Chapter 857: Struggle

Golden Globe Awards.

The scene of the awards ceremony.

Red carpet.

This is destined to be another lively, star-studded night.

Jiang Yuqian and Li Zhibai, as the leads of 'Love is Not Blind', received invitations to the awards ceremony through Green Valley.

They didn't have the opportunity to go on stage to promote this film, although the two of them would go on stage to present a drama award, but the Golden Globe Awards couldn't allow them to mention the film 'Love is Not Blind' during the awards session.

If they could, the entire awards ceremony would be in chaos.

However, this doesn't mean it can't promote this film. The combination of the two of them has a huge promotional effect. Green Valley's promotional press release is waiting for the moment they step on the red carpet to be sent out.

Except for Li Zhibai and Jiang Yuqian.

Jiang Jun was also invited to attend—

Although Jiang Jun himself is not an actor who is very good at being a star, he has a huge advantage, which is high cooperation. His career rise was not easy, so he cherishes everything he has now even more.

Through plays like 'Squid Game' and 'Doomsday', Jiang Jun's starlight was magically maintained. Although in commercial value, he is far inferior to Jiang Yuqian, in the entertainment industry, especially in the eyes of producers and film companies, Jiang Jun still has to suppress Jiang Yuqian. Nothing else, 'Squid Game', this drama, Jiang Jun is the well-deserved number one lead.

At the time after 'Doomsday' was released, the analysis results of the box office survey agency showed that the fans who came to watch this film for Jiang Jun reached 27%, far exceeding Jiang Yuqian's 18%. Although this is because the audience of Jiang Yuqian as a star and the viewing audience of 'Doomsday' have a low overlap, there are special reasons, but in the eyes of film companies, this means that although Jiang Jun's exposure is low, the fan group willing to buy tickets for him is still very huge.

In addition, Yan Liang, Yin Xincheng, Zhan Yun, Wen Minglan, Bai Jin, and others, as the leads of 'Friends', also received invitations to attend one after another.

This year, 'Friends' still didn't get any nominations, but the popularity of this drama, even the Golden Globe Awards couldn't ignore it.

Plus Chen Pinhe and Meng Li, the two leads of 'Seventeen Layers: Reboot', the content of Chinese actors in the Golden Globe Awards this year can be counted as the highest in recent years.

"Meng Li didn't get any nominations, and she came too," Wang Biao said. "Don't know what she is here for."

Lu Yan He said: "How is Meng Li's performance in 'Seventeen Layers: Reboot'?"

He didn't watch this drama, and the discussion on the Internet about this drama was mainly concentrated on Chen Pinhe and the competition with 'Flying Over the Grass', with very little content about Meng Li—

Speaking of which, it's embarrassing, a dignified female lead, but there is no sound.

Wang Biao said: "Neither merit nor fault, no one discusses it, and Meng Li didn't participate much in the follow-up promotion of this drama, including some offline activities arranged by Maxine, Meng Li didn't attend."

Lu Yan He: "At the time, this drama was specially persuaded by Zhou Ping'an to Meng Li, and Meng Li accepted it. According to this, in reality, Meng Li's harvest from this drama is not big."

"To say the harvest is not big, it can't be said either. Although it was crushed by 'Flying Over the Grass' in many dimensions, in terms of streaming viewing numbers, including domestic ratings, 'Seventeen Layers: Reboot' is still better. The trilogy you starred in before has already made 'Seventeen Layers' a very popular IP."

Lu Yan He nodded: "It's okay, I know the results of 'Seventeen Layers: Reboot' are good, you don't need to worry that I feel uncomfortable. I'm just curious, since Meng Li has been absent from promotion and exposure for so long, why did she suddenly appear at this time? Just because the Golden Globe Awards ceremony is attractive?"

Wang Biao shook his head.

"I don't know about this."

Lu Yan He suddenly thought of something and asked: "Has the second season of 'Seventeen Layers: Reboot' started?"

