Chapter 528 Not Every Road Leads to Rome with Confidence (12,000 words update!)
"Days of Being Young" has already aired its fifth season.
It is certainly a very popular variety show. Not only are the celebrities popular, but the show's various metrics are also impressive, and it has never lacked commercial endorsements.
However, to say that it is one of the most popular programs in China feels like it's still missing something.
Because it never had that kind of "explosive" feeling that everyone was watching.
Some variety shows are able to do this.
Even if you haven't watched it, you've probably heard of it and know some of the inside jokes. For example, Running Man and the name tag ripping game, Singer and someone's withdrawal from the competition, Go Fighting! and the Men's Gang.
The show "The Days of Youth" is very popular within its own niche and its viewership data is undoubtedly number one, but it hasn't reached the level of being a "national phenomenon".
It's already the fifth season.
Who knew that before the first episode even aired, this show suddenly became like a brand new program, trending on social media and sweeping across everyone's online world.
Riding this wave of popularity, Icefield Video also launched a massive ground-level advertising campaign.
It's already popular enough online, there's no need to add fuel to the fire.
The second episode saw a slight decrease in popularity and viewership compared to the first episode's reunion of the eight main characters.
However, the third episode attracted a lot of attention by having eight people go to the headquarters of Icefield Video to participate in the project review meeting and use their experience as artists to help each project to answer Icefield Video's questions.
Because in this video, each project directly presents elements such as the program, the artists to be invited, its commercial value, influence, and market positioning to the audience.
People directly saw a leading video platform's market positioning and judgment of many artists.
Simply put, it's a rating system.
As artists themselves, Lu Yanhe and his team, from the perspective of the project team, had to work together to convince the judges why the artist combination for this project was good and correct.
Among them, three places are the most explosive.
In the first instance, when Peng Zhixing was helping a cultural talk show defend its lineup, he mentioned the proposed list of artists. He said, "I have interviewed two-thirds of these artists. I can say that they are rare in this industry, people who truly have their own thoughts or whose way of thinking is different from ordinary people. This is a lineup that has never appeared before. I can imagine how wonderful the sparks will be when these people are brought together."
"I just heard the judges say that the lineup of artists doesn't include any very popular stars, which makes you have concerns. On the contrary, I think that as a cultural dialogue program, the premise of the program's success is that the clash of many viewpoints can generate a wide range of discussions. If the program has very popular stars among the guests, given the current fan culture, I think it would actually be detrimental to the program's ability to play its own strengths."
The point of contention is that Peng Zhixing does not approve of celebrity fan culture.
The second point is about Xiao Yun.
When a fashion competition show was considering inviting celebrities who weren't considered fashionable enough, she bluntly stated: "Why would a very fashionable celebrity come to this show to collaborate with up-and-coming designers? Are the up-and-coming designers you've invited so outstanding that they can't collaborate with celebrities who aren't so fashionable? Fashion itself is a concept. Making an already fashionable celebrity look fashionable on a show isn't a skill. The real success of a show is making celebrities who don't seem fashionable to you look fashionable on a show."
"So far, no fashion-themed program in China has become popular, at least I haven't seen one. On the contrary, when I was a kid, I watched a beauty pageant that put a group of girls who weren't considered pretty by the average standard together to compete. The winner would get the opportunity to get plastic surgery. There were also some other shows that were similar to makeovers. The contrast between the before and after was what made the audience interested. I just want to see those fashionable and glamorous celebrities, and I can see them in other places too."
"Actually, like me, people often say that my personal style is very unfashionable and that I am an ugly person when it comes to dressing. You can gather three to five of us artists who are always criticized for dressing unfashionably and having an unfashionable style, and put us on this show to see if we can become fashionable and to see what fashion really is. It will definitely be interesting."
The explosive points need no further explanation.
The most dramatic moment was that Xiao Yun's "self-deprecating remarks" led to them inviting him to join the show.
Xiao Yun: "..."
The third bombshell is Li Zhibai.
Because among the artists to be invited to this project is Cheng Hai.
Whether it was intentional or not, one of the judges suggested removing Cheng Hai from the competition—because nobody knew who he was, and no such person could be found.
Li Zhibai's face turned black.
The atmosphere at the scene instantly froze.
Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang were inexplicably a little nervous.
They were afraid that Li Zhibai would turn on them on the spot.
The three of them actually had a pretty good relationship with Cheng Hai, not at all. Especially Li Zhibai and Yan Liang, who had worked under Zhou Ping'an for a long time and saw each other frequently.
That's just how this industry is; you can't just maintain a good relationship forever.
Ups and downs, you're popular while I'm past my prime, you run into trouble while I soar to new heights—the disparity is too great, the gap itself exists, and it can't be ignored.
They're not like Lu Yanhe, Li Zhibai, and Yan Liang—friends who are practically inseparable.
But that doesn't mean Li Zhibai would feel good about Cheng Hai being looked down upon like that.
