Transmigrated into the Film Emperor’s Death-Seeking Fiance

 Chapter 54 – Yan Qingchi Wraps Up His Role

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Jiang Mochen waited until Zhao Qiang left before he sent Yan Qingchi a WeChat message to come over.
Yan Qingchi came over very quickly.
Noticing that Jiang Mochen’s expression wasn’t that good, he purposefully teased, “What is it? Are you not happy to see me?”

Jiang Mochen sighed, “Do you know what Zhao Qiang just came to find me for?”

“(For) What?”

“She wanted me to cooperate in a fauxmance with her.”

Yan Qingchi was somewhat surprised.
“I wouldn’t have thought that she who usually seems gentle and quiet would throw such a strong ‘bomb’ once she made a move.
You turned her down?”

“Of course I did.
It’s just that I feel somewhat helpless when I see things like this.” He sighed, “She seems to be quite the clever girl, yet she is muddled-headed on this kind of thing.
She doesn’t even think–what if I agreed to her proposal and first enjoyed the benefits that she offered then turned around on her? What could she do then? In the end, the one who loses out is still her.”

Yan Qingchi thought that he was truly very rare.
No matter if it was the hater last time or Zhao Qiang this time, these were clearly things that displeased him; yet, aside from being angry, he would feel helpless and lamentable on the other party’s behalf1.
This kind of Jiang Mochen actually made him feel somewhat warm.

“So what benefits did she offer?” Yan Qingchi asked.

Jiang Mochen looked at him, “Is this the main point?2”

“You’ve already felt helpless and considered it a shame for her sake.
If I were to do it again, wouldn’t it be repetitive? So, we might as well change the topic to something that I’m interested in.” Yan Qingchi leaned in close to him, “Tell me, what benefits did she promise?”

How could Jiang Mochen say it out loud3? He could only reply, “Nothing.
Nothing at all.”

Yan Qingchi didn’t believe him.
He mused, “Let me guess.
Was she going to repay you with her body?”

Jiang Mochen: “…”

With one look at his expression, Yan Qingchi knew that he had guessed correctly.
He tutted twice, “That is indeed very enticing.”

“You’re enticing,”Jiang Mochen retorted, “Anyway, it’s not like I like girls.
Even if she was naked in front of me, I wouldn’t be interested.”

Yan Qingchi smiled, “Yeah, so is it not that I am even more enticing?”

Jiang Mochen was taken aback for a moment.
Then he smiled helplessly, “How are you able to  continue off anything I say? That clearly wasn’t what I meant when I said those words earlier.”

Yan Qingchi sat down beside him and asked, “Do you feel a little bit better now?”

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Jiang Mochen hadn’t expected him to ask that.
He instantly understood that Yan Qingchi had purposefully said what he had said earlier to mess with him because he saw that his expression was still pretty bad.

He smiled, not speaking.

Seeing him smile, Yan Qingchi did not continue this topic.
Instead, he changed topics, asking, “Can you give me Sun Xun’s WeChat?”

“Why?” Jiang Mochen eyed him warily, “What is there that I cannot resolve, that you would need to contact Sun Xun for?”

“Were you eating dumplings before Zhao Qiang came?”

“What do you mean?”

“Dumplings are dipped in vinegar.
Otherwise, where did this strong vinegary smell come from?”

“Hah.
You have quite the grand imagination.
It is merely that I, as your boss, need to understand your movements.” 

“Nan Cheng has so many artists, are you able to ‘understand’ all of them? Or am I the only one who is your key observation target, Boss?”

“Indeed.” Jiang Mochen did not deny it this time, “After all, no one else had me personally descend onto the scene to help hype them.”

Yan Qingchi smiled, “Well, didn’t you have Guan Mei book the variety show Come Fight! Friend! for me? I’ll be going after some time to shoot that, so I wanted to ask Sun Xun if there was anything that I should watch out for.” 

“It’s so early though.
You could ask him before filming starts and it wouldn’t be late.”

“If I ask earlier, then I will know earlier.
And I will be able to have a list beforehand.4”

Only then did Jiang Mochen take out his phone and share Sun Xun’s WeChat with him.
“I’ll let Sun Xun know so that he’ll accept your friend request later.”

“Okay.
Thanks.”

“No problem.
Wait a minute,” Jiang Mochen’s hands paused, “what did you just say? I didn’t mishear you, right? You said ‘Thanks,’ right?”

Yan Qingchi, “Did I?”

“Did you not?”

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Yan Qingchi counted the days he had left.
In sum, he could only stay three or four days in the film crew and wouldn’t be able to play this game with Jiang Mochen that many times.
Then he might as well let the other man be happy before he left, “Alright, I did.”

Jiang Mochen smiled.

Yan Qingchi pretended to zip his mouth close, “Me, mouth shut and stunned5, I know.”

Jiang Mochen nodded, pleased.
Only then did he continue to send Sun Xun a WeChat message telling him that Yan Qingchi wanted to ask him some questions about shooting the variety show.

Sun Xun was probably on his phone at the time; he actually replied instantly.
However, after he accepted Yan Qingchi’s friend request, he made a groupchat with the three of them.

