Qin Wei restrained her smile and looked at Qiao Sixiao in puzzlement:
"Teacher Qiao, what are you talking about?"
Just as Qiao Sixiao was about to speak, Qin Wei raised her hand to cover his mouth.
"Forget it, don't say any more. My head hurts right now, let's go back..."
As Qin Wei spoke, she began to feel irritable. Even Qiao Sixiao and Shen Kai, who was standing behind her, could sense her unease.
Qiao Sixiao looked at Shen Kai, but his gaze eventually fell back on her:
"I'm saying, I'm the despicable one who stole your resources and prevented you from turning over a new leaf. It was me."
Qin Wei felt both angry and distressed, with tears welling up in her eyes. She complained to Qiao Sixiao in grievance:
"But you didn't expose anything either. I never suspected you at all. Couldn't you just lie to me?"
Her stomach ached so much that Qin Wei crouched down on the spot, hugging her knees and sobbing softly.
Qiao Sixiao's eyes reddened slightly. Although he had a premonition that this matter would come to light sooner or later, when this day really came, he still couldn't bear it.
Every day he worried that Shen Kai would tell her, and every time he saw them standing together talking, he was filled with dread. He couldn't help but blurt it out, only to find that he was even more selfish by doing so.
Even his heart ached. He felt so awful he wanted to cry.
"Qin Wei..."
Qiao Sixiao bent down wanting to help Qin Wei up, but she pushed him away. Her voice was filled with immeasurable grievance:
"Get away from me, don't come near me."
"Qin..."
"Go away!"
Qin Wei looked at him impatiently. There was resentment and grievance in her expression. Large teardrops rolled down her cheeks, which were heart-wrenching to behold.
Her eyes were so beautiful...she...
"Alright, alright... I won't show up anymore or bother you."
Qiao Sixiao turned his head away. After speaking, he left.
Only Qin Wei and Shen Kai were left on the grassland.
"The wind is picking up. It's going to rain soon."
After a long silence, Shen Kai finally spoke. He had already gone back at some point to pick up the umbrella.
Sparse raindrops began to fall. Shen Kai silently held the umbrella over her.
"It was He Hong who picked me at the school and gave me a performance opportunity. That was the first step in my acting career."
Shen Kai began to talk about the past.
The raindrops connected into streaks. Qin Wei showed no intention of leaving. She still hugged her knees, and her emotions were unreadable.
"At that time, I was young and impulsive, and almost went down the wrong path several times. It was He Hong who pulled me back on the right track and cleaned up my messes.
In the end, I didn't sign with her company, but I still owed her a debt of gratitude."
The rain fell in sheets. Shen Kai's umbrella still only shielded her, not letting a single drop touch her.
Shen Kai continued:
"It was He Hong who suppressed you. As her company's artist, Qiao Sixiao may not have been involved, or may not even have known about it. So she is innocent. Don't blame her..."
"Of course I don't blame her."
At this point, Qin Wei finally responded a little. She struggled to her feet and looked up at Shen Kai face-to-face:
"With your status and means, when facing He Hong's suppression of me, you had a hundred ways to protect me without offending her, but you didn't. You just wanted to watch coldly from the sidelines and see me leave you and become destitute and disgraced.
Now your heart has suddenly changed, and you're pushing all the problems onto others. You're so innocent, so noble. It's always other people's fault, and you can always find excuses to justify your own actions.
Do you even like me? You only like the image you created for yourself. You only like yourself."
"Shen Kai, you're thirty years old. Don't always think it's other people who have wronged you when problems arise. Learn to be responsible."
After speaking, Qin Wei immediately walked away. Shen Kai didn't say a word and followed behind her, holding the umbrella over her.
...
The next morning, the rain had stopped and filming had to continue. Qin Wei, who hadn't slept well all night, was now sitting blankly on horseback.
"Don't let your mind wander when riding a horse. If you're not feeling well, we can shoot this scene later."
At some point, Yao Director had walked over and reminded her. He took the reins and motioned for Qin Wei to dismount.
Qin Wei returned to her senses and forced herself to perk up:
"I'm fine now, ready to shoot anytime."
Yao Director still persuaded her:
"Because of the change in casting, we've been rushing to catch up recently, and you guys are definitely exhausted. But horse riding scenes still need to be treated with caution.
There are too many horse riding scenes in the early part of this drama. Every scene makes the whole crew nervous. Director Jiang has a martial arts background so he's bold, but I'm different from him. Su Yang and Qiao Sixiao are shooting over there now.
He's highly skilled so he's daring, and I can't control him. But I still want to be more cautious. Seeing you so distracted, I'd rather postpone for half a day and let you rest."
"No need."
Qin Wei glanced at Director Jiang's side. Today, both crews were filming horse riding scenes, so they weren't too far apart and could vaguely see each other.
She rubbed her eyebrows and grabbed the reins impatiently:
"I'm about to wrap up soon. I want to hurry up and finish filming so I can go home. I'm sick of this place. I can't stand it here anymore!"
"Alright, alright."
Seeing that she still had the energy to throw a tantrum, Yao Director figured she wasn't too tired to ride a horse. They might as well hurry up and finish filming so everyone could go home sooner.
"Where's Sheng Lin?"
All the actors were in position except him.
"Let's start shooting first. Use a stand-in. No more waiting."
Yao Director waved his hand. Right now they were shooting a scene of everyone riding forward together anyway. As long as Qin Wei and Shen Kai were here, they could manage shooting other angles without the other actors.
The shoot went smoothly at first, but at the end a loud bang suddenly rang out from afar, sharp and abrupt, like the popping of firecrackers at New Year's.
Fortunately it was just one shot, but it still startled the birds roosting nearby into flight.
The horses were also frightened and bolted several steps, including Little Red Date. A few extras fell from their horses, but they were locals with riding experience who knew how to protect themselves when thrown, so they escaped unharmed.
Qin Wei stroked Little Red Date's mane to soothe it, then thought back to the sound. It seemed vaguely familiar.
Was that...a gunshot?
"Something happened! There's chaos over at Director Jiang's side! An actress fell from her horse!"
The crew member's shout interrupted Qin Wei's thoughts. She pulled the reins to turn her horse around and galloped toward Director Jiang's crew.
The scene was in turmoil. The sudden loud noise had frightened the horses, which led to the actress being thrown.
Lying on the ground was none other than Qiao Sixiao.
"Don't move her!"
Qin Wei dismounted and ran over unsteadily, kneeling by her side and shouting her name:
"Teacher Qiao, Qiao Sixiao!"
Qiao Sixiao was still disoriented from the fall. Hearing her voice, she barely managed to open her eyes and look at her.
Okay, being able to hear meant she was conscious. Seeing her eyes were clear, she didn't seem to be seriously injured for the moment.
"Where's the medical team?!"
While asking, Qin Wei removed her protective gear and tore open her collar to ensure unobstructed breathing.
Without moving her, she quickly examined the situation. Based on her current condition, there were external injuries, but no immediate life-threatening danger.
Xiao Wang came down from the ambulance with a doctor. They placed her on a stretcher and sent her to the hospital. To put her mind at ease, Qin Wei wouldn't relax until she knew Qiao Sixiao was safe, so she followed the ambulance.
Inside, the accompanying doctor examined her and connected her to cardiac monitoring and oxygen.
Then he treated her wounds.
This shocked Qin Wei speechless. She immediately burst into tears, grabbing Qiao Sixiao's clothes:
"Ahhhhh don't die on me!!!"
