Chapter 438: The Long-Awaited

"Brother, brother, wake up~"

"Huh?"

After opening his eyes, Bai Liang stared at the person in front of him for two long moments, then closed his eyes again.

He muttered softly under his breath: "Impossible~"

How did a plump, soft, grown woman turn into a little girl after just a nap?

He must still be dreaming, or maybe he woke up wrong—better go back to sleep and wake up again~

"Get up already! Lazybones~"

Zhao Jinmai's voice finally jolted Bai Liang awake. He rubbed his head, thinking: That really is a magic trick of making someone appear out of thin air.

"Jinmai, why are you in my room? I'm telling your mom."

"You're such a grown-up now, and all you know is tattling. Your door was open, so I came in—and I'm not the only one here."

At that moment, Bai Liang noticed there were actually quite a few people in his room.

Of course, they were his assistants.

They were currently packing his things; they must be leaving for the airport soon.

"Sorry sorry, took a second nap—didn't do anything naughty while I was asleep, did you?"

That was a great question!

Zhao Jinmai immediately gave herself away, blushed, then hurriedly denied: "No no no!"

Meanwhile, Dapao opened his mouth to speak but held back—he'd seen something when he came in.

Fortunately, Bai Liang didn't press further; he was worried the little girl had actually done something mischievous, so he'd just pretend nothing happened.

"Aren't we going to the same place? Why are you waiting here for me?"

"Our flights are different, but the departure times are almost the same, so it's normal for us to go to the airport together."

"Makes sense."

This was also the final day of "babysitting" for now, and Bai Liang had always been patient in this regard.

But when it came time to part ways, the little girl couldn't hold it together anymore.

Sniffling and crying.

Bai Liang had no choice but to promise her: once she finished the college entrance exam, he'd take her to experience some real youth.

He said it like that, but he had no idea what Zhao Jinmai had imagined in her head—she said nothing, just moved her lips, blushed, and ran off.

Bai Liang: What did she just imagine?

Could it be some clichéd youth movie plot? Those things they film aren't normal youth at all.

Even Bai Liang, who'd had absurdly good luck with the opposite sex since childhood, had sneaked into small groves with female classmates many times—yet never experienced anything as melodramatic as those movies.

Today, news about the Golden Rooster Awards dominated every entertainment media outlet.

Overall reviews were quite positive; all news outlets agreed this year's ceremony was well-run, fair, and objective.

One key phrase stood out: the domestic entertainment industry reclaimed its voice.

Because this year, the Golden Horse Awards on the other side collapsed completely, losing all their former glory—the moment domestic support vanished, they became nothing but a makeshift troupe.

It was a clear message: now they know who the real father is.

Whoever controls the market is the father.

The influence and authority of awards must be built upon a sufficiently thriving market.

At the same time, Bai Liang had inexplicably become a kind of proof: after comparing markets, naturally you must compare the new talents those markets can produce.

This time, they even dragged in Xiangjiang: Come on, Xiangjiang and Wanwan, what new talents do you have?

Domestic entertainment is only putting forward Bai Liang—you can send out any card you want.

Honestly, netizens couldn't even watch anymore; this was truly too bullying.

Just because this guy shamelessly sneaked into the newcomers' circle doesn't mean you should treat him like a real new actor.

Does your new actor have the #1 box office in domestic entertainment by a landslide?

Across all of Asia, there's only one such monster.

Netizens preferred to discuss: when will Bai Liang finally win his first major Best Actor award?

Without fail, this guy might win his third Weibo Best Actor next year.

Is the biggest label on today's #1 box office king in domestic entertainment really "Weibo Best Actor"?

Of course, the truth proved the Weibo Best Actor award still had "real value."

No one knew what big director Chen Kaige was up to—he'd recently joined a variety show.

Called "Actors, Please Step Into the Role."

On it, when criticizing other actors, he used Bai Liang as an example, like some "other people's kid."

Those who didn't know might think Bai Liang was his own son, while A Shi was picked up from a trash bin.

