Chapter 34: A Little Nervous

Shen Yan certainly knew Liu Shishi.

He had watched a few episodes of "A Journey to Love"... though he didn't find the show particularly good. He had simply stumbled upon clips on Douyin—the male and female leads performing a combined move, where the male lead kicked the female lead out toward an enemy camp to set off a bomb. Good grief, the action choreography was a direct copy of a promotional video for the game "Angry Birds." Besides that, she held her back so stiffly that he was always worried she might tip over backward while walking.

As for her appearance... she was undeniably a beauty, and the elegant type at that. There was something generous and dignified about her, like a well-bred young lady. It just wasn't exactly stunning.

As for Janine Chang... the moment Shen Yan saw her, he immediately recalled that she was Li Han from "Silence." He knew her; like Eddie Peng, she was an example of someone who worked incredibly hard but lacked natural talent. She was a typical Taiwanese actress with above-average, yet conventional, acting skills—the type that never strayed from the rules. However, Tangren's costume dramas hardly required acting skills anyway; having the right temperament was enough.

After exchanging greetings, Shen Yan followed the three of them to a barbecue restaurant called "Old Song Barbecue." They requested a private room, and Yuan Hong boasted, "The private rooms at Old Song's are reserved for celebrities. If your status isn't high enough, he won't even let you sit in one!"

He casually asked Shen Yan, "What do you want to eat?"

"Let's get two roasted lamb legs... how about you guys?"

"Janine, do you have any dietary restrictions?"

Janine Chang shook her head, so Yuan Hong took charge: "Bring twenty lamb skewers, ten chicken wings... potatoes, eggplant, and some grilled shrimp as well. Shall we have some alcohol?"

"Let's skip it... we have to shoot tomorrow..."

"...Then let's get some soft drinks? What will you have, Shen?"

"A Coke, please..."

Liu Shishi quickly added, "I'll have a Coke too!"

Janine Chang said, "Plain water is fine for me."

"Got it... Waiter!"

A staff member pushed the door open, took the menu, and brought over a plate of pre-cut watermelon.

"Everyone, help yourselves..."

"Right!"

While eating watermelon, Yuan Hong asked Shen Yan, "Are you nervous?"

"It's alright..."

Liu Shishi interjected, "Nervous about what?"

"It's his first time playing a lead role!"

Liu Shishi was surprised. "You've never played a lead before?"

"No," Shen Yan shook his head. "I've always been an extra until now..."

Yuan Hong explained, "He auditioned for 'The Vigilantes in Masks,' caught the director's eye, and was pulled in to act in 'A Weaver on the Horizon'..."

"Oh? Then are you still going to be in 'The Vigilantes in Masks'?"

"Yes... I signed a contract for two projects..."

Liu Shishi looked at him. "I'm in 'The Vigilantes in Masks' too... are you playing He Xiaomei?"

"No, I'm playing Ying Wuqiu... the big villain..."

"Ying Wuqiu?" Liu Shishi looked at him with surprise. "How old are you this year?"

"Twenty-one... I was born in '88!"

"...Wow, you're a year younger than me..."

Shen Yan really wanted to reply, "You look young, I don't mind if you call me brother..." But it was their first meeting, so he decided against it and laughed instead. "It's fine, once the makeup is on, it's about the same..."

Yuan Hong chimed in, "What about you, Janine?"

"I was directly invited... I didn't even know what this company, Tangren, was..."

"...We have senior management from Taiwan..."

Ah, right. Karen Tsoi grew up in Hong Kong, which is why Tangren's early dramas almost exclusively cast leads from Hong Kong and Taiwan. Of course, at that time, mainland actors were considered "unrefined" and were indeed deemed ill-suited for historical idol dramas. This applied to both men and women. Many Hong Kong and Taiwanese actors, especially those from Taiwan, viewed acting in a Tangren production as a stepping stone into the mainland market.

Back to the meal... the barbecue was decent. Shen Yan focused primarily on eating, while Yuan Hong chatted with Janine Chang. Liu Shishi also ate quite a bit. Shen Yan watched her finish six lamb skewers and then pick up a lamb leg to gnaw on... she was struggling with it.

Shen Yan put on a plastic glove. "Give it here!"

Liu Shishi handed him the lamb bone. Shen Yan took it, exerted some force, and snapped the bone apart, then placed it in front of her. He asked curiously, "Don't you female celebrities have to watch your diet?"

Liu Shishi looked at the broken lamb leg, somewhat astonished, because Shen Yan didn't look like someone with that much strength. Hearing his question, she quickly replied, "...Ah... how can I be considered a female celebrity?"

"You don't consider yourself one? The famous Liu Shishi... I've even heard of you!"

Liu Shishi was surprised. "Am I that famous?"

"The 'Number One Sister'... what do you think?"

On the Tianya forums, Liu Shishi's fanbase crushed everyone else's, earning her the title of "Tianya's Number One Sister." Later, some called her "Tangren's Number One Sister," as she was the most popular and highest-ranked actress at the company. Eventually, people just dropped the prefixes and called her "The Number One Sister."

"What 'Number One Sister'?"

"Nothing," Shen Yan changed the subject. "Can you tell me about the habits of the directors at Tangren?"

"Habits?"

"You know, like whether they scold people..."

"...I think they're okay... I've never been scolded... but since you're just starting out, it's normal to get yelled at a few times!"

Then, Liu Shishi told him about an incident with Hu Ge. While filming "Chinese Paladin," Hu Ge was scolded by the director every single day. In one particular scene, Li Xiaoyao had to run with Ling'er. Hu Ge, who hadn't graduated yet, only had stage experience from school, so he handled the scene using theatrical methods, completely ignoring the cameras and positioning required for filming. The director, who was monitoring the shots from inside a room, saw Hu Ge's over-the-top performance, rushed out, and gave him a massive dressing-down. It was said that everyone on set was stunned.

"...That strict, huh..."

Yuan Hong interjected, "I feel like Director Li's temper has mellowed a lot in the last few years..."

"...So I caught a good time, then?"

After chatting for another hour or so, everyone returned to their hotels.

Chen Xu had already received the shooting schedule and checked the scenes for tomorrow... there was only one appearance. Fang Ning's role wasn't large to begin with. In the early stages of "A Weaver on the Horizon," Huang Qiao'er's Jinxiu Workshop participates in the "World's Number One Textile Competition." Well, there was no "World's Number One"... and the five weavers of the Jinxiu Workshop had much more screen time than Fang Ning.

Shen Yan roughly studied Fang Ning's personality and status, and worked out his manner of speaking and his posture while walking... Necessary desk work still had to be done! Oh... Shen Yan didn't need to memorize the script. As long as the plot flowed well and the lines weren't awkward, he could remember them after one read.

However, thinking about the official shoot starting tomorrow... he was still a bit nervous. It was normal; acting as a lead for the first time meant the cameras, lighting, and positioning would definitely be different from being a background extra...

He hoped everything would go smoothly!

He took a shower and prepared to sleep, when his phone rang. It wasn't Ji Xiang, but Li Yuqiu from "Wuxia Edition." Shen Yan picked up. "Editor Li?"

"...A publishing house contacted me; they want to publish 'Lotus Casebook'... What do you think?"

"What's the royalty percentage?"

"Six percent..."

Six percent... tsk, what a rip-off!

Shen Yan didn't even think about it. "I don't really want to publish it for now... By the way, Editor Li, 'Lotus Casebook' is almost finished being serialized. I'm going to upload it online... that won't affect your sales, will it?"