Chapter 3: The Movie Emperor Plays the Male Lead

Although the red carpet event was a blunder, Chen Chang’an unexpectedly won Zheng Rongyu’s favor, and Xu Chengzi brought back even more scripts from the company.

She stared at Chen Chang’an with the eyes of someone observing a magical creature: “Come on, what kind of love potion did you feed Zheng? How could he, knowing that investing in you is a losing business, still be so eager to throw money at you?”

“What do you mean ‘losing business’? I’m clearly a rising star,” Chen Chang’an protested. “Can you believe in my potential?”

Xu Chengzi replied solemnly, “To be honest, rather than believing in your own abilities, it’s more believable that one day Zheng will look at your face and just hand over the company to you.”

In short, Zheng Rongyu’s decisive and brilliant image was completely overshadowed by Chen Chang’an, who was dragging his feet.

Chen Chang’an had originally been a mere extra; he had seen enough to know which movies would succeed and which would flop.

The resources Zheng Rongyu prepared for him were good, but they didn’t reach the level of a blockbuster—after all, truly good scripts never lack for investment and talented actors, and even Zheng Rongyu couldn’t just shove people into the cast.

Chen Chang’an sighed, and Xu Chengzi was shocked: “With so many good scripts, you’re still not satisfied? This is Zheng’s biggest investment yet.”

“Is there anything else? Let me take a look,” Chen Chang’an extended his hand.

“Chen Chang’an, have we praised you too much that you really think your taste is exceptional?” Xu Chengzi said earnestly. “Don’t think that way. For example, last time I praised your taste for that beach hat, I was just flattering you. That hat is as ugly as a vulture’s nest. I said that just to get a raise, so don’t misunderstand yourself.”

Chen Chang’an began to understand the original character’s overconfidence: “You usually don’t care about me; why are you arguing with me today?”

Xu Chengzi was very sincere: “I’m afraid if I don’t advise you, you’ll ruin your own career, and when I wake up tomorrow, there won’t be a place for me in this company. Who will I complain to?”

“…Sister Chengzi, trust me this time,” Chen Chang’an insisted. “Even if my performance flops, I’ll still give you a raise.”

“Then that’s good.” With his promise secured, Xu Chengzi unhesitatingly handed over the remaining scripts, fearing that if she hesitated, Chen Chang’an would retract his commitment. “Choose wisely; I will always be your solid support!”

“You weren’t saying that just now.” Chen Chang’an admired the flexibility and adaptability of workplace people.

Xu Chengzi patted his shoulder and said earnestly, “You get what you pay for. Who would go against a job that pays eighteen lines? If they offered me thirty-six lines, I’d act for you. If anyone says your acting is bad, I’ll be the first to disagree.”

“…Thank you.”

—

Chen Chang’an finally began to look through the scripts. After flipping through a few, he indeed found a good one: a little-known director wanted to make an art film, with a professional team, focusing on the social issue of school bullying. The actors were all seasoned veterans, and although the male lead and the second male lead were not yet cast, it looked very promising.

“I’ll take this one,” he said, satisfied, handing it to Xu Chengzi.

“Unfortunately, the beautiful brainless antagonist vase character in this script is already gone,” Xu Chengzi glanced at the character design and shook her head. “You should pick another one.”

Chen Chang’an’s forehead twitched: “I’m not playing a vase antagonist; I want to play the second male lead, Pei Shengyi.”

Xu Chengzi thought he was joking: “Don’t mess around; antagonists can also be leads. Let me find you a new script.”

“Sister Chengzi, I really think I can do well.”

“Mm-hmm, you’re the best, you’ll definitely do well, but this script isn’t good. Let’s switch to another one.” Xu Chengzi seemed to be coaxing a child.

Chen Chang’an was incredulous: “Do I look funny to you?”

Xu Chengzi preserved his last shred of dignity: “Not really, just a little.”

Chen Chang’an gave up reasoning and lazily leaned back in his chair, tapping the script with his fingertip: “I’m playing Pei Shengyi. I don’t want to play anything else.”

“Fine.” Xu Chengzi saw his determination and stopped persuading him. “Then I’ll sign you up for two Film Academy’s Acting Crash Courses; otherwise, it’ll be too embarrassing, and I won’t know how to explain it to Zheng.”

“It’s fine; Uncle Rong won’t mind.” Chen Chang’an thought to himself, what big boss would care about the existence of a vase? If he flopped, he could just replace it with a more obedient one and obediently act as a doorman in Zheng Rongyu’s villa.

