Chapter 6

Chapter 6

As an S-tier ancient romance drama on the Aiku platform, the "Flowers Fall on Colored Glass" production team has garnered significant attention from fans across various fandoms since the project's inception.

Particularly after rumors surfaced that the lead roles would be played by popular idol Jiang Zihang and rising star Ji Linghe, fans from both camps have been closely following the production's progress.

Naturally, the fan photographers from both fandoms didn’t miss today’s opening ceremony.

However, it was Jiang Zihang’s fan photographer, who frequently follows idols at various events, who proved more resourceful.

Despite the production team’s efforts to block views with high iron sheets and green cloth around the set, his fan photographer ingeniously arranged for an excavator to be brought to the scene, standing in the bucket to take photos while Ji Linghe’s fan photographer was left helpless.

Shortly after the production team’s opening ceremony concluded, photos from the scene quickly spread online.

Jiang Zihang’s fan community buzzed with excitement as fans lavished praise on his heavily edited photos, complimenting everything from his appearance to his outfits in every possible way.

As for Ji Linghe, Jiang Zihang’s on-screen partner in the drama, the fan photographers and fans understood that promoting the on-screen couple was essential for the drama’s success, so they also released numerous photos of him, accompanied by casual praise.

However, while Ji Linghe enjoyed this attention, Su Xingyao wasn’t as fortunate.

Jiang Zihang’s fan photographer noticed that every photo featuring her idol alongside Su Xingyao was overshadowed, with the contrast in their appearances being stark. Concerned that her idol might be overshadowed immediately after the opening, she promptly deleted those photos.

For any images that couldn’t be removed from wider shots, they deliberately edited Su Xingyao to appear less attractive.

Shortly after the fan photographers posted the photos, the topic quickly trended.

Jiang Zihang was the first to notice these trending topics.

By then, the main actors had already taken their seats at the long table, equipped with pens and notebooks, ready to take notes.

However, the director was running late, so the script reading session was delayed by half an hour.

With the director still absent, Jiang Zihang quickly pulled out his phone to check Weibo.

He was in touch with several influential fans and knew they would be taking photos at the opening ceremony to promote his new drama.

As anticipated, his name topped the trending list. He smiled as he clicked on the topic, reveling in the fans’ adoring comments.

After browsing through the photos and comments, he returned to the Weibo homepage, his attention drawn to the earlier trending topic #Why hasn’t Su Xingyao left yet#.

This time, he didn’t click into it, but he could already guess its contents.

The topic also lifted his previously sour mood, which had been dampened by the staff’s earlier remarks about his looks.

Jiang Zihang glanced around the room and noticed everyone was either playing games or scrolling through TikTok, with no one checking Weibo. Feigning surprise, he remarked, “Hey… our production team is trending?”

His words immediately caught everyone’s attention.

From actors to staff, everyone in the production team had signed confidentiality agreements upon joining, aiming to prevent leaks during filming.

Yet, just after the opening ceremony, they were already trending.

The speed left the main actors and staff in awe, comparing it to a rocket launch.

Yu Sisi stopped scrolling through TikTok and opened Weibo, where she saw three trending topics at a glance.

#Flowers Fall on Colored Glass Jiang Zihang#

#Flowers Fall on Colored Glass: Ji Linghe#

#Crane-Sailing CP#

Among these high-ranking trending topics, there was one that starkly contrasted with the previous atmosphere: #Why Hasn’t Su Xingyao Left Yet#.

Not only Yu Sisi, but the entire crew also saw this and were immediately drawn to this particular topic.

After all, among these four topics, Su Xingyao's was the longest, most eye-catching, and most explosive.

Unless one was blind, it was impossible to miss.

People are always drawn to the most sensational topics first, so almost everyone immediately clicked on Su Xingyao's topic.

Unsurprisingly, the comments section was almost entirely filled with scathing remarks.

"How is this idiot still in the entertainment industry? I thought he was driven out by the backlash last time."

"Leaving the industry is impossible; this guy's skin is thicker than a city wall. He causes trouble every time and never changes."

"Damn, does he have a sugar daddy? How did he manage to get a role in 'Flowers Fall on Colored Glass'?"

"Does anyone understand? It's so unlucky. Why does Su Xingyao have to be involved in this drama?"

"Su Xingyao, get lost! Stay away from my Zihang. He's definitely going to cause trouble in the crew again."

"Guys, has Su Xingyao changed? He looks different after disappearing for so long."

