Meng Jingwei looked at Tang Wanxing, who was also looking at her.
Their eyes met. Though separated by several meters, Meng Jingwei could feel a strong killing intent emanating from her gaze.
Her brow furrowed sharply. She glanced back at the staff preparing props in the lake, a strange sense of unease washing over her.
Meng Jingwei pretended to be nonchalant, rehearsing her lines while subtly surveying her surroundings, examining every detail. But after half an hour, she found no clues.
"All set! Actors, positions!" Director Li called out. He walked to the monitor and sat down. The cameras from various angles were ready. After the slate was clapped, the scene began.
Xiao Tian, the stunt double, stood at the edge of the flatboat. Dressed in a white flowing gown and holding a long sword, she gazed coldly at Meng Jingwei. "Qi Yuying, you can only blame yourself for your many sins. In your next life, be a good person!"
With that, the long sword in Xiao Tian's left hand slashed directly at Meng Jingwei.
Meng Jingwei wore a red flowing gown over a black long coat, cinched with a belt. Her long hair was tied up high, exuding a heroic and spirited aura like a female general.
She parried with her own long sword, and the clang of metal striking metal rang out. Xiao Tian then withdrew her sword, her toes lightly touching the flatboat. Using the force of the wire, she leaped forward, her sword cleaving down from above.
At this moment, the wire pulled Meng Jingwei backward. She spread her arms, balancing on the tip of one foot on the flatboat, flying backward.
With a loud bang, the flatboat exploded, sending water splashing everywhere as the bamboo pieces scattered.
It was a spectacular scene that electrified the entire set. The directors were almost lost in the performance, and the surrounding extras and actors were stunned.
Suspended in mid-air, Xiao Tian didn't hear the director call "cut." She had to make another horizontal slash from the air. This blow would later be enhanced with special effects, depicting sword energy that would gravely injure Qi Yuying, played by Meng Jingwei. Qi Yuying would then fall, injured, but would use her momentum to land on broken bamboo sections floating on the lake, launching a counterattack and continuing her fight with Ning Lanyan.
However, just as Xiao Tian swung her sword, the wire suspending Meng Jingwei suddenly snapped. Caught off guard, Meng Jingwei plummeted into the water.
At this point, her fall into the water was so convincing that everyone assumed it was part of the planned sequence. They all waited in silence.
"Ugh..."
The lake water was bitingly cold. Meng Jingwei sank into the water, the sudden chill piercing her skin like an icy blade, making every pore ache.
When a person falls vertically into water, they sink a few meters before gradually floating up. But just as Meng Jingwei thought she would surface, someone suddenly grabbed her leg and dragged her down.
She held her breath and looked down, only to see two people in black swimsuits, wearing goggles and carrying oxygen tanks, below her.
Meng Jingwei's heart pounded.
Although she knew Tang Wanxing intended to harm her, she never expected her to have arranged for people to be in the water beforehand!
Outside, heavy snow fell incessantly. The sky was shrouded in a misty haze, making it seem as though dusk was approaching.
A thin layer of ice had formed on the lake's surface, covered by a blanket of white snow. The bottom of the lake was completely obscured.
Meng Jingwei struggled, trying to swim upward, but with two people pulling her down, she couldn't break free. She was like fish on a chopping block, at their mercy.
On the shore, many people were waiting for Meng Jingwei to emerge from the water.
But as they waited and waited, there was no sign of her.
"Where is she?"
"Why hasn't she come up yet?"
"I don't know."
"Could something have happened?"
...
The crowd murmured. Director Li immediately shouted, "Cut!"
He walked out from behind the camera and leaned over the railing at the edge of the shore to look down. The lake rippled, and the exploded bamboo pieces drifted in the water, but there was no sign of Meng Jingwei.