Chapter 416

Today I'm leaving—let's see who's got the guts to stop me! The key is presence!

Got it, bro~

Arthur nodded, acknowledging he'd learned a "useful" escape technique from Bai Liang.

Yes, Bai Liang was leaving; after two days of touring with Chen Kaige, he simply said he had some business to attend to~ and took his leave.

Chen Kaige naturally asked what could be so important.

Bai Liang: The cherry blossoms at Jiming Temple are in bloom.

Chen Kaige: Hmm. Reasonable.

Clearly, Bai Liang had accidentally mastered the correct way to communicate with a "poet."

The less he spoke like a normal person to Chen Kaige, the more the other would fill in the blanks himself.

Actually, he was going to make a cameo in The Qingping Yue production, but skipping the movie tour for that reason felt a bit awkward.

But look at it another way: I made a long-standing promise with a Miss.

She's waiting for me.

Doesn't that change everything immediately?

But as Bai Liang slipped away, Arthur couldn't sit still either—he grew restless and wanted to flee too, yet couldn't think of a good excuse.

There's reason to suspect he wanted to meet up with some big-sister fan.

So Bai Liang taught him a more impressive trick.

Of course, dying with presence counts as presence too.

I hope he doesn't actually say that to Chen Kaige~

Ancient costume palace dramas like The Qingping Yue are naturally filmed in Hengdian.

Oh right, at this time the show wasn't even called The Qingping Yue—it was still called The Lonely City Closed.

Renaming is fairly common in the industry; many films and TV dramas have different titles during production and broadcast, sometimes wildly different.

TV dramas are renamed for two main reasons: television environment issues or market factors.

The former demands simplicity: positive, uplifting, no demons, no glorification of feudal relics.

Market reasons are far more complex: riding trends, chasing fads, separating book from drama, or avoiding risks.

There's also a bizarre case: someone consulted a fortune-teller, decided the original name was unlucky, and changed it outright—adding a feng shui master to sit and stabilize it, charging over two thousand per episode.

Bai Liang thought he might just be able to make money doing that too.

When Bai Liang arrived at The Qingping Yue set, he happened to cross paths with Zhang Tian'ai.

She was also there for a cameo, but Bai Liang only caught her final scene—her makeup and costume were stunning; this Miss truly suited ancient costume.

Bright and charming.

Her explosive rise from The Crown Princess Ascension wasn't without reason—her face really can carry it.

I emphasize this because Bai Liang noticed the female lead, Jiang Shuying, seemed unhappy.

Even when she saw Bai Liang, she only forced a smile and greeted him, but her furrowed brows remained clearly visible.

She also casually asked: "Are you close with Zhang Tian'ai?"

"Not bad. I'm pretty familiar with you too," Bai Liang replied offhandedly.

Then he casually inquired after her health, since her frowning looked either like inner irritation or physical discomfort.

To his surprise, Jiang Shuying joked: "Then feel my pulse."

Bai Liang's cameo role was a doctor—specifically, the imperial physician.

Since she made such a request, he naturally didn't refuse.

Perfectly matched.

"Pregnancy pulse~ Congratulations!"

"Huh? Really?!"

"Uh, of course not—I don't even know how to feel pulses~"

"I actually thought you could!" Jiang Shuying rolled her eyes.

Bai Liang gave a helpless teddy bear shrug and quickly slipped away.

"Do I look like I'll eat you?"

His sudden disappearance made Jiang Shuying's already restless mind even more unsettled—then suddenly, she realized something was off!

Her face flushed red and pale in turns~

Bai Liang: Bro may not know how to feel pulses, but I know how to read people~

A random joke triggered such a strong reaction—unless she was acting, she'd clearly sensed his recent "life."

He had to run fast!

This lesson taught him: never again casually pretend to feel pulses, especially joking about pregnancy pulses.

He'd underestimated his current "authority."

Everyone thought he was an all-rounder—could do everything—so being able to feel pulses wasn't hard to believe.

But from their very first exchange, when Jiang Shuying probed his connection with Zhang Tian'ai, it was clear her irritation might be tied to Zhang Tian'ai's presence.

What, did coming for a cameo mean she'd "fight" Jiang Shuying?

Bai Liang remembered she seemed to have a grudge against Jin Da Xi too—he'd heard Jin Da Xi constantly muttered about taking down Zhang Tian'ai and even tried to persuade Li Xin to launch a crushing beauty-exclusive PR campaign.

