[Purehearted, earnest art-film director Zhao Mingyu (top) VS. Proud, flirtatious commercial director Li Weian (bottom)]
[Two male leads + evenly matched + sweet romance + healing + instant attraction + entertainment industry]
In a nutshell: A proud, beautiful Persian cat gets thoroughly devoured by a Shiba Inu who plays dumb.
Commercial director Li Weian has the looks, the figure, and the confidence, and his sense for the camera is god-tier. His box office numbers keep soaring, but his reputation has hit rock bottom. The day after his film’s wrap party, he escapes to the countryside to get away from it all, where he runs into Zhao Mingyu, a broke young man making an independent film.
Zhao Mingyu is a genius director who won the Berlin Golden Bear for his debut film, yet his talent goes unrecognized and he’s so broke he lives on instant noodles. Filming a crime thriller in the countryside with a ragtag crew, he still holds fast to his pure love of cinema.
The proud Persian cat only means to watch quietly from the sidelines. But on the first day, he can’t resist offering snarky advice on the shoot; on the second, he jumps in as an extra; and by the third, he’s helping carry equipment. So much for seclusion. So much for staying out of the world’s affairs.
Worse, the adorable Shiba Inu starts hanging around him. With that harmless-looking face, he keeps asking, “Brother Li, what do you think of this shot?” Li Weian acts annoyed even as he falls for him.
A little scene
“Brother Li, let’s come up with a code phrase.”
Li Weian pauses. “What code phrase?”
Zhao Mingyu thinks for a moment. “From now on, when I say ‘Time to walk the dog,’” he says softly, “it means… I miss you.”
Li Weian looks at him. “You miss me?”
“Yeah.” Zhao Mingyu blushes a little, but doesn’t look away. “It means… I want to kiss you, hold you, and…”
The imagination is wide open, the writing is clear and the plot is compact and interesting.
I was flipping through a new book and accidentally clicked on it. The quality is quite good.