Chapter 257: This is what you call magic!

On this day, Meng Jie finally felt just how intense the infighting around Bai Liang really was.

She used to think that as long as she didn't provoke those two "great demon kings" from the new generation, she could just sneakily graze on her old pasture in private.

After all, her little hedgehog belonged only to her~

Besides, no one else would call him by that name.

She felt this time would be no exception, especially with her good friend there to provide cover.

However, she was wrong.

The infighting at a higher dimension was naturally not something she could meddle in; she would be crushed the moment she stepped in.

But the intensity of the "battles" at the lower level was not as harmonious or friendly as she had imagined.

On the first day of filming *Joy of Life*, Li Qin exuded an aura of coldness that kept people at a distance. She wasn't targeting anyone in particular... well, actually, she was!

Hell, there are quite a few "sirens" in this cast~

Originally, she thought there was only Li Yitong.

As for her... it wasn't a big deal.

They were, in a way, sisters from different parents, and they would have to hype things up together later anyway; it wouldn't be impossible for them to have a tacit understanding on set.

But after that encounter at the trailer, she realized something was wrong—they were surrounded by wolves!

Bai Liang had truly become the Tang Monk's flesh; every siren wanted a bite, didn't they?

As it happened, they were all within the range of her current status to deal with, so naturally, she had to take a stand and give them a piece of her mind.

That was why this attitude of hers only appeared when she was with Bai Liang, indiscriminately making the other girls afraid to approach.

However, those who didn't know might think she had a conflict with the male lead, Bai Liang.

Because of this, the chief producer, Chen Yinjie, personally sought her out for a heart-to-heart.

Under Li Qin's bewildered expression, the producer offered a series of earnest exhortations, finally concluding: "Don't let your thinking go astray. Focus on the acting; don't let problems arise either on or off screen, alright?"

Li Qin: "Producer Chen, you might as well speak more plainly..."

Producer: "What's going on between you and Bai Liang? Are you having a conflict? I'm telling you young people, lovers' quarrels are normal, but don't bring your little moods into your work..."

What a "lovers' quarrel," directly assuming that Li Qin and Bai Liang had an "improper" relationship.

Or rather, this was something everyone on set "knew."

Bai Liang being able to let Li Qin cling to him like that was something even ordinary couples might not be able to do.

So it wasn't hard to deduce that the two had a somewhat intimate relationship.

After this conversation, although she knew it was a misunderstanding, Li Qin still broke out in a cold sweat.

The producer seemed to be offering kind advice, but there was another meaning behind the words: It doesn't matter if you're unhappy, but if Bai Liang becomes unhappy because of you...

Li Qin hurriedly stated that her relationship with Bai Liang was very good, there were no quarrels, and they were very intimate, it was all a complete misunderstanding; she was purely trying to guard her territory on set.

There was no helping it; although it was a bit blunt, what the producer said was indeed too frightening.

Li Qin didn't doubt for a second that if she really had a conflict with Bai Liang, the production team would likely replace her as the female lead without hesitation.

To put it bluntly, even if it were Bai Liang's fault, she would have to endure it!

What? He's bullying you? Then why don't you get into position and make it easier for him to bully you?

The above was, of course, Li Qin's own imagination—girls, after all, are prone to extreme emotions.

The producer's attitude certainly wasn't that malicious, and the consequences weren't that severe.

But Li Qin couldn't help but think that way.

And then... she had a reason to convince herself.

Often, people just need a high-sounding reason to convince themselves of many things.

Just like Lin Wan'er in *Joy of Life*.

In fact, Li Qin's main worry before joining the cast had always been... how to find her sense of presence and brilliance in this male-centric drama.

This was difficult.

On one hand, there were script limitations; although she was the female lead, her screen time might not even be as much as some of the supporting male characters.

Secondly, there was the character setting of Lin Wan'er—that damned male-oriented harem novel!

As the male lead's wife, she was naturally gentle, considerate, non-competitive, beautiful, and frail, pinning her entire existence on the male lead...

The thin character setting made it hard for people to even imagine what she did when she wasn't by the male lead's side.

