Chapter 654. Racing Along (4)
“Did you bring them?” Zhang Xiang asked his assistant director.
“Yes, sir. I'll play them now.”
Zhang Xiang turned his head and sneakily glanced at Choi Yeon-Ha. After confirming the baffled look on her face, the director lowered his head and focused his attention on the monitors.
He silently watched all the footage filmed today before suddenly raising his hand. “That nineteenth cut. Replay that.”
“Yes, Director.”
Zhang Xiang intensely peered at the monitor before nodding his head contemplatively. “That's a pretty good take, don't you think?”
The assistant director tilted his head. “Sorry?”
“I said, that's a pretty good take, don't you agree?! Are you deaf!”
“Oh, uh... Yes, Director. I also think that's the best take of what we filmed. Personally, though, I prefer the twelfth take.”
“And that's why you'll never be a big shot. A scene needs more than dynamic action, okay? That's gonna detract from the seriousness of the scene. Sure, judging each take on their own, you'd think the twelfth one is the best. But you gotta think about the story's flow and the continuity between scenes, too! The empress is supposed to throw the water in anger, so imagine what it'd look like if the water splashes look artistic. It's gonna break the immersion.”
“I see, I see... You're right, Director,” said the assistant director in a wholehearted effort to humor Zhang Xiang's moods.
'What's gotten into the director, though?'
Zhang Xiang was infamous for never recycling any of his B-cuts. He wouldn't hesitate to shoot the same scene hundreds of times just for that one perfect take.
Of course, today was an exception since he only wanted to punish Choi Yeon-Ha by repeating the same old boring scene. Even then, Zhang Xiang wouldn't willingly reuse the footage he deemed worthless. Yet here he was, doing exactly that!
Zhang Xiang grunted loudly. “And I also realized something just now. We can't shoot this scene in the evening. The previous scene has a shot with a window prominently featured in one of the frames, right?”
“Oh, that's correct.”
“We can clearly see it's daytime through that window, so the scene suddenly transitioning to the middle of the night will make no sense, right? Wouldn't you agree?"
“Ah...! We haven't thought about that, Director.” The assistant director lowered his head to apologize.
'Maybe he ingested narcotics not too long ago?'
Obviously, the assistant director was lying. Everyone present within this film set already knew that forging ahead with a nighttime shoot was Zhang Xiang being a total as*hole. They could all see what the director's original plan was. Without a doubt, he would've persistently tormented Choi Yeon-Ha until well into early dawn, only to bring up an excuse of still not feeling happy with the footage and extending the shoot to the next day.
Despite knowing all this, though, no one was brave enough to voice their dissatisfaction. That was the power structure within a film set at play. Not a single crew member or the cast wanted to get on the director's bad books... Especially if that director was someone like Zhang Xiang!
“Okay, so! We go with this take. Got that? Let's wrap this scene up here, then.”
The assistant director blinked his eyes. “W-will that be fine with you, Director?”
“What? What's the matter? You unhappy about something?”
“O-of course not, Director. It's just that, uh... I was wondering if you were really okay with the take, that was all.”
Zhang Xiang's brows subtly rose higher. However, he chose to refrain from biting the assistant director's head off. Instead, he glanced at Choi Yeon-Ha to ascertain her physical condition, then casually shrugged his shoulders. “Well, getting that one perfect take is important. However, continuing on will only affect the actors and their health in an undesirable way. Today's filming is important, but tomorrow's filming is just as important, wouldn't you say? Let's look after our health better, shall we?”
“Oh... Understood, Director.” The assistant director nodded, then began packing up the footage.
Zhang Xiang tutted, then got up from the director's chair and shouted at Choi Yeon-Ha. “Thank you for your hard work, Miss Choi! Let's call it a day here!”
Choi Yeon-Ha blinked her eyes in further confusion and wordlessly stared at Zhang Xiang, forcing the latter to fake-cough sheepishly.
“We, uh, will shoot different scenes than originally scheduled for the next couple of days, so please, take your time and get some rest, Miss Choi. And make sure not to catch the cold, too.”
Choi Yeon-Ha's jaw nearly fell just then. “I'm sorry? But my scenes...?”
“Don't worry, we'll shift the schedule around a bit. Other scenes are more important right now, you see?”
“Oh... I understand. I think...?”
Han Eun-Sol noticed Choi Yeon-Ha's expression and whispered to her in Korean. “Noona! Your expression!”
“...Got it.” Choi Yeon-Ha sobered up instantly and replaced her 'Did he hit his head somewhere?' face with an awkward smile.
Although she had no idea what was going on here, she could still recognize the benefit of ending the torturous shoot right now and scoring two days of vacation time. All the unprintable words clamoring inside her throat obediently quietened down. “Understood, Director. In that case, I'll see you later.”
Zhang Xiang turned his attention to his crew next, allowing Han Eun-Sol to tear his eyes away from the director and stare at Kang Jin-Ho.
'What on Earth did he do?'
Choi Yeon-Ha also glanced in that direction before turning toward the fitting room. “For now... Let's get out of here.”
