In the costume room.
Su Jin said, "What kind of retribution are you talking about... Sister Weiwei, you havenât done anything bad, so why would there be retribution?"
"Retribution doesnât just come from fate," she replied, "Itâs human effort. People can change a lot of things."
"I donât get it..." How could the city girl Su Jin possibly understand what Heather was talking about?
"You donât need to understand. Iâm going to change clothes first."
"Iâll help you!"
...
When leaving, she saw Qu Leqi sitting in her designated spot waiting, occasionally urging, "Director, sheâs just a stunt double, do we really need so much preparation work?"
She had overheard some thingsâbut so what?
Heather might be impressive, but at the end of the day, sheâs just a stunt double. Whatâs so extraordinary about that?
If she were really capable, why would she be here working as a stunt double?
"A stunt double is still a person, of course we have to ensure her safety!"
What?
Qu Leqi had a stunned look on her face.
Did she hear that right? Was that really something the director just said?
An hour ago, his attitude wasnât like this at all!
Little did she know, the directorâs change of heart was because he wanted long-term collaboration with Heather. Her skills could achieve any effect he wished to filmâof course he needed to hold on to her, where else could he find someone like her?
"Ah Ming! Get another foam pad over here! Place it on this side too, make sure nothing goes wrong! Have all the props been checked? Attention, everyone!"
Heather walked over, and the extras had all prepared themselves, holding the required props in their hands, waiting on standby.
The director stepped in to explain, "At that moment, Lingyang, you guys will follow the moves Master Zhang has arranged. Same goes for Weiweiâwhat I mean is, I know youâre skilled and can dodge! But weâre filming a movie here, it has to look good, so follow Master Zhangâs plan."
"Got it, Director." Heather could only comply helplessly.
Previously, he was so harsh on her, never satisfied no matter what she did. Now he was actually trying to pacify herâthis difference in treatment was more than a little significant.
"Finally, at this spot, you get ambushed and kneel down here. Then, someone attacks from behind. After you fall, wait for three seconds. When everyone thinks youâre down, you gather your strength to stand up, then deliver a roundhouse kick to defeat the enemyâa beautiful roundhouse kick, okay? Can you manage that?"
"Of course, Director. Donât worry, I understand." She thought to herself, if it were a few days ago, the director would probably have demanded some fancy variation of the roundhouse kick. Now, just a basic roundhouse kickâit was practically merciful.
"Alright! Everyone in position! Letâs try running through it smoothly first."
On the first run, Heather performed flawlessly, but the extras tripped up, earning a few scoldings from the director.
After three or four runs, everyone nailed their parts.
"GoodâStop!" He halted at the moment the extra was about to swing his hand. "Just like that! Perfect!"
Today, the director seemed to be in a good mood. He patted the extraâs shoulder and said, "When we shoot later, donât stop here. Swing it down, alright?"
"Got it, Director!"
"Attention, everyone!" The director returned to his spot. "SlateâAction!"
Heather, now wearing the same costume as Qu Leqi, was locked into position for a side shot. Multiple cameras were set up to allow for edits later.
The sequence of moves played out smoothly. Heather took Lingyangâs kick as planned, dropping to her kneesâjust as she had when kicking Qu Leqi.
It didnât hurt; there were foam pads underneath.
At this moment, one of the extras beside Lingyang seized the opportunity to swing his prop hard, aiming viciously at Heatherâs head!