Chapter 203: There is a Kind of Beauty that is Round and Moist

When Bai Liang was eating with Sister Zhao, Xu Zheng, and Jing Tian, a "handsome guy" who was considered young among the director group received bad news:

The movie's male lead ran away because he had a "better choice."

This matter wasn't much of a blow to Guo Fan.

Because he was originally poor and stingy, and didn't have money to invite any big-name male lead; if he ran away, just find another down-and-out little unknown person, it wasn't a big deal.

There are many actors like this in the entertainment industry.

Among the young male actors who graduate from various art schools every year, most can't become popular.

This one is gone, change to another one.

The reason it was bad news was that he felt that even such a blurry young artist would dislike his current movie "The Wandering Earth"?

I didn't dislike you for being blurry, and you actually dislike our movie for not being good?

Damn, unreasonable! 【203-1

For a while, he would inevitably feel somewhat uncomfortable in his heart.

After all, from the very beginning of the project's inception, the three words "not optimistic" had been hovering around Guo Fan.

Few people were willing to believe that a director who had filmed a movie like "My Old Classmate" three years ago could produce any reliable science fiction masterpiece.

But this kind of minor setback couldn't defeat him; it had already been three years since "My Old Classmate."

Three years! He had waited three years just to prove that he was capable!

Guo Fan lit a cigarette, then called the casting director and told him to find a male lead as soon as possible.

After hearing this, casting director Sun Qiang was puzzled for a moment, "Director Guo, are we still looking for a minor, obscure actor this time?"

"Otherwise, can you help me hire a big star? There's no money," Guo Fan said helplessly.

Sun Qiang on the other end of the phone smacked his lips. Honestly, although he had been "captured" by Guo Fan, this succubus, and had come to help him work on a seemingly unreliable sci-fi movie, he truly admired Guo Fan.

This director possessed a strange kind of personal charisma.

Sun Qiang was very familiar with this feeling because he had experienced something similar before.

So, after thinking it over, he proposed a bold idea: "Director Guo, why don't we just find a top-tier star!"

"Top-tier star?!" Guo Fan was amused, "Can you help me conjure up money?"

Sun Qiang on the other end of the phone was also amused; it really did feel like he was telling a fairy tale.

However, he felt that one person was different.

Guo Fan dared to film "The Wandering Earth," and he was just making an attempt; what was there to be afraid of?

"Director, I have connections. I know a top-tier star who has a good reputation, achievements, and great acting skills. Oh right, he's not one of those 'little fresh meat' actors who can't endure hardship; he's very professional! And he's extremely famous!"

"Ah Qiang, I beg you, stop talking. You've got me starting to look forward to it."

The more Sun Qiang listed those conditions, the more impossible Guo Fan felt it was.

Such a person—are they crazy? Willing to come to their crew, and there's no money to pay him.

"He might be willing to go without pay," Sun Qiang said, lowering his voice.

Hearing this, Guo Fan blurted out: "No pay? Taking a share of the profits? Is he that easy to fool?!"

"A while ago, I attended a dinner party and ran into Director Wu Jing, and he mentioned this very thing."

Wu Jing's habit of bragging everywhere about Bai Liang's actions clearly wasn't known only to Xu Zheng.

He was truly putting in a lot of effort to praise Bai Liang, acting as if even if the movie flopped, he would still spread the good reputation of the other party being "loyal and righteous" throughout the entire entertainment industry.

"Wait, tell me who it is first?" Guo Fan finally couldn't help but ask.

The moment he asked this question, he realized he was done for; he was truly tempted!

"Bai Liang," Sun Qiang said in a deep voice.

That serious tone sounded as if he had uttered something unspeakable.

"Bai Liang..."

If it were any other top-tier "little fresh meat," Guo Fan felt he could find a reason to decline the invitation.

But he had truly heard of this person.

It wasn't just Wu Jing; there were quite a few directors in the industry who praised him.

Everyone who had worked with him said he was good!

It's not easy to accumulate such a reputation. Performing well on set doesn't necessarily mean you'll be remembered by the director, because that's just your job.

You have to be excellent and strike a chord with many people to be talked about by so many at the same time.

For a moment, Guo Fan even felt a sense of kinship.

After all, he also relied on his own succubus-like skills to navigate the world.

"Ah Qiang, are you very close with him?" Guo Fan couldn't help but ask.

"I was the casting director for his first film, so I'm sort of half a benefactor to him," Sun Qiang said, feeling slightly guilty.

