Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Fu Xiachuan parked the car at two traffic lights outside the school, and Jiang Mingyue got out of the car to say goodbye.
The tall solar streetlights dutifully shone brightly at night, illuminating the wide road with crystal clarity. Although it was already late, Ningcheng was still bustling with traffic.
Jiang Mingyue stood still and waved to Fu Xiachuan.
After watching Fu Xiachuan leave, she immediately turned around and headed in the opposite direction from the school dormitory.
Since going back to the dormitory would require explanation and might give others cause for gossip later, why bother going back?
It's best to go straight home.
Explaining to your mother that you went to work and met a kind boss who was willing to give them unsold snacks is always more likely to gain her trust and understanding than explaining the same thing to your classmates.
*
As Jiang Mingyue walked alone on the road, her mind kept replaying the words Fu Xiachuan had just said.
It's unbelievable that my starting point in life was Xingying Entertainment, a company under the Fu family.
This is the Fu family!
After Fu Qian inherited the Fu family business, it remained a behemoth, but he was merely the heir to this behemoth and did not create new business growth points for the Fu family.
The person who truly saw the business opportunity was Fu Xiachuan, but unfortunately, this person who could shine too brightly had a life as short as a shooting star.
Fu Xiachuan only held the reins of the Fu family business for a short twelve years.
In the limited span of twelve years, Fu Xiachuan, with a vision that surpassed that of twenty years of his time, led the Fu family through a precise transformation, shedding bloated industries such as real estate and gradually shifting investments to internet technology, aerospace, cutting-edge manufacturing, and the entertainment industry.
Star Shadow Entertainment Company was Fu Xiachuan's first move in his industrial layout for the Fu family, but it was also the final move in the industrial layout.
After completing the final acquisition in his strategic plan for the Fu family's future, Fu Xiachuan died on his way to Xingying Entertainment.
A horrific chain-reaction car accident claimed Fu Xiachuan's life.
After his death, the entire Fu Group naturally fell into the hands of Fu Qian.
Jiang Mingyue's understanding of "Fu Xiachuan" came entirely from the extensive reports about his death in the business magazine. The level of detail in the reports did not make Jiang Mingyue feel any respect for the deceased; on the contrary, it revealed excessive excitement between the lines.
It seemed like a declaration of victory.
When Fu Xiachuan was alive, the outside world could not even obtain a single photo of him; does that mean that once Fu Xiachuan died, the media could obtain all his information for no reason?
The content that was written in the news broadcast must have been revealed by Fu himself.
But the Fu family is not a small company, and they have no need to use their deceased boss to gain media attention.
Everything points to a particularly terrifying reality—Fu Qian, who later took over the Fu family business, treated Fu Xiachuan's private affairs as gossip to garner attention for the Fu family, and arbitrarily spread his private information.
Jiang Mingyue didn't know what deep-seated hatred existed between Fu Xiachuan and Fu Qian, but based on her understanding of Fu Qian, she believed that Fu Qian's behavior was entirely due to his personal emotions, because Fu Qian was the kind of person who held grudges but not gratitude.
Jiang Mingyue had thought countless times in her past life that if Fu Xiachuan hadn't died, then Fu Qian would have always been just the "Crown Prince of the Fu Family," unable to mobilize much power to surround and suppress her, making even dodging and retreat seem too pathetic.
What about this lifetime?
As long as Fu Xiachuan survives...
Thinking of this possibility, Jiang Mingyue couldn't help but smile.
She would always avoid Fu Qian like the plague, but now Fu Xiachuan is in charge of the Fu family business.
Before making any demands, the CEO of a mega-corporation offered her help, presenting her with such a great opportunity. Jiang Mingyue was not about to refuse just because of Fu Qian, that lunatic.
Jiang Mingyue shook her head, clearing her mind of the jumbled thoughts, and refocused her attention on "The Tale in the Bottle".
In her previous life, Jiang Mingyue was an unknown nobody at this time, completely unqualified to get involved in a major project like "The Story in the Bottle," and she knew nothing about the inside story of "The Story in the Bottle."
All Jiang Mingyue knew about the show was the gossip that the main cast of "The Story in the Bottle" consisted of various people with legal troubles, which ultimately led to the project being halted.