The production team naturally left every cut in, successfully creating buzz and sparking netizens' curiosity.

"Is the Great Immortal going to be on this show? Old man here just gazed at the stars and did a finger calculation—feels like next episode~"

"Bullshit about gazing at the stars. 'Chang'an Twelve Hours' is about to air—the Great Immortal will appear on some shows, hasn't that been his pattern these past few years except for 'Flowers of Youth 3'?"

"True. Unless he has a project releasing or airing, he basically never shows up on variety shows. Every time he appears, it means another work is coming."

"Looking forward! He's acting with Xi Zi Ge~ Wonder how it'll turn out."

"Where are Xi Zi Ge's fans? Are you fighting over billing? I'll declare now—if you're fighting Bai Liang for billing, I'm totally on your side—nothing else, just want to challenge Bai Liang."

"Help! Definitely help! Been wanting to take down Bai Liang for ages—no one's ever challenged him properly. As soon as Xi Zi Ge starts the billing war, I'll definitely go lend a hand."

"."

So netizens are truly evil—they've started outright fishing for drama.

Someone actually tricked people into fighting over billing, and who knows how many of Bai Liang's fans are pretending to be trolls here.

And among Xi Zi Ge's fans, there really are some who fell for it—some even organized in the super topic, acting as if they were going to fight for their brother to get the lead role.

This move nearly scared Xi Zi Ge's team to death. Fuck! Even the haters don't hate him this much! Do you want him dead?

Sometimes you just have to wonder how smart some fans really are—this is clearly just those capybaras getting bored and starting trouble.

If you really go after them, these cute-looking bastards will turn into man-eating tigers in the next second.

For Xi Zi Ge's first drama, he picked the most brutal one to fight over billing?

You don't find thrills like this.

Xi Zi Ge's team, terrified of misunderstandings, even issued a statement saying they won't fight over billing—Xi Zi Ge is just the second lead; please respect Teacher Bai and the production team and so on and so forth.

The capybaras: Boring, that's it? You've got the Three Little Ones—your combined fan numbers are twice Bai Liang's! And you still won't go for it?

"Online? I haven't checked Weibo these past two days—why are you calling me about something this trivial? Let's settle it on the show."

"Who is it?" Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni asked curiously, sitting in front of Bai Liang.

"Xi Zi Ge. Said some fans are irrational, and he wanted to say hello to you."

"Oh come on, young people have no spirit at all! I remember when you first started, you went straight for that guy—how impressive!" Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni grinned, stoking the fire.

"He's already in, and you still won't let him off?"

"You didn't let him off either!"

At this moment, Bai Liang was on the set of "The Flowing Years," visiting to check in—and also to whisk Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni away.

He'd just been scolded by Chen Daoming: "I've never seen someone visit a set like this!"

He had a point—visiting a set only to steal the female lead sounds pretty weird.

Dong Zijian's gaze was even more mournful, since Bai Liang was about to take away his wife.

Of course, not his real-life wife—just Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni, his on-screen wife.

To be honest, Bai Liang had been surprised when he first found out.

Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni and Dong Zijian playing a couple?

It just felt off somehow—no, he wasn't gossiping behind his buddy's back; well, he did gossip, but he did it to his face.

Brother Bai always says people's "bad things" to their faces!

Compared to that, even when Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni stood next to Chen Daoming, she felt more like a couple.

Dong Zijian, however, said: "They really do have that vibe—even if there's no obvious romantic plotline."

Simply put, the scenes between Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni's Zhu Suosuo and Chen Daoming's Ye Jinyan did cross a subtle line.

But the drama says Ye Jinyan sees his daughter's shadow in Zhu Suosuo—anyway, the official setup is father-daughter affection; it's up to the audience to believe it.

Meanwhile, because Chen Daoming played Ye Jinyan, the real male leads of this drama were utterly crushed—it was like a dimension-level strike!