To Lu Yanhe and Yan Liang's surprise, Li Zhibai took a deep breath and did not lash out.
He said, "Cheng Hai debuted with me, Yan Liang, and Yan He; we were in a group. He's not that popular now, but this is a good time for you to invite him because he's about to become popular again."
The group of people were astonished.
Why do you say that?
Li Zhibai bluntly stated: "Because now our agent only has Yan Liang and him left. Chenghai's development may not have been very smooth before because Zhou Ping'an focused all his energy on me, Ma Zhiyuan, and Yan Liang. Now that I'm gone, Ma Zhiyuan has collapsed, and Yan Liang doesn't need him to take care of things anymore. If Chenghai still can't become popular, then Zhou Ping'an can retire."
After his speech, the entire room fell silent.
Lu Yanhe covered his mouth with his hand and whispered to Yan Liang, "If Zhou Ping'an sees this, he'll be furious, right?"
Yan Liang covered his face with one hand and said softly, "He might have a heart attack. Why did he lose his mind and choose Ma Zhiyuan over Li Zhibai?"
Lu Yanhe laughed: "Ma Zhiyuan... has collapsed."
After this scene occurred, a message appeared on the screen:
—When you covered your mouths, did you forget that you were wearing recording equipment?
The third episode garnered over 100 million views in a single day, sparking three major trending topics and a host of smaller ones.
While Zhou Ping'an was trending on Weibo for being "so angry he jumped up and down," Ma Zhiyuan responded directly with a Weibo post: "So you're so concerned about me, still wondering if I've collapsed? If I were to collapse, I'd collapse your house."
"The Days of Youth" was a huge hit.
Li Zhenzhen smiled slightly as she looked at the impressive data displayed in the backend.
The fact that a show suddenly became a huge hit in its fifth season is something no one expected.
While advertisers were overjoyed, Icefield Video was laughing just as hard.
This episode, in particular, has generated buzz and anticipation for several of Icefield Video's programs even before their release. The fashion competition program that Xiao Yun is involved in is especially noteworthy, as the genre itself has a large audience. Once a suitable angle is found to enter the market, the potential is substantial—especially with product placements from fashion brands, which could translate into a massive influx of revenue.
-
Li Zhenzhen left the Icefield Video headquarters and drove alone to Chris's Cafe.
She had arranged to meet someone here.
Lu Yanhe.
Ten minutes later, a tall, thin man wearing a baseball cap and a mask walked in. He looked around the store, and after his gaze settled on Li Zhenzhen, he walked over to them.
He took off his mask and smiled at Li Zhenzhen: "Sister Zhenzhen."
Li Zhenzhen asked with a smile, "How have you been resting lately?"
"It's alright, it's pretty good. I spend my days at home reading books and scripts," Lu Yanhe said.
Li Zhenzhen: "You weren't on the covers of major fashion magazines this September, and many of your fans are quite upset about that."
More and more male celebrities are being invited to shoot fashion magazine covers, mainly because the endorsements behind them will help them buy things—similarly, their female fans are also a very enthusiastic consumer group.
Lu Yanhe waved his hand and said, "There's no time to film this year."
"You're currently preparing for 'The Birth of an Actor,' but I also prepared an acting competition show before, do you remember it?"
Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "I remember, but it seems that it didn't continue for some reason?"
“Well, because it’s hard to get people to participate.” Li Zhenzhen shrugged, expressing her helplessness. “Established actors are unwilling to participate in the show as contestants, or they expect us to promise that they will definitely win their PK against others. For established actors, such PK is indeed very cruel. Once they lose, they may be considered to be less skilled, and even leave the public with the impression that their acting skills are not good.”
Such a situation does indeed exist.
Lu Yanhe nodded.
Li Zhenzhen added, "So when I heard you were going to do this show, I was quite shocked. But then I realized why I didn't succeed."
"Why?" Lu Yanhe asked.
“Because we haven’t found a convener like you,” Li Zhenzhen said. “If a program producer like me can’t have a group of artists who trust me, it’s actually very difficult for me to make an innovative program. Artists are afraid of being scammed. Indeed, there are quite a few programs that will scam artists in order to get ratings and popularity, and deliberately edit the artists to have a negative image. The more they are criticized, the more popular they become.”
Lu Yanhe nodded and said, "That's true."
"Now I regret not thinking of having you as a convener," Li Zhenzhen laughed.
Lu Yanhe also smiled.
“But thankfully, that show didn’t happen,” Li Zhenzhen said. “Back then, one of the mentors originally scheduled for that show, I just found out, turned out he had a connection with you.”
Lu Yanhe was taken aback.
He looked at Li Zhenzhen with some surprise.
Li Zhenzhen's smile faded, and she looked at Lu Yanhe thoughtfully, asking, "Yanhe, do you know Chen Pinhe?"
Lu Yanhe's expression froze.
With just that one expression, Li Zhenzhen understood, and Lu Yanhe didn't need to answer anymore.
