Your Rival in Love Gets Prettier Every Day

Chapter 30: Acting Day for Bai Yueguang

Shen Jintai’s ass started picking up heat. A quick search on Weibo, forums, and Baidu would have posts regarding his butt. The search almost climbed to the end of the hot search list, but it soon died down. Fortunately, it didn’t gain too much traction. Otherwise, Shen Jintai wouldn’t be able to show his face in public again with the hot search title “Shen Jintai’s ass” hanging above him.

Li Meilan was eating peanuts while looking at Shen Jintai who was sweating profusely next to her: “Are you tired from filming? You should take a break.”

Shen Jintai hummed and shook his head as he happily exercise. Steam seemed to be rising out of him. He’s been following Coach Li’s regime. He wanted to turn his peerless ass into an electric small motor*.

*Electric small motor (电动小马达) = I’m not sure what the reference here is. From my research it has something to do with making one ass become similar to an electric small motor.

It is not unusual for a male star to have an ass, but the reason why his ass has caused such a big response was mainly because of his identity. He is after all, the most popular openly gay man in the entertainment industry.

A male celebrity has an ass that he wants other to see, while Shen Jintai has an ass that he wants to use. There’s a huge difference between seeing and using. How could it not be exciting?!

Yan Yaoxuan was lying on the bed, constantly looking at the poster. His thoughts were surging. In a few days, it will be September, and he will have to return to school. He was going to school abroad, which will separate him 18,000 miles away from Shen Jintai. He was afraid that he’ll be the first to board the water tower*. He must do something before he leaves.

*Waterfront tower (水楼台) = idiom which means a platform near the water. It’s a metaphor for getting priority due to proximity.
*Translation help: I’m not sure what the author is trying to say. (远水楼台, 恐怕要被‌捷足先登.) 

He used to like Shen Jintai for his dazzling appearance when he was onstage. It always made him shiver like an M. Shen Jintai would pursue his brother but completely ignore his love, which only deepened his infatuation with his idol. If he looks at Shen Jintai too intently, it would cause him to blush.

Yan Yaoxuan didn’t realize that Shen Jintai had such an ass. He reached out to put the poster down, but he couldn’t fall asleep after seeing it. His heart felt warm, and his body was heating up. He felt so itchy inside.

—

As the number one fan of this drama, no one paid more attention to it’s dynamics than Mrs. Yan. She especially paid careful attention to the official blog of <The East Palace is Coming> and asked Yan Qiuchi about its latest development.

Mrs. Yan: “I heard Xiao Jin say the trailer will be released soon.”

Yan Qiuchi said: “I don’t know.”

Mrs. Yan: “You’re the boss and you don’t know?”

“Just because I’m the boss it doesn’t mean I’m in charge of everything.” Yan Qiuchi said.

He didn’t like to talk about Shen Jintai with his mother, something Mrs. Yan also understood in her heart. But the today’s Shen Jintai was no longer the Shen Jintai of the past. She hoped that he will continue to improve and become an even better person with each passing days so that her ignorant* son will come to regret it.

*Doesn’t know the goods (不识货) = idiom meaning doesn’t understand the true value of things. I used the translated meaning of the idiom instead to make it flow better.

She had also seen the new poster. It looked simple and less colorful yet remained sophisticated. Shen Jintai looked very seductive.

Yan Yaoxuan wanted to chime in several times but refrained from doing it. He knew his brother didn’t want to talk about it, especially when it involves Shen Jintai. He could only blame himself for being too timid and dare not cross his older brother.  

Yan Qiuchi suddenly turned to him and asked: “What day are you leaving?”

Yan Yaoxuan said: “The first.”

Yan Qiuchi: “That’s a few days away. You’re not leaving early?”

Yan Yaoxuan remained silent.

Yan Qiuchi: “You’ve been playing around for the past three months. It’s time to get serious. If you can’t graduate, I won’t spare you.”

Yan Qiuchi was exceedingly strict. Even his father, Yan Tiefeng wasn’t as harsh.

Yan Yaoxuan interrupted: “Mom, dad hasn’t been home for a long time.”

Mrs. Yan: “He came back yesterday but left again after sleeping for a night. He’s going to City A to attend a government meeting and said he won’t be back until the day after tomorrow.”

Yan Yaoxuan: “Recently, a female star had been spreading rumors of an affair with dad.” This was commonplace so Yan Yaoxuan didn’t have any strong feelings when talking about it.

Mrs. Yan smiled: “Is it the same one as last time? Why does an unmarried girl waste her money on such things?”

Mrs. Yan was very firm. She was a daughter from a wealthy and influential family and had no tolerance for sand in her eyes*. She had told Yan Tiefeng since her marriage that if she finds out he has cheated, she will divorce immediately. While she didn’t verbally tell him, she had thought it. Even now being married for many years and their relationship had been harmonious, she can still break it off.

