Chapter 266 – The Runaway Little Sweetheart of the Top Actor – Caught in a Trap (10)
Everyone exclaimed how sweet it was—the indulgence in the movie king’s eyes, the affection in the young man’s gaze—as if they existed in a world of their own on set, completely separate from the others who couldn’t even begin to blend in.
People who didn’t know who Bai Tang was also started to uncover his identity.
So this was the person the movie king had announced as his partner, even at the risk of losing fans? How adorable.
A large number of fans began following Bai Tang’s Weibo account, only to find that he had barely posted anything. They knew absolutely nothing about him.
Fortunately, the anti-fans had previously dug up some information about Bai Tang and compiled it into a document. It wasn’t much, but it still offered some insight.
[No way, is Bai Tang’s acting really that bad? I thought he did pretty well in Sky Realm.]
[Lots of actors start out with poor skills and improve over time. What, he’s not allowed to make progress?]
[I don’t care about acting—I’m here for the looks. Tang Tang is just too cute…]
[Shallow.]
[Shallow +1]
…
Online opinions about Bai Tang were mixed. Before his new work was released, netizens hotly debated his acting ability.
But one thing was certain: Bai Tang had already gained a group of fans thanks to his outstanding looks and clean, fresh temperament.
Pu Hexu watched the public sentiment online. When he saw comments expressing fondness for Bai Tang, a smile appeared on his face.
He glanced at Bai Tang, who was listening to Director Li speak, then stepped aside and called Adam.
Meanwhile, Zhou Mengsi used the excuse of feeling dizzy to take a nap in the lounge. As she passed by the props room, she spotted something reflective—and smiled.
As Zhou Mengsi’s assistant, Wen Anni had been running errands for her all day. After finally picking up the deluxe takeout meal Zhou had ordered, she returned to the lounge.
Zhou Mengsi said, “Just leave the food on the table. I have a scene coming up soon. Go to the props room and help the crew carry out my wire rig.”
Wen Anni hadn’t even caught her breath before she was sent off again. A hint of frustration flickered in her heart.
Even someone about to hang themselves should be allowed a breather. She felt like a spinning top, never stopping—how had Yu Shuang put up with her?
Despite her grumbling, Wen Anni was getting paid, and doing the job was just part of it.
She picked up the prop sword leaning against the wall and closed the lounge door behind her.
The sword was also a prop, after all—it was better to bring everything out in one trip. That way, if Zhou Mengsi forgot it later, Wen Anni wouldn’t have to run back again.
Director Li always strove for realism in his filming. Although this was a fantasy movie and special effects would be added in post-production, he wanted everything during filming to be as authentic as possible to give the audience the best viewing experience.
As a result, every actor’s props were made to be as realistic as possible.
Holding the sword, Wen Anni felt it had quite a bit of weight to it. She drew it from its scabbard and found the blade glinting coldly—it was the real deal, made of solid material.
She swallowed nervously and reached out to touch the blade.
To prevent accidents during filming, the edges of the sword were blunted. It felt dull to the touch and wouldn’t injure anyone.
Wen Anni recited a line from Zu Pingwan, “You’ve aligned yourself with the demonic path. In that case, the righteous path will never accept you.”
She kicked open the door of the props room and leapt forward, thrusting the sword out in a dramatic move.
But she didn’t expect to step on a small jar, which caused her to lose her balance and fall forward.
As she fell, the sword flew from her hand and got stuck in the pulley system of the wire rig.
“It’s over, it’s over,” Wen Anni muttered anxiously. She used all her strength, but still couldn’t pull the sword out.
“What do I do now? This is Sister Meng’s wire rig…” Wen Anni was filled with regret—if only she hadn’t tried to show off.
Panicked and unsure of what to do, she caught a glimpse of another complete wire-rig setup out of the corner of her eye. It had a name tag on it—Bai Tang.
That setup had been “graciously sponsored” by Pu Hexu for the crew, but in reality, it was specifically prepared for Bai Tang.
Wen Anni recalled Bai Tang’s soft and adorable face. “He’s got such a good temper… I’m sure he won’t mind if I borrow it for a bit.”
Although she knew it wasn’t the right thing to do, the situation was urgent. She believed Bai Tang wouldn’t make a fuss.
After mentally preparing herself, Wen Anni covered the damaged wire rig with a cloth, tore off the name tag labeled “Bai Tang,” and helped the crew members who had just arrived move the replacement rig outside.
Outside, Wen Anni saw Bai Tang, who had just finished talking with Director Li, and greeted him guiltily.