Sun Xun: 【Is Sister-In-Law coming to substitute for Guang Jingshen in shooting for this variety show of ours this month?】

【Yes.】Yan Qingchi replied, 【I previously watched this variety show online and got a rough understanding of it, but I still want to ask you if there is anything that I should watch out for】

Sun Xun:【There’s nothing that you particularly need to watch out for.
Sister-In-Law, watch the show a couple more times and get an idea how this variety show is played.
Then all you need to do is to act according to the persona that the writer gives you.
This will depend on what persona the director gives you.】

Yan Qingchi: 【Is there anything that I should watch out for on the cast’s side? For example, so-and-so has this taboo, or anyone who isn’t easy to get along with and who I should try my best to avoid?】

Sun Xun: 【I’ll tell you when you are here.
Overall, though, everyone is pretty easy to get along with.
Moreover, I’ll be here.
I won’t let you get bullied, Sister-In-Law.】

Yan Qingchi: 【Ok, thanks.】

Sun Xun: 【No problem.
You don’t need to feel any pressure, Sister-In-Law.
If you can fight with (military) force, then fight with (military) force; if you can fight with your intelligence, then fight with your intelligence.
Or be comical and entertaining–that works too.
You’ll be fine if you pick one that you’re adept at and combine it with the persona that the production team gives you.】

Yan Qingchi: 【Mn.
I got it.
Thanks】

Sun Xun: 【I already told you it’s no problem.
You don’t need to treat me like such an outsider6, Sister-In-Law.
But I clearly invited the two of you in here, why hasn’t Mochen said anything? @Jiang Mochen, what are you doing?】

Jiang Mochen: 【Nothing, just watching you two chat】    

Sun Xun: 【…..】

Sun Xun: 【[secretly observing.jpg]7】  

Sun Xun: 【Is this you right now!】  

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Jiang Mochen: 【Hah, I’m observing right in the open!8】

After chatting with Sun Xun for a while, they ended their conversation.
Yan Qingchi very naturally slept in Jiang Mochen’s room, but they simply talked while covered with the blanket. 

The next few days, Yan Qingchi shot his remaining two scenes successively and finally wrapped up his role.
Director Wang had a small cake be bought for him.
Yan Qingchi cut the cake and took a picture with everyone celebrating the wrap-up of his character, ending his first movie filming.

Because he was the first to wrap up his role, many of the actors in the cast came to take a picture together with him.
Su Nuan even boldly linked her arm with his and took a selfie, expressing with great reluctance (to part with him) that now she was the only ‘little nobody’ left in the cast and how tragic that was. 

Yan Qingchi could only continue pretending that he was a complete newcomer with no background at all and cheer her on, “Fighting.”

Because of Yan Qingchi’s wrap-up, the film crew finally shot the Lost’s character promotional posters before he left.
Yan Qingchi didn’t have many posters; most of them were solo pictures, some emphasizing the quiet and reserved outward appearance while others highlighted the disdainful and prideful inside.
However, what he hadn’t expected was that he also had a set of duo posters with Jiang Mochen. 

When Yan Qingchi heard that the two of them were going to shoot the duo posters, he was quite surprised.
Jiang Mochen, on the other hand, was very calm.
The set that they shot totaled five design compositions.
In the first photo, the two sat on each side of a table, one disdainful and one solemn, each looking at the other.
The second photo had Jiang Mochen looking backwards, spotting Yan Qingchi, who was in the depths of the dark night.
This foretold that He Yu discovered Meng Luo who had been hiding behind the scenes.
In the third photo, the two stood back-to-back with their heads lowered, symbolizing their different fates.

The last two photos were different from these three.
One photo had Yan Qingchi fiddling with the daffodil9 in the glass cup10, quiet and reserved; Jiang Mochen was looking at him, his waist bent and his eyes carrying some warmth in them.

Another photo had Yan Qingchi lying on a sofa; Jiang Mochen was in front of him, reaching a hand out and helping him cover his eyes. 

These two photos were not as obvious as the previous three had been in the hints about the movie plot, but both Yan Qingchi and Jiang Mochen knew what they meant.
Meng Luo was like a daffodil that looked at its reflection and pitied itself11—he only saw his own suffering.
Meanwhile, He Yu was pitying Meng Luo for what he had experienced, and helpless about the choice he had made.

As for the photo with the eyes being covered, that was actually foretelling Meng Luo’s death at the end.

Yan Qingchi waited until the photographer yelled “OK” before opening his eyes.
Only then did he discover that Jiang Mochen was looking at him, his emotions that hadn’t been completely retracted yet carrying a trace of warmth12.
He suddenly felt that Jiang Mochen was certainly like the character He Yu.
Even though he wasn’t a police officer for the people like He Yu, the two of them treated others warmly and had sympathetic hearts.
He smiled, feeling that it was a sort of misfortune for Meng Luo to have been able to meet He Yu in his short-lived life; yet, at the same time, it was another sort of good fortune.  

After finishing the shooting of the posters, Yan Qingchi really was going to leave the filming crew.
Jiang Mochen took some time out to send him off.
Everyone in the film crew knew that ever since Yan Qingchi saved Jiang Mochen in that incident, they had a very good relationship.
Thus, they didn’t say much about it; instead, they were only rather envious of Yan Qingchi.

