went to KTV once and dared not go again. There was no choice; who could blame Meng Ziyi? She was tone-deaf and unaware of it, which was undoubtedly torture for those around her.
Yi Xing's Wei Bo follower count completely stopped growing once it reached 1.8 million. The traffic brought to him by "Acceleration" had ended, and there were even signs of loss, as he had disappeared for over two months afterward.
The entertainment industry has always been cruel; once there's no exposure, it's easy to be forgotten. Moreover, most of his fan base was drawn to his looks. During filming, he had no time to update, which naturally led to the loss of some 'looks-based' fans.
At first, he didn't notice, but by the time he did, many had already left. He immediately started updating his daily life, taking selfies with his phone. The angles, though, were a bit hard to describe; it was only thanks to his face that the overall attractiveness of the pictures was enhanced.
He selected a few photos he deemed good, arranged them in a six-panel grid, and added text: "Been busy filming lately, almost forgot I had a Wei Bo. Long time no see, everyone, did you miss me?" After posting, he didn't have time to check his fans' comments.
A staff member came to call him, urging him to get ready. So he stood up and headed to the makeup room to change his look.
It was almost time for his wedding scene. He had to change out of his current clothes and into a wedding outfit. He hadn't expected his first "marriage" to be on a film set. In reality, he didn't even have a girlfriend, yet he was about to witness his own wedding.
Yi Xing, dressed in a large red wedding gown, stood in front of the full-length mirror, examining himself in the reflection. He couldn't help but feel a moment of trance, a misconception arising from his heart, as if he was truly about to welcome an important moment in his life.
(In the original script, it was yellow; I changed it to red.)
After playing Yang Kang for two months, he had deeply immersed himself in the role. But he quickly snapped out of it, shook his head, and reminded himself that this was just a scene and not to get too deeply into character.
Standing beside him was Meng Ziyi, also dressed in a large red wedding gown. Her expression was somewhat uneasy. Like Yi Xing, she was dedicating her first "wedding" to this drama. Even though she knew it was fake, the nervous feeling was hard to suppress, and she asked, seeking comfort,
"Yi Xing, we're getting married soon. Aren't you nervous?"
"Not really, not very nervous. I just feel a bit disoriented, that I'm actually getting married," Yi Xing turned his head and replied.
"Me too, me too!"
"It's okay. We've rehearsed our scenes so many times; this time will definitely be fine too."
Chatting easily calms people down. Meng Ziyi's nervousness slowly disappeared. A staff member walked over and asked if the two were ready. If they were, he would take them to the newly arranged filming location; the wedding was to take place at Iron Palm Sect.
And so, Yi Xing and Meng Ziyi followed the person in front to the wedding venue. Initially, they filmed Mu Nianci being helped by servants to change into her wedding dress and others congratulating Wanyan Honglie. There were no shots of Yang Kang, so the former stood in front of the monitor, watching the performance.
Until someone nearby shouted, "Auspicious hour has arrived! Please welcome the bride and groom."
Director Jiang also shouted, "Cut! That take is good. Prepare for the next one. Yang Kang and Mu Nianci, get ready to enter."
Yi Xing and Meng Ziyi followed the director's instructions, quickly adjusted their state, smoothed out the wrinkles on their clothes, and stood at the starting position for their entrance, displaying radiant smiles. However, Meng Ziyi was wearing a red veil, so her expression didn't really matter.
A call of "Action" sounded, the camera focused on the path they would take, and Yang Kang, holding Mu Nianci's hand, slowly walked over, occasionally glancing at the person beside him with tender eyes. Soon, they arrived before Wanyan Honglie, knelt on the prayer mats, and followed the commands of the accompanying master of ceremonies.
"First bow to Heaven and Earth!"
"Second bow to the Elders!"
"Husband and wife bow to each other!"
After completing the three bows, the two stood up from the prayer mats. Immediately afterward, a voice from the side said, "Lift the veil!"
Yang Kang smiled as he lifted his bride's red veil, revealing her beautiful and captivating face beneath. Their eyes met, and his gaze was filled with affection and tenderness for her. He couldn't help but say,
"Nianci, you are truly beautiful."
Then came the tea ceremony. Two maids, who had been waiting nearby for a long time, walked over. One was responsible for holding the tea, and the other for handing the tea to Mu Nianci.
"Please, the bride, offer tea to the father-in-law!"
As soon as these words were spoken, a teacup appeared in Mu Nianci's hand. A flicker of unease crossed her expression, but she quickly regained a respectful demeanor, offering the teacup with both hands and saying, "Father, please drink your tea."
Wanyan Honglie asked calmly, "Did you brew this tea yourself?" He had never approved of his daughter-in-law, always feeling that she wanted his life.
As soon as he asked, the master of ceremonies spoke first, explaining, "Your Highness, this tea offered to the father-in-law must be brewed by the daughter-in-law herself and personally offered to the elder."
Hearing this, he nodded slightly, took the tea with one hand, and was about to take a sip when he suddenly thought of something and stopped his movement. Wanting to test her, he handed it back and said, "This tea is too hot."
Mu Nianci took it back without changing her expression, gently blowing on the tea. She had indeed planned to poison it, and she knew that putting it in the tea would be easily noticed by others. Therefore, she put the poison into her lip rouge and applied it to her lips.
After gently blowing a few times, she put her lips into the cup, personally felt the temperature of the tea, and said to the person in front of her, "In ancient times, Emperor Wen personally tasted medicine. Today, your daughter-in-law emulates the ancient sage and has tasted the tea for you. It is no longer hot. Please enjoy your tea."
Wanyan Honglie accepted it with satisfaction, but when he drank the tea, he covered his mouth with his hand, not letting others see. Only he knew whether he drank it or not.
"What excellent tea!" He then instructed the two kneeling on the ground, "Kang'er, Nianci, from now on, you are both people with families. You must know what is important, distinguish between inside and out, and always prioritize the greater good. Especially you, Kang'er, you must take good care of Miss Mu and your child, and never let them suffer any grievances."
"Father, rest assured, your son understands," Yang Kang nodded solemnly.
"Cut! That was good. Ziyi, you need more expression in your eyes. I can't see any intention of poisoning in your eyes. Yi Xing, you need to be more excited. Today is your big day; you married the girl you wanted to marry. Shouldn't you be happier?"
"For now, these are the issues. Let's do it one more time. Once today's filming is done, you can rest for a few days." Director Jiang left his director's chair and walked over, telling the people present about their problems and delivering good news.