Huayu: Starting with Xiang Yu, the Hegemon of Western Chu

On the night the audition ended, Chen Mo returned to his rented apartment and sat at the table in a daze for a long time.

It wasn't because I was happy.

Of course, it's not that I'm unhappy.

It's a feeling that's hard to describe.

It's like someone who has been waiting for a long time finally getting on the train, only to find that the train is going much faster than expected, so fast that they need to steady themselves to avoid being thrown off balance by inertia.

Xiang Yu.

He's really going to play Xiang Yu.

From that casual remark in the corridor, "The King of Guanzhong has arrived," to Gao hope saying in front of everyone at the Hongmen Banquet rehearsal today, "Xiang Yu is yours."

It took less than a week in total.

Just a week ago, he was an unemployed actor with only 20,000 yuan in his bank account and no agent.

A week later, he will be acting opposite Chen Daomin in a historical drama with an investment of over 100 million yuan.

He was playing the role of Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu.

Chen Mo took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.

He did not open the short video app.

She didn't post anything on her WeChat Moments.

He opened the copy of "Records of the Grand Historian" on his desk and wrote a line in pencil on the blank page of the first chapter, "The Annals of Xiang Yu".

When Xiang Ji was young, he failed to learn calligraphy, and then he tried to learn swordsmanship, but he failed there as well.

This is the first sentence in the Records of the Grand Historian that records Xiang Yu's youth.

Others might see this statement as meaning "Xiang Yu couldn't learn anything when he was young".

Chen Mo saw things differently.

What he saw was a boy who disdained to learn anything.

It's not that I can't learn it.

It's because they don't want to learn.

Xiang Yu thought that reading, writing, and wielding swords were all minor pursuits.

He once said, "Books are only enough to record names; swordsmanship is only good for defeating one person, not worth learning. What I need to learn is how to defeat ten thousand."

From a young age, I looked down on tricks and cleverness, and I wanted to learn how to be "a match for ten thousand men" right from the start.

What kind of person is this?

This is someone who was born to stand at the top of the pyramid and look down.

His vision, his perspective, and his pride were already formed when he was a teenager.

Everything that followed was nothing more than the continuous amplification and eventual shattering of this pride.

Chen Mo wrote another line below this one.

"It's not about playing Xiang Yu. It's about becoming Xiang Yu yourself."

He knew the road ahead would be difficult.

Winning the audition is just the first step.

The real test comes after powering on.

Dozens of major scenes, hundreds of lines, and countless facial expressions and body movements that require precise control.

The character of Xiang Yu spans a huge range, from his teenage years to his suicide at Wujiang at the age of thirty-one, condensing more than ten years of his life into a few dozen episodes.

Xiang Yu was different at each stage.

When Xiang Yu first raised his army, he was sharp, fierce, and fearless.

When Xiang Yu was at the height of his power, he was arrogant, overbearing, and ruled the world.

When Xiang Yu was defeated, he was like a cornered beast fighting desperately, unwilling to accept defeat, and tragically heroic.

At the Wujiang River, Xiang Yu was relieved and resolute, turning all his pride and regret into a single stroke of his sword.

This is not a role that can be played simply by "being able to act".

This is a role that requires the actor to split their soul into several pieces, each piece injected into Xiang Yu at different stages, just to barely pass muster.

Thinking of this, Chen Mo felt no anxiety.

Instead, he laughed.

This feeling is very similar to how he felt five years ago when he decided to take the entrance exam for the Central Academy of Drama.

He knew that there was an extremely high and steep mountain ahead, but he was not afraid.

He was even a little impatient.

He didn't sleep that night.

I went from the "Annals of Xiang Yu" to the "Annals of Emperor Gaozu," and then from the "Annals of Emperor Gaozu" to the "Hereditary House of Marquis Liu," the "Biography of Marquis of Huaiyin," and the "Biography of Fan Zeng."

He wanted to understand everyone around Xiang Yu.

Because a person's character is not only reflected in their own words and actions, but also in their relationships with those around them.

Xiang Yu's attitude towards Fan Zeng reflects his stubbornness and arrogance.

