King of Hollywood

Chapter 131: Chapter 131 Long Shot

The fading sunlight in the woods at dusk cast a mysterious yellow haze over the entire estate. On the narrow path through the woods, the estate’s present owner, Henry, was walking shoulder to shoulder with his new wife, Margaret, while not far behind followed Margaret’s sister, Helen.

Each of them seemed lost in their own thoughts. Henry’s expression bore a hint of impatience, while Margaret appeared slightly embarrassed and depressed. Helen, trailing behind, seemed rather resentful.

“Can’t you really help him any further?” Margaret sighed as she asked.

“Mary, you must understand, we and he belong to different worlds. We have already helped him, haven’t we?” Henry spoke unhurriedly, “Can we please drop this subject?”

“But it’s precisely because of your ‘help’ that Leonard lost his job!” Helen, coming from behind and catching up, furiously glared at Henry.

“Cut!” Before Hopkins could speak, Adrian called out.

Frowning slightly, he shook his head, walked up to the trio, looked at Hopkins and then at Thompson, and finally crossed his arms and focused his gaze on Kate, “Do you know what’s wrong?”

Kate racked her brains, still looking puzzled, and shook her head. Adrian sighed and shrugged his shoulders, then turned around and walked back, shouting as he went, “Let’s do it again!”

Kate opened her mouth as if to say something, but eventually swallowed her words and just watched Adrian’s retreating figure with a bit of sorrow. There had already been nearly a dozen NGs, yet he never told her what the problem was. Under normal circumstances, she might have had time to adjust and explore, but this was a long take they were shooting—a single shot lasted at least five or six minutes. Constantly having NGs near the end not only delayed progress but also wasted everyone’s energy.

“Don’t worry, take it slowly,” Thompson whispered comfortingly in her ear, “I think Ed wants you to understand the problem yourself, which is better for you.”

“Thank you, Emma,” Kate smiled wryly, took a deep breath, and returned to her starting position.

In fact, these long shots were not part of the original version—Adrian had his reasons for planning them this way. The movie was, in a sense, also a landscape film, which showcased the human landscape of the Victorian Era from one aspect. These elements also occupied a significant weight in the entire film, and Adrian had even invited two experts to the set to guide and prevent any errors in detail; he also hired local costume and prop designers from the United Kingdom.

Yesterday evening, after wrap-up, the estate was bathed in a similar twilight, lending an exceptionally tasteful aura. Such weather was rare in the famously foggy UK, so when a similar scene presented itself the next day, Adrian decided to use a long take to capture this scenery.

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As someone who had frequently handled cameras in a previous life and had now replicated five movies, this was fundamentally challenging. Moreover, even if the shooting wasn’t perfect, it could still be edited into short takes during post-production.

However, given the extended shooting time, Kate’s inadequacies were quickly revealed. Despite having studied the script and discussed it endlessly with Adrian, her experience in films was negligible, and her skills were somewhat immature, hence the frequent NGs.

Faced with this, Adrian unusually refrained from directing every time there was an NG and would only ask: Do you know what the problem is? Regardless of Kate’s answer, he would continue shooting.

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to instruct, but constant explanation by the director would slow Kate’s progress in acting. Although she was relatively bright, she still fell short compared to naturally talented performers.

After shooting twice more, as the sun finally set completely, Adrian announced the end of the workday.

After dinner in the estate’s dining room, the crew began to rest in small groups. Women usually gathered in a small room to chat, while the men, though British and Americans weren’t precisely segregated, still had their own small cliques, and conflicts occasionally arose.

At these moments, Hopkins’s role became apparent. Being British but having lived in the United States for a long time and respected by the crew, he could mediate disputes more conveniently than others.

“Emma, I need to step out for a bit. Can you stay here and be good?” Adrian had barely spent ten minutes in the women’s room before feeling an urge to leave.

It wasn’t easy given that Emma insisted on being by his side, and he certainly couldn’t bring a little girl with him while mingling with the guys. But in the women’s chat room, the beloved little girl was in her element, though he found it rather boring.

“I want to go too.” The little girl sitting in Thompson’s arms suddenly climbed down and dashed over to grab Adrian’s coat.

“Oh, my dear Emma, could you give me some personal time?” Adrian sighed, pinched Emma’s cheek, and looked over at Thompson sitting at the long table.

