The next morning, the air on the set felt noticeably "softer." The way people looked at Ye Xiaoxiao had shifted from impatience to a careful, almost timid politeness.
The two assistants from the wardrobe department who had been the loudest yesterday now seemed to have built-in echoes whenever they saw her. "Xiaoxiao! About yesterday..." "Your mending skills are truly incredible!"
Xiaoxiao blinked, stunned for three seconds before giving a small smile. "Thank you..." She thought that would be the end of it. But the world always had a way of exceeding her imagination.
During lunch break, Xiaoxiao sat behind a prop truck with her lunchbox, thinking no one would find this remote corner. Then, a deep voice broke the silence.
"You're eating here?"
She looked up. Qin Mu stood in the shadows, the light silhouetting him from behind like a quiet, encroaching shadow. Xiaoxiao nearly choked on a grain of rice. "I-I'm just... used to... sitting here..."
Qin Mu stood in silence for a moment, seemingly searching for the right words. Then, he sat down—right next to her.
Xiaoxiao: "!!?"
His tone remained flat. "Yesterday... you must have felt very wronged."
Xiaoxiao lowered her head. "A little... but I'm okay now."
She thought the conversation would end there, but Qin Mu took a deep breath, as if suppressing an unidentified spark of anger. "If anyone treats you like that again, I will speak up."
"Huh?"
He looked down, his voice cold and certain. "I don't like that style of work—bullying the weak and refusing to admit fault."
Xiaoxiao blinked at him, dazed. Oh?
Qin Mu added, "It has nothing to do with you personally."
Xiaoxiao's heart skipped a beat. So... he wasn't angry for her? He just couldn't stand the behavior? Her smile faltered slightly, but she nodded.
Seeing her reaction, Qin Mu mistook it for lingering sadness, and his brow furrowed deeper. He felt a strange tightness in his chest. Why do I feel uncomfortable just because she's sad? He brushed it off as mere indignation toward bullying.
"Ye Xiaoxiao," he said, his voice even lower. "If you face unfairness, you can tell me."
"...Why?"
"Because I will handle it."
Xiaoxiao nearly dropped her lunchbox lid on her face. Qin Mu viewed this as "protecting the weak," unaware that his heart had moved far beyond simple justice.
By afternoon, news traveled from the production office: Xiao Li had been reassigned to the exterior location crew.
The rumors flew: "I heard Qin Mu suggested it." "No, Wayne put the pressure on." "What are you talking about? They both did!"
Xiaoxiao's face was a mask of shock mixed with a hint of guilt. But what surprised her more was the sudden change in everyone else. The wardrobe team offered to move racks for her; the prop team held doors open; the production manager even brought her water: "Xiaoxiao-jie, have some water."
When did I become "Jie" (Big Sister)? Xiaoxiao wondered, bewildered.
(The crew's internal monologue: She belongs to Wayne's inner circle—we must treat her with respect!!)
As evening approached, Wayne strutted into the wardrobe room in his silver-white sequined heels. "Silence! I, Wayne, have a major announcement!"
Everyone snapped to attention. Wayne made a flamboyant flourish toward Xiaoxiao. "From this day forward—Xiaoxiao is my Exclusive Assistant!!!"
The room: "??????"
Xiaoxiao turned pale. "Wayne-ge, I-I don't—"
"Hush! This isn't a matter of opinion." Wayne stood with hands on his hips, his sequins reflecting like a disco ball. "Only you fold my clothes beautifully! Only you organize my tools fast enough! Only you remember my teachings perfectly!"
Xiaoxiao felt like she was melting. "Wayne-ge... is this really okay?"
Wayne patted her shoulder. "Forgot already? Who bullied you yesterday? Today, who on this set would dare? Big Brother has your back."
After wrap, Qin Mu sat in his car with his script. His assistant, Xiao Zhang, stole a glance at him. "Qin-ge... you seem different today."
"How so?"
"You're... a bit restless?"
Qin Mu frowned. He didn't know what was tugging at his heart, but images of Xiaoxiao kept surfacing: her clutching her lunchbox in the corner, her panicked yet bright eyes, the way she held herself together when misunderstood.
He rubbed his temples. "I just dislike unfairness."
"Oh," Xiao Zhang replied.
Qin Mu hesitated, then added, "She... works very hard, actually."
"Oh."
"And when she smiles..." Qin Mu stopped abruptly, his throat tightening. He didn't know how to describe it. Soft. Warm. Somehow, she seemed bathed in a halo of light, quietly crashing into his vision.
His heart rate quickened. Qin Mu closed the script. "...Forget it."
He denied the sudden thought. He believed he just hated bullying, not realizing he had already begun to care—so much so that his heart moved in sync with her expressions.
(Xiao Zhang's internal monologue: That's called a crush, Bro!!!)
[On Set • Less than one month until wrap]
The afternoon was a blur of wind and equipment noise. Xiaoxiao sprinted across the studio with a wig box and rolls of tape, her heart heavy with doubt. Qin Mu seems to be avoiding me today.
A few days ago, he would stop by her side, talk to her, or help her carry things. But today, whenever he passed her, his head was down. He looked the other way. He didn't call her name.
"Did I... do something to upset him?" she wondered, watching his back.
Qin Mu stood near the monitors, looking cold and professional. The "deliberate avoidance" was too obvious to ignore.
Xiaoxiao took a deep breath, trying not to overthink. "Xiaoxiao! Get these headpieces to the field!" a colleague shouted. "Coming!" she yelled, running off.
She didn't see it, but the moment she ran past, Qin Mu's eyes shifted. He stole a quiet, suppressed look at her—a look filled with restraint and a deep, internal tug-of-war. But when she turned back to look for him, he immediately snapped his eyes back to his script, pretending to be busy. He was terrified of being caught watching her.
Far away, Wayne was adjusting a sequined shawl when he caught the movement in his peripheral vision. The "Ice King" Qin Mu was secretly pining over Ye Xiaoxiao.
Wayne froze. His shawl let out a shimmer of light. No way?
He turned his head slowly, staring at Qin Mu like a predator watching a rare animal. He saw the depth in Qin Mu's gaze—a look that seemed drawn to her like a magnet—and the panicked way he looked down the moment Xiaoxiao turned around.
Wayne: "......"
The corners of his mouth curled into a smirk, like a fox that had caught its prey by the tail. "Heh."
He tossed the shawl over his shoulder with extreme elegance. I see it all. But I won't say a word. I, Wayne, am going to wait for him to suffocate on his own feelings.
(Wayne's cynical thoughts: Keep faking it, Mr. Qin. Let's see how long you can hold out. The day you can't suppress it anymore... I'll be the first one there to enjoy the show.)
He turned and walked away, his sequined heels clicking in a rhythmic beat: Click—Clack—Click—
Each step said: "I know, I know, I know everything."