Chapter 456: Recording (7,000-word update!)

Director Team.

Li Zhenzhen looked at the split-screen monitor in the control van. The real-time footage of each artist was transmitted here, allowing her to monitor the recording status in real-time.

The assistant director said: "This doesn't feel like a wish list anymore; it feels weird. I initially thought this segment was about helping each other fulfill wishes that hadn't been realized, but now it looks more like making demands of each other."

Li Zhenzhen said: "It's fine. On the show, we'll just put the design intent of this segment and the artists' actual presentation out there. Later, during the artist interviews, we'll ask why they gave such wishes."

The assistant director was stunned.

"Ask directly?"

"Yes."

"Won't this make the audience think they are too utilitarian?" the assistant director said with some concern. "Because the wishes proposed are all related to their own interests."

Li Zhenzhen said: "Have you forgotten the original intent and purpose of our show? Besides, what kind of wish is one unrelated to one's own interests? Why be a saint? I think these practical wishes are quite good; it shows that everyone isn't hypocritically building a persona or making up sentimental stories."

The assistant director was convinced by Li Zhenzhen's words.

Fine, it was an attitude completely beyond his imagination.

Working as hotel staff was not a simple task.

They didn't want to act like service staff, but their identities made it impossible for them to appear normally in front of ordinary guests—there were too many unexpected factors, and those guests might not be willing to appear on camera.

Therefore, they all took on roles that didn't require interacting with guests.

For example, room cleaning, ironing clothes, material procurement, etc.

A whole day of work was tiring, without any discount.

It wasn't staged, nor was it just filming a bit of footage and stopping when enough was gathered.

By the evening, when the scores and rankings were announced, the five groups were in a state completely different from when they started recording in the morning.

Lu Yan He felt extremely exhausted, having walked at least 20,000 steps carrying various supplies up and down the hotel.

At this time, Yan Liang, who insisted on working out, became the only one who could maintain his energy.

On the way to the house where they would live together this season, everyone was almost fast asleep.

Lu Yan He was also sleepy and had squinted for a while, but accidentally bumped his head against the car window, waking himself up.

Peng Zhixing, sitting next to him, was looking down at a tablet in his hands.

He was holding a stylus, circling and drawing on it.

"What are you looking at?" Lu Yan He asked in a low voice.

"Oh, a proposal for a new show," Peng Zhixing said. "The company is having a topic meeting next week, and I want to submit this."

"Is this a show you planned yourself?" Lu Yan He asked curiously.

Peng Zhixing nodded.

He said: "If I only work as a host, I'm still too passive."

"Is your current fixed work just your talk show and the recording of *Young Days*?" Lu Yan He asked.

Peng Zhixing nodded. "Usually, events and galas held by Arctic Light also have me host, but other than that, there's no other fixed work."

Peng Zhixing's main work was still his talk show.

Outside of that, he sometimes received invitations from *Jump Up* to act as a special host on their video channel, interviewing the creators of film and television works.

But these were not fixed.

For a host, this work rhythm was clearly insufficient.

Unlike actors who need to maintain mystery, hosts actually need to give the audience a sense of daily companionship. The more common they are, the more familiar they become, and the stronger the audience's stickiness.

"Another thing is that my current talk show is mostly playing a supporting promotional role for the platform. I still want to do a show with more of my own independence."

"Does your platform support you doing this?"

"As long as I don't delay my original work, they certainly don't object."

In fact, Peng Zhixing was already a host with a fixed fan base. Not only had his talk show been airing for several years, but the show *Young Days* had brought Peng Zhixing huge popularity and fame. It could be said that his current popularity was not inferior to those young idols who became famous because of one or two dramas.

Arctic Light Video also valued such a host with potential and infinite future development possibilities.

Lu Yan He: "As long as your platform supports it, that's fine."

Peng Zhixing asked: "The Weibo post you made two days ago, was it because someone asked you to invest in a movie?"

Lu Yan He glanced at the GoPro in front of them and said: "This matter is complicated. Let's talk about it privately later."

Peng Zhixing had an epiphany and nodded.

Although they were chatting casually now, everything they said was recorded by the cameras and microphones.

Peng Zhixing suddenly laughed and asked: "What wish did you write this morning?"

Lu Yan He didn't say, asking: "What did you write? Forget it, what I got definitely wasn't written by you. You should just say what wish you got."

"What I got definitely wasn't written by you," Peng Zhixing said. "The wish I got was: 'I want to lose 5 pounds.'"

