Huayu: Starting from the top talent show

Chapter 496 Forced to Organize Pagoda's Abdication Ceremony

6 month 10 number.

"Love Like a Bouquet" quietly began filming in Shanghai.

Since there was no need for frequent location changes, the main filming scenes were concentrated in a few fixed places, such as the apartment where the protagonist lived. Therefore, it was similar to the previous films starring Shen Juan, such as "Cry Me a Sad River", "Better Days" and "The Matchmaker", with a filming period of two months.

It seems very tense, but in reality, there is plenty of room.

If the actors perform well and create great chemistry, filming could be completed in less than two months.

After the opening ceremony, which was held as usual in the morning, Shen Juan, along with the female lead Hu Lianxin and the director Bai Xue, came to the backdrop to begin accepting interviews from the media present.

When asked by reporters why he took on this film role, Shen Juan first deliberately turned to look at his co-star beside him, making eye contact with Xiao Hu, who was also looking at him with eyes full of admiration, before turning back to the camera and smiling as he replied:

"Because it doesn't tell the kind of dramatic love story that's common in other romance movies, it's more like breaking down the process of two people meeting, getting along, and slowly drifting apart into many small fragments, allowing everyone to find resonance in them. I won't go into the specifics, but this sense of realism is really touching, so I wanted to make it and present it to everyone."

"I heard that your current script is a localized adaptation of the original Japanese script. Is that true?"

"Yes, the original script actually came from Japan's TBS television station, but I was attracted to it when I first saw it, so I spent money to buy it and then assembled a professional writing team to make detailed modifications and additions to ensure that we filmed our own story."

There's no point in hiding this.

It'll be exposed sooner or later anyway.

So just admit it openly.

After all, there is a significant difference in difficulty between purchasing a foreign script for adaptation and filming and directly remaking a foreign film.

The reporter then turned to the lead actress, Hu Lianxin, and asked, "So, Ms. Hu, what was your reason for taking on this film?"

Hu Lianxin's eyes crinkled with laughter upon hearing this.

What other reason could there be?
Of course it's because of my senior!

As long as I can spend time with my senior, I'll take any role, no matter the script or the character!
I am a person with principles and a bottom line.

But in front of the senior students,

That's just how unscrupulous I am!
Then she took the microphone from Shen Juan and replied softly with a smile: "First of all, I really want to act with Teacher Shen! He is not only a senior I respect very much, but also an idol I have liked for many years. Secondly, I was also moved by the script. I think many of the male and female protagonists' experiences and their different feelings when facing the same things are things that many of us have experienced, including myself. So I really want to act well in this drama and not hold everyone back!"

The reporters then turned their attention to the director, who seemed almost invisible under Shen Juan's spotlight: "And what about Director Bai Xue? We all know that before this, you had only directed one film, 'Crossing Spring.' When you learned that you would be working with Shen Juan, what were your feelings?"

Seeing this, Hu Lianxin quickly handed the microphone in her hand to Shen Juan, hoping that he, who was standing in the center, would pass it on to the director.

Shen Juan picked up the microphone and clearly interjected, "Excuse me, I'd like to interrupt. 'Crossing Spring' is an outstanding film. It was because I saw the artistic expression in this work that I decided to have her direct our film, 'Love Like a Bouquet.'"

With Shen Juan's support and encouragement, Bai Xue straightened her back and said, "Of course I'm very excited. At first, I even thought it was a scam, but it wasn't until Juan called me personally that I believed he really wanted me to be the director of this movie. He really supports me and trusts me!"

"Although I have only directed one feature film so far, I have made ample preparations for this film, so I believe that with the joint efforts of the whole team, we will make a perfect 'Love Like a Bouquet' and bring something that will touch the audience."

Here's a brief update on this woman's information.
Bai Xue was born in Northwest China in 1984 and grew up in Shenzhen after the age of five. She graduated from the Directing Department of Beijing Film Academy.

That's right!

