The filming of the stunt scenes for "Yi Hua Lu" was helmed by director Zhang Hong, who also felt a spark of interest upon seeing Xiao Wenqiang emerge. However, with the production schedule being quite tight, once the martial arts director had finished teaching the basic movements to the actress, he quickly called out, "Action!"
The first scene to be shot was of the female lead, Hua Li, encountering a spirit beast in the "Xuanwu Cave." As the beast was still in its growth stage and not very powerful, Hua Li found herself being thoroughly thrashed.
Xiao Wenqiang, repeatedly thrown by the wires, landed heavily on the artificial rocks and into the water pools in front of the green screen. She was also dragged through peach blossoms by the wire crew, pretending to be hit by special effects and flung away, enduring a variety of torturous actions. Although there were foam mats below and protective gear worn under her costume, falling from high places again and again inevitably left her body aching.
The most challenging part was that as a stunt double, Xiao Wenqiang had to act in opposition to how she would normally perform, constantly avoiding her own face from appearing in the shot. Otherwise, it would be a hassle for the post-production team, and some actions would still require Yang Li, the actress playing Hua Li, to pose for freeze-frames.
"Cut!" Director Zhang Hong called out with satisfaction, and immediately urged, "Quickly change your clothes and shoot the next scene!"
With the help of the costume and makeup artist, Qiao Jie, Xiao Wenqiang shed her wet and dirty clothes. When Qiao Jie saw the bruises that had appeared on her fair skin, such as her thighs and arms, she couldn't help but gasp.
"You're a capable girl. You can endure so much hardship; you'll definitely have a bright future!" Qiao Jie chatted with Xiao Wenqiang as she helped her change into the costume for the next scene.
"Haha, thank you, Qiao Jie. I don't know about a bright future, but I do know that if I don't get any more jobs, I'm going to starve to death," Xiao Wenqiang said with feigned misery.
"No way! With your looks and figure, you shouldn't have trouble finding work, right?"
"Alas~ it's a long story, filled with tears. My agent and I don't see eye to eye, so I'm currently frozen out and have to find my own acting gigs."
"Which agency are you with?" Qiao Jie paused her hand as she was styling Xiao Wenqiang's hair.
"Xingyao Entertainment. My agent is Li Bokai, Brother Kai," Xiao Wenqiang took this opportunity to drink some water through a straw.
Qiao Jie nodded, not saying much, but her movements quickened. "Alright, you go shoot your scene first! Director Zhang is very capable and a good person. Perform well!"
Xiao Wenqiang nodded in agreement and quickly walked out, her skirt trailing behind her.
The second scene was Hua Li's fight with the Demon Lord in the later stages of her cultivation.
In this segment, Hua Li's spiritual power had greatly increased, and her combat prowess was formidable, so there were no more scenes of her being thrown around. However, the martial arts director had designed many grand and sweeping fighting moves. When suspended by wires and clad in flowing immortal robes, it would look very impressive.
Xiao Wenqiang's movements were light and agile, clean and precise. She meticulously completed actions such as wide splits, high kicks, and backbends. Watching her on the monitor, Director Zhang Hong momentarily felt that this was exactly how the real Hua Li should look.
After this scene was filmed, the crew erupted in spontaneous applause. Director Zhang Hong also showed a rare smile and praised her, "Your action scenes are good. You're a promising martial arts talent!"
They then proceeded to film several more martial arts and water scenes after costume changes. Xiao Wenqiang was generally able to get each scene right on the first take. Filming continued until three in the morning, and she finally completed all the stunt double scenes for Hua Li. It was a shame, however, that because Yang Li, the actress playing Hua Li, was filming dramatic scenes with another crew, Xiao Wenqiang never met her throughout the process. This was, in fact, a common reality for many stunt doubles; not every stunt actor had close interactions with the lead. More often than not, like her, the filming would conclude, and the lead actors wouldn't even know who their stunt doubles were.
Dragging her somewhat exhausted body, Xiao Wenqiang quietly began to remove her makeup and hairstyle in the public dressing room. As it was late, there was hardly anyone around, making it almost like a private dressing room. Having only eaten one box lunch from noon until now, she was truly starting to feel depleted of energy.
The curtain was pulled open from the outside, revealing Qiao Jie, who had done her hair and makeup earlier that day.
"Little Su, I knew you wouldn't have left yet!" Qiao Jie walked over and helped Xiao Wenqiang dismantle the elaborate headdress. "Let's exchange contact information. I have a friend in the adjacent crew; she mentioned they were looking for actors before. I'll put in a good word for you."
"Thank you, Qiao Jie!" Xiao Wenqiang was deeply touched and quickly took out her phone to add Qiao Jie on "Weishu."
"But I'll be upfront: I'm just giving you a recommendation. Whether you get the part depends entirely on yourself!"
"I know! Thank you so much. We've only just met, and you're helping me so much, Qiao Jie. And it's so late, yet you specifically came all this way." Xiao Wenqiang was genuinely moved. "Qiao Jie, why don't we go out for a late-night snack together? I'm a bit hungry this late."
Qiao Jie was also a part of the crew, so her irregular schedule was normal. Seeing Xiao Wenqiang's thoughtfulness, she readily agreed.
After their late-night meal and saying goodbye to Qiao Jie, Xiao Wenqiang finally returned to Su Ling's small apartment. It was already past six in the morning. She quickly washed up and then lay down in bed, falling into a deep sleep.
She was awakened by hunger. Xiao Wenqiang opened her eyes, reached for her phone by the bedside, and checked the time. It was already past four in the afternoon. She had slept for over nine hours; no wonder her stomach was rumbling. After ordering a portion of fried rice on a food delivery app, she sprawled on the bed, waiting for her food and checking other messages.
The finance department for "Yi Hua Lu" had already transferred the stunt double fees to her. She had earned 500 yuan in one day, which was quite good. Moreover, since her face wasn't shown, Xiao Wenqiang didn't have to share the income with her agency, making it pure profit.
Opening "Weishu," she discovered that Gao Shiying had accepted her friend request. Xiao Wenqiang quickly tapped on his profile and sent him a message: "Hello, Mr. Gao. This is for the medical expenses you previously covered for me. Please check." She then transferred ten thousand yuan to his account.
She initially thought he might be busy and wouldn't check immediately, but to her surprise, he confirmed receipt very quickly. He also replied with a message: "Received. I am not Gao Shiying. I am Situ Chen."
"Situ Chen?" Xiao Wenqiang almost jumped out of bed. Her first reaction was, had she misremembered the account number and transferred the money to the wrong person? And this person had accepted her money!
However, she quickly realized that this Situ Chen was none other than the youngest Best Actor in the novel world of "Top Stream Queen." He was only 30 years old now and had won the "Golden Dragon Award" at 26. He was also the biggest star brought up by Gao Shiying, and "Chenshi Entertainment" was a company they had co-invested in.
So, the problem now was: why had Gao Shiying given her Situ Chen's phone number? Had he made a mistake? And why had Situ Chen, knowing she was looking for Gao Shiying, so casually accepted her money?
As if sensing her confusion, the other party soon sent another "Weishu" message to explain: "Gao Shiying asked me to reimburse this ten thousand yuan when he returned. I was also in the elevator that day."
Now Xiao Wenqiang understood. She sent another message: "So you were the other person in the elevator! Teacher Situ, thank you so much for saving me that day!"