Chapter 558: The Sorrow of a Middle-Aged Man: Too Deeply Immersed in the Role

Last Spring Festival, Wanda and China Film Group were fooled by someone, I don't know who, into investing in a Sino-American co-production.

At the time, they even invited Wei Jin to participate, but he was on a road trip with Jing Tian and didn't have the time to look into it, so he rejected it directly.

Now, this Sino-American co-production, *Tai Chi Hero*, with an investment of 25 million USD, has officially announced its release date.

However, thanks to the care of China Film Group, this film was specifically scheduled a week apart from *Shendu Longwang*, placing it in mid-July.

But regardless, a co-production with a budget of over 100 million suddenly dropping into the Summer Slot still added a bit more smoke and fire to an already restless film market.

Wei Jin no longer had the heart to pay attention to the outside disturbances, because directing and acting at the same time was truly quite exhausting.

Fortunately, however, the filming of *Star Luck* had been going very smoothly these days.

As the male lead and female lead revealed their hearts to each other, everything seemed to be developing in a beautiful direction, and even the female lead's condition was once again under control.

According to the script, today's scenes would involve the male lead and female lead traveling abroad, where the male lead would make a heartfelt confession.

In the monitor's frame, inside a warm cafe, Wei Jin's hands were intertwined, holding the girl's right hand.

"I love you. Although I know the word 'Amour' might be drowned out and forgotten by the little time we have left, I still have to say it: I love you."

As the lines of the confession were spoken, the two's profiles drew closer and closer in the lens, finally kissing.

When it came to kissing scenes, Wei Jin and Liu Yifei were quite proficient, and this take passed smoothly.

"Break for half an hour, prepare for the scene change."

Finishing the day's filming, Wei Jin brought Liu Yifei back to Xishan Villa.

As soon as they entered the house, Liu Yifei couldn't help but kiss Wei Jin, her movements somewhat intense and greedy, and the latter responded with equal passion.

There was no help for it; the final scene of the day was an indoor intimate scene.

Although Wei Jin had adapted the script and the lead was Liu Yifei, naturally there wouldn't be too many revealing shots.

Even the most extreme level was nothing more than the male and female leads, moved by passion, undressing each other, and then the male lead embracing and kissing the female lead with his back bare.

As for the subsequent plot, it would be expressed through lens language, such as what is commonly used in films: clothes falling, sounds of passion, and so on.

But regardless, there was a lot of intimate physical contact during this process, and since the two had been working together for many years, they were familiar with each other.

Thus, at this moment, both were somewhat unable to restrain themselves, moving from the entryway to the living room sofa, and then to the window where the breeze blew.

Liu Yifei hadn't had time to change her shoes yet, her fair little feet stepping on the back of Wei Jin's feet, kissing all the way there.

Finally, she pulled the translucent sheer curtains shut, then stood by the window, and under the witness of the breeze, finally tilted her head back and let out a long sigh, feeling completely satisfied.

After the clouds dispersed and the rain stopped, Liu Yifei leaned lazily in Wei Jin's arms, like a docile little kitten.

And Wei Jin, in his "sage time," held the girl's soft, delicate body, unable to let go.

After a long while, the girl's crisp voice rang in his ear.

"Brother, is our film more than halfway done?"

"Mm, that's right."

Wei Jin nodded, answering affirmatively.

As an art-house film, *The Fault in Our Stars* was basically all dialogue-driven drama; as long as the actors were sufficiently invested, it was quite fast to film.

"However, Yifei, the subsequent scenes will be a test of acting skills. You have to be prepared. If it goes smoothly, I estimate we can finish in about half a month."

"Mm, I know, I will definitely perform well."

Liu Yifei nodded heavily, clearly also knowing that the subsequent plot would depend on her to carry it.

Looking at the girl's serious expression, Wei Jin was just about to say something when the phone on the bedside table vibrated, and Liu Yifei handed it over.

"It's Director Ning."

Wei Jin nodded and answered the call.

"Hello, Senior Brother?"

"Junior Brother, *Breakup Buddies* can be started."

"Hm?"

Wei Jin, holding Taozi's hand, paused. "Didn't we say we'd wait until *No Man's Land* finished its theatrical run? Why the rush?"

"Sigh, if I don't find something for your Na Jie to do, I'm going to die at home..."

Listening to Ning Hao's complaints, Wei Jin really couldn't help but laugh.

The matter of the Triangle getting drunk late at night was far more serious than imagined; Ning Hao had been called home by Xing Aina the next day and hadn't stepped out the door for three days, having paid his "public grain" more times than he could count.

