Chapter 385: Dreamed of Another World

Bai Liang didn't give Mao Xiaotong much time to think—he got up and headed for the door.

But at that moment, Mao Xiaotong suddenly grabbed him, yet couldn't think of what to say.

Two seconds later, she quickly let go and hid somewhere.

The instant she was hidden, her heart collapsed.

Who am I? Where am I? What am I supposed to do?

This doesn't make sense—why did I suddenly become the one being caught?

She should've just acted naturally earlier, gone to open the door, said goodbye, and left.

After replaying it in her mind, Mao Xiaotong regretted it even more—she internally cursed: What the hell am I even doing?! I'm not here to sneak around! Why hide at all?!

Mao Xiaotong was still replaying it in her head, but Reba, who had already entered the room, had no Sherlock Holmes talent.

She merely sized up Bai Liang, saw he was dressed neatly, and sighed in relief.

She even felt a bit guilty: Why did I get so suspicious? The girls on this set all get along well with me—it's not like Gu Li Naza, that shameless hometown girl.

As a Weibo movie emperor, Bai Liang naturally showed no sign of guilt; seeing Reba's big eyes darting around as soon as she walked in, he thought: Mao Xiaotong is good at catching affairs, but the reverse? Not so much.

He'd barely sat down when Reba showed up, sniffing him out.

"Was the dessert good? You're back so early?"

"I brought some for you~ Tasted pretty good, but I didn't dare eat much."

Reba showed off the takeaway dessert and placed it on the coffee table.

Then she casually leaned into Bai Liang's lap, hmm… and sniffed.

There was only the faintest, faintest trace of scent~

She knew this scent well—it was her own.

They'd been hugging and cuddling during today's shoot; it was only natural for Bai Liang to carry her scent.

Now she was completely at ease!

But then came a wave of embarrassment—oh no, I misjudged him~

"Have you showered today?"

"I just got back and haven't had time yet. Lin and Xin stood me up—I'm planning to hit the gym later."

"Going to the gym?"

Reba thought for a moment, then suddenly straddled Bai Liang's lap, facing him. "Where are we working out today?"

The moment she sat down, Bai Liang knew exactly where he needed to train.

But there was still someone hiding in the room.

Bai Liang rested his chin on his hand and thought—but his super brain couldn't come up with a good solution.

He couldn't just say to Reba, "Let me perform a magic trick," could he?

That trick might fool Meng Jie or Naza, but Reba would never believe him.

Yet his silence made Reba think: Bad White is putting on an act again.

She rolled her eyes and reached for the buttons of her shirt.

Fine—she'd take the initiative.

This wasn't when they first met, when a single touch made her blush to her toes.

Put more bluntly: as they grew older, some things could be turned around.

"Good boy, sit still."

"Hm?"

"I'm going to feed you dessert~"

"Xinjiang cut cake?"

"Don't make stuff up—it's real dessert." Reba turned, picked up the takeaway dessert, and winked at Bai Liang.

The dessert was real, of course—but the way she fed him was oddly unusual.

After finishing the dessert, Bai Liang thought it tasted good, and Reba, who'd previously used a "foodie" persona on variety shows, felt unsatisfied.

So she switched targets.

But after sniffing slightly, she still pushed him away with mild disgust. "Go shower!"

"You're嫌弃 me?"

"Oh come on, don't pout now—just go, go!"

Clearly, if Bai Liang didn't shower, she wouldn't say another word—her stance was firm.

Even as he went to rinse off, Reba stood outside with arms crossed, sternly watching. "I'm checking when you come out—substandard products get rejected. Don't just splash water and try to fool me."

"You never used to be this hygienic," Bai Liang muttered.

"Don't lie—I've always been hygienic. Who isn't?!" Reba suddenly spotted the flaw.

Luckily, Bai Liang wasn't fazed. "You are."

"Impossible!"

"When you're dazed, you'll eat anything put in front of you."

Bai Liang had tested this trait of hers multiple times—every time, the same result.

Not just eating—she'd take anything handed to her.

Once, during a break, Bai Liang handed her a teacup, and she held onto it the entire time.

Afterward, seeing the teacup in her hand, she'd ask him: "Where did this come from?"

So this was her charm.

Reba, usually hard to fool, was almost completely gullible when distracted or dazed.

