Over the next week, the crew of Sharp Blade truly witnessed what a "human progress bar" meant.
Li Cheng directly adjusted the shooting schedule, concentrating all of the scenes for Duan Rui, played by Jiang Yue, together.
Mainly because Duan Rui was a man of few words, and almost every time he appeared, he was dealing with a target.
The shooting locations were also relatively fixed—woods, rainy alleys, and abandoned factories. Once a set was built, they could shoot non-stop.
Jiang Yue had no assistant or agent accompanying him on set, but he arrived at the makeup tent at seven o'clock sharp every morning.
The transition scenes on the call sheet were quickly cleared.
Sniping in the woods, car chases on rainy nights, and silencing witnesses in underground parking garages.
Jiang Yue didn't use a stunt double for any of it; his movements were clean and crisp.
There were no superfluous, flashy moves in his strikes. Every move was designed according to the pre-negotiated combat logic, and he could steadily pull back his force right before the point of impact.
Combined with his fierce gaze while acting, the moment a few of the recurring background actors saw him walking over in Duan Rui's outfit, they would instinctively take half a step aside.
He Songtao, who played the criminal investigation captain Lei Mingyuan, didn't return to his lounge chair after watching the monitor. Instead, he turned and went back to the punching bag to throw two more sets of straight punches.
He Songtao was in his early thirties. He didn't have formal acting training, having made a name for himself playing tough-guy supporting roles in a few military dramas.
Sharp Blade was his first lead role in a true sense.
Li Cheng wasn't very famous in the industry and couldn't afford big-name stars who had both massive traffic and top-tier acting skills.
He Songtao also needed an opportunity to prove himself. The two hit it off immediately, both treating this drama as their turning point.
To play Lei Mingyuan well, He Songtao had joined the crew more than a month in advance, spending his days in the training room with the action choreographer, Old Cui.
That desperate drive of his made even Old Cui marvel in secret.
Now that Jiang Yue was here, the tension in He Songtao's heart tightened even further.
During a break, He Songtao watched Jiang Yue nail a scene in a single take. He unscrewed a bottle of mineral water, took a couple of sips, and asked Old Cui beside him, “Uncle Cui, with Jiang Yue's skills, did he train in martial arts since childhood?”
Old Cui shook his head and lowered his voice. “I've asked, but I haven't heard him mention any master or school. His style seems to be a mix of many things, but it's highly practical. Xiao He, make sure you don't let him throw you off your rhythm. You've trained for over a month, and your posture is already there. When the two of you move in front of the camera, the effect will be great.”
He Songtao didn't say anything more. He put the water bottle back on the ground and continued practicing his straight punches against the sandbag.
He wasn't afraid of Jiang Yue stealing the spotlight.
What he feared was that if Lei Mingyuan won too easily, the audience wouldn't believe in the character.
Late that night, at the Donghai City International Cargo Terminal.
This was the on-location shooting site for the grand finale of Sharp Blade.
The sea breeze, carrying a salty and fishy smell, swept past the rows of shipping containers.
Massive searchlights illuminated Berth 3 as bright as day.
This scene depicted the story reaching its final act.
The big villain, a political and business tycoon, attempted to flee overseas on a smuggled cargo ship, and the criminal investigation captain, Lei Mingyuan, intercepted him alone.
The villain boss boarded the ship, leaving Duan Rui behind to cover the retreat.
There was only one scene on tonight's call sheet.
Lei Mingyuan versus Duan Rui.
Before filming started, He Songtao called Old Cui and Jiang Yue to an open space.
He had already changed into his costume, his hands wrapped in Sanda hand wraps.
“Xiao Jiang,” He Songtao said, looking at Jiang Yue. “In tonight's scene, I can't win too easily. Lei Mingyuan has been chasing him for a day and a night, and his physical strength is completely depleted. Duan Rui is a killing machine waiting in ambush. If I capture him in just two or three moves, the audience won't buy it.”
Old Cui frowned. “Xiao He, the ground is covered in water, and we're going to be spraying more during the shoot. You haven't trained in systematic fall-break techniques, so you can't force it.”
“I'll listen to you on all the safety points, Uncle Cui.”
He Songtao pointed at his tactical vest. “I've added two layers of cushioning gel pads inside, and I'm wearing concealed protective gear on my key joints. But Duan Rui must push Lei Mingyuan to the absolute brink, otherwise, Lei Mingyuan's victory won't feel earned.”
He paused, his voice dropping slightly. “I'm playing Lei Mingyuan, not some chosen protagonist in a web novel.”
Old Cui didn't agree immediately. He first had the stagehands inspect the ground again.
The sharp edges of the iron chains were smoothed down, the short rubber dagger inside the boot shaft was secured, and several landing spots for falls were marked with subtle cues.
After confirming everything, he looked at Jiang Yue and instructed him once more, “When you do the controlled chokehold, direct your force toward the camera and don't press on his windpipe. For the final lunge with the knife, aim half an inch off to leave room for the SWAT team's line of fire.”
Jiang Yue nodded. “Okay.”
He Songtao couldn't help but look over as well.
Jiang Yue added, “We'll do as Uncle Cui said. Safety first.”