Even a random, obscure director graduated from one of the top three universities.

Therefore, no matter the era, the threshold for becoming a director is much higher than that for becoming an obedient actor.

Non-professional actors still have a chance to enter the industry, and if they are good-looking, they can even become leading men or top stars.

But what if a director doesn't have connections or a background?

Then I'll just stick to making short films for the rest of my life.

For this reason, Shen Juan began to scour the Chinese entertainment industry for talented but overlooked young directors.

Starlink will provide them with directing opportunities.

Of course, the corresponding thing is that after they become successful, they will also have to provide roles for Starlink's contracted artists.

"So why is this movie called 'Love Like a Bouquet'? The three teachers are free to answer."

Shen Juan raised his eyebrows and thought for a moment: "Because when we first get a bouquet, we take great care of it. But no matter what, it will eventually wither. But you can't say that the blooming period is fake. Just like love between people, even if it ends, the time that was once shared is real and beautiful. So cherish the blooming period, but also accept its withering."

Hu Lianxin nodded and added with a smile, "Not all love stories can have a happy ending, but those moments that resonate with each other are worth remembering."

It's not really a spoiler.

Because the movie clearly indicates a breakup right from the start.

Moreover, Shen Juan himself did not intend to lure audiences into the cinema by marketing it as a lighthearted romance film.

The last question in this opening interview was for them to describe their first impression of each other in one word.

Shen Juan and Hu Lianxin spoke almost simultaneously:
"nice."

"nice!"

After they finished speaking, they both laughed. Shen Juan reached out and flicked Xiao Hu's mask, as if to say, "Great minds think alike."

Xiao Hu was amused by him but was neither embarrassed nor annoyed. Instead, she smiled and raised her head, staring at him without blinking.

As the warm spring sun set over Shanghai, it cast a soft, warm glow on the two of them, and thus, a new divine image was born.

Well known
The most attractive aspect of youth romance films is never the storyline, but rather the good looks of the main characters and their strong chemistry.

You have to be good-looking first, so that the audience can relate to your story and then pay to watch it.

Coincidentally, this pair has both of those qualities!
First of all, their good looks speak for themselves.

Wajuan has made the title of "World's Most Handsome Man" for TC Candle, which was purely determined by fan votes, no longer a joke in the fan circle.

To some extent, it has even changed the aesthetics of some European and American teenagers, making them fascinated by people of Asian descent.

During the initial marketing campaign for Starlink, Xiao Hu was also hailed as the youthful version of Zheng Yuxun and the Chinese Kim Ji-won.

(Of course, this also brought her a bad reputation. After all, she's a fan of Zheng Shuang, and those who know, know—the most fanatical fan group in the Chinese entertainment industry.)
As for their chemistry as a couple, there's no need to elaborate further.

The fact that they were able to force themselves to get up this morning and attend the opening ceremony as if nothing had happened is entirely due to their excellent physical talent and outstanding professional ethics.

Therefore, in this situation, everyone present was excited and exclaimed in their hearts: My son's movie has the potential to be a great film!
The presentation is absolutely stunning, my expectations are through the roof!
As long as the plot isn't bad, with this world's best actor's support, they're bound to achieve good box office results no matter what!
The newly released photos from the opening ceremony interview were also uploaded online by the media present, sparking heated discussions among netizens.

[Brother looks amazing today! The spring sunshine is as warm as you! Looking forward to "Love Like a Bouquet"!]

[Help! Xiao Hu's eyes clearly show he likes her so much! I'm reserving ten tickets for this movie!]

[This picture is just too good to pass by! Shen Juan is seriously handsome from every angle. When Hu Lianxin looks up at Shen Juan and smiles foolishly, her eyes seem to sparkle like stars, just like an anime character. For those who only care about looks, this is absolutely perfect! Our domestic youth romance films should be casting faces like this!]

