We asked you to make an anti-corruption film, but you made one in the name of the people!

At 2 PM, the film set moved to an old house in an urban village.

Before filming began, Aruna squatted next to the iron gate with a cigarette in her mouth. She wasn't actually smoking it; she was just getting into character.

He squatted for a while, then suddenly stood up and walked up to Zhao Liying.

Zhao Liying was sitting on a small stool in the room, and the stylist was making the final adjustments to her hair—pulling it loose, letting it hang down, the messier the better.

"Teacher Zhao." Aruna scratched the back of his head, his buzz cut making his palm itchy. "Um—when we're filming later, if I hit too hard, just tell me to stop, don't hold back."

Zhao Liying looked up at him and smiled, "Go all out with your acting. It wouldn't be right if Liu Wenjing went easy on you."

"But--"

"No buts." Zhao Liying interrupted him, "I once fell from the third floor while filming a period drama, so this little scene is nothing."

Aru opened her mouth but couldn't say anything. Finally, she managed to say, "If I really hurt you later, you can just kick me."

"Okay," Zhao Liying said.

Pan Binglong, standing next to him, was flexing his wrists—he was about to be chained to the door frame, and he had already rolled up his sleeves above his elbows.

Hearing Aruna's words, he turned around, a smile spreading across his round face: "Aruna, you're already getting nervous? What will you do after the performance?"

"What? What should we do?"

"You have to apologize to Teacher Zhao after the performance," Pan Binglong said seriously. "You have to make amends for what Liu Wenjing did in the play."

Aru was taken aback: "How will you compensate me?"

"You have to treat the whole group."

Ma Li chimed in, "That's right! Aruna's treating! You'll have to make up for all the suffering Li Ying endured with this meal!"

Aruna gritted her teeth: "Fine! I'll treat the whole crew to a meal on the last day of filming!"

"That's more like it," Ma Li said, satisfied.

Lin Mo walked over and glanced at Aru: "Ready?"

Aruna took a deep breath: "Alright."

"Remember—Liu Wenjing doesn't think he's committing a crime; he thinks this is just his daily routine, as normal as lighting a cigarette."

Aruna nodded and squatted back down next to the iron gate.

The filming lasted for nearly two hours.

Liu Wenjing dragged Hao Xiuping into the house and closed the door.

Wang Yongqiang was chained outside the door, and his wrists bled as he struggled to break free of the chains.

After Liu Wenjing finished, he came out, pulled up his pants, lit a cigarette, and said, "I'll charge you 200 each time I play with your wife, and an extra 100 if you tie her up outside."

Hao Xiuping crawled out and gestured in sign language—He raped me, I don't want to live anymore.

Wang Yongqiang went mad, broke free of his chains and fought Liu Wenjing to the death. Unable to defeat him, Liu Wenjing threatened to cut him with a knife. Wang Yongqiang rushed back, grabbed a pair of scissors, and stabbed Liu Wenjing to death.

When Lin Mo called "cut," the studio was quiet for several seconds.

Aruna got up from the ground, covered in prop blood, sticky and her T-shirt stuck to her body.

He didn't bother wiping himself; he walked up to Zhao Liying, put his hands together, and bowed deeply.

"Teacher Zhao, I'm sorry, I pulled your hair a little too hard just now, and when I pressed on your head—I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry."

Zhao Liying stood up, brushed the dust off her knees, and with her hair still smudged on her face, she reached out and brushed it aside, smiling, "Just do your acting, stop apologizing. If Liu Wenjing were to act so lightly, would the audience believe him?"

"But--"

"Aruna." Zhao Liying looked at him, her tone very serious, "The way you pulled up your pants and lit a cigarette just now was particularly good. That scumbag Liu Wenjing should look just like that."

Aruna paused for a moment, then scratched her head: "Really?"

"real."

At this moment, Lei Jiayin walked over wearing Han Ming's wrinkled shirt, circled around Aru, looked her up and down, and had a very serious expression.

Aruna felt uneasy under his gaze: "Brother Lei, what are you doing?"

Lei Jiayin ignored him and turned to Ma Li, saying, "Teacher Ma Li, can you smell something?"

Ma Li cooperated perfectly, sniffing, "What's that smell?"

"He's got the smell of scum." Lei Jiayin pointed at Aruna. "This guy's acting is so convincing, I wanted to kick him even through the monitor."

Ma Li covered her mouth and laughed, while Aru Na was both amused and exasperated: "That's all thanks to Director Lin's excellent direction—"

"No!" Lin Mo didn't even look up from behind the monitor. "You're the bad guy. Li Hongwei is you, Liu Wenjing is you too. Next time, if there's someone even worse, we'll find you."