"Yes, it was announced long ago that there would be a second season, but I don't know what the situation is now."

"Is there any news about whether Meng Li will return for the second season?"

Wang Biao: "Didn't pay attention, I only remember they announced early that Chen Pinhe would return to star."

Lu Yan He nodded.

He actually didn't think about anything else, just suddenly thought that with Meng Li's personality, how could she be willing to be a foil for others, even if that person is Chen Pinhe.

If Meng Li would reason with you, she wouldn't be Meng Li.

Wang Biao asked: "Little Lu, if Meng Li comes to find you for a photo later, do you need me to stop her?"

Lu Yan He was between laughter and tears, asking: "How do you stop her?"

Even if Chen Pinhe really took the initiative to propose a photo with him on such an occasion, could he refuse?

Uh, Chen Pinhe's words, still would.

Lu Yan He reacted immediately.

But Meng Li and him… those conflicts and unhappiness in the past, can't be said to have disappeared, just that as time passed, they really weren't that stuck in the throat.

"It's okay, if she really takes the initiative to come to me for a photo, don't stop her. I'm not in a relationship where I can't take a photo with her."

"I'm just afraid that she will take a photo and make things happen, borrowing the topic to play," Wang Biao said worriedly. "In order to make topics, she can do anything."

"She doesn't need to do this now, right? With Zhou Ping'an, does she still need to make topics and maintain popularity by unscrupulous means?" Lu Yan He felt that unless Zhou Ping'an gave up on Meng Li and needed Meng Li to fend for herself.

Clearly not.

Lu Yan He, Wen Shengming, Liu Bige, and Miao Yue attended the awards ceremony tonight together.

"Is your mother's health recovering well now?" Lu Yan He specially asked with concern.

Miao Yue nodded and said: "Hmm, recovering quite well, thank you."

She smiled at Lu Yan He, "My mom was still asking about you when she called me yesterday. She is very gossipy, asking if Chen Siqi came with you this time."

Lu Yan He ha-ed, "Why is Auntie curious about this?"

Miao Yue's mother is also a writer.

In Lu Yan He's impression, Miao Yue's mother is a very elegant woman with a scholarly temperament.

"She is the fan leader of you and Chen Siqi," Miao Yue said. "You don't know how much she likes you and Chen Siqi, nagging every day, saying you are a golden boy and jade girl combination."

Lu Yan He smiled and said: "Clearly you and Liu Bige are in front of her."

Miao Yue pointed at Liu Bige unceremoniously and said: "My mom dislikes him. Don't say, my mom reminded me, saying don't look at him being quite handsome now, looking young, wait another thirty years, he will be an old man. If I maintain well, I will still be beautiful. By then, standing together, it will look like an old husband and young wife."

Lu Yan He noticed the corner of Liu Bige's mouth twitch.

"Haha," Lu Yan He immediately laughed out loud, "Give Liu Bige some face."

Liu Bige said: "Forget it, I'm already used to it."

Liu Bige said again: "Who let her be abducted by me when she was in college? Maybe this is the price I have to pay."

He made a grimace.

Lu Yan He laughed.

Miao Yue said: "My mom always feels that I was deceived by him."

She also showed a helpless expression.

"Then you two have been together for so long, why don't you consider marriage? If you get married, your mom won't have this attitude toward Liu Bige anymore, right?" Lu Yan He said.

Miao Yue sighed: "If it were that simple, my mom wouldn't let me get married until after I'm 28. She is always worried that I will be deceived, worried that I haven't thought clearly, all fooled by Liu Bige."

Lu Yan He nodded.

"Actually, think about it, standing from the perspective of your parents, it's not surprising that they think this way, it's very normal," he said. "I guess you will have such thoughts when you become parents in the future."

Miao Yue nodded.

"I also feel that anyway, it's just a matter of a year or two, wait if you have to wait, she is satisfied," Miao Yue said. "She is not like me, knowing Liu Bige for so long, understanding so deeply. Just like you said, it's normal that she is not at ease."