Lu Yan He looked at Peng Zhixing in surprise.

"There's such a wish? How do you help fulfill that?"

Peng Zhixing said: "I already have an idea, hehe."

He revealed a mischievous smile.

Seeing this, Lu Yan He also laughed. "What idea did you come up with, smiling so sneakily?"

Peng Zhixing said: "Weight loss requires motivation to succeed. I'll provide the motivation."

Lu Yan He was very curious about what kind of motivation Peng Zhixing would provide.

He was also very curious about whose wish it was to lose 5 pounds.

"Hey, Yan He!" Song Lin Xin, sitting behind, suddenly called him.

Lu Yan He turned his head and saw Song Lin Xin's head squeezed into the narrow gap between two chairs, a small part poking out.

"What's wrong?"

"Does the movie *Love Letter* you filmed have an OST suitable for me to sing?" Song Lin Xin said. "If there is, I'll sing it for you for free."

Lu Yan He was astonished.

"Why are you suddenly so kind? However, I haven't considered the OST yet. I might not put an OST in it, just background music."

Song Lin Xin said: "I heard your budget for this movie is insufficient. If you don't have enough money, I'll sing one for you to save some money."

Lu Yan He was both amused and quite moved.

"Thank you. If I need it, I'll call you, but insufficient budget... where did you hear that?" Lu Yan He asked.

Song Lin Xin said: "I heard it from my team. They all say you aren't very optimistic about the box office of this movie and have kept the budget very low."

Lu Yan He said: "It's not that tight, but it's better to save where we can, and spend where we must."

"Fine, anyway, if you need help, just call me," Song Lin Xin said, yawning. "No, I'm too sleepy. I need to sleep a bit more, otherwise I won't have the energy to continue recording tonight."

She lay back on the chair, closed her eyes, and continued to sleep.

Peng Zhixing asked Lu Yan He in a low voice: "Is *Love Letter* really not short of funds? I also heard that your movie has a very low cost, not even 20 million in production budget."

Lu Yan He nodded and said: "That is indeed the case, but that's because both Bige and I only took a symbolic salary, and the rest of the salary was converted into investment. This movie itself isn't a commercial film, so it doesn't need that much production budget."

"Then why are so many people saying your movie is short of money?" Peng Zhixing said. "Actually, I also felt it was strange when I heard this claim, after all, your *Lost on Journey* just took over 600 million at the box office. Your new movie shouldn't be short of investors."

Lu Yan He: "People outside are probably spreading rumors."

"Indeed, I also feel there is more and more news about you outside," Peng Zhixing said. "True or false, real or fake, some people have heard that I know you and come to me to inquire about some news."

Lu Yan He said: "This phenomenon seems to be increasing recently."

Peng Zhixing: "After all, you are currently at the height of your career."

"If only we could buy Lu Yan He's company," Zheng Huairen suddenly sighed while meeting with company staff to discuss the follow-up arrangements for *Squid Game*. "Lu Yan He's company is a gold mine, holding the copyrights to so many shows like *Rouge*, *Squid Game*, *My Own Swordsman*, and *Lost on Journey*."

Someone said: "Why don't we acquire Lu Yan He's company?"

"Acquire?" Zheng Huairen's eyes rolled, as if he were seriously considering this matter.

"How much would it cost to acquire Lu Yan He's production company?"

"Judging from the value presented by these few IPs, at least nine figures."

"Nine figures? Then you are underestimating it. Don't forget, *Lost on Journey*, *Squid Game*, and *My Own Swordsman* are all planned to be developed into series. How much value is contained in that? No evaluation company would give an opinion of only nine figures."

"Then do you think Lu Yan He would sell?"

"That's really not certain."

Zheng Huairen prided himself on knowing a little bit about Lu Yan He.

He thought seriously about whether Lu Yan He would be willing to sell the company.

Thinking about it, the situation was really not optimistic.

Lu Yan He didn't seem like the type of person who would be willing to sell his production company to others—

It wasn't about anything else, but Zheng Huairen knew very well that the reason Lu Yan He and Chen Ziyan established that film and television production company was to keep the copyrights of the scripts Lu Yan He created in their own hands.

"Is *My Own Swordsman* ready to start filming?"

"Yes, preparing to start in the third quarter," Zheng Huairen nodded. "The first season will only film 18 episodes first."

"How is the investment attraction for *My Own Swordsman*?" Zheng Huairen asked the head of the business department.

"There are many brands interested, but everyone is a bit hesitant. After all, our ad space pricing is not low, and everyone is not very optimistic about the prospects of costume comedies," the head of the business department said.

