Chapter 248: A Rookie Stumbles Into a High-Stakes Pro Match

"Little Bai, she's absolutely that kind of bad woman! You've been duped!"

Hearing Yanzi's assessment of Zhang Tian'ai, Bai Liang thought... it was actually pretty reasonable.

That young lady did indeed come on with "ill intentions" at first, though admittedly, she wasn't terribly malicious about it.

She wasn't after his money or his life—just craved his fame and traffic, that's all.

Put nicely, she's got ambition~

It's just that her methods and approach were a bit on the crude side, too easy for anyone to see through.

See? Yanzi has already analyzed the other party down to the bone.

Especially after learning exactly what Bai Liang and the others had gone off to do, and discovering there was even a group photo, she let out a "wail":

"It's over, it's over, she's gonna latch onto him."

But then she quickly gritted her teeth: "The moment I get back, I'm contacting Sister Zha and Sister Reba and launching a full 'army' to encircle and annihilate her!"

Good lord, that's ruthless?!

Bai Liang blinked. "I don't think it's quite that bad. I reckon she may have already 'repented.'"

"I'd sooner believe in ghosts than a bad woman's mouth. Little Bai, what's that thing on your neck?" Mid-rant, Yanzi suddenly spotted a blind spot and said.

"Ahem, a Tokyo mosquito." Bai Liang offered weakly.

Yanzi:???

So just how on earth had her own Little Bai spent that day and a bit?

However, after returning to the country, Yanzi was astonished to discover that in Zhang Tian'ai's latest Weibo updates, there was not a single trace of her own Little Bai.

Not only did his face not appear, she didn't even mention his name once.

Only beneath the most recent photo she'd posted—one with real mood to it—did she specially thank a certain photographer who wished to remain anonymous.

"Who's the photographer? Whoever took this for our Sister Xiao Ai is way too good!"

"These days even photographers go anonymous? That doesn't make sense, this crowd actually needs fame too, otherwise how do they raise their rates?"

"This photo really has such a vibe to it... how was it shot? That grainy quality—what filter did they use?"

"Vibes above all! I declare this the most flavorful shot in Sister Xiao Ai's portfolio this year."

"Looks like it was taken at sunrise, Sister Xiao Ai is so dedicated, getting up that early just for the shot, go her!"

"The shadows became her skirt—it's really beautiful! I declare this my new wallpaper!"

"."

Facts proved Bai Liang hadn't been bullshitting.

A once-in-a-lifetime photo like that sometimes just happens by happy accident.

He grabbed his phone and snapped it casually. Hey presto—and from that moment on, Miss Zhang Tian'ai had herself a breakout shot.

Unless something unexpected happens, whenever her fans praise her looks in the future, they'll inevitably cite this photo as proof.

That ultimate sense of atmosphere is something many female artists can never achieve no matter how they pose.

Zhang Tian'ai: One photo, and it really trended?

Of course she had more than just this one photo on her phone; in fact, posting the others should have had a similar effect, maybe even more explosive.

Even her own photos were utterly ordinary, but the other person in them possessed a strange magic.

Anything tied to him, any topic connected to him, always became the center of discussion, the darling of conversation.

Only thing was, Zhang Tian'ai—who had originally approached with exactly that purpose—now didn't want to post those.

There were many reasons, but first she had to reply to Unlike Ni Ni's message.

"Could you introduce me to the photographer? Pwease~"

Between the lines, a yearning seemed to seep through everywhere.

Which made sense—Unlike Ni Ni, she was exactly the kind of seasoned pro at capturing atmospheric shots; any female artist with a more "high-end" look tended to produce atmospheric blockbusters at her hands.

Zhang Tian'ai's photo must have struck right at her heartstrings in an instant.

"Sorry, no can do—can't reveal someone's privacy~"

After sending that reply, Zhang Tian'ai felt like she'd downed an ice lolly on a scorching summer day—pure bliss!

Yanzi: Little Bai is the real deal.

No matter how she tried, she simply couldn't figure out how her own Little Bai had pulled it off.

Zhang Tian'ai was no pushover herself; she was the fairly famous type who knew how to play the game.

Her own Little Bai had been "led away" by her, yet somehow walked away scot-free, without a hint of trouble or scandal clinging to him.

That was simply a fairy tale.

The Tokyo trip had Yanzi's heart rate yo-yoing the whole way through.

Up front there was Unlike Ni Ni being far too warm and forward, and behind them Shuangzi—possibly off her rocker again—wanting to write her own Little Bai into her book.

And then out of nowhere popped Zhang Tian'ai... a bad woman going on the offensive, impossible to guard against.

Fortunately, now at last things were "safe."

Over on the set of Great Ming: The Wind Bloom, the world's best Sister Tian Tian was helping Yanzi guard her family's Little Bai.