Xiang Yu's attitude towards Yu Ji reflects the tenderness beneath his iron will.

Xiang Yu's attitude towards his old subordinates, such as Long Ju and Zhongli Mo, reflects his emphasis on loyalty over strategy.

Xiang Yu's attitude toward Han Xin reflects his most fatal weakness.

Han Xin once served as a halberd-bearer under Xiang Yu, but his strategies were repeatedly rejected. In a fit of anger, he finally defected to Liu Bang.

Xiang Yu was not unaware of Han Xin's talent.

He saw it, but he didn't care.

In his mind, the world was conquered by his own military strength, and he didn't need any strategists or generals.

This pride cost him Han Xin.

Losing Han Xin was tantamount to losing half of the country.

Chen Mo read and wrote in his notebook at the same time.

Write about Xiang Yu's psychological state in each scene.

Write down what his expression, tone of voice, and gaze should be at each juncture in his life.

When he looked up, it was already bright outside the window.

5:30 a.m.

He stood up, stretched, and walked to the window to look outside.

The rented room is on the fifth floor, with a hazy gray skyline in view.

The lights in an office building in the distance are already on; it's probably occupied by people working overtime until the early hours of the morning.

Chen Mo looked at the lamp and suddenly remembered something.

He opened his phone and sent a message to Wang Zhiping.

"Teacher Wang, Director Gao is right. Reading until 4 a.m. wasn't enough, I read until 5:30 a.m."

Wang Zhiping responded very quickly this time as well.

It's probably because older people get up early.

"Go to sleep. We'll turn on the computer the day after tomorrow."

Chen Mo smiled and put down his phone.

I went to sleep for two hours.

I went for a run after waking up.

Five kilometers.

He was rehearsing a scene in his mind while he was running.

This is the first scene we'll be filming after the production starts.

It was not a trap, not a desperate act, not a suicide at the Wujiang River.

It was a very small play.

When Xiang Yu was young, he and his uncle Xiang Liang sought refuge in Jiangdong. One day, they saw the grand procession of Qin Shi Huang on his eastern tour passing by.

Xiang Yu pointed at the convoy and said something.

"He can be replaced."

Six characters.

Just six words.

But these six words are the starting point of the entire legend of Xiang Yu.

As Chen Mo ran, a smile slowly spread across his face.

He already knew how to say those six words.

On March 21st, filming officially began for "The Legend of Chu and Han".

The film crew held a simple opening ceremony at the film and television base, burned incense and prayed to the gods, said a few auspicious words, and then started filming.

There was no grand press conference, no overwhelming press releases, and not even many reporters were present.

This is Gao hope's style.

He doesn't like to have a lot of fancy publicity before filming even begins.

In his view, the quality of a TV series is not determined by the press conference, but by the film reels.

The first scene filmed was the one where "young Xiang Yu observes the chariot of Qin Shi Huang".

The scene was small in scale, set on a small earthen mound beside an official road. Xiang Yu and Xiang Liang stood on the mound, watching Qin Shi Huang's entourage pass by in the distance.

There were about twenty or thirty extras, playing the roles of onlookers.

The actor playing Xiang Liang is a very experienced stage actor named Zhao Hengyuan, who is over fifty years old and is of the same generation as Chen Daomin. He has solid acting skills.

When Chen Mo arrived at the film set, Zhao Hengyuan was sitting under the shade of a tree drinking tea.

Seeing Chen Mo approach, she looked him up and down.

"You're the Xiang Yu that Gao hope chose?"

"Yes, hello Teacher Zhao." Chen Mo greeted him politely.

Zhao Hengyuan hummed in response, without saying anything more.

But a hint of reservation could be seen in his eyes.

It wasn't dissatisfaction, nor was it disdain.

It's just a wait-and-see approach, like "I need to see what level you are at first."

This is normal.

In a production crew filled with veteran actors, there's only one way for young people to gain recognition.

Prove yourself in front of the camera.

Everything else is meaningless.

"All departments, prepare. First move, first action: Get set."

Gao hope sat behind the monitor and picked up the walkie-talkie.

The scene is in place, the camera is in position, and the lights are ready.