Li Zhenzhen sighed softly and said, "A few days ago, I came back from Venice and asked my dad. He had been unwilling to tell me before, but a few days ago, he finally told me a name."
It goes without saying that this is the name.
“Originally, I wanted to find out why he targeted you back then, to resolve the matter from that time, and not to keep lingering here.” Li Zhenzhen apologized. “I originally wanted to find out his name from my dad and then tell you to be wary of him and not let him trick you. But you already knew, didn’t you?”
Lu Yanhe nodded hesitantly.
"Yan He, I'm sorry, I had no intention of prying into your private affairs."
"It's nothing," Lu Yanhe shook his head. "I don't think there's anything shameful about this."
Li Zhenzhen: "But this matter made him very wary. My dad said that he was very wary of others knowing about your existence."
Lu Yanhe: "I guessed it."
Li Zhenzhen: "Did he... contact you?"
“No.” Lu Yanhe shook his head. “Aside from meeting in the workplace, we have never communicated privately.”
Does he know you know about this?
Lu Yanhe: "I don't know, but you should have guessed."
Throughout, Lu Yanhe remained calm. But his calmness only made Li Zhenzhen feel even heavier... She didn't know how to describe her feelings, but she was certain of one thing: if Lu Yanhe acted so nonchalantly about this, it could only mean that he had already gone through a lot of pain. That phase was over, and he could control his emotions now.
Li Zhenzhen: "Is there anything I can do for you?"
"No need, Sister Zhenzhen, thank you." Lu Yanhe smiled at her, "Thank you for confirming this for me."
"Didn't you already know?" Li Zhenzhen asked.
“I mean, thank you for confirming for me that he was indeed preventing me from staying in the entertainment industry,” Lu Yanhe said. “Before this show, it was all just my guess. Before this show, I had already been kicked out of Xingyu Entertainment once. I terminated my contract with Xingyu Entertainment once, which you may not know.”
Li Zhenzhen was taken aback.
Lu Yanhe: "Just like you said, he was very afraid of others knowing about my relationship with him, so he tried to keep me away from him and never let me get close to him."
The corners of his mouth turned up.
A contemptuous laugh.
“He probably never thought that I would even consider acknowledging him.” Lu Yanhe looked at Li Zhenzhen and said, “Sister Zhenzhen, can you do me a favor?”
"What?" Li Zhenzhen asked, "Tell me."
“If it’s convenient, please ask your father to pass on a message to him. If he doesn’t want to acknowledge me, that’s fine. I didn’t want to acknowledge him either. However, there’s no need to try to eliminate him completely just to cover up this secret.” Lu Yanhe’s face gradually turned cold, his expression frosty. “Being burdened with a murder is worse than having a scandal of having an illegitimate child.”
At first, Li Zhenzhen didn't react. But when she did, her face showed shock and astonishment that she couldn't hide.
-
"You're really pushing me too far, even sending someone to relay a message? As if you're afraid others won't know."
Chen Ziyan smiled.
Lu Yanhe shrugged and said, "Let's try to bluff him. He hasn't reacted at all. I can't just keep waiting like this. If he keeps hiding like a coward and doesn't react at all, then there's nothing I can do."
Chen Ziyan said, "Yan He, although I know you don't care about this, I still have to remind you that if others find out you are Chen Pinhe's illegitimate son, it will be a devastating blow to your acting career, if not a complete disaster. Your success and your honors will all be attributed to him by many people. Just like the achievements of all the children of celebrities, even if he has never done anything for you in his life, others will not believe it."
Lu Yanhe: "I will not announce to the whole world that I am Chen Pinhe's son."
"By having Li Zhenzhen relay your message, at least two people will know about your relationship."
“They already knew, that’s why I had them pass on the message.”
"Knowing is one thing, getting involved in more details is another." Chen Ziyan reminded Lu Yanhe very seriously, "Yanhe, in this matter, once other people are involved, you must be extremely cautious."
Lu Yanhe hadn't expected Chen Ziyan to be so serious.
Was his behavior too reckless?
Maybe.
At that moment, even if he didn't admit it, he had to admit that he felt the thrill of burning his bridges.
Chen Ziyan's words were like a wake-up call, bringing him back to his senses.
What's the point of going all in?
After all that hard work and effort, you sink your boat, why should my cauldron break?
-
Star Entertainment.
Zhou Ping'an's office.
At this moment, Ma Zhiyuan, like a rooster whose eyes had gone red from a fight, stood in front of Zhou Ping'an, clenched his right hand, and angrily questioned Zhou Ping'an.
“Li Zhibai humiliated you and me on the show, didn’t you fight back?”
Zhou Ping'an looked at him and said, "What's there to fight back against? Everyone's laughing at me now, saying I gave up Li Zhibai and chose you, that I'm blind to talent. Do you think I'm blind to talent?"
Ma Zhiyuan: "Do you regret it?"
