Chapter 97 (097): A chapter with more plot during filming.
Chapter Ninety-Seven
"Can't you be a little more aware that you're a celebrity?" Feng Zeng sighed, rubbing his forehead.
After working together for a while, Feng Zeng discovered that Lin Yuan was... a bit gossipy.
Unfortunately, he didn't have many friends in the industry, and there were only a handful of people he could gossip about, and Feng Zeng was one of them.
Well, Lin Yuan is undeniably good-looking. He's sunny and cheerful, his smile is like a puppy's, and his eyes are bright and sparkling.
It's hard for most people to resist that sparkling gaze.
For example, Feng Zeng couldn't refuse.
But considering that Lin Yuan was only acting this way to listen to gossip, Feng Zeng felt...
Wouldn't it be better to use it to face the fans?
Use this face in the right place!
However, Lin Yuan—
Never mind, he doesn't want to talk about it.
The agent eventually complied, setting an alarm and writing the gossip down in a memo. When the time came, she would copy and paste it to Lin Yuan so that Lin Yuan could read it while putting on makeup.
Lin Yuan is easy to talk to, and from an agent's perspective, he has a very good temper, so Feng Zeng hoped he would have a pleasant day.
It's just a little bit of gossip, but I can still reveal it.
...
"The Ghost Art" was filmed quietly. Liu Xiaoguang has never been a high-profile person. When the film was in preparation, the industry only knew that he planned to make a mythological and supernatural film, but did not know the specific story.
However, because the male and female leads were Lin Yuan and Yu Ying, the film still garnered extraordinary attention.
Lin Yuan occasionally browses gossip and sees certain marketing accounts confidently claiming that he has already fought with Yu Ying.
"With Lin Yuan's tiny build, Yu Ying could take on two of him by herself."
Lin Yuan: "..."
I'm so sorry there aren't two of them.
He just never hears a single good word about himself.
Actually, the filming of "Ghost Arts" was quite peaceful.
Every morning, he and Yu Ying would arrive at the dressing room one after the other. Sometimes he would arrive a little earlier, and sometimes Yu Ying would arrive a little earlier. They would greet each other politely and then go about their own business.
If the wait was long, the two of them would pick up the script at the same time, ponder the lines, and imagine the scenes.
Yu Ying belongs to the type who closes her eyes to rest and contemplates things, sometimes looking around and sometimes thinking.
Lin Yuan belongs to the mysterious and eccentric type; he will silently mutter to himself while making slight finger movements.
Before filming a scene, he has already thought about the character's movements and expressions. After filming begins, he will make changes according to the situation, but the general direction of the performance has been determined from the beginning.
Lin Yuan glanced at Yu Ying's script, which, like his, was covered in notes. Although it wasn't crumpled up, the script was densely filled with words, leaving no clean space.
The two had only just begun to work together, but they already had a tacit understanding.
This was Lin Yuan's feeling; he didn't know what Yu Ying was thinking.
However, Lin Yuan could directly sense how well his co-stars performed.
In the script for "The Ghost Art," the scenes between the two characters haven't reached the confrontation stage yet, so there's no question of who's dominating whom.
But as long as Yu Ying is on the other side, Lin Yuan can feel her strong presence, which he cannot ignore at all.
Before Mei Niang had her head transplanted, she treated Zhu Sheng with only gentleness and sincerity.
Even though she still had the same heart after the head transplant, she had changed compared to before. Zhu Sheng, who considered himself clever, might not have noticed.
He believed that everything would change according to his will, so he arbitrarily changed his wife's appearance, wanting her to become his ideal spouse. But can reality always go as he wishes?
Heaven and earth have always followed certain laws.
The reason why Lin Yuan and Yu Ying were chosen for the script of "Ghost Arts" is because the characters are contrasting, whether it is Zhu Sheng or Mei Niang.
After Mei Niang had her head transplanted, Zhu Sheng lived a life that suited his heart.
He is intelligent and quick-witted, his career is very different from before, and his wife is gentle and beautiful. Everyone envies him.
But gradually, Zhu Sheng also realized that something was wrong.
