Chapter 520: The bright moon is here, sharing the same sky (8,000-word update!)

Following his first scene, Lu Yanhe could be said to have become famous in a single battle within the *Mist* crew.

When all is said and done, an actor must rely on their acting skills to speak.

This is especially true in a place like a film crew.

Having high popularity and being famous can indeed earn you some preferential treatment, but if you truly want to win the recognition and acknowledgment of the crew members, you still have to rely on solid acting skills.

It's just like some actors who aren't very famous, but if their professional ability is recognized as strong, they will definitely receive respect and courtesy from those popular stars when they attend events—the prerequisite being that this actor's professional ability is recognized as strong. If their acting is very good but not known to that many people, many won't bother to put on this show of politeness.

Why is it like this?

Because no matter how "traffic-obsessed" the actual situation of this era is, in everyone's perception, acting is still king.

You don't have to "make acting king," but you cannot say so publicly, because the result of saying so openly goes against public order and good customs; while being attacked by public opinion, you will also be jointly spurned by mainstream media.

This is a basic understanding that constructs the entertainment industry.

In the *Mist* crew, regardless of the fame of these young actors, and regardless of whether they are highly likely to become superstars in the future, here, in the present, if you act averagely, or even poorly, although people won't say it to your face, they will be somewhat disdainful in their hearts.

A young Best Actor from China like Lu Yanhe is, to many, a stranger whose works they have never seen. Those who know a little bit know he has won Best Actor at China's mainstream film awards and has many works that have won prizes at the four major international film festivals, so his fame is quite significant.

But what exactly is the level of his acting? In the end, "seeing is believing; hearsay is not the truth."

Now, Lu Yanhe's acting has a concrete description: his first scene scared Arne Bogut.

"Arne, is that Chinese guy's acting really that exaggerated? He scared you in the first scene?"

The muscular Simon Schmid wore a teasing smile, looking at Arne Bogut, his eyes full of mockery, as if he found it funny that Arne Bogut had been scared while acting.

Arne Bogut glanced at him and said, "You'll know when you act opposite him."

Simon Schmid curled his lip and said, "You're just a coward yourself. I've never been afraid of ghosts or things like that."

Lily Williams shot Simon Schmid a sideways glance and said, "You're so sturdy, of course you're not afraid of these things. We're not like you."

Actually, it could be said that China's science education is done well.

At least among the youth demographic, China is basically still thoroughly "atheist," not believing in the existence of ghosts or gods. But here in the West, it's different; there is a significant group of people who genuinely believe that ghosts and gods exist in this world.

Just like the three of them are discussing now, through their conversation, one can also discover that some of them truly believe ghosts exist in this world.

Lily Williams is one of them.

"When Arne was acting in that scene with Lu Yanhe, I was also on set, watching the monitor behind the director." Lily Williams's eyelashes trembled slightly, as if remembering something. "Lu Yanhe was truly like an evil ghost coming for revenge. Just thinking about having to act with him like that makes me nervous and scared."

"Lily, you're exaggerating. No matter how well he acts, it's still just acting," Simon Schmid said.

Lily Williams immediately said, "Have you forgotten about *Ghost Gate*?"

"*Ghost Gate*?" Upon hearing this name, Simon Schmid's expression suddenly changed.

It wasn't just him; Arne Bogut's expression changed as well.

"The marketing for our film could actually refer to the film *Ghost Gate*."

Xinnalin was talking to Muken Zorge on set about the marketing for this film, saying, "You know how *Ghost Gate* was marketed, right?"

"Hmm, they did a lot of marketing for the actor who played the ghost in the film, saying he was possessed by a ghost on set and that the actor didn't remember anything that happened on set at all. Then other actors said that when acting, that actor seemed like a different person, completely changed, as if they were being suppressed by something, a fear like ghost paralysis." Muken Zorge said, "A lot of crew rumors appeared to create topic marketing for that film, and in the end, it achieved very good results, grossing 130 million dollars globally."