"Just asking as a passerby, what was he like before? Today is the first time I've seen his stills, and he actually looks quite handsome. Among all the actors in those wide shots, he stands out quite a bit."

"Some people really need to raise their standards. Are there no other idols in the entertainment industry, or are people just blind to be so fond of Su Xingyao?"

The comments kept refreshing one after another, mostly expressing resistance to Su Xingyao's involvement in "Flowers Fall on Colored Glass."

Although the crew had anticipated such reactions, they had expected them to surface later when the official character posters were released.

Witnessing such a negative trending topic right in front of everyone was quite a stimulating experience.

Soon, many people turned their attention to Su Xingyao.

Being on a trending topic together isn't awkward, but being the only one being criticized is the most awkward.

One crew member even couldn't help but hug their shoulders, feeling embarrassed for Su Xingyao.

Just joining the crew and being publicly criticized by so many people at once...

If it were them, they would probably have already excused themselves to the bathroom out of embarrassment.

The crew member couldn't help but glance at Su Xingyao.

But they found that the person in question was sitting upright, seemingly unaffected by the surrounding gazes, and was focused on marking lines in the script.

What's more, he hadn't even taken out his phone, as if he didn't care about his own negative trending topic at all...

The crew member was shocked by his calmness.

Just as they were stunned, Jiang Zihang's assistant, as if deliberately reminding Su Xingyao, spoke up.

"Almost all the main actors of our drama are trending: 'Flowers Fall on Colored Glass Jiang Zihang,' 'Flowers Fall on Colored Glass Ji Linghe,' and this 'Why Hasn’t Su Xingyao Left Yet'..."

At this point, the assistant seemed to finally realize the inappropriateness of his words and immediately bowed to apologize in the direction of Su Xingyao.

"Sorry, sorry, Mr. Su, I didn't mean it."

Su Xingyao, who had been repeatedly hinted at, both directly and indirectly, was a bit annoyed by Jiang Zihang's immature tactics.

Seeing the assistant still apologizing, he put down his script and turned to face the other person calmly.

He did not show any anger, but instead slightly smiled, calmly looking at the other person's face.

After looking at the assistant for two seconds, he spoke slowly.

"What did you do that requires an apology?"

Su Xingyao's calm and composed question left Jiang Zihang's ill-intentioned assistant speechless.

He looked into Su Xingyao's eyes and found that although the other's gaze seemed innocent and clear, there was a sharpness that made him feel as if all his thoughts had been seen through.

It was as if Su Xingyao had already seen through his intentions but was still patiently waiting to see what he would do next...

The assistant was scared by his own thoughts.

Feeling guilty, he couldn't look Su Xingyao in the eye.

After a long pause, he finally shook his head, his cheeks red.

"No, nothing."

Su Xingyao didn't continue the conversation. He just smiled, looked away, and went back to his work.

Meanwhile, the director, who had arrived late, overheard the assistant and immediately spoke with a frown.

"How did this end up on the hot search? Which fans are so resourceful that they could capture this..."

Jiang Zihang, feeling guilty, stayed silent, quickly put away his phone, and started twirling a pen.

Luckily, the director didn't press further and immediately called a staff member to remove the hot search.

"Sorry, everyone. I had to handle something urgent, which delayed us."

After a brief apology, the director sat in the center seat and opened the script.

"We're short on time, so let's get straight to it. Take out your scripts, and let's go through it once."

After saying this, the director looked at Yu Sisi.

"Sisi, you're the most experienced. Please show us how to read first."

Yu Sisi didn't hesitate. She propped her head with one hand and casually picked a section to read.

After Yu Sisi's demonstration, the director told everyone to get into character and prepare.

Before starting, Jiang Zihang looked at his script, pointed to the first section, and said with a smile to Su Xingyao, "Xing Yao, you're up first."

After Jiang Zihang finished speaking, Ji Linghe beside him immediately gave him a meaningful glance.

Jiang Zihang did not notice the other's gaze but continued to fix his amused eyes on Su Xingyao.

He had heard from Shen Huaixi that Su Xingyao's acting was awful, and his line delivery was completely flat, relying entirely on post-production dubbing to fix it.

Now it was the other side's turn to read first, and even before it began, he couldn't resist wanting to hear firsthand just how badly Su Xingyao would perform.

Jiang Zihang had even prepared to secretly record it and send it to Shen Huaixi for a shared critique after the reading session.

He had failed to make Su Xingyao look bad earlier, and it still gnawed at him.

The more composed Su Xingyao appeared, the more Jiang Zihang wanted to expose his facade.

