Director Ward received them at his home.


    He was a thin, sixty-year-old man, but his eyes were bright and sharp. He lived in a high-end viplex on the outskirts of Istra. The vi was decorated in a ssic, traditional style, and there was even a ssical zither in the living room.


    Director Ward''s daughter was a zither virtuoso, quite well-known in ssical music circles.


    "My Nic isn''t home today, otherwise you could have heard her y."


    "Our timing is off, then. What a shame," Sandra replied with a polite smile.


    Director Ward had a maid serve them coffee, then started discussing the production.


    The project was a suspenseful crime investigation series. It was a fifty-episode drama divided into four arcs, each focusing on a different case.


    Pre-production was mostlyplete, and filming was scheduled to start at the end of the month.


    However, the lead actress for the first arc had taken on another project without consulting the production team and wouldn''t be able to join the set until a week after filming began. Moreover, the shooting schedule would have to amodate her avability.


    Director Ward was furious and terminated her contract on the spot.


    It was a rash decision, and with filming about to begin, he hadn''t been able to find a suitable recement. A friend then rmended Yvonne, whose age and appearance were a perfect fit for the character.


    Yvonne''s acting wasn''t outstanding, but it wasn''t terrible either. Unable to find a betterst-minute recement, Director Ward had a long chat with Yvonne and then readily signed the contract.


    Filming for Director Ward''s drama would begin in ten days.


    Sandra hired a professional acting coach for Yvonne to go over the script, analyze the character, and guide her performance.


    Yvonne had been a police officer in her past life and hadn''t spent much time honing her acting skills in this one.


    The fact that her performances in previous projects didn''t seem terrible was mostly thanks to the directors and the roles themselves.


    Sandra was aware of Yvonne''s shorings, so she tried to book her for variety shows to increase her exposure, and was very selective about the acting roles she took.


    Although Director Ward''s new drama wasn''t a big-budget production, it was an adaptation of a best-selling novel and had a huge following.


    The character was also a great fit for Yvonne. If she could portray it well, she would add another signature role to her portfolio.


    Yvonne secluded herself to focus on


    her acting lessons, bing incredibly busy. Meanwhile, Bet had returned to his unit and must have gone on a mission, as she couldn''t reach him.


    She understood the nature of his work, so she didn''t bother him.


    She just sent him a message every night before bed. Sometimes she''d talk about something funny that happened during the day,


    sometimes she''d mention what she ate, and other times she''d just report her schedule. asionally, she''d simply send, "I miss you."


    A fortnightter, Yvonne joined the film set.


    She was ying the female lead of one of the arcs. The role was significant, but her screen time wasn''t extensive, and she would likely finish filming in about two months.


    Yvonne arrived on set a day early. The next day, at the opening ceremony, she was surprised to see Thomas there.


    None of the early promotions had mentioned his involvement. His sudden appearance was quite unexpected.


    Given Thomas'' status, he was the center of attention on any set.


    However, Thomas, raised in a prestigious family, had a natural air of pride but behaved with great modesty and humility.


    During the group photo, he didn''t


    stand in the center spot. Instead, he


    humbly stood off to the side, since


    aquest


    he was only sn''t a main cast


    appearance and


    member.