Chapter 312: Casting

The next one to come in was another one of the Four Heavenly Kings, Leon Lai.

"Hello, Wu Dao! Hello, teachers!"

In fact, this wasn't the first time Wu Yuchen had seen Leon Lai. When he was selecting actors for *Brotherhood of Blades* before, Leon Lai came to audition. However, at that time, Leon Lai wasn't selected because of his appearance and temperament.

And after seeing Leon Lai again this time, Wu Yuchen still had to sigh: he really is good-looking!

Unlike the last time when Shen Lian was a Embroidered Uniform Guard, this time the character Lin Wu was a cellist, so Leon Lai's appearance and temperament wouldn't become a deduction point.

Wu Yuchen and Leon Lai entered the chatting mode again, smiling and saying:

"Leon, I heard that when you first went to the crew, you drove a Mercedes, and as a result, you were excluded by the crew members. Is there such a thing?"

Leon Lai said slightly embarrassedly: "At that time, I had just returned from abroad, and I was a newcomer who didn't understand things. I didn't think about so much~ Later, it didn't happen again!"

They all say Leon Lai has a noble air. In fact, this also has to do with his family background. Being able to send him to study in the UK in the early 80s, and also letting him drive a Mercedes, in the Hong Kong of that time, it could already be considered a wealthy family.

Think about the other three Heavenly Kings. Andy Lau's father was a firefighter, had to raise six children, and the family lived in a slum in Hong Kong; Jacky Cheung's father was a sailor, but he was addicted to gambling and alcohol, and brought this style to the family. Think about how they lived; Aaron Kwok's family was still considered wealthy, his father opened a small gold shop, but there were 5 children to raise. So don't talk about a Mercedes, Aaron Kwok didn't even have a motorcycle...

And Leon Lai, an only son, and his father had money. After arriving in Hong Kong, he basically lived a wealthy life. When he went abroad to study, he couldn't sleep because he could only take a bath twice a week and couldn't take a bath every day. If Andy Lau, who was still called Liu Furong at the time, knew this, he would have to scold him for why he didn't eat meat porridge.

"You went to study abroad in your teens, right?"

"I went at 14, stayed in the UK for 5 years, and later returned to Hong Kong to recuperate because of hay fever, so I entered the entertainment industry."

"Then it must not have been easy for you alone abroad, right? Did your father and mother often go to see you?"

"Uh, Wu Dao, in fact, before I went abroad, my father and mother divorced, and then my dad sent me to study in the UK."

Hearing this, Wu Yuchen gained spirit and asked the question he wanted to ask:

"A 14-year-old teenager should be in a rebellious period, right? At that time, you encountered this kind of change in your family, parents separated. What was your reaction? Did you have conflicts or resistance with your parents? Was it because of this that you were sent to the UK?"

Leon Lai waved his hands repeatedly: "No, I was very happy at the time!"

"Very happy? Why would you feel happy?" Wu Yuchen asked in surprise. Generally speaking, when children encounter this kind of thing, it's impossible to say they would be happy.

"Maybe I was a bit precocious. I just felt that the two of them were together, Dad was painful, and Mom was painful. They were painful, in a bad mood. When Dad wasn't there, maybe Mom would vent on me. Every time the two of them quarreled, it was a burden to me."

Then Leon Lai made a gesture of splitting his hands: "Now the two of them are separated, I just feel that everyone is liberated. Wow, congratulations, congratulations!"

Wu Yuchen nodded, then praised Leon Lai: "I didn't expect you to be able to think so thoroughly when you were so young!"

But the next moment, Wu Yuchen suddenly asked: "Can I ask a presumptuous question?"

"Wu Dao, please go ahead~" Leon Lai nodded.

"What do you think of your biological mother?"

This was also information Wu Yuchen already knew in advance. Leon Lai's biological mother divorced his father when he was very young, less than 1 year old. Later, his father married another one, which meant the one who divorced when he was 14 was his stepmother.

So combined with Leon Lai's answer just now, Wu Yuchen guessed that the stepmother might not necessarily treat him as her own son, so there was his reaction that he was very happy when his parents divorced.

Leon Lai was stunned when he heard this question, but he didn't have any taboos. He just looked a bit blank for a moment, then spread his hands and said: "To tell you the truth, I was so young at that time, I really don't have any impression of her at all."

