Key Supporting Role, Not Just a Script (Bonus Update)

Seeing Zhao Bin enter, the Chi sisters rose to greet him.

Wu Chuntian glanced helplessly at Lü Rou.

Although reluctant, she followed everyone else and gave a symbolic wave.

"Yuzi, President, Little Chi, Lü Rou, Chuntian—hello everyone!"

"Are you all meeting for a discussion?"

Zhao Bin called out their names one by one.

You could tell the hierarchy of intimacy in his heart just by the way he addressed them.

Lü Rou took the initiative to respond:

"We haven't really discussed anything yet. We just got here ourselves and are having a meal."

"Come, sit down. Thanks for agreeing to help our group out. It's going to be a long day for you."

As she spoke, Lü Rou stood up and slid her chair over to the empty spot.

Then, she went to a nearby table to grab another chair for herself.

Wu Chuntian stared at the empty space next to her in shock.

She did that on purpose!

This bitch was at it again!

She actually deliberately placed the seat right next to her.

After their interactions over the past couple of days, Wu Chuntian had naively thought the tension between her and Lü Rou had eased.

Now, it seemed, that was nothing but an illusion.

Lü Rou was still Lü Rou—calculating and manipulative!

She only ever looked out for herself.

The whole dorm knew exactly how Zhao Bin felt about Wu Chuntian.

When Lin Yu mentioned asking him to play Yuan Hua, Wu Chuntian had wanted to refuse.

But she worried that if she protested too much, she might be replaced as Qiu Ya.

That would have been a case of the cure being worse than the disease.

So, she hadn't said anything.

After all, her scenes with Yuan Hua were nothing compared to her scenes with Xia Luo!

She absolutely could not miss this god-sent opportunity.

When Wu Chuntian found out she was playing Qiu Ya, she had asked Lü Rou if she was upset about it.

At the time, Lü Rou had replied that being able to play best friends together was a stroke of luck in itself.

Why would she be unhappy?

Who would have thought... she was lying in wait for her right here!

Zhao Bin smiled and repeatedly said, "Thank you."

Then, looking a bit shy, he sat down next to Wu Chuntian.

Lü Rou took the seat on her other side, sandwiching her in the middle.

With this seating arrangement, even if Wu Chuntian wanted to scoot away, there was no room to move.

Lin Yu observed the subtle infighting between the two girls with a sense of inner delight.

Fight on, fight on.

The fiercer, the better.

If his subordinates didn't fight, how could he maintain his control from above?

The tension between the two of them was exactly the outcome Lin Yu wanted to see.

Lin Yu turned his attention to Zhao Bin, who had come to help.

"Old Zhao, I really appreciate you agreeing to step in and act."

"We haven't held up your own group's filming schedule, have we?"

"If you guys need help with anything, feel free to ask us anytime."

Zhao Bin replied amiably:

"No, not at all. Our group's shooting schedule... is set for later."

"We're all classmates, no need for thanks."

"Isn't helping each other out just what we're supposed to do?"

This normal conversation between Lin Yu and Zhao Bin seemed perfectly fine from Wu Chuntian and Lü Rou's perspective.

But for the other four people present, the meaning was entirely different.

Lin Yu thought: Old Zhao's psychological resilience is impressive. He got caught stalking last time, yet he can act like nothing happened. He's actually got some acting chops.

Zhao Bin thought: Is Lin Yu truly magnanimous, or is he just that deep? That smile is too natural. If it weren't for Chuntian, there's no way I'd be here!

Chi Qingshui thought: Did Lin Yu purposely bring in Zhao Bin from Shi Yanhai's dorm to send me a message? He should still be holding a grudge, yet he's acting so calm.

Chi Qingchi thought: Wow, didn't Little Lin want to fight them last time? Now that he needs Zhao Bin, he's surprisingly chill about it.

The four of them interpreted the conversation in four completely different ways.

Zhao Bin felt that his own expression was incredibly unnatural while speaking to Lin Yu.

To avoid making a fool of himself in front of the girls, he quickly avoided further direct interaction with Lin Yu.

Instead, he turned to ask Wu Chuntian, who was sitting beside him:

"Chuntian, for the first scene later, if we're filming outdoors, do we need to run lines beforehand?"

Wu Chuntian first looked at Zhao Bin with a face full of disdain.

Then she realized what he said and countered:

"That's not right, Zhao Bin..."

"Our first scene is indoors, in a classroom!"

"Isn't it a group scene? There's no dialogue between us, is there?"

"You're not even in my script for that part!"

Zhao Bin hurriedly pulled out the script he had specially printed and examined it closely.

[Scene 1, Day, Int, Classroom: Omitted.]

He pointed at the script and couldn't help asking:

"Oh, it says 'omitted' here for the first scene. I thought we weren't shooting it yet."

"So... what exactly are we filming for the first scene?"

Chi Qingshui looked at Lin Yu: "!!!"

Chi Qingchi followed suit and looked at Lin Yu: "!!!"

Zhao Bin's secret crush on Wu Chuntian was a secret known to the entire class.

The two sisters had been wondering earlier: how could Zhao Bin have agreed to perform after reading the script?

The first scene was Xia Luo returning after his rebirth and forcibly kissing Qiu Ya in the classroom—and he kisses her twice!

Of course.

In a student film, there couldn't be any real kissing scenes; it had to be done using camera angles.

If there were a real kiss, Chi Qingshui wouldn't have agreed to it either.

But Lin Yu was an incredibly cautious person. If he had sent the full script to Zhao Bin, would Zhao Bin have seen it as a good thing?

He would have only seen it as a provocation!

He wasn't the protagonist in this scene anyway, so whether he received the full details didn't really matter.

That was why Lin Yu had only sent him the abridged version.

On one hand, it was a petty little revenge for Zhao Bin badmouthing him behind his back.

On the other hand, it was also doing a good deed in passing.

To let Zhao Bin see the reality clearly.

A girl like Wu Chuntian was simply out of his league!

He needed to kill that hope early and go find another tree to hang his hopes on.

Clinging desperately to Wu Chuntian would yield no results.

It would only make her despise him more and more.

Hearing Zhao Bin's confusion, Wu Chuntian handed her script over without a second thought.

"Zhao Bin, take a good look at what we're filming for the first scene."

"I've made notes on the script, you can ignore those, just look for your own part."

Zhao Bin still hadn't realized just how serious the situation was.

His mind was entirely consumed by one thought...

Chuntian actually took the initiative to show me her script?!

She really isn't as cold to me as she seems on the surface.

Those guys in the dorm really don't know how to read people.

Who says I don't have a chance?

Isn't she giving me a chance right now?

...