CHAPTER 16: CHAPTER 15: INJURED

Unbeknownst to Zhou Huaiyi, the days of the internship with the film crew were nearing their end.

In the two months of shooting, the progress of the "Xuanwu" troupe was only a third complete.

During this period, besides the daytime scenes, almost every night they would shoot late-night scenes, and by the time they returned to the hotel, it was often around 2 AM.

A week before the end of the internship, nearing dusk, Xiang Qichen was filming an intense fight scene in the studio.

He was suspended in mid-air with wires, performing a backflip. During the fight, his movements were gallant and sharp, flowing seamlessly, much like drifting clouds and flowing water.

Zhou Huaiyi watched from a distance, feeling as if her soul was about to be hooked away by the ancient halberd in his hand.

The fight scene was exceptionally smooth, and the director was very satisfied, calling out a "Cut". The wires slowly lowered the two suspended in mid-air.

Before his feet could touch the ground, the martial arts actor who had just fought with Xiang Qichen quickly shouted to the person beside him, "Is there any ice? Get some ice for Qichen, I accidentally hit the corner of his eye while swinging the hammer with too much force."

Hearing this, Yang Li panicked and rushed to Xiang Qichen’s side to check the injury, exclaiming, "It’s swollen so badly!"

Zhou Huaiyi naturally heard it, and after freezing for two seconds on the spot, suddenly turned and ran out of the studio.

The martial arts actor hurriedly came over after removing the wire and immediately apologized, "I’m so sorry."

Suddenly, the focus of the set was entirely on Xiang Qichen, with the director and producer quickly surrounding him with concern.

It was known that an actor’s facial injury could directly affect the troupe’s future filming progress.

Yet Xiang Qichen smiled indifferently, patting his shoulder to console him, "It’s nothing, it’s normal when filming, you should go rest."

The martial arts actor, comforted in such a way, felt even more guilty, looking at Xiang Qichen’s red and swollen eye corner, furrowed brows, urging the crew for ice.

Coincidentally, Zhou Huaiyi rushed back in, carrying two bags of ice, breathless and gasping.

Liu Yang glanced at her sweaty forehead, astonished as his gaze fell on the two bags of ice, "How did you manage to get so much ice?"

Gasping, Zhou Huaiyi opened the plastic bag, pulled a small towel from her bag, carefully wrapped the ice in it, and replied, "I got it from the guy at the convenience store outside."

Saying this, she handed the wrapped ice to Liu Yang, "Senior, please!"

A large block of ice was suddenly thrust into his arms, catching Liu Yang off guard, almost making him drop it. He juggled it left and right in his hands, naturally understanding Zhou Huaiyi’s intention, and without a word, took it to Xiang Qichen.

Xiang Qichen thanked him and received it, raising his hand to apply it to his eye. However, upon seeing the patterned towel wrapping the ice, he paused slightly, with a somewhat perceptive demeanor, gently applied it to his eye socket.

Seeing from afar that he had applied the ice, Zhou Huaiyi finally felt at ease, though her heart ached for Mr. Xiang’s exquisite jade-like face which had suddenly swollen up.

She bit her lip, pondered for a moment, and took out her phone.

It’s better to call her dad to ask if there’s any quick remedy...

,

Due to the unexpected incident, the director paused that day’s shooting, allowing Xiang Qichen to finish early and head back to the hotel to rest.

Xiang Qichen put the ice aside, picked up the script, glanced at it, and said, "There are only a few shots left, let’s finish them."

The director, looking at his reddened eye corner, couldn’t bear it, "It’s quite a severe injury Qichen, it looks painful, and you haven’t rested well these past few days, rest early today."

Xiang Qichen smiled and insisted, "The ice helped, it’s just a minor injury, no big deal, don’t let it affect the troupe’s shooting schedule, let’s finish it."

The director couldn’t persist, but he felt comforted, seeing him so dedicated and insistent, he promptly finished the remaining shots.

Fortunately, the last few scenes of the day were hand-focused shots and panoramic fight scenes, with no close-ups, which saved the trouble of having to cover up the injury with makeup.

——

After wrapping up that night, Zhou Huaiyi swiftly helped the crew pack up the equipment, then hurriedly took a cab to the pharmacy.

Having bought the items, when she returned to the hotel, Liang Lufei had not come back yet.

Hastily, Zhou Huaiyi peeled the eggs she’d just bought, placed a few in a hot water kettle filled with cold water, then quietly sat there waiting for the eggs to cook.

About twenty minutes later, Zhou Huaiyi carried four warm boiled eggs and a bottle of medicated wine to Xiang Qichen’s door.

Calming her breath, she raised her hand and rang the doorbell.

After half a minute, footsteps could be heard approaching from inside.

With a click, the door was opened from the inside.

Xiang Qichen, wearing a t-shirt and shorts, stood clean and refreshing at the door, slightly surprised to see who stood there.

He opened the door wider, leaned out, and asked, "What’s up?"