Aru looked utterly desperate: "Director Lin, just how much do I look like a bad guy?"

Gao Ye drifted over from the side and said, "It's not that it's similar, it's a talent."

The whole shed burst into laughter.

Aruna stood there, her lips twitching slightly.

Pan Binglong walked over from the doorway at this moment, his wrist still wrapped in gauze—his wrist had actually been chafed raw during the scene where he was breaking free of the chains.

The medical staff on set were disinfecting him, but he waved his hand and said he was fine, then walked up to Lin Mo first.

"Director Lin, was my reaction just now okay? It was like—when I saw my wife gesturing in sign language that she didn't want to live anymore, I slid off the door frame, not breaking free of the chains, but collapsing from the inside out."

Lin Mo looked at him: "You thought of this yourself?"

"Yes, I think Wang Yongqiang wasn't angry at that moment, he was shattered. Anger explodes outward, while shattering is like collapsing inward."

Lin Mo nodded: "Teacher Pan, you've grasped the core of Wang Yongqiang's thinking."

Pan Binglong grinned, then turned to Zhao Liying, his tone suddenly becoming very serious: "Teacher Zhao, during your sign language performance—I was standing outside the door watching your hands, and I almost missed catching them."

Zhao Liying was drinking water when she heard this and put down her water bottle: "Why didn't you catch it?"

"Your gestures don't look like acting," Pan Binglong said after a pause. "They look like you're really screaming for help."

The set was silent for two seconds.

Ma Li quickly broke the silence: "Liying, how long have you been practicing sign language?"

"About ten days." Zhao Liying flexed her fingers. "I started practicing the day after I got the script. I found three deaf-mute teachers and lived and ate with them—I learned everything from what to eat, what time to get up, and how to fold clothes."

Ma Li's eyes widened: "Eating and living together? Li Ying, you're going too far!"

"We have no choice but to give it our all." Zhao Liying looked at her hands and said softly, "Hao Xiuping can't speak, and every word she says is expressed through these hands. If I make a mistake in my gestures—she will die in her heart once again."

Ma Li didn't reply, but reached out and gently patted Zhao Liying's shoulder.

Zhang Yi walked over from the corner at this moment, carrying two cups of coffee, and handed one to Zhao Liying.

"You've worked hard," he said.

Just three words.

Zhao Liying took the coffee and nodded.

Zhang Yi turned to look at Aruna, paused for two seconds, and then said something that almost made him jump up: "After this show airs, you'll have to wear a helmet when you go out."

Aru's face turned green: "Teacher Zhang Yi, don't scare me—"

"I'm not trying to scare you." Zhang Yi took a sip of coffee, his expression as calm as ever. "When I played An Xin, the audience sent me banners of appreciation. If you play Liu Wenjing—the audience might send you razor blades."

Ma Li added fuel to the fire, saying, "Didn't Li Hongwei already get a lot of flak after his performance in 'The Storm'?"

"That's different." Xu Yajun had also come over at some point, holding a thermos cup, and said slowly, "Li Hongwei is arrogant. The audience criticizes him, but some people also think he's handsome. As for Liu Wenjing's character—the audience just wants him to die. Aruna, you've set a new standard for playing villains in China."

Aru plopped down on a small stool, looked up at the sky, and sighed, "Am I only good at playing villains from now on?"

"Yes." Lin Mo stood up from behind the monitor and walked to his side. "Because when you play a bad guy, you're not just acting—you *are* the bad guy."

Aruna looked up at Lin Mo, her expression complex: "Director Lin, are you praising me or scolding me?"

"I'm impressed," Lin Mo patted him on the shoulder. "But remember to wear a helmet when you go out after the movie is released."

The whole studio burst into laughter.

Aruna sat on a stool, her lips twitching for a long time before she finally laughed at herself.

He looked down at the blood and props covering his body, then at his hands, and suddenly said, "Actually, when Teacher Pan was breaking free of the chains just now, I was inside the room listening to the sound of those chains, and I got chills. I thought to myself—Liu Wenjing really deserves to die."

Pan Binglong chimed in from the side, "Then you shouldn't be acting."

"No way." Aruna raised her head and grinned. "Others might not be as bad as me when they play Liu Wenjing, but Director Lin said—I should be the villain."

Gao Ye chimed in from the side, "Alright, alright, stop showing off. Hurry up and take off your makeup, you're terrifying with all that blood."

Aruna stood up, took two steps, then turned back and bowed to Zhao Liying again: "Teacher Zhao, I'm so sorry for today. I'll treat everyone to dinner on the day filming wraps up, the whole crew can be my witness."

Zhao Liying held the coffee he gave her and smiled, "I'll remember."