The following day, Lin Yu arrived at Ivy's film set as promised.
The Guannei Film City contains a magnificent palace.
This is a replica built to a 1:1 scale of the Forbidden City in Yandu. Although it is a replica, it looks very exquisite, retro, and grand.
There happens to be a Qing Dynasty drama filming here today; this is Ivy's film crew.
Zhang Jimou's incident did not affect the filming process. After two days of adjustment, the crew has resumed normal filming.
However, the investors informed us today that a second female lead will be joining the cast.
The second female lead is none other than Ivy's old partner, Wang Xinyu, whom she least wants to see!
Wang Xinyu is known as the eternal runner-up, but her aura is definitely not inferior. As soon as she arrived at the film crew, she treated everyone in the crew to milk tea and got along very well with the crew leaders. On the contrary, Ivy, the female lead, was neglected.
This industry is all about connections. Ivy's family has fallen on hard times, and Zhang Jimou, who promoted her, is now in jail. Although she was a popular actress, she's no longer viewed favorably. This path is unsustainable without powerful backers. After a period of being sidelined and without acting opportunities, her popularity will gradually fade.
Wang Xinyu, on the other hand, is highly regarded by everyone. After all, she joined the production team with her own investment and has powerful backers. Her future prospects are only going to be brighter.
As for the label of "perennial runner-up"?
This is not a problem. Many actresses who are second leads or even supporting actresses in the industry have been inactive for many years before finally becoming leading actresses. This is a common occurrence.
Undeniably, some of these individuals were the result of years of hard work and dedication. However, many more ultimately succumbed to the allure of fame and fortune, selling their souls in the process.
However, these days people laugh at poverty but not prostitution. Since it's the entertainment industry, how clean can you expect it to be?
"Come on, everyone! Come over here!"
At this moment, the newly arrived director, Feng Zikai, suddenly clapped his hands, calling everyone to gather around.
"I've received instructions from the investors that we need to add thirty more episodes to this TV series, and the female lead needs to be made to have a darker side. The script has been revised, Ivy, take a look at it in a bit!"
Hearing Feng Zikai say this, Ivy was stunned. She thought filming was almost over, but she didn't expect so many more episodes to be added and for him to turn her into a villain.
"Director, are you kidding me? We've already filmed this far, and you want me to turn evil? Do you know how much this will affect the character?" Ivy couldn't understand and couldn't help but ask.
Everyone else was also somewhat stunned.
The idea of turning the female lead into a villain is, frankly, a way of saying they want to replace her. It's obvious that the capital behind this is trying to push the second female lead, Wang Xinyu, too hard!
Thinking of this, everyone's lips curled up slightly; this was going to be quite a show.
Feng Zikai glanced at Wang Xinyu, who was touching up her makeup with a small mirror, looking arrogant and not even glancing in their direction.
Feng Zikai shook his head helplessly and said to Ivy, "Ivy, don't get too excited. As actors, we have to adapt to the changes in roles, which is also beneficial to improving our acting skills!"
Ivy still bit her red lips, "This has nothing to do with acting skills. As an actress, I have to consider the audience's feelings and be responsible for the work. I disagree with your decision!"
Snap!
Suddenly, Wang Xinyu closed the mirror, glancing at her with disdain. "Tsk tsk! You disagree? Who do you think you are! Ivy, you haven't played too many leading roles, have you? You actually think you're the leading lady now? There's a saying, what goes around comes around. You were popular before, but you'll fade into obscurity eventually. Besides, the audience is already tired of your round face. It's time for a change! Letting you turn evil is the only way to be responsible to the audience!"
"You!" Ivy was so angry she couldn't speak.
Even if this woman didn't get along with her in the past, she wouldn't have dared to speak like that, but now she's become quite assertive.
It's truly a case of a dog relying on its master's power!
"In short, I disagree. If we don't follow the original plan, I'd rather not film it!" Ivy crossed her arms, turned around, and snorted.
Feng Zikai frowned. "Not filming anymore? Are you sure? I don't need to elaborate on the contract with the investors. If you're willing to pay the penalty for breach of contract, that's fine, but according to the contract, it's three times the amount. Are you sure you want to breach the contract?"
Ivy's body trembled, and she immediately clenched her fists.
The salary for this role was substantial, and triple the compensation would be a significant sum for her. Although she has earned a considerable amount of money over the years, she is not good at managing finances, has high spending habits, and enjoys doing charity work, so she hasn't saved much money. If she does breach the contract, she will likely face a court summons!
Thinking of this, Ivy took a deep breath and could no longer utter a single word of refusal.
Wang Xinyu sneered, revealing a smug expression.
Soon, filming began for the new script.
Ivy was very unlucky; her first scene today was a slapping scene.
Of course, it was the second female lead who slapped the first female lead.
Beneath the red walls of the palace, Ivy and Wang Xinyu stood facing each other.
"Ivy, you didn't expect this, did you? You've finally met your match!" Wang Xinyu rubbed her hands together, a slight smirk playing on her lips.
Ivy remained indifferent. At this moment, she didn't want to say another word. She just wanted to finish filming the rest of the scenes as soon as possible and leave this damned film crew.
"Okay, action!"
Snap!
No sooner had Feng Zikai finished speaking than a loud slap landed on Ivy's face.
Ivy swayed, and a bright red handprint slowly appeared. She looked up at Wang Xinyu in disbelief.
I didn't expect them to actually hit me! And they were so ruthless!
Wang Xinyu turned around and said in a sweet voice, "I'm sorry, director, I forgot my lines. Shall we do it again?"
Feng Zikai shook his head helplessly, "Cut! Okay, let's do it again!"
Next... *smack!*
"Director, I'm sorry, I forgot my lines again!"
Snap!
"Director, I'm sorry, hehehe, I couldn't help it!"
Snap!
"Director, I'm sorry, I missed!"
Wang Xinyu repeatedly requested reshoots for various reasons.
By this time, Ivy's face was swollen like a steamed bun, and blood was oozing from the corner of her mouth. Even the makeup artist could barely cover it up.
However, the people around just watched indifferently, and no one went to stop them.
Because everyone knows that Ivy's career is declining, while Wang Xinyu is currently at the peak of her career, and no one would offend Wang Xinyu for Ivy's sake.
Snap!
With the final slap, Ivy finally couldn't hold on any longer, felt dizzy, and collapsed to the ground.
"Keep pretending! Keep pretending!"
Wang Xinyu pointed at Ivy and shouted, "Director, she's slacking off! Just kick her out of the crew and make her pay the penalty for breach of contract!"
Upon hearing this, Ivy trembled and struggled to her feet.
However, Wang Xinyu still wasn't going to let her off the hook, and another big slap came flying at her.
However, just as the slap was about to land on Ivy's face, a large hand suddenly appeared and firmly grabbed her wrist!
Then came a cold and stern face, which said coldly, "Don't hit someone in the face. Didn't your mother teach you that?"
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