From unemployment in crosstalk to top star in Chinese entertainment

A week ago, Yu Liang had just returned to Beijing from recording "Longing for Days," still carrying the scent of bamboo leaves from the mountains of Tonglu.

Zhou Jiajia pushed the two project proposals onto the coffee table.

"Which of these two scripts do you choose?" Zhou Jiajia asked Yu Liang tentatively.

Yu Liang glanced at the two scripts: one was "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" directed by Yu Rongguang, and the other was "Reboot: The Lost Tomb" written by Nanpai Sanshu, a sequel to "The Lost Tomb".

Yu Liang raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

"Isn't it said that Xinli has very limited resources? How come she gave me two scripts all at once?"

Zhou Jiajia said calmly, "This is what I got for you. You're only choosing one of them, not both."

Yu Liang smiled and said, "Even if you asked me to act in 'Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils,' which was directed by Teacher Yu, I wouldn't do it."

Yu Rongguang is a decent actor, but his directing skills are lacking. Besides, there are already excellent versions starring Huang Rihua and Hu Jun.

As Yu Liang knew, the previous version of "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" directed by Yu Rongguang received a 3.6 rating on Douban when it was first broadcast, then dropped to 3.3, and finally ended with a 3.4, which is considered the lowest among Jin Yong drama remakes.

The casting and styling were criticized online: Yang Youning's Qiao Feng looked like Wu Song; Bai Shu's Duan Yu had a side-swept fringe and an earring, and his acting was childish; Janice Man's Wang Yuyan looked haggard and didn't resemble the fairy sister.

The action scenes were weak, the pacing was slow, the adaptation was mediocre, and it completely failed to capture the spirit of the martial arts world.

"Yang Youning plays Qiao Feng. Once the director and lead actor are chosen, the tone of the drama is determined. Even if I play Duan Yu well, it will be difficult for me to stand out. Moreover, if I don't play it well, I will ruin my career."

Zhou Jiajia looked at him for two seconds but didn't ask any further questions. Hearing the words "ruining one's future" from his mouth actually reassured her.

That aligns with her judgment.

According to her investigation, the director of the show, Yu Rongguang, is the brother of Yu Yan, a senior executive at Xinli Entertainment, which is why the company wanted its own artist to take the role.

But Zhou Jiajia wasn't there to work for someone with connections. It was unexpected that Yu Liang could make such a judgment.

"What about 'Reboot'?" She pushed another proposal forward.

"I accepted it."

"Aren't you going to look at the script?"

"No need to look. Zhang Qiling, the third male lead." Yu Liang picked up his teacup and took a sip. "He's good at fighting, handsome, and his appearance matches mine. It's just that there are some differences in his character design."

"But isn't acting about getting actors to adapt to more roles? And this is a big IP, so it's sure to attract a lot of fans."

He put down his cup, his mind racing with information from his previous life.

"Reboot: The Lost Tomb," personally crafted by Nanpai Sanshu, is the official sequel to "The Lost Tomb." More importantly—the male lead is Zhu Yilong.

This newly crowned top star, who just rose to fame with "Guardian," is at the height of his popularity. To act alongside him is to stand right in the eye of the storm of popularity.

"There's another reason," Yu Liang said, looking at Zhou Jiajia. "This show is a joint production of iQiyi, Nanpai Entertainment, and Xinli. It will be broadcast on iQiyi and Tencent Video, so it will naturally be very popular."

A rare smile appeared on Zhou Jiajia's lips: "You've got a pretty long-term vision."

"I learned it from you."

"Come on." Zhou Jiajia put away the proposal and said seriously, "According to the contract, the company can only provide one assistant and one nanny car when you go out to film. But I made a deal—President Zhao said you performed very well in 'Back to Field', so he specially approved providing you with a motorhome."

Yu Liang's eyes lit up.

"In addition, 'Reboot' is a two-season series, with a total of more than 60 episodes and a filming period of six months. I will send you the joining time and contract later. I will coordinate the specific matters with the production team. You just need to focus on acting well."

She paused slightly, "You know your current situation well. The works you can be proud of so far are three variety shows: 'Roast,' 'The Actor's Singing,' and 'Longing for Days.'"

"The media has started labeling you a 'variety show personality' now. This label isn't necessarily bad, but if you want to go further, you need solid work to back you up, and your representative work can't just be variety shows."

"So I feel that in order to better join film crews, I would advise you to withdraw from shows like 'The Actor's Singing,' which have two competitions every week and a long production cycle."

Yu Liang nodded; he knew Zhou Jiajia was right.

But this also reminded Yu Liang of the importance of a good script for an artist.

Xinli currently has no shortage of scripts, especially with a large number of IPs waiting to be filmed, but whether these scripts will become hits remains to be seen before they are released.