That should count as half, right? A small half is fine too~

"Then give it a try. Anyway, there's no rush for the moment."

After saying this, Guo Fan thought for a moment and added: "It would be best if I could talk to him in person."

Now Sun Qiang was under a bit of pressure. After all, Bai Liang was no longer the little nobody who carried a bag and a tub of protein powder all by himself to the set of "God of War Zhao Zilong."

He really wasn't sure if he could get an appointment.

Although he had the other party's contact information, two years had passed in a flash; it was hard to say if Bai Liang still remembered him.

——

Bai Liang and Xu Zheng were having a quite pleasant conversation.

Because he had a relatively good mindset and didn't talk about unpleasant things.

Regarding this, Xu Zheng was a bit helpless.

He had never seen anyone like this. He didn't detect any dissatisfaction from the other party at all; Bai Liang hadn't even frowned once the entire time.

Polite and gentle, yet he couldn't get a read on his thoughts at all.

Regarding the project "How Long Will I Love U," Bai Liang also discussed it with him in a down-to-earth manner.

An old hand like Xu Zheng could tell after just a few sentences whether the other party was just going through the motions or had truly done their homework.

Bai Liang was the latter.

Xu Zheng: This kid has really studied the script and the characters!

And much of what he said, even if he didn't completely agree with it, he felt was truly quite reasonable.

One could tell just by listening that he had put in the effort.

It made Jing Tian, who was sitting next to them, barely eat a few bites of her food, as she was listening so intently!

But precisely because of this, it made things even more difficult for Xu Zheng.

He increasingly wanted to pull Bai Liang into this project; the other party was definitely the male lead he was looking for.

Even because of "Duckweed," he had long known about Bai Liang's ability to play a young man from the last century; he didn't even need a makeup test or an audition to know he would definitely perform well!

But the problem was Bai Liang's manager, Sister Yanzi, right? She was really hard to deal with!

When Xu Zheng interacted with Sister Yanzi, he even felt like he had encountered the most difficult type of auntie at a wet market.

If it were really at a wet market, he could just go to another stall if things didn't work out.

But now, if he didn't secure Bai Liang, he would have to "settle for second best," and the female lead he had tricked into joining might also run off.

No, she would definitely run off!

Before the meal ended, Xu Zheng glanced at Jing Tian twice, feeling that she was already somewhat restless.

He didn't know if she had new ideas or felt it was unreliable and wanted to retreat urgently.

If he didn't find a way to secure Bai Liang, this movie would have to be delayed again, and because of his contact with Bai Liang and Jing Tian, the schedules of other actors he had also considered suitable were becoming hard to book.

Xu Zheng quickly calculated the pros and cons in his mind, feeling that "making concessions" was probably unavoidable.

Damn it! It hurts!

How is this any different from digging money out of his own pocket?

After the meal, Xu Zheng still had a smile on his face, but he was already feeling terrible inside. Facing a big ball of cotton, he couldn't handle the other party and ultimately could only resort to making a deal regarding benefits.

He had to find a way to "feed" that hungry wolf, Sister Yanzi!

And Bai Liang was actually quite happy. Although Xu Zheng was a bit stingy and mercenary, he truly had substance.

He was worthy of being a player who had thrived after switching from actor to director.

The three film directors Bai Liang had interacted with so far were all latecomers to the field.

Han Han, Wu Jing, and Xu Zheng.

Each had their own characteristics and their own flaws.

The common point was that they were indeed quite outstanding in their respective areas of expertise.

They belonged to the type who could play certain directions much more thoroughly than others.

On the contrary, Bai Liang hadn't interacted with a single "classically trained" film director.

"Sister, is it good?"

Hearing this, Sister Zhao subconsciously touched her stomach.

Then she said: "If I get fat, I'll blame you. I'm the only one at the table eating seriously."

"When you're out and about, you have to eat well. I recommend a great show for eating, it's from Japan, called 'The Solitary Gourmet'."

When it came to this field, Bai Liang expressed that no one understood eating better than he did~

"Forget it, I'm a female celebrity..."

"A female celebrity with a round face, it doesn't matter if you're a bit chubby."

"Go to hell!" After habitually scolding him, Sister Zhao asked seemingly casually: "Where are you going later? To see one of your lovers in Yanjing?"

"Lovers?" Bai Liang pondered for a moment. Who was around?

Of the few girls he knew whose base was in Yanjing, Yang Mi and Sister Reba definitely didn't have time. Now that "Eternal Love" was incredibly popular, the two of them were busy hopping around like rabbits.

