Ye Zhanqing and the Wheel-Turning King.
These two could be said to be the most contradictory pairing in the entire drama Sword Rain.
Ye Zhanqing is an out-and-out sex fiend.
Because her husband couldn’t perform, she flew into a rage and brutally killed him along with her in-laws.
After being saved by the Wheel-Turning King, she disguised herself as a courtesan, using the pretense of entertaining clients to freely unleash her insatiable desires.
The Wheel-Turning King, on the other hand, is a eunuch—a real, genuine eunuch!
Yet these two secretly developed feelings for each other.
Ye Zhanqing constantly wants to give herself to the Wheel-Turning King in exchange for more favor and doting.
The Wheel-Turning King also harbors improper thoughts about Ye Zhanqing.
But because his “equipment” is truly inadequate, he can only pin his hopes on the Raman corpse, delusionally attempting to restore himself and become a real man.
And now, the moment has come for the two to lay everything bare.
“It’s just a scratch from sword energy. A little blood circulation and it’ll be fine. Don’t worry, it won’t leave a scar.”
Sitting on a chair, Jiang Nian placed his hand on Xu Xinyuan’s exposed back as he spoke.
His mind was free of distractions.
But it wasn’t because he was immersed in his role—it was because what he was touching right now wasn’t actually Xu Xinyuan’s back. It was a piece of pig skin!
The reason for this wasn’t to avoid suspicion.
It was simply because Xu Xinyuan played way too wild!
As a founding-level figure in the world of contrast.
If you’d never met her, no one could possibly imagine that behind that pure, lovely, and utterly ladylike face hid a wild, restless heart full of rebellion.
Xu Xinyuan’s body had many tattoos and piercings.
Though not quite at the level of blue-and-white porcelain, the area and quantity were still considerable.
If they used her skin for filming.
She’d probably just bare her back and the audience would immediately be pulled out of the story.
After all, in a period drama, who the hell would have a “Raëlian Movement” totem tattooed on the back of their neck and a pair of wings on each shoulder?
That’s just way too absurd.
Regarding this, Ye Zhanqing didn’t care at all. She merely glanced sideways behind her and recited her lines: “In the sword techniques you taught me, did you also hold something back?”
The Wheel-Turning King took a deep breath: “I would never do that to you.”
Ye Zhanqing said nothing, but a faint smile appeared on her face.
And the Wheel-Turning King, after finishing healing the wound on her back, gazed at the naked body before him, his heart stirred, and he couldn’t resist reaching his hand in.
Feeling those large hands travel all the way up along her waist.
A flash of surprise crossed Xu Xinyuan’s eyes. Clearly, she hadn’t expected Jiang Nian to be so bold.
In the original script, it only said to reach in half a palm’s worth. He’d actually reached all the way in.
Feeling Jiang Nian’s restless hand.
She discreetly glanced at the cameraman and Wu Yusen nearby.
After confirming that none of them had noticed anything amiss, she immediately stood up.
Seeing this, Jiang Nian also stepped forward and embraced her.
The two pressed closely together.
They could even feel each other’s heartbeats.
Xu Xinyuan closed her eyes, but soon thought of something and immediately turned to look.
Their eyes met.
Xu Xinyuan pressed forward step by step, and Jiang Nian kept retreating.
Until they reached the corner by the door.
A sly glint flashed through Xu Xinyuan’s eyes. Then she stood on her tiptoes, grabbed Jiang Nian’s shoulders, yanked him downward, and kissed him.
“Holy shit?!”
Feeling the soft sensation on his lips, and that uninvited guest barging in.
Jiang Nian’s eyes instantly went wide.
He stared at Xu Xinyuan in disbelief.
Only one thought in his mind.
Zhen, you’re playing for real?!
Although Jiang Nian was a veteran of the battlefield and had seen every kind of scene.
That didn’t change the fact that this kiss was his on-screen first kiss—and it was a French one, no less!
Jiang Nian was stunned.
Then he saw Xu Xinyuan’s sly gaze.
He snapped back to his senses.
“This woman did that on purpose!”
The thought flashed through Jiang Nian’s mind. He was just about to retaliate.
But just then.
“Phew—”
“Producer Wu, sorry, I feel like this take wasn’t quite right.”
“If I remember correctly, the script says Ye Zhanqing throws herself onto the Wheel-Turning King and then kisses him, right?”
“Teacher Jiang is too tall. If I throw myself at him, I can’t reach to kiss him at all. I can only pull him down, but that ruins the framing. Can we reshoot this scene and put a stool under my feet?”
Xu Xinyuan suddenly released Jiang Nian, let out a breath, wiped her mouth, and said to Wu Yusen nearby.
Hearing this, Wu Yusen was briefly taken aback, then nodded: “Alright, no problem. Props! Get up there and put a stool under Teacher Xu’s feet.”
