[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans":3,"chapter-the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-chapter-20":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The More Tragic I Act, the Stronger I Get — My Fans Beg Me to Stop Killing Off My Roles",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1297734,1723,"Chapter 20: I dug a way out of the script graveyard!","the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-chapter-20",20,"\u003Cp>Jiang Ci walked out of the Spark Media building practically in a daze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had ultimately refused Lin Wan's final question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was she joking? Acting as that sunny, naive fool was no different from lying down and waiting for death!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He'd rather go jaywalking on the highway - his survival chances would still be higher than taking that role.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the consequence of his refusal was that he was truly \"unemployed\" now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan had made it very clear - the company had no suitable projects for him in the short term.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While she appreciated his talent, besides being a golden screenwriter, she was also a businesswoman. She couldn't possibly invest in an uncertain tragedy project just for one newcomer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Standing by the bustling street, Jiang Ci looked up at the gloomy sky above, once again experiencing what it meant to have \"heaven turn a deaf ear and earth refuse to answer.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On his system panel, the life countdown of over 70 days constantly reminded him of his predicament.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first thing he did every morning upon waking was check his life countdown, then frantically search online for casting calls from various production crews.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Whenever he spotted words like \"tragedy,\" \"tormented love,\" or \"unresolved regrets,\" his eyes would light up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But clicking into them, he'd find either some obscure small workshop that might not even get their production aired,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>or roles requiring actors to bring tens or even hundreds of thousands in investment to join the crew.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci patted his pockets, cleaner than his face, and decisively closed the webpage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He even considered going to Hengdian to work as an extra.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe some crew filming a war movie needed a soldier to get shot dead - he could rush over, perform a death stare with unclosed eyes,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>and perhaps make some sentimental female script supervisor heartbroken enough to earn a point or two of Heartbreak Value?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But he immediately killed this thought as soon as it emerged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>High risk, low reward, terrible cost-effectiveness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he was about to wear a hole in his rental apartment floor from pacing, Lin Wan called.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Hey, Jiang Ci, what have you been up to these days?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Nothing much... Sister Lin Wan, just reading at home, deepening my understanding.\" Jiang Ci said without blushing or his heart racing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He couldn't very well say he was dying and preparing to sell his body... oh no, his skills.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alright, stop 'deepening' yourself, you'll grow mold at this rate.\" Lin Wan's tone sounded somewhat helpless.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"There's a script reading session tonight. Many screenwriters and producers from the industry will be there. Come with me, see the world, meet some people.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment Jiang Ci heard this, his eyes instantly lit up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A script reading session!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wasn't that basically a \"farmer's market\" for scripts!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe he could dig up one or two \"tragic\" scripts there?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay, okay! Sister Lin Wan, what time? Where? I promise I'll be there on time!\" His voice trembled with excitement.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Such ambition.\" Lin Wan chuckled and scolded lightly, then gave him the time and address.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At seven that evening, Jiang Ci took a taxi to the private club Lin Wan had mentioned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan was already waiting for him at the entrance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She wasn't wearing a suit today, having changed into a black dress with a beige trench coat over it, giving her a more intellectual vibe.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment she saw him, Lin Wan patted his arm. \"Everyone here today is a core figure in the industry. Don't embarrass me.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Understood!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two entered the club, where quite a few people had already gathered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They stood in small groups of two or three, holding wine glasses and conversing in low voices.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While everyone wore polite smiles, Jiang Ci could sense invisible competitions happening in the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan was clearly a regular here, as people kept greeting her the moment she entered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Screenwriter Lin, long time no see! Brewing any big projects lately?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sister Wan, I heard your 'Palace Conspiracy' is almost wrapped? You have to let us see the footage once post-production is done!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lin Wan handled them with ease, casually introducing Jiang Ci along the way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This is our company's newcomer, Jiang Ci.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The producers and screenwriters merely nodded politely at Jiang Ci, their eyes briefly scanning his face before returning to Lin Wan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci understood perfectly well that in these people's eyes, he was currently a nobody, just Lin Wan's \"accessory.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn't mind, enjoying the freedom.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Taking advantage of Lin Wan being engrossed in conversation with a bearded producer, he quietly slipped away to a long table nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the long table lay the main attraction of this reading session - over a dozen scripts of various genres.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci's eyes instantly lit up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He rubbed his hands together and began flipping through them one by one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Kung Fu Boxing' - skip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'My AI Boyfriend' - skip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'School Hunk, Stop Chasing Me' - skip.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci felt a headache coming on from all the flipping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he was about to give up, his gaze was drawn to a script in the corner with a pure black cover bearing only two large golden characters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Dust.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wow, this name sounded utterly depressing just from reading it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He eagerly opened it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Scene One]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Setting: Abandoned theater, midnight]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Characters: A frustrated pianist]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[He sits before a dust-covered piano, fingers trembling, yet unable to play a single note. His wife, a famous dancer, lost her legs and her life in a car accident.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Pianist: (muttering to himself) Without you, my world... is nothing but noise.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Holy shit!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This is the one! This is absolutely the one!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci was so excited he nearly shouted out loud.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Frustration, losing his wife, self-destruction... everything tragic you could imagine!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He immediately hugged the script, retreated to an unoccupied sofa in the corner, and began devouring it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While rubbing his eyes, he noticed a familiar figure entering through the venue entrance,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>but he merely glanced briefly before returning to study the script.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Qingying had just arrived from the reshoot set of 'Palace Conspiracy,' a trace of fatigue still on her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her agent was saying something to her, but she seemed distracted, her gaze sweeping across the venue.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, she spotted the figure curled up in the corner.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was Jiang Ci.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He wore an ill-fitting suit, looking somewhat awkward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But his expression at this moment was one of extreme focus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His entire being was immersed in the script in his hands, completely oblivious to the surrounding noise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Qingying's footsteps halted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She recognized the script in his hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was 'Dust,' written by a very famous but extremely gloomy playwright from the theater circle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was an utter tragedy, so oppressive it made it hard to breathe, with almost zero commercial value and absolutely no chance of being adapted for screen.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In this setting where everyone chased fame and fortune, scrambling to land popular IP roles,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>he, a newcomer, was actually intently studying a tragic stage play script destined to be ignored.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Qingying's gaze became incredibly complex.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She recalled his reckless, almost obsessive dedication when acting on set.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jiang Ci, it seemed... was genuinely only interested in \"tragedies.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That clean yet broken aura about him formed a strangely harmonious contrast with his current focus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Su Qingying merely watched from afar, not approaching to disturb him.\u003C\u002Fp>",1234,"2026-06-05T18:00:08.278Z",1,"novelbin.me","ec0493a9f53a51d16f2575e5611e7d350c3cdef04c59823751730082d4ff2a92","the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-chapter-21","the-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-chapter-19",366,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-more-tragic-i-act-the-stronger-i-get-my-fans-cover.jpg"]