He suddenly thought of the TV series "Raging Storm" that made Zhang Songwen an overnight sensation in his previous life. As far as Yu Liang knew, this TV series was an original script written by Xu Jizhou and Zhu Junyi between 2020 and 2021, and there was no original work or IP before that.

However, Zhou Jiajia's words just now reminded him of something, and Yu Liang asked, "Sister Jiajia, do you know Zhu Junyi?"

"Zhu Junyi?" Zhou Jiajia frowned. "Don't know him. Who is he?"

"The screenwriter of 'The Indelible Number'," Yu Liang said. The reason he sought him out was because he was also the main writer of the hugely popular drama "Raging Storm" in his previous life.

"Why do you want to see him?"

"There's something I'd like to talk to him about." Yu Liang didn't say much, "Try to find out how to contact him when you have some free time."

Zhou Jiajia glanced at him, but didn't ask any further questions; she simply nodded.

She was used to it. Yu Liang sometimes seemed carefree and irresponsible, but when he got serious, every word he said and every action he took, upon careful consideration, was not without purpose.

A few days later, at Hengdian World Studios.

In late June, Hengdian was as hot as a steamer; you could fry an egg on the cement floor.

Yu Liang's van drove into the film studio gate, followed by a brand-new, clean black RV. As soon as the door opened, a wave of heat hit them.

"Teacher Yu Liang!"

A loud voice came from the direction of the photography studio.

Pan Anzi, the executive director of "Reboot," strode up to Yu Liang with an extremely enthusiastic smile on his face. He grabbed Yu Liang's hand and shook it vigorously three times before letting go.

Yu Liang knew perfectly well what was going on. Pan Anzi was being so polite to him not because he had seen his performances, but because he was someone Xinli Media had planted in his company.

Xinli is one of the producers of this show, but the one who really holds the power is the original author, chief screenwriter and chief producer, Nanpai Sanshu.

"Teacher Yu Liang, you must have had a long journey. Was your trip smooth?" Pan Anzi said, looking him up and down. The amazement in his eyes was not just politeness. "His appearance... tsk, he's such a perfect fit for Zhang Qiling. To be honest, we've looked at so many candidates before, and none of them can compare to your temperament."

"Director Pan, I don't deserve such praise. I'm just here to learn," Yu Liang said modestly with a smile, though her tone was neither humble nor arrogant.

The two walked and talked, passing through several sets under construction, and arrived at the main film studio.

The studio lights were on, and the crew was making final adjustments to the set.

A tall, middle-aged man with a square face stood next to the monitor, a cigarette dangling from his mouth, directing operations into the walkie-talkie.

Nanpai Sanshu – Xu Lei.

Yu Liang recognized him at a glance. She had seen this face countless times in interviews in her previous life.

Pan Anzi stepped forward, his tone respectful yet affectionate: "Third Uncle, Teacher Yu Liang has arrived."

Xu Lei turned around.

The moment his gaze fell on Yu Liang's face, he visibly paused.

The young man before me stood tall and straight like a pine tree, with distinct features and high, prominent brow bones. Compared to Yang Yang, whom I had worked with five years ago, this face had lost some of its softness and gained a more rugged, serene quality.

What's most remarkable is his eyes—calm and composed, without the eagerness and fawning often seen in young actors when he looks at people.

Of course, his temperament is more sunny, which is different from Zhang Qiling's inherent aloofness.

However, this isn't a problem; makeup and styling can fix it. Back then, Yang Yang created that classic "young man" image precisely because of his thick, slanted bangs, pale makeup, and all-black attire.

"A promising talent." Xu Lei made his first conclusion.

"Teacher Yu Liang, welcome." Xu Lei extended his hand, his tone more reserved than Pan Anzi's. "I've seen your performance as Teng Zijing in 'Joy of Life.' The scene where you died was quite good; you handled those few glances with great thought."

"Teacher Xu, you flatter me." Yu Liang grasped his hand with just the right amount of pressure. "I read 'The Grave Robbers' Chronicles' in high school. I never imagined that one day I would be able to play Zhang Qiling myself. To be honest, I'm still a little overwhelmed."

These words brought a barely perceptible smile to Xu Lei's face.

Just then, a commotion broke out at the entrance of the photography studio.

A black van was parked outside. The passenger door opened first, and a slender young man wearing a mask got out.

Zhu Yilong.

He was dressed casually, in a white T-shirt and black casual pants, with a baseball cap on his head.

Having just emerged from the intense promotional period following the conclusion of "Guardian," she still showed signs of fatigue, but her overall energy was high, and she walked with a brisk pace.

