Chapter 87

The day after the main members of the production team got to know each other, a press conference was immediately held to introduce the main creative personnel of "Hero Spring Fragrance" to the media and to provide some background on the preparation for the drama. After attracting some attention, they immediately plunged into the intense filming of the TV series.

A few days later, after completing the scenes in Seoul, the production team moved to Namwon, Jeollabuk-do, the hometown of Chunhyang in folk legends and one of the most important filming locations for the drama. It was estimated that the entire production team would stay in this small city in southern Korea for a considerable period of time.

Although Namwon had beautiful scenery and fresher air than Seoul, Zhang Chengyuan couldn't be happy. These days, he had been enjoying the company of his sisters, but now, apart from admiring Han Chae-young's beauty, what else could he enjoy? Feeling discontented, he could only gather his spirits and throw himself entirely into his work.

His dedication made the director happy, but it also exhausted the actors and made them feel a lot of pressure. Han Chae-young once couldn't help but complain to him, "You are clearly a drama maniac. Can't you let us catch our breath a few more times?" This statement absolutely expressed the sentiments of all the production team members. There were several reasons for this.

First, Zhang Chengyuan had an excellent memory. When others were still struggling to memorize their lines, he could remember them after just a couple of casual flips through the script and could perform them very well, making it impossible not to envy him. As a result, everyone had to work even harder. In fact, Zhang Chengyuan was already holding back; if he put his mind to it, he could remember everything clearly after just a quick glance.

Second, Zhang Chengyuan had extremely high concentration and could quickly get into character. Almost all his scenes were completed in one take, and they were performed very well. Compared to him, the other actors, who had been performing quite well, seemed inferior. To avoid being outshone by a young actor, they had to use all their skills. Although they often performed better, the mental and physical energy they expended also increased significantly. After a day of shooting, they often had no time to chat and would quickly fall asleep after eating.

Third, Zhang Chengyuan had boundless energy and often shot scenes without tiring, one after another, with little rest in between. He didn't mind, but the actors who worked with him found it very tiring. To avoid being outdone by him, these actors had to push themselves, which made them even more exhausted.

Fourth, Zhang Chengyuan got so deeply into character that even when the director called "CUT," he would still be immersed in the plot, acting and speaking like Li Menglong in the drama, making people worry if he might suffer from a split personality. At such moments, Han Chae-young would always tap his head to snap him out of it quickly.

Fifth, Zhang Chengyuan's punches and kicks were too powerful. When acting, he often forgot to control his strength, and the stunt actors who performed fight scenes with him would suffer if they weren't careful. Even a light touch from him could cause pain for several hours, and if they were unlucky enough to be hit by him, the consequences could be severe, ranging from dislocation to bone injuries, while Zhang Chengyuan remained unharmed.

Fortunately, when Zhang Chengyuan was in the state of Li Menglong, he forgot about his inner strength, so his punches and kicks did not carry any true energy, preventing serious injuries. However, even without major injuries, the stunt actors found it hard to bear. Although Zhang Chengyuan always apologized sincerely afterward, and they knew he didn't do it on purpose, they still couldn't have a good opinion of him, often cursing him in their hearts as a madman, thinking that although he seemed normal in daily life, he might go crazy when acting.

All these things, and many more, not only shocked the production team members but also surprised Zhang Chengyuan himself when Han Chae-young told him. He had never experienced such deep immersion in a role before!

"Could it be that I miss my sisters so much that I'm almost going crazy?" he thought idly. But then, since he didn't feel any discomfort and his performance was even better, making the progress faster than expected, he could return to Seoul and reunite with his sisters sooner. With this thought, Zhang Chengyuan didn't bother to find the reason.

With Zhang Chengyuan, the drama maniac, as a benchmark, the other actors in the production team also worked very hard, especially Han Chae-young, who had to act opposite Zhang Chengyuan every day. Calling her a heroine was not an exaggeration. Not only was her acting outstanding, making Chunhyang come to life as if she were Chunhyang herself, but her willpower was also as strong as a man's. No matter how harsh the shooting conditions or how tired her body was, she could grit her teeth and continue shooting, which Zhang Chengyuan admired greatly.

Although Zhang Chengyuan could perform better, it was because of his physical and mental strength far beyond that of an ordinary person. If he were just an ordinary person, any of the actors on set might be stronger than him. It's like a powerful person who, when he loses his power, might not even be as good as a beggar on the street.

Seeing the actors working so hard and performing so well, Director Jeon Gi-sang and the Hong sisters, the screenwriters, felt both relieved and excited, believing that the drama would definitely have a good reception when aired. To encourage the actors to keep up their efforts, the director often provided them with extra meals as a reward. As the director's top contributor, Zhang Chengyuan was given an additional benefit: a two-day break every half month, allowing him to go wherever he wanted as long as he returned on time.

The director did this out of necessity. With Zhang Chengyuan around, the actors were stimulated to be too excited and too hardworking, which was good but also bad. Because they were too hardworking, their spirits would be too tense, and they might break under the pressure, which would be counterproductive. So the director used the pretext of giving Zhang Chengyuan a break to let him temporarily leave the scene, allowing everyone to relax. Since Zhang Chengyuan was a drama maniac who could quickly get into character, there was no fear that he would lose his state after a two-day break, unlike the other actors who didn't have this ability.

With such a rare holiday benefit, Zhang Chengyuan, besides being grateful to the director, made good use of it. During his two-day break, he drove back to Seoul without any hesitation to reunite with his sisters, including Lee Hyori, to ease his longing.

However, recently, his four sisters didn't have much time to spend with him. Lee Hyori, the eldest, was always busy with numerous engagements; Yoo Ji-hyun was busy promoting her new album, her second, which was released in November; Lee Jin was busy with variety shows and preparing to shoot a drama for SBS, which was currently very popular; and the usually most free, Sung Yu-ri, was often attending university classes and had enrolled in acting training, leaving little time for him.

Finally, when Zhang Chengyuan's boss, Park Byung-ryul, saw that Zhang Chengyuan was so idle and energetic, he couldn't bear it and immediately arranged a batch of work for him, including variety shows, runway modeling, and photo shoots. As long as it was feasible and didn't take too much time, he basically accepted all the engagements for Zhang Chengyuan.

Additionally, during this period, a sad event occurred. In mid-month, Sung Yu-ri's grandmother passed away, and she fell into deep sorrow. Upon hearing the news, Lee Hyori, Yoo Ji-hyun, Lee Jin, and Zhang Chengyuan immediately put aside all their affairs and rushed to the funeral home to pay respects to Sung Yu-ri's grandmother and to comfort and encourage her. Zhang Chengyuan even provided her with true energy several times to prevent her from fainting due to overwhelming grief. Fortunately, after a few days of encouragement, Sung Yu-ri finally regained her spirits, though a hint of sadness and nostalgia still occasionally flashed in her eyes.

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