“I do regret it. You got another female celebrity pregnant without my knowledge, and tried to cover it up and handle it yourself. In the end, it turned out like this. Tell me, do I regret it?” Zhou Pingan slammed his hand on the table. “Look at your attitude now. I haven’t given up on you, but you’ve given up on yourself first. I told you not to have anything to do with Li Zhibai, Lu Yanhe, and Yan Liang anymore, and you went back to argue with them on Weibo. Did you enjoy it? Let me tell you, the show I worked so hard to get you next has been canceled again!”
Ma Zhiyuan looked at Zhou Ping'an in disbelief.
"What did you say?"
"Are you happy now? Satisfied? Do you still think you're that big star who can throw a tantrum and everyone will listen to you?" Zhou Ping'an looked at Ma Zhiyuan with disgust. "There are plenty of stars whose private lives have been exposed, and plenty of stars who have experienced setbacks. Just like you, once something happens, everyone kicks you when you're down. Everyone's throwing stones at you when you're down. Nobody wants to give you a chance. I'm begging and pleading for you here, and you're acting all high and mighty on Weibo. Get lost!"
This was the first time Zhou Ping'an had yelled the word "get out" at Ma Zhiyuan.
Ma Zhiyuan's face turned ashen in disbelief.
-
Fuli, who was standing outside Zhou Ping'an's office, was startled when she heard Zhou Ping'an yell "Get out!" She took a step back and stared in astonishment at the door.
Although Zhou Ping'an has a bad temper and likes to be sarcastic, he rarely directly tells people to get lost like that.
Fuli was curious about who was inside who had angered Zhou Ping'an so much.
She hesitated and frowned, thinking that maybe she should come back to find Zhou Ping'an later.
Going to him now feels like walking straight into the line of fire.
Of course, Fuli stayed nearby to check who was in Zhou Ping'an's office.
When Fuli saw Ma Zhiyuan walk out of Zhou Ping'an's office, she immediately realized what was going on.
It was him.
That's not surprising.
-
Fuli also looked down on Ma Zhiyuan.
Ma Zhiyuan was so popular before simply because he benefited from the trend of the times.
They caught up with the best time of idol artists.
He was lucky and enjoyed good food for several years, but instead of cherishing it, he acted recklessly and ruined a winning hand.
If she has that kind of luck—
A sense of resentment welled up in Fuli's heart.
She'd been signed with the company for several years, and initially thought she'd become an overnight sensation, but several times her initial promise was thwarted. Acting offers she was set to take were blocked, shows she was in talks with were canceled, and she was even subjected to public scrutiny and negative publicity before she even achieved significant fame.
Fuli knew that this was the work of the company's three "top female bosses".
At Star Entertainment, no young actress can overcome their combined attack.
And now, Liu Zhiyin is coming to the company soon.
Tomori's sense of crisis intensified.
Liu Zhiyin's path is somewhat similar to hers.
Although she is an actress and Yoo Ji-eum is an idol, the two look very similar and have similar styles.
Tomori took a deep breath.
She couldn't just sit and wait to die.
Now that Sui Xiaodie has left the company, and Jiang Yuqian is going to film overseas, the company can't possibly put all its resources into Zhang Lan's hands.
She's now suffering from the failure of Friends Season 3 and can't accept it.
Fuli has her eye on a film. The film was approached to Jiang Yuqian, but the female lead hasn't been cast yet. Jiang Yuqian definitely can't act in it; she's going to take it.
-
It was a rainy night in mid-September.
Lu Yanhe got out of the car and went into the restaurant.
The cast and crew of "The Seventeenth Floor" are having dinner here tonight.
Even the director's team was involved.
Apart from Shen Yue, who is currently filming, all the main actors have arrived.
There's also screenwriter Feng Qiyue.
The second season of "The Seventeen Floors" will begin filming next month.
Lian Bei arranged the gathering in advance, since it had been a long time since they had gotten together.
The atmosphere was great when we were filming the first season of "The Seventeenth Floor" together.
It's a rare show where all the main actors have a good relationship with each other.
The TV series "The Seventeenth Floor" was very successful, and the initial trilogy plan proceeded smoothly.
The second season has two more episodes than the first season, for a total of fourteen episodes.
Everyone's pay has gone up.
Especially Lu Yanhe, when he signed the contract for the first season, the male lead was considered a high-profile actor, and he didn't have any advantage in negotiating his salary.
Now, Beijing and Taiwan are willing to spend a lot of money to keep Lu Yanhe in this series.
After all, this is currently the only blockbuster product from Beijing and Taiwan.
If Lu Yanhe withdraws from the cast, the price of overseas streaming rights will also drop directly.
-
The global success of "The Squid Game" also boosted the long-tail effect of the drama "The Seventeen Floors".
"The Seventeen Floors" has amassed a large following both domestically and internationally.
This is also a key reason why the second season of "The Seventeenth Floor" progressed smoothly.