Meng Jie and Li Xin's companies were also in Yanjing, but the two of them should have joined their crews to film by now.

And...

"Are you really looking?!" Sister Zhao immediately got angry when she saw him enter a state of contemplation.

Bai Liang looked innocent: "Wasn't it you who told me to look..."

Damn it, if only this brat were always that obedient.

Sister Zhao didn't want to argue with him: "If you have nowhere to go, come sit at my place." "Your place? Did you buy a big house?"

"Eh? How did you know?"

"I guessed."

Sister Zhao had indeed just purchased a luxury mansion in Yanjing.

Worthy of being a first-tier female celebrity, her move was extraordinary; it was a detached villa with a courtyard, located in the Chaoyang District.

Not to mention worth over a hundred million, it was at least several tens of millions.

Regarding this, Sister Zhao didn't hide anything and told him directly that she bought it for eighty million.

Around July this year, the Forbes Celebrity List for 2016-2017 would be coming out, and it was estimated that Sister Zhao could make the top five.

Bai Liang: As expected, she's a rich woman~

Of course, he was interested in visiting Sister Zhao's mansion; big villas are great! Big villas have many rooms!

However, at this moment, Sister Zhao's eyes seemed somewhat unfocused.

Bai Liang felt that if he said "I'm going home" right now, this sister might lose her temper.

I accompanied you to the audition, we ate, and now you say you're going home?! I'll curse you to death~

However, just as Bai Liang was preparing to go with her, a phone call suddenly came in.

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The name on the caller ID was quite fresh; it was Jing Tian, who had just exchanged contact information with Bai Liang not long ago.

The other party didn't exchange pleasantries with him either; after a greeting, she went straight to the point.

She wanted to meet and talk more.

Regarding this, Bai Liang didn't have any reason to refuse.

The other party was definitely looking for him to talk about serious business.

He could only make an apologetic gesture to Sister Zhao.

"How about I go to your place later?"

Sister Zhao didn't speak and just left, as if saying: Pfft! If you miss this village, you won't find this shop.

She didn't even leave a detailed address for Bai Liang, clearly not intending to let him come later.

Bai Liang: It doesn't matter, there will always be opportunities in the future.

Regarding Jing Tian, this famous "human wealth flower" inside and outside the industry, Bai Liang actually didn't have much interaction with her while they were eating just now.

He felt that this young lady didn't know whether to be afraid of him or if it was just her nature.

After all, the image many artists have in public is indeed quite different from their private personality.

Jing Tian spoke very little; most of the time she just listened intently, and occasionally when his eyes looked over, the other party would subconsciously look away.

Besides these initial impressions, Bai Liang's other impressions of her were actually similar to most netizens.

Isn't there a saying on the internet: If you can't choose Fei, choose Yuan; if you can't choose Fei or Yuan, choose Jing Tian.

Although this doesn't fully summarize all straight-male aesthetics, because when Bai Liang himself was at his most "straight-male," he liked Ultraman and Pokémon.

After maturing a bit more, he liked Digimon and Gundam, and only then did it become the turn of sweet and soft young ladies.

But in this race, Jing Tian had indeed broken through.

She was indeed beautiful.

Oh right, Bai Liang also knew that she looked even better in a cheongsam.

There was a kind of round and jade-like beauty.

Their second meeting was, of course, not alone. Bai Liang went solo, facing Jing Tian, as well as her manager and assistant...

Having more people can indeed make one appear more imposing at times.

But today it was the opposite.

A group of women were all a bit timid when facing Bai Liang.

After all, Jing Tian, the "general," couldn't stand tall herself.

This post-85 actress was the weakest-spirited player Bai Liang had ever seen; let alone compared to Yang Mi and Zhao Liying, he felt she couldn't even beat that silly giant Tang Yan.

"I feel like you're a bit darker than before..."

After a few simple pleasantries, this was Jing Tian's first direct evaluation of Bai Liang for the day.

"Maybe it's because I went to Africa to record a show; I did get a bit tanned. I should slowly whiten back later," Bai Liang didn't have much of an idol burden and nodded in admission.

He was indeed a bit darker than before, and at the same time, because he had been having too much fun in Africa, he even had a bit more wildness than before.

Ah! Bai Liang suddenly understood what was going on.

Having just returned from running wild outside, even if he was still that capybara in essence, having faced beasts and gunfire, he still carried a bit of a savage flavor.

After integrating into an environment, it takes time to pull oneself out of the previous one.