Liu Bige shrugged his shoulders.

"Feel like I'm being scrutinized by your mom every day."

Wen Shengming, who had been listening with a smile, suddenly opened his mouth at this time and inserted a sentence.

"You don't understand this. The mother-in-law is always picky first and likes later," Wen Shengming said. "You haven't reached this age. When you reach our age, you will understand why there is such worry. Especially Liu Bige, in his golden age, an internationally famous film director, handsome and charming, which mother-in-law would be at ease with such a person as her son-in-law."

Lu Yan He didn't expect that they chatted about these things at this time.

Incompatible with the Golden Globe Awards.

However, it was also quite natural.

Ye Mai Net.

Editorial Department.

Xin Zixing personally led her team members to do a special topic on the Golden Globe Awards ceremony.

With the financial support of the Shijin Group, this year, Ye Mai Net directly won interviews with many nominated crews of this year's Golden Globe Awards.

Centering on these interviews, under Xin Zixing's planning, Ye Mai Net directly started a special live broadcast.

The form of this live broadcast is not video, but text. Of course, it's not that Ye Mai Net chose this literary style to be unique, it's just that the live broadcast and rebroadcast rights of the awards ceremony were taken by other platforms, and they didn't have the copyright, so they could only be like this.

However, after Ye Mai Net didn't win the live broadcast and rebroadcast rights, they also ingeniously found the 'Jump Up' team, pulled in two senior editors who usually focus on films, and Linyu, to open a "cooking tea around the stove" live broadcast room for the three, cooperating with this column, commenting on every award winner and nominee in real-time, or rather, introducing them.

Such a form is destined not to be a popular "traffic absorber".

So, Xin Zixing simply gave up on letting this special topic take the popular route, and instead followed the design of elitism, simply letting the content not have to accommodate the public, how professional how to come.

The introduction and commentary of the three people, Linyu, don't need to care about whether what they say is understandable to most of the audience. They can think of where to say, talk about anyone, and are familiar with their works and anecdotes, speaking like the vast ocean, and no one knows what the next sentence will be.

"The number of viewers for this live broadcast of ours is only over five thousand," the person in charge of the live broadcast room came to report.

Xin Zixing nodded.

"Are the relevant slices being made at the same time?" Xin Zixing said. "Although we will have a recorded version later, this kind of live analysis and commentary of the awards ceremony must have the highest traffic and attention while it is in progress. Don't wait until the awards ceremony is over and not many slices have been made."

The so-called slice is to cut out some wonderful clips from a relatively long video, just like the content we see on short video platforms.

"It's already being done, but the new user acquisition volume is not very large," the subordinate said with a look of difficulty on his face. "The popularity of the few people in 'Jump Up' is not very high."

"It's okay, as long as we satisfy our core users, it's enough," Xin Zixing said. "But the slices still need to be done. We have already arranged the operations side. Next, we will continuously promote and attract traffic."

"Don't slack off on the text live broadcast side either," Xin Zixing said. "Especially on the push article side, we have already done relevant mining for every nominee before, forming a complete manuscript. Don't waste the heat of this Golden Globe Awards ceremony, send it out as soon as possible."

"Okay."

In the gap, Xin Zixing received a message from Huang Kairen on her mobile phone, asking her: Do you still have to work overtime after the awards ceremony?

Xin Zixing replied: Should not need to, the work has already been arranged, what's wrong? Didn't you make an appointment with Ruyi to talk about the script today? How did it go?

Huang Kairen replied: Another special appearance male number three, not interested, I don't want to help them push newcomers.

Xin Zixing said: Didn't you say it was the lead before?

Huang Kairen: Now any role that appears in the film for more than ten minutes is the lead.

Xin Zixing: This is really… Ruyi is too unkind. Clearly, when they contacted before, they had the posture of finding you to act as the male lead.