At the time, Jiang Mingyue, like any ordinary person, could only lament that the investors were really unlucky, having poured in 300 million yuan and lost it all. But tonight, when she heard Fu Xiachuan casually say, "It's a problem unique to entertainment companies. They weren't very obedient before, but now I have a perfect excuse to get rid of these pests," it was as if the fog had been cleared from her eyes.
Based on the timeline, Fu Xiachuan has now begun planning the transformation of the Fu family business.
"The Story in the Bottle" is a TV series produced by Xingchen Film and Television Entertainment Co., Ltd., which was recently acquired by Fu's Group. It brings together the most popular young actors and actresses in the industry, as well as a group of veteran actors who are very popular with audiences.
When the cast list was announced, everyone, from industry insiders to young people who follow the entertainment industry, marveled at Fu's extravagant spending.
Therefore, when problems arose one after another with "The Chronicles in a Bottle," the related scandals lingered in entertainment headlines for a long time.
But is that really the case?
The entertainment industry operates by agents using their personal connections to obtain information from different production teams and then push actors to audition for newly established projects.
While the company's strength is important, the abilities of the agents should not be underestimated.
Faced with personnel changes at the new employer, the long-standing members who have already secured a certain position will inevitably want to retain their original say.
In this situation, a large portion of the staff within entertainment companies are "disobedient".
This must be the real explanation for Fu Xiachuan's "insubordination".
Based on this, the second half of the sentence becomes particularly intriguing.
"Just a convenient excuse to get rid of pests"—what kind of excuse could just happen to appear?
Is it really possible for such a coincidence to happen in the world? Fu Xiachuan needed an excuse, so the entertainment company had a problem for him to exploit?
Furthermore, the personal financial situation, dual contracts, and whether they use drugs or engage in promiscuous sex are not secrets in the industry. Did "The Story in the Bottle" really not conduct any background checks on these actors when they decided to hire them?
If no investigation was conducted or the matter was not uncovered, it means that the relevant staff of the entertainment company were capable enough to cause significant losses to the company; if they did something but didn't care, it means they neglected their duties, and may even be involved in bribery or improper financial dealings with the artists.
No matter which label is attached, it's enough to kick out anyone Fu Xiachuan dislikes from the company without spending a penny, making an example of them.
Of course, doing so would also give people the impression that "the Fu family behind Xingchen Film and Entertainment Company is throwing money at an industry they don't understand, and they are foolish and rich."
However, after Xingying dismantled the "Chronicles in a Bottle" project team, it quickly transferred the original actors' contracts to other production teams. With this group of selected actors, it created three different types of high-quality ancient style dramas within two years: "Riding Through the Jianghu", "Wandering in the Jianghu", and "Flowers in the Snow". Two of them are still popular shows during summer and winter vacations even fifteen years later, with a steady stream of new viewers paying to watch them.
No staff or location shooting was wasted. The salaries of the young actors and actresses who became involved in legal troubles were recovered. The male and female leads were replaced with new actors who were extremely inexpensive and willing to spend a long time honing their acting skills on set.
In the long run, Xingying not only did not lose money, but also made a fortune!
Since the operation in the previous life was a proven and feasible route, why did Fu Xiachuan change his mind now and continue to push forward with the "Chronicles in a Bottle" project?
Does he really think so highly of this project?
That shouldn't be the case.
In his previous life, "The Tale in the Bottle" was never restarted until Fu Linchuan passed away.
"Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. I don't know enough inside information to figure it out. Anyway, he promised to pay me this much, so I'll just wait to join the cast and act." Jiang Mingyue kicked a pebble and muttered to herself.
Most importantly, if she doesn't spend the money Han Rong gives her, she won't be manipulated by him.
Jiang Mingyue took out the card Han Rong had given her, smiled, turned around and walked to the nearest police station to report that the bank card had been found. After verifying that the amount in the card was correct, she left a valuable statement.
Then, Jiang Mingyue went home with cheerful steps.
*
At that time, it was not like more than a decade later, when the country cracked down on fraudulent medical insurance claims and required hospitalized patients to stay in hospital wards at night.
The ordinary ward, which houses four or five people, is filled with snoring and painful groans every night.
To ensure her sleep quality and to save money by cooking for herself instead of buying hospital meals, Liang Shuanglan would return to her rented room to rest after her treatment.
