DCFRP Chapter 81

TL: Hua

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Before Qi Xiaoyu could think clearly, his mobile phone on the coffee table rang.

He took a few deep breaths and calmed down before walking over to pick up the phone.

It was Wang Mingge who called about the movie.

The movie has been confirmed to be filmed, and it has the same name as Chu He’s novel, “Four-Dimensional Space.”

It has now entered the preparation stage.

Wang Mingge and Chu He unanimously wanted to let Qi Xiaoyu be the lead actor. Qi Xiaoyu took into account the script, the team, and the subsequent work and decided to accept it.

This was his first movie as the male lead since he joined the industry, and he participated in the whole process and invested a lot of resources in the name of Star Entertainment. He wasn’t just an actor but a partner, so he attached great importance to it.

Wang Mingge and Chu He selected actors together, while Qi Xiaoyu was responsible for arranging the shooting location and contacting the special effects team.

Science fiction films cannot be filmed at the film and television base next to S city. Qi Xiaoyu has filmed at that base twice and is already very familiar with it. The street architecture and scenery are more suitable for making historical or period films, which cannot meet the needs of science fiction films.

Li Kun had looked for quite a few places to show the three of them, including idle playgrounds, large industrial parks, and even places dedicated to extreme sports.

But the three of them weren’t very satisfied with it.

When it comes to sci-fi, everyone has their own unique imagination in their mind. The places found by Li Kun are too characteristic, which limits everyone’s imagination.

In the end, they found a large abandoned factory in the suburbs of S City.

Qi Xiaoyu, Wang Mingge, and Chu He looked at the pictures of the factory together, and the three of them were quite satisfied this time.

This factory is large and has good basic configuration. The three of them felt that if it was transformed into a shooting base on this basis, it should be quite in line with the feeling in the novel.

But of course, this matter cannot be decided based on pictures alone. Wang Mingge called to ask Qi Xiaoyu if he wanted to visit the site in person.

Qi Xiaoyu agreed and decided to take advantage of today’s free time to go over to take a look. Another important reason was that his heart was a little chaotic and he wanted to go out for a walk to relax and rationalize his thoughts.

The factory is not far from S City and can be reached in about two hours by car.

He brought a driver and two bodyguards with him. Li Kun and Yu Xiaosheng were both in the company. Since it was kind of late, he didn’t call them.

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Two hours later, when it was about to dusk, they arrived at their destination.

On the flat and wide horizon, a large area of houses covered with vines stood quietly in the twilight.

This factory should have been abandoned for a long time, with withered trees and barren vines all over the outside. The door was covered with sand and gravel, the iron door was rusted, the red bricks and stones had lost color, the windows were broken with missing pieces, and the cool autumn wind wandered freely between the broken windows.

Qi Xiaoyu took a few photos of the outside before the sun went down and sent them to the small group chat with him, Wang Mingge, and Chu He.

Someone immediately replied, “The place looks big, and the effect should be good after some renovation.”

While Qi Xiaoyu was sending photos, he walked into the factory. It was even more desolate, with weeds taller than people and fallen bricks everywhere, like a wild battlefield that no one had cleaned up.

However, the basic structure of the building was very good. Rows of columns were neatly arranged at fixed intervals. From a distance, it looked like a team of soldiers standing there. The setting sun sprinkled on the columns, and beams of light and shadow were arranged in mottled patterns.

Qi Xiaoyu took some more photos and sent them to the group.

Wang Mingge immediately commented, “The structure of this place is very good. We can produce photos with just a little light and shadow.”

Qi Xiaoyu then went up to the second floor to take a look and took some photos of the internal structure in the last light of dusk.

In the group, Wang Mingge and Chu He had already discussed how to renovate and which rooms could be transformed into which scenes.

As Qi Xiaoyu was doing these things, Xun Qian’s face flashed through his mind, and he hesitated and wavered a bit.

Subconsciously, he walked around the factory until it was completely dark.

Qi Xiaoyu then realized that it was so late.

He was just thinking about his own things and didn’t realize that several hours had passed.

Especially in a factory like this, it was a bit scary when it got dark.

There were no lights in the factory, and it was pitch black far and near. Only the flashlight held by the bodyguard shone a small patch of light ahead.

Qi Xiaoyu took a deep breath. Although there was a flashlight and people nearby, this kind of darkness that he couldn’t see the bottom of still made him very uncomfortable.

He frowned, drove away the gloomy childhood memories that were bubbling up in his mind, turned around, and said to a bodyguard who had been following him closely, “Let’s go back.”