"To this day, they still deny that this was film marketing, claiming it was something that really happened, but we all know it was definitely marketing." Xinnalin said, "I think our film should also learn from this method. Lu Yanhe is Chinese; you have to know, China's ghost and god legends are no fewer than ours. I think if we could do some similar marketing around him, it would definitely attract a lot of attention."

Muken Zorge shook his head directly, saying, "Impossible. Lu is not an ordinary, unknown actor; many people know him. Doing this kind of marketing on him won't have any effect at all. You underestimate his fame and influence in the global film circle."

Xinnalin indeed didn't mix in that art film circle, nor did she know much about Lu Yanhe's situation.

However, Xinnalin still insisted, saying, "His high fame is even better; isn't that a double effect? A famous actor, in the process of filming a horror movie, experiences many unexplainable mysterious things, and even suspected ghost possession. This story is definitely eye-catching."

Muken Zorge frowned slightly.

"I don't think Lu Yanhe will accept it," Muken Zorge said directly.

"Muken, then do you also think that the marketing plan I proposed is very beneficial to the film's box office?" Xinnalin asked.

Muken Zorge said, "I believe my film can sell well at the box office without this kind of marketing. I haven't used this kind of marketing method for my past two films, and I don't like this kind of marketing method. Only low-class horror films need this kind of fake marketing."

A horror film isn't scary because it's based on true events.

In this world, most people know horror films aren't real, yet they are still scared out of their wits, and some have even died unexpectedly from heart attacks due to fright.

Muken Zorge can be said to be a director with quite a lot of ideas and personal aesthetic pursuits in filmmaking.

Although Muken said this, he noticed that Xinnalin's expression didn't seem to be convinced by him.

Whether the film *Mist* can achieve box office success is actually a greater pressure for Xinnalin.

This is a project that Xinnalin pushed for single-handedly.

Even though Muken Zorge's past two films achieved box office success, that doesn't mean the third one will achieve success 100 percent of the time.

It's not like that.

Now there is a way to reduce the film's box office pressure, and even allow them to start dreaming early, so how could Xinnalin easily give up?

Chen Ziyan arrived at this moment.

She rushed over, travel-worn, meeting Lu Yanhe again after a two-week interval.

"*Wu Lin Gaiden*'s final episode had over 30 million viewers in 24 hours on Arctic Light Video, becoming the series with the most new member sign-ups for Arctic Light Video this year, and also the series with the highest pre-roll advertising revenue." Chen Ziyan said to Lu Yanhe, "Congratulations, you've made another TV series that created a ratings miracle."

Lu Yanhe smiled and waved his hand, saying, "When is the second season scheduled to be released?"

Chen Ziyan said, "Early next year, broadcast in winter, catching the winter break. In addition, *Wu Lin Gaiden* will also be exclusively broadcast on Yuehu TV, with two episodes aired back-to-back every afternoon. Remember to post a promotional Weibo for Yuehu TV."

"Hmm, okay." Lu Yanhe nodded. "Then what will the ratings probably be?"

"I don't know, but after Arctic Light Video finishes broadcasting, except for the first episode, every subsequent episode of *Wu Lin Gaiden* will require a membership to watch. I think broadcasting on TV will still attract quite a few viewers." Chen Ziyan said, "This is also a new model that can be explored. After the web broadcast ends, it turns into a member-only viewing series. If people want to watch this series without paying for a membership, they can go to the TV station to watch it."

Lu Yanhe: "But the TV station doesn't broadcast it every day."

"Of course, this just means there are more viewing channels, and everyone takes what they need." Chen Ziyan said, "The key is, look at *Friends*. At the time, it was slow to be broadcast on video websites, and it had been broadcast for dozens of rounds on Beijing TV, yet the ratings remained high, and advertisements were endless, showing that for this kind of series, the market is huge. As long as you broadcast it, no matter how many times you've broadcast it, there will still be people watching."

Lu Yanhe: "Then I hope *Wu Lin Gaiden* can also be broadcast very well on Yuehu TV."