*Sand in eyes = idiom describing something that is not in line with someone’s wishes and must not be tolerated.

Yan Tiefeng also knew that it has been very peaceful over the years. Mrs. Yan oversaw the household accounts and developed a habit of reporting on it every day.

Mrs. Yan applied her view on marriage when it comes to raising the Yan brothers. Although they were one of the most prominent and wealthy families, Yan Qiuchi and Yan Yaoxan had been very mindful in their private lives. Yan Qiuchi had a neat and strict personality like herself while Yan Yaoxuan had a more outgoing personality but never messed around.

“I will handle this matter.” Yan Qiuchi said.

Yan Qiuchi was strict in self-discipline and has applied this standard to others, especially when it comes to feelings and sex. He had long wanted to clean up this female star who been vying for his father, a married man.

Mrs. Yan was pleased. Although her son had a cold character, he had the ability to take care of these kinds of matter. Despite his young age, he already had the aptitude suitable for being the next head of the household.  He was also suitable for being a good husband. If one had a husband like this, they would never worry about infidelity. He’ll be able to handle everything from fixing the lightbulb to withstanding the storm.

It’s just his shortcoming was in his taste, but no one was perfect. She wanted to leave a good man like this to Xiao Jin.

After Yan Qiuchi left for work, Yan Yaoxuan said to Mrs. Yan: “Mom, they’re going to allow set visit starting this weekend.”

Mrs. Yan said: “I know. Xiao Jin told me on WeChat.”

“Then why do you still ask brother?” Yan Yaoxuan said.

Mrs. Yan glanced at him and shook her head. Her son’s IQ is really not good.

“Should we go?” Yan Yaoxuan asked again.

Mrs. Yan: “We’ve just been there. I’m getting too old to do this multiple times.”

“I want to go again before school starts. It’ll be Chinese New Years before I come back again.” Yan Yaoxuan said.

“If you want to go, you can go,” Mrs. Yan said, “Speaking of which, at least you still have a conscious. Your older brother is so indifferent. There’ll come a day where he’ll regret it.”

Yan Yaoxuan: “Then if brother inquire about it, I’ll tell him you asked me to go.”

Mrs. Yan turned her head and gave him a questioning look. Yan Yaoxuan lowered his head and said: “Every time I come into contact with Xiao Jin, brother gets upset and scolds me.”

Mrs. Yan frowned when she heard this: “This Yan Qiuchi…”

Yan Yaoxuan got the approval of Mrs. Yan and immediately drove his sports car to the set. He stayed on set for just a day. Shen Jintai had many scenes that day and didn’t pay him any heed, but he still watched the filming with relish, like a child. During lunch, he bought the entire crew their meals.

It was no secret as everyone knew he was President’s Yan younger brother, the second son of the Yan’s family. Bai Qingquan looked at him secretly as makeup was being applied to him. Yan Yaoxuan was a handsome little fresh meat. He was tall, slender, and white. It’s not bad either that he was the younger brother of President Yan.

While President Yan looked more serious, his younger brother looked more amiable. He always smiles when he sees anyone, but his eyes always remained focus on Shen Jintai. It was obvious that he was obsessed with him.

Thinking about Shen Jintai, Bai Qingquan couldn’t help but feel pain in his heart. He doubted whether he made the correct choice. Maybe he should have chosen the role Li Xu instead as it seems more sensational. Especially in the first few episodes when the male and female lead were still in the stage of growth. Li Xu as the beautiful and scheming little eunuch was the main attraction for these episodes. Bai Qingquan felt that once the show started airing, all the heat would be sucked away by Shen Jintai.

When he first read the script, Li Xu’s character in his mind should be beautiful and romantic. If Liu Hui had come to play it, it would have aligned more with his expectations. Unexpectedly Shen Jintai got the part and changed Li Xu’s characteristic. He didn’t have the prettiest appearance, but made the character more fierce, morose, and seductive. The seductive aura was wrapped in calculated ambitions and ferocious lust that was restrained and scorching.

She Jintai was in the middle of filming. It was the scene where he was flogged by the Empress. As the scene wrapped up, the work crew help Shen Jintai changed into a robe. The robe was tattered and stained with blood. Shen Jintai’s long hair was scattered, and the makeup artist was spraying water on his face. As the water wetted his clothes and body, it gave him a pitiful yet sensual appearance.

The main reason why Shen Jintai looked this good was because of his body, mainly his ass. While other male stars may have a similar ass and can make it look tempting, on them it would feel tacky. With Shen Jintai’s tall and slender figure combined with his cold sex appeal, it didn’t give off any feminine vibe at all. It was truly a superb male’s ass.

