NMBJ2 - 17

The film crew had set up camp in a remote village in the western part of Qinghai Province.

Tang Yasun’s team had scouted the location a year in advance and chose this picturesque village, which had minimal infrastructure. There were no hotels in the village, and the nearest county town was a 30-minute drive away. The production team rented a private house for the crew, offering preferential treatment to the female actors. Xitang and another actress stayed in a room in the west courtyard, while most of the crew members slept on a large communal bed. The lights in the equipment room were on all night, and the weather was hot, with a mix of heavy rain and scorching heat. At night, mosquitoes swarmed around, making the working conditions extremely tough.

Accompanying Huang Xitang were her assistant and her manager, Ma Jihong. Ni Kailun was already six or seven months pregnant, and Xitang, being the company’s rising star, had to frequently fly back and forth between Beijing and Shanghai for work. Ni Kailun’s health couldn’t keep up with the travel demands, and she still had some business activities and promotional work in Beijing, so the company sent Ma Jihong to manage her affairs. Xitang didn’t have much interaction with Ma Jihong, who had been managing the company’s top male star. She knew Ma Jihong was a seasoned professional in the industry, and even someone as sharp and shrewd as Ni Kailun respected her.

Ma Jihong took care of the production affairs for her and then flew back to Beijing.

The month-long shoot in Qinghai was the hardest yet most peaceful period of Xitang’s career. The working conditions were harsh, but what stood out most in her memory were the evenings after shooting, when all the crew members gathered in the courtyard to share meals from large pots. There was no internet, so after the exhausting daytime shoots, everyone would sit together and chat. Whether they knew each other well or not, they would come together to talk. One night, the lighting technician, Old Geng, brought out his guitar, and everyone gathered around to sing. One evening, they coaxed Tang Yasun into performing a piece. Director Tang wasn’t shy—he stood on a pile of wheat stalks in the courtyard, bent his waist and furrowed his brows, and sang a high-pitched aria from the Xipi opera: “Today we drink to celebrate, vows unfulfilled, we won’t rest—”

Everyone clapped and laughed heartily. Xitang sat on the steps, laughing so hard that tears streamed down her face.

Day after day, the entire crew lived, ate, and worked together, rapidly building strong camaraderie among the team.

At the beginning, Xitang began to talk more with Qin Guohai. He joined the crew about a week after her, and by then, Xitang had already gotten comfortable with the whole crew. When she saw him again, she wasn’t as nervous as before. Xitang knew better than anyone that no matter how glamorous a star might seem on screen, in real life, they were just ordinary people. But Qin Guohai’s ethereal face still stirred the memories and dreams of her youth.

In the very serious film set managed by Tang Yasun, as a professional actor, Xitang treated Qin Guohai as a fellow collaborator. But after shooting, when facing him, she still felt as if it were a dream.

They often wrapped up filming together. After dinner, Xitang would hold the young actress playing her daughter in the film, and the two would look at the stars in the sky.

The child fell asleep in her arms.

Qin Guohai sat on a bamboo chair beside her, smiling and saying, “I didn’t expect you, a young girl, to be so tough.”

Xitang felt a bit shy. “I worked as an extra in Hengdian for several years, and being an extra is even tougher.”

Qin Guohai was slightly surprised, but didn’t show it. “I lived in Hengdian for a few years, and being an extra is really not easy.”

“You haven’t acted in ancient costumes for the past few years.”

“Not much in the past year or two.”

Sometimes, Qin Guohai would hold the child, and Xitang would say, “You’re quite good with kids.”

“I’ve always wanted a daughter.”

“How old is your child?”

“Six years old, a boy, very naughty.”

There was clear pride in his eyes as he spoke of his son.

Such casual chats continued as crew members came and went. Sometimes, Director Tang would come by and sit for a while, chatting with Qin Guohai while sharing a smoke of locally rolled dry tobacco.

On the night that the female lead, Ding Fangfei, wrapped up her scenes in Qinghai, Xitang had finished shooting quite late. After returning to the crew’s house, she took a shower. As she was drying her hair, she heard the sound of heavy rain outside.

The summer storm in the village poured down like a torrent, as if thousands of horses were rushing forward. Xitang, with her hair loose, opened the door curtain and saw Qin Guohai sitting in his usual bamboo chair under the eaves, holding a can of beer, quietly watching the downpour.

Xitang walked over and sat on the doorstep, hugging her knees. For some reason, neither of them spoke.

Today, they had shared a kiss on camera. His arms had tightly embraced her, his embrace warm and strong, with a hint of hidden affection. Waves of shivers had surged in her heart... that was the embrace of Ding Fangfei and her husband... Xitang couldn’t recall that feeling.

Only the heavy rain poured in the courtyard.

Suddenly, Qin Guohai spoke. “Xitang, has anyone ever told you that you’re still beautiful even when the camera’s off?”

