This director is vindictive.

Chapter 417 Better to Lie Down and Eat Melons Than to Live or Die
Some people were actually waiting to see Chen Mo make a fool of himself.

Many people see the idea of ​​co-creating a film and casting by public vote as a deceptive tactic, and don't believe it will cause any significant stir.

However, the result far exceeded their expectations.

It's not surprising that industry insiders think this way. Although co-creating movies is relatively new in China, marketing tactics like public casting have been around for a long time.

However, the results are often less than satisfactory.

However, the result was unexpected. Although the public vote for Chen Mo's role had only reached the first stage, it had already generated a lot of buzz that was the envy of many.

And everyone knows that with such popularity, such exposure, and such participation, the movie adaptation of "The Last Transfer in the Northern Desert of the Tang Dynasty" is guaranteed to sell well, as long as it's not made too badly!
As of now, the number of people who participated in the voting for the male lead, "The Veteran of the Tang Dynasty," has exceeded 50 million. Similarly, the number of netizens who participated in the second round of the female lead casting is also very high, and so far, the number of votes has almost exceeded the number of votes for the male lead in the first round.

However, compared to the popularity of the male lead selection, the female lead selection has generated even more buzz.

After all, as netizens say, watching beautiful and sexy female celebrities dance is definitely more exciting than watching a bunch of grown men eat moldy food.

Of course, another reason is that Chen Mo could have chosen anyone for the male lead in the first round of casting, but with Zhang Yuqi in the second round, it's hard not to discuss whether Chen Mo was predetermined.

"If Chen Mo dares to pre-select this team, believe me, I'll tear him apart!"

"Exactly! Yaya, Dilraba and Gulnazar both worked so hard. If they lost purely due to popularity, that would be one thing, but if it was predetermined, then Chen Mo is really being inhuman!"

"If you're going to pre-select someone, then don't bother with casting. But I doubt Chen Mo would be so foolish as to contradict himself, right?"

Chen Mo was certainly not that stupid, but Zhang Yuqi, that tiger-woman, had some inexplicable confidence.

Chen Mo originally hoped that she could withdraw from the casting process, but she insisted that she would get the role based on her own abilities.

What could Chen Mo do? He could only let it be.

When Tong Liya and Gulnazar's "Silk Road Fantasy Record" topped the trending searches, Chen Mo was staring at the backend data with a slight brow raise—the number of votes for the female actors in the second round had exceeded 60 million, far surpassing the peak of the male actors in the first round.

Even if it's just for appreciation, well, pure appreciation, one has to admit that watching beautiful women of different styles dance those sexy dances with exotic flair is truly amazing. No wonder this round of casting has generated far more buzz than the first round.

Zhang Yuqi, wrapped in a loose-fitting kimono dress, squeezed over and rested her chin on his shoulder, clicking her tongue in amazement: "Fatty Di's video of her wearing a flame dress has surpassed 100 million views!"

"Now you're in a hurry?"

Chen Mo flicked her forehead with his hand: "Who was it that confidently said last night, 'I can win just by twisting my body a couple of times'?"

Zhang Yuqi pouted, about to retort, when Chen Mo clicked on another video, a new video posted by Dilraba's official Weibo account.

The video is titled "Sogdian Caravan Vlog".

The video is incredibly popular and quite entertaining. This girl actually led her team to Kuqa Ancient City to set up a stall and sell Hami melons. In the video, she speaks fluent Uyghur and haggles with local elders. In the end, she even spontaneously dances a modified version of the "Zhezhi Dance." The comments section is full of people saying, "This is the real immersive campaign."

One netizen commented, "Just for the authentic Uyghur language, Fatty Di really brought a discounted version of the Sogdian caravan to life!"

"No problem, it's just that they start dancing at the drop of a hat, why do I feel so happy about it?"

"Isn't that incredibly unethical of her?" Zhang Yuqi was already at a disadvantage, but after seeing Fat Di's video, she was completely distraught.

After all, this role gives them a natural advantage!

She has at least an advantage over Zhang Yuqi, since Zhang Yuqi doesn't speak Uyghur.

Just then, the study door was suddenly pushed open, and Yang Mi rushed in, wearing high heels.

Chen Mo and Zhang Yuqi both looked at Yang Mi, especially Zhang Yuqi, who was extremely dissatisfied with Yang Mi.

"Yang Mi! You've gone too far! Look what your Fatty Di has done!"

"She was supposed to be competing in dance, so why is she doing a reality show instead?"

Zhang Yuqi put her hands on her hips and looked indignant.

"Agreed? Who did you agree to? The agreement was that everyone should rely on their own abilities. Chen Mo told you not to get involved, but you were inexplicably confident. What, who says you can't do reality shows?" Yang Mi didn't take it seriously and was even smug.

"You gave her the idea?" Chen Mo looked at Yang Mi curiously.

Yang Mi proudly tossed her hair: "Huayun's Tang Dynasty Western Region style herbal skirts are all sold out. We have to find another way."

"However, selling cantaloupes wasn't really my idea for her! She should withdraw early, lest she lose too badly and lose face." Yang Mi added insult to injury. In fact, at this moment, Zhang Yuqi's votes, whether intentionally manipulated by netizens or not, were actually at the bottom.

There was no other way; Tong Liya and Gulnazar teamed up, and the effect was excellent. In addition, many people actually believed that Tong Liya was the most suitable for this role.