"Even if *Lost on Journey* exploded and once again proved Lu Yan He's ability to write comedies, are they still not optimistic?"

"Yes."

Zheng Huairen was a bit helpless.

Advertisers nowadays are becoming more cautious one after another.

In contrast, because of the popularity of *Seventeen Layers*, the investment attraction for *Squid Game* was much more optimistic.

The title sponsorship ad space was sold directly for a high price of 35 million.

In addition, four opening ad spaces were sold to four brands for 9.5 million.

Other business negotiations were still ongoing.

Based on the current situation, *Squid Game* could fully recover its costs before airing.

Thanks to the success of *Seventeen Layers*, the market's optimism for *Squid Game* was far higher than for *My Own Swordsman*.

At 9 PM, Lu Yan He and the others had dinner together, showered, and gathered in the living room downstairs to record the last segment of the first episode.

Wishes.

Li Zhenzhen asked: "Did anyone privately ask during the day whose wish they got?"

Lu Yan He was the first to shake his head: "I don't need to ask for this."

"Why?" Everyone looked over curiously.

Lu Yan He said: "This is too easy to guess. The wish I drew was to have me be a guest at this person's concert. Among us, the only singers are Qin Zhibai, Liu Zhiyin, and Song Lin Xin. What I drew should be one of their wishes."

Li Zhibai immediately shouted: "You look down on people too much! Am I not a singer? Can't I hold a concert?"

Yan Liang also said: "Exactly, although I'm acting now, I haven't stopped my stage performances. Why can't I hold a concert?"

Lu Yan He: "... I really forgot about you guys."

Lu Yan He was as confident before as he was embarrassed and awkward now.

The others couldn't stop laughing.

"Let me ask whose wish I drew first, hurry up and claim it," Peng Zhixing raised the card he drew. "Friends who wished to lose 5 pounds, raise your hand."

Xiao Yun raised her hand.

Peng Zhixing: "Why is it you?"

Xiao Yun said: "Why can't it be me?"

Peng Zhixing looked at Xiao Yun from head to toe, up and down, before saying: "With your figure, is there a need to lose 5 pounds?"

Xiao Yun said very annoyedly: "I look fat on camera."

Cameras magnify a person's figure, especially since screens are generally widescreen now, making it easier to stretch people out.

This requirement is even more demanding for actresses.

"Besides, the role I'm playing in the drama I'm joining next is a swordswoman," Xiao Yun said firmly.

Lu Yan He couldn't help but laugh.

"What are you laughing at?" Qin Zhibai asked in surprise.

Always straightforward and simple-minded, he asked whatever came to his mind.

Everyone looked at Lu Yan He.

Lu Yan He said to Xiao Yun: "Are you sure you're playing a swordswoman? Don't mislead the audience."

Xiao Yun: "... Can't a swordswoman who works as a waiter still be a swordswoman? Do you believe I'll 'Pai Shan Dao Hai' (Palm Strike) you to death?"

Qin Zhibai: "Why don't I understand what you guys are talking about?"

Lu Yan He said: "We were just talking about the role she plays in *My Own Swordsman*."

Qin Zhibai had an epiphany.

"So that's what it means."

Lu Yan He turned to ask Peng Zhixing: "Brother Zhixing, how do you plan to help Xiao Yun lose 5 pounds?"

"From today until the end of this season's recording, which is about two months, Xiao Yun, you check in in our group every day. We will supervise your exercise together. If you don't exercise, I will drag everyone to complain about you being lazy on Weibo," Peng Zhixing said.

Xiao Yun revealed an expression of disbelief. "What? What the heck?"

"You heard me right," Peng Zhixing said. "And you ate too much at dinner just now. You finished two bowls of rice. What female celebrity eats like you?"

Xiao Yun immediately pointed at Song Lin Xin and said: "Her, she also ate two bowls just now."

Song Lin Xin: "..."

"Brother Zhixing, be careful that the audience doesn't say you are PUA-ing a female celebrity with what you just said," Li Zhibai laughed.

Peng Zhixing: "Huh? Where did I PUA a female celebrity?"

"Didn't you just say yourself that Xiao Yun's figure doesn't need to lose 5 pounds?"

"Didn't she say herself that she looks fat on camera and needs to lose another 5 pounds?" Peng Zhixing immediately made an 'X' gesture with his arms toward the camera. "Nothing to do with me, refuse cyberbullying."