In Ning Hao's words, his kidneys were almost ruined; it was too miserable.

"Senior Brother, who told you not to mind the occasion when you go out to play?"

Wei Jin teased, drawing a playful punch from Liu Yifei, while Ning Hao on the other end of the phone cried out that he was wronged.

"Heaven and earth are my witness, I was really set up by that bald Xu Guangtou. Who the hell knew that when we went out to celebrate, he actually called six hostesses? And they were all students from the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Dance Academy! I'm more wronged than Dou E..."

Wei Jin believed this; after all, Xing Aina had always kept a tight rein on him, and Ning Hao wouldn't go to nightclubs if he wanted to play, but he still teased him.

"Senior Brother, when you're out in the world, you have to stand straight when you're being beaten. How about I get you some black goji berries from Northern Xinjiang to help you recover? Haha..."

"Yo, Director Ning, which 'good sister' are you calling again?"

Through the phone, Xing Aina's sarcastic voice gave Wei Jin a big fright.

He only heard Ning Hao sounding listless, "It's Wei Jin, talking about the new film. I've already said there are no messy 'sisters,' why won't you believe me?"

"Wei Jin? Really? Give me the phone."

Good heavens, has the trust crisis of this middle-aged couple already begun? Or is it menopause? Or is Ning Hao's kidney not up to the task? "Cough, Na Jie, it's me."

Hearing Wei Jin's voice, Xing Aina greeted him a couple of times and gave the phone back.

Perhaps because the "mother tiger" was by his side, Ning Hao didn't dare to chat aimlessly anymore and got straight to the point about his ideas for the new film.

"This time I plan to use a combination of new and old faces; we can't always use the same old hands. However, Huang Bai and Xu Zheng will still be the leads, and for the rest, I plan to hold open auditions."

"Fine, I will arrange for the company's artists to come over then."

"Then you have to choose carefully; I won't show any favoritism to those whose acting skills aren't up to par."

"Don't worry, I know."

Hanging up the phone, Wei Jin saw the strange expression on the young girl's face; after a moment of thought, he guessed what she was thinking and, without a word, turned over and pinned her beneath him.

"Oh my, Brother, why are you doing this again."

"Yifei, this is to increase the trust between us."

Perhaps because he was truly tortured to the point of being unrecognizable, Ning Hao was highly efficient and announced his new film project the very next day.

"Jointly invested by Bad Monkey and Shanhe Media, directed by director Ning Hao, and executive produced by director Wei Jin, the 50-million-budget road comedy 'Breakup Buddies' has officially been greenlit and has begun casting."

Once the news broke, those in the industry who were in the dark were amazed at how truly efficient Ning Hao was; 'No Man's Land' was still in theaters, and the remaining 'The Unnamed' hadn't even been released yet, yet he was already starting a new film.

However, the actors in the industry couldn't care less about that; a new film from a big director was too rare, and what was even rarer was that it was an open casting call, so they all scrambled to take action. Wei Jin received calls from Han Sanping and Wang Changtian one after another, but unfortunately, the investments for this project had already been finalized, so it was destined that they wouldn't be able to get involved.

After hanging up the phone, Wei Jin began his new scenes.

According to the plot, after returning from his trip, the male lead played by Wei Jin clearly felt unwell and went to the hospital for a checkup.

Generally speaking, scenes in the same location are scheduled to be filmed at the same time during production planning to avoid frequent set changes.

However, the focus of art films and commercial films is different, and the actor's state is more important, especially since this was Wei Jin's first time acting.

Therefore, this shoot was basically done in chronological order of the plot, so that the actor could better immerse himself in the current state of the character.

In the monitor, Wei Jin and the doctor were having a conversation.

"Doctor, is my condition serious?"

After some hesitation, the doctor finally told him the cruel truth.

"The previous amputation was to suppress the spread of cancer cells. Under normal circumstances, the probability of recurrence is very low, less than 15%. But unfortunately, it has already spread."

Listening to the doctor's treatment plan, Wei Jin remained silent for a long time before finally speaking in a hoarse voice.

"Then let's go with chemotherapy; I'll hold on for as long as I can."

"Cut."

Behind the monitor, Lu Yang watched the footage repeatedly, then waved his hand to signal.

"That's a wrap on this take."

Outside, after reaping the final weekend's profits, 'American Dreams in China' successfully finished its run, with a final box office of 528 million.

Huang Xiaoming, who had been flopping all the way since last year's New Year Slot, turned the tables and became a male lead with a 500-million-box-office hit, successfully shedding the label of "box office poison."

As for Qiao Zhenyu and Tong Dawei, the boost they received was less, because even though it was said to be three male leads, everyone knew there was only one core protagonist, and that was Huang Xiaoming.

