I have a persona specifically for acting.

“Yan Qi!”

Seeing Tong Zhao being thrown out of the truck, both the audience and Song Kaiyu felt their hearts tighten.

Song Kaiyu rushed over and helped her up.

The fall was severe, and Tong Zhao, feeling dizzy and disoriented, allowed him to hold her for a moment. The close-up that the audience saw showed her gazing at the male lead’s neck with a look of hunger as they embraced.

Was she going to bite him?

Before the tension could fully build, Tong Zhao pushed away from Song Kaiyu’s embrace: “I can stand on my own.”

Tong Zhao stood still, her slender frame upright like a sword with its edge bared—something that could only be observed from a distance and not touched. Just a touch would cut, and a sword didn’t need to be embraced by anyone.

The three of them climbed through the open cargo container into the driver’s seat and then entered the research institute’s lobby through the window that had been smashed open.

Like many office buildings, the first floor had a reception desk and elevators.

The interior decoration was in disarray due to the crash. Since there might be zombies inside, Tong Zhao turned to the group and signaled for silence, and the two immediately shut up, swallowing all their questions.

The office building was too tall for Tong Zhao to search alone; she might end up poisoned or worse before finding anything. The intelligent AI, detecting the importance of the scene to the plot, broadcasted Tong Zhao’s inner monologue at this moment:

[My physical condition is getting worse. It’s definitely more than just a fever or a cold; the virus must be starting to take effect… Ha, it seems like we don’t have much time left. Or maybe I inadvertently did something that accelerated the virus activation? Forget it, I’ll put that aside for now.]

The protagonist is truly intelligent!

Watching a resourceful and capable hero navigate challenges is quite enjoyable.

Moreover, seeing the injured beauty face these trials makes the audience feel closer to her, evoking a sense of sympathy and hope that fate will be kinder to her.

With the guide, Anna, having fallen earlier, the director added a schematic map code at the research institute’s reception, essentially providing a map. Tong Zhao looked up at the plastic board nailed to the wall.

The doctor’s laboratory was on the top floor, the 23rd.

The elevator was still operational, sparing the three from the grueling climb up the stairs and accelerating their infection.

In the original script, they were supposed to climb, but the props team estimated that Tong Zhao might become so aggressive during the climb that she could potentially kill the other two. Therefore, the script was changed to allow the use of the elevator.

However, the elevator only went up to the 20th floor, so they would have to walk the remaining three floors.

The 21st and 22nd floors were designated as staff dormitories and patient wards respectively. After the virus outbreak, those who hadn’t escaped would likely have become hungry zombies, and they would need to pass through these two floors to reach the 23rd.

Tong Zhao informed the others of her conclusions.

“After reaching the 20th floor, we’ll definitely have to fight zombies,”

Her light-colored eyes were filled with coldness, and her grip on the gun was tight. Only the audience with the God’s-eye view knew that she was barely holding back the murderous urges caused by the virus and had no time to act kindly: “If you’re scared or want to stay back and wait for me to protect you, you can stay here and wait for me to bring back the antidote.”

“I’ll stay here, so I won’t be a burden to my sister.”

Feng Sisi quickly made her choice.

Song Kaiyu pressed his lips together, showing the resolute demeanor expected of a man: “There’s no way I’m letting you go alone. I’ll follow you. Even if it’s just firing at zombies, having an extra person means more firepower. I won’t back down in the face of danger.”

Tong Zhao looked at him, slightly moved.

“No!”

Feng Sisi tugged at her sister’s sleeve with a pleading expression: “Don’t leave me alone again. It might not be safe here; there could be zombies sneaking in… What if you don’t get the antidote? Am I just supposed to wait here to die?”

She was genuinely anxious.

[……]

[Help, Feng Sisi is so selfish! Even the screenwriter couldn’t come up with this level of selfishness. Is she only thinking about herself?]

[How many good deeds did she do in her past life to be reborn as the female lead’s sister?]

[I accept that her values are skewed, but I really want to see Tong Zhao give her a couple of shots! Autumn pear syrup!]

Tong Zhao looked down at her, her expressive almond-shaped eyes showing no emotion.

“Yeah, wait here to die, what else?”

She spoke with a hint of curiosity, her voice even more hoarse: “Do you think I’m guaranteed to find the antidote? That I’m certain to survive? Stop dreaming. We should have died a long time ago. Right now, we’re just fighting for a sliver of hope in the hands of death. Don’t expect me to rely on you. Just stay put and wait.”

Tong Zhao’s voice was no longer pleasant to hear.

It was used for mockery, giving it a different flavor.

“I don’t mind if you’re useless or foolish, but you’d better obey.”

She suddenly frowned, biting her lower lip until it cracked and bled.

“I, I…”

Feng Sisi was left speechless, her face pale and filled with grievance as she looked at her, silently accusing her of cruelty. Tong Zhao, however, had no interest in watching her performance and asked, “Last chance—will you come with me or stay here?”

Feng Sisi opened her mouth and then shut it again, finally whispering with tears in her eyes, “I’m too scared to go up…”

Tong Zhao didn’t waste any more words with her. She grabbed her by the hair and dragged her onto the truck, then hoisted her up and shoved her head-first into the cargo area. “Stay here. If you don’t want to die, don’t make any noise.”

This kind of rough, trash-like behavior was unanimously approved by the audience.

