Two in the morning.
Inside a private room of a well-known hotpot restaurant in Donghai City, the red oil broth was still bubbling.
The aromas of beef tallow and Sichuan peppercorns mingled in the air, and several empty plates of beef tripe and pork aorta already littered the table.
Li Cheng's face was flushed from drinking. His shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, and he clutched a half-empty glass of baijiu.
He draped an arm over Jiang Yue's shoulder, his voice already slurring slightly.
“Xiao Jiang, I really have to thank you this time.”
“If you hadn't stepped in to save the day, I can't even imagine how many days we would have had to halt production on 《Sharp Blade》.”
The producer sitting next to them nodded in agreement.
After the original actor was injured, venue fees, equipment rental fees, and extras' wages had all piled up on the ledger.
Every day they didn't shoot was like throwing a pile of money down the drain.
Jiang Yue had finished all of Duan Rui's scenes in a single week and had even elevated the quality of the action sequences by a significant margin.
Everyone in the crew understood just how valuable his contribution was.
Li Cheng slapped the table and turned to look at the producer.
“Redo the contract.”
“Don't list him as a standard cameo. Raise his pay too.”
Without any hesitation, the producer agreed immediately.
He Songtao sat on the other side, looking no better.
He still had traces of mud on his face that hadn't been fully washed off. After a few drinks, he spoke even more bluntly than usual.
“Brother Jiang, I'm being completely serious.”
“If I have any action scenes in the future, could you come and keep an eye on me for a couple of days?”
He gestured roughly, mimicking the chokehold from the harbor scene.
“Training for a month wasn't nearly as eye-opening as fighting you once.”
Jiang Yue held his teacup, having refrained from touching any alcohol.
He had things to do tomorrow and didn't want to wake up feeling terrible.
“You're too polite, Brother Tao.”
“If you ever need me, just let me know in advance. As long as my schedule allows, I'll definitely be there.”
Hearing this, He Songtao clapped him on the shoulder in satisfaction.
Li Cheng steered the conversation back to 《Manhunt》, reminiscing about the time the servers on set crashed and Jiang Yue, who had only come to fix the computers, ended up being dragged in to fill a role.
Getting excited, Li Cheng even picked up his chopsticks and tapped them against the rim of his bowl.
“I said it back then—it would be a tragedy if this kid didn't act!”
“None of you believed me. Now look, was my eye for talent spot on or what?”
The group in the private room laughed along.
Looking at these two industry veterans, who behaved like overgrown children after a few drinks, Jiang Yue could only offer a helpless smile.
The dinner lasted until the hotpot restaurant was about to close.
Both Li Cheng and He Songtao had drunk too much.
Jiang Yue called the production crew's designated vans, helping Li Cheng into the first one and putting He Songtao into the back seat of the second.
He carefully instructed the drivers to take it slow and only closed the doors after making sure their assistants were with them.
A chilly night breeze swept through the intersection.
Having just stepped out of the steaming hotpot restaurant, the sudden cold air sent a shiver down his collar.
Jiang Yue pulled his coat tighter around himself, hailed a taxi by the roadside, and headed straight back to his rented apartment.
Outside the window, Donghai City was not yet asleep. The lights beneath the elevated highway retreated in neat rows.
Jiang Yue leaned back in the rear seat as his phone vibrated.
It was a message from Li Cheng's producer.
The new supplementary contract would be sent for electronic signature tomorrow morning. His pay would be recalculated as a major special appearance, and his name would be listed separately in the main supporting cast section.
Jiang Yue replied with a “Received.”
This brief stint saving the day on 《Sharp Blade》 hadn't taken much time, but the harvest was significant.
He had repaid his debt to Li Cheng, befriended He Songtao, and left his name in the minds of a directing team known for serious dramas.
As for the pay, it was just an added bonus.
By the time he pushed open the door to his rented apartment, it was nearly three in the morning.
The apartment was dead quiet.
His two monitors still glowed with standby lights, and the test emails from Yuantu Technology lay quietly in his inbox.
Jiang Yue glanced over them. Finding no urgent error reports, he shut down his computer.
He took a hot shower.