[Solo fans are crying their eyes out! My little sister is finally going to work with her idol, waaaaah! Xiao Hu's voice even trembled when she mentioned "liking him for many years," that's real girlish heart! Their storyline brought tears to my eyes. Anyway, I'm still looking forward to their acting chemistry!]

[Rational discussion: Shen Juan has consistently chosen high-quality scripts since "Better Days." Although Hu Lianxin is a newcomer, she is undeniably beautiful and seemed quite spirited during her recording of "The Girl Who Leapt Through Time." This combination is actually quite promising, so I just hope the plot doesn't fall short.]

[Ahhhh, so many little details show their mutual trust and playful banter! That synchronized "Looks good!" at the end, doesn't it sound like a secret code between a young couple? The scene where Shen Juan flicks Xiao Hu's mask is definitely an unconscious display of affection between a couple! I declare this the sweetest filming start of 2020, bar none!]

[Yesterday they officially announced their relationship with Glory and Fireworks Sister on Weibo, and today they've switched their focus to the infatuated Hu Ge. They've dominated the trending topics for two consecutive days. I, Juan, truly live up to my reputation as the best in the world—great at songwriting and singing, and equally great at dating! This seamless transition to romance is simply unbeatable! But won't this upset Sister Tian? I haven't seen Sister Tian spewing insults on Weibo for two days now, I'm so worried!]

[Is Sister Tian still able to eat, given her age?]

Sister Tian was indeed angry.

And it's the kind of anger that's extremely, incredibly, and intense!

Sister Tian is getting old, is she still able to eat?
I can eat eight bowls of rice in one go, okay?!
Ugh, Shen Juan, you fucking deserve to die!!!

First, she publicly announced her relationship with that philandering cat I once cornered, even creating that damned CP supertopic! Then, she sweetly interacted with this philandering cat #2, who I find extremely dangerous and likely has ulterior motives, in front of so many people! Continuing the hype from yesterday's insult to Tian!

Now so many people are making fun of me!
This is a blatant provocation against my dignity as king!

Grooves!
This isn't just an ordinary philanderer! This is clearly a philanderer with nothing but dreams!

And she's a philandering cat who only gets her owner's attention!
Damn it, we have to strike hard! Severely punish and suppress them!

So she decided to find some time to go to Shanghai and personally return the charger that Shen Juan had accidentally left at home to him.

I also took the opportunity to catch up with my old friend Hu Lianxin, whom I met through the "Women's Detective Club," and we chatted about our recent situations.

Then he unleashed his Conqueror's Haki.

Tell her to behave!
If you're going to make a movie, just make a movie.

Don't think about things that are not important.

The water in the fishpond is very deep; you can't hold on to it.

Listen to my advice!

Young people shouldn't be so hot-blooded!

After all, Wu Jian wasn't necessarily at a disadvantage!
Thanks to the excellent chemistry between the male and female leads, and their almost 24-hour close one-on-one communication and guidance, no matter what problems they encountered, they could be resolved quickly. Therefore, after the film officially started shooting, the entire crew quickly entered a very efficient working state.

Time slipped away quietly as the filming proceeded smoothly.

It wasn't until the 12th, just two days after filming began for "Love Like a Bouquet," that Jay Chou's new single "Mojito," the king of Mandopop, was suddenly released, breaking the rare calm and reigniting a heated discussion across the internet.

However, the reviews of Bago's long-awaited new song are unusually sharp, with many people offering criticism and questions almost without mercy.

[I just saw a comment saying, "If this Mojito were sung by any other singer, I'd rave about it, but since it's Jay Chou, it needs criticism." I'm dying of laughter! Bad is bad, garbage is garbage. This kind of saving face rhetoric only makes the fans look like clowns!]

[Jay's normal performance is just a piece of cake for him. To put it bluntly, as long as Jay Chou performs normally, he is the most awesome musician in China! And without a doubt. No one can beat Jay Chou in terms of musicality, including Shen Juan. He can easily outshine all the other musicians with a single piece of his music.]