All departments were in position.
The water truck sprayed water onto the ground, creating puddles.
Li Cheng stared at the monitor and turned back to confirm Old Cui's hand signal.
Only after Old Cui nodded did he raise his walkie-talkie.
“Action!”
The camera pushed in.
At the end of the dark container alley, Lei Mingyuan drew his gun and surged forward.
His breathing was heavy, and his bulletproof vest was covered in mud.
From the top of a shipping container, a dark shadow leaped down silently.
Duan Rui bent his knees slightly. Upon landing, he didn't pause for a second, pushing off with his right leg to charge forward.
Just as Lei Mingyuan raised his gun halfway, Duan Rui had already cut inside the line of fire, pressing down on his wrist with his left hand while driving his right elbow into his chest.
Lei Mingyuan was forced back half a step by the impact. Gritting his teeth, he raised his knee to counterattack.
Duan Rui sidestepped to dodge, grabbed his shoulder with a reverse grip, and pinned him down into the muddy water.
The two rolled and grappled in the container alley, mud and fake blood mixing together.
Veins bulged on Lei Mingyuan's face, his expression twisted in a snarl.
Duan Rui maintained an expressionless face throughout, his gaze locked onto Lei Mingyuan's throat.
They fought all the way to the end of the containers.
In the muddy water, Lei Mingyuan's hand found a rusty iron chain as thick as a thumb. Gritting his teeth, he swung it out.
Duan Rui raised his left arm to block, and the chain wrapped around his arm.
Lei Mingyuan used the momentum to pull, wrapping the chain twice around Duan Rui's arm and yanking back with all his might.
Duan Rui lost his balance and stumbled forward.
Seizing the opportunity, Lei Mingyuan dropped the chain, rushed forward, locked his arm around Duan Rui's throat from behind, and wrapped his right leg around Duan Rui's lower body.
The two fell to the ground once more.
The chokehold was locked in.
Lei Mingyuan used every ounce of his strength to choke Duan Rui, the muscles in his arms bulging and his knuckles turning white.
Duan Rui's tactical gloves clawed at Lei Mingyuan's arm, tearing at it with force.
After more than ten seconds, his movements slowed down. His hands lost their strength and fell limp, splashing into the muddy water.
Coughing up blood, Lei Mingyuan released his arms and collapsed limply beside Duan Rui.
From a distance came the sound of hurried, chaotic footsteps.
“Captain Lei!”
“Captain Lei, hang in there!”
Several SWAT officers rushed into the frame, aiming their guns at the battlefield.
Duan Rui, who was supposed to be lifeless, suddenly snapped his eyes open.
He drew a short dagger from the inside of his tactical boot, rolled over, and lunged at the defenseless Lei Mingyuan.
“Watch out!”
A SWAT officer roared hoarsely.
A barrage of gunfire tore through the rainy night.
Duan Rui's body, lunging toward Lei Mingyuan, froze in mid-air as several bursts of blood mist erupted from his ribs and back.
His facial muscles twitched once before he collapsed beside Lei Mingyuan, completely motionless.
The camera slowly panned upward, looking down at the final scene in the muddy water.
“Cut! That's a wrap!”
Li Cheng grabbed his walkie-talkie and roared.
The sound recordist was the first to take off his headphones, followed by a shout from the stage manager. Faint cheers erupted from behind the monitor.
Because the previous actor playing Duan Rui had met with an accident, the entire crew had been under a gloomy atmosphere for several days.
With Duan Rui's scenes successfully wrapped up today, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
In the muddy water, Jiang Yue opened his eyes and scrambled to his feet.
The ruthlessness belonging to Duan Rui instantly vanished from his body. He turned to check on He Songtao, who was gasping for air.
“Brother Tao, are you alright? Did that sudden lunge startle you?”
His face covered in mud, He Songtao stared at the hand Jiang Yue offered. He froze for a moment, then burst into laughter.
He grasped Jiang Yue's hand and pulled himself up.
“I'm fine! Great, in fact!”
He Songtao patted Jiang Yue heavily on the shoulder. “Brother, you've shown me what it means to always have someone better out there. Acting opposite you was incredibly satisfying!”
Jiang Yue shook his head slightly and said from the bottom of his heart, “It's because you brought the character of Lei Mingyuan to life, Brother Tao. I only did the bare minimum.”
A few stagehands ran over, handing them dry towels and hot water.
Li Cheng strode over and threw his arm around Jiang Yue's shoulder. “Xiao Jiang, I won't play any games with you. Tonight's treat is on me, let's have a good drink!”
“You're too polite, Director Li. It's only what I should do.”
Jiang Yue took the towel and wiped the muddy water from his face.
He Songtao unscrewed the hot water, took a sip, and suddenly said to Li Cheng, “Director Li, if there are any action pick-up shots later, could you have Jiang Yue keep an eye on them for me for a couple of days? The pressure he exerts is more effective than me practicing blindly for a month.”
Li Cheng glanced at Jiang Yue, his smile growing even wider. “Let's eat first. After that, I'll have the producer review the contract. For this trip, Xiao Jiang's pay and billing can't just be treated as a cameo actor.”
Rate on N.U.