Having previously coordinated once with Miss Jing Tian, Yanzi declared Sister Tian Tian was truly way too kind—which had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that she'd just received another welcome-to-set gift from her.

"Wow! She took such a great photo... if only I could get to know her photographer too, I'd poach them on the spot!"

Poach them on the spot?

One can only say—truly worthy of our great Tian Tian!

Though it's understandable; any capable photographer, every female star probably wants.

It wasn't anything unusual these days for female artists to poach each other's styling and photography teams.

Whose team was sharper, what big shot they had on board—everyone in the circle knew the score cold.

So the salaries of many top makeup artists and photographers are also extremely high — if they weren't, there'd be no way to keep them around.

The photographers who had previously taken those "viral iconic shots" of Bai Liang also rode the wave handsomely, cashing in big on the photo dividend.

But no matter how much some of the industry's female artists tried to dig, they simply couldn't uncover who exactly Zhang Tianai's photographer was.

Because her team didn't even have a dedicated photographer — usually when they needed shots, they'd just hire someone on the fly.

"I could take shots like that too~" Bai Liang glanced at Sister Tian Tian's phone, and upon discovering she was admiring his "masterpiece," got a little smug as he said.

But Miss Jing Tian didn't believe him. "Show off! You even know photography?"

"I know just a little bit." Bai Liang gestured modestly.

"Then tell me, what filter or camera lens was used to take this picture?"

"Mm, a phone."

"Get out of here~" Miss Jing Tian gave Bai Liang a very pretty eye-roll. "Why don't you just say it was taken with a Nokia."

"Don't believe it, then forget it."

"Hmph~ Only a fool would believe that!"

Verbally roasting Bai Liang, but Jing Tian actually felt a little regret — if only she'd gone along to Tokyo to look around.

But the moment that feeling surfaced, she caught sight of Bai Liang sitting beside her, spacing out, and quickly shook her head.

Can't go, can't go — if I go, I'll probably be done for.

Bai Liang:???

Why's she suddenly retreating into thin air? Bro hasn't even done anything!

Fortunately, Miss Jing Tian's worries didn't stop there.

Playing a scheming empress in "Great Ming Wind Flower" was a very difficult challenge for her.

With a face like hers, playing a villainous woman always felt a bit off somehow.

And she was also a little worried that once filming wrapped on this role, people might end up hating her.

Plenty of people already hated her anyway — a few more probably wouldn't matter~

But for now, Jing Tian's public reputation had actually improved quite a bit compared to before.

"Glory of the Tang Dynasty" was something of a turning point in Jing Tian's acting career. With the role of Shen Zhenzhu, she proved she could handle complex characters and broke past the old "pretty vase" stereotype.

Mm. That was the press release her team put out. To be precise, she had broken through a little, but not completely. At the same time, in the current production, the pressure from all the heavyweights around her was honestly a bit too much.

Wang Jueqi playing Zhu Di, Liang Guanhua playing Zhu Gaochi, Wu Yue playing Empress Zhang.

These were all veterans — of course it was natural that they were better than her.

But even Yu Haoming — that idol-drama star who came from a talent show — when they filmed yesterday, his portrayal of the Prince of Han gave Jing Tian a sense of being genuinely shaken.

A rookie stumbling into a high-rank match.

What to do about it? She can't be the worst one on the field, right?

So instinctively she turned her gaze toward Bai Liang, feeling an urge to huddle together for warmth.

After all, Bai Liang was even younger than her — surely he'd feel the pressure too, facing such formidable seniors?

But the moment she turned her head, she found Bai Liang holding some prop from the set, muttering something to himself.

His mouth was moving too.

Jing Tian scooted over curiously, and heard:

"Mandate of Heaven, eternal life and enduring prosperity."

Those eight words coming out of Bai Liang's mouth gave Jing Tian a full-body tingling sensation.

Even her breathing suddenly quickened.

Every word, every chapter, every update — only on this site!

That prop was... the Imperial Jade Seal!

They say no boy can resist the temptation of those eight words, but Jing Tian declared that she, a girl, was somehow affected too?

However, Bai Liang still didn't seem quite satisfied — he kept adjusting his tone and volume over there, as if trying to layer more nuance and emotion into his delivery.

Jing Tian: Numbed!

You guys can't be like this.

Fortunately, another newcomer arrived on set today.

"Hello, I'm Deng Jiajia."

"Hello, hello..."

Deng Jiajia, who was playing Hu Shanxiang, had also joined the production, and Jing Tian was especially warm toward her.

So warm that the other girl was a bit overwhelmed.

So the worldly glamorous flower, Sister Tian Tian, was actually like this behind the scenes on set?

Having just joined the production and already received such a warm welcome and kindness from the female lead, Deng Jiajia was in great shape.

Tang's Acting Rules — showtime!