In terms of character, she wasn't even as good as the younger sister, Fan Ruoruo.

A beautiful, exquisite vase without a mind of her own.

Actually, Li Qin wasn't the only one worried about this; the director was quite troubled too.

How should it be filmed?

Hiding under the incense table eating a chicken leg, being discovered by the male lead, the two falling in love at first sight...

As it turned out, Li Qin gave the director a strange answer; she didn't act particularly coquettish or pure and innocent, but subconsciously used the acting method that had been her most popular.

Beautiful, strong, and tragic.

Of course, the "strong" part might have to be removed, but she amplified the "tragic" aspect significantly.

That sense of fragility that made one feel pity—the footage captured was truly amazing!

One look made people feel that this girl was pitiful; she just wanted to eat a chicken leg, what did she do wrong?

Li Qin, who had been heavily praised by the director, wasn't particularly happy.

There was no helping it; with Jin Cheng and the others hovering around, it would be a miracle if she were happy.

However, because of these eyesores, she actually had a slight breakthrough in her acting, and she had a clear idea about how to shape the character of Lin Wan'er.

Since her screen time was limited, she would take one aspect and push it to the extreme!

"What's wrong with you? Your expression is weird~" Bai Liang asked casually.

Li Qin rolled her eyes at him, "I want to write the word 'tragic' on your leg!"

"Don't mess around, I'm wearing white clothes~"

"Hmm, especially handsome!" Li Qin said very honestly.

Men like to look at beautiful women, and women like to look at handsome men, too; it can make one's mood much better~

"As long as Wan'er likes it~"

Hey~ she's really getting into character, isn't she!

However, Li Qin rested her chin on her hand and thought: although the script had been adapted and wasn't as exaggerated as a male-oriented harem novel, there were actually quite a few women involved with Fan Xian in the story—ambiguities, rumors... from Si Lili to Haitang Duoduo, and there was even Zhan Doudou~

And off-screen, it was even more outrageous; in the story, there was at most a little ambiguity, but off-screen, these girls were truly eyeing him like tigers.

Now, who could tell the difference between on-screen and off-screen~

So... did she really want to be Lin Wan'er?

Bai Liang: Only during the filming of this drama, otherwise it really wouldn't be your turn, Miss.

Lies don't hurt people; the truth is the sharp blade.

When she looked at Bai Liang again, there seemed to be some entanglement and helplessness in Li Qin's eyes.

Honestly, she felt that if she asked Bai Liang questions like "Do you like me?" or "Do you love me?", he would definitely give her a very beautiful answer.

But the problem was, was it real or fake?

However, sometimes, true feelings change in an instant, while pretense can last longer.

Li Qin's gaze gradually softened, and she hummed lightly at Bai Liang: "Did you bring champagne?"

"Ah? Let's not, you still have to film, what if you can't get out of bed later..."

"The last time was a one-time thing, do you really think I'm that perverted?!"

"My fault, I prepared a case." Bai Liang apologized hurriedly.

Fine, fine, caring and apologizing on the surface, but prepared behind the scenes—heh, men!

But mentioning the last time, Li Qin's heart skipped a beat, and she subconsciously turned her head to look at Li Yitong not far away.

The other party seemed to sense it and cast her gaze over, a pair of curved, smiling eyes that were incredibly likable.

But Li Qin thought somewhat "darkly": If they were stacked up, could she still smile so brightly?

Of course, it would be best not to stack them, but she felt she probably couldn't refuse...

A few days after filming started, the cast had a dinner together.

Guo Qilin buried his head and ate wildly, as if he only had eyes for the food on the table.

The young actors who joined the cast were all around the same age, so logically, there shouldn't be any generation gap, and they should get along very happily.

That was indeed the case.

The biggest star, Bai Liang, had no airs, and since he was like that, naturally, none of the others dared to act like big shots; the atmosphere of the entire *Joy of Life* crew was quite good.

It was just that, unlike the others, Guo Qilin had always been very observant and had long since discovered that something was wrong.