Dong Zijian couldn't help but ask Bai Liang: "How did you manage to overshadow Uncle Dao Ming in 'The Longest Day in Chang'an'?"

"Overshadow? I didn't overshadow him—just play your role well. Acting isn't a competition."

"That's true," Dong Zijian admitted, but he still felt something was off—maybe there were some objective reasons.

Not just in acting—even in real life, when Bai Liang stood there, you never felt overshadowed by Chen Daoming; you could even sense a faint reverse dominance!

Dong Zijian, upon realizing this, looked like he'd seen a ghost.

Is the number one newcomer of the new generation really this insane?!

But honestly, when Dong Zijian had acted with Bai Liang before, he hadn't felt this overwhelming—has this guy improved, or does he get stronger when facing stronger opponents?

He strained to recall the scenes when Bai Liang had acted with Deng Chao—seemingly, he'd never once been outshone.

Bai Liang, however, had no idea what Dong Zijian was pondering—he'd just watched a clip of Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni as Zhu Suosuo, and felt this role truly suited her.

Zhu Suosuo—firmly locks men's gaze!

So is Liu Shishi really the lead of this drama?

What kind of performance would she need to pull off to overshadow a role so perfectly suited to Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni?

Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni: I'll tell you secretly—she can't overshadow me; I'll overshadow her instead!

Fight over billing! When the drama airs, I'm definitely fighting over billing!

Liu Shishi: Really? I'm here, sis.

Then she turned to Bai Liang, smiling: "You dare show up?"

Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni looked left and right, delighted, and began to gloat.

The look in her eyes clearly said: Got you!

Unfortunately, Liu Shishi arrived a little too late.

She'd just caught up with Bai Liang when he was already leaving with Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni.

So Liu Shishi had no time to "sparring" with Bai Liang—she just glared at him fiercely: "WeChat QR code!"

Bai Liang obediently cooperated, letting her scan it.

After scanning, Liu Shishi felt relieved—even though she didn't know why she kept thinking about this, it felt like completing a wish.

Even after adding Bai Liang as a friend, she had nothing to say to him—it was like elementary school kids adding each other for "expansion."

Just as Liu Shishi was mocking herself, she suddenly spotted a blind spot.

Bai Liang and Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni had already left the "The Flowing Years" set over ten minutes ago.

Yet… this little bastard still hadn't accepted her friend request!

Liu Shishi:???

Shit! She'd still be thinking about it.

Bai Liang: Married and mother of children, Liu Shishi looks much better now.

Before, Liu Shishi's label was "gentle as a chrysanthemum."

The moment they met, that air of intellect and elegance seemed ready to overflow.

It was as if becoming a wife and mother had only amplified her charm.

Bai Liang: Then I definitely shouldn't accept her friend request—I'm afraid Liu Shishi can't hold back.

There's no help for it; lately he seems to be quite favored by mothers of children.

Divorced women don't matter, but those still married? No way.

Just look—Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni even praised him for having guts!

Of course, her full statement was: If you've got guts, never accept her friend request for the rest of your life.

"Pregnancy makes you stupid for three years," Bai Liang suddenly said.

"Huh? What does that mean?"

"Actually, anyone who's been in sales knows the best way to add someone on WeChat isn't to scan their QR code and send a friend request—it's to wait until you're face-to-face, when they can't refuse, and let them scan yours."

Bai Liang paused. "A small trick for adding friends—if you need it, write it down."

"No wonder you're so popular—you're too good at this!" Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni exclaimed.

But Bai Liang shook his head. "These are all tactics girls use against me. After enough exposure, you become an expert."

In response, Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni gave him the middle finger.

——

The show "Actors, Step Into Position" is produced by Tencent.

Yes, the first promotional stop was indeed this show.

After Chen Kaige mentioned Bai Liang's name, he was genuinely "summoned."

It felt like a shaman invoking a spirit.

Of course, the real reason was that Grand Director Chen had already created the topic and trending buzz; once both sides connected, they realized they couldn't waste the momentum, so a quick discussion arranged everything.

