50: Chapter 50, Sixth Edition

"Brother Zhao Jinpeng, what do you think?" Director Liu Zhi asked habitually. In truth, he was ready to make the decision and sign the contract right then and there...

Zhao Jinpeng looked at Lin Chuyan. "This kid is really good. But, how about we do one more scene?"

In recent years, Zhao Jinpeng had taken on a few roles that didn't quite suit him, and there had gradually been some questioning voices from the outside. He took this big-screen lead role, his first in two years, very seriously. The character Lin Chuyan was auditioning for had scenes opposite him, so he wanted to be extra cautious.

"Which scene?"

"The one at the end of the film where I catch him. I'm pointing a gun at him, and I want to see how he acts it out."

"Sure."

After discussing it, the two looked at Zhang Wentang. The latter was even calmer after watching Lin Chuyan's performance. He replied nonchalantly, "Do as you please. If he's no good, you don't have to pay."

Hearing this, Wu Yue, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but stifle a laugh—if he was good, the price would have to go up.

Lin Chuyan was still thinking about how to soothe Chen Ke when he was called over by Director Liu Zhi and told to do another scene.

This scene involved the protagonist, after great hardship, finally catching the last murderer who killed his daughter. While holding the murderer at gunpoint, he is surrounded by police. Just as he is about to fire, he is shot and killed by the police, and the murderer survives instead. In the end, when the murderer is caught, he even smiles and says thank you to the police who shot the protagonist. This was the most infuriating part of the original version. Lin Chuyan needed to perform the part where he is being held at gunpoint by the protagonist.

"How about it? Do you want to take a break before continuing?"

"No need, let's just go for it."

Possessing the System, the last thing he feared was getting into character; building a sense of belief was no different from using a cheat code.

Soon, the director called action.

As soon as Zhao Jinpeng pressed his finger against Lin Chuyan's forehead as a substitute for a gun, he clearly saw the latter's eyes change the very next second.

At first, it was disbelief, but upon realizing that his status meant nothing under the other man's gun, he began to feel fear. From muttering to himself to kneeling down and crying while begging Zhao Jinpeng for mercy...

Although he didn't see many tears, Zhao Jinpeng felt like snot was about to run down his nose... The entire performance had great character tension. If he had to say one thing, it was that he cried very ugly.

"Cut!" Director Liu Zhi watched with satisfaction and casually handed a few tissues to Lin Chuyan. "That's it, go ahead and wipe yourself off."

This kid really had no idol baggage! Weren't you an idol? A young heartthrob? Why are you so unconcerned with your image? The four words "liberating one's nature" sound simple, but in reality, only professional actors can achieve that.

Zhao Jinpeng also had a very good impression of Lin Chuyan. He had become famous playing a bandit back in the day, so he had absolutely no resistance to playing villainous roles; in fact, he stubbornly believed that playing a villain well was an even more impressive feat. Lin Chuyan's two performances showed him his talent for playing villains; this kid's performance was truly excellent.

Zhao Jinpeng grabbed his arm and helped him up. "Not bad."

He couldn't help but turn to Director Liu Zhi and say, "He's better than the other kids who auditioned."

He wasn't like Zhou Qi, the male lead of the drama, who was deathly afraid of being upstaged. What he feared was someone dropping the ball, affecting the film's quality and reputation, and consequently affecting him.

Director Liu Zhi nodded and said with a smile to Zhang Wentang, "As expected of Master Li's disciple. Brother Wentang, why do I get the feeling that Lin Chuyan won't lose to you in the future?"

"He will definitely be better than me in the future!" Zhang Wentang also laughed. "Look at his face; does he look like someone destined to play supporting roles for his whole life?"

Thus, the role was basically settled, provided the salary could be negotiated. Matters like salary would naturally not be discussed in the open, but Lin Chuyan wasn't worried. With his senior brother and Brother Yue there, what did he have to fear?

The group sat back down to chat, and Lin Chuyan became the target of everyone's teasing.

Actress Xin Ya: "Xiao Yan, look, Chen Ke hasn't recovered yet. Aren't you going to say something?"

Director Liu Zhi: "Oh no, Chen Ke wouldn't think Lin Chuyan was playing himself, would she?"

Zhao Jinpeng: "Don't be afraid, Chen Ke. I'll make the call for you. I'll make Lin Chuyan treat you to a meal to apologize."

Actress Xin Ya: "I think Chen Ke probably wouldn't dare to eat with him."

Chen Ke said in a timid voice: "I'm fine. I was just scared at first... I can only say that Brother Chuyan really acted very well."

Lin Chuyan decided to ease the awkward atmosphere.

"Uh, is your face still hurting? How about you hit me back? I promise I won't dodge."

Chen Ke smiled as expected: "It really doesn't hurt. It looked like you used force, but it actually didn't hurt much."