“Emma, let your Uncle Ed go about his business,” Thompson chuckled as he walked over and lifted the little girl, “Maybe you’d like to hear a story?”

Emma bit her lip as she looked at Thompson and then at Adrian, hesitating before pouting and saying, “Don’t come back too late.”

“I understand, miss,” Adrian replied helplessly as he raised his hands. He glanced at Thompson, who was covering her mouth to stifle a laugh, then turned and strode out.

Upon reaching the living room, the crowd that had gathered had dispersed. Adrian walked straight to the doorway, stretching towards the swaying shadows of the trees in the night outside. Luckily, within the crew, the little guy and Thompson got along well, maybe because they were both named Emma? But perhaps it was also because Thompson was good at dealing with kids.

Adrian couldn’t help but turn his head to look back. Speaking of, Emma Thompson did have a certain charm. If she wasn’t already married and a bit on the older side, maybe… He suddenly raised his eyebrows and rubbed his fingers. Although it had been almost a month, and although he was wearing long gloves at the time, the feeling was still memorable. Adrian suddenly laughed. Greedy, right? Of course, greed is good—well, appropriate greed is good. Desire is the force that drives the development of the world. If a person can’t even face their own desires, how can they claim they will succeed?

After making a round outside, Adrian was about to return when he looked up and chuckled softly. Then he entered the house, went upstairs, and kept walking down the corridor to the very end.

“Is the evening breeze soothing, Kate?” he asked with a smile, looking at the figure on the balcony.

“Of course, at least more so than during the day,” Kate replied as she turned around, lightly touching the hair by her ear.

Adrian’s eyes lit up. Although she had changed out of her costume, some of that classical essence from her role still lingered, giving her a new flavor under the dim corridor lights.

“Still upset or dissatisfied?” Adrian walked up to her and reached out to wrap his arm around her waist.

“A bit, after talking with Emma, I think I understand your intentions,” Kate lifted her hand as if wanting to circle it around his neck, but she let it drop midway instead.

“Emma? Which Emma?” Adrian asked deliberately.

“You know which one!” Kate showed a frustrated expression, and immediately swung her fist to hit him in the chest, but hesitated for a few seconds and then let her hand drop.

Adrian couldn’t help but laugh out loud; his head shaking looked quite punchable, and Kate couldn’t help but raise her hand again. However, before she could swing, he had already pulled her into his embrace and sealed her lips.

After muffling a few sounds, she could only slightly tilt back her body, letting Adrian ravage her mouth.

“What should I say to you, Kate?” Adrian teased, holding her face, “Do you think that without intimate actions between us, they wouldn’t know you are my girlfriend?”

“No, I just…” Kate pouted, waving her hands as she tried to explain.

“Look, Kate, there are countless directors who cast their lovers in their own films,” Adrian grasped her chin and suddenly lowered his voice, “or do you think you should play the leading lady?”

As his words fell, a light sound came from below his ribs, and Adrian immediately grimaced and bent over. Kate, initially a bit smug, shook her hand lightly and huffed, but seconds later, she anxiously helped the bent-over Adrian.

“Are you okay, Ed?!” Kate asked nervously, “I didn’t mean to.”

“I know you didn’t mean to,” Adrian said with a chuckle and suddenly pulled her into his embrace.

Kate was startled at first, then her expression darkened, and Adrian quickly added, “But it still hurts.”

Kate sighed with a pout, “Do you want me to apologize?”

“Of course,” Adrian pinched her waist, “Why don’t we find a room and take our time apologizing, how about that?”

Kate, being held high, couldn’t help but snort with laughter and was about to agree when something caught her gaze. After a few seconds, she sighed and patted Adrian on the shoulder, “Put me down, it’s clear, I’m going to be envied for a long time again.”

“Hm?” Adrian was somewhat baffled but turned his head and immediately understood. From the corridor not far from the balcony, Emma was glaring at him and Kate with wide, indignant, and aggrieved eyes, looking very, very upset. If she hadn’t been held back, she might have already run over. And Thompson, holding her hand, stood awkwardly to the side, shrugging with a wry smile as Adrian’s gaze met hers.

Such a restless little devil. Adrian sighed in his heart and reluctantly put down Kate in his arms. (To be continued. For further details, please visit www.qidian.com. More chapters available. Support the author, support genuine reading!)