Chapter 6
Bai Yu’s name is known to everyone, but I had never worked with him before.
Not only is there a real barrier between the TV drama world and the film industry-even just his resume is enough to inspire awe.
It’s said that he earned his MFA at the American Film Institute (AFI), and his very first student film was even nominated for an Oscar in the short film category. After returning to China, his first crime series film became that year’s box office and word-of-mouth double champion. His fans analyze every detail of his films frame by frame.
It’s no exaggeration to say that luck always seems to be on his side.
Since his last movie, he’s apparently taken several years off and kept a low profile. So now he’s working on a second one?
Normally, directors like Director Bai wouldn’t even consider someone like me-a fast-fading star who’s neither a “newcomer” nor part of the Talent Faction.
After much deliberation, I watched his debut film at home that evening.
The experience was simply insane.
Ding ding ding ding ding! The System in my head shrieked with excitement, unlocking entry after entry at a frantic pace.
[Keywords collected: common corpse hiding spots, dangerous violent offenders, luminol reaction, anti-tracking techniques…]
What’s even scarier is that most of the crime knowledge presented in the film is actually accurate. Clearly, the director, screenwriter, and experts had done meticulous research; otherwise, for the sake of smooth storytelling, most shows would skip a lot of unnecessary details.
But watching Bai Yu’s film is like having your head forced into an icy pool-no matter how hard you struggle, you can’t come up for air.
Only when the end credits appear are you suddenly hauled out of the water, gasping for breath.
After watching the film, I hurriedly asked my Agent to contact Director Bai. “Be sure to tell him I was recommended by Director Liu! I just want a shot at an audition!”
I thought my chances were slim, but a few days later, my Agent called me, thrilled. “They actually accepted your information!”
Not only that, they invited me to attend a private script reading before the audition.
At the reading, I met Director Bai. To my surprise, he didn’t look intimidating at all. With slightly curly black hair and a gentle smile, his aura didn’t pale in the midst of all the handsome men and beautiful women.
He wore a simple white shirt and black pants. Rather than a director, he looked more like a graduate student in science or engineering.
“Hello.” Bai Yu shook my hand, introducing me to everyone with perfect manners. “This is the actor I invited to join today’s script reading.”
I glanced at those present: the Best Actress of the Shenghua Award, a leading stage star for a decade, a veteran actor with a stellar reputation, a Gold Medal Screenwriter, and a former commercial blockbuster producer…
…
Me: Big shots, your goddaughter bows to you-I’d love to care for you in your old age!
Not a single person looked surprised or dismissive when they saw me, as if they hadn’t read any of the online comments-or simply didn’t care.
“This is the reading script. You can have a look first. We’ll begin in ten minutes when everyone’s here.”
I took the script Director Bai handed me with both hands and awkwardly found my seat.
The reading script only had one scene, but it was an important opening. After turning a few pages, I suddenly realized-it was based on a true case.
This case once caused a huge stir in our city. I’d even heard about it as a child.
It was usually called the “717 Rainy Night Case” in news reports. The first incident happened about twenty years ago in the suburbs, and the victim was a young woman.
Just as people were still in shock, after the next rainy night, another victim appeared. The killer went on to commit five crimes in total, throwing the city into panic-people were so afraid that no one dared go out whenever it rained. I was only six back then; on rainy days, my mom would take time off work rather than send me to kindergarten.
The incident was such a sensation that the pressure to solve it was immense. But due to the circumstances-no surveillance cameras, DNA technology still immature, and the killer deliberately choosing stormy nights-most physical evidence was destroyed.
In the end, the police screened hundreds of thousands of men across six districts, but every suspect was eventually ruled out. Maybe this huge operation finally deterred the killer, because there was never a sixth victim. Still, the case became one of the city’s most notorious unsolved mysteries.
The script’s opening scene was the newlywed female lead noticing a drizzle outside and hurrying to the balcony to collect laundry. As the rain intensified, she decided to go out and bring her husband an umbrella.
For some reason, reading this sent chills down my spine.
I started searching in my mind for information about the “717 Rainy Night Case” while asking the System, “Aren’t you supposed to tell me everything about murder? Can you tell me who the killer is?”
The System replied coldly, “This does not fall within the category of human ‘knowledge,’ and this System does not possess ‘deduction’ or ‘case-solving’ functions.”
“Lousy System,” I cursed it inwardly, watching as report after report, photo after photo, and even some old case files and transcripts popped up. There was so much information that I couldn’t go through it all at once, so I picked out the most important pieces, starting with the newspaper coverage.
That’s when I learned how cruel the killer was-all the victims were women, the youngest only sixteen.
After the victims died, the killer would sever their heads, and no rain gear belonging to the victims was ever found at the scene. All the victims’ shoes were missing.
“All right.” Bai Yu stood under the spotlight, looking as holy as an archangel. “Everyone’s here. Thank you for coming to the script reading for The Unceasing Storm. Now, let’s begin…”
I turned my head to see that Zheng Nan Zhou had arrived as well.
He saw me, frowned, and seemed puzzled about why I was there.