I Will Live as an Actor Episode 119:
A frog that has been hibernating all winter sticks out its head. Green barley is now rampant even on the rice fields that were buried under the harsh winter snow.
The seeds that were sown in the open field last night have grown to the point where flower stalks are growing, adding to the greenery. My heart flutters as I look at the ridge of the palace, which is full of grandeur and solemnity, and encounter such vast coolness.
âDirector Yoo, I like filming barley fields like this better than filming luxurious palaces. It reminds me of when I was young, and my mouth starts watering when I see frogs jumping around in the background⦠I only get to see rice fields full of barley fields. âIt strangely smells like potatoes.â
âSmell like potatoes?â
âAfter harvesting the barley, the barley straw is burned. When I was young, I would secretly put the potatoes in the field and eat them while burning the barley straw. I grew up watching the barley straw being burned in the field, taking a big bite of the potato, and late in the evening. âWhen I go home, I get hit on the back and scolded by my mom. My whole body is covered in charcoal soot. Itâs a memory I canât go back to anymore.â
Cinematographer Kim Deuk-hyung is facing the open field and reminiscing about the past. Even though I donât completely empathize with his childhood, I feel like I can vaguely understand it as I look at the edge of the green barley tree with its blue waves rippling.
The famous PD smiles slightly and turns his head. There, a young man stands silently facing a barley field.
Even from a distance, you can clearly tell that he is a nobleman, wearing a hat and fluttering the hem of his clothes, and his clothes are so beautiful. At that moment, a famous PD came towards England and handed me a cup of warm coffee and said:
âEngland, why are you so sentimental?â
âIt just reminds me of the old days. When I was young, my mother used to eat barley rice with mashed sweet potatoes. At the time, it looked so delicious compared to rice that I once cried because only my mother could eat delicious food. In hindsight, I realized it was all because there was no rice in the house. It was⦠is this too pretentious?â
âItâs the main storyâ¦â
âBy the way, who are the people you see over there? Looking at them, they donât seem to be supporting actors.â
The famous PD answers Britainâs question by wiping the bridge of his nose.
âIâve been getting a lot of calls from the drama department these days. Starting from the press, various media outlets are pouring in with inquiries about whether they can cover the filming location. It seems like everyone is thinking of getting a spoonful of it. But we, Entertainment News, have an opportunity. I went back.â
In the end, the arm was bent inwards. As expected, the viewer ratings of the drama âKing Yeonsanâs Secretâ were increasing with each episode.
How amazing is it that the viewership rating surpassed 36.8% after the halfway point? Since there is so much public interest, there will be many media outlets that want to cover it. At that moment, a frog jumps and runs beyond the feet of the two people.
âYou know there are a lot of frogs at todayâs filming location, right?â
âI know. As soon as I arrived at the filming location, the sound of frogs croaking was so loud that I thought I was in a frog field, not a barley field.â
âIâm really worried about that now. If the car actor is a frog, he hates it so much that even now he doesnât want to get out of the car. Itâs like he has amphibian phobia or something. I heard that when he was young, his father boiled the hind legs of a frog for his health, and he developed it after eating them.â
England turns his head. As the famous producer said, actress Cha Hye-jinâs car is stopped at a sudden stop and doesnât seem to want to open the door. For some reason, he didnât move in the car while it was on standby.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
âHow long do you plan on not getting out of the car?â
âOh, weâre being interviewed right now. Actor Cha didnât want to get out of the car, so the reporter went in himself.â
her.
At that time, the vehicle Cha Hye-jin was riding in suddenly shook.
Are you dancing inside?
The famous producer continued speaking while looking towards the field.
âIf a frog appears in the middle of filming, England, please clean it up. Donât ad-lib like last time.â
âWhat ad-lib?â
âIn the past, when we were filming in Jagalchi, England threw a mackerel at Actor Park. Iâm telling you in advance that Actor Cha will retaliate when he ad-libbed you without consulting you before.â
The frogâs cry is loud. Itâs like they know what theyâre talking about. The corners of Englandâs eyes are strangely bent as they look at the open field.
* * *
Inside the car, actress Cha Hye-jinâs eyebrows are narrowed. Doesnât it clearly reveal that she feels uncomfortable? The reason was simple. Not only was the filming location in a field full of cold wind, but it was also full of frogs, which I hated so much.
âMr. Cha Hye-jin?â
It was the reporterâs voice that awakened my thoughts. When I came to my senses, I found myself face to face with a reporter from entertainment news.
âThe light yellow skirt and embroidered jeogori match really well. I donât know if I can say this, but I think she represents the era so well that she can truly be called the best gisaeng of Joseon.â
âOh, thank you.â
âWhen Cha Hye-jin took on the role of Jang Nok-soo, there was a lot of interest from the public. It was because they were wondering whether her image would fit well with the rising star actor Jang Young-guk. In my opinion, to what extent does she fit well with Jang Young-guk? Do you think so?â
Jang Young-guk?
Cha Hye-jin glanced at actor Jang Young-guk outside the car window. It was acknowledged that he was a good actor for his age. Donât you remember getting scolded while trying to ad-lib? But thatâs it.
âAs an actor, Jang Young-guk is a very good actor. Although he is a âjuniorâ to me, he is also an actor I can learn a lot from.â
âThen what about in private?â
âHuh? I donât know because Iâve never contacted you personally.â
âOh, but when young men and women in their twenties gather together, donât feelings arise that werenât there before?â
âIâm not particularly interested in him as a man, but rather he just seems like a younger brother.â
âYounger brother?â
The reporterâs eyes widened. Not surprisingly, actor Jang Young-guk is currently the male actor who receives the most love calls from actresses across broadcasters and Chungmuro.