For today’s scene, Bai Qingquan, despite being the male lead, was just a background character. This was currently the home court of Shen Jintai and Zheng Siqi.

After finishing the makeup, Bai Qingquan returned to his position.

Shen Jintai pulled down his robe again, wiped a handful of blood on his shoulders, and went to the director’s side. Shen Jintai had been like this for the past few days. He usually jokes and mingles with the people around him, but once filming starts, he becomes extremely firm and serious.

In this way, he exuded such a weird aura that people can’t help but anticipates his performance.

Bai Qingquan licked his lips as his Adam’s apple bobbed while he stared at Shen Jintai. In the past few days, Shen Jintai’s ass have aroused tons of discussion. It made him even more furious that his poster was not as sophisticated as Shen Jintai’s! His ass was also good, but more so it was his legs that were especially beautiful! Long and white, it was well worth it to make it to the hot search of “Bai Qingquan’s legs”.

But Bai Qingquan had no intention of dwelling on these issues. In the past two days his whole mind was focused on Shen Jintai’s acting skills. He had been severely beaten in every scene. It wasn’t about Shen Jintai’s ass that were tightly wrapped around in his robes, but it was his expressiveness.

He looked back at the performance that night. Both Guo Rui and Shen Jintai did an amazing job. After watching the scene, he felt like dying. Especially the scene between Shen Jintai and Zheng Siqi. Every single moment was absolutely stunning. Last night shot was the lovemaking scene between Li Xu and Zhou Ying. It was one of the few heartfelt scenes between the two characters. Even he felt sympathetic when he watched it.

Zheng Siqi, the little fresh meat, was so exquisite, sentimental, and handsome. Shen Jintai, this chicken*, doesn’t know how lucky he was.

*Chicken [sao ji] (骚鸡) = slang referring to people who speak very much on the internet or are yin and yang weird. I think it might be referring to the latter part. I’m not sure what yin and yang weird means.

He could only fall in love with girls right now.

Ugh.

He wasn’t sure if it was because he cares too much but every time it was Shen Jintai’s scenes, he would pay great attention to them. The more he pays the attention the more he feels that Shen Jintai’s acting skills were solid. Occasionally he would feel: “Wow, this detail was handled too well.” It became a vicious cycle.

“This little prickly worm is really good at making scenes of hooking up with boys!”

The scene of the flogging today was extremely emotional, with a climax in the front and constant agitation in the back. Bai Qingquan wasn’t sure how Shen Jintai would perform. He was both anxious and scared looking forward to it.

The one who likes Shen Jintai the most was Song Wei, who plays Empress Xiao. Today was the scene between her and Shen Jintai. The addicted to acting veteran actress had been around for a long time and today was about to show her hand.

For filming, it’s about being able to shoot with people who can capture the essence of the scene. The flogging scene between Empress Xiao and Li Xu was very good because the two of them had acted heartily.

The entertainment industry should have this kind of younger generation leading the way. Young actors these days acted like ghosts. Bai Qingqun, who was only slightly qualified, was considered to be an emperor. It’s not that Bai Qingquan deserved his golden bell*, it’s because the other actors are just too garbage*.

*Reminder: Golden bell [shidi] (视帝) = honorary name for male artists who won awards such as best actor or most outstanding actor in a TV series.
*Too good [tai cai] (太菜) = it’s referring to being too rubbish/stupid/bad at something. The direct translation would be “because other actors are too good” but it has the opposite meaning.

Guo Rui: “Come on. We’re ready to start shooting. Three, two, one, action!”

Li Xu got up from the ground. Seeing his miserable state, prince Zhou Ying, who was standing next to Empress Xiao, suddenly stood up.

“Put him in a silk bag and throw him into the ditch.” Empress Xiao’s voice was majestic: “With you as an example who else will dare defile the harem!”

“Mother…” Zhou Ying said anxiously.

Empress Xiao glanced at him gloomily: “As a prince, you are not as clearheaded as your second brother. He has been with you for only a few days but had served your second brother for years. Now that he has committed such a crime, do you not suspect anything from your second brother? He is also the son of an emperor.”

Zhou Ying looked at Zhou Jing, whose expression remained serious and silent.

The eunuchs put Li Xu into a silk bag and carried him out of the East Palace. Li Xu’s hair was messy. He was dripping with blood as they carried him upside down. His eyes were half open as he glanced at Zhou Jing. A smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

Despite many people around on set, the scene was quiet. There were only the slight noises coming from the machinery. Bai Qingquan’s eyes met Shen Jintai’s, which seemed to have pulled him into the scene. His throat moved and his eyes were red as he turned to look elsewhere.