“Got it, coming right up.”
The props person responded and grabbed a low stool from the side, jogging over and placing it under Xu Xinyuan’s feet.
Xu Xinyuan stepped onto it, and her height immediately shot up a notch.
“How’s that? Does it work?”
Wu Yusen asked.
Xu Xinyuan tested it out: “Feels pretty good. Should work. Sorry about that, Producer Wu—I called for a cut.”
With that, she clasped her hands together, her face full of apology.
Seeing her attitude, Wu Yusen couldn’t really say anything. He could only wave his hand: “It’s fine, it’s fine. You’re just trying to get the scene right. That’s understandable. If everything’s good, I’ll keep rolling.”
“Mm-hmm.”
Xu Xinyuan responded, then looked at Jiang Nian, a mischievous grin curling on her face.
After that, she pulled the same trick again.
The moment Wu Yusen called “Action,” she’d immediately lean in, barreling forward.
The key was, every time she bumped for a bit, she’d stir up some new trouble.
Either the stool under her feet would suddenly start wobbling, or she’d use too much force and kiss off the fake beard stuck to Jiang Nian’s mouth.
So for such an incredibly simple shot.
She actually went back and forth, over and over, and called cut four times!
Wu Yusen and the whole crew were dumbfounded.
They were thinking, what the hell is going on?
You, Xu Xinyuan, are a veteran actress.
Even the hardest scenes before this, you didn’t call cut this many times.
And now, for such a tiny scene, you’re calling cut like this?
Who are you kidding?!
Wu Yusen realized something, and the way he looked at the two of them instantly became helpless.
So, after Xu Xinyuan called cut yet again.
He called Xu Xinyuan and Jiang Nian out, taking them to a place where no one was around.
Wu Yusen pulled out a cigarette, handed one to each of them, lit up, took a deep drag, and then looked at the two with eyes that saw through everything: “Teacher Xu, you’re interested in Teacher Jiang, aren’t you?”
Hearing this, Jiang Nian raised an eyebrow.
Xu Xinyuan, on the other hand, took a drag of her cigarette and casually threw an arm around Jiang Nian: “Yeah, so what? Producer Wu, our crew doesn’t have a rule against on-set romance, right?”
Wu Yusen’s mouth twitched: “No, we don’t have a rule against it. But you can’t do it like this. I’m embarrassed to even say it—a single kiss scene and you called cut four times. No, now it’s five. Never mind the wasted film, that’s actually not much. The main issue is doing this in front of so many people. It’s a bad look. Can’t you save it for when you get back?”
Xu Xinyuan was unbothered: “So what?”
If it were anyone else, they might have felt ashamed after hearing Wu Yusen’s words, apologized, and never dared do it again.
But her.
She could only say—the more people watching, the more excited she got!
Hearing this, Wu Yusen felt a massive headache coming on.
He couldn’t understand how someone as innocent-looking as Xu Xinyuan could be so shameless.
So after thinking for a moment, he took a drag of his cigarette and said in a firm tone: “I don’t care whether you ‘so what’ or not. Anyway, I’m laying it out right here: when we reshoot later, it has to be done in one take. If you can’t do it, we’re using a body double. This scene can’t be delayed any longer. Understood?”
“Ugh, fine, fine, I got it.”
Only after hearing Wu Yusen blow up did Xu Xinyuan rein in that hooligan energy and acknowledge him.
Seeing her like this, Wu Yusen couldn’t be bothered to say more to her. He just looked at Jiang Nian and said: “Teacher Jiang, when you get back, you should really keep her in check. Look at her now—what’s she become? I feel like she’s about to be completely possessed by Ye Zhanqing.”
Hearing this, Jiang Nian exhaled a puff of smoke and said slowly: “Is it possible that she’s always been like this, and it’s just that the role of Ye Zhanqing let her true nature break free?”
Wu Yusen: “???”
Xu Xinyuan protested: “No way! I’m not nearly as flirtatious as Ye Zhanqing.”
Jiang Nian nodded: “Oh yeah, totally.”
Then he turned his head and rolled his eyes, thinking to himself: I wonder who it was last night, when we were coming down the mountain, who squirted all over my hand.
Soon, the cigarette was finished.
Because Wu Yusen had chewed her out, this time during the reshoot, Xu Xinyuan didn’t pull any tricks.
She obediently got through the kiss scene, and then came the big moment.
Ye Zhanqing, overwhelmed by passion, wants to go all the way, and her hands start to wander.
Of course, since this is a Daxia film, they couldn’t show it too explicitly.
So Wu Yusen had the props team place a birdcage in front of the camera.
On one hand, it was a metaphor for what Ye Zhanqing was doing.
On the other hand, it was also a metaphor for the Wheel-Turning King—a man separated from his “bird.”
