Chapter 727: Emergency Rescue

The assistant director had a hard time tricking Jin Li over to film, and he couldn't wait to stare at her every moment, fearing she would run away.

So Gu Cheng and Jin Li went to eat together; neither of their assistants followed, but the assistant director stuck to them tightly.

More like an assistant than an assistant.

Gu Cheng and Jin Li didn't say anything on the surface, but both felt in their hearts that this assistant director was too urgent.

Halfway through the meal, the assistant director went out to answer a phone call, leaving only Jin Li and Gu Cheng in the private room.

Jin Li couldn't help but touch Gu Cheng’s arm and asked softly:

"Did the *Desperate Counterattack* crew have any problems with funds, why must actors film in advance?"

Generally, before actors join the crew, they have already signed a contract, and most crews will do things according to the terms in the contract.

When to start work, when to start work, the required RV, daily meals, fixed rest time, etc., will all be arranged properly.

Only some crews with poor coordination will make things messy.

But with the status of the two, they wouldn't receive invitations from such crews.

It’s not that those crews don't want to invite them, but the two people’s status is really too expensive, and only crews with sufficient investment dare to invite them.

What Jin Li finds puzzling is.

*Desperate Counterattack* is not a small production; whether it is the invited director or the production team, they are all big names in the industry.

How come this assistant director is like a wolf staring at meat, as if he hasn't eaten meat for a long time, and keeps plucking the actors when he sees them.

Gu Cheng knew Jin Li’s thoughts and said helplessly:

"Have you noticed one thing? Since you arrived at the crew, the coordinator hasn't come over, and it’s all the assistant director who is entertaining you."

Jin Li couldn't help but be stunned.

If Gu Cheng hadn't mentioned it, she wouldn't have noticed.

But since Gu Cheng mentioned it, she also noticed something wrong.

Yes, how come this crew is entertained by the assistant director?

Is the assistant director’s status here too low, or does the crew value them too much, so they specifically sent a heavyweight figure to receive them?

"What’s going on?" Jin Li asked.

She guessed: "Is this crew discriminating, and the assistant director’s work is not as good as the script supervisor, and all the dirtiest and most tiring work is done by the assistant director?"

Gu Cheng clearly knew something and said with a laugh: "Him? Still being discriminated against? It’s already good that he doesn't use his power to discriminate against others."

He didn't sell it, and said directly: "This assistant director was sent by the investor; to be precise, he is one of the investors, wanting to contact the directing industry out of love."

"Because he invested more and is sincere, fighting to do work, so the director waved his hand and promoted him to assistant director."

"But he has no filming experience and is currently learning; he only has the name but no power."

Jin Li suddenly understood.

Because the assistant director is an investor, he stares so tightly because he doesn't want to waste his investment.

"He fooled us into filming in advance, just to save expenses?"

Gu Cheng nodded without hesitation: "I heard this director is also a major in accounting, so he is very tight on saving expenses, and the crew’s finance department is about to have nothing to do."

Jin Li’s eyes flashed: "Listening to your tone, it seems there is another story."

Gu Cheng said lightly: "Water is clear and there are no fish. The larger the crew wants to maintain harmony and stability, the more they must give up part of the benefits."

"It’s easiest to make fake accounts and get money from the accounting side. Now this piece of accounting is firmly held by the assistant director, which has already caused dissatisfaction among some people."

"Those people are old employees who followed Director Zheng all the way, and Director Zheng is also very embarrassed."

Jin Li: "So?"

"So, in order to give this assistant director something to do, Director Zheng communicated with him privately to let him contact actor reception. This is the work of the coordinator and field staff, all taken over by the assistant director."

Mentioning this, Gu Cheng said helplessly: "Since this assistant director took over actor coordination and meal expenses, he has strictly executed according to the rules." [733-40

There are only fewer, never more; my rest time is also arranged very clearly and strictly. I believe you will be able to experience it soon."

Jin Li was curious, "I have to film night scenes tonight; is this deputy director going to be on set too? Doesn't he not know how to film?"

Gu Cheng said with certainty, "He doesn't know how to film, but he will come over to supervise.

If your scenes go smoothly, it's fine; he will give you a few more minutes of rest.

If your state isn't on point and you have many retakes, he will take a stopwatch to time you. He says three minutes of rest, it's three minutes; he won't give you even a second more."

Jin Li frowned, "Is he really that strict?"

Gu Cheng wanted to say something else, but there was a commotion at the door.

Before long, the deputy director appeared.

The two of them tacitly stopped talking and ate the food in their bowls in silence.

A few minutes later, the deputy director put down his chopsticks first and asked proactively, "Are you two full? Can we go film now?"