At this moment, another bodyguard came over, put his phone back in his pocket, and said respectfully, “Mr. Qi, wait a minute; there’s something going on outside, you might have to go back later.”

The two bodyguards that Xun Qian arranged for him had very good professional qualities and work ethics.

Both of them were over 1.9 meters tall, with muscular bodies, and looked strong and powerful. Zhang Han said that both of them had won championships in fighting and Sanda. With them around, no one could get close to Qi Xiaoyu.

These two men follow Qi Xiaoyu around in silence; never once did they shoot their mouths off recklessly.

Today was the first time this happened, which meant something serious was going on outside.

Qi Xiaoyu looked up at the bodyguard in front of him and asked directly, “What’s going on outside? What happened?”

The bodyguard remained silent, showing a hesitant expression as if he didn’t want to explain to Qi Xiaoyu. He just repeated what he said previously: “Just wait here; in about an hour, the third master will come over to pick you up and take you back.”

Is it related to Xun Qian?

Qi Xiaoyu’s mind was spinning fast.

He had been thinking about Xun Qian, and now he almost immediately thought of what Zhang Han said to him this afternoon.

Zhang Han had asked him to bring bodyguards with him at all times and paid attention to safety; he also said, “Although the two brothers Xu Xiujie and Xu Xiucheng have been prosecuted in court, they have not been sentenced to prison. I don’t know where they have been hiding these days.”

Qi Xiaoyu was thinking about this point when his mobile phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number.

His mobile phone battery was low, and he didn’t want to answer unknown calls, so he pressed the mute button directly.

But this number was very persistent and called several times in a row.

When the third call came, Qi Xiaoyu picked up the phone.

After picking it up, he immediately heard who was on the other side—Mao Chi.

Mao Chi’s words were very straightforward and concise: “Xu Xiucheng and Xu Xiujie couldn’t find a chance to attack Xun Qian, so they are going to come after you, be careful.”

Qi Xiaoyu didn’t answer. He had pretty much guessed this would happen.

After Mao Chi finished speaking, he sneered, “I lost to Xun Qian again.”

Qi Xiaoyu still didn’t answer.

Mao Chi didn’t seem to care whether Qi Xiaoyu responded or not and continued talking, “What about you? Do you still want to get involved with Xun Qian? Aren’t you afraid that the plot will backfire?”

Qi Xiaoyu tightened his phone slightly. At the beginning, it was Mao Chi’s appearance that raised this question, and it also caught him off guard, but now, facing the same question again, his heart was much calmer. After a day of agonizing over this, he hadn’t come to any conclusions, but now he smiled faintly and said, “If it backfires, I’m ready to face it.”

If it were to happen again, he thought he would be by Xun Qian’s side.

Mao Chi didn’t seem to expect Qi Xiaoyu to answer like this, and chuckled, “Good, very good. I really didn’t expect that the plot would be so different after doing it again. Very good, very good.”

Mao Chi seemed to be stimulated, and after saying “very good” several times in a row, he hung up the phone by himself.

Qi Xiaoyu also didn’t have anything to say to Mao Chi. His mobile phone was low on battery and had already sounded a warning tone of below 20%.

After hanging up the phone, he was lost in thought. He already knew what happened outside, but he didn’t worry about his safety. After all, these two bodyguards with a monthly salary of nearly six figures could give him a great sense of security.

The only dissatisfaction was that it was too dark here.

The darkness surrounded him as tightly and densely as ink.

Although there was a flashlight, the light was like a drop of water in the sea compared to the endless darkness. The difference was too big.

Fortunately, the bodyguard just said that Xun Qian would come in an hour, and it would pass if he endured it.

He also found a chair for him.

He sat for a while, not daring to play with his cell phone as it was running out of battery. He was afraid that Xun Qian would not be able to contact him.

The darkness made him uncomfortable again, and his palms began to sweat involuntarily.

After the stalemate, his cell phone rang, and this time it was Xun Qian calling him.

“Hello,” Qi Xiaoyu immediately answered the phone, and Xun Qian’s voice soon came from the other side, “Are you in the factory in the northwest suburbs?”

“Yes, I was inspecting the filming location.”

Qi Xiaoyu closed his eyes and focused all his attention on Xun Qian’s voice on the other end of the phone.

Although Xun Qian’s voice was a little anxious, it was still the same as before, low and hoarse, giving him a sense of stability.

Xun Qian asked casually, as if chatting with a friend, “How is the place? Are you satisfied?”

Qi Xiaoyu closed his eyes and replied, “Not bad. It’s well built.”

He thought that since Xun Qian didn’t want him to know what happened outside, he would cooperate and pretend that he knew nothing.