Looking at the girls around Bai Liang, he truly admired this very powerful top-tier star introduced by his master.

He was too amazing in every aspect!

Not to mention his acting, which was publicly recognized as excellent, with a great reputation in the industry.

Just the fact that he started a harem on set to make up for the disappearance of the harem due to the script adaptation was enough for him to admire for a lifetime.

The most critical thing was that not one of these young ladies caused any trouble.

Or rather, they did, but were "suppressed" by Bai Liang with extremely strong means and ability.

Bai Liang: Ah? Did that happen?

He actually felt that the young ladies got along quite happily.

Jin Cheng wasn't actually that thorny; she was very smart, and even if she "provoked" others to their faces, she could make up for it afterward.

That time she jumped in front of Nazha at Mango TV was simply genius!

As for Li Yitong, the evil little kitten had always been good at hiding herself... she seemed to put most of her energy into studying her character, looking like she cherished this opportunity very much. On and off screen, she was cute all day long, as harmless as a milk kitten.

Li Qin went without saying; she found a reason and achieved self-consistency.

As for Meng Jie? Her train of thought had always been very strange, and she was a player who returned to her old pasture; after figuring out this position, she actually felt a sense of relief.

She even felt a bit lucky—thankfully, her current status wasn't Bai Liang's girlfriend.

Otherwise, who knows how much pressure she would be under now; with all kinds of "monsters and ghosts," how could her small frame handle it?

Young and inexperienced, her means weren't tough enough, her heart wasn't ruthless enough, the tricks she thought of weren't dark enough, and she couldn't let go of her face to throw a tantrum...

She was only facing post-90s girls now; if she really ran into those "seductive sluts," she would probably be paralyzed immediately.

Of course, others might classify her into that "seductive slut" category of bad women, since she was more seductive-looking.

But looking like this wasn't her fault~

So... Meng Jie really wanted to say to Li Qin: Sister, stop staring at me like that, I'm a little scared.

Li Qin: Doesn't matter, I just feel like you look exactly like a beautiful, seductive villainess in a TV drama, with vicious methods and thoughts.

That madwoman Jin Cheng just does abstract things, but Meng Ziyi always makes her feel like she would quietly pull off a big news story and then smile at her wickedly.

Although she had eavesdropped on Meng Ziyi and Chen Yao chatting at the Weibo Night, it didn't sound like she was that kind of complex, bad woman.

(Content omitted)

But the other party's appearance subconsciously made her feel a great threat.

However, the current calm was actually just a facade; these girls could make trouble at any time.

A girl's mind is like the sea; sometimes it changes just like that.

And so, after dinner, naturally, it was time to choose KTV.

Actively proposed by Meng Jie.

Others felt there was no problem, only Bai Liang and Li Yitong's expressions changed.

Bai Liang: Is this Meng Jie's way of punishing him? How vicious... I'll arrange for her to play mahjong with Chen Daoming later!

However, what was a bit funny was that the other young male actors in the cast quickly found reasons to slip away after arriving at the place.

None of them were stupid.

"I'm going out to use the bathroom."

"I'm going out to use the bathroom too!"

When Bai Liang stood up, Li Yitong followed directly.

Which drew suspicious glances from Li Qin and Jin Cheng.

That wild girl Jin Cheng said directly: "Are you two going to sneak off to kiss?"

As a result, Li Yitong didn't panic at all, and even smiled at them: "You'll know in a while."

Li Qin:???

This little kitten, who had been a bit timid since joining the cast, why did she suddenly stand up for herself? Took off her disguise?

Honestly, looking at Li Yitong's performance on set, she was almost starting to suspect that she had nothing to do with Bai Liang.

And at this moment, Meng Jie, who had long been ready with the microphone... started singing!

Within a few lines, Jin Cheng and Li Qin knew why those two had to "run away."

I mean, really, where is there such a righteous way to sneak off for intimacy?

So they went to "avoid disaster," huh?

Damn it!

Li Qin and Jin Cheng also wanted to avoid it, but Meng Jie was singing very devotedly, and they felt that if everyone left... it would indeed be bad.

