Chapter 153: The Death Scene of the Past Was Death; the Death Scene of Today Is Sacrifice

Yan Li personally supervised and directed the terrestrial channel release of "Detective Di Renjie" for over a month, but that didn't mean he did nothing else.

Due to the system, Yan Li mostly gave remote instructions and didn't expend much of his energy.

Thus, those brilliant release achievements were only a small part of Yan Li's work, even not his main job.

Besides supervising the release of "Detective Di Renjie," Yan Li continued to follow up on the post-production of "Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies," as well as its release and that of several other films and TV dramas.

At the same time, he was busy researching new projects, negotiating with Hai Run about "Sword of Valor," sneaking off to visit Qin Lan on the set of "The Great Song Inspector," and handling various other miscellaneous tasks.

Yan Li never knew he could handle so much work.

He didn't know whether it was because his body was healthy, his energy growing more vigorous, or because his entrepreneurial passion had ignited, making him oblivious to fatigue.

Yan Li had once talked with some other bosses and leaders.

Career is the best tonic for men; many who are over forty or fifty, if their careers progress smoothly, become full of drive, their physical strength and spirit surpassing even the young.

Combined with Yan Li's youth and strong recovery ability, he truly didn't feel particularly tired.

Occasionally, he felt irritated or exhausted, complained a bit, "slept" a bit, took a bath, slept again, and the next day carried on as usual.

But Yan Li wasn't without moments of slacking off.

For example, when he returned home, ate meals cooked by his father, and listened to his mother's nagging, he would unconsciously grow a bit "lazy," lounging at home without wanting to move.

Zao City, Bailou Village

After delaying for a while, Yan Li finally returned home to shoot "Railway Guerrillas," and on the way visited his parents—only to end up staying an extra two days at home.

"Dad, why don't you and Mom move to Jingcheng? I'll open a store for you two—it'll earn way more than this."

This wasn't the first time Yan Li had urged his parents to move to Jingcheng, but the old couple hesitated, weighed down by many concerns, and never gave in.

"What about your grandma if I go?"

Old Yan started using the old lady as an excuse; Yan Li remained calm: "Take her along—I'll take care of her in her old age."

"Your uncle and little uncle won't agree, and besides, your mom and your grandma never got along—live together long enough and they'll fight."

In truth, Zhang Hong and Yan Li's grandma got along well enough on the surface; whenever there was food or drink at home, Zhang Hong would always send a portion to the old lady, and she never complained when Yan Li bought things for her.

But years ago, there had been some friction between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

The exact reasons were hard to say—just petty, trivial matters accumulated over time, compounded by their poverty back then; for several years during Yan Li's childhood, the two barely spoke.

Only after Old Yan and Zhang Hong opened their restaurant and built a new house to live separately, when their finances improved and conflicts vanished, did they slowly reconcile.

But the grudges remained—something only Old Yan, as the son, and his wife knew best.

If the two lived together long enough, friction was inevitable.

Yan Li still had a solution: "Buy two houses, don't live together—you can cook an extra meal or hire a nanny."

Old Yan glared at him: "You've got too much money to burn."

"Your grandma's looking after your uncle's grandson—she won't go to Jingcheng."

Zhang Hong spoke up, then added, seeing Yan Li still wanted to argue: "If you want me and your dad to move to Jingcheng, simple—have a grandson, shut down the store, and come take care of the kid."

Yan Li fell silent immediately, quietly pulled out his phone and fiddled with it aside.

He quieted down, but Zhang Hong didn't let him off: "When are you bringing that girlfriend of yours home to meet us?"

Yan Li didn't want to argue, and replied offhandedly: "Can't meet—broken up."

"Broken up?!"

Zhang Hong's voice rose sharply; she'd bought the apartment, prepared the wedding red envelope, and was waiting to hold her grandson—only for this little rascal to break up.

"Why did you break up?"

"Don't ask—I don't want to talk about it."