Lian Bei was particularly happy, saying, "It's not easy for our show to maintain the original cast in the second season. I don't need to say more, everyone knows that. In Chinese-language dramas, there are no two series that can maintain the original cast all the time. As the director, I would like to raise a glass to thank everyone for always caring about 'The Seventeen Floors'. I am very happy to continue to work with everyone."
Although the drama is produced by Beijing TV, the trilogy was planned by Lian Bei as the early project initiator.
As a director, who wouldn't want the same actor to play all the roles in their film from beginning to end?
However, things often don't go as planned.
If a supporting actor becomes a huge star, they won't play supporting roles anymore.
The lead actor's schedule was too full, causing filming to be delayed again and again.
The fact that both Lu Yanhe and Chen Bige, two top stars, were able to return as promised is almost a miracle.
Jiang Jun's willingness to return to playing supporting roles after "The Squid Game" and "My Own Swordsman" also moved Lian Bei.
The original "Seventeen Floors" featured an all-star cast, and in the second season, the all-star lineup has been upgraded—
Their careers are all soaring.
Li Yuefeng said with a smile, "Then I should first thank the director for letting me return in the second season."
Li Yuefeng, who died in the first season, returned in the second season as his twin brother. He joined the main characters with this storyline as his main character and his motivation to avenge his brother. It was reasonable and did not involve any resurrection.
Everyone happily clinked glasses.
Some people were drinking alcohol at the dinner table, while Lu Yanhe was drinking juice.
He said he was taking care of himself and that he had drunk a bit too much recently, so he needed to rest for a while.
No one objected.
"Li Yuefeng, are you in a relationship?"
At the dinner table, Lian Bei suddenly asked a question that startled everyone.
Li Yuefeng seemed a little flustered and said, "No, Director, why are you suddenly asking me this?"
“I saw you at Zhou Fu Hui last week. A very pretty girl was holding your arm as you went into the private room. I didn’t greet you. Isn’t she your girlfriend?”
“That’s my sister.” Li Yuefeng breathed a sigh of relief and laughed. “You scared me. I thought I was having another scandal.”
“However, speaking of which, you’ve had quite a few scandals these past few years,” Chen Bige suddenly said. “I’ve seen many reports about them.”
Li Yuefeng: "Most of it is the production companies and platforms hyping it up and promoting their new shows."
"What era are we living in? Why are they still doing this?" Chen Bige raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Aren't there usually more solo fans than CP fans these days?"
"Sister Bige, you even know about solo fans and CP fans?"
“That’s right. After I filmed ‘Rouge’ with Huang Kairen, my fans split into two groups and argued every day. It made me want to block them,” Chen Bige said frankly.
Li Yuefeng laughed and said, "Even at your level, you still have these kinds of troubles?"
“Basically, any character with a romantic storyline will appear, more or less,” Chen Bige said. “I heard from others that many production teams no longer use this kind of publicity method to avoid creating too much chaos, since fans nowadays don’t accept this kind of publicity.”
"The speculation will still happen," Li Yuefeng shook his head, "it's just that the form of speculation has changed."
"What has it become?"
“Before, we would hype up the two people developing feelings for each other while filming, but now we just hype up their on-screen chemistry,” Li Yuefeng said. “Then we release some behind-the-scenes footage of us filming, specifically capturing those ambiguous scenes, pretending they were taken by paparazzi or candid shots, making it seem like we're deliberately denying it even if we do.”
Li Yuefeng is a typical example of a popular actor who rose to fame through popularity.
He and his team are actually very averse to creating romantic pairings or rumors, as this is detrimental to his public image and his fan base.
However, the production team relentlessly hyped the story, even when the actors refused to cooperate. Marketing accounts, driven by the desire for clicks, added fuel to the fire. Each time the actor denied the allegations, images and videos circulated as "concrete evidence," which consisted of people laughing and joking together, or even engaging in intimate or ambiguous actions during rehearsals. They denied it once, released a little more evidence; they denied it again, released a little more. The news was successfully amplified, and the scandal firmly solidified its image in the public's mind.
Li Yuefeng wasn't defending himself, but after filming a movie and having a scandal, he just couldn't control himself?
"It seems like we haven't really promoted any on-screen couples in this show?"
"The selling point of this drama is not the couple," Lian Bei said. "However, when I filmed that fantasy drama before, the male and female leads did get some hype. Moreover, both teams had communicated and cooperated to hype it up. They even faked two dates, which were photographed by people."
“If all parties agree and are willing to promote the show, then of course everyone is happy. But if the actors are not willing and the production team still insists on promoting it, then that is really unethical,” Feng Qiyue said. “However, I also encountered this once. In a production team, the second male and female leads, I don’t know what they were thinking, whether it was to gain attention or what, they started dating before the show even aired. Two months into the show, they went through two rounds of dating, from confessing their feelings to going on dates, to arguing, and finally breaking up. The news was everywhere. Not long after the show ended, the two announced their breakup.”