Chen Ziyan: "There is another piece of good news, you definitely want to hear it."

"Hmm?" Lu Yanhe was stunned, a bit confused, and asked, "What good news?"

"Because of the hit broadcast of *Wu Lin Gaiden*, the number of tourists in Jiangzhi surged by over 600,000 last week." Chen Ziyan said, "Jiangzhi's Tongfu Inn is booming."

Lu Yanhe smiled in surprise.

"Really?"

"Really." Chen Ziyan said, "Jiangzhi's tourism department specially sent us a silk banner to thank the *Wu Lin Gaiden* crew for their contribution to the local tourism industry. Not only that, Huang Kai and Liu Zi were also hired as promotional ambassadors for Jiangzhi tourism."

"That's great."

Chen Ziyan: "People in Jiangzhi also said that they will push for *Wu Lin Gaiden* to apply for various official mainstream awards later. This is directly driving the local economy, which is of extraordinary significance."

"Then Brother Yunlan and Sister Yiyi must be busy as can be during this time." Lu Yanhe laughed.

"That's for sure."

Chen Ziyan: "Because we still need to continue filming the later parts at Tongfu Inn in the second half of the year, and now that Jiangzhi is so popular, everyone is under quite a bit of pressure, fearing that when filming, the heat won't subside, causing a lot of trouble for the filming."

Lu Yanhe said, "This is a happy problem."

"It is indeed a happy problem." Chen Ziyan nodded. "Arctic Light Video asked me to ask for your opinion. They want to ask, can *Wu Lin Gaiden* be developed into some spin-off series?"

"Spin-off series?" Lu Yanhe was a bit surprised.

Chen Ziyan said, "This is a martial arts film, after all, and it's a sitcom. All the stories happen in the environment of Tongfu Inn, but actually, this has a huge worldview. They feel they can develop some of the stories mentioned in *Wu Lin Gaiden* and film them as spin-off series. If you are willing to authorize and agree to them filming, they will start preparing."

Lu Yanhe: "I don't have time to write the scripts for spin-off series for them."

"I know, they know too, so they only need your consent." Chen Ziyan said, "If you don't agree, there's nothing to be done about it."

"I think filming spin-off series is fine, but let's wait until *Wu Lin Gaiden* finishes broadcasting. I don't want *Wu Lin Gaiden* to not have finished broadcasting yet and have other shows come to steal the spotlight."

"Okay." Chen Ziyan nodded. "They aren't that fast either; they need to find people to write scripts, prepare the crew, and then film and broadcast. It's a very long process."

"Hmm." Lu Yanhe nodded.

Chen Ziyan only stayed for two days.

She mainly came to see how Lu Yanhe was doing in the crew.

Lu Yanhe took her around the set.

"Actually, it's not much different from back home; we don't have much difference in hardware." Lu Yanhe said, "But there is one point that shocked me: the crew here operates very efficiently. Everyone knows what they need to do as soon as they arrive on set, and basically, they only film for about eight hours a day, and they finish work when the time is up."

Chen Ziyan said, "Their century of crew management experience is not something we can compare to. Learn more, and use it in our own crews in the future."

"Hmm."

Chen Ziyan was chatting with Lu Yanhe while looking around when suddenly a woman came toward them.

"This is our film's producer, Xinnalin." Lu Yanhe introduced her to Chen Ziyan.

Chen Ziyan: "Oh, I know, I've had a video call with her."

As she spoke, Xinnalin had already walked up to them, stopped, and smiled happily at Chen Ziyan.

"Ziyan." Xinnalin pronounced it quite accurately.

Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan were both surprised.

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Xinnalin said, "Since you're here, I also have something I want to discuss with you both."

The thing Xinnalin wanted to discuss with them was actually about the film marketing she had previously mentioned to Director Muken.

"We cannot cooperate with this kind of promotional method." Chen Ziyan heard it and didn't hesitate at all, shaking her head directly to refuse. "This kind of promotional method will cause great damage to Yanhe's actor image."

