After filming wrapped on "Blood Mist," the official recording of the variety show "Don't Look Back When It Gets Dark" was also put on the agenda.

The regular guests have been confirmed as Liu Qingling, Yang Ji, and Rong Yu. Of the previous young masters, only Lei Miao and Wei Shu have time to play. There are also three guest stars, who will be responsible for product endorsement and promotion of the upcoming drama.

There was another spot that was originally meant for Shu Liubai from Huansheng Entertainment, but it just so happened that Shu Liubai's schedule didn't allow it. Yin Chengjue couldn't think of any other artist from Huansheng who would be suitable for the spot, so at Qin Linlin's suggestion, he had no choice but to take the spot himself.

Recording a program with Rong Yu meant being able to appear in the same production team as Rong Yu openly and legitimately, and Yin Chengjue had no complaints about it.

Besides, Yin Chengjue still vividly remembers how Rong Yu single-handedly defeated everyone in the last audition, which makes him eager to try it out as well.

Following the setup and procedures Qin Linlin had written beforehand, the group arrived at the villa Qin Linlin had rented deep in the mountains. Under the arrangement of the villa's old housekeeper, they checked into the rooms that the villa owner had allowed them to rest in.

This time, Qin Linlin did not maintain the mystery of their personas. Instead, she gave each of them their own personas and backgrounds early on, and asked them to memorize them so that they could perform them briefly during the actual filming.

Among them, Liu Qingling appears as the butler.

Qin Linlin asked Liu Qingling to first learn from the old butler of the villa, familiarize herself with the environment of the villa that was open to them for filming, and imitate the old butler's behavior and actions, striving to play the most realistic butler image.

Yin Chengjue drew the identity of the villa owner's eldest son from the original wife, while Rong Yu drew the identity of the villa owner's youngest son from the original wife. Yang Ji drew the identity of a maid, Lei Miao drew the identity of a lawyer, Wei Shu drew the identity of a distant cousin, Ling Ting, the female artist who endorsed Qin's waterproof cosmetics, drew the identity of an illegitimate daughter, Guan Haifeng, the male artist who endorsed Lei's quarterly new mobile phone, drew the identity of an illegitimate son, and Wei Lu, the female artist who endorsed Xiao's smart learning machine, drew the identity of an adopted daughter.

Yin Chengjue had discussed the plot with Qin Linlin before and knew the general direction of the plot. However, because Qin Linlin later went back to organize the outline of the process, Yin Chengjue only knew what would happen, but did not know the reason for such things, or who the murderer was.

To avoid Yin Chengjue spoiling the story, Qin Linlin and Yin Chengjue made a three-point agreement: she could only tell her story after finding the key evidence; otherwise, even if she knew, she had to pretend not to know.

In Qin Linlin's words, "The show needs to create a good effect, just like dating needs to have a sense of ritual. It's not that a relationship without a sense of ritual isn't a relationship, but a relationship with a sense of ritual makes most people in love feel that they are valued by their partner."

Listening to Qin Linlin's roundabout explanation, Yin Chengjue gradually understood—this was an opportunity for him to get closer to Rong Yu.

Yin Chengjue glanced at Rong Yu, who was diligently memorizing the character's background.

Qin Linlin cleared her throat and said, "I specifically asked that fewer rooms be opened so that the old housekeeper could arrange for the two of you to stay in the same room. Tell me how you're going to thank me?"

Yin Chengjue thought to himself, what's wrong with living in the same room? They've been living together for more than half a year.

However, seeing the little girl's expression of seeking praise, Yin Chengjue sincerely thanked her and secretly remembered this favor.

Sally, as Rong Yu's agent, also came along this time, carrying three scripts: a film adaptation of the short story "Chase," a web series with two male leads adapted from the supernatural BL novel "Trial of the Celestial Clan," and a long novel with a male lead and infinite flow titled "The Witch's Decision."

Judging solely from the popularity of the original work, "The Witch's Decision" is undoubtedly the most popular. Even just getting a role as the third or fourth male lead would be a great achievement.

In contrast, if you choose "The Trials of the Celestials," although the theme is very trendy and contains elements of supernatural tales, and it is a BL drama, it already has a certain fan base. However... acting in a BL drama with two male leads, especially playing one of the two male leads, will inevitably lead to being used to create a CP (couple) pairing, and it will be a real-life CP. When the drama ends, the drama fans will disperse, and the individual fans will go their separate ways. What will the CP fans do then?

While the popularity of "Trials of the Celestials" is comparable to that of "The Witch's Decision," the supporting cast of "The Witch's Decision" will have an easier time with subsequent public relations efforts.

“If you want to audition for ‘The Trial of the Celestials,’ it would be best to choose some roles without any romantic pairings, not even the kind of cult-like pairings. But that’s obviously unlikely, so my suggestion is… pass.” Sally said as she pulled out the script for “The Trial of the Celestials” and put it aside.