"Haha, I know who you're talking about." Chen Bige immediately laughed.
Lu Yanhe and the others haven't been in the entertainment industry for many years, so they really don't know.
Who is it?
"Don't you know who it is?" Chen Bige asked, somewhat surprised.
Lu Yanhe: "Should I know who it is?"
“You know her?” Chen Bige said. “She’s from your company, Zhang Lan.”
Lu Yanhe stared wide-eyed in shock.
“But you have to admit that although they went too far, they did successfully climb to the top by stepping on the male and female leads,” Feng Qiyue said. “Whether it’s respectable or not, there’s not much to say about it.”
"Who are the male and female leads in that movie?" Li Yuefeng asked curiously.
"Li Hualan and Zhou Fu."
Lu Yanhe had no recollection of either of the two names.
“It’s not very famous, you young people probably don’t know it,” Chen Bige said.
Lu Yanhe smiled incredulously.
"Is that why Zhang Lan is so wary of the second female lead in her new drama?"
Even if it means exposing someone's secrets, they still want to drive Tomori out of the game.
She knows how she got to her position, so she absolutely cannot allow a second female lead who poses a threat to her to appear.
-
Lu Yanhe never expected that the gathering of "The Seventeenth Floor" would turn into a night of gossip sharing.
Even Lian Bei turned out to be a gossip enthusiast, and they talked about it quite eloquently.
On the contrary, Lu Yanhe knew nothing about many things and had not heard of them.
Later, he couldn't help but ask, "Why do you know so much?"
Jiang Jun smiled and said, "I don't know much either."
"You two don't look like you're gossipy at all, so who would want to share gossip with you?" Chen Bige waved her hand and pouted. "Whether or not gossip can be shared depends on whether you click with someone."
"..." Lu Yanhe was speechless.
-
Around 10 p.m., everyone prepared to leave.
At this moment, Chen Bige called out to him.
"Sister Bige?" Lu Yanhe looked at her in confusion.
Chen Bige said, "Wait a minute, I have something to tell you."
Lu Yanhe nodded with some doubt and said okay.
After everyone left, Lu Yanhe went to Chen Bige's car.
"Sister Bige, is there something you want to tell me?"
“Recently, someone came to me asking about you. At first, I didn’t think much of it and assumed she just liked you, was a fan, and was curious about you. But later… I heard from a friend that the person had also asked her about you, and asked some very private questions. I thought about it and felt something was off, so I had to tell you.”
Lu Yanhe was somewhat surprised, but then he thought of a possibility.
"Who is asking you and your friends about me?"
Chen Bige's expression was somewhat complicated. After hesitating for a moment, he still said, "Zhang Yuezhen, Chen Pinhe's wife."
Lu Yanhe's expression froze for several seconds.
He didn't know if Chen Bige had noticed.
-
It turns out that the bait had been cast out for so long not because no one had taken the bait, but because someone had already taken it from a place they hadn't seen.
That night, Lu Yanhe lay in bed, silently pondering what he really wanted to do and what he desired in this matter.
Do you want your father's love?
That's bullshit, get lost.
Does that mean you want the other person to feel remorse, admit their mistake, and apologize?
He would feel so nauseous that he would vomit up his leftovers from the night before.
After thinking for a long time, he searched bit by bit from his life before he transmigrated and from the life he inherited from the original Lu Yanhe to figure out what he really wanted.
If he had nothing, where did his initial impulse to burn his bridges come from?
Maybe it's just simple revenge, because she can't stand seeing him do well?
That's possible.
Lu Yanhe tossed and turned in bed, deep in thought.
He couldn't figure out what he wanted.
Because he had absolutely nothing to ask of Chen Pinhe.
-
The fourth stage of "The Days of Youth" is also the last stage of this season's recording.
The show was filmed at a barbecue stall.
In this stage of the recording, they will act as apprentices, helping the couple running a barbecue stall prepare for a big job—
Two days later, they will be providing a barbecue for 109 employees of a company.
Their job is to handle everything from baking and cooking to preparation and service – a complete turnkey service.
The stall owners were only responsible for giving them instructions.
All eight people were shocked.
Lu Yanhe hadn't expected that Li Zhenzhen and the others would come up with such a plan.
From farm work to Venice, and now back to the warmth and comfort of barbecue.
The production team really put in a lot of effort to get them to show their most authentic side on this show.
It wasn't until this stage began that they were shocked to realize that not a single guest star had been invited for this season.
Everyone was surprised.
Privately, people also asked Li Zhenzhen about it.
Li Zhenzhen said, "It's rare for us all to get together, so we thought that this season it would only be the eight of you. If there are guest stars, you'll have to take care of their emotions and reactions, so you won't be able to really relax. We still hope to see you all truly relax on this show."
"Relax?" Peng Zhixing laughed. "They've been making us work and prepare a barbecue for a hundred people. How is that relaxing!"