Yan Li wore an expression of wounded past he refused to revisit; Old Yan sipped his tea, spat out the tea leaves, and studied Yan Li closely.

"You didn't dump her just because you got rich, did you?"

Yan Li looked wounded: "Am I the kind of person you think I am?"

"Hard to say."

Old Yan gave a cold laugh.

As a parent who had frequently visited schools due to his son's early romances, he'd never fully trusted his son's moral conduct.

Zhang Hong stood by her son: "Don't talk nonsense—if our son were that kind of heartless man, how could that girl have liked him so much? Even little Gao from next village came to our shop during New Year's asking about him—clearly still has feelings…"

Seeing old grievances being dug up and even his mother starting to play matchmaker, Yan Li quickly signaled to stop.

"Don't worry—I'm this handsome, how could I lack suitors? I'll find you another daughter-in-law in a while."

Zhang Hong thought about it; back when Yan Li was in school, he'd already brought girls home—now that he was doing well, finding someone wasn't hard.

"I can't control who you date, but don't pick someone too old."

Hearing his mother's odd remark, Yan Li recalled the earlier intelligence he'd triggered.

"Didn't I say? That Li Bingbing rumor was fake—don't go imagining things."

Ever since Zhang Hong saw some rumor linking Yan Li to Li Bingbing, she'd worried her son might date someone older.

A woman three years older is a golden brick.

Generally, the public accepts a woman two or three years older; five years is a bit much but still manageable.

But Li Bingbing is seven years older than Yan Li—that's considered out of bounds.

At least Zhang Hong couldn't accept it; by the time Yan Li is in his thirties, she'll be nearing forty—almost not from the same generation.

The words were exaggerated, but the older generation thought this way; and in Zhang Hong's view, her son was handsome and rich—a hot commodity—so he shouldn't "waste himself" like this.

Fortunately, Li Bingbing had no intelligence network; otherwise, knowing she was so despised behind her back by Yan Li's mother, she'd definitely come to settle accounts with Yan Li.

But this did remind Yan Li of one thing: his mother liked reading newspaper articles about him.

When "Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies" airs, if he and Fan Xiaopang stir up a rumor to boost promotion, Zhang Hong will surely start imagining things again.

Forget it.

Yan Li didn't take it too seriously; let him ponder, ponder all he wanted—soon enough, with more "scandals" about him, Zhang Hong wouldn't care anymore.

…

The filming location for "Railway Guerrillas," mentioned earlier, was a film city built and invested in by Zao City, in Republican-era style, with numerous railway elements.

This film city was not yet fully constructed; only Phase One, sufficient for the crew's shooting needs, had been completed.

Yan Li's home was not far from this film city—about thirty kilometers, a thirty- to forty-minute drive, or up to an hour if taking backroads.

Thus, Yan Li did not stay at the crew's hotel but lived at home; if shooting duties became busy, he'd temporarily rent a room.

Director Wang, Teacher Zhao, you've worked hard.

When Yan Li arrived at the set, the crew was on break, so he stepped forward to greet them.

In fact, the "Railway Guerrillas" crew had many people he knew.

Director Wang Xinmin was the director of Wu Jian's "The Knight's Walk" and Wu Yue's "The Liancheng Pact."

Chen Yongge, one of the directors of "Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies," was poached from him, and now Chen was also a director of "Railway Guerrillas," acting as Yi'an's representative on set.

In addition, Zhang Li, who played Li Tianwang in "Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies," portrayed Deputy Captain Wang Qiang in this drama; old friend Peng Dan also made a cameo as a tragic female character.

But Yan Li had almost no direct scenes with them.

Due to limited time and uncertainty over when filming would occur, they deliberately assigned him a minor, relatively independent role.

Zhang Lan, deputy station master of the train station, was an undercover agent—publicly working for the Japanese, secretly feeding intelligence to the Railway Guerrillas, eventually betrayed by a traitor and brutally murdered.