Xiao Yun sighed and said: "Great, now I've lifted a rock only to drop it on my own feet."

"Who told you to write such a wish," Song Lin Xin complained accurately.

Xiao Yun glanced at her sideways. "Although you are a singer and don't need to act, you should also control your weight. You're already a bit fatter than three years ago, right?"

Song Lin Xin: "Refuse PUA."

Xiao Yun rolled her eyes.

"These artists... are they really not worried about being scolded by the audience for saying these things?"

The assistant director took off his headphones in surprise and said to the person next to him.

The person next to him laughed and said: "I feel that when they are together, they dare to say anything, and they say it directly. It's obvious they don't care."

"In the past, when every episode of our show aired, many people would magnify and analyze a certain sentence or action of the artists and scold them severely, but in the end, it didn't really affect them. In this internet age, no matter what you do, someone will pick on you. Even if you are cautious and careful, someone will still scold you. It's better to just be yourself. At least live out your true personality. Look at Liu Zhiyin; wasn't she scolded quite badly at the beginning of our show? They said she was utilitarian and made the people around her tired. Now? Li Zhibai's fans all say they are thankful Liu Zhiyin is there, at least she can whip the lazy Li Zhibai to move. Same thing, they say both sides of the story."

"Indeed, it's a reality show. If you want to show, you have to be real. The more afraid you are of being scolded, the more cautious you are, and the less interesting the show content is."

The director team had a lively exchange.

Li Zhenzhen returned from outside, heard the topic they were discussing, and said: "Isn't that just it? I heard that some artists now require the production team to write a persona script for them before recording a reality show."

"What the heck?" The assistant director raised his eyebrows in disbelief and asked.

Li Zhenzhen: "You heard me right. That's exactly what you heard. Writing a persona script, treating a reality show like a play, the purpose is to have talking points, explosive points, and to be able to operate and become popular."

Assistant director: "That's really bullshit."

"So, I've always felt that the atmosphere of our *Young Days* production team is quite good," Li Zhenzhen said. "We encountered a group of pretty good artists. At least over four seasons, we haven't encountered any unreasonable demands from them, and they are willing to tell the truth in front of the camera and provide effects. We all know that whether a reality show can succeed and whether it can enter the hearts of the audience depends on whether the artists can move the audience."

"That's what is said, of course, and we all know the importance of artists."

"It's not the importance of artists, but the importance of this group of people," Li Zhenzhen emphasized again. "Why have I put in so much effort to keep these people from the first season to the fourth season? Is it because they are popular and they are artists? No, it's because only when this group of people is together will they say these things, and will they be willing to treat this show as something more than just a show."

The other members of the director team heard Li Zhenzhen say this and revealed thoughtful expressions.

"Lu Yan He, are you sure this is your wish? Starting a celebrity diary column on the *Jump Up* self-media platform? Asking people to write diaries?"

Liu Zhiyin looked at Lu Yan He in disbelief, then looked at Su Xiao, who drew this wish.

Liu Zhiyin had something to say, but out of consideration for Su Xiao, she didn't continue.

She wanted to say, isn't this giving them an opportunity for exposure?

Who doesn't know how influential *Jump Up* is now?

Although it's called self-media, *Jump Up* had never done such a column before; it was completely a fresh thing.

Then, according to *Jump Up*'s practice, they would definitely vigorously promote this celebrity diary column.

And for a whole year.

With such stable and continuous exposure, *Jump Up*'s tens of millions of fans and readers would become familiar with this celebrity artist.

And, a diary—

Isn't this form the easiest way for others to understand a person?

Just hearing this, Liu Zhiyin immediately realized that this celebrity diary column would definitely be of huge help to this celebrity's career.

She even regretted why she didn't draw such a wish.

Su Xiao herself was the one with the least presence in *Young Days*.

Of course, this also had to do with her being young and her personality not being too prominent.

Lu Yan He explained: "This is a new plan thought up by the *Jump Up* editorial team, but they were also struggling, not knowing which artist would be willing to be the first to try it, so I listed it as my wish to see who could help me complete it."

Su Xiao was a bit nervous and asked: "But what if I don't write well?"

Lu Yan He: "It's okay, just write seriously. Your editor will also coordinate with you and help you."

He smiled and said: "I'll have to trouble you for the next year."

Su Xiao said: "I'll try my best to write well."

"Wait, you aren't making people work for free without paying them, are you?" Li Zhibai suddenly asked. "If you do that, you're too much of a capitalist."

