Chapter 28: Revealing His True Identity

Ji Xiang was previously the publicity director for Li Bingbing. In fact, he had remained with her team until early this year, when Wang Jinghua formed her own company, Beijing Shiba, and brought him over.

Initially, Ji Xiang was responsible for the company’s marketing and publicity; he wasn't particularly interested in managing talent. After all, Li Bingbing was already a mature, top-tier star—a maxed-out character. Who would choose to play a low-level account when they could play a maxed-out one? The sense of gratification just wasn't there.

However, after hearing Wang Jinghua mention that she had found a raw diamond, he decided to come out of retirement. After a brief observation, he concluded that the boy was indeed a superstar in the making. His looks, his temperament, and—most importantly—his way of speaking were flawless. His thinking was sharp, and he had directly countered with, "What is the most suitable role?"

Generally speaking, an actor’s choice of projects is decided by their management team, because actors themselves often struggle to judge the quality of a production. One can only judge a director or screenwriter based on their past work, but artistic projects are always a gamble.

Take, for example, Chen Kaige. After watching *Farewell My Concubine*, one might be awestruck, convinced he was destined for film history. Yet, later, after watching *Blade of Fury* (also known as *The Blade*), one would be amazed by the dialogue and plot, concluding that only a true genius could write such a script—the screenwriter being Zhang Tan. And yet, those two collaborated to produce *The Promise*.

Even James Cameron’s breakout film, *The Terminator*, had a first draft that, including the cover, was only four pages long, with the core concept summarized in a single sentence: "A robot beats the hell out of the biggest asshole I hate."

Furthermore, at this stage, few actor teams went about changing scripts. Hai Qing was the first to do so, followed by Sun Li, and later, a swarm of actors followed suit, eventually leading to a point where the "highlight moments" of a role were fiercely fought over.

I’ve heard of a period drama where all three leads brought their own screenwriters to the set, creating original scenes every day, fighting tooth and nail to steal the spotlight. The director even got into a standoff with the top-billed male lead over a single scene, causing production to halt for several days. In the end, the show’s reception was mediocre, and the creative team suffered a major professional blow.

...

Ji Xiang analyzed the situation: " *Meteor, Butterfly, and Sword* is a Gu Long adaptation. The source material is quite famous, and it will be broadcast on CCTV. If possible, I certainly recommend you audition for the role of Meng Xinghun..."

Shen Yan immediately sensed there was more to it and asked decisively, "So, there’s a problem?"

"Yes, the lead role has currently been tentatively given to Chen Chuhe..."

Shen Yan scratched his head. "Chen Chuhe... that famous second-generation Taiwanese gangster?"

"...Yes, that's him."

Shen Yan sighed, "Tsk, tsk. Even someone from the mafia can transform into an actor and even get on television..."

"...Well, he is Taiwanese. That’s the advantage of his household registration!"

Wang Jinghua interrupted, "Don't talk about that."

Shen Yan changed the subject. "...What about *The Vigilantes in Masks*?"

Ji Xiang replied, "Tangren’s martial arts dramas have always been good. I heard this show was made to suppress that Korean drama *Iljimae* (starring Lee Joon-gi). They specifically brought in Deng Liqi to write the screenplay and Li Guoli to serve as the chief director!"

This was true. In an interview, Li Guoli stated, "'Iljimae' originated from China; this version of *The Vigilantes in Masks* is not a remake, but an original creation based on Chinese folklore." It was clear they wanted to compete with the Korean version.

Deng Liqi had previously been a screenwriter at TVB before joining Milkyway Image, writing numerous scripts such as *Accident*, *Flash Point*, and *Monster*. He is a well-known writer, and Li Guoli is a benchmark director for Tangren. A strong collaboration like this looked like a very promising show.

Shen Yan asked, "Is there any substance to the villain role?"

"Yes, I’ve read the full script. The villain’s character arc and psychological evolution are sufficient... and the logic is quite sound."

Shen Yan nodded, then asked, "I don't suppose the lead is also a Hong Kong or Taiwanese actor?"

Ji Xiang rubbed his nose. "You guessed correctly. The lead is Wallace Huo!"

"Damn... what about *Peacock Feather*?"

"That's a production by Zhou Yi..."

"Zhou Yi..." Shen Yan pondered. He knew of Zhou Yi—he had once read a post about them: a film company that produced nine hit dramas in four years and then disappeared for nearly a decade. However, he hadn't seen *Peacock Feather*.

Gu Long’s *Seven Weapons* consists of six independent stories: *Long Life Sword*, *Peacock Feather*, *Jade Dagger*, *Amorous Ring*, *Tyrant Spear*, and *Parting Hook*. *Jade Dagger* represents honesty, *Long Life Sword* represents a smile, *Peacock Feather* represents confidence, *Amorous Ring* represents hatred, *Tyrant Spear* represents courage, and *Parting Hook* represents humility.

Actually, these books aren't very readable. Many say that after *Hero Never Weeps*, Gu Long entered a period of decline, with his output dropping sharply and ghostwriters becoming rampant. In truth, after *The Magic Blade*, he was never the same. All six books of *Seven Weapons* are inferior to *Hero Never Weeps*.

However, Zhou Yi was probably better at fantasy dramas like *Water Moon Mirror Cave*, right? And... they rarely used outsiders.

Shen Yan hesitated. "Will they pick me?"

"That depends on your audition performance..."

"...Alright, I’ll try my best to win it."

Shen Yan nodded, then asked, "So, what is my salary?"

"You are a total newcomer... and you don't have a formal acting degree. Five thousand per episode..."

"Five thousand... Wow, that's a lot! I only made about five thousand a month with the lead actor before!"

Ji Xiang asked casually, "Are you short on money?"

Shen Yan nodded. "I was quite short on money before. When I first came to Beijing, I didn't know anything, and after half a year, I only had a few hundred yuan left... but it's better now. I received royalties of nearly 40,000 last month!"

"Royalties? You write?"

"Yes, martial arts novels... one is called *Lotus Casebook*, serialized in *Jin Gu Chuan Qi: Martial Arts Edition*..."

"Aren't you just a high school graduate?"

"Can't you write martial arts novels if you’re a high school graduate? Gu Long dropped out in his second year of high school..."

It was true that Gu Long dropped out in his second year, drifted through the underworld, and joined the local Sihai Gang. After joining the gang, he frequently participated in their activities, which left him with many knife scars. Due to financial hardship, he began writing to make a living. In 1955, he published his novel *From the North to the South* in *Morning Light* magazine, and later began ghostwriting for many "famous writers" of the time.

"Do you still have time to write novels?"

"...I suppose," Shen Yan thought for a moment. "I have another web novel currently being serialized... it's called *The Supreme One*..."

"A web novel?"

"It's a fantasy novel... you can look it up, it's quite famous!"

Ji Xiang immediately opened his mobile browser and typed in *The Supreme One*.

Wang Jinghua asked, "What will you do if you get cast?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it! I write very fast—four thousand words an hour..."

"...Ranked first on the new book monthly chart?"

"Yes!"

"Tsk, tsk. Impressive!"

Wang Jinghua didn't quite understand. "Is that very impressive?"

Ji Xiang said, "In any industry, being able to reach the top twenty is a testament to one's capability..."