Chen Mo stood on a small earthen mound, wearing a coarse cloth short brown shirt and straw sandals.

This is what Xiang Yu looked like as a young boy.

There was no armor, no cloak, nothing that symbolized power or force.

He was just an ordinary young man, standing by the roadside watching the excitement.

But Chen Mo's eyes are extraordinary.

When Gao hope saw the close-up of Chen Mo on the monitor, his fingers unconsciously tightened.

There was something in those eyes.

Something indescribable, something heavy.

It's not the curiosity and innocence that a teenager should have.

It was an ambition far beyond his years, almost instinctive.

Like a young beast, it crouches in the grass, staring at a prey ten times its size in the distance.

It knew it couldn't win right now.

But it had already begun to figure out how to tear that behemoth apart.

"Begin," Gao hope said.

In the distance, the "Qin Shi Huang convoy" prepared by the props team slowly drove in.

Dozens of horses pulled a magnificent carriage, with banners fluttering and drums booming.

The extras playing ordinary people around them all knelt down, some trembling, some not daring to raise their heads.

Zhao Hengyuan, who plays Xiang Liang, also bent down slightly, his face showing a cautious and restrained expression.

After all, Xiang Liang was a key figure in the anti-Qin forces, and at this moment he had to conceal his identity and not attract attention.

Everyone bent down.

Apart from Chen Mo.

He stood there, motionless.

A gentle breeze ruffled his hair, and his coarse brown blouse swayed softly in the wind.

His back was ramrod straight.

It wasn't something I deliberately cultivated; it was innate.

It's as if this boy's spine is cast with molten iron, and he has never known what it means to bend over since birth.

He looked at the long convoy in the distance, and his expression slowly changed.

From calm, to scrutiny, to a dangerously focused attention.

Like a hunter eyeing its prey.

Then he spoke.

The voice was soft, and the tone was even somewhat casual.

It's as if they're saying something that's taken for granted.

"He can be replaced."

Seven characters.

Seven light and airy words.

But it was like a stone thrown into a calm lake.

Zhao Hengyuan's expression changed instantly.

He shoved a hand over Chen Mo's mouth, looked around, and hissed in a low voice, "Don't speak recklessly, or your entire clan will be wiped out!"

This reaction was in the script.

But the hand Zhao Hengyuan was using to cover his mouth was trembling slightly.

This tremor wasn't in the script.

He was stunned by the tone of Chen Mo's line.

That tone was so natural.

It's so natural that you'll forget it's an actor delivering lines.

You would only feel as if a teenager were standing in front of you, looking at the carriage of the most powerful emperor in the world, without any fear or awe in his heart, only a near-mad thought.

Instead.

I want to replace him.

I want to become like him.

No, I want to become stronger than him.

"Card!"

Gao hope called a halt.

Then he did something that no one present had ever seen him do before.

He clapped.

It wasn't the kind of polite, perfunctory applause.

It was genuine applause, applause that came from the heart.

"Passed. Passed in one take."

One take.

The first scene after filming started was filmed in one take.

This would be almost impossible in Gao hope's film crew.

He is known for his strictness; it's common for actors to go through five or six takes, and it's not uncommon for them to do more than ten.

But today, one.

Zhao Hengyuan stood there, his gaze towards Chen Mo completely changed.

The attitude shifted from "wait and see" to "acceptance".

He walked over, patted Chen Mo on the shoulder, and said nothing.

But the force of that strike said it all.

Chen Mo nodded, a slight smile curving his lips.

Then he turned around and walked back to the rest area, sat down, and opened the copy of "Records of the Grand Historian" that he had brought to the set.

Prepare for the next scene.

The stagehand next to him whispered something to his colleague.

"Who is this guy?"

My colleague shook his head.

"I don't know. But that scene just now gave me goosebumps."

The stagehand glanced at Chen Mo, who was sitting quietly in the corner reading a book.

Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the roof, casting dappled shadows on him and making the dust on his coarse linen robe float slowly in the light.

That profile looked very quiet.

She was so quiet, unlike an actor who had just amazed everyone in front of the camera.

It's more like a traveler taking a break by the roadside.

After resting, we still have to keep going.

The road ahead is still long.