Eunuch, do you really know these martial arts?

The next day, before dawn, the film and television base was shrouded in a gray fog.

When Jiang Nian's nanny van drove into the film set, the atmosphere was noticeably more tense than the day before.

Many staff members glanced at him and quickly lowered their heads.

Zhou Yuxuan's team occupied the best spots in the rest area, chatting and laughing, deliberately raising their voices, with the air of victors.

Ah Jie parked the car and said in a low voice, "Teacher Jiang, their people arrived even earlier than us."

"A clown will always be eager to take the stage."

Jiang Nian got out of the car, her expression calm.

Xiaomin followed closely behind him, carrying an insulated box and a backpack, her eyes filled with worry, but even more so with determination.

Just as Zhou Yuxuan reached the entrance of the dressing room, his manager, Li Qiang, blocked his way with a smile, holding a USB drive in his hand.

"Good morning, Teacher Jiang."

Li Qiang gave a forced smile. "I heard you have several important performances today? You'd better prepare well. Oh, by the way, we happen to have some material here about how veteran artists mentor younger generations. After we wrap up, we can release it for everyone to study."

The threat in those words was almost undisguised.

Jiang Nian didn't stop walking, and didn't even glance at him.

Jing Liqiang's smile froze instantly, and his hand that was spinning the USB drive stopped. He then added a sinister remark to Jiang Nian's back.

"Teacher Jiang, in this industry, it's not enough to just be a good actor; you also need to know the rules!"

Xiao Min turned around and glared at him angrily, but Jiang Nian raised his hand to stop her.

"It's just barking, no need to pay attention."

Makeup, changing clothes, everything as usual.

The makeup artist's movements were gentler and more careful than usual, her eyes filled with a hesitant concern.

When I arrived at the filming location, Director Zhang Yi was already there, staring at the monitor with a furrowed brow and a very unpleasant expression.

Clearly, the online controversy and the tense relationship within the production crew have put him under tremendous pressure.

Zhou Yuxuan sat on his personal recliner, wearing sunglasses and with his legs crossed, while his assistant peeled grapes for him.

Seeing Jiang Nian approach, he curled his lips into a cold smile and deliberately said loudly to his assistant, "The weather's nice today, perfect for filming some exciting scenes, don't you think?"

The assistant quickly chimed in, "That's right, Brother Xuan, you're in such great form today, you'll definitely nail it in one take!"

Today's filming schedule does include several scenes with intense conflict. In one scene, Jiang Nian and Zhou Yuxuan have a heated argument in the operating room over the treatment plan for an emergency patient, and there is even a physical shoving.

Zhang Yi called the two of them together and said in a serious tone, "For this scene, the emotions must be full and the movements must be precise, but you must control them! Safety first! Understand?"

His gaze was focused on Zhou Yuxuan.

Zhou Yuxuan took off his sunglasses, his face sincere: "Director, don't worry, I will definitely cooperate with Teacher Jiang and act well."

He emphasized the words "act well" very much.

Jiang Nian simply nodded: "Understood."

"Alright, all departments, get ready! Actors, take your positions!"

Inside the surgical preparation room, the lights were brightly lit, and various medical instruments and props were neatly arranged.

Jiang Nian and Zhou Yuxuan each stood on one side.

Field recorder.

Jiang Nian instantly got into the zone. He picked up a medical record and strode towards the virtual operating room, his tone urgent yet calm: "The patient has a ruptured artery and must be operated on immediately. We can't wait for the test results any longer!"

Zhou Yuxuan, playing Chen Yang, suddenly stepped forward, blocking his way, his eyes filled with provocation and disapproval: "Dr. Lu! Without a complete lab report, how can you be sure there aren't other complications? You're risking the patient's life!"

“He’ll be dead by the time the test results come out!” Jiang Nian said firmly, trying to circumvent his words.

According to the script, Zhou Yuxuan should reach out to stop him, and the two should have a brief physical contact and eye contact.

However, a ruthless glint flashed in Zhou Yuxuan's eyes. As he reached out to block, his arm suddenly increased in strength. It wasn't a feint as required by the script; he actually shoved Jiang Nian hard in the chest! At the same time, he tripped forward with his foot in a very subtle way!
If this happens, Jiang Nian is likely to lose his balance and fall backward, crashing into the prop table behind him where sharp surgical instruments are placed!

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Nian seemed to have anticipated this.

His seemingly forward momentum suddenly halted, and his body turned to the side by a tiny, almost imperceptible angle. Zhou Yuxuan's hand, which was pushing him, brushed past the front of his white coat and missed.

Jiang Nian cleverly changed her footwork, not only avoiding the tripping motion, but also seemingly unintentionally tapping her heel backward, precisely landing on the side and behind Zhou Yuxuan's supporting leg's knee.