The grudges and dramas among female stars? They're genuinely complex and common.

All these girls have stories~

But soon, Bai Liang learned why Jiang Shuying looked so gloomy.

Because Meng Jie arrived with her little companion.

"You finally came! Let me introduce you—this is Wang Churan," Meng Jie said with a grin.

Her facial expression seemed slightly smug.

How to put it? My own little hedgehog is just too damn impressive!

When he first arrived, the entire crew shut down to welcome him—the aura of a major star arriving was fully dialed up.

Though it had nothing to do with Meng Jie herself, she still felt—oh my, how prestigious!

But to keep it "low-key," she didn't rush over right away; instead, she waited until everyone went back to their tasks, leaving only the producer and director chatting with Bai Liang, before she brought her girl friends over.

And sure enough, when the two arrived, the producer and director wisely slipped away first.

"Teacher Bai, hello!" Wang Churan greeted Bai Liang sweetly.

Her gaze toward Bai Liang held a hint of curiosity, but she dared not stare too long.

Compared to Meng Jie's casual familiarity, to those unfamiliar with Bai Liang, he radiated so many halos it was almost blinding!

Even the most gentle capybara can't stop people from overimagining~

But when he saw her, Bai Liang was slightly surprised.

He didn't need to check her birth chart—he knew this girl had a connection to "Bai."

Of course, not Bai Liang's "Bai."

But Bai Zhou's "Bai," Bai Yan's "Bai"—big and white~

To be fair, she was very beautiful, with that classic "great Qingyi" vibe—a girl who could make it in the entertainment industry just by her looks.

And right now, the entertainment industry is flooded with sweet little white flowers; she stood out precisely because she was rare.

But the downside of this look is that it feels mature—even at twenty, she looked as old as Meng Jie.

These two were perfect: one looked cunning, the other looked impatient.

Bai Liang looked at Wang Churan, then at Meng Jie, then recalled Zhang Tian'ai just now.

Bam!

He slapped his palm.

Case solved.

Honestly, no wonder Jiang Shuying looked so gloomy—aside from those few top-tier beauty icons in the industry, who could withstand this?

They've formed a team to overwhelm her with beauty!

How desolate must the lead actress feel, realizing every supporting actress and guest star is prettier than her?

Of course her mood wouldn't be good.

If Jiang Shuying were more powerful, she might have caused trouble during filming—cutting supporting roles, stealing their spotlight, and so on.

But this is Zhengwu Yangguang's drama, and it's a male-led epic—she couldn't manipulate a thing.

After all, she wasn't the only one with backstage connections.

Meng Jie is now a key focus of Jia Shikai; this is likely her last supporting role, and using a Zhengwu Yangguang drama to transition into a lead role is incredibly smooth.

It's clearly meant to push her into the top-tier young diva position.

Add to that Bai Liang's earlier joke to Meng Jie: In the entire entertainment industry, who doesn't know Meng Jie is Bai Liang's lackey?

Jiang Shuying knew—accurately speaking, the whole crew knew.

As for Wang Churan, she's no ordinary girl either—her backer is Fosun Pictures, a colossal entity with a parent company famed in Shanghai.

Just look at her resume—you'll see how privileged her resources are.

So no wonder Jiang Shuying felt miserable; she could only wait until the drama aired to stir up trending topics—during filming, she had zero power over these beautiful young girls.

"What did you just realize? You look like you've had an epiphany," Meng Jie asked, tilting her head curiously.

"I just thought of something happy."

"Is it related to me?"

"Actually, yes~"

Though Meng Jie's understanding wasn't the same as Bai Liang's intention, it still made her happy—her radiant smile made Wang Churan glance over involuntarily.

Sister, are you really this easy to please?

While she was still wondering, she turned back to Bai Liang—and he smiled gently at her too.

Wang Churan immediately lowered her head, her ears turning red. Sister—I get it now.

Not easy to please at all.

On his first day, Bai Liang didn't rush into filming.

Because the director had a new idea.

His original role as imperial physician didn't quite fit—what emperor would let such a handsome young physician wander freely through his harem?

He'd be greened in minutes.

This had already been demonstrated by Wen Shichu, the imperial physician in "The Legend of Zhen Huan."

So Zhang Kaizhou had spent the past two days researching and decided Bai Liang's cameo could become an Easter egg!