In the 1990s, actors Liu Wei, Li Xuejian, Li Youbin, Zhang Fengyi, and others made a film titled "Huang Feihu Dui," based on the Railway Guerrillas story.

That film also featured a murdered undercover deputy station master, portrayed by Wang Zhiwen in a cameo.

"Railway Guerrillas" borrowed this setup from "Huang Feihu Dui," added some details, and emphasized the difficulties of behind-enemy-lines work and the cruelty of the Japanese devils.

This role posed no difficulty for Yan Li; only a few key scenes mattered.

Discovering Japanese soldiers disrespecting his wife, he grew discontent; reconnecting with guerrilla comrades, he was persuaded by the political commissar to defect; during a critical operation, he made outstanding contributions, successfully aiding the Railway Guerrillas in striking the Japanese invaders; betrayed by a traitor, he died heroically.

The only thing Yan Li discussed with the director was whether he should speak his hometown dialect in his lines.

Other actors might not know this obscure dialect, and for the convenience of TV distribution, most spoke Mandarin, at most adding some Shandong dialect colloquialisms.

Director Wang Xinmin was genuinely tempted—dialect was inconvenient, but it could enhance immersion.

After hearing Yan Li recite a few lines, he rejected it, feeling it sounded too rustic, too conspicuous in the drama, inconsistent with the reserved undercover agent's character.

Yan Li didn't insist; he Always Respect the director's opinion, especially when the director's reasoning made sense—he readily followed.

No shooting today; filming officially started tomorrow. Yan Li only tried on makeup and observed other scenes being shot.

"Railway Guerrillas" employed many veteran actors: male lead Zhao Hengxuan and female lead Shi Lanya were seasoned performers; many supporting roles, though less famous, had appeared in numerous dramas or were veteran stage actors.

Thus, filming flowed smoothly, especially in dialogue scenes—rarely did they need multiple takes, unless complex staging or leadership was required; most scenes were done in one or two takes.

Of course, the crew also had newcomers, such as Wang Qi, who played the female second lead Lan Ni, a 2002 intake student at the Military Art Academy, still in college.

Wang Qi had a delicate, sweet, small-town beauty look, truly fitting for Lan Ni, this country girl; Yan Li watched two of her scenes and found her genuinely spirited.

He heard she hadn't signed with any company yet; her appearance and aura were just a bit lacking—if they weren't, Yan Li would have seriously considered signing her for Yi'an.

Sweet, lively, cute, and innocent types had plenty of suitable roles—even if unsuitable for lead, female second or third leads were always in demand.

Among the rising young actresses, Seeing Huo Siyan barely counted as half; another was Li Xiao Lu; the most promising was Shu Chang.

But Shu Chang was hard to sign; she was currently a hot commodity, and ordinary resources couldn't sway her; her personality and style also didn't match Yan Li's expectations.

Yan Li had never interacted with Li Xiao Lu, but he still recognized Seeing Huo Siyan's "ambition."

But Dong Xuan guarded against her fiercely, and Fan Xiaopang was also at odds with her; signing her might disrupt team unity.

…

Yan Li stood there smoking, lost in thought; Wang Qi, who played Lan Ni, noticed the young man who had been watching her for a while and quietly asked Shi Lanya.

"Sis, who's that? Just now you and the director greeted him."

"I don't know him well; I heard he's an investor, runs a film company."

Shi Lanya was an actor from the People's Art Theatre, with her own work; she only took roles when offered, and wasn't well-connected to industry rumors or emerging forces.

Curious, Wang Qi went to ask another female actor on set.

The woman stared at her in surprise: "Aren't you studying in Jingcheng? Didn't you go to the open casting for 'Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies'?"

"I didn't go—I was busy with classes—but now I know who he is."

For young female actors in Jingcheng, "Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies" was a highly influential production.

It had open casting, online voting, toured major art academies, interviewed many young Jingcheng actresses, and even elevated some.

Publicly, Seeing Huo Siyan, Jiang Xin, and Yang Xue rose through open casting; Li Lin and Dong Xuan leveraged online popularity.

