"Dingfengbo starts filming in June?" Gu Huaichun asked.
"Yep." Zhou Yun answered.
"Then it’s completely out of the question. It’s a shame, I thought we might have the chance to collaborate for the second time." Gu Huaichun expressed his regret.
"There will definitely be other opportunities in the future." Zhou Yun said.
Yuehai Network’s self-produced series "Dark Sky" originally sought Zhou Yun for the female lead role, but after Zhou Yun’s conflict with Liu Pinran, the production was put on hold.
Gu Huaichun had been wondering if there was any chance of turning things around.
Now, with Zhou Yun’s "Dingfengbo" set to begin filming in April, clashing with "Dark Sky’s" schedule, it was impossible for Zhou Yun to take on "Dark Sky" anymore.
Gu Huaichun said, "I don’t know if telling you this would cheer you up, but Liu Pinran got some flak in the internal meeting."
"What for?" Zhou Yun asked.
"For ruining the relationship with you," Gu Huaichun said. "They were hoping to collaborate with you again."
Zhou Yun just smiled.
Gu Huaichun added, "But since you’ve already accepted ’Dingfengbo’, there’s nothing we can do."
"Let’s plan a meal together next time."
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Yun looked up and caught her own reflection in the mirror. She also saw Zheng Xiaojue sitting in the corner, reflected in the glass.
It was only then that she noticed how much better Zheng Xiaojue seemed to look compared to before.
Zheng Xiaojue had slimmed down, her face had become smaller, and sitting there in the corner, she resembled a high school girl exuding a youthful vibe.
In fact, Zhou Yun wasn’t yet at a stage where she needed to feel sentimental about others’ youth or vitality, but ever since she entered the industry, she had experienced so much. Sometimes, she even felt a sense of... what should she call it? World-weariness, perhaps. She knew the term sounded absurd coming from her, but if she had to choose a word to describe her feelings, it would be that one.
She enjoyed working with Gu Huaichun a lot. When they’d wrapped up their previous project, she’d thought about wanting to work with him again.
The right opportunity had presented itself, and both had the intention to collaborate again, but things hadn’t turned out as expected.
"Dingfengbo" is a title of a tune used in classical Chinese opera, now chosen as the name of a workplace romance series.
And this series was destined for commercial success.
The better "Dingfengbo" performs commercially, the more advantageous the battle for He Yong.
Supported by the two aces of Chengqian Entertainment, He Yong finally found a breather.
Xu Siyao took the initiative to approach He Yong, wanting to play the second female lead in "Dingfengbo".
Though Xu Siyao’s reputation had suffered because of previous issues, the popularity of "Eighth Heartbeat" had still given her career a significant boost. The company pulled out all stops, controlling public opinion, whitewashing, and so on. As the scandal wasn’t something devastating, Xu Siyao had transformed and became a sought-after actress, hot off a hit series, drawing a lot of attention and offers.
Meanwhile, the sequel to "Eighth Heartbeat" was airing.
With the success of the first season, the sequel didn’t perform as well as expected, but the numbers were still impressive.
Especially compared to its low production costs, the returns were considerable.
Although Xu Siyao received many offers, none of them piqued her interest. Big productions weren’t approaching her, and all the series offered to her were low-budget internet romance dramas. Even if Zhou Yun didn’t like Xu Siyao as a person, she acknowledged her acting skills. Xu Siyao had high aspirations and wasn’t willing to settle, and seeing "Dingfengbo" likely becoming another "Eighth Heartbeat," she aimed for a role.
This time, He Yong certainly wouldn’t let Xu Siyao get involved. To be honest, without the friction between Zhou Yun and Xu Siyao, he would’ve been glad to cast Xu Siyao in the role; after all, she was a highly followed newcomer with an impressive debut. But He Yong wouldn’t risk offending Zhou Yun for Xu Siyao’s sake.
He Yong knew all too well that it’s precisely times like these when one shouldn’t put all eggs in one basket.
"The second female lead? You can’t play secondary roles now, from today onwards, forget about it, unless your co-star is more popular, you have to be the lead," He Yong told Xu Siyao. "I went through all this trouble to place you in the ’Eighth Heartbeat’ cast, for you to debut with such popularity. It wasn’t so you could be a side character. I’ve already prepared three series and a variety show for you; that’s your main job this year."
Xu Siyao’s eyes widened.
She asked hesitantly, "President He, are all three series lead roles?"
He Yong nodded, "Of course. These are projects I’ve carefully selected for you, the contracts are all signed. You’ll start recording ’Geology Talk’ in April, a twelve-episode resident guest spot, followed by three seamless series. Siyao, I have high expectations of you, don’t let me down. For many years, I’ve never entrusted three series to one person, you’re the first, even Zhou Yun didn’t have this privilege."
Xu Siyao was bewildered.
She took a deep breath, "Don’t worry, President He, I definitely won’t let you down!"
"I know you’re a hardworking girl. Recently, there’s been some noise within the company; don’t take it to heart, just ignore it. Your most important task is to cement your current popularity and then follow up with further successes, and quickly ascend to A-list status!"
Xu Siyao left, invigorated by He Yong’s words, nodding her head fervently like a pecking hen, full of determination.
Once her office quieted down, He Yong thought to himself. One Zhou Yun, one Xu Siyao, that was too few. Besides, an artist’s growth period was too long. He used to not be in a rush, willing to wait three or four years if two didn’t yield results. Now that wouldn’t do, as in the past two years, Chengqian Entertainment’s three A-list young actresses had left, and even Wei Ru Xue wouldn’t renew her contract, collapsing the female talent pool. He Yong was considering that he could also poach someone from outside.
However, the current industry climate made it unrealistic to bring over a top-tier actress to Chengqian Entertainment.
Not to mention negotiating the deal, but by the time her current contracts were up and she sorted everything out to sign a new one, it would be a matter settled in the far future.
A chess game can’t just rely on one or two pieces charging ahead.
He Yong pondered for a long time.
A true top-tier actress was out of the question. There were a few other options: lesser-known talent, variety show celebrities, famous personalities from other industries, or even maybe some internet celebrities suitable to become artists.
Calls went out, one after another, from He Yong’s desk.
Meanwhile, in another office within the same building, Lu Yicheng was in a foul mood, so sour that his face had been scrunched up the entire afternoon.