That was true; Lin Chuyan had pulled his punch when his hand touched her face. He inexplicably felt it was thanks to his constant practice of the Five-Step Fist—it seemed his body control had become stronger?

"The scariest part was actually the shoe removal..." Chen Ke said, still feeling lingering fear.

Actress Xin Ya added: "That part with the shoe, as a woman watching from the side, I found it a bit uncomfortable. The sexual undertones were even stronger than before... plus that final smash. Did you design that in advance?"

Lin Chuyan answered honestly: "It really wasn't. It was just because it was a rape scene, and I felt I should take something off... so I had a sudden inspiration to use the shoe."

Zhang Wentang laughed: "I told you, a natural talent!"

The group laughed and chatted about the film for a while longer, then went out for dinner in the evening before heading home.

As soon as Lin Chuyan returned to the hotel, he received a message from Zhang Wentang, but the other party wasn't looking for him; he was asking for Wu Yue's number. There was no other reason than to help him negotiate his salary.

Lin Chuyan intended to play the role of the hands-off manager. Anyway, the more he earned, the more Wu Yue earned, so the other party would definitely do their best. But that wasn't the most important reason; the most important thing was that he knew Wu Yue wasn't the type to only care about immediate benefits.

In his past life, many artists had been screwed over by their agents, who would do anything for money, causing many collaborations to fall through, and sometimes the trouble the agent caused would even be blamed on the artist. Wu Yue was also efficient. The salary was negotiated the next day.

"How much? I didn't hear that wrong, did I?" Lin Chuyan wanted to double-check.

"You didn't hear it wrong, it's 300,000." Wu Yue found the question amusing. "What? Do you think it's too much or too little?"

"I think it's a bit much." Lin Chuyan said truthfully.

"Too much? If this weren't for sixth billing, I could have gotten you double that from the producer!"

"...Sixth billing, huh? Someone who didn't know better might think we were playing mahjong. Let's not compare our billing to others."

"Hahaha, your senior brother and I checked last night. The top billing, the main male lead, is Zhao Jinpeng; the second male lead is your senior brother; the female lead is Actress Xin Ya; and then there are still two people ahead of you."

Lin Chuyan shrugged: "I feel like my character is quite important; I didn't expect to be ranked so far down."

"If you compare it that way, then Actress Xin Ya is the female lead, and she has even less screen time than you. You also have to consider fame, influence, and industry status. Several young actors have already acted in quite a few plays; you can't compare in that regard for now."

"Now that you put it that way, that 300,000 seems even more generous..." Lin Chuyan was satisfied.

"Then do you know how much Zhao Jinpeng is getting?"

"How much?"

"I don't know either. I only know that two years ago, for a TV series, he asked for over 60 million."

"!! How much???" Lin Chuyan was genuinely shocked.

"But they didn't reach an agreement. A friend in the industry told me he ended up getting over 20 million. It's gossip, though, so it might not be true."

Lin Chuyan expressed his admiration: "Being an actor really makes so much money..."

"Otherwise, why do you think so many people are breaking their heads trying to get into this circle? I guess he can get around 7 to 10 million for this film, so take this 300,000 with a clear conscience; it's purely a drop in the bucket."

Wu Yue thought for a moment and then added a reminder: "By the way, your senior brother deserves credit for this too. You should thank him properly; the production side originally only wanted to offer 200,000."

"I'll thank my senior brother, and I'll thank my Brother Yue too." Lin Chuyan said with a grin, "When are we signing the contract?"

"We'll go over in a bit, still at the same place as yesterday. I heard from your senior brother that the studio is their base camp for now, and the preliminary shooting preparations will all be done there."

When signing the contract, Lin Chuyan met the producer Wu Yue had mentioned.

Unexpectedly, she was a beautiful woman. Because of her makeup and tasteful attire, he couldn't tell her age, though he estimated she was likely under forty.

"You must be Lin Chuyan? You're so young. Hello, I'm Producer Zhang Man."

Producer Zhang Man's influence on the crew was likely even greater than Director Liu Zhi's, after all, she had single-handedly secured all the investment.

"Hello, Sister Man. You can just call me Xiao Yan. You are very young yourself, Sister."

"Hahaha, you really know how to talk. How old are you again? 22?"

Producer Zhang Man reached out to shake his hand. When Lin Chuyan tried to pull back, he couldn't, so he just let her hold it.

"I'm actually 24."

"I really can't tell. With a bit of styling, you could definitely pass for a high school student. Guess how old I am?"

"...28?"

"Hahaha, men's mouths are full of lies." Producer Zhang Man released her grip, but before letting go, she lightly scratched his palm with her finger. "You guys chat; I have something to do and must be going."

"Alright."

It seemed like she had done something to him, but it also seemed like she hadn't done anything at all. Mostly, because she carried herself with such poise.

Watching Producer Zhang Man sway as she walked away, Lin Chuyan curled his fingers and touched his palm, feeling as though he had been flirted with. Sure enough, rich women liked his type.