Although he is obviously young, his body is as strong as that of most athletes. Moreover, his acting skills were so great that they were hard to find among people his age.
âI just feel like heâs a bigger younger brother.â
Not true. Cha Hye-jin sometimes found it difficult with England. Although he was obviously younger than you and had a shorter career, didnât you somehow feel that you were facing difficulties as if you were facing someone your senior? I may have stayed away from England in order to constantly avoid those difficulties.
âIn some ways, it is no exaggeration to say that he is completely integrated with the role of Jang Noksu. If you look at actual history, it is said that Jang Noksu treated Yeonsangun like a baby.â
He is such a competent reporter that he is better at interpreting dreams than dreams.
âYouâre not wrong.â
âAre there any episodes you experienced while filming? For example, a memorable incident with Jang Young-guk during filmingâ¦?â
The reporter explicitly tries to bring up stories related to the UK. After all, isnât he the actor who is currently receiving the most attention in broadcasting? Actress Cha Hye-jin was also a beautiful actress who was well-known in Korea, but she could not compare to her popularity in the UK.
Thatâs because he achieved three great things in a row as an actor, including winning the Best Actor award at the Blue Dragon Film Awards, getting a perfect score on the Scholastic Ability Test, and being admitted to the Department of Law at Korea University. Moreover, the popularity of the historical drama âKing Yeonsanâs Secretâ exceeded 36.8% in viewership ratings.
âItâs an episode during filmingâ¦â
Cha Hye-jin thought about teasing England, but she couldnât think of any particular episode. Every time I finish acting on set,
I say, âThank you for your hard work.â
Werenât we parting ways after saying goodbye?
This is strange considering that most of the male actors who have filmed with her have had personal feelings for her.
âCould it be that Iâm that unattractive?â
Cha Hye-jin unconsciously glanced at England through the car window. However, England is still talking to the famous PD, whether he knows it or not. It was then.
âHow did the frog get in the car?â
The reporter said, looking at the floor of the car in confusion. At that voice, Cha Hye-jin gasps and lifts her legs. Even the interview was conducted in a car because I hate frogs, so how did a frog come in?
âQuickly kick it out!â
Because of Cha Hye-jinâs noise, the car shakes as if there was an earthquake.
* * *
âScene No. 57 Lee Yung and Jang Nok-su in the barley fieldâ!â
The angle of the camera is looking down at the subject from the sky, like a hawk in the sky watching over swollen fish in spring. Eventually, like a descending hawk, the camera zooms in on the two people walking along a side road in a green barley field.
âYour Highness, you havenât said anything today.â
Yeonsangun Lee Yung smiles bitterly. By now, there must be a brother who looks exactly like him sitting on the throne in the palace. Wasnât he watching his body in a dark room in a vast barley field, avoiding the eyes of his ministers?
It would be a lie if I said I wasnât worried about whether my younger brother would be able to do well during the short and long seven days (one week).
âNoksu, arenât you curious? How is it possible for me to leave the royal court and stay outside for such a long time?â
âThe girl just wants your royal body to be healthy, and she doesnât care about anything else.â
âEven the passing blades of grass are so peaceful, but why is the courtâs edge so sharp? If everyone had a peaceful mind like Noksu, there would be no confusion.â
Actress Cha Hye-jin, who plays Jang Nok-su, smiles slightly. Yeonsangun Lee Yong is walking in an open field facing the rising spring sunlight. Of course, Kim Ho-in, the commander of the Geumwi, follows the two from afar.
âThe bluish green barley is as beautiful as the beauty of heaven. If I were to drink in a place like this, I wouldnât be envious of Shinseon. However, I am sick and cannot drink, so I guess I will have to soothe my sadness with a tune. Noksu, can you dance for me? Is there any?â
âIf it is your Majestyâs command, I will dance even on the frozen river.â
Yeonsangun Lee Yung picks up a blade of grass that has bloomed on a side road. It is a blade of grass that exists at the edge of faded memories from childhood. Didnât his mother take the blades of grass that had bloomed on the stone wall of Changdeokgung Palace and play the flute for him?
Block your lower lip and blow air between your upper lip and the blade of grass. A tune containing an age-old longing resonates over the barley fields.
The sound of grasshoppers rustling across the barley stalks blooming in the field and the cries of frogs waking up from their winter sleep all come together. Meanwhile, Jang Noksu is dancing, fluttering the hem of his yellow skirt. It was then.
Jump up.
A frog jumped onto the hem of Jang Noksuâs skirt while he was dancing. The famous producer, who was watching the scene on the telescreen, opened his eyes wide and looked at the shooting scene beyond the angle. just as expected. The face of actress Cha Hye-jin, who played the role of Jang Nok-su, was showing off her dance moves and her face was turning blue.
âShall we cut?â
Originally, the scene would be a one-take. Isnât this a scene depicting a sunny spring day between Jang Noksu and Yeonsangun? However, Jang Noksuâs expression changed due to the sudden uninvited guest. Do I have no choice but to stop filming? It was a moment of worry. But at that moment.
âNoksu, why did you suddenly stop dancing?â
England, who plays the role of Yeonsangun Lee Yong, approaches the frozen Jang Noksu. Then, she bent down and gently cupped the frog that was climbing up the hem of her skirt with both hands.
The frog, as if it had found its own home, comes into the hands of England. Yeonsangun Lee Yung elaborates as he releases the frog back into the barley field as if nothing had happened.
âI guess the frog thought you were a blooming rape flower. âItâs so beautiful even without scent, so how can we not be mistaken?â