Chapter 17: Nazha

……

……

The three days of teaching passed quickly.

Gu Qing boarded a plane to Wuzhen to begin filming the second season of *Keep Running*.

The theme: [Past Life Couples]!

Due to Chen Chichi's unhealed waist injury, the cast for this episode consisted of only five men and one woman.

Lu Hao, being resourceful, found four female guests, making a perfect set of five couples.

Before the filming began, Gu Qing met the four new female artists in person.

They were: Tang Yixin, Zhang Lanxin, Xie Yilin, and Nazha.

In terms of looks,

The most beautiful artist should have been Nazha, who in Gu Qing's memory was hailed as the "most beautiful love-brain."

However, the 2014 version of Nazha seemed yet to have found her signature style, and her overall makeup and styling were not particularly striking.

On the contrary, Tang Yixin, with her two small dimples when she smiled, was the most radiant.

"Come here, little brother, let me introduce my leading lady, Nazha."

After a warm hug with Gu Qing, Deng Chao introduced the exotic beauty beside him. "This is my younger brother, Gu Qing."

"Hello, Senior."

Gu Qing bowed slightly and greeted her politely.

"Don't call me Senior; you're making me feel old. Just call me Sister."

Nazha gracefully extended her jade-like hand, her sparkling eyes admiring Gu Qing without hesitation.

*What a beautiful little brother!!*

"Sister Nazha."

Gu Qing lightly grasped her pale fingertips before releasing them.

"No, say it again. I want to hear: Sis~ter."

Nazha teased the young boy quite naturally.

Beside them, Deng Chao was filled with envy and jealousy.

*Why is it that every woman wants to crowd around this little brother?*

*Is being young really this popular?*

He thought back to himself over a decade ago—wasn't he once a prime "little fresh meat" himself?

Alas, meeting his "Empress" had cost him his prime.

……

Suddenly,

"Qingqing, have you read the lines I sent you?"

A faint voice drifted from behind the three of them.

"Baby, you're here?"

Deng Chao turned his head. Seeing who it was, he greeted her with the attitude of someone who loved watching a spectacle. "If you had been any later, your status as 'Big Sister' would have been snatched away."

"It's fine, it can't be snatched."

Yang Ying gave Nazha a graceful smile. "In little brother Qingqing's heart, there is only one... Sister."

"This is a custom-made exclusive CP for us by the production team, right, little brother?"

Though her tone was clearly gentle,

A sense of friction seemed to permeate the air between the two women.

*Crazy woman! Why so aggressive?*

*Did I steal your man?!*

Nazha bit her full, moist lower lip, her beautiful face's smile stiffening slightly.

"Sister Baby, I've read the lines, it's just that I don't know Cantonese," Gu Qing said with difficulty.

"If you don't know Cantonese, Sister can teach you."

Yang Ying took a step forward, taking hold of Gu Qing's hand, and gave a light, smiling farewell to Deng Chao and Nazha. "We'll head off first."

"Poor little brother..."

Deng Chao watched them leave, clicking his tongue and shaking his head.

"Brother Chao, are those two dating?"

Nazha spoke up unexpectedly.

"Don't talk nonsense, don't talk nonsense. How could those two be dating?"

This gave Deng Chao quite a fright. He hurriedly checked his surroundings to ensure no staff members were listening before whispering, "Baby has a family, you know."

"It's for the show, for the show's effect, understand?"

"If they're acting out the show's effects in private, it seems they haven't fully stayed in character."

Nazha let out a soft huff through her smooth nose. "Laburaka, let's go."

"Honey, where are you going? We still have to film *My Fair Princess* later."

Deng Chao chased after them with a bitter face.

For this episode, the director had prepared five different scripts.

They were: [*My Fair Princess*], [*A Chinese Odyssey*], [*Meteor Garden*], [*The Legend of the White Snake*], and [*Comrades: Almost a Love Story*].

