"They've already cast someone else to play the villain in 'The Chase'?" Rong Yu asked in surprise. "So you were worried I'd be disappointed and didn't tell me?"
Yin Chengjue coughed lightly: "It's just...it's just that I'm thinking of just finding someone to write a drama specifically for you to act in, so you can be the male lead and not have to suffer like that. I want to get this sorted out first before I talk to you about it."
Rong Yu was both amused and exasperated: "Brother, I really didn't think you were as fragile as I thought."
"Besides, if you had told me earlier, I wouldn't have had to study that script," Rong Yu said reproachfully. "Brother made me waste so much of your time."
"Uh... I'm sorry." Yin Chengjue hadn't really thought of that at the time; he was only thinking about finding Rong Yu a better drama to make up for it.
Actually, if Rong Yu really wanted to play the villain in "The Chase," there were ways. As Sally's words said, as long as Yin Chengjue was willing to invest more money than the male actor who was taking up the spot, the role could still be given to Rong Yu.
"Haha, brother, I was just joking. I've said before that I know my own limitations. It's not me choosing the dramas, but the dramas choosing me. Whether I get the role or not depends on my abilities." Rong Yu had a very good attitude.
Yin Chengjue: "But this time it's not because you acted badly."
Rong Yu shrugged: "Then it just means I'm not meant to be with this role."
Yin Chengjue understood all these principles, but since it was Rong Yu who was wronged, Yin Chengjue couldn't help but feel indignant on his behalf.
“Tony asked you to try acting in a supernatural drama before. What do you think?” Yin Chengjue said, “I was thinking of finding an author who is good at this style to write a script for you. If the author is not good at writing scripts, we can write a book first and then find a screenwriter to adapt it from the book.”
Rong Yu asked, puzzled, "Then why not just find some existing books that have already been written? There are many original online books with a supernatural theme, right?"
Yin Chengjue: "Yes, there is, but as I just said, I want to write a script and role that suits you, tailor-made for you. Those ready-made books, the protagonists in them have already been infused with the author's emotions and soul, and the impression is constantly reinforced by the readers' senses. In the eyes of readers and authors, those characters in the books have already become independent, flesh-and-blood people in another world. This is also why actors are rejected by readers when they act in book adaptations."
Rong Yu nodded in agreement: "That's true."
Yin Chengjue took out a small notebook from his pocket, opened it, and found it filled with densely written words.
Yin Chengjue: "So I thought, why don't I just write a role that suits you? I'll write a script that's like a supernatural detective story. The opening of the drama will show a group of trainees auditioning. It can be funny and silly, or it can be a serious talent show. The male lead will be one of them."
"The male lead passed the audition and stepped onto the class division stage. So far, the show seems like a very ordinary talent show with nothing scary about it, until the stage where the talent show class division took place. Suddenly, the lights went out and the light music turned into a strange nursery rhyme."
"A gasp rippled through the crowd as the nursery rhyme played on repeat, ending with a string of silvery laughter. The laughter faded, the lights came on, and the music resumed. However, as everyone looked back at the stage in shock, they discovered that the contestant who had been performing in the dark had died in a bizarre way on stage."
After Yin Chengjue finished explaining his ideas, he heard several rounds of applause. Rong Yu said, "Brother, you've thought of so many things, why don't you write them down yourself?"
Write it yourself?
Yin Chengjue thought Rong Yu was joking.
“I don’t have that kind of talent.” Yin Chengjue closed the notebook. “These are just some ideas. It doesn’t matter if we find a suitable author who doesn’t adopt them. The important thing is that the role suits you.”
Rong Yu leaned on the table, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at Yin Chengjue: "Then tell me, in this script you've envisioned, what kind of character should I be?"
Yin Chengjue paused, holding the notebook, and hesitated for a moment before saying, "The main character is actually a ghost."
The image of Rong Yu wearing a red dress that day couldn't help but flash through Yin Chengjue's mind...
Rong Yu: "...Brother, what's with that expression?"
"Ahem!" Yin Chengjue coughed lightly. "I already said my ideas aren't important. It's not like I'm writing it. This is just a concept. A plot like this is fine."
"No, I want to listen to my brother's ideas. Whatever role my brother wants me to play, I will play it for him!" Rong Yu urged Yin Chengjue to continue.
Yin Chengjue could only say, "I just thought it would be more interesting this way. The male protagonist is actually a ghost, but he doesn't know he is a ghost. This story is divided into four time periods."