Bai Liang always lies, and always succeeds.

Reba, whose memories of this aspect had been activated, said nothing, only blushed and silently checked.

Upon discovering Bai Liang had even used body wash, she first nodded, but couldn't help reminding him: "I remember buying you a special one for washing."

"That one's in the RV."

"I'll buy you another later; you must use this in hotels too."

Teacher Reba is truly strict.

But after passing the food safety standards, she did offer positive feedback.

Yet at this moment, she remembered what Bai Liang had just said, and emphasized: "You're not allowed to bully me like that again!"

"Whatever you say now, I'll agree," Bai Liang said helplessly.

Now she was satisfied—more accurately, both of them were satisfied.

But one person was truly numb.

The first half was fine; she only felt a little embarrassed, but she wasn't a little girl anymore.

Let this be her punishment.

But the second half was insane!

Drunk on the moment, Reba started speaking nonsense.

It was bad enough that she spoke alone, but Bai Liang joined in—he actually cooperated with her, speaking along.

Mixed in between were all sorts of random stuff, as if three languages were fighting it out.

She didn't remember any of the sensual moments, only those silly lines.

——

"Ahh~ Penyou, my behind has the same speed as the Fuxinghao~"

"How about just one sesame seed on that baked bun?"

"Adasi, give me lots of force!"

"I won't give you any air."

"Call me 'Baiyi Lao Ye,' then I'll give you air—hurry up and call!"

"Make your voice sound like an air raid siren."

"."

"Damn!"

"Sister, what's wrong?"

"Huh? I'm fine," Mao Xiaotong waved her hand, trying to shake the chaotic thoughts out of her head.

This guy Bai Liang is just too insane—especially with how good his language talent is!

He sounded exactly like it—full of that nang flavor.

Not a single flaw could be detected.

This made her wonder: if she were a Tianjin native, what silly lines would that little rascal come up with?

So she couldn't help continuing to imagine:

"Say it—Uncle Baibai is the number one in Tianjin, right?!"

"Are Tianjin fried dough twists delicious?"

"Is the paste tasty? Do you get it, jiejie?"

"Stinky old man, let Baibai see the Tianjin Eye!"

"Watch closely, here's another one—so you'll remember! Tianjin Boss Shockwave!"

Aaaahhhhh!

Crazy!

These audio clips kept playing automatically in her mind.

How could someone play like this? It wasn't really perverted, just… weird.

Bai Liang: I really can't speak Tianjin dialect.

But his mind is sharp—he can learn it.

Zhu Zhu Xudan, who had just greeted her and now sat beside her, wasn't here specifically to check on her.

While Mao Xiaotong was lost in thought, Zhu Zhu Xudan poked her arm again, pleading: "Xiaotong-jie, don't tell anyone, okay?"

"Huh? What?"

"I really didn't use that clothing for anything bad," Zhu Zhu Xudan explained anxiously.

Mao Xiaotong glanced at her: "I'd already forgotten—you're bringing it up again?"

Her gaze grew complicated; she waved her hand: "It's fine. Your little hobby is actually pretty normal—I've been there, I understand."

"Really?! Oh no, I didn't—" Zhu Zhu Xudan's face turned bright red as she tried to explain.

Mao Xiaotong didn't want to listen; she cut straight to the point: "What does the clothing smell like?"

The slightly tipsy girl, facing a girl who looked innocent but saw through everything, finally gave up: "It smells nice enough, but the two pieces smell different~"

"Two pieces?!" Mao Xiaotong froze, instinctively demanding a "silence fee": "Give me one."

"No way!"

"Pfft~ I'm just joking. Why would I want that thing?"

Though she said that, she couldn't help recalling how she'd tried to sniff the "evidence" off Bai Liang yesterday.

Hmm… it really did smell nice—no trace of "stinky man" at all.

By the way, Reba seems picky—she insisted he wash, but really, it wasn't necessary. Sometimes letting loose isn't a bad thing.

Crack!

Zhu Zhu Xudan stared, dumbfounded, as Mao Xiaotong slapped herself right across the face.

What's this sister doing?

"Don't mind me, it's just an old habit," Mao Xiaotong said calmly.

Zhu Zhu Xudan's forehead was covered in question marks—what kind of old habit involved slapping yourself?