Shen Jintai’s scenes today were miserable, but he was dedicated. The ditch for the scene had been sprayed with water causing it to be mucky and muddy. As he was thrown in, dirty water splashed in his face. After filming this scene, the crew pulled him up and asked him to rinse out his mouth, but Shen Jintai refused.

“No, I don’t want to break the emotions.” He said to the director.

Shen Jintai remained in the ditch the entire time as the crew prepared for the next shot. He was a little bit crazy when it comes to acting. The hardships he suffered was for the creation of art. He didn’t feel bitter at all but rather excited.

Li Xu was heavily injured when he was thrown in the ditch. He was exposed to the rain all night as he lied in the dirty water. This kind of direct physical feeling is far easier to enter the scene than any psychological empathy.

Zhou Ying personally jumped into the ditch and fished him out.

At this point in the drama, Li Xu was heavily injured and had few lines. However, Shen Jintai felt that this was actually an important milestone in his relationship with the prince Zhou Ying.

Li Xu took the initiative to seduce the crown prince to repay a favor to the second prince. He had a hurtful heart for the crown prince and had no real feelings for him. He wasn’t afraid of death and was willing to die for his cause. Yet, in the process of dying, his views changed. On the verge of his demise, death came wrapped in the cold rain of the night. He was determined to die yet he now was faced with fear. The warm heat from Zhou Ying’s embraced calmed his heart.

He won the bet, but also lost the bet. He won this game and lost his entire life.

The candlelight was swaying. Only he and the crown prince were there in the middle of the night.

Zhou Ying: “I will only ask you one question. Did you intentionally approach me? Was it all because of second brother’s instigation as mother said?”

Li Xu raised his head in a daze. His lips trembled as tears fell. He called out: “A’Ying*…”

*A (阿) = when put in front of a name, it’s way to call someone’s name in an intimate manner.

Zhou Ying had already shed tears first. He hugged him and said: “I will never doubt you again.”

Li Xu shouldn’t have cried in this scene, but when Shen Jintai was hugged by Zheng Siqi, he couldn’t help but burst into tears.

“Cut!” Guo Rui stood up and said: “Jintai, collect your tears.”

This was Shen Jintai’s seventh NG in the past few days.

Zheng Siqi let go of him and was quite surprised. He wiped the tears from his face and stared at Shen Jintai. The two of them gazed at each other. Shen Jintai smiled, but his tears fell even more fiercely.

“Sorry. Give me a minute.” He raised his hand, then lowered his head to cover his eyes. He cried inexplicably in this scene.

Even Bai Qingquan, who was watching, was shocked.

No one thought that Shen Jintai’s acting skills were bad or ridiculous. Everyone knew that he got too caught up in the act as he entered the scene.

Guo Rui walked over and said: “Calm down. We’ll shoot it again.”

Shen Jintai felt a little embarrassed. He wiped his eyes, smiled and said: “I just thought of this line… Ah. He couldn’t remember anything. Only one thought came to his mind, A Ying.”

Li Xu’s life truly was pitiful and hateful.

Shen Jintai took a long while to calm down. Bai Qingquan looked at him blankly from the side. From his view, Shen Jintai seem depressed and somber. As an actor, he wasn’t sure if the empathetic emotions Shen Jintai was feeling was either through diligence or negligence. Nevertheless, Bai Qingquan was moved.

Although Shen Jintai’s character was poor, he really had to admire his professionalism. He was a person that separated his public from his private life. Bai Qingquan had to admit, Shen Jintai was no longer the Shen Jintai of the past.

He was now a good actor.

After Shen Jintai had calmed down, he felt a little embarrassed. He got up and went to the bathroom. As soon as he closed the bathroom door, he heard a ding dong sound.

Xiao Ai said excitedly: “Dear!”

Shen Jintai turned off the faucet: “Jesus, you scared me again.”

Xiao Ai: “I can’t help it, but I’ve come to give you good news. According to the tests, Bai Yueguang’s favorability for you has risen by eight points!”

Shen Jintai wiped his still red and swollen eyes: “My emotions can’t be interrupted. Please don’t disturb my acting.”

Xiao Ai: “…But you’re about to get the reward for a killer waste soon, and the two waist pockets!”

Shen Jintai couldn’t suppress the joy in his heart, so he asked: “Why do you have such a good impression of me? Is it because of my acting days?”

“Oh,” Xiao Ai whispered: “Harmonious society, harmonious language. What a day. I hate it!*”

*Clarity: I believe Xiao Ai is complaining about his tasks as a system (to basically censored novels and make them “harmonious”).

Shen Jintai: “…You disappear. Really don’t interrupt my finally stable mood.”