Sitting there, he was somewhat out of place with Jing Tian, who was as exquisite as a doll.

Sister Zhao wouldn't have much of a feeling about this small change in him because she herself had climbed up from the bottom.

Xu Zheng didn't specifically say anything either, because he felt that this contrast would have a better effect in the movie.

However, for Jing Tian, that bit of wildness overflowing with hormones, as well as that explosiveness growing wantonly, felt like it could easily shatter her fragile exquisiteness.

So she instinctively felt a bit of fear.

Of course, to a certain extent, this feeling would also bring a contradictory sexual tension...

Specifically, one can refer to some literary works from Japan.

Things like plumbers, repairmen, and the like.

"Teacher Bai, we still really want to cooperate with you. This trip is mainly to ask about your specific thoughts..."

Seeing that she seemed unable to stand tall, staring at the coffee on the table as if she were going to see a flower in it, Jing Tian's manager had to act as a mouthpiece.

At the same time, she wondered: Tian Tian wasn't this introverted before.

"I don't have any thoughts; being able to cooperate is of course a good thing," Bai Liang said very honestly.

As a result, this sounded like perfunctory politeness to others.

The manager even imagined: Could this guy be disliking Jing Tian's bad reputation in the film industry?

Very likely!

Looking at the calm Bai Liang, she gritted her teeth and used her trump card!

"I heard Teacher Bai is in contact with the crew of 'Ming Dynasty'?"

Bai Liang was a bit surprised, "You guys know this too?"

A smile appeared on the other party's face, "If you ask around, you can always know something. I heard the negotiations aren't going too smoothly because it's a female-led drama."

"Let me think about what I can say..."

"It doesn't have to be that complicated. The 'Ming Dynasty' crew hasn't reached an agreement with Tang Wei yet. We can also go and contact them to reduce the female lead's weight, so this drama isn't a female-led one."

"Ah?"

"It's true."

Seeming to worry that Bai Liang wouldn't believe her, Jing Tian's manager directly found the chat history on her phone.

The "Ming Dynasty" side had even sent her a simple electronic version of the script.

This was indeed evidence of contact.

Jing Tian, who had already filmed "The Glory of Tang Dynasty," didn't mind acting in another "Ming Dynasty."

The name sounded like it was part of a series.

Moreover, "The Glory of Tang Dynasty" had improved her reputation quite a bit, and many people said, "So Jing Tian actually has acting skills."

As for the purpose of forcefully intervening in the drama "Ming Dynasty," it counted as a kind of resource exchange.

Let Bai Liang agree to star in "How Long Will I Love U" with Jing Tian; as a condition, Jing Tian would go and help him settle the female lead issue for "Ming Dynasty."

She would go and play Sun Ruowei, voluntarily lowering her status and reducing her scenes—wouldn't that be the end of it? Let those historical modifications that Bai Liang was dissatisfied with go to hell.

By the way, let's have a second collaboration; it's the best of both worlds.

As for whether she could intervene... a thin camel is bigger than a horse!

Even if Jing Tian didn't have as good resources as before, she could still do this kind of thing. Tang Wei wasn't considered a very tough first-tier actress in the film industry, and Jing Tian had just surpassed her.

Not to mention she could borrow Bai Liang's fame and influence; the two of them combined would directly beat Tang Wei.

As long as the producers aren't idiots, they know how to choose.

Bai Liang: Big Tian Tian is really nice!

He really didn't expect it could be like this~

So he could only call Sister Yanzi and ask her if this way of playing was reliable...

Sister Yanzi was also stunned when she heard this. Ah? Where did this sucker come from?

Honestly, she was already prepared to agree to Xu Zheng.

After the other party finished eating with Bai Liang, he offered her a new price.

Sister Yanzi felt that this was likely the limit. She was just about to agree when such news came from Bai Liang's side.

Any first-tier female celebrity in her prime wouldn't do this; only Jing Tian, who was in an awkward situation now, would be willing.

Even Sister Zhao, who had such a good relationship with Bai Liang, couldn't "sacrifice" herself like this.

If this got out, she couldn't even answer to her fans.

Including Yang Mi, no matter how much she liked the gifts Bai Liang gave, she wouldn't cooperate with him like this.

Thinking about it carefully, Jing Tian was really suitable for this.

It just seemed a bit like a sucker.

However, Sister Yanzi thought about it... "Suckers" like this creature always seemed to appear around her little brother Bai.

This time she really heard the echo of strong luck, exceptionally clear.

(End of chapter)