CHAPTER 546: CHAPTER 466: ACCUSED OF BAD ACTING?

Xu Jiaojiao found it strange. It had always been the assistant director talking to her, and even after three hours, she hadn’t seen the director’s face. She felt puzzled, increasingly so, and decided to negotiate with the director. She couldn’t let her scenes be pushed back; otherwise, who knows if they’d be pushed to the evening.

"I’ll go right now."

Xu Jiaojiao watched her assistant leave. Just as she was about to close her eyes and rest for a while, she suddenly felt her face itching. Instinctively, she wanted to touch it. But remembering she had makeup on and might need to film at any moment, she resisted the itch and pulled out a mirror from her pocket.

"Why is my face swollen."

She stared at the mirror in surprise. Her face was slightly reddened and more swollen than it had been after makeup was applied earlier. She distinctly remembered she hadn’t eaten anything, purposefully skipping breakfast and only drinking some milk before heading to the set.

The assistant finally tracked down the director and hurried back to tell Xu Jiaojiao.

"Sister Jiaojiao, I just saw... Your face, what happened?"

Before the assistant could finish speaking, she noticed that Xu Jiaojiao’s face had become even redder and more swollen, visibly larger than before.

Xu Jiaojiao stared at her reflection in the mirror, mentally searching for the source of the problem.

"Xu Jiaojiao, it’s time for your scene."

Upon hearing Xu Jiaojiao’s name, the assistant instinctively glanced up. She hadn’t even noticed when the director arrived, but the person calling her name was indeed the director.

"Sister Jiaojiao, it’s your turn. Let me touch up your makeup—it shouldn’t be too noticeable."

Xu Jiaojiao frowned anxiously and muttered under her breath, "There’s no better option anyway. This is all we can do for now."

The assistant director, holding the script, stared impatiently at Xu Jiaojiao as she approached, her slightly swollen face catching his attention. He snapped, "What’s wrong with your face? Do you understand that for a female actress, aside from acting skills, appearance is the most important? How do you expect to appear on screen with this face? This is irresponsible to the audience."

Xu Jiaojiao felt bitter upon hearing the director’s sharp words.

"If the shots don’t turn out well, you’ll have to deal with it yourself."

After saying his piece, the director walked away, visibly annoyed. Left alone, Xu Jiaojiao felt dazed and helpless about her swollen face.

"I’ve only used my own makeup products; none of them should cause an allergic reaction or swelling. How could something like this happen after applying makeup? Could it be the makeup artist?"

Xu Jiaojiao suspected the makeup artist but immediately dismissed the thought after considering that the makeup artist hadn’t had time to tamper with anything. Just as her mind wandered, the stage manager called her name again.

"Xu Jiaojiao, get ready for your scene."

Snapping back to reality, Xu Jiaojiao walked forward, calming her emotions. She decided to focus on delivering her performance first; she could investigate the cause of her facial swelling afterward.

The assistant watched Xu Jiaojiao with a worried expression, feeling deeply anxious. She couldn’t shake the feeling that the people in the crew—from the actors to the assistant director and even the director—treated Xu Jiaojiao unfairly. Their criticism seemed more excessive than toward any other actress as if they were deliberately picking on her.

"I hope everything goes smoothly. Sister Jiaojiao, stay strong."

Xu Jiaojiao concentrated fully, even as the itchiness on her face intensified. She resisted the urge to scratch.

"One more take."

"This shot blocked the arm—one more take."

"Your positioning was off; do it again."

"Cut!"

The director walked straight up to Xu Jiaojiao and said coldly, "Do you even know how to act? Look at your expressions—so stiff and unnatural in front of the camera. Look at what you’ve just done."

Xu Jiaojiao had always taken pride in her acting skills. These years of playing bit parts weren’t for nothing—she could hold her own even against seasoned performers.

And now, someone had reduced her efforts to nothing?