[Get your corn down! If you're so ignorant, listen to more songs. Don't treat every piece of trash like it's precious. Saying things like that only serves to comfort yourself and will only make you a laughingstock. Not only will it make you look like a clown, but it will also label your past classic works as unsophisticated.]

Anyone with eyes can see that Shen Juan's creative talent far surpasses Bage's; they're not even in the same league. There's absolutely no need for comparison. Without the added filter of praise, Bage isn't even worthy of being compared to Shen Juan. And to put it bluntly, Shen Juan represents the current global music trend. If Bage really wants to enjoy his later years in peace, he shouldn't drag Shen Juan into everything, otherwise he'll only be crushed by Shen Juan's massive fanbase and ruin his reputation in his old age.

[It's definitely awful, no matter who sings it. It has nothing to do with whether Jay Chou wrote it or not. Since parting ways with his longtime partner, Jay Chou's output has plummeted. But what I can't understand is, why is he, who usually drinks bubble tea, now drinking Mojitos? Is he really going to completely Westernize? Is he going to pay homage to Western elements in his songs? Or is he trying to disgust Shen Juan? After all, everyone in the music industry knows that Camila Cabello betrayed Shen Juan.]

These words immediately stirred up a huge wave of controversy.

Because what he said actually makes some sense.

Many people compile clues together.

Then I thought about it more carefully.
Holy crap!

It seems to be true!
The music video for this song was filmed in Cuba at the end of last year.

What was the most talked-about thing in the music industry back then?
Isn't it just that Camila Cabello, the "Caucasian bitch" from Cuba, who is relentlessly mocking and attacking Shen Juan through her alternate social media account?

Holy crap, that pug is so wicked!
As for what grudge Shen Juan and Bago have?
Although the two did not publicly address the issue, thus preserving a semblance of dignity, gossip accounts, through their various fabrications and speculative speculations, can probably deduce the reason for the falling out between these two close friends:
It's nothing more than Shen Juan being a guest performer at Bago's Las Vegas concert in early 19, supporting Bago. However, when Bago planned to launch the Leviathan Era tour in the second half of the year, Bago felt that Shen Juan threatened his position and, out of consideration for his reputation, refused to be a guest performer supporting him anymore.

This treacherous act of turning one's back on someone successfully angered Shen Juan, so much so that he took advantage of Jolin's post-Golden Melody Awards rhetoric to severely punish Bago, using public opinion to force him to open a Weibo account in mainland China to express his stance, making it impossible for him to remain uninvolved as before.

From then on, the two had no further contact on social media.

Shen Juan even unfollowed Bago on Instagram.

And Bago can no longer use the old method of calling Shen Juan "little brother" to pat himself on the back and show off in front of foreigners (some netizens have dug up that when Bago participated in fashion events overseas, whenever he met a foreigner who did not know him, he would say that he knew Shen Juan and that Shen Juan was his little brother).

As a result, onlookers who realized the truth of the matter flocked to various social media platforms and began to express their opinions.

[What Bago did was really underhanded. They gave you a chance to sing at their concert, and you turned around and ripped them off. Isn't that a bit too much about status and face? Are you really so caught up in the fans' praise that you can't let go? Are you unwilling to accept the fact that a newcomer has overtaken you and dethroned you?]

What impressed me most was last year's promotion for Jay Chou's Las Vegas concert in the US, which focused mainly on Shen Juan. The foreign audience there were all there for Shen Juan, but then they brought that back to China, claiming that foreign fans were just as captivated by Jay Chou! I really don't know what to say.

[Laughable. Those who say he's completely Westernized probably haven't heard of "Blue and White Porcelain" and "Far Away"? Jay Chou is so good at playing Chinese-style music, and he's being labeled with this just because of a song like "Confession Balloon" and "Mojito"? I really don't understand this logic. With this kind of leisure, you should listen to "In the Name of the Father" a few times to cultivate your sentiments.]