Huang Kairen: Am I outdated? Why are the roles everyone finds now like this?

Xin Zixing: You are not outdated. I told you long ago, you just have high requirements. If you want to act in a play where you are the male lead, aren't there a lot of scripts looking for you?

Huang Kairen: But why does such a good script only look for me to act as the male number three?

Xin Zixing asked: Who is the male number one? Background?

Huang Kairen: Don't know if there is a background, anyway, it's a newcomer I haven't heard of.

Xin Zixing asked: Then who is the male number two?

Huang Kairen said: Jiang Mingzheng.

Xin Zixing asked again: Then this male lead is very young?

Huang Kairen: Yes, in the script, he is sixteen years old.

Xin Zixing: Then that's it. The role itself is not suitable for you to act. You are encountering an age crisis, not young enough, and not old enough.

Huang Kairen: I can really only wait for Yan He's script. Is it that I will find it difficult to receive good film scripts in the next few years?

Xin Zixing: With your current requirements, I can't comfort you even if I want to. Difficult, indeed difficult.

Huang Kairen: Or I'll just go to Hollywood to break through.

Xin Zixing: Let Hollywood take its course. At your current age, you are neither high nor low. Even if you go to Hollywood, there is no way, unless you take a step back and no longer only accept the male lead.

Huang Kairen: ……

Xin Zixing: Or we just have a child in these one or two years, and you bring the child for a few years.

Huang Kairen: ……It's not impossible.

Xin Zixing: Then do we eat at home tonight?

Huang Kairen: Wait, let me confirm, you just said you want a child in these one or two years, are you serious? I don't want to be disappointed after having expectations.

Xin Zixing: It can be serious, it depends on whether you want to be serious.

Huang Kairen: What do you want to eat tonight? I'll go buy it now.

Xin Zixing laughed.

Tonight, Lu Yan He will serve as an awards presenter and go on stage to present the Best Original Screenplay award for films.

This is also the only time Lu Yan He goes on stage tonight.

'Storm Calmer No. 1' brought him a nomination for Best Actor, but everyone knows that it stops here. Lu Yan He is of course very confident in his performance and progress in acting in the film. However, the American awards season has never been an absolute competition of strength.

To some extent, the value of the role is greater than the actor's own acting skills.

It's good that Chen Pinhe also belongs to the nomination being an affirmation, impossible to go on stage to receive the award.

Lu Yan He's psychological pressure is not big.

And with Chen Pinhe also present, he couldn't help but have a few more flavors of "lightness" when presenting the award.

Not natural, but acted. It was just to show himself at the Golden Globe Awards in front of Chen Pinhe—

Just like returning home, relaxed.

Seeing Hollywood's pursuit of him, you must be very anxious in your heart, right? Jealousy, or unease? Whichever one it is, it's fine.

? ￠o

Lu Yan He just wants to make Chen Pinhe uncomfortable.

If Chen Pinhe knew what Lu Yan He was thinking now, he would only say one sentence, you really don't need to make him uncomfortable.

Recently, Zhang Yuezhen didn't know what was going on, and suddenly became a bit distant and cold to him.

Asking her what was going on, she didn't say, only saying that work was a bit busy and a bit tired.

But when asked specifically what was going on, she didn't say anything.

This made Chen Pinhe feel very confused, and even vaguely a bit uneasy. For so many years, Zhang Yuezhen had always put his affairs at the highest priority, and she had always paid extraordinary attention to his every move, whether it was work or other aspects of life.

Chen Pinhe was at ease letting Zhang Yuezhen handle his agency affairs. One reason was that she indeed had means, strong work ability, and was good at making connections and making friends; the second was because Chen Pinhe knew that it was very hard to find another person who treated him well "wholeheartedly" and hoped he would be well to handle these things.

However, this point suddenly changed recently.

Even she rarely asked him questions like where he went or what he was doing, which she used to ask every day.

