Huayu: This top star doesn't play by the rules.

By mid-September, Qingdao had already entered autumn, and the sea breeze that blew in carried a slight chill.

"Happy wrap-up!" Guo Fan shouted excitedly, picking up the megaphone.

As Guo Fan's voice rang out, the crew members, who were already prepared, immediately smiled and stuffed the flowers in their hands into Chen Chao's arms, while the falling ribbons showered Chen Chao with color.

After filming wrapped, there was the usual wrap party. At the party, Guo Fan drank until his face was flushed, and he kept holding Chen Chao's hand and wouldn't let go, repeating the same two sentences over and over again.

"Ah Chao, you are my benefactor!"

"You're definitely going to be the male lead in the second season, no one else can change that!"

The morning after the wrap party, Chen Chao took Chen Quan and Guo Long directly to Hengdian to join the cast of "The Story of Minglan".

The crew had been stationed in Hengdian for almost half a month, and the set design was almost complete. On his first day after joining the crew, Chen Chao first completed his makeup and then took promotional photos. As for the script reading and getting to know the other actors, that was on the second day.

As soon as Chen Chao pushed open the door to the script reading meeting room, the first thing that caught his eye was an empty seat at the very front, just like Zhao Liying's. He knew that was the seat for the male lead, which meant it was his seat.

Chen Chao glanced at the other actors in the conference room, smiled and greeted them, then walked straight to his seat.

Seeing Chen Chao sitting down next to her, Zhao Liying, who was wearing a loose white sweatshirt and had her hair casually tied in a low ponytail, smiled and teased, "Oh, busy man Chen is here."

"Sister Liying." Facing Sister Zhao's teasing, Chen Chao smiled and nodded, "Long time no see."

"It's been quite a long time." Closing the script in her hand, Zhao Liying looked him up and down a few times. "You look a little thinner. Was it from filming that sci-fi movie?"

"It's alright, but we have to wear that protective suit every day, it's heavy and stuffy." He waved his hand with a smile. Actually, what made Chen Chao most uncomfortable during the filming of "The Wandering Earth" was that they had to wear adult diapers while filming in protective suits.

After all, putting on and taking off protective suits takes a lot of time, and they can't just put on and take off their protective suits every time they need to go to the toilet. If they did that, they wouldn't have much time to film all day. So the best option is adult diapers.

While the two were chatting, the other actors and staff members of the crew gradually arrived, and director Zhang Kaizhou and producer Hou Hongliang naturally took the seats in the main seats.

Zhang Kaizhou's gaze swept over the actors in the conference room, finally settling on Chen Chao. He nodded slightly and said, "Now that everyone is here, let's begin studying the script."

The script reading lasted for nearly three hours, from the scene where Gu Tingye first met Sheng Minglan to the scene where Gu Tingye entered the city to quell the rebellion. The male and female leads, Chen Chao and Zhao Liying, cooperated very well.

After all, this is their third collaboration, from "Princess Agents" to "Duckweed" and now "The Story of Minglan," so they are very familiar with each other.

After the reading session ended, Zhao Liying took Chen Chao to lunch. The two found a decent little restaurant near the hotel and ordered a few home-style dishes.

"How's 'The Wandering Earth' going? Are you confident about it?" Zhao Liying asked casually while peeling shrimp.

"Hmm, I feel like my grades shouldn't be bad." Chen Chao said with a smile, reaching out with his chopsticks to pick up his favorite pickled cabbage and pork belly.

"That's fine then." Zhao Liying nodded gently and put the peeled shrimp into Chen Chao's bowl.

The two chatted as they ate, talking about everything from movies to TV series and music, and even their upcoming work plans. The topics jumped around quite casually, just like a chat between family and friends.

Having almost finished eating, Zhao Liying leaned back in her chair and looked at Chen Chao, who was still eating with his head down across from her. She had a strange feeling that her younger brother seemed to be much more mature than he had been a year ago.

"Ah Chao," she suddenly spoke, her voice soft.

"Hmm?" Chen Chao, who was diligently eating, looked up with some confusion.

"You're already considered a top-tier celebrity. Have you thought about what to do in the future? I mean... about your love life."

He paused in his chewing motion, then swallowed after a moment. Chen Chao smiled and shook his head. "I haven't thought that far ahead yet. Let's focus on finishing the work at hand first."

"That's true." Hearing Chen Chao's words, Zhao Liying didn't press further, but simply smiled and said, "You're still young, there's no need to rush."

Chen Chao frowned and glanced at Zhao Liying. He felt that there was something else behind her words, but since Sister Zhao didn't continue, he naturally didn't ask.

After completing the script reading, the crew entered the formal filming stage, and Chen Chao, as the male lead, had a significant role.

Although the character Gu Tingye spans a wide range from youth to middle age, it was not difficult for Chen Chao, who had already played a very contrasting character like Yan Xun.

Moreover, his preparations were quite thorough, and with the tacit cooperation between him and Zhao Liying, the filming progressed quite smoothly. Occasionally there were several NGs, but that was just because the director suddenly had a different idea and wanted to try a different version.

"Cut! That take is good!" Zhang Kaizhou peeked out from behind the monitor. "Chen Chao, Liying, you two take a break. This afternoon we'll film the post-wedding scenes of Gu Tingye and Minglan."

After hearing that the filming had ended, Chen Chao let out a soft sigh of relief and returned to his usual state. Just as he was about to go to the rest area to get a drink of water, Zhao Liying called out to him, "Chao, come here for a moment."

Faced with Sister Zhao's call, Chen Chao, who had nothing else to do, naturally went over obediently. Before he could speak, Zhao Liying handed him a glass of iced lemonade. "You said your throat was uncomfortable a couple of days ago, so I had my assistant make some monk fruit water. Remember to pick it up from my room when you get back to the hotel tonight."

"Okay, thank you, Sister Liying."

"Alright, don't be so polite, go and get some rest."

Back in his assigned seat, Chen Chao leaned back, took a sip of iced lemonade to soothe his throat, and then closed his eyes to rest.

.......

The afternoon scenes depicted Gu Tingye and Sheng Minglan's daily life after their marriage. The two sat in the courtyard drinking tea. Gu Tingye talked about matters of the court, and Sheng Minglan listened while refilling his teacup, her eyes and brows radiating a gentle smile.

"Cut!" Zhang Kaizhou picked up the megaphone. "This take is perfect! It's just the right feeling, that unspoken understanding between an old married couple. The acting is spot on!"

Setting down the teapot, Zhao Liying turned to look at Chen Chao. The two exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh.

"Ah Chao, I've noticed that we seem to get along much better as a married couple than as lovers," Zhao Liying said in a low voice, leaning a little closer.

"Maybe it's because we're both more suited to playing married characters?" Chen Chao said seriously after hearing what Sister Zhao said.

His words made her laugh out loud. Zhao Liying reached out and gently patted him, scolding, "Stop being so cheeky."