Wu Yuchen nodded to show he understood. Although he expected Leon Lai to have some grudges, shadows, and gaps like those played in some film and television or finding relatives programs, this would actually have more similarities with the male lead's state of mind. However, Leon Lai's reaction was normal. For a woman who had no impression at all, how many thoughts could he have? People are emotional animals; the emotional bond brought by upbringing is far greater than blood ties.

Subsequently, Wu Yuchen didn't ask anymore and let Leon Lai start his audition performance.

Leon Lai studied in the UK for 5 years, didn't lack Western taste, and was proficient in music. Looking at him holding the cello, there was no sense of incongruity at all, very much like the real thing.

And his acting skills weren't bad. He had also played this kind of introverted, sensitive, and delicate character before, so the overall performance was really not bad.

However, before Leon Lai left, Wu Yuchen asked him another question: "If you are set as the male lead, you have to follow the encoffiner to learn for a period of time. Can you do it?"

At the same time, Wu Yuchen also simply described what he had seen and heard when following the encoffiner before.

Leon Lai was slightly stunned when he heard it. Just hearing Wu Yuchen's description, he knew this wasn't an easy job. However, he thought for a moment and said: "Wu Dao, I'm not afraid of suffering, but can I ask how long I need to learn?"

Wu Yuchen shook his head and said: "It's not certain. Maybe a few months, maybe half a year. I can't say for sure now."

Leon Lai hesitated, and then said to Wu Yuchen: "Wu Dao, if it takes half a year, I might have some announcements to run in the middle, and there are albums to promote. However, I guarantee that it won't affect my state!"

Hearing this, Wu Yuchen nodded to Leon Lai with a smile. After he went out, he sighed.

Mentioning the Four Heavenly Kings, each has their own achievements. However, when it comes to business, Leon Lai can be said to be the leader, and he was also given the nickname 'Commercial Heavenly King'.

In the 90s, Leon Lai had already become a shareholder of 'Pepsi Live Agency', and later became a major shareholder after internal changes. However, he hadn't launched major actions at that time. By the new century, Leon Lai began to slowly expand his business map. This year, he terminated his contract with Sony and began to establish his own record company.

Don't look at Leon Lai's development in his star career not as good as Andy Lau's later, but he is much stronger than Andy Lau in business. Later, he basically turned to behind the scenes.

In his past life, his divorce incident with Gaile Lok made a lot of noise. Hong Kong media reported that Gaile Lok squandered a total of 700 million in assets during their 4-year marriage, including the final divorce fee of 150 million, before settling Gaile Lok. His father was so angry that he scolded him for not marrying Shu Qi! Back then, Leon Lai and Shu Qi didn't make it for 7 years; his father was the most opposed.

Later, Hong Kong media estimated Leon Lai's net worth, which was at least over 1 billion after the divorce.

The reason Wu Yuchen sighed was because Leon Lai was no longer a pure actor and singer now. He had just established East Asia Record from Sony and became a boss himself. He definitely had to spend a lot of energy on his new company and new album. How much energy would this take away from him?

Standing from Leon Lai's perspective, he felt that in half a year, even if he went out for a month, it shouldn't be a big problem. But in Wu Yuchen's view, it wasn't like that. He definitely hoped to find a male lead who was more willing to devote himself wholeheartedly and whose mind was purer. There is a saying that the person is here but the heart is not!

After the two days of auditions ended, Wu Yuchen looked at the list. In terms of overall performance, there were three who met his requirements: Jin Jin Chengwu, Winston Chao, and Leon Lai.

However, Leon Lai, he thought for a moment and excluded him. The Heavenly King is busy. Wu Yuchen could only wish Leon Heavenly King business luck.

Jin Jin Chengwu could also be considered to have met his requirements, but by comparison, Wu Yuchen felt that Winston Chao's character fit was higher.

And recently he also heard some other things about Jin Jin Chengwu. He was being entangled by the Taiwan underworld because his brother was addicted to gambling, not only did his private casino go bankrupt, but he also owed a large amount of foreign debt to the underworld and ran away. Now the underworld found the star brother Jin Jin Chengwu.

Wu Yuchen shook his head. He didn't know if the Taiwan underworld was specifically setting a trap for stars, but let Jin Jin Chengwu have a headache about this matter himself. Anyway, he didn't plan to use him.

So sometimes selecting actors is really a relatively complicated matter. It's not that the actor's own performance is good, but many off-field factors may cause considerable interference to him.

"Wu Dao, thank you, thank you so much!"

At this time, Winston Chao bowed and thanked Wu Yuchen repeatedly, feeling quite excited in his heart.