Xitang smiled faintly, but her tone remained casual. “Teacher Qin, you flatter me.”

Amid the sound of the rain, Qin Guohai extinguished his cigarette and reached out to gently rest his hand on her shoulder.

Xitang felt the damp mist from his lips mixed with the scent of tobacco.

The next day, the film crew of Spring Delay finished shooting its scenes in Qinghai.

Tang Yasun had strict requirements for the camera work. Even though all the principal cast and crew had planned enough time, the shoot still ended two days later than scheduled. The crew’s work, especially for the lead actors, was packed afterward. To get back to the city as quickly as possible, some of the earlier staff and equipment had left two days before, while the remaining crew began their journey back around 5 PM. Halfway through, the locals blocked the road at a junction. The driver got out to ask, and it turned out that due to a heavy storm the previous day, the road ahead had collapsed. After discussing with the crew, the local drivers agreed to take an alternate route, which would take about two extra hours but would lead them back to Xining city.

As soon as Xitang got in the car, she fell asleep, her travel pillow around her neck. She collapsed into the seat and slept fitfully. In her drowsy state, she felt the car stop for a while before starting up again. She didn’t know how long she had slept, but when she opened her eyes, all she could see outside was pitch-black night, so she closed her eyes and fell asleep again.

In the chaos, there was suddenly a loud crash.

Before she could react, her body was thrown against the window, and then the seatbelt tightened around her. Her assistant, A Kuan, collapsed on top of her, and a piercing scream erupted.

The car lights flashed wildly.

Soon, someone opened the door and shouted her name. Xitang quickly responded, and a man’s arm reached in, pulling her hand.

A flashlight waved over the muddy road, as the car ahead had driven into a mud pit and got stuck. The rainy, slippery roads caused the car behind to crash into it.

Xitang was dragged out through the gap in the car door, sliding and scrambling in the mud.

The production coordinator, holding a flashlight, rushed around in the darkness, calling out everyone’s name. Fortunately, all the crew members were safe, but the car was temporarily immobile. Several injured colleagues and the female crew members helped each other and walked for more than an hour along the mountain road, finally reaching a small village by dawn.

The men stayed behind, guarding the equipment and footage. The vehicle with the machines and materials was stuck in the mud, and everyone was working hard to salvage it. Even Qin Guohai hadn’t returned.

A local herder offered them a room and brought over hot noodles.

Xitang wiped the mud off her body with a towel and changed into a local robe. She helped her colleagues tidy up the disorganized clothes and props. Around 10 AM, she heard someone calling her name outside.

Xitang went out and saw several new vehicles parked outside. Someone was distributing boxed meals and bottled water to the crew members. Her male colleagues had already started returning, and among the crowd, she saw a young man in a white suit with an elegant demeanor. A few other men followed behind him. The man looked at her and said, “Xitang, are you alright?”

Xitang shook her head.

Hu Shaolei said, “I’m glad you’re okay. You’ve worked hard.”

At that moment, Director Tang entered, and Hu Shaolei smiled at her, then turned and walked out with him.

Xitang returned to the house. By then, the news had spread. The crew had lost contact with the outside world the night before due to the situation being unclear. Because of the uncertainty, the agency had suppressed the news. The problem arose when the family of the young actress playing Xitang’s daughter in the film couldn’t get in touch with her or her mother, who was accompanying the crew. The child’s father knew that the crew was supposed to head back to the city, but he couldn’t reach them from the night until the following morning. With the continuous reports of heavy rain and mudslides, he got anxious and contacted the media. Once the news broke, the entire internet exploded.

A female colleague was quietly gossiping about Hu Shaolei. Unexpectedly, this matter had caught the attention of the young master of Huaying, who, it was said, arrived in the capital city of Qinghai province early the previous morning and drove straight through the night. Once Hu Shaolei arrived, the rescue operation immediately began. The local military brought in trucks to lift the vehicles stuck in the mud with cranes.

As soon as the entire team returned to Xining, Assistant A Kuan’s phone never stopped ringing. The company’s publicity department had been anxious for a long time. Spring Late had already become a hot topic in the entertainment sector, and the sudden incident last night had everyone eagerly waiting for updates. Several actors had already posted on Weibo. As the lead actress, Xitang couldn’t fall behind. In the afternoon around three o’clock, following Director Tang Yasun, Xitang’s social media account posted photos related to the accident: one showing the crew members guarding the vehicles stuck in the mud, another of a small village with mist at dawn on the mountain road, and one in black and white where Xitang, wearing a simple cloth robe, kneels on the ground organizing things, smiling brightly at the camera like spring sunshine.

The post went viral, and within an hour, it had over 100,000 shares.

The dramatic nature of the accident, the thrilling process, and its eventual safe conclusion led to the Spring Late crew, usually low-key and mysterious, becoming a hot topic online even before the film was released.