“Got it, noona.” Han Eun-Sol nodded, then went to pack their gear along with Choi Yeon-Ha's entourage.
***
Inside the van driving back to their lodging...
“...Just what did you do, Mister Jin-Ho?” Han Eun-Sol cautiously asked while glancing at the rearview mirror.
Kang Jin-Ho innocently tilted his head. “Mm? Do what, Mister Eun-Sol?”
“N-no, well, uh... So...” Han Eun-Sol faltered, his lips parting rather haltingly.
'How am I supposed to frame my question here?'
The atmosphere in the van was understandably weird. Choi Yeon-Ha should've been the first one to ask Kang Jin-Ho what he had said to the director, but no! She was relaxedly leaning against her seat as if nothing happened during the day's filming!
'Oh, come on! Why aren't you asking him yet?'
They said the thirsty one would dig a well first. At this rate, Han Eun-Sol would have to take the honors of being the first one to ask!
“Kuh-hum...! Just what did you say to that director for him to stop being so unreasonable?”
Kang Jin-Ho replied, his expression unchanging. “I didn't say anything special to him.”
“Really? But that couldn't be it...?” Han Eun-Sol's expectant gaze looked through the rearview mirror.
'I know he's someone extraordinary, but...'
To think Kang Jin-Ho could silence that Zhang Xiang, too!
Zhang Xiang was no ordinary director. As a highly-respected director, he didn't even have a reason to get involved in a TV production no matter how massive-scale it was or how earth-shattering the amount of money invested into it was. After all, Zhang Xiang had already left the world of TV behind a long, long time ago. A director actively being wooed by Hollywood wouldn't have a reason to go back to the world of small screens. However...
This TV production was being made under the CCP's support. As such, Zhang Xiang was half-forced into occupying the director's chair. That story also applied to the investors, as well. Since they were forced to invest money into this project, they interfered fiercely at every turn. To make matters worse, the CCP's clueless liaison also persistently got on Zhang Xiang's nerves, too! This position certainly saddled him with an untold level of stress... That didn't mean Zhang Xiang enjoyed being a punching bag, though!
He knew how to raise his voice and fight back and when to firmly put his foot down to establish his position. That was how he ensured Choi Yeon-Ha would stick around even when the Party suddenly decided to curb the impact of 'Hallyu' in China and started kicking out Korean actors from Chinese productions.
Simply put, Zhang Xiang had enough political clout to argue against someone higher up the food chain. Since he was someone that influential, it was a small wonder everyone involved in the production kept their mouth shut even when Zhang Xiang's terrible personality acted up during filming.
But now... that Zhang Xiang obediently sent Choi Yeon-Ha home like a little puppy with his tail firmly tucked between his legs!
'Something like that can only happen under extraordinary circumstances!'
Zhang Xiang's behavior was as shocking as water flowing upwards, so it could not have happened naturally!
“Don't you mind telling us what you did to the director? Please?” Han Eun-Sol ardently asked.
Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders. “I'm not lying, you know. I didn't say anything special to him.”
At this point, even Choi Yeon-Ha's curiosity had perked up. Since Kang Jin-Ho handled this matter, he obviously should've done an admirable job. Choi Yeon-Ha might complain endlessly about his actions, but her dissatisfaction always stemmed from things related to the man-woman relationship. As for matters besides that... Well, it'd be safe to say her faith in Kang Jin-Ho was absolute.
Since she didn't want to give off the impression of being too nosy about a 'man handling his matters', Choi Yeon-Ha had been holding herself back. But Han Eun-Sol's persistence also fueled her curiosity to the breaking point.
She glanced at Kang Jin-Ho. “What did you say to the director?”
“Mm...”
“I'm really curious, you know? You can tell us that much, right?”
Kang Jin-Ho frowned as if he was mildly troubled, then shrugged his shoulders. “I really didn't say anything special. Honest.”
“Okay, I hear you. So what wasn't so special about what you said to him?”
Kang Jin-Ho scratched his head.
Having grown a little more impatient, Choi Yeon-Ha leaned closer and asked seriously. “Did you threaten him?”
“Huh?” Kang Jin-Ho was taken aback.
“Like, did you threaten him with a beating? Or did you warn him to watch his back later tonight? Stuff like that?”
“...Hold on. Hold on!” Kang Jin-Ho coughed to clear his throat. “I don't know where you got that kind of impression about me, but I'm not brainless enough to say things like that in someone else's filming location.”
“You... didn't threaten the director?” Choi Yeon-Ha's eyes grew wider.
That reply went against her expectations, though! The 'Kang Jin-Ho' she knew would've shoved the director against a wall as soon as they went around the corner, then loudly grit his teeth while trying to twist the director's collars! All the while peppering the scene with some choice dialogues like, 'I'll massacre you', 'You think the whole world revolves around you?' or even 'How dare you mess with my woman!'
Maybe not the last one, but still!
In any case, Choi Yeon-Ha expected Kang Jin-Ho to threaten the director with several other choice lines of dialogue, so to say he didn't?
“Then... Just what did you say to him?”