Today wasn't a day off, and Liang Shuanglan hadn't expected her daughter to come home from school. As it got dark, she went to bed early.
The pain and discomfort from the treatment constantly weighed on Liang Shuanglan. Even in the quiet environment of her home, she slept restlessly and would wake up at the slightest noise.
As soon as Jiang Mingyue opened the door, Liang Shuanglan woke up.
She put on a coat and got up, saw her daughter standing at the door, and went to greet her in surprise: "Mingyue, why are you back so late at night?"
Jiang Mingyue shook the now-cold spring rolls in her hand: "Mom, I found a part-time job through the school, cleaning at a pastry shop. After get off work, the owner gave me the remaining spring rolls. Let's heat them up tomorrow morning and eat these."
Liang Shuanglan took the food box with concern and instructed, "Don't come home so late next time." Actually, Ningcheng is very safe, and there is no danger even if you stay up all night on the main road, but no mother can be at ease with her child.
Liang Shuanglan put the lunchbox in the refrigerator and urged, "Hurry up and take a shower and go to bed. You have class tomorrow."
Jiang Mingyue followed Liang Shuanglan like a little tail, discussing the itinerary with her: "Mom, I have two long classes tomorrow morning, so I'll go to the hospital with you in the afternoon."
"Okay, I'll get ready. You can come back for lunch." Liang Shuanglan said and went back to bed.
"Okay, I know." Jiang Mingyue took out a nightgown from the closet, went into the bathroom, and after the sound of running water, lay down on the small bed in the living room.
She closed her eyes, thinking of "three bedrooms and one living room," and entered the acting and learning space provided by the Golden Finger.
*
Although it was agreed that the head of the Fu family would give Jiang Mingyue the green light, Jiang Mingyue knew very well that Fu Xiachuan could only send her to the film set. But if an actor wanted to make a name for himself on set, at the very least, his acting skills couldn't make the director frown frequently, nor could he offend all the staff on set.
Handling interpersonal relationships is not Jiang Mingyue's forte; she has always kept her distance from her staff.
Therefore, she still needs to rely on her acting skills to pass muster, so that the director will consider her acting skills and allow her to maintain a distant relationship with everyone.
But "acting skills" are precisely what makes Jiang Mingyue feel troubled.
Just by looking at the age of the actresses chosen, you can tell that this is a period drama that starts from adolescence; and although Jiang Mingyue looks young, she has actually long passed the psychological stage of "innocent girl".
It's not difficult to cast actresses with mature acting skills and a psychological age of over thirty to portray alluring goddesses and seductive women, but portraying the innocence and naivety of a young girl is a true test of a mature actress's acting skills.
This is the fundamental reason why actresses who insisted on playing teenage girls even after they were over thirty were ridiculed – their tired and numb eyes and increasingly withered appearance could not support a qualified teenage girl image, making the audience feel insulted and dissatisfied as soon as they saw them on screen.
She needs to read the original text of "The Story in the Bottle" to gain a detailed understanding of this story that has been praised by countless people.
Before arriving at the film set, Jiang Mingyue had to catch up on this lesson as soon as possible; otherwise, when she appeared in front of the director and couldn't answer any of his questions, that would be the beginning of a real nightmare.
Jiang Mingyue stood in the living room, hesitated for a moment between the reading room and the media room, and chose to go into the reading room first. She found the three thick volumes of the original text of "The Story in the Bottle" and sat down on the sofa to read it.
Unlike Jiang Mingyue's impression that "adaptations of big IP novels only involve clichéd scripts with emotional conflicts between the male leads," this story describes a woman who grows up as if she were in a bottle but eventually breaks free, lives her own life, befriends ocean spirits, and develops a deep friendship with them, protecting the lives of residents in a coastal city—a fantastical tale.
After quickly flipping through it, Jiang Mingyue couldn't help but change to a more upright sitting posture, thinking to herself, "Ah, if only I had a notebook so I could analyze the plot while reading."
The moment the thought crossed her mind, a pen appeared in her palm.
Jiang Mingyue looked at the pen that had suddenly appeared and smiled at the empty space: "Thank you, I will analyze the original work very thoroughly."
Slender, white fingers turned the pages, and the story began anew.
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