Chapter 49: I Want To Go Back
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
2023 Ver.
———
In the country.
As evening approached, Gu Xizhi was preparing for the last scene in the studio. The assistant Youyou watched Gu Xizhi drinking water and looking visibly uneasy. Her heart was also restless.
Today's final scene is the first meeting between Chu Jia and the male lead, Zhao Ziyi. Although Chu Jia looks very similar to the female lead, Jiang Shushu, her long-term presence in various bars as a singer has given her a somewhat worldly air. Trying to portray two different personalities with the same face is already a significant challenge for the female lead's acting skills. Moreover, today marks Gu Xizhi's first scene as Chu Jia, so it's normal to have difficulty transitioning into the character's feelings.
The problem is, perhaps the entire cast viewed this movie too seriously. After three NGs, the atmosphere on set had become very solemn. Director He Xue kept giving instructions, and actors without scenes had already left to avoid the oppressive atmosphere. Gu Xizhi, who was under considerable pressure, did not appear relaxed even during breaks.
In the last take, they still got an NG. The reason was that in the storyline, Chu Jia is a nightclub regular, and many times she is supposed to appear drunk. It's challenging to portray this state convincingly without actually drinking, but Gu Xizhi, who couldn't consume alcohol, struggled to achieve the desired effect while staying sober.
The end of the shooting day had long passed, and Director He Xue didn't insist further. She just patted Gu Xizhi's shoulder and asked her to continue tomorrow.
Back at the hotel, Gu Xizhi continued to practice the drunken state but couldn't quite find the most suitable way to perform it.
If this were just a TV series, perhaps her afternoon performance would be sufficient. But now, she had to use this film to compete for Best Actress at various film festivals. Every detail was crucial for success, and she couldn't allow any flaws to appear.
So, in her urgency, Gu Xizhi made a somewhat desperate move and called Liang Youyou.
Liang Youyou was surprised that Gu Xizhi called her to discuss acting, but when she heard that Gu Xizhi wanted advice on drinking for a role, she felt that she had been asked the right question.
"Just drink a little bit of wine, a small amount won't get you too drunk, but it will put you in the right state for acting. I believe the director will also think it's a good approach."
"But when I drink, my mind really goes blank. Is there a way to perform well without drinking?"
"Well, you've asked the right person. I'm really familiar with the feeling of being slightly tipsy. Hold on a moment; let me hang up the call, and I'll send you a video."
So, Gu Xizhi, determined to learn from Liang Youyou's experience, hung up the phone as instructed. About three minutes later, Liang Youyou sent a video. When Gu Xizhi opened it, her expression became indescribable.
In the video, Liang Youyou said frivolous lines to the camera with an exaggerated expression, and her whole body was filled with a greasy atmosphere. Gu Xizhi didn't know if she had ever filmed a scene with a similar plot, but she was sure that if such a scene appeared in front of the audience, they would definitely scream.
After watching her performance, Gu Xizhi exited the video and typed: "Liang Youyou, your performance is wonderful, but I can't learn from it. Is there any other way?"
Liang Youyou, who felt good about herself, quickly replied: "Then, I can't help you. Talent is something that can't be learned."
Gu Xizhi stared at the small text on her phone screen for a moment, then silently exited the chat.
Unexpectedly, she received a message from Liang Youyou just after quitting:
"But you can actually drink a little wine to find out how you feel. The more you experience it, the more you will understand."
Gu Xizhi read the message silently for a while, thought about it for a long time, exited the chat box, and sent a message to her assistant Youyou: "Go and buy a bottle of red wine and bring it here."
Youyou replied instantly: "Okay!"
At around ten o'clock in the evening, Gu Xizhi leaned on the sofa with a pillow and her head slightly buried, her expression was unclear in the shadow of the light.
Youyou had originally been holding her phone to capture Gu Xizhi's condition, but when she saw Gu Xizhi appearing to be on the verge of falling asleep, she slightly tightened her grip on the phone, becoming somewhat unsure of what to do.
After delivering the wine, Gu Xizhi told her to stay and wait for her to finish drinking and record some drunken footage for her. Initially, Youyou thought it wouldn't be a difficult task, as it was essentially just documenting a part of life, something she was good at.
But after Gu Xizhi actually finished a glass of wine, she found that things were not as simple as she imagined.
She wasn't sure if it was because Gu Xizhi couldn't handle alcohol, but after she finished a glass of red wine, her expression didn't look comfortable. The slight furrow of her brow made Youyou feel that filming any footage at that moment was inappropriate. So, Youyou began calling the hotel to request some sobering tea. However, even after drinking a cup of it, Gu Xizhi still didn't appear to be doing well. Although Gu Xizhi had instructed her to capture her post-drinking reactions, Youyou, understanding that Gu Xizhi was only drinking for the sake of her role, felt that these images were practically worthless for the performance.
So Youyou picked up the phone several times and put it down several times.
Gu Xizhi appeared to be thoroughly drunk, and there was nothing left to capture.
