Unboxing, Director!

Chapter 165 The Horse-Running Man, the Red Carpet is Calling

Let's get down to business.

First, there's "Goddess Dragon." Ning Hao has been communicating with Lu Jiang these past few days, and for some key shots, he even had Bao Qiang act as a human film delivery machine, with Lu Jiang setting up a small projector in his room to check the footage.

For example, Dong Xuan helped send over the latest clip today.

After watching it once, overall, Ning Hao is, after all, a promising director with the right guidance from Lu Jiang, and his progress is quite rapid. Now, almost two months into filming, he hardly needs to consult Lu Jiang anymore.

Lu Jiang was very satisfied that his first TV series was directed like that of a seasoned director.

But he still had Dong Xuan pass on a message: "Haozi said that he has been working very hard on filming."

"I know, but he has to make a movie for his next project, and that's non-negotiable!"

Lu Jiang's attitude was firm.

We have to force Ning Hao to release "Incense" or "Crazy Stone"; in short, we can't let such a promising talent be ruined in our hands.

Of course, his patience is also limited. At most, it will take two years. Or, if he still can't get Ning Hao to produce good work after giving him a golden touch, then he will truly have to be Lu's slave from now on.

Dong Xuan didn't say much about this, but then added, "Chao'er also asked me to pass on a message to you."

Both the "Goddess Dragon" and "Young Emperor" production teams were mainly filming in Huairou, and they even stayed at the same hotel, so it's normal for them to have exchanges.

Lu Jiang: "How so?"

"He's in love."

"With Hao Lei?"

"how do you know?"

How do I know?

In the original timeline, these two became acquainted because of the TV series "Young Emperor".

He acted in this drama just like in the original timeline, and now he's saying he's in a relationship, so there's basically no way he can escape the rumors.

However, Lu Jiang changed his tune: "I was just guessing, but I didn't expect to be right. How long have they been together?"

"About half a month later, Chao'er said he wanted to go public."

"It seems like he's quite deeply in love. I'll talk to him about this later. Anything else?"

"Nothing."

"Really gone?"

"That's all. Bo'er and Xiao Qiao are both fine."

"And what about you? Don't you have anything to say to me?"

Upon hearing this, Dong Xuan's cheeks flushed instantly, and she involuntarily lowered her head, twisting the hem of her clothes with her fingers.

When Lu Jiang saw this, his first thought was of her carefree manner that afternoon, and he burst into laughter.

"You're always teasing me! I'm leaving, I'm not talking to you anymore!"

Dong Xuan made a move to leave, but Lu Jiang stopped her with a single sentence: "Do you still want Leng Qingqiu?"

"want!"

"Talking isn't enough; you have to take some action, right?"

Dong Xuan felt a sudden pang of panic.

Is it here already?
Then Lu Jiang added, "I heard you used to be a dance major. Dance for me, a Mongolian dance, the kind with big, sweeping movements. Don't tell me you can't do it, haha. The way you were breaking apples this afternoon, you were more powerful than a Mongolian man, you were practically a horse-riding warrior!"

Dong Xuan couldn't sit still any longer. She grabbed a cushion and threw it at Lu Jiang, but only at his feet, not daring to hit him hard.

After throwing it away, he stormed off, ignoring Lu Jiang's maniacal laughter.

Back in her room, Dong Xuan was still quite angry, both at Lu Jiang's lack of romantic understanding and at how her image had been ruined in front of him.

This made her immediately imagine the pillow next to her as Lu Jiang and punch it.

Let me tell you I'm a Mongolian giant!
But seeing that the pillow was concave in the shape of a chrysanthemum, Dong Xuan burst out laughing again.
Just then, her phone rang. It was Fan Binbin calling. Dong Xuan's smile vanished instantly, and her heart tightened.

I took a deep breath and answered the call: "Sister Bingbing."

"Are you done?"

"Yeah, I just finished and I'm about to take a shower."

"So, what did you find?"

Dong Xuan: "Mm"

"Hmm what? Is there anything you're afraid to say? Is it Chen Zihan or Gao Yuanyuan?"

"None of them."

"What do you mean by 'not counting'?"

"Because...it seems like everyone's after him."

Including myself.

Dong Xuan silently added a sentence in her mind.

The so-called "discovery" was the task that Fan Binbin assigned to her.

Observe the situation of any enemies within the "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre" production crew.

To be honest, the day was quite fruitful.

Before Lu Jiang arrived at the film set in the afternoon, she noticed that Xiao Zhao and the others seemed to have strange looks in their eyes when they talked about Lu Jiang.

When Lu Jiang arrived in the afternoon, everyone gathered together, and Dong Xuan noticed that Xiao Zhao, Jia Jingwen, Gao Yuanyuan, Chen Zihan, and several others looked at Lu Jiang with very strange eyes!

But this answer is clearly a bit of an exaggeration.

Fan Binbin immediately laughed and said, "Our Lu Jiang is really capable!"

His tone exuded a strong sense of pride.

But then she quickly returned to normal and continued to instruct: "Although I tend to think you misjudged, there's no guarantee that someone might actually use some underhanded means or even directly try to seduce you. Huanhuan, you'd better keep a close eye on things these days."

"I know."

After hanging up the phone, Dong Xuan sighed, feeling a heavy sense of guilt that made it hard to breathe.
Then filming continued.

New film set, new partners, but Xiao Zhao and her friends' ideas never faltered.

As the collaboration went on, the green treasure chest on Xiao Zhao's head turned blue.

Similarly, Chen Zihan's blue treasure chest also turned purple.

Lu Jiang estimated that it wouldn't be long before the two of them, like Guo Feili, took the initiative to confess their feelings, because they would both finish filming in about half a month. As usual, Jia Jingwen had been communicating much less with Lu Jiang since the treasure chest appeared on her head, and she hadn't sent any signals at night.