"Hello, Teacher Xu." Zhu Yilong approached, first bowing slightly to Xu Lei, his tone respectful yet friendly.

Xu Lei nodded: "Yi Long is here."

"Hello, Director Pan." Zhu Yilong greeted Pan Anzi again before turning his gaze to the young man standing next to Xu Lei.

When he greeted him, he also noticed the handsome young man standing next to Nanpai Sanshu, who looked a bit younger than him.

"Could this be the actor who plays Zhang Qiling?" Zhu Yilong mentally reviewed the cast list.

He had long heard that the actor playing Zhang Qiling was exceptionally good-looking, which didn't surprise him, since that was how Zhang Qiling was described in the original novel by the author.

But to his surprise, she was outstanding to this extent.

Zhu Yilong couldn't help but feel worried.

After all, he had just risen to the top of the entertainment industry by playing the second lead role of Shen Wei in "Guardian," where his acting skills surpassed those of the male lead, Bai Yu.

Will this guy also ascend to immortality by stepping on me?

He, who was always sensitive and perceptive, felt that there was a possibility.

That evening, in the hotel conference room.

All the main actors were gathered together for their first full reading session before filming began for "Reboot".

The conference room was set up with a long table around it, covered with scripts, and each person's seat was thoughtfully provided with a bottle of mineral water and a pack of tissues.

Reading a script is physically demanding. The script for two seasons, which is expected to have seventy or eighty episodes and more than a thousand scenes, takes several days just to read through.

Xu Lei sat in the main seat, with Pan Anzi to his left. Several members of the script coordinator and writing team sat next to them, responsible for recording the actors' opinions and suggestions for revision.

The main actors sat around a long table on either side according to their billing order.

Zhu Yilong sat in the first seat to Xu Lei's right; Wu Xie is the absolute male lead of this drama.

Chen Minghao sat opposite Zhu Yilong; the chubby guy, who was the second male lead, also had quite a presence.

Next is Mao Xiaotong, the actress who plays Bai Haotian, a beautiful young actress who has gained popularity for her acting skills.

Yu Liang was positioned diagonally opposite Zhu Yilong.

The meeting room was quiet, with only the rustling sound of turning pages.

The atmosphere of a reading session is completely different from that of filming.

There were no lights, no blocking, no camera work; everyone did only one thing: read their lines and thoroughly understand their characters.

Yu Liang opened his script, his expression unchanged.

"Have you all memorized the lines we read together today?" Nanpai Sanshu asked, looking at everyone.

Some nodded, while others remained silent. Few nodded, such as Zhu Yilong. But many remained silent.

Yu Liang said, "I've got it."

There was nothing he could do; he had very few lines and was really feeling stifled these past few days.

He was used to being talkative and always wanted to find an opportunity to chime in.

"Stop messing around, you only have a few lines," Chen Minghao, who plays Fatty Wang, complained.

Having spent the past few days together, everyone had become more familiar with each other and often sat together joking around.

As Chen Minghao said, Yu Liang's portrayal of Zhang Qiling consisted of only a few lines: "I am Zhang Qiling," "I am here," "Don't be afraid," "Go," "It's alright," brief, restrained, and sparing with words.

In Chen Minghao's opinion, there is not much difference between his singing and Zeng Yi's.

While others were reading the script and preparing their lines, Yu Liang, out of sheer boredom, started meticulously counting the number of words in his own lines.

As for the others, it wasn't so easy, especially for Wu Xie and Fatty's long passages.

On the evening of the third day of the reading session, everyone was going over a key scene from their journey into the cemetery—

The scene where Wu Xie, Fatty, and Zhang Qiling encounter traps in the tomb passage.

Zhu Yilong stood up and read a monologue of more than three hundred words without a script.

His breathing was perfectly steady, his phrasing was precise, and his tone was varied and controlled; he had clearly put a lot of effort into preparing these lines.

However, when no one was paying attention, Yu Liang, who was sitting opposite, started moving his lips in rhythm with Zhu Yilong's lines.

However, compared to Zhu Yilong's powerful and extemporaneous delivery, Yu Liang's was a silent recitation.

This left Chen Minghao, who was sitting next to him, completely dumbfounded.

He turned his head and happened to see the rhythm of Yu Liang's lips. Although she didn't make a sound, he could clearly feel that Yu Liang was delivering her lines word by word with Zhu Yilong's voice, without any mistakes.

No, so you weren't just counting your own words, you were also reciting other people's words, right?

You little rascal, how did you learn from those veteran actors who are obsessed with memorizing lines?

What will happen after this reading session ends!

Chen Minghao felt a sense of crisis, and two of the three male protagonists got involved.

He didn't want the media to portray him as the one who went to the set and kept repeating "one, two, three, four, five".