To tell the truth, there were quite a few big names who came to audition this time—Leon Lai, Liu Dehua, Jin Jin Chengwu. He couldn't compare with these people in terms of fame and status, so he only came with the intention of trying. But he didn't expect that he was finally selected!

Wu Yuchen smiled and said: "Don't thank me. It's your own good performance that best fits the appearance of the male lead in my heart."

Then he patted Winston Chao on the shoulder: "Go and have a good New Year first. After the New Year, you have to follow the encoffiner to learn. And the cello also needs to be practiced. It won't be easy when the time comes~"

"Wu Dao, don't worry, I will definitely not let you down!"

Wu Yuchen was also very satisfied with Winston Chao's attitude. Choosing him was also considering this point—he wouldn't have as many busy affairs as Leon Lai and could give 100% dedication and investment to this role.

Now Wu Yuchen filming this kind of award-chasing film doesn't need to consider any star status at all. He himself is actually the biggest signboard.

In fact, for this film *Departures*, besides the male and female leads, there are several outstanding supporting roles. But now Wu Yuchen doesn't need to be in a hurry. Supporting roles can be selected when he wants to film. His plan this time is to select the male lead so that he can experience life and enter the role earlier. Now that the goal is achieved, he can also relax.

"The first snow of 2002

Came later than usual"

Listening to this rough voice and melodious tune, Wu Yuchen couldn't help but smile at Gao Yuanyuan beside him: "I didn't expect you to like listening to this song~"

Gao Yuanyuan blinked her big eyes and asked: "What's wrong? I think it's quite good. The emotion is very full, and it seems like the memories from before have been hooked up~"

Wu Yuchen gave a thumbs up to Yuanyuan: "Not bad, not bad. Our Yuanyuan is both refined and popular, and her eye is also good. This song will definitely explode this year!"

He knew that this song *The First Snow of 2002* would become a big hit this year, even causing a group of Beijing music circles to come out and group up to step on Dao Lang. What criticizing it for being earthy, vulgar, the sadness of the music circle...

In fact, to put it bluntly, it's just that they are jealous, and Dao Lang's big fire also touched their interests. After all, a bumpkin from the frontier, and the discourse power of the mainland music circle is almost all in Beijing. You are so popular, and you haven't even worshiped a pier. Where should our Beijing circle put its face?

Hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan's eyes smiled into crescent moons, and she sent a cherry into Wu Yuchen's mouth: "Is it sweet?"

"Sweet! Yuanyuan's cherries are the best to eat!"

"Give you another one. It's hard to find such good cherries in winter~"

Wu Yuchen hugged Gao Yuanyuan and said: "It's even harder to find such a good girl as our Yuanyuan~"

Gao Yuanyuan giggled, sent another one to Wu Yuchen, and used her hand to catch the pit Wu Yuchen spat out and threw it away for him.

Wu Yuchen enjoyed Gao Yuanyuan's service comfortably while watching TV. At this time, a familiar figure appeared on the TV. Although the little girl was slightly immature, her appearance was really high enough, and her temperament was outstanding, so she supported the role. It was Liu Qian

The TV series "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" had also been promoted for over half a year, and at the end of last year, which was last month, it finally landed on CCTV.

Moreover, this time "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" was broadcast almost simultaneously across the mainland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, achieving the number one viewership rating in its time slot in both the mainland and Taiwan. A group of actors in the show also saw their popularity soar because of this; it must be said that these years, Jin Yong's dramas really do boost actors.

Seeing Liu Qianqian, Wu Yuchen actually remembered more; he had previously learned from Cai Yinong that the female lead for "Chinese Paladin," Zhao Linger, was also ultimately taken by Liu Qianqian.

This time, Wu Yuchen didn't intervene. At the beginning, He Meidian's popularity was indeed quite high, but after the audition results came out, director Li Guoli and Cai Yinong, after careful consideration, still chose Liu Qianqian.

As for the reason, it was mainly because of age.

When Zhao Linger appears in the game, she is 16 years old, the age of a girl just beginning to blossom, and the current Liu Qianqian was exactly 16, just right, with a youthful aura rushing toward you.

While He Meidian's sweetness was also off the charts, she was already 28 years old. If you really wanted her to play a 16-year-old girl, she could do it, and with makeup and such, it would be fine, but compared to the pure, natural, and overflowing vitality of Liu Qianqian, it was still a step behind.

Therefore, Liu Qianqian was ultimately set as the female lead, Zhao Linger, for "Chinese Paladin."