She grew more nervous. If Bai Tang found out that someone else had used equipment meant for him, he might get angry. Zhou Mengsi wasn’t exactly easy to deal with either—if the two clashed, Bai Tang, with his soft and gentle personality, would surely suffer. And she might even get fired by Zhou Mengsi.
Maybe… she could stall Bai Tang for a while. Once Sister Meng finished her scene, he could use the wire rig afterward.
Having made up her mind, Wen Anni called out to Bai Tang, who was about to get into the harness. “Tang Tang, I need to talk to you about something. Can you come with me? Just for a minute.”
Bai Tang frowned slightly, wondering what tricks the female lead was up to now. But with so many people around, nothing serious should happen, right?
Thinking this, Bai Tang walked over and asked, “What is it?”
“Come with me,” Wen Anni said, glancing nervously to the side. She saw someone wearing Zhou Mengsi’s outfit approaching. Turning back to Bai Tang, her expression was pleading.
The upcoming scene was a confrontation between Zhou Mengsi and Pu Hexu against the demonic sect. Bai Tang wasn’t due to appear just yet, so he figured he had some time. He told a passing staff member that he was stepping away briefly and would be right back.
With that done, he followed Wen Anni.
They walked further and further off to the side until they reached the props room.
“Are there more props that need moving?” Bai Tang wondered. Could it be that Wen Anni, as a girl, couldn’t carry something heavy and had asked him to help?
You couldn’t blame Bai Tang for thinking this way. Unlike the typical vicious female leads who targeted him in his past lives, this world’s female lead didn’t seem hostile. As long as she didn’t fall for his man, Bai Tang didn’t really have any bad feelings toward her.
Besides, Pu Hexu had looked into Wen Anni’s background, and Bai Tang had seen it too. She really was a pitiful girl. With a family like that, it was no wonder she was bitter and resented the wealthy.
So Bai Tang remained kind and polite. Wen Anni felt a little guilty—what she’d done really wasn’t ethical.
Faced with the boy’s gentle concern, Wen Anni panicked and blurted out the truth: that she had moved his wire rig. At the end, she even lifted the cloth covering the equipment, revealing the sword stuck in it. “Look—I can’t get it out.”
Once again, Wen Anni shattered Bai Tang’s impression of her. In the original story, his man actually liked such a careless girl?
Thinking about how, if he hadn’t come to this world, Pu Hexu and Wen Anni would’ve ended up together, Bai Tang felt a sudden pang in his chest.
“I’ll give it a try,” Bai Tang said. He had underestimated himself—after all, he was still a boy. He should be a bit stronger than Wen Anni and might be able to pull the sword out.
He pulled hard, but the prop sword didn’t budge an inch. Beside him stood Wen Anni, waiting.
As a man, being looked down on by a girl was a pretty embarrassing thing.
Unwilling to give up, Bai Tang braced one foot against the wall and tried again to pull the sword out.
The scenery on the mountain was beautiful, lush with vegetation, and full of small animals.
Suddenly, Wen Anni spotted a rat scurrying behind Bai Tang. She screamed, “At your feet… there’s a rat at your feet!”
All Bai Tang heard was the warning about his feet, and instinctively tried to dodge. At the same moment, Wen Anni picked up a nearby pole to chase the rat away.
As Bai Tang loosened his grip, Wen Anni’s pole accidentally struck him. He stumbled back a few steps and crashed into a folding screen. The screen toppled over and knocked down a stack of cardboard boxes behind it.
It would’ve been fine if the boxes were empty—but they weren’t. They were filled with other items and wobbled dangerously before crashing down toward Bai Tang and Wen Anni.
Bai Tang pushed Wen Anni out of the way, but didn’t have time to dodge himself. He was hit squarely. A sharp pain shot through the back of his head, and just before he lost consciousness, he could hear a woman screaming beside him.
At that moment, the main door slammed shut with a loud bang.
The prop room was plunged into darkness. In the blackness, Wen Anni seemed to catch the scent of blood. She reached out to help Bai Tang—only to feel something sticky and wet.
Even someone as inexperienced as her knew by now: Bai Tang was injured—he’d been hit so hard he was bleeding.
She ran to push the door. It was supposed to be one that could be opened from the inside—but now, no matter how she pushed, it wouldn’t budge.
“Is anyone there? Is anyone outside?!” Wen Anni banged on the door, loud enough to shake the walls—but no one responded.
Outside, Zhou Mengsi tossed the key aside and smiled toward the props room.
