"No. I just read a bit of the original novel." Shang Yechu didn't want to continue the topic, so she simply said, "Are you here to rehearse with me?"
Li Yi touched the tip of his nose: "Acting together? Me and you? Who are you playing?"
"Oiran Mianmian." Shang Yechu's words were concise and to the point.
"Oh, right." Li Yi remembered. "Then I do have a scene with you. Wait a minute, I'll go get the script."
Shang Yechu watched the other person's retreating figure, her brows furrowing slightly.
She didn't have a very good impression of this celebrity.
It wasn't that Shang Yechu disliked the other person's seemingly dim-witted appearance—Shang Yechu had met many innocent and clear-headed people, such as Su Ge and Li Kui. This Li Yi seemed to have a similar personality to the previous two, so there was nothing she couldn't stand about him.
The main reason is that Shang Yechu, who had seen "Tianji Tower" in her previous life, clearly remembered the other party's appalling acting skills...
There are only two kinds of characters that can leave a lasting impression on the audience: either extremely good or extremely bad. Unfortunately, Xie An, played by Li Yi, is the latter.
The novel *Tianji Tower* was filmed in three parts: upper, middle, and lower. Xie An is a key character throughout the entire series. Romance is an essential element in martial arts films, and it's natural that Xie An develops feelings for Xiao Fengque—this is a plot point from the original novel.
However, Li Yi's portrayal of Xie An in the film was rather indescribable. When facing the female lead, Xiao Fengque, Xie An seemed like a blind man; when facing the innocent and pitiful victims, Xie An seemed like a villain; and when facing the final villain, Xie An seemed like their accomplice!
Compared to a group of veteran actors, Li Yi looked like a savage who had strayed into civilized society, tormenting the poor audience with his shameful acting skills and enormous screen time. Even a casual viewer like Shang Yechu, who only watched the movie once and then forgot about it, hated his face to the core and wanted to change the channel whenever his scenes came on.
Shang Yechu recalled that at the time, the biggest stain on this version of "Tianji Tower" online was the male lead, Xie An. Many netizens called out Li Yi for adding scenes and said that "Tianji Tower" should be renamed "The Legend of Xie An".
The biggest taboo in female-centric works is adding scenes for male characters, especially for a male character who is poorly acted!
Shang Yechu remained reserved about whether Li Yi was an actor who added unnecessary scenes. After all, she knew some inside information that others didn't. But she felt there was no doubt that Li Yi was a clueless actor.
Now, after seeing the cast of "Tianji Tower", Shang Yechu is even more puzzled about why Yi Tianzhao hired Li Yi.
"Tianji Tower" was invested in by CHTV6, and all the money came from the government; capitalists had no say in it. Li Yi couldn't possibly be a rich kid who brought his own funding to the production. I've never heard of any other celebrity or director's son as handsome as Li Yi who could use connections to get a role at CTS.
Just as Shang Yechu was scheming in her mind, Li Yi finally walked over with her script.
Li Yi sat down on the small stool next to Shang Yechu, opened a page of the script, and suddenly said, "By the way, do you know why Teacher Yang hasn't come yet? I was originally planning to ask her to rehearse with me."
Shang Yechu paused, then shook her head. "If you don't know, then I know even less."
Li Yi said "Oh," and then added, "Okay. Wait a moment, I need to 'preview' it first..."
Shang Yechu looked at the script in Li Yi's hand; it was three or four times thicker than hers. This was the treatment the lead actor received. If it were Xiao Fengque's script, it would probably be even thicker.
Shang Yechu's thoughts drifted far away. She had lied to Li Yi. Of course, she knew where Yang Huanyi, the actress playing Xiao Fengque, was. Not only that, she also knew that not only would Yang Huanyi be late today, but she would also be late and even miss many more scenes during future filming.
Yang Huanyi is the most prominent actress in "Tianji Tower". In some ways, her status is even higher than that of director Yi Tianzhao.
Because she is a rare female action star in China.
Yang Huanyi has studied martial arts since childhood, inheriting a family tradition of the art. Since her debut, she has played numerous roles, including female warriors in martial arts dramas, female agents in spy dramas, and female assassins. Her starring role in "Wolf Poison Flower Special Forces" was the highest-rated drama of the year. Although she hasn't achieved absolute superstardom due to audience limitations, she has still enjoyed considerable popularity and is not to be underestimated.
Action stars are always scarce, especially female action stars. Although stunt doubles can be used in filming, actors who perform their own stunts undoubtedly have more "class" than those who use stunt doubles. For some fans of new generation stars, performing their own stunts without a stunt double is something to brag about.
At a time when many actresses are gradually adopting a more feminine, glamorous, and red carpet-ready style, the spirited Yang Huanyi is undoubtedly the best choice to play Xiao Fengque.
More famous than her wouldn't act in a TV movie, and more popular than her wouldn't have her acting skills and martial arts prowess. Plus, her salary was reasonable, making her a great value (especially important for a budget-conscious TV movie production team). Yang Huanyi was practically Yi Tianzhao's dream actress.
Unfortunately, while the king was willing, the goddess had no desire. Shang Yechu knew that Yang Huanyi didn't share Yi Tianzhao's enthusiasm for "Tianji Tower".
The other party should be suspended by wires on the set of "The Special Envoy of the City" right now.
That's right. When Yang Huanyi agreed to star in "Tianji Tower", he was also on the contract for another movie - the suspenseful gunfight film "Special Envoy of the City".
This information was obtained by Shang Yechu while browsing the official website of the State Administration of Film and Television of China. Of course, Shang Yechu couldn't just look at the film lists approved in September and October; he had to look back further. After seeing the film project "Special Envoy of the Dangerous City" approved by the China Film Administration in August, Shang Yechu's long-forgotten memories were awakened.
As an actor, watching a large number of films is a must. Shang Yechu must have watched a lot of movies in her previous life. She couldn't remember the names of the actors in foreign films, but she could always remember most of the names of domestic films.
Shang Yechu remembered the female lead of "The Special Envoy of the Dangerous City"—it was Yang Huanyi.
That's interesting.
"The Special Envoy of the Dangerous City" was approved in August. Whether it's a film or a TV series, once a project is approved, filming must begin quickly. This is the fastest, most efficient, and cost-effective way to make money as quickly as possible.
"The Special Envoy of the City" didn't make it to the National Day holiday, so it's aiming for the Spring Festival. Excluding the one to two months needed for promotion and distribution, the filming period for "The Special Envoy of the City" is from September to December.
Coincidentally, the filming of "Tianji Tower" took place between October and December.
In industry jargon, Yang Huanyi was juggling multiple projects simultaneously. And he was juggling them completely, without any gaps.
Throughout the entire filming period of "Tianji Tower", Yang Huanyi was destined to run back and forth like this, even interfering with the filming process of the entire crew, making the crew open the door to her schedule.
This explains why "The Phoenix Plays with the Dragon" has a total of twenty volumes, but the film only consisted of three parts: upper, middle, and lower.
Clearly, the collaboration between Director Yi and Ms. Yang Huanyi ended after three films.
Shang Yechu narrowed her eyes, pondering—how to speed up this failed process?
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