Among them,

Gu Qing and Yang Ying's script was one of the ten great classics of Chinese cinema: [*Comrades: Almost a Love Story*].

This film featured the legendary pairing of Li Ming and Man Shen, two of the Four Heavenly Kings.

Upon its release, the film swept the Golden Horse Awards with 11 nominations and won 9 awards.

At the same time, it enjoyed immense popularity throughout Asia.

Especially in the Peninsula, King Li was considered the pioneer who led the Hallyu fashion wave!

Returning to the main task of filming,

It was currently just after nine in the morning.

The white walls and black tiles of the Jiangnan water town were bathed in the misty blue of the morning fog. Scattered along the bluestone paths were the vermilion wooden crates prepared by the production crew.

Gu Qing was among them, having changed into the cyan long robe provided by the crew, intending to perform a Republican-era version of [*Comrades*].

It was the perfect opportunity to apply what he had learned from Teacher Zhang during this period.

……

At a stall set up by the roadside,

Yang Ying's fingers, which were busy handling food, suddenly froze. At the moment the morning mist condensed into water droplets and fell from the rim of the clay pot, she heard the faint creak of a wooden cart.

She looked toward the sound.

A youth in a cyan robe was walking toward her through the misty blue light, holding an umbrella. His old-jade-colored Hangzhou-woven long robe draped like a waterfall, and the dark embroidered bamboo patterns on the hem flickered with every step.

He walked with the specific "square step" of a Pear Garden actor: his toes turned inward when lifting his foot, and his heel landed first, taking three inches per step, effectively turning the damp stone path into the velvet carpet of a Republican-era stage.

"How does this kid have the shadow of both Brother and King Li in him?!"

The middle-aged camera director in charge of filming was stunned into silence.

"Hello, I want to..."

Yang Ying's lines caught in her throat. She watched the airflow swirl the dew as Gu Qing closed his umbrella, and watched his well-defined fingers glide over the ingredients on the vendor's stall.

"Ham... hamburger..."

But as Gu Qing spoke, his clumsy Cantonese accent and the out-of-place food caused his faint, youthful nobility to vanish, replaced by a sense of honest simplicity.

"A hamburger, and what else?"

Yang Ying's beautiful eyes rippled with emotion as she gazed tenderly at the youth's fair, handsome face.

"Ta... tasty..."

"Coca-Cola."

This line was the original dialogue.

It was also the first meeting between Li Xiaojun and Li Qiao.

One was a rustic boy from the mainland, the other a waitress ravaged by the society of Hong Kong.

From that moment on, their fates became intertwined.

When the director saw Gu Qing shyly avert his eyes after making eye contact with Yang Ying, and heard him say bashfully, "What time do you get off work? I have a car,"

He was so excited his old face turned red. He felt like dancing a celebratory jig right then and there.

It was too perfect!

The vibe was spot on!!

At that moment, he felt as if he were possessed by Wong Kar-wai himself.

The camera zoomed in, giving the two of them a close-up.

Gu Qing rode a bicycle, while Yang Ying sat sideways, embracing the youth's waist, as they toured through the houses of grey brick and tiled roofs.

However, the painful part of variety shows is that no matter how well the buildup goes, it will always be interrupted by banter, goofing around, or making ugly faces.

"Are you tired from riding?"

"Actually, I am a little tired, because you're a bit heavier than I imagined."

"Slap—you're annoying!"

Yang Ying pinched the flesh at Gu Qing's waist, and the filming ended there.

"Can we reshoot a segment? Can we reshoot a segment!!"

The young director was driven mad with anxiety.

But he had little authority and didn't dare communicate directly with the artists.

Besides, isn't the whole point of a variety show the contrast?

If they insisted on a literal recreation, they might even run into copyright lawsuits.

He could only gaze in grief at Gu Qing's departing figure.

He swore,

If he ever made it big one day,

He would definitely spend a fortune to invite Gu Qing to be his leading man!

……

……

(End of Chapter)