Reborn in the Entertainment Industry: This Top Star Has Real Achievements

In the days that followed, Li Xiang indeed listened to Huang Lei's advice and stayed at school to practice his skills and hone his acting skills.

However, this incident made his relationship with his classmates more complicated.

Those who had talked about him behind his back were probably afraid of being resented, so they were always polite when they met, and their eyes inevitably showed an unnatural avoidance.

More importantly, his two high-profile endorsements are simply too eye-catching.

The media had already heard rumors and made explosive reports, claiming that the total cost of his two endorsements had exceeded 20 million.

Twenty million in 2010 was a heavy, suffocating number.

Even after taxes and company profits are deducted, Li Xiang would still have at least four or five million yuan in his hands, which is a solid seven-figure sum.

It's important to understand that this difference is far too obvious.

Many of them can earn a few thousand or tens of thousands of dollars by taking on small gigs, which is enough to cover tuition and living expenses for a semester.

But Li Xiang earned an amount that many families could never achieve in a lifetime with just two endorsements.

The chasm created by fame and fortune has become an insurmountable barrier between them.

Li Xiang was happy to have some peace and quiet. He wasn't a saint, and he could probably just laugh off unimportant people;

But those who call him brother on ordinary days but gossip behind his back, he has already shown leniency by not turning against them. From now on, they will only have the empty title of classmate.

He also devoted more of his energy to the script, and occasionally strolled around campus wearing the latest Adidas clothes, only nodding slightly when he bumped into classmates who greeted him.

People have always feared authority more than virtue, so it's good to keep some distance.

Until that day, Li Xiang unexpectedly received a call from Zhang Yimou.

On the phone, Zhang Yimou's voice sounded tired and travel-worn, as if he had just returned from out of town: "I just got back from location scouting and heard about what's been going on with you lately."

He paused, then said calmly, "Your Uncle Wang is still busy out of town, and he might not have time to deal with these things. Come to the studio, and we can talk."

There was no unnecessary preamble, but it was full of genuine concern.

Li Xiang quickly replied, "Okay."

It was the same familiar studio, and the scene inside was still bustling with activity.

Li Xiang stood at the door, his steps faltering slightly, a sudden sense of disorientation washing over him, after all, this was also his "place of origin".

"You're here?" Zhang Yimou's voice came from behind him, interrupting his thoughts.

Li Xiang snapped out of his daze and followed him inside.

"I heard you turned down Wang Jing's 'A Thousand Arrows Piercing the Heart'?"

"Yeah, I declined." Li Xiang leaned back in his chair, his tone tinged with helplessness.

"I had no choice but to refuse. You have no idea how intense the online public opinion was back then; it was even fiercer than when I acted in 'Under the Hawthorn Tree.'"

If we keep stubbornly resisting, we might really be labeled as part of the "privileged class."

"Besides, your junior brother is really unfair. He didn't say a word from beginning to end, as if he was tacitly agreeing. How can I tolerate him?"

He smiled, with the sharpness of youth, "Besides, as you know, I don't necessarily need this movie."

Zhang Yimou didn't interrupt, but simply nodded slightly.

He then continued, "Moreover, I also called Mr. Xie to explain, and I told him the truth."

I'm considered his junior by birth, so I wasn't particularly upset when he called...

Of course, even if he was really unhappy, I probably wouldn't have cared at the time.

Otherwise, if I actually joined the crew, who knows what the director would do to me.

At this point, he glanced at Zhang Yimou, and seeing that the other man's expression was calm, he continued:

"Moreover, the other end of the news was also trying to set the tone, so I had to cut my losses and extricate myself from the situation first."

"You're decisive, but I heard you turned around and took a month's leave, skipping school altogether?"

Li Xiang did not deny it, and said frankly: "A kind person is bullied, and a good horse is ridden. I have figured it out."

At the time, I was busy helping the school and Huace connect, but I never expected that my own backyard would catch fire first.

The behavior of some people at the school is truly appalling—to be honest, I'm starting to regret helping them.

"You're not helping these people, but rather the reputation of Beijing Film Academy, and you're also helping yourself."

Otherwise, if you agree to perform for Mr. Xie but then refuse to do so, how can things end so easily?

Wang Jing probably didn't completely break ties with you because of this.

Li Xiang scoffed, "Why would I be afraid of him? He's a two-faced person; he already has someone in mind, but he doesn't dare tell Elder Xie directly."

Instead, he created this mess, forcing me to back out. I think he's wasting his energy on crooked schemes.

"You, you. What can I even say about you?" Zhang Yimou shook his head, his tone tinged with helplessness and indulgence.

"His relationship with our group wasn't very good to begin with. The fact that he doesn't use you is partly due to your uncle's influence, not entirely because of you."

However, he does indeed dislike actors who are too overly famous.

"So, if you want to get a role in one of his movies, you have to hide your fame first?"

Li Xiang curled his lip. "Does he have the ability to make actors famous? Can't the actors just give up their livelihoods to make a living just because they're filming one of his movies?"

"Alright, since it's all in the past, let's not dwell on it." Zhang Yimou interrupted him.

"I'll visit Mr. Xie in a couple of days and say a few words on your behalf, then we'll consider this matter closed. Anyway, we won't have many opportunities to interact in the future."

"Then I must thank you, Uncle Zhang." Li Xiang smiled.

"Otherwise, I really wouldn't feel comfortable going to see Elder Xie."

When I made the call, I had just come out of Director Wang's office, and I was so angry that I had nowhere to vent my frustration, so I inevitably spoke without thinking.

"Now if you ask me to go again, hehe..." He scratched his head, chuckled, "I'm actually a little hesitant."

Seeing his expression, Zhang Yimou laughed and said, "It's no big deal."

Old Xie isn't the type to hold grudges. Doing your job well is more important than anything else.

Li Xiang nodded in agreement, and the last bit of concern in his heart finally dissipated.

"By the way, Uncle Zhang, there's something I need to tell you first."

As you know, I still have the recording of someone cursing on set back then.

The company is planning to release something in a couple of days to teach Zhang Weiping and Little Yellow Duck a lesson, so they won't keep using this to trip me up behind my back.

Zhang Yimou looked up at him, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "That's your business, I won't get involved. Just don't let it affect the preparation of 'The Flowers of War'."

"Don't worry about that, it definitely won't affect the movie. At most, their reputation will be affected a bit, since they're trying to ruin my reputation, and I can't keep putting up with it forever."

Zhang Yimou nodded and reminded him, "Be careful not to give people anything to criticize you for. Reputation is the foundation of an actor's career."

Your top priority right now is to hone your acting skills so you can deliver a truly impressive performance on set.

Then, he changed the subject, a deeper meaning in his eyes:

"I think Kai and I will both go to the set to check it out. Kai is the kind of person who only trusts his own judgment and never listens to advice easily."

"If you show some real talent on set, Lao Wang and I will put in a good word for you and ask him for a lead role. What do you say?"