Gao Yuanyuan kept sending signals, seemingly unaffected by the "darkening" drama.

However, Lu Jiang still took the initiative to reduce the frequency of their intimate moments, not only because Dong Xuan was watching him closely, but also because the rooms of the main actors were all on the same floor, which was inconvenient.

It was because Hengdian is a mixed bag of people, and on the night of the 21st, there were suspicious individuals active on the floor where Lu Jiang was located late at night. They were eventually caught by Lu Jiang's bodyguards, who then discovered they were paparazzi.

If Lu Jiang and Gao Yuanyuan were photographed having a secret rendezvous that day, it would be a real mess.

The other party's motives are also quite reasonable. Since filming began, "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" has kept a low profile, which has made paparazzi from all walks of life eager to find it, to the point that they have taken risks.

To resolve the issue, the next day, Mr. Li from Huanya consulted a fortune teller again and quickly decided to hold a press conference at 9:00 AM on the 23rd, an auspicious time, to satisfy the media's curiosity about "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre".

No one had any objections. It's better to believe it's true than to risk your career.

It's a bit of a coincidence that the 23rd was also the day the Cannes nominations were announced.

However, Lu Jiang did not suggest changing the time, as there was no need.

So it was the morning of the 23rd.

More than a hundred reporters gathered outside the "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre" filming location.

After the main actors appeared one after another, the flashes from the cameras around Lu Jiang's location were noticeably brighter.

The actors, especially those who had been together since Xiandu, finally gained a deep understanding of Lu Jiang's popularity.

On set, Lu Jiang is just like the boy next door—approachable and down-to-earth.

After spending nearly two months with him, everyone is starting to treat him like an ordinary celebrity.

It was only at this moment that everyone realized that the person standing in front of them was a king of Mandopop, the top male star in the Chinese entertainment industry, and an international pop star!
And by the afternoon, the number of such titles had increased by half.

5 PM Beijing time on April 23.

The 55th Cannes Film Festival has announced the list of nominees for its main competition.

Two of the films were from China.

One is Jia Zhangke's "Unknown Pleasures".

The other is a name that is both familiar and unfamiliar.

Lu Jiang, "Lobster".

Immediately, reporters who had just finished a press conference with the cast and crew cancelled their tickets on the spot, preparing to make a surprise return to "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre".

But soon after, Cannes continued to announce the shortlist for the non-main competition sections.

Lu Jiang appeared among them!

"Lu Jiang, Beauty"

Nani?

Lu Jiang had two works shortlisted at once?!
This news is far more explosive than a simple 1+1!

As a result, more media outlets headed to Hengdian.

Unfortunately, Lu Jiang only gave an interview today, which benefited the reporters who came to the "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre" press conference this morning.

Before long, even more reporters gathered outside the "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre" crew, waiting for "Director Lu" to appear and give his side of the story.

This greatly excited Mr. Li of Huanya:
"The original version had two auspicious times today, one at 9 am and the other at 7 pm. The master said it would be best to have both, but that's really not easy to do. But now, Lu Jiang has managed to make both times perfect! Lao Lai, our show is bound to be a hit!"

Lai Shuiqing pushed up his glasses and thought to himself: "Idiot, once Lu Jiang is confirmed to star, it's already a foregone conclusion whether this show will be a hit. Why do you have to keep calculating?"

"Isn't that right, you deadbeat?" Mr. Li asked again.

"Ah, yes, it was definitely the right choice to look for Lu Jiang!"

"Of course, how could my judgment be bad?"

Lai Shuiqing: "Ah, yes, yes, yes."

What does this have to do with you? It's all thanks to Boss Wu placing his bets in advance, okay?
"What do you think about being shortlisted? Being shortlisted doesn't guarantee winning. I'll take it easy. My biggest worry right now is not winning either. Who knows what you guys will say about me then, haha."

"When were they filmed? The feature film was shot last summer, and the short film was shot during the Spring Festival this year."

"What story does 'The Lobster' tell? We'll find out when the movie comes out."

"What if we win an award? Of course, we celebrate!"

"Will this be a formal launch of my film career? I do have that idea. I'm currently polishing the script; I can't just make any film to fool my fans and audiences."

"."

After spending an hour answering reporters' questions, Lu Jiang then dealt with various text messages and phone calls.

The news of being nominated for Cannes wasn't actually that sensational.

But since Lu Jiang is a superstar, the event's popularity skyrocketed.

Fans and admirers are overjoyed, and it's said that prayers have already begun online.

The Central Academy of Drama also sent a text message suggesting that we go to Cannes together.

Actors such as Zhang Jingchu also sent congratulatory text messages, with Zhang Jingchu asking if she could join them.

Li Chao also sent a text message saying that advertisers from all walks of life have started to raise prices.

Their sense of smell was still very keen; they all knew that Lu Jiang's identity had entered the formal leap stage.

He started evolving from a singer and television actor into a movie star.

Whether you're a film director or a film actor, as long as you're involved in film, you're considered a "rising star."

This is different from the short film that won awards back then.

While the Golden Lion Award for Short Films is prestigious, it is still just for short films, and its impact is far less than that of feature films.

This time, however, it's a proper feature film.

Therefore, if Lu Jiang were to actually win an award, the various hidden benefits he would receive would exceed many people's imagination.

Lu Jiang remained relatively calm about this, as everything was expected.

But the others are different.

At this moment, no one was more excited than Fan Binbin.

When "The Lobster" was indeed nominated for the main competition, she shouted to the sky in front of everyone on the set of "Water Moon Cave": "Red carpet, here I come!!"

(End of this chapter)