“No need.”
Wang Jin raised his hand and cut him off.
The trace of regret in his voice was impossible to hide.
“It is a matter of timing and fate.”
He turned to look at the heavy traffic outside the window, feeling a bit bitter.
If this had happened half a year ago...
If he had seen Jiang Yue's performance before signing that troublemaker Zhang Yu...
He would have thrown a contract at him without hesitation, offering the most generous terms.
Unfortunately, there were no “what-ifs” in the vanity fair.
“Although Zhang Yu has a ton of flaws, at least he's still relatively obedient. He can still be saved.”
Wang Jin sat up straight again, his eyes returning to their usual calm.
“Give Zhang Yu's management team a heads-up.”
“Confiscate his phone for the next few days. Don't let him stare at online comments all day; it'll affect his filming state.”
Wang Jin paused, his tone turning heavy.
“And give them a warning. The opportunity for 《The Grand Game》 didn't come easily.”
“Sometimes, people only push themselves forward when they have a point of comparison next to them.”
“The resources I spend money to secure do not support idle freeloaders.”
With that, he grabbed the landline on his desk and moved straight to his next task.
He did not say another word about Jiang Yue.
However, as he was hanging up, Wang Jin's peripheral vision caught the promotional poster of 《Manhunt》 on his computer screen, and a thought couldn't help but pop into his mind.
What a pity.
A real pity.
...
At twelve noon, the crew distributed lunch boxes.
In May, the sun at the Hengcheng Film and Television Base was already blazing hot.
Extras squatted in groups of two or three in the shade, shoveling down their boxed meals.
Outside Group B's indoor studio, Xiao Chen, the production assistant in charge of audio, finished his last bite and pulled out his phone.
He habitually opened Weibo.
On the entertainment charts, several trending topics were prominently displayed.
#Manhunt Villain Refined Scoundrel#
#Shen Xu Pull the Trigger#
Xiao Chen didn't usually watch web dramas, but these titles clearly had massive gossip potential.
He casually clicked on the first one, which was a high-energy edit of highlights.
A few minutes later.
“Holy crap!”
Xiao Chen stood up in excitement.
His movement was so abrupt that his empty lunch box flew straight to the ground.
Next to him, Big Li from the lighting department looked at him like he was an idiot.
“What's wrong with you?”
Ignoring him, Xiao Chen shoved his phone screen right in front of his face.
“Look at this guy!”
Big Li glanced at it casually.
In the video, a young man wearing a trench coat and gold-rimmed glasses extended two fingers and casually pushed a gun barrel aside.
“He acts really well.”
Big Li smacked his lips. “This villain is so charismatic. Are web dramas really this competitive nowadays?”
Xiao Chen didn't speak. He just pointed a trembling finger toward the resting area not far away.
“Now look over there.”
Big Li followed his gaze.
On a folding chair in the resting area.
Jiang Yue was draped in his loose costume, leaning back with his eyes closed to rest.
He held the standard crew-issued lunch box in his hand, its lid not even opened yet.
Big Li looked at the phone.
Then at Jiang Yue.
Then back to the phone.
His eyes darted back and forth between the two.
Finally, he let out a sharp, sudden gasp.
“Incredible.”
Those two words spoke volumes.
In less than ten minutes.
The news seemed to grow legs, spreading like wildfire among the lower-level crew members.
A film crew was a miniature society.
Directors and producers might only care about the shooting schedule and the burning budget.
But for the young crew members on the front lines of gossip, like production assistants and lighting staff, this was a mind-blowing piece of news.
“Holy crap, for real? That psycho villain is Jiang Yue?”
“A real hidden gem. He usually looks so easygoing.”
“No wonder Director Xu favors him so much. He actually has real talent.”
“Guys, my legs are shaking just looking at him now.”
“Tell me about it. I don't even dare to ask him to borrow a power bank now.”
A few of them huddled together, getting more and more excited as they chatted.
Meanwhile, Jiang Yue, sitting at the center of the storm in the resting area, remained as steady as a mountain.
He snapped open his disposable chopsticks and ate his meal unhurriedly.
The storm raging online seemed to have absolutely nothing to do with him.
Assistant Director Zhao Gang approached the monitor with a tablet.
Xu Pingqiu was munching on a cucumber from his diet meal while staring at the morning's playback.
“Director Xu, take a look at this.”
Zhao Gang handed the tablet over.
The screen was playing the famous rooftop confrontation scene from 《Manhunt》.
“This kid Jiang Yue is causing quite a stir online.”
Xu Pingqiu stopped chewing and watched the screen.
He pushed the tablet back and pulled out a tissue to wipe his mouth.
“I told you Li Changming has terrible vision.”
Zhao Gang was taken aback.
Xu Pingqiu glanced at Jiang Yue in the distance and added dryly:
“What do you mean 'born with the aura of the imperial court'?”
“This kid is a born freak.”
(Jiang Yue: “...”)
Zhao Gang nodded in deep agreement.
“Exactly. That look in the video makes my spine tingle every time I watch it.”
“It doesn't look like acting at all.”
Xu Pingqiu picked up his thermos and took a sip of goji berry water.
“Notify all departments to speed up filming this afternoon.”
“This kid is a good prospect. Don't let the online nonsense affect his state.”
Having spent half his life in the industry, Xu Pingqiu understood the double-edged sword of internet traffic all too well.
Today, the entire internet is calling him “hubby.”
Tomorrow, he might get dragged through the mud just for stepping out of a door with his left foot first.
What was a single hit drama anyway?
Being able to steadily deliver one project after another was the only way to truly survive in this industry.
This current popularity?
It wasn't worth crap.
On the other side, inside a luxury van with the air conditioning blasting.
Zhang Yu sat on a leather captain's chair.
Through the one-way glass, he stared fixedly at the calm Jiang Yue.
The script supervisors who usually bowed and scraped to him were now huddled in a circle staring at their phones, occasionally casting awe-struck and curious glances toward Jiang Yue.
He was all too familiar with that look.
It was fresh, filled with adoration.
Zhang Yu's face darkened visibly.
The calmer Jiang Yue appeared, the hotter the fire burned in his chest.
The assistant in the passenger seat didn't even dare to breathe too loudly.
The tense silence in the van stretched on for a long time.
Only then did the assistant speak up cautiously, “Brother Yu.”
“Mr. Wang called just now.”
Zhang Yu clenched his jaw and ignored him.
His eyes remained glued to the window.
Braving the tension, the assistant continued, “He wants us to ignore it. He said you should focus on filming with the crew and not let external things affect your mindset.”
Zhang Yu sneered.
“Affect my mindset?”
“Does he think I'm that fragile?”
The assistant lowered his head, not daring to reply.
Wang Jin's actual words had been, “The hype around a supporting character in a web drama will blow over in a few days. It's nothing to care about. Just make sure he behaves himself and doesn't screw up in 《The Grand Game》 crew.”
Of course, the assistant didn't dare to pass on those words verbatim.
Silence descended upon the vehicle once more.
Zhang Yu leaned back against the seat and forced his eyes shut.
He told himself there was no need to care.
Jiang Yue was just lucky. He had benefited from the character's appeal, riding the wave of the audience's current fondness for this kind of persona.
Yet, in his mind, that video of Jiang Yue refused to go away, lingering like a nightmare.
Rate on N.U.