Kang Jin-Ho shrugged his shoulders helplessly. “I simply said continuing into the night can harm the leading actress's health, so he should consider stopping for today. That's all.”
“...”
Without saying anything else, Han Eun-Sol gently brought the van to a stop on the empty roadside. Then, he turned his head to fix his stupefied gaze on Kang Jin-Ho's face. “Seriously? That was all?”
“Well, I did say some other things, but they were all to the same effect. I asked the director to take into account the overall filming schedule and end things there. I also said that a director should be able to look at the big picture, and retaliating like this because Miss Yeon-Ha misbehaved a little would only fuel the gossip about him being small-minded. That was when he seemed to agree with my opinion.”
“He... Really? He did?”
Han Eun-Sol and Choi Yeon-Ha stared at each other in silence. That silence lasted for an uncomfortably long time before strange smiles suddenly bloomed on their faces.
“Aha, I see. Well, if you don't want to tell us, that's fine. You don't have to force yourself,” Han Eun-Sol chuckled while starting the van again.
Kang Jin-Ho tilted his head. “But that's what really happened, though?”
“Yes, yes. Some things shouldn't be shared with others. Yes, I know.”
Choi Yeon-Ha grandly stretched her limbs while smirking. “Besides all that, this isn't like you, Mister Jin-Ho. If you don't want to tell us, you don't have to, you know? No need to make up stuff like that.”
“I'm not making anything up. It's the truth.” Kang Jin-Ho replied testily.
But that only deepened Choi Yeon-Ha's smirk. “Mister Jin-Ho. I can confidently say that man is easily one of the worst people, personality-wise, I've ever encountered in my career so far. Some of those people are human trash who try to sleep with every pretty actress they can see. Some even are utter scumbags who subtly harass women sexually, too. However! Purely in personality alone? That director might top the list! But you're telling me your words got through to him?”
“N-no, wait. I'm...”
“If it's something you can't talk about? We understand, okay? We're fine with not knowing. Right, Eun-Sol?”
“Yes, noona. It's resolved in the end, so it's all good.”
“But...” Kang Jin-Ho frowned and tilted his head this way and that in total confusion. “He really was reasonable, though? And his personality didn't seem so bad, either?”
Choi Yeon-Ha helplessly shook her head.
'Geez! How can his eyes for people be this bad!'
Looking at the aggrieved expression on Kang Jin-Ho's face only made Choi Yeon-Ha laugh, but she somehow held herself back.
She was convinced that Kang Jin-Ho must've resorted to an unmentionable method. But that was fine with Choi Yeon-Ha. After all, he did that for her. That knowledge made her all warm and fuzzy inside.
***
“Dammit! Why dare that bastard ghost us like this?!” Zhang Xiang yelled loudly while throwing the script to the ground.
They were supposed to film several night scenes tonight, but the actor required for them, Liu Wei, was out of reach for some unfathomable reason!
“How can the male lead cut off all contact and go into hiding like this?! Even though he can't act to save his own goddamn skin! I swear, one of these...! I'm going to beat his ass up to a pulp!”
The assistant director sidled up to Zhang Xiang and tried to calm the director's irate mood. “We sent people to his lodging, so he should be found sooner rather than later, Director.”
“Uh-whew...!” Zhang Xiang groaned before unhappily plopping down on a chair. “This is going to mess up the filming schedule...!”
Zhang Xiang pulled out a cigarette and mouthed it to soothe his frustration. The assistant director immediately pulled out his lighter and lit the director's cigarette.
“Fuu-woo...” Zhang Xiang slowly puffed away, his boiling head gradually cooling down.
The assistant director bade his time before carefully asking a question. “Excuse me, Director?”
“Mm?”
“...Can you tell me what happened earlier?”
“Earlier?”
“Yes. With that young Korean man...”
“Oh, that...” Zhang Xiang chuckled. “What are you curious about?”
“No, well... Rather than curious... It's like... Just what did that brat say to you for you to... You know?”
The assistant director seemed hesitant to mouth the word 'curiosity'. Zhang Xiang smirked after noticing that reluctance. “It wasn't anything special.”
“Sorry?” The assistant director looked a little dazed.
“Nothing special, I said. And no, I'm not underselling anything, okay? He said repeating this routine could harm the actress's health, so I should consider calling it a day. That's all,” Zhang Xiang guffawed loudly.
The assistant director could only tilt his head in silence. How could such... 'simple' words manage to convince a director infamous for his stubborn streak?
Zhang Xiang stopped laughing and explained further to resolve the assistant director's curiosity. “I wouldn't even have humored some random brat if they dared to tell me crap like that. Here's the thing, though.”
“Yes, Director.”
A strange smirk floated up on Zhang Xiang's face just then. “Did you get a good look at that brat's face?”
“...I'm sorry?” The assistant director grew dazed once more. What kind of a question was that?
Zhang Xiang paused there as if to build anticipation, then leisurely revealed his true thoughts in a weighty voice. “That brat... He was super-duper handsome.”
“...”
That was when the assistant director's brain briefly gave up on him.
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