Meanwhile, Gu Cheng and Jin Li still had their chopsticks in their hands.

Jin Li was about to speak, but Gu Cheng spoke first, "Not full yet. Deputy Director, if you're in a hurry, you can go back first; we will be there within half an hour."

Upon hearing this, the deputy director was hesitant.

Another half hour?

The director's expression was somewhat troubled.

It is now 6:50; even after another half hour, it will be 7:20.

Gu Cheng guaranteed he could arrive at the set by 7:20, and the night scene was scheduled for 7:30, which was actually ten minutes early.

But looking at the deputy director's expression, he was still very dissatisfied and hoped Jin Li and Gu Cheng could speed things up.

The deputy director subconsciously looked at Jin Li; he felt Jin Li was easier to talk to.

Gu Cheng's temperament was too cold; no matter how he showed goodwill, he maintained that same attitude, which was inexplicably annoying.

However, Jin Li kept her head lowered, pretending not to notice the gaze, and ate silently.

Before long, the deputy director left; he didn't stay long, as he had other things to attend to.

Only then did Jin Li ask, "Doesn't he need to supervise the actors' filming? Why go back to the set early? Could it be he wants to supervise the relevant staff?"

Gu Cheng said with a straight face, "No, he's going to audit the accounts.

Every single expense for every actor must be known clearly. As for the crew's finances, he doesn't manage that anymore; perhaps Director Zheng communicated with him privately."

Jin Li: "...He really is a busy person."

She recalled her first impression of this deputy director and said, "Although he is a hot potato, having him here is actually a good thing."

Gu Cheng was curious, "How so?"

Jin Li smiled, "This director is clearly an expert at being thrifty and managing the household. You're right, water that is too clear has no fish.

As long as he is willing to let go a little and keep the pressure within a certain range, it's fine.

But he can't let go completely, otherwise the corruption in the crew will be even more severe.

You also know that many crews claim to be big productions, but the real bulk of the money isn't spent on the film, but on all sorts of miscellaneous expenses.

On the surface, the stars' salaries take up the majority of the investment, but in reality, some people take kickbacks that are even more significant than the stars' salaries.

I'm not saying 'Desperate Counterattack' is like this, but clearly, this crew has the same human relationships and worldly wisdom as ordinary crews.

Since the crew has taken so much money from investors, they still have to work hard to film this movie well; they can't just think about grabbing money."

Gu Cheng nodded thoughtfully.

Originally, he was somewhat annoyed by this deputy director, but after Jin Li put it this way, he suddenly felt that the role of a deputy director was necessary in the crew to maintain balance.

The two finished their meal quickly, chatted for a while, and strolled leisurely back to the set.

They arrived at the set before 7:30.

Jin Li sat back in the makeup room; the makeup on her face had already been wiped off, and now she was getting it done again.

This makeup was more clear and translucent, looking very much like a bare face, giving one a sense of natural beauty.

Before the makeup artist came over, Chen Qin whispered in Jin Li's ear:

"At 7:20, you and Gu Cheng hadn't arrived yet. The deputy director was very anxious, asking everyone if they had seen you two, and frequently looked at his watch.

At 7:25, you appeared, and the deputy director clearly let out a sigh of relief."

Chen Qin paused, her brows tightly furrowed, "I always feel this deputy director is weird; he doesn't look like a director at all, more like a production coordinator in the crew."

At the same time, he also felt a bit like a boss to her.

The kind of boss who is very strict with time, wishing employees would finish today's tasks first, and as soon as they are finished, immediately adding new tasks.

After hearing this, Jin Li couldn't help but glance at Chen Qin.

In her eyes, Chen Qin was actually quite spiritual.

They formed a bond outside the Daoist temple, and she had taken a liking to Chen Qin at first sight, hoping she could be her assistant.

At that time, she felt Chen Qin had good natural talent.

If this world were full of spiritual energy and Chen Qin practiced hard, she could probably achieve something quite good.

But in this Age of Dharma Decline with almost no spiritual energy, cultivation is already very difficult.

At most, Chen Qin's intuition is sharper than an ordinary person's, allowing her to sense more things.

This time, after observing the deputy director, she noticed characteristics that many people couldn't perceive.

Jin Li told Chen Qin the identity of this deputy director and then said:

"Although we aren't afraid of offending the deputy director, since he is an investor in this show, pay a little more attention to what he says in the future and remember to remind me."

Chen Qin nodded in realization.

So this deputy director is an investor; that explains all his behavior.

No wonder he was so anxious.

Every minute the actors and staff waste is his money burning.

Gu Cheng also has night scenes.

Originally, he was supposed to film a martial arts scene today, and it was a very important, high-stakes scene among all the fight scenes.