"Uh!"

Zhou Yuxuan felt a numbness in the back of his knee, and his leg instantly lost its strength. He stumbled forward uncontrollably. In order not to fall, he had to awkwardly brace himself against the equipment cart next to him with his hands, making a loud "bang"!
Jiang Nian was already standing firmly at the door of the operating room, looking back at him with eyes as cold as knives.

With the accusatory and authoritative tone of Lu Chenxi: "Dr. Chen, can't you even walk steadily? If not, then get out of the way!"

"Card!"

Zhang Yi jumped up, his face ashen. "Zhou Yuxuan! What are you up to now?!"

The entire set fell silent. Everyone could clearly see that Zhou Yuxuan had tried to cause trouble but ended up making a fool of himself.

Zhou Yuxuan's face turned bright red, both shocked and furious. He pointed at Jiang Nian and cried out, "Director! He! He tripped me on purpose!"

Jiang Nian slowly walked back to the center of the stage, his tone calm and even, yet carrying an oppressive pressure: "The script requires physical contact and verbal conflict, not actual physical violence. Mr. Zhou, if your professional skills are limited to petty actions in private, I suggest you go back to school and retake your acting course."

"You're talking nonsense!" Zhou Yuxuan completely lost his temper and cursed, "You, surnamed Jiang, what do you think you are! A washed-up old man, you dare to challenge me?! Believe me or not, I'll make sure you can't stay in this industry!"

Li Qiang also rushed up and pointed at Jiang Nian's nose.

"Jiang Nian! Don't go too far! If anything happens to Yu Xuan, can you take responsibility?!"

"Responsible?"

Jiang Nian's eyes flashed with a sharp light, his gaze piercing Li Qiang like an ice pick. "You have repeatedly provoked us, interfered with filming, and threatened the actors. How do you plan to settle this score?"

He stopped looking at the furious Zhou Yuxuan and Li Qiang, turned to Zhang Yi, and spoke in a calm tone.

"Director, given that Mr. Zhou Yuxuan has repeatedly performed dangerous stunts during filming and is extremely emotionally unstable, seriously affecting the filming schedule and the safety of the crew, I suggest suspending all of his scenes for today to ensure the smooth progress of filming."

Looking at the chaotic situation before him, and then at the calm and collected Jiang Nian and the mad dog-like Zhou Yuxuan, Zhang Yi's heart had already tipped in his favor.

He took a deep breath and made a decision: "Zhou Yuxuan! You're not in a good mood right now. Go back to the dressing room and calm down immediately! All your scenes for today will be postponed!"

"Director!" Zhou Yuxuan exclaimed in disbelief.

"This is an order!"

Zhang Yi's tone left no room for argument, "If you cause any more trouble, get out of the crew! I won't skimp on the breach of contract penalty!" Zhou Yuxuan and Li Qiang were speechless, their faces turning pale and then red.

Order was finally restored on set, but the atmosphere remained tense.

Without Zhou Yuxuan's interference, the subsequent filming went exceptionally smoothly.

Jiang Nian's professionalism and consistent performance earned the admiration of all the staff.

During the lunch break, Xiaomin came over with her phone in hand, looking a little nervous: "Teacher Jiang, there's new information circulating online..."

This time it wasn't just baseless slander, but an edited audio clip.

The content was clearly a clip from a few days ago at a restaurant, where Zhou Yuxuan provoked Jiang Nian, who responded that it was just barking like a dog, and later Zhou Yuxuan challenged Jiang Nian to see who would have the last laugh.

The audio was deliberately manipulated to highlight Jiang Nian's indifference and arrogance, as well as Zhou Yuxuan's grievances and anger.

"They're taking things out of context! They're distorting the truth!"

Xiaomin was so angry that her hands were shaking.

Jiang Nian took the phone and listened to it, but there was no surprise on her face.

"As expected. That's all the tricks they have."

"Teacher Jiang, shouldn't we release the complete dashcam video?"

Xiaomin asked anxiously.

"No rush." ​​Jiang Nian shook his head. "It's not ready yet. Let them add some more firewood."

He took out his phone and dialed Wu Ming's number.

"Old Wu, did you see the audio online?"

"I saw it! Damn it, Zhou Yuxuan is such a sly bastard!"

"Brother Jiang, we're all ready. We've already spoken to several media outlets we have good relationships with, and we're just waiting for your order to release the complete video and all the evidence of his team hiring online trolls and publishing articles to discredit him! We'll make sure he's ruined overnight!"

Wu Ming was rubbing his hands together, eager to get started, on the other end of the phone.

"Wait a little longer," Jiang Nian said calmly. "Have those media outlets you contacted publish something else first."

"Something else?" Wu Ming asked, puzzled.