In truth, Jiang Xin and Li Lin earned their roles through genuine image and talent; Shuang Bing was invited by Yan Li; the other three were connections.

Though somewhat inflated, this "fairness" was far superior to other productions, leaving a strong impression on many.

At first Wang Qi didn't connect the dots, but after a slight hint, she immediately recognized him.

"He's the big boss—see that Mercedes G-Class parked over there? He drove it here, worth over a million."

As they spoke, Yan Li walked by; the actress dropped Wang Qi and rushed forward to greet him.

"Director Yan, hello, I'm Li Wa. I auditioned for your production 'Huan Tian Xi Di Seven Fairies' and played Bai Juhua on set."

Yan Li was used to such approaches, but when he heard she played Bai Juhua, he felt a flicker of interest.

He'd read the script; the character Bai Juhua was called "【Zao City's Number One Flower, None So Seductive】," dubbed the top assassin of the drama.

She had been with three traitor captains—and killed them all, outdoing even the Railway Guerrillas' top operatives.

But this actress, though seductive in demeanor, had an average appearance and figure—nowhere near "【Number One Flower】"; Yan Li, a native of Zao City, didn't buy it.

This might be tied to the role itself—beautiful actresses had more choices and wouldn't necessarily want such a part.

Watching Li Wa speak to Yan Li, Wang Qi hesitated, about to step forward and make herself known, when her phone rang—it was her boyfriend Shen Teng.

Wang Qi hesitated, glanced at Yan Li, then took her phone aside to talk to her boyfriend.

After dealing with Li Wa, Yan Li walked away, unable to stop muttering to himself.

The place where they just chatted—was it some kind of drafty spot? The September heat hadn't faded, the weather was still scorching, yet a cold wind blew sharply against his back…

…

The next day, Yan Li came to set from home, bringing Comrade Zhang Hong along.

His mother had never seen filming before, and she especially wanted to watch her son act, so she left her shop unattended for a day and came along to watch the spectacle.

As luck would have it, Yan Li's first scene was one of sacrifice.

Listen, before it was a death scene; now it's a sacrifice scene—the value of death is instantly highlighted.

Watching from the side, his mother saw Yan Li more serious than ever before.

Called in for questioning by a Japanese officer, his eyes betrayed shock and suspicion, yet he forced himself to remain calm; seeing the traitor, he realized he had been betrayed, feigned compliance on the surface while inwardly resolving to die for his cause.

"... I'll get you the intelligence right away."

Yan Li lowered his head, reached into his pant pocket, and when he looked up, his gaze was calm and resolute—now holding in his hand a grenade given to him by the guerrillas for self-defense.

The traitor reacted instantly, kicked the grenade away, and it exploded, killing several Japanese soldiers outside.

Yan Li charged forward to fight, but he was no match for the traitor; he was knocked to the ground, yet struggled to rise and silently lunged again at the traitor, determined to die with him, until finally shot dead by the Japanese officer's gun.

The original script called for two lines of dialogue—something like "I'll fight you to the death!" or a loud scream.

Yan Li discussed it with the director and felt no dialogue was needed—this kind of man, who instantly grasps the danger and immediately reaches for a grenade to take everyone down with him, doesn't need words.

At the same time, this quiet, determined act of sacrifice adds a deeper sense of tragedy.

The director leaned toward Yan Li's view, so they filmed it twice, compared the results, and ultimately decided silence was better.

After finishing this scene, the next was the confrontation between the Japanese officer and the traitor; Yan Li went to change costumes and showed off to his mother.

"Mom, how was my performance?"

Zhang Hong pursed her lips, brushed off the dust from where he'd fallen, then touched the bloodstain on his chest.

"Did the gunshot hurt?"

Yan Li had a headache—he'd brought the wrong person. If he'd brought his father, his dad might now be waving the prop gun around, trying to fire two more shots just to hear the sound…

————

ps: Ten thousand words, begging for monthly tickets

(End of Chapter)