Lu Yan He glanced at Li Zhibai sideways. "Don't think of me as being as shameless as you."

Li Zhibai: "I am a messenger of justice."

Lu Yan He scoffed.

The show *Young Days* is not recorded episode by episode, but by season, usually divided into two or three stages, with a break in between.

This time, the first stage of recording would last five days.

Recording for five days in one go was quite exaggerated. For artists, it meant activities under the eyes of cameras for five consecutive days, and it was hard not to expose any flaws or shortcomings. Therefore, people who just started recording reality shows would usually be a bit at a loss, or even nervous.

But for the guests of *Young Days*, they were already well-versed in recording by this time.

Li Zhibai could openly walk in front of the camera with a bird's nest on his head while scratching his butt, sleepy-eyed, without changing his expression.

Liu Zhiyin could do splits and practice on the floor with a mask on, ignoring the people walking around.

Peng Zhixing could have a video meeting with his show team in the room with a notebook. Halfway through, Qin Zhibai came in to borrow a hairdryer. Peng Zhixing didn't even need to look at him, directly pointing to the location of the washroom and saying "Go get it yourself."

Xiao Yun could also pull Su Xiao to accompany her in rehearsing, familiarizing herself with the script of *Martial Arts Inn*, occasionally entering the state of the character Guo Furong, performing a "Pai Shan Dao Hai" at someone walking by, and then being scolded by someone saying "You're sick in the head, go to the hospital."

Lu Yan He... Lu Yan He was hiding in the toilet with his phone, having a video call with Chen Siqi.

"Still recording the show," Lu Yan He's complaining voice could be clearly heard from the toilet. He clearly didn't realize it at all. "There are a bunch of cameras filming intrusively for twenty hours a day. Only the toilet doesn't have cameras, so I can only video call you from the toilet. Don't mind it."

Yan Liang walked by the door and knocked on the glass door.

"The soundproofing isn't great. Every word you said was crystal clear."

There was a silence in the toilet.

Then, the laughter of Chen Siqi came from the phone.

In the afternoon, Yan Liang was making coffee in the kitchen, and Yin Xincheng came over.

"Drinking coffee?" Yan Liang asked when he saw him coming.

Yin Xincheng nodded: "Yes, can you make espresso?"

"Yes, wait a moment, let me finish this cup first."

"Okay."

Yin Xincheng sat down on the stool next to him.

"What have you been busy with lately?" Yan Liang asked.

"Learning archery, horse riding, and martial arts. I'm joining a drama later," Yin Xincheng said. "*Prosperous Scenery*."

"When are you joining the crew?"

"Probably around October. It hasn't been fully decided yet," Yin Xincheng pouted. "The script is still being changed."

"The script is still being changed? Wasn't it already written? What parts are being changed?" Yan Liang was confused.

"It's a long story." Yin Xincheng only said these four words.

Yan Liang looked up and saw Yin Xincheng's complexion was a bit ugly, guessing that it was probably something not easy to talk about on the show.

He made a cup of espresso for Yin Xincheng and said to him: "Why don't we go over there and talk?"

He was referring to a lounge in front of the kitchen. That room was decorated very warmly, with bookshelves on all four sides, filled with various books. In the middle was a low table where everyone could sit and have afternoon tea and chat.

Yan Liang asked: "The changes to this script, were they not your opinion?"

"No," Yin Xincheng said. "I think the original was better. Now that the script has been changed like this, I don't know what it will turn into in the end."

Yan Liang asked: "Then why change it? Do you know the reason?"

Yin Xincheng could only lean to Yan Liang's ear and whisper: "It's Chen Ziliang. He brought capital into the crew and demanded that the male lead number two be changed into a dual-male lead plot."

Yan Liang immediately frowned.

"Why is this person like a ghost that won't go away?"

Yin Xincheng continued to whisper: "But I've already signed the contract with the production side, and I can't break the contract. It's so annoying. My agent didn't keep an eye out when signing the contract and didn't add corresponding restrictive clauses. Now we don't have any means to stop this."

Yan Liang asked: "Then what do you plan to do? Bite the bullet and act?"

"It seems I can only bite the bullet and act."

Yan Liang thought for a while and said: "Why don't you go ask Yan He for his opinion later? He is knowledgeable and experienced, maybe he can help you think of a way."

Yin Xincheng sighed: "Forget it, don't trouble him. He has a lot of things to do. I'll digest this mess myself. A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit."

Yan Liang patted his shoulder, not knowing what to say for a moment. ===== CHAPTER 457 =====