Jing Tian's eyes went wide, she bit her lip at a loss, and Deng Jiajia gave her a thumbs-up: Sister, let's do this together!

She couldn't muster half a bit of it — was it still too late to run?

The pressure was really too much!

Fortunately, an ice cream cone appeared just in time.

Cool and sweet... girls, after all, are most easily healed by these things.

Cheeks puffed out as she ate her ice cream, Jing Tian looked at Bai Liang — the one who gave her the most pressure — and asked a question that had been circling in her mind: "On the set of 'How Long Will I Love U,' were you deliberately accommodating me?"

"Huh? No, I wasn't." Bai Liang denied it.

"But I feel like you've gotten way better than before."

Bai Liang frowned slightly. "You can tell that? Acting isn't like a game—do I have a level bar and experience gauge on my head?"

"That's not what I meant—it's just a feeling, you know, a feeling?"

"I understand a little, maybe because of Guo Fan—he's got weird standards, so I've done some self-study."

Hearing this, Miss Jing Tian felt a pang of regret—she hadn't paid close attention to their acting when she wandered onto the set of *The Wandering Earth*.

She'd only been staring at those hyper-sci-fi props and sets.

And Guo Fan's filming style was also strange; Miss Jing Tian hadn't understood it back then.

"Then what should I do?" she blinked her big eyes, gazing at Bai Liang with a pitiful look.

"Just act well~ The role of Sun Ruowei has far less screen time than before, the weight's been reduced—you shouldn't feel so much pressure."

Huh. Less screen time was suddenly a good thing.

Miss Jing Tian thought it over—she realized it was true.

If this were the old big-female-lead script, she felt surrounded by these "monsters," and every aspect of her performance would've been crushed into dust.

Now, compared to before, the pressure really had lessened.

But it still wasn't enough.

Miss Jing Tian had no good solution yet; she could only stare helplessly at Bai Liang, just like when she'd faced problems on the set of *Time Traveler*.

When problems arose, she never tried to solve them herself—she instinctively begged others for help. This habit was truly bad.

But Miss Jing Tian said she couldn't change it—except for flicking her tongue.

This time was no different.

Bai Liang stared at her for two seconds, then helplessly shrugged. "How do you know I've prepared some things for you?"

As soon as he spoke, he clearly saw the light flare in those big eyes before him!

Miss Jing Tian really was easy to please—provided she didn't retreat.

When Bai Liang realized she was relatively weak, he naturally wouldn't let this girl—who'd helped him so much—fall into confusion and helplessness.

He watched *The Glory of Tang* several times.

These two dramas shared some common ground—both spanned several emperors and dealt with family and nation.

And the female leads both grew from young girls into more complex figures, even entering politics.

Actually, the early scenes weren't hard for Miss Jing Tian—teenage romance, right?

She'd just "dated" Bai Liang; she knew the routine, and this time she didn't even need to flick her tongue.

The hard part was as the character grew: the male lead rose from crown prince to emperor, while the female lead eventually became Empress.

The character's growth arc was vital—how her mindset and outward demeanor changed step by step.

Actually, the most interesting thing about *The Splendor of Great Ming* was how it avoided heavy, tragic perspectives in certain scenes, focusing instead on the Zhu family.

"Step by step, looking back" familial bonds, the trembling fear of "serving a monarch is like serving a tiger," the deadly struggle for the throne, and the emperor's ruthless decisiveness—all were there.

This method of building dramatic conflict through family ties, using kinship to give historical drama a psychological anchor for viewers, made the characters far more believable.

The faint warmth amid the cruel struggle for imperial power—even the dark humor—audiences loved these things.

Miss Jing Tian's poised demeanor was actually quite amusing—a blend of beauty and adorable charm; she had an advantage here.

The way she held herself—who wouldn't like it?

Besides, she played an eighteen-year-old girl with little sense of mismatch—she herself had an age-inappropriate aura.

Playing younger wasn't especially absurd.

But later, she'd have to tone down this quality—you can't keep being adorable while tearing apart the harem.

She doesn't need to instantly become Zhen Huan or Hua Fei, but at least some "evil empress" cunning and presence must emerge.

Master Bai's mini-lesson was in session again.

This time, the "repeat student" was Miss Jing Tian.

Not just to help her, Bai Liang was finally getting to play a real emperor—he himself felt a bit excited.

And the drama's production quality was truly high.

So how could they allow a weak female lead to drag the set down?

She had to be stuffed full—even if we had to force-feed her!

Amid this tight, packed filming schedule, 2017 was finally drawing to a close.

But as the year-end approached, something always seemed to happen.

Besides coordinating year-end work and drama filming, Bai Liang received an intriguing "friend's request."

If it were a normal matter, he truly had no time for it now.

But this was different—even Miss Jing Tian, who'd overheard his phone call, instantly perked up.

"I want to go too! I want to go too!"

(End of Chapter)