If these things could still be said to be because Zhang Yuezhen was really too busy recently, then this time attending the Golden Globe Awards, Zhang Yuezhen didn't come with him, which was enough to show that something had happened on Zhang Yuezhen's side.

"Hey, Chen, why are you a bit absent-minded today?" The agent responsible for his overseas agency business, Vasily Keck, who was sitting beside him, asked.

Chen Pinhe came back to his senses and said: "Thinking about some things."

Vasily Keck said: "Your wife didn't come today, but she specially instructed me that Jessica Brand is also here tonight, reminding me to remember to take a photo of the two of you to warm up for the romantic comedy film you are going to collaborate on next."

Chen Pinhe nodded and asked: "Go over now?"

"I haven't found her yet. After I find her, we'll go over," Vasily Keck said. "Oh, by the way, there are many Chinese actors here tonight, do you want to take photos with them too?"

Chen Pinhe: "If they come to find me for a photo, of course I can."

Vasily Keck nodded.

"Actually, if you could collaborate on a film with Lu Yan He, it would be great," Vasily suddenly said with emotion. "Look at the actor named Wen Shengming from your country. Originally, no one thought he could reach this step, but now he is firmly in the first echelon of the Best Supporting Actor unit. The degree of importance the Academy attaches to Lu Yan He exceeds my imagination."

Chen Pinhe had a layer of gloom in his eyes.

He said: "You mean, if I don't collaborate with Lu Yan He, it will be harder to walk in the awards season next?"

"I certainly didn't mean that," Vasily shook his head. "My meaning is that collaborating with Lu Yan He will be a shortcut. If you have a good performance, the possibility of being seen and valued by the Academy is higher. If 'Storm Calmer No. 1' only won the Best Actor award at the Venice International Film Festival, or only got good box office results, its attention would definitely not be as high as it is now. Now Hollywood has formed a consensus, and this consensus often only appears on those top-tier big-name directors in the core circle of the Academy and a very few legendary actors—as long as it is Lu Yan He's film, it is worth paying attention to whether it should be given affirmation in awards."

Vasily's words made Chen Pinhe frown.

He certainly understood.

If someone else filmed a good film, they still need to try every means to do public relations, letting others see this good film. But Lu Yan He skipped this link. As long as it is his film, these judges with voting qualifications will take the initiative to watch this film and take the initiative to consider whether it is worth their vote.

These are completely two concepts.

In just a few years, Lu Yan He has already built such an advantageous situation for himself.

Chen Pinhe's mood is very complicated.

On one hand, he is a bit regretful. If he had pursued the victory when he was at his peak in the international film scene many years ago, and gone to Europe and America to film a few more films instead of reducing production, could he have laid such a foundation in Europe and America?

On the other hand, he once again felt restless. What will Lu Yan He do? What does he want to do? In the previous few exchanges, Lu Yan He made him be in a disadvantageous position. Although it didn't cause any substantial impact, this sense of powerlessness of being "chased and beaten" is the main reason why Chen Pinhe can't sleep peacefully in the middle of the night.

"Teacher Chen," Meng Li's voice sounded smilingly.

Chen Pinhe looked up.

Meng Li said: "Let's take a photo together? I want to post it to social media later."

Hearing this, Chen Pinhe nodded, stood up, showed a familiar smile, and stood with Meng Li.

Jiang Yuqian has been fighting in the international arena for these few years, and a fruitful result is that on occasions like the Golden Globe Awards ceremony, she knows almost half of the people and has met them.

Therefore, in the eyes of many people, her posture of shuttling through it is at ease, not restrained, and this generous style is completely different from many Asian faces.

Compared to it, even if Li Zhibai has a representative work like 'Buried', he is still a strange face.

He appeared "in pairs" with Jiang Yuqian tonight basically, and Jiang Yuqian's introduction to him was also "the 'Love is Not Blind' starred in by him and me is about to be released, and the premiere is welcome to everyone".

