Before Lin Zhan could speak, the assistant director was already amused, "Gu Jinshen, are you actually afraid of being scolded?"
Gu Jinshen was torn between laughter and tears, looking helplessly at the assistant director, "I’m not some godly actor, so how could I not be afraid of being scolded? What a thing to say, assistant director."
Lin Zhan smiled like a Maitreya Buddha, "I’ll go easy on the scolding, so now, you can roll over there and get in position, quickly go."
Gu Jinshen nodded and lazily walked to the designated spot.
Putting everything else aside, Gu Jinshen’s appearance was more like that of a handsome, sunny campus heartthrob, carefree and heartless, but once he stood still and transformed into his character, undeniably, he possessed acting skills.
When Lan Yi had also finished taking the makeup photos, Qu Dongdong finally re-did her makeup and came out in her costume. As soon as she came out, she saw Gu Jinshen and Yuran talking and laughing with Lan Yi, the three of them in lively conversation.
She hummed displeasedly and meekly walked up to Lin Zhan, putting on a smile.
Having captured the makeup photos he wanted, Lin Zhan was in a good mood. Sitting in front of the monitor, he barely spared her a glance, merely gesturing towards the backdrop, "Go there, stand."
Qu Dongdong felt that Lin Zhan’s attitude towards her was poor, but she dared not act out in front of him.
With a sense of grievance, she walked over. The assistant director came to give her some instructions, then she awkwardly smiled. Lin Zhan, sitting in front of the monitor, frowned tighter and tighter with each of Qu Dongdong’s movements.
When Qu Dongdong struck her third pose, Lin Zhan repeatedly called to stop. Qu Dongdong looked at him, confused, as Lin Zhan angrily said, "What’s going on, what’s going on? It’s just a makeup photo; haven’t you taken one before? Why are you fidgeting? What does that expression mean? What are you trying to do?"
Qu Dongdong wanted to explain, but Lin Zhan wouldn’t listen, "Don’t say anything, I won’t believe anything."
Qu Dongdong was very distressed, her whole body trembling with anger, "Director Lin, do you have something against me?"
Qu Dongdong was definitely the first to question the director so directly. It was also the first time Lin Zhan had been confronted in this way, and he found it refreshing. He knew a bit about Qu Dongdong’s background, which was enough to understand.
There was a high-ranking official at Diyang named Qu Zheng, who had a daughter named Qu Dongdong.
Qu Dongdong had self-proclaimed herself as the little princess of Diyang Entertainment, which he had also heard about. Considering her connections, it made sense why she debuted in the same period as Bo Yan, and why Qu Dongdong’s management contract was especially secretive.
Having debuted seven years ago and continuously receiving resources, she still wasn’t popular, except for two years ago when her father, Qu Zheng, picked a script especially for her, creating a small splash.
This time, "Emperor Shun of Tang" was fully funded by Diyang, with some shareholders and artists co-investing, so Qu Zheng placed his own daughter into the cast, though it wasn’t exactly a forceful insertion. The presence of the female lead was, to Lin Zhan, optional.
He was already planning to make it somewhat vague.
Hence, whoever the female lead was, as long as her acting didn’t drag them down, he could accept her. However, he hadn’t expected Qu Dongdong to think so highly of herself, her influence seemingly even greater than Bo Yan’s."
"What would I possibly have against you?" Lin Zhan manipulated the monitor in front of him, speaking indifferently, "If you don’t want to act in my series, you can just say so. It seems like you have quite the issue with my ’Emperor Shun of Tang.’"
Lin Zhan’s position at Diyang was higher than her father’s, and she really didn’t dare to offend him too much, fearing to overdo it.
Yet, with Lin Zhan embarrassing her in front of so many people, she lost a bit of her composure.
The events here were all witnessed by Yuran and the others. Lan Yi laughed neutrally, "I’ve worked with Lin Zhan a few times, but this is the first time I’ve seen him scold someone ; it’s quite rare."
Gu Jinshen was scrolling through the official blog and casually replied, "Director Lin Zhan is just like that. He may scold a bit, but if you take your work seriously, you’ll find he actually has a good temper. Senior, I’m following your official blog now."
Lan Yi smiled, "Okay."
The three of them followed each other’s accounts. After the promotional shoot, Lin Zhan cleared the set because they were about to start the real shooting. The first scene would be Lan Yi, playing the Empress Dowager, acting opposite Yuran, who played Gu Qingcheng.
Lin Zhan had always been hopeful about Yuran’s performance. When the actual filming began, he found himself even more expectant than he had imagined.
Yuran spent the weekend at the film studio. On the first night, she video called Bo Yan, who was grinning cheekily on the other end. "Baby, I miss you."
"Hmm." Yuran smiled lightly, her eyes brimming with stars, sparkling brilliantly.
Seeing her cool response, Bo Yan became unhappy, "Baby, won’t you ask if I had any unhappy experiences?"
Yuran uttered an indifferent "Oh" and followed his lead, "So, Brother Qi, have you been unhappy these past few days?"
Bo Yan burst out laughing at her perfunctory response, helpless, "Baby, I’ve been very good."
Bo Yan laughed, seeing her speechless expression made him somewhat laugh and cry, "I heard ’Emperor Shun of Tang’ has started shooting? Senior Lan Yi is a nice person, you should get along well with her and learn some acting tips."
Speaking of this, Yuran also showed some interest, "Today, I performed a rival scene with Senior Lan Yi. She’s so impressive; it kind of intimidated me."
Bo Yan complained, "Baby, tell me, why isn’t Xie Qingcheng, such an outstanding girl, the lead actress? How blind is Emperor Shun of Tang to fall for such a pale Little Baihua?
Could Emperor Shun of Tang unify the Great Shun Dynasty just through his love? The script makes me feel powerless, but speaking of which, Director Lin mentioned he wants to downplay the female lead’s presence. Making Xie Qingcheng into Emperor Shun of Tang’s unattainable dream seems quite feasible."
Yuran: "... Aren’t the original fans going to curse the adapter to death?"
Bo Yan didn’t see it that way, smiling, "You have to trust the genius Director Lin Zhan. Although he downplays it, he won’t make it feel abrupt. I’m really looking forward to collaborating with you, baby."
"Don’t call me that." So embarrassing.
Bo Yan, bewildered, asked, "Why not? If not ’baby’, would you prefer ’darling’ or ’sweetheart’? Or something else?"
Yuran was at a loss for words, "Brother Qi, can’t you have a normal nickname for once? This is really difficult for me."
Bo Yan laughed softly, still looking handsome on the screen. Yuran mentioned Qu Dongdong and remarked, "Qu Dongdong is very pretty, huh? The lead actress, Brother Qi, aren’t you excited?"
"Excited about what?"
Bo Yan couldn’t help but roll his eyes, "Qu Dongdong is an artist from Diyang."
Yuran was surprised, "But she’s so mysterious! Nobody knew she was from Diyang before. How did you know?"
Bo Yan smiled, "I’m a shareholder of Diyang."