This campus art film, titled “And Life,” mainly tells the healing story of Jiang Chengfeng and Pei Shengyi saving each other. Pei Shengyi, isolated and helpless due to the early death of his parents, suffers from school bullying with no one to turn to. Similarly, Jiang Chengfeng, lacking parental love due to busy parents, is the safety monitor in class who notices the phenomenon of school bullying. He goes from indifference to understanding and compassion, ultimately helping Pei Shengyi, and the two support each other to get into good universities.

Pei Shengyi, in terms of screen time, is the second male lead; after all, Jiang Chengfeng’s character transformation is the key point of the story. However, if Pei Shengyi is played well, he will also have a good audience appeal.

“That’s not necessarily true.” Hearing this, Xu Chengzi shook her head. “From my experience, audience appeal doesn’t work that way.”

Chen Chang’an eagerly asked, “Then how does it work?”

Xu Chengzi confidently replied, “It doesn’t matter; whatever role you play, that role won’t have audience appeal.”

She still remembered when Chen Chang’an played a gentle chancellor, and the audience said he was a fake-smiling eunuch.

She remembered when Chen Chang’an played a fallen phoenix, and the audience said he was a wild chicken fleeing from disaster.

She remembered… never mind, it was all a bitter tear.

—

A couple of days later, Xu Chengzi told Chen Chang’an: “The director of ‘And Life,’ Jiang Youchuan, is a tough nut to crack. Zheng’s big investment isn’t enough; he requires you to audition for the role first. What now?”

“Then let’s go,” Chen Chang’an said confidently. “If a road is hard to walk, it must be an uphill road.”

Xu Chengzi disagreed: “Isn’t it possible that if a road is hard to walk, it means you took the wrong path from the start?”

“Sister Chengzi, can’t you go a day without pouring cold water on me?” Chen Chang’an gritted his teeth.

She looked at him with a loving gaze: “For someone as unaware of their own limitations as you, a daily watering is just right.”

Teasing aside, Xu Chengzi personally took Chen Chang’an to the film city for the audition.

Director Jiang Youchuan was younger than Chen Chang’an had imagined, with the standard face of an artist, about 1.8 meters tall, with slightly long hair tied in a ponytail, dressed like a flamboyant peacock.

Upon seeing Chen Chang’an, he slightly raised his chin: “You’re the one Zheng sent over to audition for Pei Shengyi? You’re quite good-looking; no wonder Zheng likes you.”

All the crew members’ eyes turned to Chen Chang’an, who was momentarily speechless: “…I’m not a connection; I have my own name. I’m Chen Chang’an.”

Jiang Youchuan clearly wasn’t listening: “Alright, Zheng Chang’an.”

“Chen, Chen Chang’an!” Chen Chang’an’s mouth twitched.

Jiang Youchuan casually flipped through the script, the pages rustling, and without looking, handed a page he had flipped to Chen Chang’an: “Perform this. If you do well, you can stay.”

“What if I don’t do well?” Chen Chang’an felt a bit nervous.

“If you don’t do well—then I’ll let you stay against my conscience.” Jiang Youchuan said something completely different from his artistic demeanor, “Who would go against money? After all, Zheng is giving too much. To be honest, if you hadn’t come today, I would have to praise you for having ‘personality’ and then arrange for you to be a face, a hand, a silhouette, and shoot your scenes.”

Looking at the audience’s eyes, there was no dissatisfaction; they were clearly looking forward to the golden thigh!

Chen Chang’an suddenly relaxed, took the script, and studied it. He found it was the scene where Pei Shengyi and Jiang Chengfeng first meet. Pei Shengyi, after being bullied, stands up in an empty classroom to finish his cleaning duties. During this process, he hears the sound of the door opening and turns to see Jiang Chengfeng returning to get something.

Jiang Chengfeng knows about Pei Shengyi’s injuries but pretends not to see. He simply greets him and leaves with his things.

At this moment, Jiang Youchuan suddenly displayed a little artistic flair: “I’ve already found the male lead. I sent him a message, and he’ll come in through the door at just the right moment to catch your scene, aiming for that unexpected surprise.”

Chen Chang’an nodded to show he understood, quickly adjusting to the state of being battered and bruised yet pretending to be strong while sweeping the floor. This state was something he could still act, after all, the past few days of being on edge because of Jiang Baiqing had been enough to leave him feeling hurt.