Li Zhenzhen smiled and said, "It's not easy physically, but it's easy mentally. You're all getting busier and busier at work, especially dealing with all sorts of people and things. I hope that by coming here, you can put all those things on your minds for a while."
"Wow, what you said is so touching!" Li Zhibai said.
Li Zhenzhen: "How come you're so easily moved?"
"Oh dear, after recording these last three days, we'll have to see each other again next year."
"The fifth season is almost finished filming."
...
Lu Yanhe listened to their endless chatter, a smile playing on his lips.
"What's wrong? You don't seem to be acting right," Li Zhibai asked quietly, noticing that he was being unusually quiet today.
Lu Yanhe shook his head and deliberately yawned, "I didn't sleep well last night."
"Stayed up all night writing a script again?"
"Um."
Li Zhibai: "Your schedule is getting more and more irregular. Wasn't it regular before?"
"No more school!" Lu Yanhe yawned again, this time for real. "After you finish recording this show, are you going to join a film crew?"
“Yes, I’ll be joining the crew in two weeks, and we’ll be filming for two months,” Li Zhibai said. “After this movie, next year we’ll film ‘Nineteen Years of Crime Records’ and your ‘Chinese Paladin’.”
Lu Yanhe said, "The filming time for 'Chinese Paladin' is estimated to be quite long. I want to film it all at once and not make it into a seasonal series. This story is not suitable for a seasonal series."
Li Zhibai nodded: "I felt the same way when I read the script."
"Don't forget to practice your skills," Lu Yanhe said. "This drama really needs your action scenes to look good. If you don't perform well, no matter how good your acting is, it won't feel right."
"I understand, don't worry," Li Zhibai said. "I've already started working out, and I go to the gym at least once a week."
Lu Yanhe laughed.
"Going once a week? You have the nerve to say that?"
Li Zhibai: "For a lazy person like me, this is already quite an achievement. Besides, I asked the coach, and he said that if I just keep training like this, it will be enough. By the time I join the crew, my physique will definitely have muscle definition."
“Outline…” Lu Yanhe caught the word precisely, wanting to say something, but hesitated.
Li Zhibai laughed at himself.
"That's enough to see."
After chatting with Li Zhibai for a while, Lu Yanhe felt a little better.
-
"Knock knock!" Someone knocked on the door.
"Go in." Chen Ziyan didn't even look up.
Lu Qingzhen opened the door to Chen Ziyan's office and walked in.
"What are you doing?" Lu Qingzhen asked, somewhat surprised to see Chen Ziyan engrossed in her work. "These days, paperless offices are encouraged. What are you writing so furiously here?"
"Let's sign the contracts." Chen Ziyan signed the contracts one by one.
Although the company has her signature stamp, Chen Ziyan still insists on having some important contracts delivered to her for handwritten signature.
All of the cases involving Lu Yanhe fall within this scope.
Lu Qingzhen: "What contract? Does Yanhe have any new collaborations?"
“No, there are supplementary agreements for some commercial endorsements, as well as new derivative licenses for many previous projects,” Chen Ziyan said. “After Xu Tianming and Chen Yin arrived, the business volume in Linghe immediately surged, and the two of them adapted quite well.”
"They were chosen by you in the first place. One of them conquers the outside world, while the other guards the home. They make a really good pair."
Lu Qingzhen asked, "What is Yan He doing now?"
“There’s still one last stage to film for ‘The Days of Youth’,” Chen Ziyan said. “The contract for the sixth season is included. Look, the fifth season hasn’t even finished filming yet, and the contract for the sixth season has already been sent over.”
“There’s nothing strange about it. I don’t know what happened to this season of ‘The Days of Youth’, but it suddenly became incredibly popular,” Lu Qingzhen said. “I feel like all the artists in it suddenly had a breakthrough. They suddenly became very expressive and good at creating jokes.”
Chen Ziyan: "After recording five seasons, it's not unusual to have made progress."
"A sense of variety show humor isn't something you can improve through hard work and learning," Lu Qingzhen said. "It's like these people are a perfect match, like a teacup and its lid, and it took them five years to develop a chemical reaction. And this is only the fifth season. If they really keep going like this, and make it to the tenth or twentieth season, what will this show be like?"
Chen Ziyan: "Why think so far ahead?"
Lu Qingzhen: "Just chatting, I suddenly became really looking forward to it."
You contacted me... just to chat?
"Hmm." Lu Qingzhen nodded. "I don't want to work, I'm tired."
Chen Ziyan smiled.
"You've had a tough time these past few days."
Lu Qingzhen handled most of the business negotiations for "The Birth of an Actor".
"It's alright, not too tiring. Business negotiations for this program are easy. It's just a matter of discussing the concept, the fit, how much money to offer, and the specific KPIs," Lu Qingzhen said. "Aside from the large volume and complexity, there are no other problems. I don't have to beg and plead for sponsorships. It feels very comfortable."
"Stop just relaxing. Since you're free now, make me a cup of coffee. I'm sleepy; I've been yawning a lot just now."
