36 Filming in progress

What is it like for a talented and spiritual actor to start filming?

Liu Xuan, a "genius actor" who had been "guided" by his teacher countless times, witnessed this.

At first, everyone was holding a script. But as the scenes progressed, Liu Xuan was the only one left holding the script.

Liu Xuan: Am I the only one who just got the script today? It’s only been a short while and you guys have memorized all the lines?

Young actor Liu Xuan sensed a deep malice. Even though Cui Yiying smiled warmly and Song Qixian showed respect for his senior, he felt like these two were bullying him with their acting skills!

Inadvertently glancing at the director and screenwriter smiling happily, Liu Xuan became unhappy, but he tried to pretend to be happy like "Meng Tingtai" after seeing Fang Xiyu and Jiang Zhu reconcile, so his smile was particularly ugly.

The director, watching, saw this and frowned. "Is this male lead, who's a relative, really that bad at acting? I'll have to put in some serious effort. I can't let him spoil the whole thing."

Amidst the crowd, the rivalry between "Bang Xiyu" and "Choi Ye-young" continued. They were completely oblivious to the number of staff members drawn to them, completely absorbed in the role.

Since the conflict in the first episode broke out between Fang Xiyu and Cui Yiying, and Meng Tingtai was just a bystander, they started arguing fiercely.

Fang Xiyu's brows furrowed, the ends of his eyebrows rising high. The unpleasant expression on the previously respectable super genius's face was enough to reveal his deepest dislike for the woman before him.

He adjusted the watch on his wrist, loosened his tie, and let out a long breath, his chest rising and falling. No matter how much he hated this woman, he wouldn't do anything to her.

He waved his hand, letting the people outside in, and said to Jiang Zhu, suppressing his temper, "I won't say any more to you. I'll call a lawyer."

Once he entered the performance, Song Qixian's characteristic modesty and calmness vanished. It was the same face, but subtle expressions and gestures revealed a different person.

Fang Xiyu, the arrogant and insolent young master of the Fang family.

After this highlight was over, Song Qixian finally woke up from his dream. Immediately afterwards, he bowed deeply to senior Cui Yiying to express his apology.

Cui Yiying smiled and nodded, saying, "Don't be so polite, just call me Sister Yiying."

Liu Xuan's expression was very subtle. He couldn't compete with his acting skills on screen, and he couldn't pretend well outside of the show. Those who succeeded in the entertainment industry were all shrewd people. Fortunately, he had a good company and a good agent.

What kind of person was Song Qixian? A child who had grown up in poverty, yet at such a young age, he had more work experience than 90% of his peers. So he immediately saw what Liu Xuan was thinking, that he was dissatisfied with him.

However, Song Qixian could not hide his abilities just because of some people's dissatisfaction. He had already decided to pursue his acting career to the end, so he had to show his abilities to every director.

Song Qixian wants to be a successful person in the universal sense.

So Song Qixian pretended not to notice Liu Xuan's meaningful look and didn't hear the hidden meaning in his words.

Liu Xuan went back and told his agent Song Qixian about it, complaining why he found him another drama where the second male lead was better than him.

His agent holds a very important position in the company, managing many people, so he's very busy on a daily basis. Upon hearing Liu Xuan's response, the agent impatiently replied to the young master, "So what kind of drama do you want to film? You even dislike Ha Mi-sook's dramas. Do you know how much I've done to get you in?"

Liu Xuan was still very afraid of his agent, and even when scolded, he didn't dare show his dissatisfaction, so he didn't dare complain anymore. He just whispered, "He's a good actor. If we really start filming, he will definitely steal my limelight. I'm doing this for the good of the company. This drama is so high-quality, it would be bad if he took all the credit."

Although the agent was annoyed by Liu Xuan's constant bothering him, he also took Liu Xuan's words to heart. Since this second male lead was so restless, he might as well replace him.

Liu Xuan's company is the largest film and television company under LT, with extensive resources and connections. Their agent approached the president of M Company and politely stated that they don't want their actor to appear in the same drama as Liu Xuan. They hope you'll be proactive and break the contract. Of course, we'll cover the penalty for breach of contract and even offer you a reward for your hard work.

The president of M Company agreed. After all, M Company was just an entertainment company. Although it was known as one of the "Big Four" in the eyes of outsiders, in reality, M Company had very little connections with the upper echelons. If they made any trouble, they would have to deal with it for a long time.

Everything was waiting to be settled, but unexpectedly, Ha Mi-sook firmly disagreed to replace Song Qixian.

This plump, middle-aged woman showed extraordinary persistence. In front of everyone on the set, she made a phone call and declared in a resounding voice, "Fang Xiyu must be Song Qixian."

At that time, Song Qixian was on the set and had just received a notice asking him to leave the crew.

This was a heavy blow to him. Minister Cui couldn't bear to tell him this cruel news, so he asked Ming Shangyu to call him.

Ming Shangyu was very cautious in his words on the phone, "The company has other plans for you... The chairman said he will try to get you another role."

Song Qixian suppressed the huge panic in his heart and went to comfort Ming Shangyu, who was also feeling bad.

