Chapter 29: Ms. Liu, You Wouldn't Want Yifei

"Click."

"Liu Yifei, what is wrong with you? Where is the emotion? Let it explode! How many times has this been now?"

Wei Jin's somewhat irritable voice rang out on the set, and the cast and crew were all as silent as cicadas in winter.

Since the start of filming, this was the first time they had seen Wei Jin lose his temper.

In truth, it wasn't that Wei Jin wanted to fly into a rage; it was just that for a single shot, they had already NG'd dozens of times, and his patience had been worn completely thin.

"I'm sorry, Brother Wei Jin," Liu Yifei apologized, feeling somewhat aggrieved.

"When on set, call me Director. I don't want to hear 'sorry'. Sigh... forget it, everyone take a break."

Wei Jin suppressed his restless mood, giving everyone some time to adjust, and waved his hand to signal his Assistant, Li Na, to bring over his water cup.

Liu Xiaoli was also by her side, comforting the softly sobbing Liu Yifei.

For several days in a row, Liu Yifei was unable to get into character, so Wei Jin had no choice but to arrange for the production Assistant to move other scenes forward.

At lunchtime that day, Liu Xiaoli found Wei Jin alone.

"Director Wei, I'm sorry. Xixi is still young, and perhaps her understanding of the character and control over her emotions aren't quite up to par. Please, bear with her."

"Ms. Liu, for a film to present good results and achieve success, it isn't enough for just one person to be brilliant."

"But conversely, for a film to fail, it only takes one person to drag it down."

Wei Jin's words were somewhat blunt; he really had been worn down to the point of having no temper left, and he hadn't expected this at all, feeling quite regretful about his decision.

"With so many people in the crew, every day delayed is a loss, and it's irresponsible to the investors."

Liu Xiaoli hadn't expected Wei Jin to be so stern. She had also misunderstood the situation; the television dramas Liu Yifei had filmed previously had thin character designs, and she only needed to play herself. Now that she was encountering something that actually tested her acting skills, she was at a loss, and for a moment, she had nothing to say.

"Television dramas and films are different. A television drama is a small screen; the audience won't really see your facial expressions and nuances, so getting by is fine. Films are different. Your close-ups are magnified many times over on the big screen. If you can't immerse yourself in the emotion, it's very easy for the audience to be pulled out of the experience, and the entire performance falls apart."

Wei Jin also realized his tone had been a bit heavy just now—after all, Liu Xiaoli was the same age as his own father—so he explained a little: "So it's not that my requirements are high. If the acting is bad, it ruins our entire film. I can't lower my requirements."

"Then, Director Wei, do you think you could help coach Xixi and let her enter this state of performance?"

Liu Xiaoli tried to make a request.

"That is possible. How about this: tonight, have her come to my room. Just her alone."

Wei Jin replied after a moment of thought.

"?? Just her alone?"

Liu Xiaoli felt somewhat uneasy.

"You're overthinking it. I just feel that you've protected her too well. She hasn't been exposed to the harshness of society and can't grasp other emotions. With you around, she always feels someone is protecting her, and she can't release her emotions."

Wei Jin explained quickly.

"Ms. Liu, you don't want Yifei to be unable to get into character forever, do you? When the film is released, being criticized for poor acting will affect her acting career."

After a long silence, Liu Xiaoli finally nodded in agreement.

That evening, for the first time in her life, Liu Yifei knocked on the director's door. After Wei Jin opened it, he ushered her into the room.

Wei Jin sat on the sofa, looking at the slightly flushed Liu Yifei, who was wearing a pair of tight jeans and an oversized hoodie. Was she really guarding against him, Wei? What a joke; the little girl hadn't even developed yet, with a flat figure. Wei Jin had no such thoughts. Besides, she was only 17 years old—was that even legal?

Both of them were somewhat silent; for a time, no one spoke.

Liu Yifei's silence was because she felt a bit of Shame, entering a man's room late at night.

Wei Jin's silence was because he was thinking about how to make this girl, who had been protected like a princess since childhood, let her emotions explode.

After pondering for a long time, Wei Jin broke the silence first.

"Do you know that your acting is bad?"

"I don't know. No one has ever told me that before."

Liu Yifei really didn't know. After all, her previous roles only required her to play herself, and the television directors didn't have high requirements; if it passed, it passed, and they wouldn't scold a little girl. "Then you must go online, right? Do you know how everyone evaluated your acting in *The Story of a Noble Family*? Like a piece of wood. Such a brilliant character was played by you like a piece of wood; you were completely just reciting lines."

Wei Jin said this without any hesitation, and only when the little girl was about to cry did he change his angle.

"Is there anything you love? The kind of extreme Amour?"

"There is."

"Then imagine that your mother won't let you do the thing you love."

Wei Jin guided her step by step.

"That wouldn't happen. Mom loves me so much..."

Liu Yifei was somewhat resistant.

"Your mother did exactly that. Do you want to listen to her? Do you want to continue being a good little girl, or do you want to bravely pursue the things you love?"

Wei Jin continued to apply pressure.

"I, I don't know..."

"Are you going to be like a puppet for the rest of your life, controlled by your mother? In the future, will you even need your mother to help you choose who to marry?"

Wei Jin seemed to transform into a demon, continuously brainwashing the little girl.

"That's not true. Mom loves me and wouldn't hurt me. She wouldn't..."

"Your mother just wants to control your life. She raised you just to make you walk the path of her dreams. She is using your life to fulfill her own dreams; she doesn't love you at all."

Wei Jin felt like he was about to turn into a major villain; he grabbed Liu Yifei by the shoulders and roared loudly.

"That's not true! I won't allow you to talk about my mother like that! You bad person, I'll never talk to you again! Slap! Wuu wuu..."

Liu Yifei cried out and struggled, giving Wei Jin a slap. As expected of a protected princess, she didn't even know how to curse.

"Good. Now, remember this feeling for me."

"Go away, I don't want to see you... wuu wuu."

Liu Yifei was still immersed in the emotion when Liu Xiaoli's voice came from outside the door.

"Xixi, are you okay? Answer me."

Liu Yifei calmed her mood, opened the door, and leaned gently against her mother, sobbing.

Liu Xiaoli gently patted her daughter, checked her clothing, and let out a sigh of relief.

At this moment, Wei Jin rubbed his cheeks and said:

"Yifei, remember the emotions you felt when you delivered that slap just now; you need to vent them out like that, do you understand?"

Liu Yifei was still sobbing softly, but she understood Wei Jin's good intentions and nodded slightly.

Immediately after, Liu Xiaoli left with her daughter, looking suspicious.

Wei Jin remained in the room alone, feeling a mix of amusement and frustration; he had chosen this actor, so he had to train her well, even if it meant tears and kneeling.

During this period of filming, with no one to keep him company in bed, Wei Jin's sleep had been poor; he pondered whether he should hire an Assistant who could keep him company in bed, as his current Assistant, Li Na, had too flat a figure and was not the type Wei Jin liked.

On the other side, while on the way back to her room, Liu Xiaoli tried to fish for information about what had happened, but Liu Yifei kept her mouth shut, saying only that she was tired and wanted to rest.

Over the next few days, something surprising happened: Liu Yifei seemed to have suddenly found her state; although she still occasionally had an NG, she was now completely on the right track, and the filming speed increased significantly.

A newbie author writing a book for the first time, begging on my knees for collections, follows, catch-up reads, and recommendations, thank you everyone.

(End of this chapter)