This director is vindictive.

Chapter 414 Who is the King of Scrolls? Others play in the sand, I tell history!
The two even had an impromptu acting contest in the live stream, saying they would decide "who is more of a veteran"!
Zhang Yi plays a scene of "reunion of veterans": trembling as he pulls out a crumpled photo of his comrades-in-arms, tears falling onto the sand.

Duan Yihong performs "A Veteran's Monologue at the Outpost": Shouting Qinqiang opera at the desert, he suddenly falls silent, grabs a handful of sand, and throws it into the sky.

The online vote determined the winner, and Duan Yihong narrowly won with 51%. Zhang Yi was immediately "unconvinced" and dragged him to a classic line from "Soldiers Sortie" for a competition.

Wang Baoqiang chimed in, "You two, stop arguing! Back when we were filming, one of you did 200 sit-ups and the other practiced crawling in the middle of the night. And now you're doing it again?!"

The impact of this live stream far surpasses that of Wang Qianyuan's desert survival story.

After all, with the phenomenal military drama "Soldiers Sortie" as a nostalgia factor, and the original cast of the Steel Seventh Company from back then, the nostalgia factor is maxed out.

After #SoldiersAssaultBringBackYouth# topped the trending searches, their votes on the voting page also surged.

He directly surpassed Wang Qianyuan, ranking first or second.

However, Zhou Bo is the most pitiful one.

Compared to them, Zhou Bo's votes were pitifully few.

However, this live broadcast also allowed blind students to discover a key point.

Some netizens pretended not to know and joked: "Where is the original cast of the Steel Seventh Company? Why is 'Wu Zhe' absent?"

"Haha, these two are really good at trying to survive, you know what I mean! If they really drag 'Wu Zhe' into this too, they might as well not act at all!"

"So here's the question: Is the Protector of the Backstabbing Cult really beyond saving? @ChenMo!"

No problem, because Wu Zhe was played by Li Cheng back then, and he was a core member of the Backstabbing Cult!
So it's clear that Zhang Yi and Duan Yihong both avoided this person, and everyone else acted as if this person didn't exist.

After all, the "Backstabbing Cult" incident back then had already wiped him out of the entertainment industry.

If they really invited him too, what would Chen Mo think?
However, this wave of nostalgia was indeed incredibly effective. Even Chen Mo couldn't resist sharing the live stream clip on Weibo, captioning it: "The soldiers of the Steel Seventh Company are still as sharp as ever!"—seemingly a compliment, but actually hinting at casting preferences. Netizens instantly understood: "Director Chen's art of playing both sides is perfect!"

This live stream of the "Soldiers' Assault" reunion has also begun to demonstrate its commercial value.

Soon after, a director of a military drama invited him, whether he was trying to gain attention or was genuinely sincere.

He directly tagged Zhang Yi and Duan Yihong, asking, "You two, are you going to take on the new drama 'Steel Blade in the Desert'?"

That's not all. Many directors of military-themed dramas suddenly seemed to have their meridians opened up, and they all publicly extended invitations to the two of them.

Whether it works or not, let's just ride the wave of popularity first.

Meanwhile, a competitor of the domestic off-road vehicle brand that had previously invited Wang Qianyuan to be its spokesperson also joined in the joint promotion.

They directly invited several members of the "Steel Seventh Company" to jointly endorse their domestic brand of off-road vehicles.

The advertising slogan is already ready: "15 years later, it's still these veterans who are putting up the fight!"

Netizens are jokingly saying that this advertisement is really powerful!

However, Zhou Bo is rather pitiful.

Many netizens exclaimed, "This is a complete 'dimensional reduction attack'! It's so unfair!"

Exactly! Wang Qianyuan and his gang not only bring their own audience, but they also lack any sense of sportsmanship, dragging their old buddies into a nostalgia-driven attack.

Many people are actually quite unfamiliar with Zhou Bo, even though his resume includes well-known film and television works, such as "A Battle of Wits".

The problem is that he only plays minor supporting roles in them.

In terms of resources, we definitely don't have as many as those others!
Even Chen Mo couldn't stand it anymore, because he realized that Zhou Bo really didn't seem to have any advantage at all.

After all, if he had an advantage, he wouldn't be the least prestigious among them.

"Isn't this too unfair to Zhou Bo?" Not only Chen Mo, but even Zhang Yuqi couldn't help but complain.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it, that's just the entertainment industry." Fan Binbin seemed unsurprised by it.

"Why don't you help him, Chen Mo?" Zhang Yuqi asked Chen Mo.

"If I were to step in, wouldn't I be leading the way in breaking the rules?" Chen Mo had actually considered whether to lend a hand, but then shook his head.

If he were to step in and help, it would be pointless.

Meanwhile, Zhou Bo was indeed somewhat frustrated after seeing the actions of Wang Qianyuan, Duan Yihong, and Zhang Yi.

In fact, the person who truly needs and craves this role the most is Zhou Bo.

For the other three, whether or not they played the role was more of an added bonus, but for him, it was a real opportunity to change his destiny.

Of course he didn't want to give up.

"Why don't you ask someone for help too? Didn't everyone recommend Huang Bo for the role of the deserter? Why don't you ask Huang Bo to do a collaboration with him?" The agent was also anxious to come up with a solution.

"It's not that easy, and the key is that I'm not familiar with Huang Bo! Even if he's willing, do you think he can compare to them?" Zhou Bo was initially somewhat tempted.

