Huayu97: Starting with Wu Song Fighting the Tiger

His voice grew louder and harsher, shaking the old locust tree leaves. The surrounding staff were stunned. The stagehand holding the reflector forgot to move, the sound engineer forgot to push the microphone, and even the director forgot to yell "Cut!" Their eyes were fixed on the monitor, where Liu Xiang's gaze was like a knife, about to pierce the screen.

Wang Siyi was intimidated by his imposing manner, collapsing to the ground. Her knees struck the bluestone slabs with a crisp sound, but she seemed to feel no pain, only crying and begging for mercy: "Second Uncle, I was wrong... I was confused for a moment... Ximen Qing forced me... Please forgive me..."

Seeing her weeping and wailing, Liu Xiang's eyes flashed with a hint of pity—a final act of compassion from Wu Song for his brother's widow. But this pity was quickly overwhelmed by overwhelming hatred. He released her wrist, drew the wrist-splitting dagger from his waist, its tip gleaming coldly, reflecting on Wang Siyi's pale face. The tip was only an inch from her throat; he could feel its chill.

"Spare you?" Liu Xiang's voice was as cold as ice. "Who will spare my brother's life?!"

Just then, Director Zhang suddenly jumped up from his chair and shouted, "Cut! Perfect! Absolutely perfect!"

The entire audience erupted in thunderous applause, so loud it was deafening. Liu Xiang finally snapped out of his daze, quickly sheathed his knife, and reached out to help Wang Siyi, who was slumped on the ground, to her feet. He looked apologetic and said, "I'm so sorry, I was too immersed in the role. Did I hurt you?" He felt guilty as he looked at the red mark on Wang Siyi's wrist.

Wang Siyi shook her head, tears still streaming down her face, but she gave him a smile filled with admiration and gratitude: "Brother Liu Xiang, you acted so well... I really thought you were going to kill me."

The admiration in those words was undisguised, and in Lan Xiaoling's eyes, it brought back the sour feeling she had just suppressed. She stepped forward and handed Wang Siyi a tissue with the crew's logo on it, her tone clearly praising but also hiding some other emotions: "Your performance just now has improved a lot, the emotions were very on point, better than the previous auditions."

Wang Siyi took the tissue and said gratefully, "Thank you, Sister Xiaoling. It was Brother Liu Xiang who helped me get into character. As soon as he opened his mouth, I felt like I was really seeing Wu Song." As she spoke, her eyes unconsciously lingered on Liu Xiang, like a magnet attracting iron filings.

Feeling a little uncomfortable under her gaze, Liu Xiang turned to Director Zhang to avoid the somewhat ambiguous look: "Director Zhang, is there anything in the scene we just filmed that needs adjusting?"

Director Zhang patted him on the shoulder, grinning from ear to ear: "Adjust what? Perfect! One take! Liu Xiang, you're a natural actor! This scene saved me so much film!"

In the following days, the crew filmed scenes of fighting Ximen Qing at the Lion Tower and drunkenly beating Jiang Menshen at Happy Forest. Liu Xiang's acting skills became more and more refined, and his action scenes were even more crisp and clean. As a graduate of a martial arts school, every move he made was full of power, and he basically got it in one take, becoming the crew's recognized "one-take specialist".

Wang Siyi has become more and more open, and occasionally she will take the initiative to ask Liu Xiang for acting advice. Every time she sees Liu Xiang, she can't hide the admiration in her eyes, as if stars have fallen into her eyes.

Lan Xiaoling watched this unfold, and her teasing grew increasingly sarcastic: "Siyi is so diligent, always chasing after Liu Xiang asking him all sorts of questions. Anyone who didn't know better would think you were his apprentice."

Liu Xiang sensed the jealousy in her words and could only laugh it off, trying to ease the tension: "Everyone is just trying to make the film a success. Wang Siyi is quick to understand and picks things up immediately."

Wang Siyi, however, failed to grasp the underlying meaning and nodded earnestly, saying, "Brother Liu Xiang taught me well. I have indeed learned a lot. I used to struggle to understand Pan Jinlian's emotions, but now I'm much better at it."

Lan Xiaoling was speechless, speechless at her words. She turned and walked away, her footsteps crunching on the pebbles. Liu Xiang watched her retreating figure, sighed helplessly, and inwardly groaned: These two girls are such a headache.

The atmosphere on set was tense and understated, with everyone eagerly anticipating the start of filming the pivotal "Breaking the Chain Horses" scene. That day, after work, the production manager excitedly ran to the stables and shouted to Liu Xiang, who was brushing a horse's mane, his voice brimming with barely suppressed excitement: "Liu Xiang! Great news! Filming for 'Breaking the Chain Horses' will begin soon!"

But he never expected that these three hundred horses would cause the film crew a huge problem.

The following afternoon, three hundred glossy horses marched in a grand procession into the wilderness west of the Wuxi Film and Television Base. These horses were all tall and strong, with well-defined muscles, and their neighing was deafening.

Liu Xiang worked alongside the stable handymen sent by the horse farm, feeding the horses, brushing their coats, and shoeing them. He was so busy that he was covered in sweat and didn't even have time to eat dinner. He held a brush in his hand and carefully brushed the horses' coats. The originally restless and wild horses became obedient as he brushed them, and some even rubbed their heads against his palms, as if they were being affectionate.

The zookeepers were stunned, giving him a thumbs-up with admiration on their faces: "Brother Liu, you're a true horse whisperer! We could never learn that skill in a lifetime!"

Liu Xiang chuckled, not being modest at all, and wiped the sweat from her forehead: "I know a little bit, it's all just guesswork."

In less than half a month, he had tamed more than 120 horses. As long as he whistled, the tamed horses would immediately assemble and await his commands, and they would be able to charge or surround in perfect unison. Liu Xiang had tried it a few times in private. In the wilderness, he could whistle once and a hundred or so horses would rush to him. The sound of their hooves hitting the ground shook the earth, and the scene was frighteningly spectacular.

The crew joked with him, "Liu Xiang, why don't you just quit acting and become a horse trainer? You'd be rolling in money! All the rich people in the city love raising horses these days, and with your skills, you'd definitely be in high demand!"

Liu Xiang smiled and waved her hand, still holding the horse feed ladle in her hand: "Acting is my main job, horse training is just a side job. No matter how much money the side job makes, I can't abandon my main job."

That night, it was completely dark, and the wind in the wilderness was a bit chilly, making everyone shiver. Exhausted, the group collapsed into the makeshift shed and fell asleep the moment their heads hit the pillows, their snores rising and falling. The wilderness night was exceptionally quiet, save for the occasional neighing of horses from the temporary stable and the fluttering of banners in the wind.

The temporary stable was built on the westernmost edge of the camp, surrounded by overgrown weeds and waist-high wild grass. The stable itself was made of wooden planks, simple yet sturdy. Only an elderly man in his sixties was guarding it. He was from a nearby village and had raised horses all his life. He had been hired by the film crew to help out. He liked to have a drink or two in the evening, and tonight he had drunk a bit too much. He lay down on the chair and soon began snoring loudly.