"Qing Ping Le" tells the story of Emperor Renzong of Song, Zhao Zhen, the fourth emperor of the Song Dynasty.

The elderly emperor who appeared in "Know Me, Know You" is Emperor Renzong, and the Empress Dowager in that drama is Jiang Shuying's character, Empress Cao from "Qing Ping Le."

Emperor Renzong's three sons all died young; all subsequent children were daughters, leaving him without a male heir. As he aged, ministers began urging him to adopt a royal clan member as Crown Prince, and court discussions over the succession candidate grew heated.

This is exactly why, in "Know Me, Know You," Sheng Changfeng got drunk and casually speculated about the heir, later causing his father Sheng Hong to be detained in the palace for a day—upon returning, he kicked Changfeng hard.

Eventually, Emperor Renzong chose Zhao Zongshi from the royal clan as his successor—the same Zhao Zongquan from "Know Me, Know You," who loved growing rice—hence the scene where Minglan delivers the imperial decree to Zhao Zongquan.

The two dramas can actually be connected—so how could they waste Bai Liang's cameo as just an imperial physician?

His cameo role should be… Marquis Ningyuan, surnamed Gu.

Bai Liang: So am I playing my father or my grandfather?

This isn't important, because he won't even have a name—just a crimson robe standing in the court, the Marquis of Ningyuan.

Make a few appearances, interact with Kai Kai Wang's Emperor Renzong of Song, and the cameo is done.

Wang Churan: Huh? You're not taking my pulse?

You have to know, Bai Liang's original cameo role was to take the pulse of her Noble Consort Zhang and Empress Cao. And just like that, the chance to act opposite a 20-billion-dollar Best Actor was gone.

What a shame!

"Wow, you're so ambitious!" Meng Jie exclaimed at Wang Churan's regret.

During her time with Bai Liang, she basically didn't overthink anything. Like learning more acting from him.

With that kind of effort, she might as well steal a few more kisses~

The grass on your own doorstep tastes so much better.

Wang Churan: So Meng Jie, what exactly were you doing before? With such a ridiculously thick thigh to cling to, after all these years you've only gotten to where you are now?

Although Mencius is currently doing a bit better than Wang Churan, she felt that if she had his kind of connections, she definitely wouldn't have just this level of development.

With a little more effort, the role of Jiang Shuying should have been hers by now.

Such a waste of talent, sister!

But she hadn't expected before that the "truth" hidden among all those wildly rumored scandals of Bai Liang's would actually be Meng Jie, whose voice was comparatively much quieter.

Hidden way too well!

Meng Jie:. Didn't hide it~ You have no idea how fierce the competition is.

Honestly, if Bai Liang "favored" only her, with no other young ladies' names in his story, Meng Jie would have started acting up with him long ago~

Definitely whining and fussing to act alongside him, brazenly cutting in line, being a happy little tagalong.

Announcing to everyone that this man has been claimed by her.

But in the current situation, she actually feels too embarrassed to do that.

Completely can't act up.

Because if only she acts up while the others don't, she'd still be brother's devoted little padded jacket—then wouldn't the others explode?

Guard against fire, guard against thieves, guard against green tea b*tches.

Just like a triangle has stability, when the number of misses increases, they'll find a balance among themselves.

The level of obedience also rises sharply.

It might even form a certain degree of "one-upmanship."

For example, "You keep making him do this and that—is that loving him? That's clearly using him! Unlike me, I don't need anything, I simply love him as a person. I could even pay my way in~"

Of course, to achieve this effect, the required stats and modeling are way too high.

Ordinary guys are not advised to imitate it.

Bai Liang can.

So Wang Churan's current judgment, made without understanding Meng Jie's real situation, is quite distorted.

Just as that poem goes: What you learn from books is shallow after all; to truly know, you must do it yourself.

Without personally stepping onto the field, you simply can't appreciate the subtleties and the pressure.

In the evening, Bai Liang went drinking with Kai Kai Wang and the director and the others.

A pure guys' gathering, so they didn't bring the two girls.

Mainly because Jiang Shuying seemed to be in low spirits, rushing off right after the crew wrapped.

So they simply didn't call the other girls either, letting the brothers drink more freely.

And in the room keeping Meng Jie company, Wang Churan seized the moment when Meng Jie was happy and asked: "How long have you two been together?"

