After being NG-ed five times, Andrew Kennedy couldn’t take it any longer. He wearily pinched the bridge of his nose and said to Caleb, "Director Fan, could you lower the bar a bit?"
Everyone on set understood what lowering the bar meant. However, asking the director to lower the expectations for an actor’s performance was a bit...
Everyone looked over at Caleb.
Caleb sighed. Repeating the same scene multiple times is exhausting for an actor’s performance, and the crew was also getting fed up with this cycle. Andrew Kennedy was already showing signs of fatigue, and if this continued, the other actors would soon follow, making the filming get progressively worse.
"Let’s do one last take," Caleb said, lowering his expectations.
Everyone knew what this last take meant. It was a compromise no one wanted to speak about, so everyone went about preparing for the final shoot.
The camera focused on Aurelia Shaw—
Anne Hart rested her chin on one hand, lifting her eyes coldly to glance at Yvaine. Her gaze was lazy and indifferent, then fell on Lucas Taylor across from her. She slightly furrowed her brow and said, "Brother, she dirtied the Python Robe granted to you by Father, which the embroiderers in the Embroidery Chamber spent 256 days weaving. You’re just going to let her off?"
Though Anne Hart impulsively saved Yvaine, she had always been indifferent to human life. The lessons of the deep palace taught her to be ruthless to everything, except... the man before her.
"This maid seems loyal to you and... looks rather pretty. It would be a pity to kill her," Lucas Taylor said with a smirk, his usual gentle demeanor showing a rare hint of playfulness.
Anne Hart’s eyes suddenly grew sharp. She abruptly slapped the table, grabbed the dagger from it, and stood up to swing it toward Yvaine. "Hmph, I’ll ruin this maid’s face, see if she’s still pretty, see if she can still allure men!"
Lucas Taylor’s expression changed. He quickly placed his hand over hers and tapped her forehead with a bent finger, "You little brat, how can you be so unruly? If you go on , who would dare to marry you?"
The warmth of his hand made Anne’s heart flutter. Her face blushed with embarrassment. She looked at Lucas Taylor, her eyes flickering, and said angrily, "Who... who said I wanted to get married!"
Lucas Taylor chuckled teasingly, "Not getting married? What, are you planning to stay in the palace as an old maid?"
"What’s wrong with being an old maid? Can’t I never get married? Or... is Brother already tired of me and wants to marry me off?" Anne bit her lip, stubbornness and a deep gaze directed at Lucas Taylor, uncertain of what kind of answer she wanted.
"How could Brother ever tire of you?" Lucas Taylor fondly touched her head. "If you never get married, Brother will take care of you for life. Be as unruly as you like; Brother will have your back. How about that?"
A warm feeling surged in Anne’s heart. She extended her finger and said, "Pinky promise!"
Lucas Taylor chuckled, helpless at her childish gesture, but he still extended his finger, linking it with her slender pinky, and said, "A gentleman’s promise is worth a thousand horses and cannot be broken."
The wind ruffled their robes—behind the camera, Amanda Fuller was tearful, holding up her phone to secretly film. The scene they acted out yesterday was what happened later between the two. After the Second Prince ascended the throne, no matter how unruly or cruel Anne Hart became, despite the officials writing petitions to condemn her, she was never held accountable, all because of today’s promise.
Thinking of the eventual fate of the two, Amanda Fuller’s nose tingled, and tears flowed again.
"Um... um... could you please stop pulling on my clothes?" a timid voice came up.