As for the rest—being a small extra in the new era, he was best at acting out blood spitting and collapsing, and the remaining elements probably wouldn’t be much better than the original Chen Chang’an.

The set felt like a classroom after school. He silently swept the floor with a broom when suddenly he heard the sound of the door opening behind him.

He thought it was someone who bullied him returning, flinching slightly, and turned to look at the door in panic, only to hear a low voice:

“It’s me.”

—

At that moment, Chen Chang’an lost whatever little acting skills he had, genuinely surprised.

—It wasn’t even surprise; it was shock.

Who could tell him why Jiang Baiqing walked in through the door?

Seeing Chen Chang’an standing there with wide eyes, Jiang Youchuan felt a headache coming on: “Is your acting just a limited-time experience card? Is it only enough for the first half?”

Jiang Baiqing, upon seeing Chen Chang’an, was also taken aback, instinctively standing still.

The two of them became statues, and Jiang Youchuan instantly sensed something was off, keenly asking:

“You two… haven’t dated, have you?”

Chen Chang’an regained his composure: “It’s more complicated than not dating, but simpler than having dated.”

“Then you are—”

Jiang Baiqing, fearing Chen Chang’an might come up with some novel term, quickly interjected: “Colleagues.”

Jiang Youchuan squinted: “I remember you two haven’t collaborated before.”

“Now we have.” Jiang Baiqing remained calm.

“Ugh—” Jiang Youchuan had just shown a disdainful expression, but remembering that the movie emperor in front of him was someone he couldn’t offend, he quickly changed his tone, “Ugh, wow, how impressive! The road to Shu is harder than ascending to the heavens! The road to Shu isn’t hard; as long as we can work together and bravely climb, we can achieve great things and not waste this trip!”

“Your high school literature is quite good.” Jiang Baiqing chuckled.

Jiang Youchuan bowed: “Thanks to Teacher Jiang.”

Meanwhile, Chen Chang’an, who was silently watching, was annoyed: “Director, can you be a little more sycophantic?”

—

In fact, Director Jiang would show Chen Chang’an what it meant to be even more sycophantic!

The opening ceremony was in the afternoon, and as the director, Jiang Youchuan gave a thank-you speech, praising investor Zheng Rongyu as the top talent in the world, while the movie emperor was described as a dual-skilled artist of unparalleled virtue and talent. Chen Chang’an was also portrayed as a rising powerhouse with a bright future ahead.

“Chen Chang’an is helpful and friendly”—he helped the picky director finish the green beans and enoki mushrooms in the lunch box.

“Chen Chang’an is diligent and earnest”—he learned how to skip stones better from the gatekeeper by the lake on set.

“Chen Chang’an is handsome and charming”—that was indeed true.

Chen Chang’an felt drowsy listening and started chatting with a young actor standing next to him.

What was his name again? Lu Renjia?

Unexpectedly, the second male lead who came in with funding started talking to him. Lu Renjia was surprised and cheerfully complained about Jiang Youchuan: “Director Jiang was like this back in college. He had a script cut because he couldn’t get funding for a film. He locked himself away for three days, and we all thought he would be depressed. But instead of sinking into poverty, he became twisted in it. Can you believe that if the investors wanted fish from the arctic ocean, he would just go with the current to catch them!”

Chen Chang’an nodded, giving a thumbs up, deeply agreeing: “Director Jiang is not an ordinary person.”

Jiang Baiqing stood not far away, his ears sharp. Hearing the name “Jiang,” he turned to look at Chen Chang’an, only to see him squinting and grinning, leaning in to chat with the young actor, not knowing what they were discussing.

Seeing Jiang Baiqing looking at him, Chen Chang’an, in the midst of his busy schedule, raised his head and gave Jiang Baiqing a clumsy wink.

Jiang Baiqing, inexplicably drawn, walked up to Chen Chang’an. Meeting Chen Chang’an’s puzzled gaze, he realized he seemed to have been enchanted by Chen Chang’an’s silly demeanor again.

“Is there something you need, Teacher Jiang?” Chen Chang’an, purely out of politeness, greeted him, clearly flustered.

“Don’t learn to wink like others if there’s nothing going on.” Jiang Baiqing looked down at the youthful face in front of him, “It looks like your eyes are cramping; it’s very awkward.”

Innocent Chen Chang’an: …What’s with getting kicked by the movie emperor while just walking down the road?

Chen Chang’an rubbed his eyes and lowered his head, visibly deflated, like a wilting sunflower.