Sure enough, Xu Xinyuan sensed something, and her expression suddenly changed.
She jerked backward, staring at Jiang Nian in utter disbelief.
This wasn’t acting—she was genuinely shocked.
Because that size—
“How is that possible…”
She looked down at her hand and murmured to herself.
Jiang Nian didn’t know what she was really thinking. He just saw Xu Xinyuan’s reaction and thought she was acting well, so he said: “I am.”
At these words, Xu Xinyuan also snapped back to reality and quickly said: “You’re a eunuch?”
“I am now. I’ve already obtained the Raman corpse. In a few more days, I’ll be a real man!” Jiang Nian said with a serious expression.
Then he walked toward Xu Xinyuan, and as he walked, he talked about how difficult it had been to obtain the Raman corpse, how miraculous its effects were, and the bitterness of having spent fifty years in the palace yet still being only a ninth-rank eunuch.
Hearing this, logically speaking, Xu Xinyuan should now be mocking the Wheel-Turning King, telling him it was all just a fantasy.
But…
The moment she was about to say those words, the scene from just moments ago couldn’t help but surface in her mind.
And so, as if possessed, she nodded: “Okay.”
“???”
The moment the word left her mouth, everyone on set was dumbfounded.
“Cut! Teacher Xu, what are you saying ‘okay’ for?”
“Your lines! Say your lines!”
Wu Yusen stopped the filming, his face full of exasperation.
What the hell was this? A wedding?
Were they all just part of your play?
Jiang Nian was also speechless.
They were almost at the end. You mock him, then the two of them fight, and the scene is done.
And now you suddenly go off-script and drop a bombshell on him.
“Sorry, sorry, I said the wrong thing. Um, should we reshoot?” Xu Xinyuan said awkwardly.
She hadn’t expected herself to make such a rookie mistake.
Hearing this, everyone internally complained, but there was nothing else to do.
Fortunately, this second take didn’t have any mishaps. After Ye Zhanqing finished mocking him, the Wheel-Turning King’s fantasy was shattered, and in a fit of rage, he struck her dead on the spot.
“Good, cut!”
Watching Xu Xinyuan being pinned against the door by Jiang Nian, Wu Yusen immediately called out.
Jiang Nian immediately let go and let out a breath of relief.
That was not easy. It was really, really not easy!
Filming this one scene—not only did he get taken advantage of left and right, but there were also problems popping up everywhere.
Especially that moment when Xu Xinyuan nodded and said “okay.”
He, Jiang Nian, almost got pulled out of character and lost his groove.
You have to understand, Jiang Nian had the memories of the Wheel-Turning King!
For Xu Xinyuan to push him to this point—it was truly unprecedented, and likely never to be repeated.
“Wait, you don’t actually have feelings for me, do you?”
During the mid-scene break.
Jiang Nian took a sip of water and looked at Xu Xinyuan with a face full of confusion.
Earlier, when Xu Xinyuan was aggressively kissing him, Jiang Nian didn’t take it seriously, thinking it was just her getting back at him for his prank.
After all, before that, he, Jiang Nian, had secretly played with little Olive.
But that later line.
That couldn’t be considered a prank anymore. It seemed more like a subconscious, genuine outpouring of feeling.
Hearing this, Xu Xinyuan didn’t hide anything either, and said directly: “Yeah, didn’t I already tell you when we went out earlier? Did you think I was lying to you?”
Jiang Nian frowned: “You’re serious?”
“You don’t like me?” Xu Xinyuan countered.
Jiang Nian shook his head: “That’s not it. Although you’ve got a lot of tattoos and piercings—once you take your clothes off, it’s like an old hollowed-out vase came to life—you’re still pretty much my type. If I could, I’d still want to hold you a bit.”
Hearing this, Xu Xinyuan’s mouth twitched: “That’s a really crude way to put it.”
“Hey, crude words, but the sentiment’s sincere.”
“So you do like me too?”
“You could put it that way.”
“Good. In that case, tonight, after midnight, the usual place. I’ll be waiting.” With that, Xu Xinyuan stood up and left.
Hearing this, Jiang Nian was briefly stunned.
The usual place?
She didn’t mean the foot of the mountain from last night, did she?
Oh fuck!
Jiang Nian suddenly remembered what he’d joked about earlier while smoking: that Xu Xinyuan was like this by nature, and Ye Zhanqing just let it show.
Damn, don’t tell me that actually came true.
He hadn’t finished practicing the Evil-Resisting Sword Technique yet, and he was still abstaining!
If Xu Xinyuan really was like that, wouldn’t that be a disaster?
“No, no, no, it should be fine. She’s a celebrity, after all. How could she…”
“Fuck, it seems like the bigger the celebrity, the wilder they play.”
“Did I just fucking screw myself over?”