Although the second season hasn't started yet, Huang Bo is estimated to be a strong candidate, and perhaps the most likely actor to appear. Inviting Huang Bo to collaborate isn't out of the question; while they aren't that close, they know each other, and by getting involved early, Huang Bo might very well agree.

But he still shook his head and rejected the suggestion.

Because if you really want to find Huang Bo, it's hard to compare with the wave of nostalgia that came with "Soldiers Sortie".

On the other hand, it's because Huang Bo is much more famous than him. If people were to look for Huang Bo, they would probably focus on Huang Bo instead of him.

“We need to find our own strengths!” Zhou Bo said after thinking for a moment.

The agent looked speechless: "Advantages? What advantages could we possibly have?"

“No, there is! Don’t forget, ‘The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty’ is the original film, and I’m the lead actor in this short film! That’s my advantage!” Zhou Bo said confidently.

"But how do we showcase this advantage?" the agent wondered.

“Let’s do something professional. Didn’t we invite a history professor to be our consultant during filming? Let’s go find him!” Zhou Bo suddenly said.

"What are you planning to do?" the agent asked, somewhat puzzled.

“We can’t compete with them in terms of nostalgia or popularity, so let’s focus on something more professional,” Zhou Bo said, becoming more and more confident.

Soon, while netizens were voicing their sympathy for Zhou Bo, this guy showed what it truly means to be the king of rolls!

He truly succeeded in playing to his strengths and avoiding his weaknesses.

To showcase his strengths, he first contacted Ding Yuchen, the director of "The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty".

We got in touch with Professor Xu, the historical advisor from back then.

They obtained historical archives of the "Anxi Army," the historical prototype of the novel "The Great Tang Dynasty in the Northern Desert."

We worked overnight to produce a series of popular science videos titled "The Real Veterans of Anxi"!
It must be said that his unconventional approach is quite commendable.

After all, although the specific content of the film has not yet been determined, it is a film adaptation of "The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty".

Recently, the popularity of keywords such as "Anxi Army", "White-haired Soldiers" and "Great Tang Northern Desert" has been quite high.

Moreover, science videos are not difficult to produce, and they can be guided by professional history professors.

He quickly released the first episode, "The Last Smoke from the Chimneys of Kucha".

He arrived at the present location of Kucha City.

It recounts the events of that year.

In 755, the An Lushan Rebellion broke out. To quell the rebellion, the elite troops of the Anxi Army were all sent to the Central Plains, leaving only more than 10,000 soldiers to guard the area. Taking advantage of this, the Tibetan Empire seized the Hexi Corridor, cutting off the connection between the Western Regions and the Tang Dynasty.

In 781, an envoy from the Anxi army traveled through the Uyghur region to reach Chang'an. Only then did the court learn that the Anxi soldiers were still holding out and serving the country loyally! Emperor Dezong of Tang was shocked and dictated a reward: all officers and generals were promoted seven ranks!

However, the Tang Dynasty did not send a single reinforcement, and the soldiers far away in Anxi could not enjoy this honor. All that was left for them was to fight a bloody battle without any reinforcements.

In 808, in Kucha, the last stronghold of the Four Garrisons of Anxi, the last Grand Protector Guo Xin led a group of white-haired soldiers to fight to the last man, and the entire army died heroically.

He stood on the ancient city wall of KC County, his gaze fixed on the outside of the weathered wall.

He murmured: Outside the city! There was only endless yellow sand and no end to the barbarian cavalry!

Perhaps the belief that the Anxi Army, isolated in the western region, held for 53 years was that one day they could see Chang'an again!
Finally, he used archaeological reports to reconstruct the diet of the soldiers guarding the border: moldy millet mixed with sand, accompanied by a picture of a skull with severely worn teeth that had been unearthed.

After the first episode was released, its popularity soared because it coincided with the film adaptation of "The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty".

In addition, everyone is waiting to see what Zhou Bo, the weakest "player," will do.

So after the video was released, it instantly went viral.

Soon after, he released the second installment, "Fifty Years Without Removing the Armor," showcasing tattered armor in a museum, its rust and blood still clinging to it.
#ZhouBo'sHardcoreHistoryLesson# has completely dominated the trending topics!
"Holy crap! This is the real 'immersive campaigning'! While others are rolling around in the desert, Zhou Bo directly transported us back to the Tang Dynasty to eat sand (physically)! This cultural subversion attack is amazing!"

"Although the sentimental appeal of the Steel Seventh Company was great, Zhou Bo's move directly brought out the value! 'Fifty years of defending the country' vs. 'Steel Seventh Company's exercise', I declare history class has won big!"

"This unconventional approach is well done. Although Wang Qianyuan did '24 Hours in the Desert' and Zhang Yi and Duan Yihong did 'Soldiers Sortie' to appeal to nostalgia, they both forgot that they were casting for roles in the movie 'The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty'!"

"I suddenly have a strong urge to visit the ancient trails of the Anxi Army! I suggest the Culture and Tourism Bureau develop a tourist route for the Anxi Army Ancient Trails!"

"I just realized that Kucha is now Kuqa in Xinjiang! I really want to see those ancient city walls! The white-haired soldiers guarded this place for more than forty years!"

As a result, this wave of hardcore cultural popularization even received praise from state media: "Let history shine into reality!"

The Culture and Tourism Bureau listened to the advice and took the opportunity to launch the "Anxi Military Ancient Road Tourist Route," which resulted in an overwhelming number of reservations.

Chen Mo looked at the backend data and smiled wryly: "Well, now the pressure is on me."

He was worried that Zhou Bo wouldn't be strong enough, but now look what's happened, he's all curled up like this!
(End of this chapter)