Suddenly called upon again, Su Xingyao glanced at Jiang Zihang's eager expression and instantly grasped his intent.

"Yes," Su Xingyao replied softly, and the director gave him the cue to start.

In an instant, he wiped the smile off his face, and his eyes turned icy.

Everyone was taken aback.

Only when they heard Su Xingyao's nearly flawless delivery did they realize he had slipped into character in an instant.

His posture, expression, and tone...

The moment Su Xingyao spoke, the Demon Lord's arrogance and dominance were flawlessly portrayed.

Everyone present, including the director, had heard rumors that Su Xingyao was terrible at acting, singing, and just about everything.

Because of these rumors, no one had anticipated such a strong performance from him.

So when Su Xingyao finished his lines, the room fell into a stunned silence.

Jiang Zihang, who was supposed to deliver the next line, was so stunned that he completely blanked.

Jiang Zihang's eyes widened in disbelief.

For a split second, he questioned whether he'd heard correctly.

Wasn't Su Xingyao supposed to be hopeless at acting?

How did he slip into character so effortlessly?

Had he been secretly training hard all this time?

Before Jiang Zihang could process it, the director, still visibly shocked, spoke up first.

"Xiao Su, I remember you're not formally trained, right?"

Su Xingyao nodded.

"Your delivery is pretty solid."

"My former roommate was in film school, and he taught me some basics."

"No wonder," the director said, finally connecting the dots, but he didn't hold back his praise for Su Xingyao. "But to pull this off, you must've worked really hard."

With that, he shot a glance at the distracted Jiang Zihang and reminded everyone, "Alright, let's get started. Everyone, pay attention."

Hearing the director's implicit criticism of his lack of focus, Jiang Zihang's heart sank in panic.

His delivery skills were shaky at best, and he lacked confidence.

Previously, he had thought that Su Xingyao would be his backup, ensuring that his performance wouldn’t be too bad.

But who could have guessed… Su Xingyao was actually so impressive!

Jiang Zihang was frustrated with his own carelessness and ashamed of his previous actions.

So when Su Xingyao quickly finished his lines, Jiang Zihang, still flustered and unable to calm down, had no choice but to brace himself and try to put more feeling into his performance.

However, trying too hard had the opposite effect.

Especially since he was performing his lines right after Su Xingyao.

The stark contrast between the two made his line delivery seem even more lacking.

Yu Sisi, who had been watching the entire scene unfold, hid her face behind her hand while unable to suppress a smile.

She had seen countless schemes like Jiang Zihang’s, where someone intentionally tries to embarrass others.

The entertainment industry is rife with tension, with people constantly competing behind the scenes.

But this was the first time she had seen someone who, after being repeatedly challenged, could effortlessly outshine their rival.

While Su Xingyao was delivering his lines, Yu Sisi sneaked a glance at him.

She couldn’t help but feel a growing respect for this young man.

*

The script reading went on until 9 PM.

During the session, the director asked everyone to share their insights on their respective characters.

Jiang Zihang, who was still preoccupied with how embarrassing his own lines were, was clearly distracted and only offered surface-level comments.

Ji Linghe, on the other hand, delved deeper into his analysis.

Su Xingyao, knowing he wasn’t the main character, kept his comments brief.

Only at the end did he offer a few insights on the character Bai Xu to the screenwriter, along with suggestions for modifying some illogical plot points.

After the script reading was over, the screenwriter sorted through the notes in his hands, a hint of surprise in his eyes.

“Director Wang, I’ll go back and polish these up. I’ll send them to you once I’m done.”

Director Wang waved his hand, “Take your time, we’re not filming these scenes yet anyway.”

After the two finished speaking, they headed out together.

Only after the car had driven some distance did the screenwriter finally bring up what he had been thinking.

“I think Su Xingyao seems quite capable… not as incompetent as everyone says.”

Indeed, he wasn’t incompetent. In fact, the few changes he proposed really impressed the screenwriter.

He admitted that when he created Bai Xu, he had aimed for simplicity in the character.

But with just a few tweaks from Su Xingyao, the character had become much more well-rounded.

It gave him fresh insights and ideas for the character.

Director Wang naturally agreed with the screenwriter’s assessment but still added a cautious note.

"He must have worked hard on the script, but it's not obvious yet. We'll see how he does when we start shooting tomorrow."

The screenwriter was a little surprised after hearing this, "Didn’t you have him audition?"

Wang Dao stretched and yawned, shaking his head.

"No, he was just pushed in by an investor."

"Which investor?"

"It’s Mr. Qin."