Feng Sisi’s character had gone from being the group’s favorite to a much-despised “green tea sister.” If Tong Zhao were too kind to her, she’d be criticized as a saint.

Besides, Tong Zhao was right.

In a life-or-death escape, who has time for such pretentiousness?

Also, it was the older sister’s protection that had shielded her from hardship, but live-action films have no time for gradual character development. The stronger get stronger, and the foolish remain foolish—an unchanging rule.

The sun blazed, and everything was laid bare.

The two of them entered the elevator.

“Yan Qi, your voice is really hoarse,” Song Kaiyu noticed something.

“The virus is starting to take effect,” Tong Zhao smiled, recognizing that his voice hadn’t changed yet. “I’m experiencing it worse than you. If I completely lose control and attack you, just…”

“Then let’s die together.”

Song Kaiyu interrupted her.

Tong Zhao raised her eyebrows.

“I have to admit I’m a rather weak man. I don’t have the resolve to shoot my girlfriend. If one of us is going to survive, it should definitely be you.”

The elevator was rising quickly, so quickly that she was starting to get a bit of ear pressure.

Their situations were the same, and Song Kaiyu reached out to touch her ear. “If eating me when the virus takes over makes you feel a bit better, then I’m happy to finally be of some use in this escape journey.”

With this joking remark, the elevator arrived at the 20th floor.

The elevator doors slowly opened.

They had already heard many heavy, dense footsteps, but none of the steps were hesitant.

[I think, Feng Sisi will never know what she missed.]

[Can the romance of a strong woman and a weak man be this touching? I’m teary-eyed.]

[The writer is amazing!!]

The writer, feeling a mix of emotions and not daring to claim credit, posted a tweet:

@DailyScriptwriterQiao:

“The current plot of ‘Countdown 72 Hours’ compared to my script…

I can’t say it’s identical, but I can say it’s entirely unrelated.”

*

As Tong Zhao had expected, the 21st and 22nd floors were like scenes from hell.

Fortunately, the two were well-prepared with ample firepower, unloading magazine after magazine. As Song Kaiyu’s hands began to tremble from firing so much, Tong Zhao’s infection level visibly soared, peaking from 70% to 80%. In the grand scene, every close-up shot was given to Tong Zhao, while the male lead didn’t get any close-ups.

Because she was in immense pain.

Her lower lip was bitten raw, and her beautiful eyes were half-stained gray.

The zombie horde wouldn’t give them a chance for close combat. The small knife Tong Zhao had prepared was used to cut herself, on her arms, thighs, and shoulders, inflicting pain where it was needed to maintain a minimal level of awareness. By the time they reached the stairway from the 22nd to the 23rd floor, Tong Zhao could no longer move and had to collapse in the stairwell, signaling Song Kaiyu to go up to the 23rd floor to find the antidote.

Since Song Kaiyu had been relatively unaffected, his lower infection level allowed him to search through all the bottles and jars on the top floor and find the antidote for 【Desire】. This was the margin Tong Zhao had fought to secure for him, and he seized it, grasping the faint glimmer of hope offered by death. Returning to the unconscious Tong Zhao, he personally administered the antidote to her…

As if fate had already made its arrangements.

Tang Jingjie, who had been a background character throughout the entire film, ended up having his moment of glory in the end.

Yet, not a single Tong Zhao fan felt this was undeserved.

In fact, many thought this scene was even more touching than the previous solo performances of Tong Zhao and were glad that Tong Zhao’s trust in him had not been misplaced.

The two of them relied on each other and fell into an exhausted sleep, waiting for the antidote to take effect.

There was no strength left to return to the first floor to deliver the antidote to Feng Sisi, who had hoped to lay low until the end.

And she never mustered the courage to come up and find them before the end of the show.

[It’s a relief!]

[Wuwuwu, can I say I cried watching this? It’s over. I’m a fan of Jie Zai’s girlfriend, but I support this marriage now. It’s so sweet. I also want to be the female warrior protecting Jie Zai!]

[Tong Zhao, forever a god!]

At the end of the show, the actors opened their eyes simultaneously.

It felt like waking up from a long dream, still disoriented.

When Tong Zhao opened her eyes, Duan Ge was still in control of her primary persona. However, the memories of everyone in the drama had not yet returned, so no one knew how they performed or what had happened in the drama. As soon as Tong Zhao stepped out of the cabin, a blonde-haired, round-faced figure and Tang Jingjie rushed over, hugging her from both sides.

?

What’s going on?

Duan Ge was a bit confused and habitually patted their heads, one hand on each: “Be good, be good.”

“Wuwuwu, I don’t even know why, I just really want to hug you…” Tang Jingjie, being a soft-hearted boy, couldn’t help but blurt out: “I’m doomed, my manager is definitely going to kill me. We won’t be rumored, right? Oh my God, what happened in the drama, I don’t want to let you go…”

“It’s normal to not want to let go, you should hold on!”

Anna, who had watched the second half of the drama due to leaving early, was also crying.

Everyone was quite moved, but Xu Zhu, who had been left aside, awkwardly looked towards the director’s team. She guessed that Tong Zhao must have had a particularly tragic end because they were all so upset, and she gave Tong Zhao some comforting words:

“It’s normal for a post-apocalyptic survival film to be very challenging. It’s okay if you didn’t perform perfectly. Tong Zhao, don’t be too hard on yourself.”