Jiang Baiqing added, “And don’t droop your head; it’s bad for your neck.”

“Oh.” Chen Chang’an lifted his head, like a little puppet responding to commands.

“Also, don’t gossip about your seniors behind their backs; it’s inappropriate.”

At this point, Chen Chang’an couldn’t hold back anymore and called out Jiang Baiqing’s name properly: “Teacher Jiang.”

Jiang Baiqing raised his head with a reserved demeanor: “Hmm?”

“When you leave the film city, take Bus Route 18 to the last stop at the Film Academy. After getting off, walk towards the school. I heard the building on the left side of the main gate is the acting department. Just walk in, pick any classroom, and wait for the students to gather to give them a lesson on etiquette and culture.” Chen Chang’an blurted out all at once, like pouring beans, “The university professors are too lax on etiquette; the real professionals are still you.”

“…Are you mocking me?” Jiang Baiqing raised an eyebrow.

Chen Chang’an immediately shook his head: “No, I’m praising you.”

Jiang Baiqing looked at him deeply for a moment before slowly saying, “Chen Chang’an, you need to respect your seniors.”

“I certainly respect you—I could write an epic about my admiration for you.”

Unexpectedly, Jiang Baiqing asked, “I want to believe you, but how do you write the word ‘epic’?”

Chen Chang’an slapped his forehead: “Oh, now that you mention it, I really forgot.”

“After we finish filming this movie, go learn some cultural lessons,” Jiang Baiqing said philosophically, “There are enough illiterate people in the industry; we don’t need one more.”

—

In just a few exchanges, Lu Renjia was dumbfounded: “Brother An—you know the movie emperor?! Is what’s trending true?! To be honest, I’m actually a CP fan of both of you!”

No way? It turns out that besides those bought marketing accounts, there are really people shipping such a bizarre CP? What’s the difference between that and liking a cake filled with cilantro?

Chen Chang’an immediately refuted without thinking: “Of course it’s fake! I’m not familiar with Teacher Jiang; I just drove him once.”

“You! You even gave him the car you drove—” Lu Renjia exclaimed in horror, “He actually accepted it—”

“Stop, stop, stop, it was just a simple pick-up and drop-off. Do you understand? Repeat after me: pick-up and drop-off,” Chen Chang’an was frightened by his loud voice, “Little Lu, don’t shout so loudly.”

“Mm-hmm, okay, brother, I won’t shout loudly; I’ll shout softly.” Lu Renjia silently mouthed, and he probably only heard that one sentence from Chen Chang’an, “Ah, ah, ah, I’ve got a big scoop, Mom! I’m going to be successful! The CP I ship is real!”

Chen Chang’an felt a bit exhausted: “Little Lu, it’s really a waste of talent to have you play a small supporting role.”

Upon hearing this, Lu Renjia’s eyes lit up: “Does Brother An mean—”

“Brother will recommend a new path for you.”

“Ah, ah, ah, Brother is going to recommend a new path for me!” Lu Renjia’s mouth hadn’t closed since, like a human megaphone, “Thank you, Brother! I’ll keep the matter between you and the movie emperor a secret!”

“There’s nothing between me and the movie emperor…” Chen Chang’an was already too lazy to refute, “The path I want to recommend is—if you feel like you can’t continue filming one day, you might consider switching to comedy. Trust me, you have talent.”

Although Lu Renjia was young and a bit noisy, he was good-looking, and when Chen Chang’an was stared at by his bulb-like big eyes, he felt no anger at all.

As they chatted, it was time to take the teaser photo. Not understanding the rules, Chen Chang’an casually pulled Lu Renjia from the crowd to his side, planning to continue chatting with him.

“Oh no, no, no!” Lu Renjia jumped back like a cat with its tail stepped on, “Brother An, this isn’t my spot.”

“There’s a specific spot for this?” Chen Chang’an frowned upon hearing this, “Can’t we switch?”

Then he heard Jiang Baiqing’s indifferent voice asking, “You want him to switch with me?”

He didn’t know that Chen Chang’an had already changed his core, and this core didn’t understand any rules. Hearing Chen Chang’an’s words, he thought Chen Chang’an had come up with a new trick and specially found a newcomer to put him in a difficult position.

This was a bit troublesome.

Author’s Note:

The past movie emperor: Trouble, Chen Chang’an has come up with a new trick again!

The future movie emperor: He’s willing to come up with new tricks for me, which shows he has feelings for me.