Without Vincent Fang, does Jay Chou have the style of traditional Chinese music?

[It's as if Shen Juan has any Chinese style.]

At least I, Juan, never market these things! It's much better than some people who claim Chinese culture is the best to trick Chinese people into sending them money, while simultaneously fawning over foreigners, buying property overseas, and groveling before foreigners! This kind of exploitation of traditional culture and public patriotism is truly disgusting!

[Here's a joke: Does Jay Chou really need to disgust others to gain popularity? Can some fans stop acting like their idol is the center of the universe? Drake already said the streaming data is all fake. Some bots should worry about whether Americans will buy into their idol's next album!]

[Here's a joke: A world-renowned tour that grossed over a billion US dollars needs to piggyback on the fame of an international nobody outside of China? Shen Juansheng's "Breaking the Sky" has over 100 million listeners, how many does your country have? Two million? How many of those two million are overseas Chinese? Seriously, this is hilarious. The most important thing in life is not to be narrow-minded, otherwise what's the difference between you and those Koreans next door? Humiliating Koreans while becoming Korean yourself? This double standard is truly laughable!]

[Bago is very petty. Years ago, he was underestimated by David Tao and finished second in a competition. Ever since then, whenever he sees Tao, he brings it up, as if afraid others won't know he embarrassed Tao, and afraid his fans won't cyberbully Tao. This is truly the pop emperor of our Chinese music scene!]

No wonder he broke with Shen Juan; it was all due to personality differences. To be honest, no matter how successful many people become in the future, their inherent personality traits from their youth will influence them for life. For example, Bage studies classical music and likes Chopin, clearly showing his admiration for European culture. Shen Juan was arrogant from a young age, disrespecting his management company and other rappers in the hip-hop scene, which is why he later clashed with so many people. Personality determines each person's different path in life. Perhaps certain people and events along the way may temporarily "bend" them, but they will eventually return to the "right track."

It turns out that offending Shen Juan will definitely lead to bad consequences!
The poor pug got sprayed with a mouthful of blood.

From the quality of the works to one's conduct
Shen Juan's fans, Bage's haters, and bystanders who were swayed by the situation humiliated Bage in every way.

Although he and his team may not have used the connection between Cuba and Camila Cabello to imply anything related to Yin Yang Shenjuan.

After all, he is different from his fans.

He knew full well how big the gap was between himself and Shen Juan, so naturally he dared not easily provoke this world-renowned leading man.

Even the value of his previously prized website was diluted countless times with Shen Juan's sudden emergence.

To put it bluntly, he doesn't have the guts!
Jolin Tsai is a cautionary tale for him!
He no longer has the confidence to do whatever he wants!

But just as Shen Juan said before.

The truth is what the public cares about least; many people just want an outlet to vent their emotions by following the crowd.

Moreover, as time went by, his creative abilities declined, and his reputation gradually exceeded the limits that Bago could manage.

Therefore, like Shen Juan, he will also be overwhelmed by the past glory and the reputation brought to him by marketing brainwashing.

They will also be burned and bruised in the process of making a pilgrimage to fame, losing their original spirited appearance.

The difference is simply this:
Shen Juan is still very young.

His future holds endless possibilities.

He still has the conditions and potential to turn the tide.

And Pug?
They have long since turned into withered bones in a tomb.

So if you don't want to be cyberbullied by the public anymore, you might as well just honestly sell your sentiments and enjoy your retirement.

He should step down when it is time to do so.

Delegate authority when necessary.

The pop music scene is a complex and murky place.

The waters of fame and fortune run even deeper!
Lunzi, you've gotten old.

You can't grasp it.

But you, Brother Juan, are different.

Brother Juan is still young and has unlimited potential.

So let Brother Juan do it; Brother Juan can handle it.

(Data from August 2020 shows that the domestic record market has indeed shrunk. Without the fan economy brought by popular celebrities, it would likely not even be able to compete with neighboring South Korea.)

(End of this chapter)