However, on this night, Li Zhibai was surprised to find that several men had some "teasing" intentions toward Jiang Yuqian.

Actually, as an artist, it is not rare to encounter some "teasing". Li Zhibai himself often encounters some people "throwing winks" at him, but this situation often ends after receiving his "cold eyes".

The situation Jiang Yuqian encountered was a bit close to "entanglement".

Even if Li Zhibai stood by Jiang Yuqian's side, those men who came to "tease" Jiang Yuqian turned a blind eye to his existence, like a peacock, self-righteously radiating some kind of charm they thought they had.

What made Li Zhibai uncomfortable was that even if Jiang Yuqian directly expressed her polite refusal, those people acted as if they didn't understand and still entangled. And Jiang Yuqian could only continue to deal with them perfunctorily.

Li Zhibai almost couldn't hold back his temper several times, wanting to drag them, but Jiang Yuqian gave him a soothing look before he was about to explode, as if she could see through his head.

"Do I have to endure it like this?" Li Zhibai really thought before that, at Jiang Yuqian's status, she shouldn't need to face such things.

Jiang Yuqian said: "In Hollywood, almost all actresses, even if you are super first-tier, will encounter such harassment, not to mention actresses, male actors are the same. Some people just forget it, but like those few just now, they are either rich or expensive. For example, the one wearing a headscarf is a member of the Saudi royal family. If you offend them, it's also troublesome. Anyway, they don't dare to really do anything, it's just annoying. Endure it, and they will leave after being bored."

Li Zhibai said: "This is so aggrieved."

"Aggrieved? Since I debuted, such things have never stopped," Jiang Yuqian shook her head helplessly. "It's much better now. No one dares to really do anything to me, at most they take advantage of me verbally. When I first debuted, I was even forced by the company to accompany people to eat at the wine table. That was the real grievance."

Li Zhibai: "Damn Star Entertainment."

He was full of anger.

"It's okay, fortunately I have Sister Heng as my agent. For things that touch the principles, she still helped me block them," Jiang Yuqian said. "This kind of thing can't be avoided."

Li Zhibai: "We should still disclose it as soon as possible. If you are not convenient to say it in the future, I will say it. I really wanted to slap those grandsons twice just now."

"Forget it, don't be brave for a moment," Jiang Yuqian said. "Your violent temper, in China, your family helps you cover it. When you go abroad, others don't buy it, and even hire people to teach you a lesson. Previously, a Korean artist was arrogant, and it is said that he offended someone. Two days later, he was blocked in the parking lot and beaten up. It didn't matter if there were bodyguards around."

Li Zhibai was immediately a bit nervous and asked: "What about you? You have been mixing here for so long, haven't you been bullied?"

Jiang Yuqian shook her head.

"I came here to develop. On one hand, Yan He's power is getting bigger and bigger, and they treat me as someone in his power, so they won't easily bully me. On the other hand, I am relatively smooth. When I came here, I had already become famous relying on 'Squid Game', so I don't need to mix from the bottom, so I didn't suffer any losses, nor was I bullied. At most, it's the verbal entanglement just now, which doesn't count as anything."

The two were talking when suddenly, a blonde and blue-eyed female star came to them.

"Yuqian—"

Jiang Yuqian looked up.

"Oh! Sydney." Jiang Yuqian hugged this woman named Sydney affectionately and kissed her cheeks.

"You are so beautiful today."

"Your dress makes you look like a princess!"

……

Li Zhibai's mouth twitched.

Don't even need to ask, it must be plastic friendship.

Sydney's gaze suddenly looked toward Li Zhibai.

"You look familiar."

Jiang Yuqian leaned toward Li Zhibai calmly, blocking Sydney's posture of approaching.

"Li Zhibai, starred in 'Buried'."

"Oh! So that's you who acted in it," Sydney smiled brightly. "I like this film very much, but you are more handsome than in the film."

Her eyes lingered on Li Zhibai.