"Hmm." Jiang Nian's gaze swept over the few actors in the corner of the set who had shifty eyes and kept hovering around Zhou Yuxuan.

"Find some reliable paparazzi and dig deep into Zhou Yuxuan's 'good friends,' especially that one named Wang Hao. I heard he has quite a wide range of interests. Also, investigate the tax issues of another artist under Li Qiang. I remember something about it being a bit unclear."

Wu Ming was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized, his voice filled with excitement.

"I understand! Brother Jiang, you're taking down his entire base! Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! I'll get on it right away!"

After hanging up the phone, Xiaomin was still a little confused: "Teacher Jiang, why don't we just clarify things directly?"

Jiang Nian looked at her and said calmly, "A direct rebuttal will only lead you into a media war set up by the other side, and you'll be entangled in it endlessly."

"If we're going to fight, we have to strike where it hurts. If we keep him busy with his own problems, he won't have the energy to bother us anymore."

In the afternoon, Zhou Yuxuan did not reappear.

The filming continues.

By the time work was finished in the evening, the online sentiment had begun to subtly shift.

Several entertainment gossip accounts broke the news almost simultaneously, pointing out that Zhou Yuxuan's team often uses hype and smear tactics, and posted screenshots of some online troll transaction records. Although the screenshots were blurred, the implication was clear.

Following this, another report claimed that Zhou Yuxuan's friend and fellow actor Wang Hao had a chaotic private life and frequently visited certain special places, along with several blurry but recognizable photos.

Finally, a rumor began to quietly spread that another young actress favored by Li Qiang was suspected of tax evasion.

These news items distracted the public and left Zhou Yuxuan's team in a state of chaos. The previously overwhelming public opinion, which had been in favor of Zhou Yuxuan and condemned Jiang Nian, began to show cracks and raise questions.

Li Qiang's phone was ringing off the hook. He hid in the lounge and yelled angrily at the person on the other end of the line.

"What's going on?! Who leaked this information?! Suppress it immediately! Spend money! No matter how much it costs!"

Zhou Yuxuan angrily slammed his cup down: "It must have been that old bastard Jiang Nian who did this! Damn it! I'm going to kill him!"

……

The next day, Zhou Yuxuan appeared on set with heavy dark circles under his eyes and a face so gloomy it looked like it could drip water.

One of his henchmen is missing—Wang Hao, who was reportedly called back to the company for an emergency meeting.

Li Qiang followed beside him, his eyes darting around, no longer displaying the arrogance of the past few days.

Director Zhang Yi saw them, but said nothing; his expression only grew colder.

Today we're filming a pivotal scene on the hospital rooftop, where Lu Chenxi and Chen Yang have an emotional outburst and a final showdown after a major medical accident.

The role is demanding and requires a high level of skill from the actors.

Zhou Yuxuan was clearly out of sorts, stumbling over several takes in a row, his eyes vacant, and even his lines sounding weak and listless.

"Cut! Zhou Yuxuan! Where are your emotions?! Anger! Resentment! Struggle! What are you acting?! A stagnant pool!" Zhang Yi's patience ran out, and his voice became stern.

Zhou Yuxuan lowered his head, his hands clenched tightly, and his body trembled slightly. It was unclear whether it was because he was having too much trouble getting into character or because he was disturbed by what was happening online.

Jiang Nian stood opposite him, maintaining her character's composure—calm, repressed, yet brimming with power.

I tried two more, and they were still terrible.

Zhang Yi rubbed his temples wearily and looked at Jiang Nian: "Jiang Nian, why don't you take care of him?"

Jiang Nian looked at Zhou Yuxuan, her eyes devoid of mockery, only displaying a kind of almost cruel calmness and insight that belonged to Lu Chenxi.

"Chen Yang, don't you understand yet? Your anger isn't directed at me, nor at the rules, but at your own incompetence and hypocrisy. You're afraid of failure, afraid of being surpassed, so you can only resort to these despicable means to cover up your weakness."

These words are both lines from a script and seem like something Jiang Nian would say to Zhou Yuxuan himself.

Zhou Yuxuan suddenly raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, staring intently at Jiang Nian, his chest heaving violently.

Jiang Nian took a step forward, her aura suddenly rising. Her voice wasn't loud, but every word struck Zhou Yuxuan's heart like a hammer: "You think you can gain a foothold by relying on hype, traffic, and suppressing others? This industry may be chaotic for a while, but in the end, those who will remain are those who respect the profession and have reverence for the audience. You don't deserve to wear this white coat."

"what!!!"

Zhou Yuxuan seemed to be completely defeated by the last sentence, letting out a beast-like howl.

It wasn't acting; it was a genuine loss of emotional control. He whirled around and slammed his fist hard against the rooftop wall, making a dull thud. His hand instantly bled. (End of Chapter)