For example, early one morning, Mei Niang brought breakfast as usual, seemingly no different, but Zhu Sheng felt that the breakfast was much more perfunctory.
In the past, Mei Niang would have put in even more effort.
When Zhu Sheng looked at Mei Niang, Mei Niang looked back at him and asked, "Husband, is it not to your liking?"
Zhu Sheng shook his head.
Mei Niang's words were still gentle. Zhu Sheng thought to himself that he had such a beautiful wife, and he should give her a good life. How could such a beautiful woman spend her days with the stove and firewood?
If Mei Niang still looked the same as before, he would naturally be able to bear it, but now... he is naturally a little reluctant to part with her.
In the footage, Mei Niang's eyes are excessively clear, giving off a charmingly innocent and naive feeling.
Zhu Sheng was satisfied with everything.
But he forgot that he was just a simpleton at first. The reason he was able to live a peaceful life was entirely because Mei Niang was willing to protect him. Mei Niang was brave and bold, and treated him wholeheartedly, so he didn't have to live in the ridicule of others every day.
Mei Niang is a thrifty person with a bold personality; she has never had such an innocent and naive look in her eyes before.
However, a scholar should be matched with a wife like this; the original Mei Niang was indeed rather crude.
Liu Xiaoguang had given acting instructions to Lin Yuan and Yu Ying.
Lin Yuan was listening in as he explained the scene to Yu Ying.
In "The Art of Ghosts", both Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang undergo transformations, but Zhu Sheng's transformation is very straightforward, while Mei Niang's is very subtle.
This was originally a movie about ghosts and monsters. Although it's not quite a horror movie, the actors still need to use their acting skills to create a terrifying atmosphere.
Mei Niang's concealment is meant to be noticed by the audience, but not by Zhu Sheng.
This requires a high level of acting skill.
Lin Yuan had played Gu Yilou before, so he knew that this kind of role was not easy to play. He had the complete script for the role of Zhu Sheng, and he also had the script for Mei Niang, but it wasn't detailed enough. Lin Yuan could only guess that Mei Niang was definitely not the original Mei Niang, but the director refused to say exactly what.
According to the director, if Lin Yuan knew everything, it would be too obvious and he wouldn't be able to portray the fear effectively.
In short, in the recent scenes, when Lin Yuan played Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang, he always felt that the surroundings were gloomy.
Nothing has changed—except for the Mei Niang portrayed by Yu Ying.
The other person is the kind of actor who can change the atmosphere through their performance.
"That's amazing!" Lin Yuan couldn't help but exclaim.
As Zhu Sheng delved deeper into the script, he became increasingly aware of more and more aspects.
Although he possessed a keen and insightful mind, he was ultimately afraid of the mysterious realms he could not understand.
He gave Mei Niang a new life, but this new Mei Niang was beyond his control.
Zhu Sheng was already entangled without even realizing it.
Yu Ying became more and more immersed in her performance. Every time Lin Yuan acted opposite her, he felt like the person opposite him was a snake.
He could only portray Zhu Sheng's feigned composure.
...
That day, another play began.
Lin Yuan and Yu Ying were the makeup artists at the beginning of filming. Both of them asked the director if their makeup needed to be changed so that the audience could see the difference.
Liu Xiaoguang declined: "There's no need."
The feeling the director wanted was that Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang were both people who seemed normal but were actually terrifying.
Lin Yuan gave an OK sign and smiled at Yu Ying: "Please continue to guide me today."
Yu Ying laughed too: "Are you a little afraid of me?"
"How could I not be afraid?" Lin Yuan countered. "Who wouldn't be afraid?"
Liu Xiaoguang patted Lin Yuan on the shoulder, gesturing for him to take two steps back: "With your expression right now, coupled with your lines, the paparazzi will have plenty to write about."
“It’s really terrifying!” Lin Yuan emphasized, “Although it’s Zhu’s fault.”
Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang's relationship seemed to remain the same as always, but Zhu Sheng became increasingly reluctant to go home.
That morning, Zhu Sheng ate breakfast as usual, and when he entered the house, Mei Niang's room was already empty.
Zhu Sheng finally mustered up his courage and went to Mei Niang's room to look for clues.