So they could only bite the bullet and sit there listening to the "jade voice broadcast."

Listening and listening, Jin Cheng couldn't help but click on the original song, and instantly discovered that the original tune of this song was like this~

But something even more frightening happened.

Even with the original song playing, it didn't affect Meng Jie's own rhythm at all.

Because of this, neither of them noticed that the time those two spent outside seemed to be a bit long.

"It's over, my stockings are torn, what should I do?!"

"Don't worry, just take them off."

"I was wearing stockings when I came out, but now they're gone... Meng Jie will definitely notice!"

"Don't be afraid, I have a way~"

An encrypted conversation from the KTV bathroom.

When Li Yitong and Bai Liang returned, Li Qin glanced at them, feeling like something was wrong, but she couldn't put her finger on the specific situation.

By comparison, Jin Cheng spotted the flaw at a glance!

"Tongtong, you..."

"Shut up!" Li Yitong bared her teeth and threatened in a low voice.

At this moment, the evil little kitten seemed to finally reveal her "fangs."

Jin Cheng:... cared, scared~

However, it didn't stop her from giving Li Yitong a thumbs up—sister, you really do big things without making a sound; your courage is much greater than I imagined.

"Just singing is boring, come, let me perform a magic trick for you~"

Bai Liang's words immediately attracted the girls' attention.

"You can even do magic?!"

"Know a little bit~ I exchanged some tricks with a few magicians during the Spring Festival Gala rehearsals, learned a few moves, come, bring the playing cards! Then pick a card..."

The magic trick Bai Liang performed was certainly not high-end; it was really just a few moves he learned on the spot from the magicians at the Spring Festival Gala.

But it was certainly enough to fool these girls.

Because these moves were originally just techniques very suitable for flirting in bars by relying on some small sleight of hand to change cards.

"Wow! How did you do that!" Meng Ziyi widened her eyes, looking as if she couldn't understand it no matter how she thought about it.

"There's an even more amazing one..."

Seeing that the groundwork was laid, Bai Liang prepared his "ultimate move."

"Watch closely, I'm throwing this deck of cards away."

*Whoosh*, like flowers scattered by a goddess.

The girls stared straight at the hand he used to scatter the cards, seemingly wanting to see what he could conjure up.

Just then, Bai Liang stretched out his other hand, "A pair of stockings... whose stockings are missing?"

"Really?!"

Meng Jie hurriedly looked down at herself, oh~ she was wearing pants, but the other three were all wearing skirts.

Li Qin also widened her eyes, looking at Li Yitong's bare legs, "I remember you were wearing stockings when you came, right?"

Li Yitong was stunned for a moment... then nodded violently: "Right! Are they really my stockings?! Oh my, give them back to me..."

She snatched the stockings back directly from Bai Liang's hand, and then, because she was "careless," she "tore" them.

Meng Ziyi and Li Qin were truly stunned, clapping hard for Bai Liang.

This was even more amazing than Liu Qian!

He could actually make the stockings someone was wearing disappear; too amazing!

Bai Liang's long-standing image as a treasure of a man finally played a huge role at this moment.

These two girls felt it was very reasonable that his magic was so amazing!

Meng Jie even pestered Bai Liang, wanting him to reveal the secret of the magic trick.

Bai Liang's answer was naturally: "It won't work if I tell you~"

Jin Cheng, who knew everything:... oly crap! This works too?

Li Yitong gave her a look, fierce as hell.

Scaring her into shivering, she hurriedly followed suit and clapped, even shouting: "Great Immortal, if you have the ability, make my panties disappear!"

"I can tell with my butt that you definitely aren't wearing any today, don't even think about setting such a trap for me."

With one sentence, Meng Jie and Li Qin shifted their attention to Jin Cheng again.

They felt that this crazy woman Jin Cheng, wouldn't she really not be wearing any? And how did Bai Liang know?

Forced into a corner, Jin Cheng could only perform her own skirt-lifting operation again to prove her innocence.

Bai Liang: Small tricks for lifting girls' skirts, this is what you call magic! ——

Third update complete, asking for monthly tickets!