Xinnalin had actually long anticipated that Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan would have concerns in this regard.

Indeed, unless it's an actor who is past their prime and needs some topics to make a comeback, or an artist whose persona label is very dramatic and says shocking things, under normal circumstances, no actor with aspirations who is on the rise would be willing to be associated with rumors like "ghost possession."

However—

Xinnalin continued to try to persuade Lu Yanhe and Chen Ziyan.

"After the film is released, we will clarify that all these rumors were to promote the film." Xinnalin said, "We know you come from a country that doesn't promote ghosts and gods. Don't worry, we just hope to help the film be known by more people through relevant promotion before the release."

"Sorry, we cannot cooperate with this kind of promotion." Chen Ziyan didn't consider it at all, her attitude unmoved. "No matter how much this kind of promotional method promotes the film's box office, the damage to the actor is very great."

Xinnalin didn't expect Chen Ziyan's attitude to be so firm, leaving no room for discussion.

She was silent for a long while, then looked at Lu Yanhe.

She seemed to want to see if Lu Yanhe had a different attitude.

"This kind of promotional method is very likely to make *Mist*'s box office exceed 100 million." Xinnalin said.

Lu Yanhe looked at Xinnalin with a smile and said, "My salary pays for my performance, not my reputation."

When he first debuted, Lu Yanhe actually didn't want to become a "troublesome actor" in the eyes of others.

Having all kinds of problems, making the crew feel troubled, and being uncooperative with the crew's work.

At that time, he often saw some actors get a reputation for being "very difficult to work with," and he silently thought to himself that he must not be that kind of actor.

Later, as he experienced more crews and encountered more situations, he also realized one thing: blindly cooperating doesn't make a good actor.

If you can blindly cooperate, it means you don't have anything you need to stick to and defend.

So, Lu Yanhe slowly changed his approach. Or rather, he slowly corrected his thinking.

He also slowly realized why many good actors get a reputation for being "difficult," "hard to work with," and "having a strange temper."

It's not that they are the opposite of this reputation, but rather, for them, they might no longer care about these things—especially after reaching a certain status, they don't need to blindly please everyone anymore; they just need to do their part well, know what cannot be compromised, and then stick to it to the end.

As for whether this makes some people unhappy, then let them be unhappy.

Xinnalin didn't express any dissatisfaction directly to Lu Yanhe, but dissatisfaction doesn't need to be said directly to someone's face as "I don't like you" to be felt.

However, this didn't affect Lu Yanhe's acting.

From the first scene, Lu Yanhe's performance gained the recognition of the entire crew. Later on, even every time he had a scene, some staff members would look forward to seeing him act on set.

After noticing this phenomenon, Simon Schmid muttered privately: "Is his acting really that good? It's rumored so magically."

Simon Schmid had also seen Lu Yanhe act on set, but because he hadn't acted opposite Lu Yanhe yet, he didn't have the personal experience that Arne Bogut had.

He didn't think Lu Yanhe acted poorly, but he was just sighing—

Is it really that good?

Are you all acting too exaggerated?

"With your acting skills, are you still being questioned on set?" Yan Liang asked in surprise.

That night, the three of them were on a video call, and Lu Yanhe talked about his recent life in the crew, mentioning the previous events.

"There's no more now. At the very beginning, they all felt I couldn't act very scary." Lu Yanhe had a smile on his lips. "Actually, I think acting as a ghost is quite exciting. You can act however you want, unlike acting as an ordinary person, where you have to follow normal rules and can't be too jumpy. Acting as a ghost is very satisfying; you can design a lot of things yourself, and it doesn't matter if you act a bit wildly."

Lu Yanhe was indeed acting very jumpily and casually in the *Mist* crew.

Sometimes he was even immersed in the process of acting, enjoying the voyeuristic feeling of being a ghost.

Others were in the light, only he was in the dark.

He was the one who held the initiative.

Hatred could flow wantonly in his body, without the various rational constraints of being human, without being shackled by human morality—he was acting as a ghost, so he could have no boundaries, no sense of proportion, and could even be hysterical without caring about the audience's feelings.