And the one even more pleased than the actors was, of course, the director Chen Kexin.

Not only did he prove himself with a 500-million-box-office, but he also successfully won the favor of many Mainland China investors, which could be considered a conclusion to his various questionable maneuvers over the past few years.

Sometimes one really has to admit the extent of the shamelessness of the Hong Kong media; at this point, Chen Kexin had once again become the leading figure among Hong Kong directors.

In the media reports, the praise and flattery were simply overflowing.

Besides 'American Dreams in China', the only films in the market currently worth noting were 'Switch' and 'No Man's Land'.

Just as Wei Jin had anticipated earlier, the negative consequences of reverse marketing had already manifested.

'Switch' had been in theaters for 8 days and had grossed 233 million, but the daily box office had already fallen below 5 million, which could be called a landslide.

At this rate of decline, the film would certainly not be able to complete its one-month theatrical run.

'No Man's Land', on the other hand, was performing well; even though Ning Hao and the others had caused a bit of a stir, it didn't affect the box office trend in the slightest.

In 10 days, the box office broke the 200-million mark, reaching 213 million, and the daily box office was still maintaining a high of 15 million.

A 300-million box office was already in the bag, and it might even touch 400 million.

During this period, Han Sanping could be described as having mixed feelings; 'No Man's Land' making money was a certainty, so it wasn't in vain that he had waited bitterly for four years.

However, it looked like the money he earned would mostly have to be poured into 'Switch'.

And the one who was even more miserable than Han Sanping was undoubtedly Liu Tianwang.

The good reputation he had accumulated from 'The Martian' and 'Saving Mr. Wu' could be said to have been lost all at once because of 'Switch'.

Even another film he starred in, 'Blind Detective', which was scheduled for release on July 4th, was significantly affected.

There were already fans online spontaneously boycotting 'Blind Detective', calling on everyone not to encourage this kind of "money-grubbing, shameless" trend.

There was no help for it; if you take on a bad film for the sake of personal favors, you have to be prepared to bear the audience's anger.

This wave of backlash against Liu Tianwang had already created a repellent effect; even with the title of one of the Four Heavenly Kings, his commercial value would be hugely impacted.

The 'Star Luck' crew welcomed a climactic scene.

However, the female lead, Yifei, had a minor issue; taking advantage of the time the crew was setting up, Wei Jin came to the young girl's side.

"Yifei, are you feeling better?"

Liu Yifei held her brown sugar water and took another sip, then nodded: "Mm, much better, we can continue filming in a moment."

"Mm, no rush, rest a bit longer."

In fact, if it weren't for the girl's insistence, Wei Jin had intended to take a day off.

Once the crew was ready again, this time they were on a park bench.

In the shot, the female lead leaned on the male lead's shoulder, their fingers tightly interlaced.

After brewing for a long time, the male lead finally told the female lead that the cancer cells had spread throughout his body.

In an instant, the female lead seemed to have all the strength drained from her body, collapsing on the bench.

She leaned into the male lead's arms with a pale face, tears streaming down uncontrollably.

"Don't cry, write a eulogy for me, so that I can hear your voice one last time at the funeral."

Wei Jin gently stroked the girl's pretty face, wiping away her tears, his tone soft.

"But... *sob* why does fate have to toy with us like this? What did we do wrong? Why? Why..."

Liu Yifei was completely immersed in the character, crying her heart out.

Her condition had finally been brought under control, and the two were moving toward a beautiful and happy future, but heaven had played such a cruel joke; who could accept this?

Lu Yang, behind the monitor, did not call cut for a long time, and Wei Jin and Liu Yifei did not mind, snuggling together on the bench, immersed in their roles, the latter even still unable to stop sobbing.

After a long while, Lu Yang finally shouted "Cut," ending this shot.

"Brother, I've acted in so many plays, but added together, they don't have as much crying as this one."

Liu Yifei and Wei Jin came to the recreational vehicle to tidy up their appearance, her tone carrying a hint of sadness; it was clear she had not yet recovered.

"Yifei, you acted very well this time."

Wei Jin smiled and gave his affirmation; the young girl's progress over these years was all reflected in this play.

"Brother, I wasn't acting, if..."

The girl did not finish her sentence before Wei Jin pulled her into his embrace.

"Yifei, there won't be any 'ifs,' we will always be together."

"Mm, we will be just fine..."

PS: Some word count was deleted, adding a bit of nonsense to ensure the four-thousand-word perfect attendance; I was miserable in September, please forgive me (this part is not charged).

(End of this chapter)