Didn't you get any rest yesterday?
"Of course I need to rest. I haven't had enough rest. There's been so much going on lately, my brain just can't keep up." Chen Ziyan finished signing the last contract and put it aside. Then she took out another document from the drawer and carefully reviewed it. "There's a script from Hollywood that's looking for Yan He. It's another horror movie."
"Huh? How many is this now?"
“The sixth one,” Chen Ziyan said. “The film ‘Mist’ was a hit before its release, especially because of the racial discrimination issue, which brought Yan He into the spotlight. Several production companies expressed their willingness to change the character’s race and skin color if Lu Yan He was willing to act in it. However, no other genres came up; they were all horror films, which is really frustrating.”
Lu Qingzhen: "For Hollywood people, Yan He's representative work is 'The Mist.' People know him because of this type of film. It's not surprising that no other films are coming to him. The situation will be much better once it is released."
“I’m hoping to get a script from a top director, even if it’s just for Yan He to play a role that’s only five to ten minutes long,” Chen Ziyan said. “In the next two to three years, Yan He has hardly had any films shown at film festivals, except for ‘Love Letter,’ which has already been reserved for next year’s Jose Film Festival. If he doesn’t have any films shown at film festivals in the next two or three years, I’m worried that Yan He will lose his biggest advantage in the international film scene.”
"Do you want Yan He to always give the impression of being active in film festivals?"
“Yes.” Chen Ziyan nodded. “Because Yan He has too many commercial projects coming up, he will definitely not lack popularity or fame. However, excessive commercial exposure will also weaken his biggest advantage. If people get the impression that Yan He has become famous and started to act in commercial films and genre films instead of art films, that would be terrible.”
Lu Qingzhen asked, "So, do you have a goal yet?"
“We do have a goal, but the key is—how to get Yan He into the casting plans of those big directors. There are still too few Asian roles.” Chen Ziyan sighed.
Lu Qingzhen: "Actually, you don't need to keep looking for big directors in Europe and America. You can also ask around in various Asian countries. India, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan... these countries all have world-class directors. Moreover, given Yan He's fame in Asia, their recognition and welcome of Yan He will definitely be higher than those big directors in Europe and America. To be honest, Ziyan, there are quite a few people in Europe and America who look down on Asians, even if they don't say it."
Chen Ziyan: "I know, but that's not a reason for me not to take the initiative. Whether they look up to me or not, what I care about is that in the end we can use our results to tell them solidly that it doesn't matter whether they look up to me or not."
“Then—Ziyan, have you considered changing your approach?” Lu Qingzhen suggested.
"What new approach should we take?"
"It doesn't necessarily have to be a horror movie. What I mean is, Yan He can definitely start by making commercial films and becoming a big star overseas. He doesn't necessarily have to start with art films and slowly build his career."
Lu Qingzhen solemnly stated, "Yan He may not have any films to participate in film festivals in the next two to three years, but if he can make a name for himself in A-list blockbusters and raise his international profile, given the reputation he has built up at international film festivals in recent years, it won't be a waste of time. We can still look for works by world-class directors at the same time—we just shouldn't limit ourselves to that scope. There's no need to restrict ourselves to that scope just because Yan He doesn't have any films to participate in film festivals."
"You and I both know that as long as you're famous enough, it's easier for you to get offers for anyone's films."
-
What Lu Qingzhen said certainly makes sense.
Chen Ziyan also agrees with this principle.
However, while it may seem that "all roads lead to Rome," different roads mean you will enter Rome with different identities.
Lu Yanhe's achievements were, in fact, achieved by taking a shortcut. He took a shortcut through an evaluation system that had been in operation in the film world for over a century.
Without his achievements at film festivals and the acclaim of the world's media, he would certainly have succeeded, but not in such a unique and unparalleled way.
What Chen Ziyan wanted to firmly grasp was not how high Lu Yanhe would grow in the future, but how to defend the advantage he had already gained, and help him continue to climb to the top more efficiently, rather than suddenly seeing another path, thinking that the path could also lead to the top, and then changing the path.
Among the top-rated movie stars in China, only Lu Yanhe, Shang Yongzhou, Chen Bige, and Chen Pinhe are actors who have not starred in any of the top 20 highest-grossing films in Chinese film history.
The reason they can still be considered top-tier under these circumstances is because awards, honors, and audience recognition have brought them a superior status and social acceptance.
Now, is Lu Yanhe going to pursue a box office strategy?
This isn't a matter of having your cake and eating it too. If it were possible, Chen Ziyan wouldn't have any dilemma.
The problem is precisely this: if you eat fish, you won't have time to eat bear's paw.
You only have one mouth, no parallel timeline.
If you choose to eat fish, then when you want to eat bear's paw later, they might not be willing to give it to you.
It's not like there aren't other people who want that dish; they won't keep waiting for you.
After pondering for a long time, Chen Ziyan remained firm in her decision.
(End of this chapter)
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