He was no longer human; could anyone still view a ghost who died miserably with moral standards?

Li Zhibai said: "Sounds like you really had a blast acting."

Lu Yanhe: "Yes."

Li Zhibai: "Sigh, you had a blast acting."

"What's wrong with you?" Lu Yanhe asked.

"Annoying." Li Zhibai said, "Ever since *Death Can't Stop Me* wrapped up, I've been reading scripts for half a year and haven't seen one I like."

"Aren't you preparing for *Seventeen Years Crime Record*?" Lu Yanhe asked.

Li Zhibai: "Still working on the script now, not that fast. After the script is out, I still need to find actors, and by the time filming starts, it'll be ages away. *Xianjian* and Huang Beng's film *Go Die* are both starting filming next year. I can't just not join a crew for the whole year this year, right? There's still half a year left."

Lu Yanhe: "Didn't Lin Suyang get you any good scripts?"

"He didn't. He didn't manage actors before, so he doesn't have that resource network. Being able to help me get Huang Beng's *Go Die* before was already an unexpected surprise. For my affairs, he mainly focuses on business and promotion, and filming still depends on myself." Li Zhibai said, "I never thought that one day I would have to contact producers and directors I've worked with before myself to ask if they have any suitable scripts to recommend to me."

Lu Yanhe: "Your requirements are too high now."

"What else? Watch you and Yan Liang both become powerful actors, both on the verge of becoming Best TV Actor and Best Actor? Oh no, you're already a Best Actor, damn." Li Zhibai said, "I'm not willing to be a background board for you guys."

Yan Liang laughed.

"I haven't won Best TV Actor yet either."

"Damn, you have both *Friends* and *Gold Rush* in your hands, and there's a *Summit* coming on strong. Who knows when you'll win an award." Li Zhibai said, "I have to plan ahead; I can't wait until you guys have all won awards before I take action. That would be years too late. No, no."

Lu Yanhe: "Then this really depends on your own efforts. Generally, projects starting filming this year have basically already decided on actors, especially the roles suitable for you now; they contact actors as soon as the project is established. Unless someone suddenly explodes and can't act, and you go to save the day, otherwise, joining a crew temporarily? I think it's very risky."

Li Zhibai: "Let's look for more. If I really can't find one, then I'll have to give up. I can't just act in a script I don't like that much."

"There's another way."

"What way?"

"Look at which big directors' films with scripts you think are good are starting filming in the second half of the year, and go do a cameo for them. They would definitely be willing." Lu Yanhe said, "This way, you can also get to know more people in the film circle."

Li Zhibai: "I take the initiative to go to them and ask for a cameo? I won't do this kind of thing that lowers my status. I'm Li Zhibai, okay? If others beg me for a cameo, I still have to consider it and look at my friendship with this person before making a decision. And take the initiative to go for a cameo? How much lack of roles would I have to have to do this kind of thing?"

Lu Yanhe heard Li Zhibai say this and could only give up.

"What about Yan Liang? What are your arrangements for the second half of the year?" Lu Yanhe asked.

"I'm just filming *Flowing Light*. Now I've been doing action training. There are a lot of martial arts scenes in it, and I want to do as much of the fighting myself as possible and use fewer stunt shots." Yan Liang said, "Just this one show for the second half of the year, no other shows."

Li Zhibai said: "You don't know this kid is a pervert, going to action training every day, practicing for almost four or five hours every day."

Lu Yanhe: "Skills don't weigh you down. Let me tell you, Li Zhibai, you also have a lot of action scenes in *Xianjian*, don't just talk, you should also practice with Yan Liang!"

"I'm practicing." Li Zhibai said immediately.

Yan Liang also followed up with a complaint: "Although he is indeed practicing, he is actually fishing for three days and drying nets for two."

"Damn, Yan Liang, you actually snitched? Have some shame!" Li Zhibai scolded angrily.

Yan Liang made a face.

Lu Yanhe laughed.