"I understand, Hiong. I'll be leaving soon. I'm fine. Actually, this role is difficult, and I wasn't a good actor to begin with. Staying here would only cause trouble for everyone. Yeah, there will definitely be other opportunities in the future."

Afraid that someone might notice something was amiss in his words, Song Qixian hastily hung up the phone. He tilted his head back to suppress the thought in his eyes, closing them to recover his composure. When he opened them again, aside from a hint of red at the corners of his eyes, he couldn't see anything else wrong.

He didn't have much to pack, so he only brought a black backpack with a glass of water in it.

Song Qixian thought with a bit of amusement that when he first arrived at the company, he seemed to be in the same situation, penniless and with nothing.

Song Qixian no longer dared to look at other people's eyes. He knew that those eyes contained either sympathy or gloating. No matter which one it was, he didn't want to distinguish it. He just wanted to leave, leave quickly.

Just before leaving, a loud noise erupted from somewhere on the set.

"I don't agree! I don't agree to replace him!" Ha Mi-sook shouted at the director in a serious tone. The director was a little embarrassed. The replacement had nothing to do with him and he couldn't make the decision. He tried to calm things down, "How about this, sister, let's talk it out and don't let outsiders laugh at us."

Screenwriter Ha Mi-sook's new drama is very popular, and there are reporters outside the crew watching. The director does not want to make the news that "screenwriter Ha Mi-sook left in anger, suspected of being dissatisfied with the new drama."

But Ha Mi-sook ignored his advice. She walked straight up to Song Qixian and told him not to leave. She then made a phone call in front of everyone present.

"I don't agree to change people," said Ha Mi-sook.

The person on the other end of the phone didn't know what was said. Ha Meishu said in a resounding voice, "Song Qixian is the Fang Xiyu in my heart. I will never agree to replace him. If he replaces me, then I will leave."

Her words shocked everyone. Song Qixian looked at her blankly, and a familiar figure emerged in his mind.

Ha Mi-sook's words successfully calmed the person on the other end of the phone. The other party seemed to have compromised, and Ha Mi-sook smiled.

After hanging up the phone, He Meishu said to Song Qixian: "Kid, you don't have to leave."

She changed from a female warrior back to an ordinary middle-aged woman, with a chubby round face and almost no eyes when she smiled. But Song Qixian thought she was extremely beautiful.

His nose felt sore, and he replied to her in a heavy voice: "Thank you."

Song Qixian stayed, and everyone knew who was responsible, because Liu Xuan took a sick leave the next day. This disappointed a large number of people who wanted to watch the fun.

At the same time, many people also sighed in their hearts that Liu Xuan was indeed a person who would never achieve great things. After harming someone, he did not dare to face the victim.

The male lead has taken a leave of absence, and the crew’s salary is not paid for nothing, so they can only shoot the scenes of the female lead and the second male lead first.

To repay the kindness of screenwriter Ha Mi-sook, Song Qixian worked even harder, often taking the script to consult with seniors or the director. The script book was densely covered with black and red notes, and he knew several lines by heart.

He's also quite popular with the staff. Of the three main actors, Choi Ye-young is kind but keeps a distance, while Yoo Sun is arrogant and difficult to please. Song Qixian, on the other hand, is grateful for the staff's efforts, never uses his power to pressure them, and promptly gives them autographs when asked.

The director couldn't stand it anymore and privately told Song Qixian to be less good-tempered, otherwise others would think he was easy to bully.

Song Qixian agreed and he no longer took the initiative to help others, but when someone came to him for help, he returned to his old ways.

Without Yoo Sun, the atmosphere on set was more harmonious. Screenwriter Ha Mi-sook watched Song Ki-hyun and Choi Ye-young's scenes together, and inspiration flowed like a spring, so she added a lot of scenes for Fang Xiyu.

When Liu Xuan returned, he didn't confront Song Qixian as some people had expected. Instead, Song Qixian became even more respectful to Liu Xuan. This made some people curse Song Qixian for being weak-kneed.

The director and screenwriter noticed Song Qixian's behavior and realized that he was a sensible kid. Because of Song Qixian's outstanding acting skills, they both wanted to work with him again.

Song Qixian felt resentment and hatred, but he knew he had no right to lose his temper. Resentment and hatred wouldn't solve any problems; they would only exacerbate conflicts. He couldn't afford to let anyone get a hold of him before he had accumulated enough initial capital.

If Liu Xuan was afraid that he would steal the audience's attention, then he would show him. He would openly make Liu Xuan a loser.

Song Qixian's ambition is exposed. The story of the second male lead rising to the top has never been a myth. As long as he does well enough, the audience will defend him.

Two weeks later, "Money and Magic" was released simultaneously online and on TV, breaking the five-year record for TV drama premiere ratings.

The name Song Qixian has officially entered the hearts of young Koreans, and this time, hot posts with his name have sprung up like mushrooms after rain.

In China, Tanya heard about a Korean drama that became a hit after only two episodes were aired, and she also heard that there were familiar faces in the drama.

With curiosity and anticipation, she opened the first episode of "Money and Magic" and began to immerse herself in watching this acclaimed drama.

【Author’s words】

Xiao Song "blackened" [spreading hands]