novelraw Chapter 114: Prologue to the “Formation Dance”!
Chapter 114: Prologue to the “Formation Dance”!
Special Introduction.
Jiang Ci looked at those four words, and his heart, which had sunk due to his mother's phone call, was lifted once more.
He was not a clueless newcomer.
At the premiere of a major, star-studded production, for a supporting character to be bestowed with the title of "Special Introduction"...
He understood all too well what that meant.
It meant the production company and Lin Wan were starting to place their bets on him.
It also meant that on the day of the premiere, he would no longer be a dispensable piece of the background.
There would be camera shots and attention, along with media curiosity and scrutiny.
And all of this was fertile ground for harvesting Heartbreak Value.
The higher the audience's curiosity, the more their expectations were built up...Then, when they saw that white-clad General on the silver screen, looking back amidst a sea of ten thousand soldiers before resolutely marching to his death...
The feeling of being shocked, of being pierced, would strike them all the more violently.
...
As the Spring Festival approached, the atmosphere on set also began to feel somewhat restless.
Everyone's hearts were already racing homeward.
Wei Song ultimately made the final decision: shoot the last major scene before the New Year on the 27th day of the twelfth lunar month.
Then the entire crew would go on holiday.
They would reconvene and resume work on the eighth day of the first lunar month of the new year.
This decision elicited a burst of suppressed cheers from the entire crew.
But soon, when the call sheet for the final scene was distributed, that cheer was replaced by a heavy sense of pressure.
The closing battle before the New Year was a solo dance belonging solely to "Yu Ji."
The scene's name: "Prayer for Blessings."
The atmosphere on set was unprecedentedly solemn.
The set had already been constructed—a vast, empty military tent.
Inside the tent, there were no superfluous furnishings. Only the ground was covered by a massive carpet painted with intricate constellations and ancient totems.
Zhao Yingfei stood alone in the center of the carpet.
She had changed into a red dress as vivid as blood, her feet bare, her jet-black hair cascading down, making her face appear even paler.
In her hands, she held several ancient copper coins and a piece of tortoise shell with cracks.
According to Wei Song's requirements,
This scene required Zhao Yingfei to use dance to portray Yu Ji performing an ancient divination ritual to pray for blessings for her lover fighting far away.
And ultimately, to foresee the tragic future—the blood-soaked battlefield, the Chu Songs closing in from all sides.
This was not merely a dance.
This was the first time the character Yu Ji glimpsed the cruelty of fate.
Outside the great tent, Jiang Ci, dressed in Xiang Yu's black everyday clothes, stood quietly.
His task was simple.
As the supporting actor, he only needed to lift the tent flap and walk inside after Zhao Yingfei completed the entire dance sequence, giving her his reaction.
He stood in the shadows, like a true spectator, his gaze passing through the half-open tent flap, quietly watching that solitary, crimson figure inside.
Wei Song sat behind the monitor, holding the walkie-talkie, making the final confirmations.
"Lighting."
"Sound."
"Camera."
All was ready.
Wei Song did not call "Action."
He simply gave a slight nod towards Zhao Yingfei inside the tent.
The filming began silently.
Inside the tent, Zhao Yingfei moved.
She slowly knelt down in the center of the constellation map, closed her eyes, pressed her palms together, and held the tortoise shell and copper coins against her chest.
The initial dance was graceful and beautiful.
Full of a maiden's purest blessings and prayers for her beloved.
Every one of her movements carried a ritualistic piety.
Her arms extended, tracing elegant arcs—pleading to heaven and earth for safety.
Her waist swayed gently, like willow branches trembling in the wind—voicing endless longing.
Jiang Ci watched from outside the tent.
From Zhao Yingfei's dance, he could see no trace of performance.
She *was* Yu Ji.
A woman using her purest soul to pray for blessings for the man in her heart.
As the dance progressed, she began the "divination."
She gently scattered the copper coins in her hand onto the tortoise shell.
A crisp *clink*.
Her dance changed abruptly at this moment.
The previous grace and prayer vanished.
It transformed into a rapid, sharp rhythm, full of struggle and unease.
Her body began to tremble slightly, as if resisting something.
Her dance movements were no longer fluid; they became twisted and painful.
She reached out her hand again and again, trying to grasp something, only to fail each time.
As if in that void before her eyes, she saw an utterly terrifying, unacceptable vision.
Outside the tent, Jiang Ci's entire posture changed.
He was no longer that casual supporting actor.
His body leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed intently on that frantically dancing crimson figure inside the tent.
From Zhao Yingfei's dance, he saw what he most desired.
Ultimate sorrow.
Powerless resistance.
And a destruction already foreordained.
This dance was the prologue to the ultimate finishing move he had designed for the entire film—the Po Zhen Wu!
Behind the monitor, Wei Song and all the staff had long since held their breath.
The cinematography was full of oppressive tension.
In the interplay of light and shadow, Zhao Yingfei's stunningly beautiful face was covered in cold sweat.
Every one of her movements, from the uncontrollable trembling of her fingertips to the violent convulsions of her body, was saturated with the despair of foreseeing tragedy.
She was wrestling with fate.
The dance reached its climax.
Zhao Yingfei suddenly flung up her hand, mustering all her strength to hurl that tortoise shell bearing the ominous omen fiercely onto the ground!
*Crack!*
A crisp shattering sound.
The tortoise shell split as expected.
A hideous crack ran across it, presenting an irredeemable, dire omen.
That frantically dancing crimson figure came to an abrupt halt.
Zhao Yingfei slowly collapsed to sit on the ground.
She did not cry.
Nor did she let out any hysterical screams.
She knelt before the shattered tortoise shell, all color drained from her face.
Her eyes held endless emptiness and despair.
Behind the monitor, Wei Song's body trembled slightly.
He knew it was time now.
He made a gesture to the Assistant Director beside him.
The Assistant Director immediately understood and gave a slight signal to Jiang Ci outside the tent.
It was time for him to enter.
Jiang Ci took a deep breath.
Then, the Xiang Yu he portrayed lifted the flap and entered.
The Hegemon, covered in the dust of travel, looked at his beloved woman, kneeling despondently on the cold carpet, the shattered divination objects before her.
He didn't even have time to remove his armor. He strode forward quickly and grasped her icy body.
"Yu Ji!"
Zhao Yingfei's body shuddered violently at his touch.
She slowly raised her head.
His figure was reflected once more in those empty eyes.
And finally, they brimmed with tears.
She didn't speak, only clutching Xiang Yu's arm with a death grip, her nails almost digging into his flesh.
With all her strength, trembling, she uttered that line soaked in blood.
"I saw..."
Her voice was broken, out of tune.
"Blood..."
"So much blood..."
"CUT!"
Wei Song shot up from his chair.
"It's a wrap! It's a wrap!"
He looked at the image on the monitor—those two figures clinging tightly to each other,
The desperate tear stains on the woman's face, and the shock and heartache on the man's face.
This feeling was absolutely perfect!