Tencent didn't mind Bai Liang promoting Youku's web drama.

And Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni had now grown accustomed to tagging along with Bai Liang everywhere—just not promoting Youku's variety shows.

But Xi Zi Ge still didn't seem very familiar with it.

For this promotional trip of the "Chang'an Twelve Hours" cast to "Actors, Step Into Position," there were four people total.

Bai Liang, Unlike Unlike Unlike Ni Ni, Xi Zi Ge, and Zhou Yiwei.

Zhou Yiwei didn't need to come in the first place, but "Actors, Step Into Position" had four mentors, each leading a team.

Three people would've been awkward to divide.

Four was perfect—each person joined one mentor as a supporting guest performer.

Before going, Bai Liang naturally checked the mentors and contestants.

He spotted some familiar faces.

For example, Zhao Yanzi's team had Chen Yao, and Chen Kaige's team had Zhu Zhu Xudan.

Unfortunately, both had been eliminated last episode.

Fortunately, Bai Liang got along well with Niu Junfeng from Chen Kaige's team—they'd acted together in "Wei Wei" and "Chu Qiao Zhuan."

Also an old acquaintance.

Normally, he'd definitely join Chen Kaige's team.

After all, Grand Director Chen had specifically named him, even using him to motivate other contestants.

Under these circumstances, even if Bai Liang didn't want to show off, he absolutely had to give it his all.

His own reputation and Chen Kaige's were now tied together—so naturally, they'd team up for a joint strike!

To give these "little brats" a little Weibo Emperor shock!

But Grand Director Chen, whether due to old habits or his sense of "status," insisted on drawing lots to pick people.

And then—

"Welcome to our team!"

Guo Xiaosi's face nearly twisted into a grin! He had no idea what happened—he just drew, and boom!

His long-desired "muse" had landed right in his lap.

Even if it was only for this show, once there's one, there'll be a second.

Even though his previous script submissions to Bai Liang had been ruthlessly rejected, Guo Xiaosi wasn't discouraged—this time didn't work, there'd be another.

As long as he stayed in the entertainment industry as a director, and Bai Liang stayed in it too, collaboration was just a matter of time.

Though no one knew where his weird confidence came from, the result was that everyone had assumed Chen Kaige was Bai Liang's biggest fan—until now, they realized Guo Xiaosi was the hidden champion of fandom.

He truly wanted to fangirl!

His smile was like a blooming chrysanthemum, fully unfurled.

Because his gaze was so intensely hot, Bai Liang involuntarily stepped back.

After all, rumor had it that Director Xiao Si liked… uh~

Fortunately, he still had some sense—he was merely verbally enthusiastic and his eyes burned, but didn't cross into physical contact.

Yet Bai Liang still felt like he'd been hit with a high-intensity wave!

Although Grand Director Chen loved reciting poetry, he was also genuinely skilled.

Bai Liang had enjoyed a pleasant collaboration with him, so he felt working with him on a variety show to show off would be easy.

After all, Chen Kaige was also quite good at showing off—the two of them teaming up to blow the stage away wouldn't be hard at all.

But Guo Xiaosi… Bai Liang's mind was now flooded with "The Little Times," as if echoing, "Lin Xiao, you're really sophisticated when you insult people."

Should he call Big Mi Mi and ask her just how good Guo Xiaosi really was?

Still, Xi Zi Ge, now in Grand Director Chen's hands, wasn't faring any better.

Chen Kaige: Kid, you're acting with Bai Liang? Then you must be pretty brave too? Let me take a look~

Xi Zi Ge suddenly felt overwhelming pressure. He'd just come to record a show to promote his TV drama—how had he somehow ended up under pressure from the great director?

He even considered calling Arthur to ask how his father should handle this.

Unfortunately, he didn't have Arthur's contact information, since the two of them disliked each other.

——

Third update today, muah~ Please vote for monthly tickets.

The Alliance Leader's extra update is still one chapter short.

(End of chapter)