The Stand-in Side Character Only Wants to Make Money – CH13

Chapter 13 – Opening New Paths for Magazines!

The last sliver of light disappeared over the sea, and the moist sea breeze blew in. The female lead, watching the waves crash, started talking about how this sea connected to some ocean, and how the tides came in the morning and evening.

Knowing that the person beside her couldn’t respond, she turned her head and said, “It’s getting cold, we should…”

On that beach, there was no one left to answer her.

Not far away, the wind stirred the closed eyes of the person sitting on a bench by the shore, as if he had fallen asleep while reading, just like any other ordinary day in the past.

“……”

All that remained in the air was the sound of the waves crashing.

A deep, indescribable silence spread from the shore, and though the beach was crowded with people, not a single sound was made.

“Cut!”

The director’s voice broke the silence.

He reviewed the footage on the cameras and then said, “That’s a wrap!”

The tension around the small film crew instantly dissipated, and the atmosphere lightened.

The recently “deceased” person came back to life, immediately checking on the female lead, who had been emotionally overwhelmed and was crying.

With the shoot wrapped up, the onlookers could finally talk. Among the noisy crowd, Li Qingzhou, holding the flowers, noticed the director, who had been commanding the entire scene with authority, sneaking over.

After confirming the recipient’s name, Li handed over the bouquet.

The director thanked him, took the flowers, and then shouted, “A-Huai!”

Li Qingzhou didn’t know who A-Huai was, but he saw the man sitting on the beach, who had been comforting the female lead, lift his head and look in their direction.

“……”

Li, who had been about to leave after delivering the flowers, suddenly hesitated. He knew he could go, but for some reason, he stayed put.

Responding to the director’s call, Chen Bai handed the emotionally recovered female lead to her assistant and stood up.

The filming area was still lit, but it grew darker towards the edges, making everything blurry from a distance.

It wasn’t until Chen Bai got closer that he saw what the director was holding.

It was a bouquet of sunflowers, still blooming brightly in the dark. The director handed it to him.

Chen Bai’s eyes opened slightly as he accepted the flowers, the vibrant bouquet filling his arms with its fragrance.

The middle-aged director, still fond of little surprises, wasn’t one for sentimental speeches. He simply wished Chen Bai a bright future and, after a moment, added a wish for him to make lots of money.

Chen Bai smiled. His grin widened at the mention of wealth, thanking the director for his kind words.

The crew was already calling for them by the beach, so he turned and walked towards the shore, following the director.

As he walked halfway, it seemed he sensed something and turned around.

His gaze met that of a tall guy in a floral shop apron standing in the crowd. The guy slightly turned his body and waved, smiling, “Thank you for the flowers! They’re beautiful!”

The sea breeze lifted the strands of hair, and the shirt of the slender figure was also blown up, against the backdrop of the gradually darkening crimson clouds. The smile on his face was dazzling.

It was even more radiant than the blooming sunflowers he held in his arms.

—— Li Qingzhou watched the person leave. After the figure had walked a short distance, he also planned to return but didn’t expect the other party to turn back.

A light voice carried by the sea breeze reached his ears. Meeting those light gray pupils, he slowly raised his hand and waved back, “…No need to thank me.”

The gesture had an indescribable sense of delay, completely different from the rapid keystrokes he was used to.

This time, the person holding the flowers had truly left.

With the filming done, the crew began to pack up and leave, and the onlookers gradually dispersed.

Li Qingzhou got back into the shop’s car and glanced again in the direction of the crew, only to realize something.

That voice he had heard just now sounded somewhat familiar.

It felt like he had been hearing it every day recently.

With no one left on the beach, the sea breeze continued to blow.

Li Qingzhou returned to the flower shop. He parked the car in its usual spot, entered the store, and removed his apron. Originally intending to leave directly, he stopped and asked the person behind the counter, “Sis, do you know A-Huai?”

Sister Li looked up, “Huh?”

“Nothing,” Li Qingzhou replied, “I’m off to live stream.”

——

With an early wrap-up, Chen Bai and the crew went out for a meal together. He had finished work, but the others had to rest early for tomorrow’s work, so after dinner, they all returned to the hotel.

He didn’t go back to the hotel but headed straight for the nearby internet café he had found before coming.

Spending money on internet access was painful, but for the grand prize, he had to splurge.

Splurge meant paying several dozen yuan for internet fees.

Once in the game, he logged onto WeChat and sent a message to Qingzhou, saying he was ready.

The response from the other side was quick.