She had seen Bai Tang and Wen Anni walking off together earlier. Thinking it over, she realized that tampering with the wire rig alone wasn’t careful enough—what if someone noticed mid-scene and stopped filming? Then the opportunity would’ve been wasted.
But if Bai Tang was locked up, and when he was finally released, he was in a poor mental state—and still had to rush to shoot the wire scene to meet Director Li’s tight schedule—then the chances of something going wrong would be much higher.
She listened to Wen Anni’s cries for help, unconcerned—after all, she wasn’t the one who would be blamed.
As Bai Tang’s former assistant, Wen Anni getting fired and holding a grudge, seeking revenge on her ex-boss—that explanation would sound perfectly reasonable, wouldn’t it?
There was a certain connection between the system and its host. That was also why Qiu’er’s upgrade had failed previously—it had been disrupted by Bai Tang’s presence.
When Qiu’er and little A rushed over, they found Bai Tang already unconscious.
“Tang Tang, Tang Tang…”
Qiu’er quickly activated his healing ability to stop Bai Tang’s bleeding.
Although Bai Tang had been hit on the back of the head, the bleeding was actually from his left shoulder—not his head. Thank goodness.
The female lead had already noticed Bai Tang was injured, so Xiao A didn’t dare to completely heal him. After all, if there was bleeding without a visible wound, that would be far too suspicious.
Qiu’er’s eyes blazed with anger—once again, it was the female lead. That d*mn female lead. Nothing good ever happened when Wen Anni got close to Tang Tang.
Qiu’er pulled out a straw doll and stuck on the female lead’s name. Just as he was about to stab it, Xiao A tackled him with a hug.
“Calm down, calm down. What matters right now is Tang Tang. If the female lead ends up injured too, she’ll be seen as a victim just like Tang Tang. Humans naturally sympathize with the weak.”
Qiu’er took a deep breath. Xiao A was right—they couldn’t let the female lead get off easy.
They scanned Bai Tang’s body from head to toe. Aside from a few minor external injuries, there was no serious harm.
Still, Qiu’er was furious. But to avoid arousing suspicion when someone eventually found Bai Tang, Qiu’er couldn’t completely heal all his wounds.
“Minor scrapes are fine—the female lead isn’t going to take his clothes off to check. But that bleeding wound on his left shoulder, that one’s a problem.”
They’d heal what they could. At the very least, it would ease Tang Tang’s pain.
The two systems discussed it and decided not to wake Bai Tang just yet. If he woke up, the wound would start to hurt—and Bai Tang hated pain. When he hurt, he cried. And when Bai Tang cried, Qiu’er’s heart broke and he’d start crying too. In that case, Xiao A wouldn’t even know which one to comfort first.
“Help! Is anyone out there? Please, help us!”
Wen Anni’s voice had gone hoarse from yelling. Earlier, she hadn’t brought her phone—wanting to move props more easily—so she had no way to call for help.
“Tangt Tng, hang in there. I’ll keep shouting. Someone will hear us,” Wen Anni said, turning to look at Bai Tang before continuing to bang on the door and cry out.
Seeing this, Xiao A thought the female lead wasn’t entirely bad—just horribly unreliable.
Using the system’s time-rewind function, they watched the moment Zhou Mengsi threw away the key. Furious, Qiu’er redirected his anger from Wen Anni to Zhou Mengsi.
After finishing his call, Pu Hexu looked around but couldn’t find Bai Tang. For some reason, his heart began to pound uncontrollably.
Director Li was calling for him to get into the wire rig. Zhou Mengsi was already harnessed and ready to go.
Pu Hexu tried to suppress the growing unease in his heart—but no matter what he did, he couldn’t shake it.
“Director Li, have you seen Tang Tang?”
“Bai Tang? He said earlier he was going to the restroom. He hasn’t come back yet?” Director Li asked in return, glancing around. Sure enough, Bai Tang was nowhere to be seen.
“Has anyone seen Bai Tang?” Bai Tang was a key character in the film, and his scene was coming up soon. Even if he’d gone to the restroom, he should have returned by now.
At that moment, a crew member who had spoken to Bai Tang earlier said, “He was called away by Wen Anni. Said he’d be back soon.”
Wen Anni. That jinx.
Hearing her name made Pu Hexu’s temples throb. Tang Tang must be in trouble.
His instincts never lied to him.
“Which direction did they go?” Pu Hexu asked.
“That way.”
Pu Hexu dashed off in the direction the crew member pointed. Tang Tang, please be okay.
Author’s Note:
Of course our Tang Tang will be fine, don’t worry! Just sit tight and get ready for the male lead to go full rampage mode.