The only thing she knew about hand tremors was Parkinson's—no way was this thirty-year-old sister suffering from that?

She ignored Zhu Zhu Xudan's strange stare—after all, this wasn't something she could explain.

But today, during filming, Mao Xiaotong felt a bit off.

She couldn't get into character.

Every time she saw Dili Reba, her mind filled with nonsense.

Every time she saw Bai Liang, her brain automatically played Tianjin slang.

Two strange kinds of slang clashed inside her head, making her feel split in two.

Her character was Peipei, a high school classmate of the female lead Qiao Jingjing; as for her role's positioning, it was similar to the roommate character from "Wei Wei" back then—even her personality had some resemblance.

It gave her a sense of déjà vu from three years ago.

Back then, she'd been the one leading the crew in shipping couples.

All the online fans shipping Bai Liang and Reba now had to call her "Ancestor."

And she was the kind who could ship couples right up to the actors' faces.

Yet the lead actors were still the same people from three years ago—only now, when she stood there herself, the feeling was completely different.

You could even say it was vastly different.

When Reba called out at lunchtime to eat together, Mao Xiaotong even made up an excuse, saying she'd eaten too much that morning and was dieting, so she wouldn't eat lunch.

Then she went off by herself to sulk.

But she hadn't been sulking long when she heard a voice beside her:

"Whatcha doin'?"

Oh my god!

Mao Xiaotong turned and glared at Bai Liang. "You're not allowed to speak Tianjin dialect!"

"I only know these two phrases, but Tianjin dialect's kind of fun—why don't you teach me sometime?"

"No way!"

"I brought you some fruit, though."

"Why did you bring me fruit?"

"Reba said you didn't eat lunch, you're dieting—I figured you're not fat anyway, so just eat some fruit to fill your stomach."

For some reason, this sentence instantly made Mao Xiaotong burst out laughing—so hard she couldn't straighten up.

Bai Liang scratched his head in confusion. "What's wrong with you? Did someone tickle your funny spot?"

This time, Mao Xiaotong didn't scold him for speaking Tianjin dialect—instead, she took several deep breaths, then said with a strange expression: "I'm not as clean as she is."

"What?"

"Clean what?"

Ssshh—no wonder she's a thirty-year-old veteran.

Bai Liang lightly slapped his own face, deciding he'd have to watch his wording from now on.

Meanwhile, Mao Xiaotong, who'd just derailed the conversation, casually flicked her hair, took the fruit Bai Liang offered, and bit into it directly.

"Sweet?"

"Remember this: dieting isn't just about eating fruit—some fruits have very high sugar content."

Today, this sister was like she'd swallowed gunpowder—Bai Liang said one thing, she shot back one thing.

But it was understandable—after all, last night she'd been tormented, sneaking off only at three in the morning.

But Mao Xiaotong suddenly changed tone: "Do you treat every girl like this?"

Before he could answer, she added: "Don't mess with me—or I'll actually bite you off!"

This statement was wildly ambiguous, since the premise of "biting off" was...

Fortunately, Bai Liang didn't tease—he explained: "Hey, last night it was clearly you who—"

"That was a misunderstanding! If you say another word in Tianjin dialect, I'll flip out!"

"Heh, I just wanted to liven things up, so... you don't need my help, then?"

"Help?" Mao Xiaotong looked confused; after several seconds, she finally understood, her face turning red.

So that's what he meant...

Sensing she'd been too harsh today, Mao Xiaotong even felt sorry for Bai Liang, standing there so cluelessly.

He hadn't done anything wrong—her earlier judgment had been a misunderstanding, even a complete subjective fantasy.

Assuming he was a scumbag from the start and judging him from that angle was never right.

So her heart softened: "Thanks for the fruit—it's especially sweet."

At this moment, her sweet smile appeared—it was hard to say whether the fruit could match it.

No wonder she's a veteran who still looks like a little sweetie at thirty.

Girls who follow the sweetie-cute vibe really do look much younger—they've got a huge advantage here.

"Want more? I've got some left~"

"I'm not a pig—why eat so much?"

"Fair enough."

After dealing with this "little kid" who didn't want to eat, Bai Liang withdrew, his virtue complete.

His utterly unattached manner made Mao Xiaotong can't help but glance at his back several times.