Li Zhibai: "Sorry, my English is not very good, I didn't hear clearly what you were saying."

He looked innocent.

Sydney: "Didn't hear clearly? It doesn't matter."

Her gaze was still focused on him.

"Perhaps we can continue to chat a bit later?"

Li Zhibai still looked blank.

"Trouble repeating it again?"

Sydney: "……"

Jiang Yuqian turned her face slightly to hide her smile.

Sydney withdrew her gaze and said to Jiang Yuqian: "I am preparing to hold a party at home the day after tomorrow, Yuqian, you can bring this… friend of yours to participate together."

Jiang Yuqian nodded, still affectionate, "If we have time, we will come to participate. Sydney, I wish you win the award tonight."

Sydney smiled.

"Hope so."

As soon as Sydney left, Jiang Yuqian immediately turned to Li Zhibai and said: "Look, I said it, you were stared at by someone immediately."

"Who is she?"

"A woman you should run away from as soon as you see her," Jiang Yuqian said. "As long as it's a handsome man, she likes them. There are no less than ten men who have slept with her in this place tonight."

Li Zhibai showed an expression of surprise.

"The winner is, Sydney Weiss."

An hour later, the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Limited Series was announced.

Li Zhibai saw the blonde and blue-eyed woman walk onto the podium amidst applause.

She took the trophy and was moved to tears.

Jiang Yuqian whispered in his ear: "I heard that she slept with the producer and director to win this role."

Li Zhibai asked in surprise: "What year is it, still doing this sex trade?"

"No matter what year it is, if doing this works, there will always be people doing it," Jiang Yuqian said in a low voice. "Sydney Weiss's reputation in Hollywood basically belongs to the level of rotten streets."

"Then how can she still mix so

"She can go all out; things others aren't willing to do, or don't want to do, she can. Of course, she has the space to make a huge success of herself," Jiang Yuqian said. "And, as you've seen, the harvest is quite bountiful."

Li Zhibai: "If that's the only way to win an award, I'd rather not win it."

"It's easy for you to say that, of course, but for her, if she doesn't do this, she might never get ahead in her entire life." Although her attitude had been somewhat dismissive earlier, as she reached this point, Jiang Yuqian's words carried a bit more sympathy for Sydney Weiss.

Li Zhibai hesitated for a moment, wanting to say something, but stopped himself.

"Anyway, everyone has their own choices," Jiang Yuqian said. "If you asked me to make the kind of sacrifices she does, I certainly wouldn't be willing, but there are always people like her who are. This isn't even a matter of being willing or not; in Hollywood, the competition is too great and too difficult. Stories of someone landing a role just by auditioning and then soaring to success are like winning the lottery. You can go walk around the cafes and restaurants near Hollywood; you'll find that the waiters and clerks are all handsome men and beautiful women, all waiting for an opportunity here. You tell me, if a chance suddenly appeared before them, how many of them could resist the temptation?"

Li Zhibai: "When you have nothing, that is indeed when you are least able to resist temptation."

Jiang Yuqian nodded.

"So, many people in Hollywood feel that people like us suddenly popped up and stole their jobs, and they are very unhappy about it," Jiang Yuqian smiled. "Don't look at how warmly they all greeted me tonight; in reality, anyone with even a hint of a competitive relationship has clashed in various ways behind the scenes."

Li Zhibai: "Competing for movies and roles?"

"Not just that," Jiang Yuqian shook her head. "Of course, it all points to that in the end. In Hollywood, all the fighting ultimately manifests in things like roles and awards."

"Don't they fight over endorsements, billing, or treatment here?"

"They fight over all of it, but they don't put the cart before the horse," Jiang Yuqian said. "Moreover, for many of these fights, the battlefield is with the agents and PR, not the artists themselves. This is a bit different from back home; in China, it's basically focused on the artists themselves and the clashes between teams. Here, there is a very mature industrial chain; whether it's acting or business, there are different specialists to help you manage it."