He was anxious and uneasy, and after countless struggles and a racing heart, he finally mustered the courage to find out.
Zhu Sheng's expression is easily discernible in the footage.
Compared to his ambition and expectation of fulfilling his long-cherished wish before the head transplant, he was now like a different person, fearful, uneasy, and even somewhat insane.
He was already trapped in the net woven by Mei Niang, unable to escape or get away. To outsiders, he seemed perfectly normal, but only he knew what kind of nightmare he was entering.
This high-pressure lifestyle has made him abnormal.
His eyelids were bluish, his eyes were bloodshot and his pupils were larger than usual.
He desperately and frantically searched for evidence that Mei Niang was not Mei Niang.
In the end, he found it.
Just as he noticed it, footsteps sounded outside the door.
The footsteps were extremely light, like those from a woman's embroidered shoes.
However, Zhu Sheng knew that Mei Niang had been hardworking since childhood and was not used to wearing delicate embroidered shoes; she usually wore cloth shoes.
The day he bought her a hairpin, Mei Niang made a pair of embroidered shoes for the first time ever. But before the shoes were finished, he changed her head.
He used to think other women were refined and he thought Mei Niang was vulgar, but at this moment, the sound of footsteps was like the sound of a deadly gong, which made Zhu Sheng feel scared.
What is the state of a person when they are terrified to the extreme?
Zhu Sheng in the video is just like that.
Even breathing feels superfluous; I want to transform into an insect and disappear from this world completely.
In this scene, Yu Ying did not appear, nor were there any footsteps; the entire performance was imagined by Lin Yuan himself.
In Liu Xiaoguang's view, he was like a gambler who had reached the end of his road, with no new path to take. His mind was in a state of extreme tension, and apart from fear, there was nothing else in his mind.
He looked just like a person on the verge of death.
Liu Xiaoguang remained silent, and the entire set was quiet as everyone watched Lin Yuan perform.
The director's feeling at that moment was that casting Lin Yuan to play Zhu Sheng was clearly the right choice.
Lin Yuan didn't make any unnecessary small movements; he simply displayed Zhu Sheng's current mental state.
But that was enough. Zhu Sheng didn't need to scream or howl; the fear he felt had already fully expressed his condition.
If he exaggerates a little more, it will seem exaggerated; if he tones it down a bit, onlookers won't be able to be moved by his emotions.
This is a silent standoff between Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang.
Previously, Zhu Sheng was the hunter and Mei Niang was the prey, but now, the situation has reversed.
...
Yu Ying remained silent.
However, she no longer felt the same wariness towards Lin Yuan as before.
Regarding everything she has suffered, Yu Ying's thought is that some people are unable to advance further on the path of acting, so they can only become famous and demonstrate their existence through other means.
Of course, even knowing their talent is limited, these people are unwilling to put in the effort, even if it's just for show.
Lin Yuan is clearly different.
Since Lin Yuan had spent so much time and energy on acting, he had no time to think about anything else.
There's no need for that.
Anyone can see that Lin Yuan could easily make a living by acting.
In her past collaborations with other actors, though not all of them, Yu Ying could clearly feel the gap between herself and others—some people simply couldn't keep up with her performances.
Yu Ying wasn't arrogant; she had a clear understanding of this.
If you can't handle it, you can't handle it; those people are simply not as good as her.
She has some talent for acting and works very hard, so why should she admit that those who are inferior to her in every aspect are on the same level as her?
Lin Yuan's words were among the few that could be accepted.
He has his own understanding of the character and is able to further develop his understanding.
Lin Yuan understood the character of Zhu Sheng very well. When Zhu Sheng and Mei Niang were in the same space, the two characters gave people the feeling that they were evenly matched and at least had a presence, without one side appearing particularly weak.
Working with Lin Yuan is quite comfortable. She just needs to act well and doesn't need to cooperate with his marketing. She also doesn't have to worry about opening her phone the next day and finding that she's on the trending topics list again, this time about her feuding with so-and-so.
Great, Lin Yuan played a scumbag so vividly, which is much better than those who pretend to be affectionate in front of the camera but are actually terrible in private.
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Author's Note: Update! [doge][doge][doge]
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