After a while, the person on the other end of the phone asked again, “Is there no light there at night?”

Qi Xiaoyu answered truthfully, “Yeah, it’s quite dark.”

A rustling voice came through the receiver, “Are you scared?”

“Hm?”

Xun Qian seemed to be smiling, and said slowly, word by word, “It’s very dark, aren’t you afraid?”

“……” Qi Xiaoyu didn’t want to answer this question.

Although he was really scared inside.

He was afraid of the dark. Last time at Kang Qitao’s birthday party, he believed Xun Qian had noticed it, but despite this, he didn’t want to bring it up on the table; after all, such a thing sounded a bit embarrassing.

Xun Qian seemed to smile again. “Open WeChat; I’ll send you a video.”

“Okay,” Qi Xiaoyu took the phone from his ear, clicked on WeChat, and a video popped up immediately.
It was filmed in the dining room of the Xun family villa.

In front of the kitchen cabinet, White-browed Hero stood up straight, and its front legs rested on the edge of the cabinet.

When the volume was turned on, he could hear White-browed Hero making an anxious howl in the video.

Qi Xiaoyu asked, “What is it doing?”

“Looking for food.”

“The snacks were all hidden away, but there was a cake on top of the cabinet, so it could smell the fragrance.”

“This dog is really gluttonous. Didn’t the doctor say that we have to be extra careful about food after the operation?”

“Yes, and he also said that it is overweight and needs to lose some.”

Qi Xiaoyu could clearly feel that Xun Qian was very gentle, slowly chatting with him about some ordinary things, probably to divert his attention, whether it be from facing the darkness or from what might be happening outside.

He could sense Xun Qian’s intentions and was cooperative, taking the initiative to ask, “Have you taken it for a checkup in the past two days? How is the recovery?”

“The doctor said that it is recovering very well.”

“That’s good.”

They chatted for a while, and the battery of the mobile phone gradually ran out.

Qi Xiaoyu didn’t charge it during the day, and after coming to the factory, he kept taking and uploading pictures.

The reminder sound of the mobile phone battery being less than 10% popped up, and both he and Xun Qian heard it.

Xun Qian covered the microphone and seemed to say something to the person close to him, but Qi Xiaoyu didn’t hear it clearly.

The other party’s voice was a little louder than Xun Qian’s and came through the microphone, “It’s ready, don’t worry.”

Qi Xiaoyu didn’t know what Xun Qian had prepared, but then Xun Qian finally let go of the microphone and said to Qi Xiaoyu, “Open the window facing south and look at the sky.”

Qi Xiaoyu didn’t know what Xun Qian was going to do, but he still walked to the window as he said. It was dark outside, and there was an extraordinary silence in the late autumn night.

But after a minute passed–

A beam of fire rushed into the sky, exploding into a firework.

Then, beam after beam, the sky was filled with fireworks blooming—light yellow, silver, deep purple, indigo—all kinds of colorful light, interweaving into an extremely beautiful picture in the dark night sky.

The night was dark enough and quiet enough to make the fireworks extra bright and colorful.

He was surrounded by darkness, abandonment, and desolation, but above this darkness, what bloomed was incomparable beauty.

He had completely forgotten the darkness around him. His heart was completely shocked by the scene in front of him, with all kinds of emotions welling up inside.

A bunch of fireworks fell, and then countless more rushed into the sky. The whole silent night was illuminated and dyed red by the fireworks.

Qi Xiaoyu didn’t know how long he stood in front of the window until a familiar voice came from behind him, “Qi Xiaoyu.”

He turned around and saw Xun Qian appear at the door with other people.

But Qi Xiaoyu couldn’t see who the other people were. In his eyes, there was only Xun Qian and the light he brought.

There were fireworks behind him and Xun Qian in front of him.

Qi Xiaoyu walked towards Xun Qian, put his hand on Xun Qian’s palm, and then followed him out, being in a trance during the whole process.

He saw the police car outside and heard Zhang Han say, “The two brothers of the Xu family are done for. With the additional charge of intentional injury, they must be jailed for life.”

Someone else asked Xun Qian, “Are the fireworks still going off? Should we stop?”

His hand was surrounded by Xun Qian’s palm.

More things flashed through his mind.

He couldn’t take this step before. When he was a child, he learned to sing opera, and most of the love in the opera was tragic. He watched people fall in love, and few of them had a happy ending. In his era, there were many bitter partings and deaths.

Some of the things he hesitated about today, some of the things he was afraid of before—darkness and love, unstoppable fate and plot—all seemed to be dissipated little by little at this moment.

Fear is human instinct, and love can overcome fear.

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