As the hot water poured over his neck and shoulders, the soreness from working non-stop finally began to melt away.
Between wrapping up 《The Hidden Sentry》, dubbing for 《The Grand Game》, and saving the day on 《Sharp Blade》, he had barely had any proper rest over the past few days.
The moment his back hit the mattress, exhaustion washed over him.
Jiang Yue before he could even plug his phone in to charge, his eyelids grew heavy, and he fell fast asleep.
When he woke up again, it was already the following afternoon.
The light filtering through the gap in the curtains was pale.
Jiang Yue reached for his phone. The screen was cluttered with unread messages.
Li Cheng had sent over the electronic contract.
He Songtao had sent a photo of them outside the hotpot restaurant last night, captioned: “I'll look for you whenever I have action scenes in the future.”
Han Song's messages were much more direct.
Han Song: [You wrapped up again? You absolute tryhard.]
Han Song: [I'm sunbathing in Sanya while you're fighting in the mud in Donghai. Now that's what I call a difference in lifestyle.]
Jiang Yue replied with a [laughing-crying emoji].
Then, remembering something, he quickly sent Han Song another message.
Jiang Yue: [If it's convenient, could you sign a few photos for me? A kid back home is a big fan of yours.]
Han Song replied instantly.
Han Song: [Which kid has such excellent taste? Send me the address, I'll mail them to you later.]
Jiang Yue sent over his hometown address.
Han Song added another message.
Han Song: [Don't forget to tell the kid that I'm even more handsome in person than in the photos.]
Jiang Yue chuckled and put down his phone.
Over the next few days, he didn't take on any new work.
The post-production dubbing for 《The Grand Game》 was fully complete.
His scenes as Duan Rui in 《Sharp Blade》 had also officially wrapped.
The model at Yuantu Technology was running stably. Li Hai had only compiled a few edge-case test data points in an email, so there was no immediate need for him to visit the site.
With some rare free time on his hands, Jiang Yue gave his rented apartment a quick tidy-up.
He sorted and packed the heavy coats, scarves, and nutritional supplements he had prepared for his family elders into his luggage.
As February arrived, the temperature in Donghai City plummeted close to freezing.
Red lanterns were hung from the bare branches along the streets, and New Year promotional broadcasts played on a loop at the entrance of shopping malls.
The city's pace was still fast, but the festive atmosphere of the New Year was already beginning to emerge.
On the morning of February 6th.
Jiang Yue stuffed his last thick coat into his suitcase, zipped it shut, and stood it up by the door.
He glanced at the calendar.
There were only a few days left until Chinese New Year's Eve.
He was going back to his hometown.
For others, going home might be an escape from the city.
For Jiang Yue, however, this was a true homecoming.
His background was both simple and complex.
Jiang Yue had been adopted by an elderly couple.
His adoptive grandmother had suffered an injury in her youth that left her unable to bear children, so she and his grandfather had never had children of their own.
After adopting Jiang Yue, the two elders truly doted on him as the apple of their eye.
When he had a fever as a child, his grandmother would stay awake all night, sitting by his bed to change his cold towels.
His grandfather was strict in his speech, but he would always sneak back a bag of roasted chestnuts for him after buying groceries.
Unfortunately, fate was fickle.
During Jiang Yue's sophomore year of high school, both elders passed away from illnesses one after another.
Normally, for an orphan with no blood relations, once the bridge of the elders was gone, family ties would easily fade away.
But the Jiang family was different.
His grandfather had two younger brothers and a younger sister.
These granduncles, grandaunts, and their children did not grow distant at all after his grandparents passed away.
Instead, feeling that Jiang Yue was all alone in the world, they went out of their way to show him warmth and care during holidays.
Jiang Yue never asked them for money.
The elderly couple had left him some savings, and he had his own scholarships during school, so his life wasn't difficult.
But money was one thing, and family affection was another.
Jiang Yue had no biological parents, but behind him stood an entire, massive clan.
His return this time happened to coincide with his second grandaunt's seventieth birthday.
According to the Jiang family tradition, this was a milestone year that called for a grand celebration, and all the relatives had to gather.
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