He is the most suitable in terms of appearance, acting skills, age, and other aspects.

Therefore, she currently has the highest number of votes, followed by the unconventional Dilraba, then Gulnazar, and finally Zhang Yuqi.

Because compared to those others, she really doesn't have any advantages.

Oh, no, that's not right either. Her only advantage is that she's Chen Mo's woman!

However, this is precisely the biggest disadvantage of this casting process.

"Chen Mo!" Suddenly, Zhang Yuqi lunged at Chen Mo, baring her teeth and claws, then grabbed his collar and demanded, "Tell me, can we just pre-select him?"

Chen Mo reached out and pinched the tiger woman's face, then handed her his phone to look at.

There are quite a few netizens who have started the topic of "refusing pre-arranged deals" above, that's all!
Zhang Yuqi, that fierce woman, immediately wilted.

"Fine, I won't fight them for it, but..." She rolled her eyes around, then looked at Yang Mi and let out a sinister, wicked laugh.

Not long after, Zhang Yuqi suddenly posted a selfie on Weibo: she was lying sprawled on the sofa with a sticky note on her face that said "Please let me go" and empty cantaloupe rinds piled up at her feet. The caption read: "The tuition for the Sogdian language crash course is too expensive (too difficult), and someone is unwilling to make a private appointment, so I choose to lie down and become a Western Region foodie (doge)."

She originally just wanted to have some fun, but unexpectedly, this "playing dumb" Weibo post instantly became a source of laughter, and netizens went on a rampage of reposts:

"Hilarious! This is true clarity! The other three are struggling, while Sister Yuqi is just lying down and eating melon seeds!"

"I suggest Huayun release a co-branded 'Lying Flat Hemp Skirt' with the embroidered 'Even An Lushan wouldn't bother to catch it' on the chest!"

"Rigorous research: The height of the cantaloupe pile where Zhang Yuqi lies flat is equal to the thickness of the copper coins owed by the Anxi Army in those years (historical basis: the excavation report of Dali Yuanbao). I suggest that Huayun release a 'lying flat style pendant' next time, with the words 'I am dead, burn paper money if needed' embroidered on the chest!"

Yang Mi: Thanks for the invitation. I'm currently at the melon shed, just finished teaching Fatty Di how to bargain. Some people have such perfect "lying down" postures; I suggest Director Chen make a film called "The Last Day of Lazy Living in the Tang Dynasty" for his next project. @Zhang Yuqi, you're the only one worthy of the female lead (rose)

"No way, this time they're really not even bothering to pretend anymore, right? So someone refused the pre-arranged deal, so you just went along with it?"

This act of "playing it off" unexpectedly went viral, making Zhang Yuqi's "playing it off" even more thorough.

That very evening, she even went live, wearing a loose-fitting loungewear dress, slurping snail noodles while playing a video of Tong Liya dancing in the background: "Sisters, look how beautifully Yaya dances! I'll send you rockets!"

"Don't vote for me, it's a waste of your vote, because I've already led the way in surrendering!"

Seeing the silly comments from viewers in the live stream encouraging her to keep trying, she retorted, "What's the use of trying? Seriously, I can't do it! I can't dance as well as others, I can't speak Uyghur, and I can't even learn it. What can I do? The key is, some big jerk won't even offer me a position. What can I do?"
I think things are fine as they are; I can just enjoy the show with you guys!

"I support YaYa this time! Everyone, let's vote for our YaYa!"

"What? Is it because of Yang Mi? I'm coming clean, yes, that's right, it's because of her! What can I say if my own sister is siding with someone else?"

Zhang Yuqi completely gave up and started to slack off, but unexpectedly, this silly and self-destructive behavior won her countless fans, and her votes rose against the trend.

A netizen created a comparison image: on the left is a professionally edited dance photo of the other three, and on the right is a nine-grid photo of Zhang Yuqi eating melon seeds, titled "When female celebrities give up the infighting," which has been forwarded over 10 times.

"Strange things happen every year, but this year there seem to be more than usual. These days, even 'playing dumb' can reach new heights. Can I say that although I really enjoyed watching the other three's dance, I turned around and voted for Sister Yu Qi, who was just watching the drama unfold? (doge!)"

"Haha, I also voted for Zhang Yuqi. I feel a strong connection with her. I also want to give up and not work overtime. Anyway, I won't get a promotion or a raise, so I might as well just give up!"

"When competitors are engaged in fierce infighting, strategically underperforming can actually lower audience expectations—HR departments of all companies should learn this strategy (just kidding)."

"So, this is a new level of tanking, I'm truly impressed!"

After Zhang Yuqi's "slacking off" trended on social media, the others who were originally trying hard to sell melons continued to sell melons, and those who were trying hard to dance continued to dance.

And when we looked at it, wow, all the effort we put into attracting viewers turned out to be a waste, while you just gave up and did nothing, and ended up taking the lead.

What's the point of playing then? We work ourselves to the bone, only to be outmaneuvered by someone who just gives up and gives up.

For a moment, they were all at a loss.

With Zhang Yuqi's "playing dumb" tactic unexpectedly going viral, the other three candidates seemed to have suddenly figured out the true meaning of this casting trend and the current traffic code. If you play dumb, I'll play dumb too; if you lie down, I'll lie down too. They all started a "reverse involution" mode, and the style of the show gradually became outrageous!
(End of this chapter)