Once this fight scene is filmed brilliantly, it will definitely be cut into the trailer and even promoted across the entire internet.

To film the important scene tonight, he had been adjusting his emotions since the day.

Director Zheng also intended to keep his emotions stable and not let him consume too much physical energy, so he arranged only relatively simple drama scenes.

Jin Li also had scenes tonight, but they were staggered with Gu Cheng's.

She would be filming a scene in another group where her abilities are discovered.

Once Jin Li's makeup was set, she was led by staff to Group B.

Group A and Group B were staggered, and going to Group B did not require passing through Group A.

However, she could occasionally hear a few clanging sounds, like something hitting a railing.

Every time she heard this sound, she couldn't help but tilt her ear.

When she heard it for the third time, Jin Li suddenly stopped and asked with a solemn expression:

"What is that sound? Did something happen to someone?"

The staff were quite familiar with the crew's arrangements and quickly replied, "That direction isn't someone having an accident; they are filming a fight scene."

Another staff member said, "It should be Gu Cheng's fight scene. I heard tonight's fight scene is a major one."

Not long after the words fell, another dull clanging sound came.

This time, even the staff who were in a hurry to get on their way heard it.

One of them sighed, "Listening to that sound, Gu Cheng is really fighting; he's too hard on himself."

Another person who knew the inside story said, "Director Zheng asked him if he needed a stunt double, but Gu Cheng refused, saying he could do it himself."

Seeing Jin Li looking worried, Chen Qin said, "Does the crew have a masseur? With this intensity of fighting, if he doesn't get treatment in time, he probably won't be able to climb out of bed tomorrow; he'll have bruises all over."

"Yes, yes, every crew with a lot of fight scenes is equipped with one."

Jin Li still had her brows locked, having a bad premonition.

Another clanging sound came.

She suddenly stopped and said, "This sound is wrong."

"What?" The two staff members leading the way looked at her.

Jin Li said, "My hearing is better; I can hear sounds that many people can't. The clanging sound that just came is very wrong."

"When the crew was setting up the scene, did they test whether the props could support the current scene?"

"This..."

The two staff members looked at each other.

They really weren't sure about the prop testing part.

However, they had joined the crew much earlier than Jin Li and had seen the scenes where stars filmed.

So they knew whether the props were tested after being set up.

The answer was no.

But seeing Jin Li looking like she wanted to hold them accountable, should this "no" be said out loud?

Now, let alone Jin Li, even Chen Qin noticed the staff's guilty conscience.

Having been by Jin Li's side for so long, she could guess what Jin Li was thinking at this moment.

Jin Li couldn't speak at this time; it was better for her to speak.

Chen Qin said decisively, "I request the crew to check the filming props. All the props Jin Li will use later must be checked."

"Not only that, all the crew's props must be checked."

"Isn't Gu Cheng filming a martial arts scene? Let's go over and see the quality. If the set is built shakily, Jin Li won't film."

After Chen Qin finished speaking, she pulled Jin Li and walked in the opposite direction, "Let's go to Group A first to take a look."

One of the staff members realized and hurriedly blocked them, "Hey, don't go; you have to report to Group B first."

Chen Qin said without looking back, "Then you guys check all the props first and call us when you're sure there are no safety hazards."

"This is written in the contract; ensuring the artist's safety during filming is something the crew must do. Whoever has an objection can talk to me with the contract."

Before long, the two walked away, leaving the two staff members stunned in place.

"What should we do now?"

"Like this, you go to Group B to clock in first to ensure we aren't late, and then I'll go find the deputy director and tell her about Jin Li's request."

Jin Li felt a bit uneasy and was running by the end.

Chen Qin caught up to Jin Li, just wanting to say maybe they should find a staff member to ask how to get to Group A.

But Jin Li seemed to have a telepathic connection and determined the route, passed a few corners, and suddenly, the gate of Group A was right before her eyes.

Jin Li walked in and happened to see Gu Cheng hanging high on a building, his hands gripping the edge of the concrete wall, looking precarious.

Gu Cheng's body was already suspended by a wire, so even if he let go, he wouldn't fall.

The director shouted through a megaphone, "Later, Gu Cheng will jump from the concrete room to the bamboo building; the wire team, get ready!"

Jin Li's brows were tightly furrowed, and her heart beat faster and faster.

Where exactly is the problem?

She looked at the simple frame built with bamboo poles, and her expression suddenly became solemn.

?? Suddenly discovered there is still an operating fund this month. The operations officer suggested continuing to hold activities, so let's do it. The monthly ticket lottery still has 20 spots, and there are also book recommendation officer activities and fan title activities. The activities will be online tomorrow.