He really was quite different from others—

The filming progress of "You Are My Glory" wasn't fast.

It wasn't because the lead actors performed poorly—Bai Liang certainly didn't need mention; the role was extremely easy, even easier than Han Shangyan in "Love Me If You Dare."

Reba's natural performance suited the character even better than Zha.

But the main reason filming progress was slow was because she was dragging her feet.

During the filming of this drama, she became a "scene hog."

More accurately, she was overly "perfectionistic."

Many scenes, the director felt, were perfect after one take—the two actors delivered flawlessly—but Reba would watch the playback and insist it wasn't good enough, demanding multiple retakes.

At first, the entire crew praised her spirit, thinking Reba was truly a great actress, holding herself to such high standards.

But as time passed, everyone began to sense something off.

She seemed to be deliberately picking faults.

Whenever filming scenes of Qiao Jingjing and Yu Tu being affectionate, Reba would always jump in to wildly criticize herself, claiming her performance here was bad, there was worse.

But after several retakes, they found—nothing had changed~

Now everyone finally figured it out: she wasn't filming at all—she was using the plot to fall in love.

That cloying sweetness was overwhelming.

But she kept her boundaries perfectly; though "rowdy," the director did a quick calculation and realized—hey, it didn't affect the shooting schedule at all!

The schedule still advanced steadily as originally planned.

Strange.

It was an assistant director who accidentally cracked it: "I heard Brother Liang shoots with incredible efficiency—his last drama, 'Love Me If You Dare,' reportedly wrapped up days ahead of schedule."

Case solved!

Indeed, it didn't affect the schedule—Reba was deliberately slowing down Bai Liang; she just didn't want to wrap so soon.

This was still within the bounds of acceptable behavior.

After all, the two most valuable people on the entire crew were the male and female leads.

If they didn't mind, who else had the right to complain?

The director team felt the same—the shooting schedule for this drama wasn't long anyway; wrapping early or late didn't matter.

Even if it wasted a bit more production cost, that money meant nothing compared to the value these two brought.

They were happy to play along.

Want to fall in love? Go ahead and fall in love!

Everyone loved watching anyway~

So when Reba herself felt a bit embarrassed by how far she'd gone, thinking it was too much, the director team came up with a solution.

"We could shoot some behind-the-scenes footage."

"Behind-the-scenes footage?" Reba didn't quite understand.

"Sugar-dropping—just some everyday interactions. Of course, if you don't know how to interact, have the screenwriter help write some scripts—you two just act them out, just a bit more naturally."

When Bai Liang heard this, it sounded familiar—he'd seen something similar before.

Ah!

Right! Huang Jingyu's "Addicted"!

When he visited the set before, he noticed that even after filming ended, the two male leads still went wild with interactions, sugar-dropping—it was downright annoying.

People who didn't know might think they were actually a couple.

Now the "You Are My Glory" crew wanted to do the same thing—same idea, different execution.

But Reba said they needed a script? Fine, bring it on~

She only worried about boundaries—she might need to slightly rein herself in.

Yet Gu Man, who had been silent since joining the set, now made a big move!

"Let's shoot an extra!"

"Huh? Also behind-the-scenes stuff?"

"No, actually the shots aren't many—it's just up to you, Reba."

This "extra" was mysterious all around—even Bai Liang didn't know.

When he asked, both Reba and Gu Man chose to keep it secret, saying only, "You'll find out when the time comes"—a surprise.

Bai Liang had excellent patience in such matters.

For any surprise, he could wait patiently until the moment it was revealed.

So even if he had to step away, he agreed without hesitation.

And the filming of this so-called "extra" was truly simple—more like a movie post-credits scene than an extra.

It would be placed at the very end of the TV drama.

"Mm"

"Jingjing, you're awake?"

Qiao Jingjing stretched in bed, tilted her head into daydreaming, her long hair spilling loosely, possessing a certain messy beauty.

Her agent, Sister Ling, pulled back the curtains and teased with a smile: "What are you daydreaming about? You've only just gotten married—missing your husband?"

"I am missing him," Qiao Jingjing mused. "But last night I had a strange dream."

"What did you dream about?"

"I dreamed that in another world, I was also a female movie star."

"Also called Qiao Jingjing?"

"No, called Dili Reba."

(End of Chapter)