They made a voice call via WeChat. The call could keep going even when outside the game lobby, allowing for continuous communication, which was better than in-game voice chat.

It was still early, and Qingzhou wasn’t streaming yet; he was still preparing. Chen Bai wasn’t in a hurry either and took the chance to send photos of the flowers he had shot today to his good neighbor.

While sending, he suddenly heard a voice in his headphones; he heard Qingzhou ask, “Are you working in City B?”

Working in City B?

Chen Bai thought for a moment and replied, “No, I work in City A.”

Although he was in City B, it was just for location scouting, and he would leave tomorrow. All other work was in City A, so he should accurately say he worked in City A.

He asked, “What’s up?”

The person on the other end said it was nothing, only mentioning, “I met someone today whose voice sounded just like yours.”

It sounded oddly disappointed. Chen Bai didn’t pry further, just smiled and said, “Really?”

The other side began their livestream, and any talk of private matters ended there.

Having seen the announcement of a day’s break from streaming, the regulars in Chen Erbai’s channel initially thought it would be a day without Chen Erbai. Yet unexpectedly, they heard a familiar voice in Qingzhou’s stream.

Some people weren’t there, but his presence was everywhere.

Moreover, the audience discovered that the two had somehow added each other on WeChat and were calling each other more smoothly than anyone else.

A wonderful day ended with gaming until dawn.

By the time Chen Bai returned to the hotel from the internet café, it was already late at night.

After a quick shower, he glanced at his phone before bed.

There were new messages. His good neighbor replied to him, and there was a message from his agent.

At this hour, his neighbor should be asleep, so he didn’t disturb him and opened his agent’s message.

The agent had been busy with other clients lately. The work would wrap up in a couple of days, and he wanted to meet Chen Bai.

The message had come five minutes ago.

It seemed he was really busy.

After briefly considering the arrangements for the next two days, Chen Bai replied affirmatively and quickly closed his eyes after putting down the phone.

The next day, he still woke up early. He boarded the bus, drifting back into a peaceful sleep.

After a few hours on the road, when he got off the bus, Chen Bai, who had originally been half-asleep, was now wide awake, brimming with energy, even more so than all the others heading to work.

With his spirits high and business booming, he connected to three lock-picking jobs after returning and sat again in the small lock shop, continuing to read “An Actor Prepares,” unable to suppress a smile.

In the afternoon, he returned home on time to cook dinner.

Unfortunately, his good neighbor had work again in the afternoon and evening, so no one was there to eat with him.

That night, he live-streamed as usual. The next morning, he left earlier than usual to meet with his agent, who was great at generating gold coins.

They agreed to meet at a café. When he arrived, the other person wasn’t there yet, so he had to spend a fortune on a cup of coffee and sat down for the time being.

While waiting, the agent urgently messaged him, saying there was a sudden situation and would be about twenty minutes late.

Twenty minutes was enough to look at a music sheet. Chen Bai kept a good mindset, leaning on his hand to side, using the time to check the piano sheet on his phone.

When the agent arrived, he had just finished his cup of coffee.

The agent was named Gao Qian, someone who looked vibrant and full of energy. Upon entering the café, she saw him and walked over before the waiter could approach, sitting down and quickly gulping down a glass of water.

She didn’t check the menu, put down her water cup, and ordered a black coffee casually. After the waiter left, she inquired about the situation on set.

Without any small talk.

Chen Bai imitated the supporting actor and called her “Sister Qian,” gave a brief answer, and then summarized it simply: “It’s going well.”

Gao Qian smiled, “Director Zhang told me that if there’s a suitable script next time, he would like to find you.”

There might be a hint of politeness in that, but for a renowned director to say something like that, it should mean more than just okay.

Chen Bai smiled and replied, “As long as the money’s good, I’m in.”

Gao Qian scrutinized him for a moment and said, “You seem to have changed quite a bit.”

Changed quite a bit, not just in terms of impression, but also in his tone and demeanor.

Chen Bai replaced his response with a smile.

With people changing, it was inevitable that things would be quite different.

Gao Qian took a sip of the black coffee the waiter had brought and asked, “What suddenly made you want to get back into acting?”

Chen Bai replied succinctly, “Making money.”

Gao Qian’s eyes instantly lit up.

The two of them successfully reached a consensus on their shared goal.

With aligned objectives, it made things easier. Gao Qian immediately pulled out a magazine from her bag and handed it to him, saying, “The sudden event I mentioned earlier is about this.”

She pointed to a figure in the magazine and asked, “Are you interested in shooting this?”

Taking the magazine, Chen Bai tousled his hair and looked down.