Chapter 251: Recording a Show
Time was passing. Nothing stays the same, and Nangong Ying should have known this. After her new movie finished filming, entered post-production, and was scheduled for a Spring Festival release, she immediately took on a new film. In the entertainment industry, to maintain enough exposure and keep the audience’s interest fresh, one can only continuously take on new roles and participate in more public programs to maintain popularity and let the audience remember you.
Many stars were once very popular, but after their heat passed, no one paid them any mind. This circle is just that cruel. Nangong Ying didn’t want to be eliminated, so she had been working hard to take on roles and expose herself.
Although the profession she was engaged in was not recognized by her father, it was her choice after all, and her family couldn’t say anything about it. The only place she felt guilty was with Yu Linna.
“Sigh.”
Nangong Ying was going to participate in a variety show recording again this day, this time with Li Yuexin. But privately, she actually didn’t want to participate in variety shows very much. These programs had high exposure, but they did nothing to improve her acting skills. She had no interest in them at all. The only benefit was increasing her exposure.
Coincidentally, Tang Yumeng was also invited as a guest to participate in the program recording. Although Tang Yumeng’s popularity was not very high, even very low, her movie had recently become a topic of conversation and had been on TV. Considering her recent popularity, the program team still invited her.
“What a coincidence, big star.”
In the guest waiting room, Tang Yumeng saw Nangong Ying and even greeted her.
Nangong Ying felt a little guilty and responded drily. Tang Yumeng just smiled and said nothing, as if she were greeting an ordinary colleague. She wouldn’t bring up those topics that she didn’t want to be brought up.
After all, in a place like the entertainment industry, having a few dirty secrets wasn’t a big deal. It was just that they couldn’t be brought to the table to be discussed.
…
“This time, we’ve invited quite a few guests. The familiar Nangong Ying, Li Yuexin, and of course, the recent winner of the Best Newcomer award, Tang Yumeng.”
After the invited guests came on stage, they stood there with smiles, were introduced, and then engaged in a wave of commercial mutual praise. After taking their seats, there would be a few jokes to liven up the atmosphere, and the host would also take this opportunity to ask the guests about their recent activities, which was what the audience wanted to know most.
“I’ve taken on a few roles recently. My work for this year is basically full. I’ll have at most a month’s vacation, and it’s not even consecutive. I hope I’ll have more works released next year, and it would be even better if the audience likes them.”
Nangong Ying just gave a polite answer, and the host was quite satisfied.
“Me too. I’ve been busy filming TV dramas. But I also have thoughts of filming a movie. If a director invites me, I might consider it.”
Li Yuexin’s answer was also very standard.
“I’m thinking about how I should improve my acting skills in the coming year and play better roles. This year, Dream Life achieved good results. In the future, I want to focus on art-house films.”
Tang Yumeng replied.
“So you mean, you won’t be taking on commercial films for the time being?”
“No, if there’s a suitable commercial film, I’ll act in it. But, someone has to ask me to film it first (laughs).”
The venue burst into laughter.
After everyone laughed, they realized that although this star had achieved good results in Dream Life, she was not an A-list star, and she had only gotten onto the Weibo popularity list because of her recent heat.
In terms of popularity, she was inferior to Nangong Ying. In terms of box office, how many representative works did she have to show?
“Then Miss Tang, do you think you can achieve higher results in the future? I mean in terms of box office.”
This was indeed a question. In the film industry, especially commercial films, the box office was the deciding factor.
Tang Yumeng’s current box office results were nothing to speak of. And Nangong Ying, at a young age, already had a total box office of over two billion.
“It’s hard to say. I don’t know either. Although saying this might make me seem unconfident, but filming a movie, especially when talking about the box office, I think there are many factors involved. I started out in art-house films. To make a high-grossing movie, I’m still far from it, but I’ll try my best.”
“Thank you, Miss Tang. Then let’s move on to the next game segment.”
…
During the recording of the variety show, Nangong Ying’s eyes were always on Tang Yumeng. She was afraid that she would suddenly say something. If she spoke too quickly, the final result would be irreparable.
After the program was recorded, Tang Yumeng went to the restroom to remove her makeup, planning to go back. Her popularity had risen recently, and she had received many invitations to programs. She planned to participate in program recordings to increase her exposure, so that directors would look for her to film.
After washing her face, when Tang Yumeng looked up, a young girl was standing behind the mirror.
She laughed.
“What, scared?” she asked.
Nangong Ying’s eyebrows twitched, her heart clearly skipped a beat, but she still maintained her composure.
“Nangong Ying, I’m not that stupid, to say these things in person. I still want to make a living in this place. The things you’ve done, I won’t say them out loud. As for how to punish you, heaven will naturally decide.”