"You film well. When you come back, we'll record *Young Days*. It's really rare to be able to gather everyone together to record this show." Yan Liang said with a smile.

This year, everyone's schedules luckily avoided joining crews in August-September, so the fifth season of *Young Days* can smoothly welcome everyone's return.

This show is the only variety show Lu Yanhe serves as a regular guest on, and it is of extraordinary significance.

As an actor, Lu Yanhe actually needs to consciously weaken his exposure, except for film promotion.

Therefore, he rarely goes on variety shows, and attends few public events, all to maintain the freshness of his appearances and keep the audience's expectations for him.

If a person appears frequently, they will definitely lose the interest of some people.

Although Lu Yanhe didn't record *Young Days* from start to finish every season, he went every season.

This is because this group of people really developed feelings for each other in this show.

It can be said that this group of people from *Young Days* is the only circle Lu Yanhe has in the entertainment industry.

Besides this circle, he hasn't mixed in other friend circles.

And four years have passed, the fifth season is about to start recording, and everyone in this show is getting better and better.

At the beginning, they were almost all newcomers, but now they have all become big names one after another.

Not to mention the singers Qin Zhibai, Song Linxin, and Liu Zhiyin; the first is a popular original singer for various music variety shows and music festivals, the second is a major OST provider for film and television dramas, and the third is now the number one Chinese pop female idol. The only host, Peng Zhixing, was originally a new-generation host strongly supported by Arctic Light Video, and after these years of tempering, he is already a leader of the younger generation. Not to mention the actors; except for Su Xiao who hasn't reached a certain height yet, everyone else is a first-tier actor who can carry a lead role.

This group of people seems to be witnessing and chasing each other's careers, getting better and better together.

Everyone thinks, can a show like *Young Days* continue to be made after so many big names have come out of it?

Salaries are secondary; isn't it harder to coordinate schedules?

However, although it is indeed difficult to gather everyone from start to finish, no one has missed a full season of recording.

Even if everyone doesn't have time to record from start to finish, they will definitely participate in the recording of a few episodes.

Just like one year when Lu Yanhe even had a lame leg, he still appeared as a surprise in the final episode in a wheelchair, appearing in the house where everyone lived together.

Last season, in the final episode, there was a Q&A session where the director team drew questions from fans of the show and asked the artists in front of the camera.

One of the questions was: Will you keep recording this show forever?

The artists looked at each other.

In that episode, Lu Yanhe spoke first.

"We can't promise that we will keep recording forever, because there is no show in this world that can be recorded forever, but at least, look, it's the fourth season, and each of us is trying hard to keep coming here, to keep doing this show with the director team and friends we are familiar with." Lu Yanhe said, "I don't dare to say forever, and I don't dare to say always, but the feelings we show in this show are real. Our games and challenges have scripts, but our interactions with each other don't."

Everyone else had tears in their eyes.

Liu Zhiyin said at the time: "This is the first show I went on after returning to China. All my confidence comes from this show, the care everyone has for me, and the support from the show's audience. For me, this is no longer just a simple show; it is a vacation that I use as the most anticipated reward every year when I am tired and busy rushing to appointments. Participating in this show is my annual vacation trip."

Xiao Yun, usually the most carefree person, also covered her face at the time, her voice choked with sobs.

"It's so annoying, I hate being sentimental at times like this." She muttered, "I hope we can record for a few more years, record until when the show ends, we have no reluctance, regrets, sadness, and loss, record until we have left everything we can leave in this show, then we end."

Lu Yanhe thought of this time last year, in a foreign land, and suddenly missed this group of people a little.

He clicked into the *Young Days* group chat, originally wanting to say "I miss you all a little," but after typing this sentence, it seemed pretentious.

After thinking about it, he raised his phone, took a picture of the moon in the night sky, and sent it to the group chat.

The bright moon is here, sharing the same sky.

Continue to recommend the old book *I Became the Scandal Heroine Overnight*, from 7 initial subscriptions to over 1,000 average subscriptions.