The first timeline is the talent show. Because someone died during the show, it was forced to stop. The male lead, who was present, saw a suspicious man in black leaving backstage. He quickly chased after him, only to find a mask lying on the ground. The talent show was cancelled before it even officially aired, and the news was suppressed, with only rumors circulating online.
The second scene depicts the male lead working as an extra on a period drama. During filming, someone in the crew dies, and the male lead happens to bump into a masked man in black. He immediately recognizes the mask and chases after him, but loses sight of him. Due to the accident on set, filming of this scene is halted.
The third timeline is when the male protagonist attends a wedding banquet as a groomsman. At the banquet, the "ghost" who has appeared twice in the protagonist's life comes out to kill people again. This time, the protagonist catches him, removes his mask, and discovers that the person is his friend.
The fourth segment is a flashback. The protagonist and his friend went to a graduation party, drank too much, and staggered out, supporting each other, onto the street. Suddenly, a bright light shone on them, and at the same time, a piercing horn sounded in their ears.
Rong Yu frowned as she listened: "This story feels very fragmented, and it doesn't seem like a ghost movie. It's more like a serial murder case. And how are you going to show that the male protagonist is a ghost? Because in the fourth time period of memory, it shows that the male protagonist and his friend were hit by a car on the road?"
Yin Chengjue shook his index finger, a faint smile playing on his lips: "No, in that car accident, only the male lead died. My friend didn't die; my friend is a human being."
Yin Chengjue: "But in the male lead's mind, it was his friend who died and he who survived. So he always thought that it was his friend's ghost that was haunting him and killing people everywhere. Without exception, the people who were killed were all people who accidentally took the male lead's place. In the first time period, the male lead should have been on stage at that time, but for some reason, his performance was postponed. In the second time period, the male lead should have been wearing that performance costume, but for some reason, he was replaced. In the third time period, the male lead was a groomsman. When the groomsmen were rehearsing, the male lead was standing next to the groom, but because he looked more handsome than the groom after putting on the suit, he was replaced."
"In other words, if he hadn't been replaced, the one who got electrocuted on stage, the one who got burned on set, and the one whose heart was pierced at the wedding banquet would have been the male lead."
“In the second stage, the male protagonist realizes that the person his friend wants to kill is himself,” Yin Chengjue said.
Rong Yu rested her chin on her hand and sorted out her thoughts, still having some doubts: "First question, why did the friend want to kill the male lead? Second question, from the male lead's perspective, the friend is the ghost, but from the friend's perspective, then the male lead is the ghost. How should these two perspectives be developed to make sense?"
Yin Chengjue reminded him, "Your second question solved your first one."
Rong Yu: "You mean, your friend wanted to kill the male lead because he's a ghost?"
Yin Chengjue nodded: "He's still a lingering ghost, always following his friend. But actually, the male lead is just obsessed with those dead people's cases, wanting to find the truth. From the male lead's perspective, if no one dies during the talent show, the show will air sooner, and he can face the audience and debut sooner. If there is no accident in the crew and the TV series airs normally, he can also be known by more people sooner."
From the friend's perspective, the deceased protagonist is omnipresent, a constant companion, causing immense mental stress that he can no longer bear. He decides to exorcise the ghost that destroyed the protagonist. Meanwhile, from the protagonist's perspective, a lurking killer has ruined his promising life, and he wants to catch the murderer.
“I feel like there are still some plot holes in this story,” Rong Yu said seriously. “If the male lead has become a ghost, how can he participate in the talent show? How can he join the film crew? How can he attend the wedding? If the other people are also ghosts, how can his friend survive among a group of ghosts? He is a person who needs to eat, drink and relieve himself.”
Yin Chengjue was taken aback by Rong Yu's question. After thinking for a moment, he said helplessly, "That's why I said I can't make up stories. They're full of loopholes and can't be investigated at all."
Rong Yu encouraged, "No, this story can be further improved. Let's add more people; two people are too few."
"Okay, I'll think about it some more." Yin Chengjue said with a smile, "There are some promising talents in the company who need an opportunity to showcase their abilities. They can come and give it a try."
Rong Yu hesitated for a moment, then tentatively asked, "How about we consider using some members of our boy band? I think there's one person who would be perfect for the role of the friend."
"who?"
Rong Yu smiled, then said, word by word, "Ming, Qian".
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