Tang Yumeng knew that this person was afraid, afraid that what she had done would be discovered, be known to the world. If that were the case, it would be the biggest scandal in the world.
Betraying her friend to get ahead, almost causing her friend to commit suicide, if this kind of thing were known, she would basically be finished. And what she would face would be the punishment of this world.
She was still afraid.
“I believe you’re a smart person.”
“Of course. I still want to keep my job. Chenghe is your boss. I’m not stupid enough to go and touch their butt. That’s a ferocious tiger.”
After Tang Yumeng finished speaking, she waved goodbye. She wouldn’t waste so much breath on her.
In this circle, everyone knows that some secrets are best kept in the heart. There is no need to say them out loud. It’s not good for others, nor for oneself.
…
Actually, Zhao Yuyan had also recently received an invitation from a program team, to participate in a program called “Star Close-Up,” to talk about her story with the audience in front of the TV. The audience always liked to hear people’s stories. Plus, Zhao Yuyan was a great beauty who was not inferior to the stars in the entertainment industry. It was no problem for her to participate in this program. If no one said anything, no one would even know she was a writer.
Zhao Yuyan didn’t want to come either, but there was no choice. The appearance fee for participating in the program was high, and she didn’t want to write novels, so she came over. Anyway, she wasn’t bad-looking. With a little makeup, she was a big star. She was also a great writer, a god of Wenqing. Someone would definitely watch if she participated in this program.
Besides, the animated version of The Rich Man’s Game was about to be released. The PV had already been released. The art style was beautiful, and the characters were likable. The plot was handled by a senior screenwriter, so it should be fine.
“Hello everyone, this issue’s guest is the god-level female writer from Wenqing, the former Air, whose real name is Zhao Yuyan. What surprise will she bring us today? Let’s welcome her with applause.”
“Thank you, thank you. I’m Air. Hello everyone in the audience.”
It wasn’t Zhao Yuyan’s first time participating in this kind of program, so she acted very naturally, with a proper smile on her face.
Participating in such a high-exposure program was a good thing for her. For the sake of her sales, she would work a little harder.
“Air-sensei, congratulations on the broadcast of The Rich Man’s Game in January next year. We invited you to our program today because many viewers have expressed that they want to do an interview with you.”
“Then it’s truly fate. I’ve actually wanted to come here for a long time. Before I became a writer, I also often watched Sister Hu’s ‘Star Close-Up.’ I never thought I would meet my idol so soon.”
“Haha, that’s really a big surprise. Air-sensei, how did you think of becoming a novelist in the first place?”
The program officially entered the question and answer session. The host asked about her original intention for creating.
“To be honest, I really liked writing novels in high school. I was always writing, but they were all just for my own enjoyment, published online. You could say it was purely out of interest. In university, someone asked me, why don’t you try submitting? With a ‘just try it’ mentality, I submitted my first manuscript to Wenqing. It was a short story. I never thought it would be accepted. After getting my first manuscript fee, I gained more confidence and wanted to continue creating.”
“Then how did you create your only long novel?”
“Because I had been writing short stories, I also wanted to try a long serialization. Sister Chen, an editor at Wenqing, asked me if I wanted to try participating in the Wenqing New Talent Award. I went, and later I wrote The Rich Man’s Game. I was lucky and won an award.”
Zhao Yuyan maintained a smile from beginning to end, looking like a perfect lady. If Yu Linna saw her, she would probably want to kill her.
“Air-sensei, what are your thoughts on your junior, Shion-sensei? He is your junior, but he has risen very quickly, even reaching the same position as you. What are your thoughts?”
“She is also an excellent child. She is very diligent, very hardworking, and willing to endure hardship. When I first met her, she was very serious. She could sit and type for a whole day, even working overtime until two or three in the morning. She handles both her manuscripts and illustrations herself. She has no illustrator, no assistant. She relies on herself for everything. The achievements she has today are what she deserves. She works so hard. If she wasn’t given this status, I would feel sorry for her.”
“I never thought you had such a high evaluation of Shion-sensei, Air-sensei. It seems you have a very good relationship. A long time ago, when Shion-sensei’s novel was released, you even supported her.”
“Mmm, I am her senior, after all.”
The host felt that this was a big win. She had originally just wanted to dig up some dirt on Air-sensei, but she never thought she could also get news about Shion-sensei. She thought she should press on and ask more, to get more information.
Everyone was very interested in the mysterious Shion-sensei. She had also tried to invite him to the program, but was rejected. If she could get information from Air-sensei, it would be a good way.
Thinking like this, the host was happy in her heart.