Jiang Mochen said goodbye to Yan Qingchi at the airport.
He didn’t get down from the nanny car.
He only had the others get off the car, leaving himself and Yan Qingchi in the car.
He told the latter repeatedly to remember to tell him if anything happened, to report back to Guan Mei if he encountered any problems, and to be safe.

Yan Qingchi agreed to everything he said.
At the same time, he didn’t forget to make fun of him playfully, “Although I won’t be in the film crew anymore, but you have to ‘mind your own business and keep out of trouble’13, got it?”

Jiang Mochen was practically speechless, “I think you’re the one who was just eating dumplings.
Such a strong vinegary smell.”

Yan Qingchi was self-confident and did not feel like he was in the wrong, “It can’t be helped.
Who told you to be so attractive?”

“”

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Jiang Mochen chuckled, “Now you don’t think that you yourself are the most enticing?”

“Well, that’s because I’m not around.”

“Relax,” Jiang Mochen promised, “Ever since I was little, I only wanted the best.
Only the ‘best’ can catch my eye.”

Yan Qingchi smiled, not speaking.

Jiang Mochen checked his watch, “You should leave.”

Yan Qingchi nodded.
He actually was rather reluctant to part with Jiang Mochen.
Before, when they were together, he hadn’t felt like this; however, now that they suddenly have to separate, he realized that he still wanted to stay in a film crew with him.
But the difference between them at the moment was too big, so big that even if Yan Qingchi considered himself sufficiently brilliant, he couldn’t resist wanted to work hard to overcome the hurdles14 so that he could also be on a summit—the (mountain) peak neighboring his (JMC). 

He didn’t want just for Jiang Mochen to like him, or to have his own ‘happily ever after’ in this world, he also wanted to receive blessings when they one day publicly announce their romantic relationship and not skepticism.
So, he wanted to grow as fast as possible, to have an acknowledged place of his own in this circle.
And he wouldn’t be able to achieve any of that if he only stayed by Jiang Mochen’s side.

“I’m going now.” Yan Qingchi said.

He was about to open the door but Jiang Mochen held his hand in place, “Wait.”

Thank you for reading this translation. 

Footnotes

Here’s the raw: 燕清池觉得他还真的是挺难得，无论是上次黑粉也好，还是这次赵嫱也罢, 明明都是让他不愉快的事情, 可是他在生气之余, 还会替对方感觉到无奈与可悲, 这样的江默宸, 倒是让他觉得有些温暖。 To be more accurate, JMC asks “Is this how you usually catch the main point?” I interpreted it as him questioning YQC if that was what he caught onto from what JMC had said. Okay, so the raw was “江默宸哪好意思说出口”, which is talking about how JMC feels embarrassed/shy to say it out loud–or rather, “how could someone like JMC be able to say it out loud” kind of sentiment.     “早问早知道，也就提前有个谱。” Actually I’m not sure if this was supposed to be “stunned” or “stunning”, but I just figured it was “stunned”.
    燕清池伸手给自己嘴巴做了个拉拉链的动作，“我，闭嘴惊艳，我懂。” Basically, he’s saying that YQC doesn’t need to be so polite (and distant). Visual example:  Not really related but I just love that there was this contrast of “secretly observing” (暗中观察 ànzhōngguānchá), or literally “observing in the dark”, while “observing right in the open” is something along the lines of “observing in a just and honorable manner” (正大光明的观察 zhèngdàguāngmíngdeguānchá)–which could be translated literally as “in huge light” (or, well, it has the characters for “upright”, “big”, and “light” so…). So daffodil in Chinese is “水仙花” (shuǐxiānhuā)–literally, “water celestial flower”.
The daffodil is also known as the “Narcissus”.
In Greek mythology, Narcissus was a very handsome hunter who rejected all romantic advances.
One day, he chanced upon his own reflection in a pool of water.
He fell in love with his reflection.
Needless to say, his love was unrequited.
So he pined and stared at his reflection for the rest of his life.
When he died, his body turned into the flowers which henceforth bore his name.
Among other things, the daffodil flower represents rebirth and new beginnings (since it represents the coming spring and is an indicator that winter is over).
It also symbolizes unrequited love.
And it seems that a bunch of daffodils is seen as good fortune whereas only a single daffodil foretells misfortune. Visual examples:  or  顾影自怜 (gùyǐngzìlián) – lit.
looking at one’s shadow and feeling sorry for oneself (idiom) / fig.
alone and dejected 燕清池等摄影师喊ok，挣了眼，才发现江默宸正看着自己，还没有全收敛的情绪里带着一丝温柔。 洁身自好 (jiéshēnzìhào) – clean-living and honest (idiom); to avoid immorality / to shun evil influence / to mind one’s own business and keep out of trouble / to keep one’s hands clean.
In this context, I interpreted it as YQC telling JMC to not cheat or get into any scandals. 翻山越岭

 

(fānshānyuèlǐng) – lit.
to pass over mountain ridges (idiom) / fig.
hardships of the journey