Yin Chengjue: "..." Then why did you take it out in the first place?

As if she could read the doubt in Yin Chengjue's eyes, Sally spread her hands and said, "Isn't this just to show off my professional skills? I spent time and effort choosing this script. Besides..." Sally pointed to the book "Trial of the Celestial Clan" and said, "I just suggested that Xiaoyu not choose it, but if Xiaoyu really likes it, it's not impossible to choose it. Moreover, if the public relations are handled well later, it may be even more popular than "The Witch's Decision".

Yin Chengjue raised an eyebrow: "Oh? Tell me about it."

Sally: "Actually, it's about dealing with the issue of CP fans. After the drama ends, the two actors who played the main characters can't appear together often. Some CP fans who shipped the real-life couple will choose to give up, some will choose to continue, and some will choose to switch to only supporting one of them."

As Sally spoke, she held up three fingers and counted, "A Buddhist-style PR approach is to let the CP fans do whatever they want, but this may affect the film and television dramas that the lead actor will star in next. Once the lead actor is paired with other actors in other TV series, some CP fans who ship real-life CPs will definitely not be able to handle it and will choose to unfollow, or even turn from fans to haters."

"Therefore, most artist teams involved in these kinds of works will choose the most direct public relations method - to cleanse fans, torment fans, guide fans to become solo stans, and then continue to torment fans and solidify their fan base." Sally said, "Although the methods are not very attractive, the effect is very good. Artists can indeed maintain their popularity in this way, and even after the drama has finished airing, they can still enjoy the residual heat."

Yin Chengjue frowned as he listened: "This method..."

Rong Yu said, "I don't want to do this. It feels like we're using fans as tools."

Sally: "So I don't recommend auditioning for this script. Even if you audition, you might not get the role, because many artists are attracted by the controversy and hype surrounding this kind of drama and want to get a piece of the pie."

Yin Chengjue said, "Let's talk about the drama 'Chasing'. After all this build-up, isn't the one at the bottom the one you most want to recommend?"

"Hehe, that's right. The two dramas I mentioned before were auditions that started recently, and the roles still need to be confirmed through casting. But for 'Chase,' the director approached me first. After seeing the trailer for 'Blood Mist,' he felt that Xiaoyu's image perfectly matched the villainous character in the script, so he contacted me to invite you to play the villain in 'Chase.'"

"Villain?"

Sally nodded: "Yes, the villain, a tragic villain with a full character and a complicated backstory, a villain who combines anger, resentment, hatred, and sadness. If played well, he can even overshadow the male lead and show a unique charm."

Yin Chengjue: "Speak like a human being."

Sally: "Play him!"

Rong Yu picked up the script that Sally had strongly recommended and began to read it.

Sally then told Eun Seung-jue the general plot of "The Chase".

The protagonist of the story is a young man with an overflowing sense of justice who works as a cashier at a convenience store.

He had a woman he had a crush on for a long time. She was a lively and cheerful girl who loved photography, and she was also the female lead in the drama.

At the beginning of the story, the male protagonist was working the night shift. It wasn't until three or four in the morning that he closed the convenience store and walked home under the dim streetlights.

As we all know, when the male lead is in a big mood, something is bound to happen—either he exudes domineering power or he gets slapped in the face.

Even without the above, other things would still happen.

And this male protagonist just happened to encounter a street brawl.

Most normal people, upon witnessing such a street brawl, would immediately try to get away or call the police, but the protagonist did not!

He rolled up his sleeves and joined in the fray, laughing and punching and kicking for a while. After that, the protagonist dragged the man who had been beaten up by the thugs out, his own body and face also covered in bruises.

The man saved by the male protagonist is the villain—a villain who has lost his memory.

Oh, what a cliché amnesia trope!

But the reason it has become a formula is because it's very popular!

If someone is willing to pay, then someone will naturally be willing to make dishes that taste like that; it's a very reasonable market operation.

The male protagonist brought the villain home, and after a thorough cleaning and a haircut, the male protagonist and the female protagonist, who had come to watch, finally saw the villain's face clearly—a handsome face with fair and delicate skin.

The female lead's face showed a hint of excitement. The male lead, looking at the female lead he secretly loved, suddenly felt a sense of crisis and wanted to throw the villain out. However, driven by his sense of justice, he chose to let the villain stay at his house temporarily.

Don't ask why, just say it's because of the male lead's halo of justice!

So far, the plot has been uneventful, with only witty and humorous dialogue that makes it seem like a comedy.

But in the ordinary life of this common citizen, an opportunity to break the mundane arises—the female protagonist suddenly disappears!

This seemingly mundane plot, like bland soup, undergoes a dramatic transformation because of the female lead's disappearance.