Having accompanied Gu Xizhi throughout the day of filming, Youyou was well aware of her stress. Seeing her put in such effort for the role in the evening, only to gain nothing, made Youyou quietly feel somewhat concerned.
However, she had no other options and could only gently push Gu Xizhi, saying, "Sister Xiao Jing, go to bed. You have more filming tomorrow, and you need to be in good shape."
Gu Xizhi continued to appear quite drunk. She raised her head in a daze upon hearing Youyou's words as if she had heard something, yet it seemed like she didn't fully comprehend what Youyou was saying. She simply nodded and said, "Mm."
After helping Gu Xizhi onto the bed, Youyou left her room. However, the moment she stepped out, she sent a message to Qu Xizhi on WeChat.
Qu Xizhi, who was in a foreign country, had just finished a crucial emotional scene. She was visibly unsettled due to the intense emotions expended during the performance.
After reading Youyou's message, she held her phone for a long while, seemingly lost in thought. Eventually, she turned to Ling Xian and said, "Book a flight ticket for me to go back home."
Ling Xian was confused, "What's going on?"
"I want to go back."
The next day.
Throughout the day, there were no scenes for Chu Jia to be filmed, simply because early in the morning, Gu Xizhi attempted the role of Chu Jia once again, but the results were still far from ideal.
Gu Xizhi was aware that her performance today wouldn't lead to any breakthroughs.
After getting drunk last night, she realized that portraying the character of a "nightclub regular" was her weak point.
She couldn't find a way to compensate for this flaw and requested a delay in filming Chu Jia's scenes from Director He Xue.
However, with the heavy workload of the production, she knew everyone couldn't wait for her indefinitely, especially after a full day of shooting. He Xue had approached her again about the matter, making it clear that she needed to resolve this issue quickly.
After the filming in the evening, Gu Xizhi locked herself in the room again to practice and just tried countless times
She felt very frustrated that the performance remained far from perfect.
It had been a long time since Gu Xizhi had felt this anxious, not since the last time she finished shooting a TV series. Originally, she didn't want to be so agitated this time, but the lack of progress in her acting left her unable to convince herself to stay calm.
Upon closer reflection, she realized she genuinely didn't know how to approach the role.
There was still almost a full bottle of red wine in the room. Gu Xizhi hesitated for a moment, then picked up the bottle, pouring about two sips into a glass.
The aroma of alcohol rose quickly and went straight to her forehead. She originally wanted to force herself to take another sip, but as soon as she smelled the scent of alcohol, she almost lost her breath, so she quickly set the glass down.
Practicing with actual alcohol was clearly not feasible. However, without any real-life experience, how could she bring this character to life?
Perhaps there was a way out of this predicament. Just when Gu Xizhi was feeling utterly hopeless, a short message from Liang Youyou caught her attention.
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
"Have you sorted out your role? I found a movie for you to watch. The female lead is a nightclub regular. Take a look."
Gu Xizhi was somewhat surprised and immediately replied, "What movie is it? Who's the female lead?"
Liang Youyou replied: "You'll know once you watch it. The movie has been sent to your email."
Gu Xizhi still seemed caught up in her surprise, staring at the message for a long while with a bewildered expression before finally opening her computer and logging into her email.
Since Liang Youyou had made a special recommendation, Gu Xizhi assumed it must be an artistic and instructive film worth studying. She was certain that Liang Youyou intended to introduce her to something that could greatly benefit her. When she received the email, she didn't think twice and immediately downloaded it from her inbox.
The movie wasn't very large, and it downloaded quickly. Since she didn't have the film's title, Gu Xizhi was curious about what type of movie it was. However, everything was going well until she opened it.
The movie filled the computer screen, and after a brief subtitle, the first scene appeared. But when this scene unfolded before Gu Xizhi's eyes, not only did she regret listening to Liang Youyou's suggestion, but she also regretted not turning down the computer's volume.
It wasn't the artistic film she had imagined. The movie started with visually stimulating scenes that immediately grabbed the viewer's attention. Gu Xizhi swore that although she had seen a woman's naked body in her more than twenty years of life, nothing had been as challenging to look at as what was currently unfolding before her eyes.
The woman in the movie was indeed in the nightclub and looked drunk, but what she was doing and the sounds she was making were the sounds that really makes people blush immediately.
While she had seen intimate scenes in movies before, this raw and explicit content was something Gu Xizhi couldn't bear.
The intense scenes made Gu Xizhi unable to watch, and she was filled with a desire to cut Liang Youyou into pieces. Just when Gu Xizhi didn't know what to do, the doorbell unexpectedly rang.
The knowledge that someone would come at this moment made Gu Xizhi feel like God was playing a cruel joke on her. She immediately closed the movie, shut her laptop, and tried to appear as composed as possible while opening the door. She had no idea who could be visiting at this hour, but after the shock of the recent scenes, she couldn't bring herself to think much about it.
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