"Huh?"

"No need to play dumb, it's so obvious—you're practically hanging off him."

Meng Jie scratched her head—ah, how is she supposed to explain this?

"What?! You two aren't boyfriend and girlfriend?"

". We used to be." Meng Jie quickly said, trying to save face.

More than that she naturally refused to say—those were painful memories.

"Oh right, I remember he seems to have some documentary going online today, want to watch it?"

Although Meng Jie asked this, she herself clearly really wanted to watch~ and it was also a good way to change the subject.

"Of course I want to watch! Which site?"

Watching her suddenly perked-up sister, Meng Jie felt something was off, but couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Things have come to this—let's find the documentary first~

By the time the two of them remembered, the documentary titled "Summit" had already been online on Sohu Video for half an hour.

Most were Bai Liang's fans, but there were also quite a few people who specifically camped out for this thing.

For example, Wu Jing, Jing Boran and the others, and even Old Master Xia whom Bai Liang met at the movie premiere, and the passing sunglasses-showoff guy.

As for the young ladies, basically anyone free right now was watching.

"It's here, it's here~"

"Big shot's got the face alright—a documentary right in the most prominent spot on the site."

"Bullsh*t, it's probably because of his friendship with Zhang Chaoyang that they sold it to Sohu. I don't believe the other companies wouldn't be interested."

"How much did Sohu pay for this exclusive? None of the other sites have it, forcing me to buy a Sohu membership."

"Wow, they actually started filming from the national road—the scenery details are really nice."

"There's quite a bit of trash at the Zhufeng base camp."

"Holy sh*t! Sunlit Golden Mountain!"

"."

When the sunlit Jin Shan appeared in the documentary, the already crowded bullet comments instantly exploded.

They're all over there making wishes~

After the sunlit Jin Shan scene ended, many bullet comments were still discussing the wondrous view just now.

And at this moment, the documentary's camera cut, and the mountaineering team set off!

After Zhufeng Base Camp, everything around seemed to fall into a frozen frost.

The stones were all dark gray, like mountains formed from piled-up dust, giving off a cold, gloomy feeling.

Where the mountaineering team passed, there was only desolation—almost the complete opposite of the sunlit Jin Shan scene.

This sense of contrast was extremely strong.

And under the drone's overhead shot, the mountaineering team appeared especially tiny against the backdrop of the massive mountains.

It made one can't help but wonder—can such a towering peak truly be conquered by humans?

Or rather, as the saying goes, humans have never conquered nature.

Until Bai Liang stepped onto that big rock, straightened his back, his expression calm.

Looking down at Zhufeng from below.

Under his gaze, even the mountain ranges seemed to bow their heads.

Without any filter or embellishment, set against the background music, the atmosphere of mortals challenging the high mountain with their own strength was maxed out—it practically gave everyone goosebumps.

It seemed only one word could describe the feeling at this moment.

Like hearing thunder out of silence—courage!

"This shot is insane, is there a professional cinematographer on the mountaineering team? How did they film this?"

"I've been reminding myself this is a documentary—damn, this guy is so handsome! Climbing Zhufeng and still finding time to show off?"

"He summited, so he can show off however he wants."

"New viral photo! Damn, showing off like this at over seven thousand meters altitude—even I'm a guy and I'm getting emotional."

"I'm also a guy, I admit he's very handsome. Even slightly more so than me after a shower."

"I don't dare drag the progress bar at all, I'm afraid the great immortal will pull something midway—how can he be this cool?!"

"Ahem, I feel this hits harder than 'The Climbers'~"

"."

At this moment, Wu Jing, who was watching the documentary, noticed quite a few bullet comments mentioning "The Climbers," and felt his scalp itch.

It's over, it's finally here.

However, viewers who hadn't dragged the progress bar felt the documentary's climax must be the moment of summiting.

But in fact, it wasn't.

In fact, because this section didn't encounter much difficulty, the audience's emotions couldn't quite build up either.

After all, without being at that altitude, one can't truly feel the pressure that environment exerts.

Even when the summit shot appeared, everyone felt like something was missing.

But at this moment, quite a few spoiler dogs rushed ahead to post bullet comments.

"High energy ahead! Something more thrilling than the summit is coming!"

—

These past two days I can only try my best to keep updating.

I'm really sorry, once Qingming is over I'll definitely return to normal.

(End of chapter)