Top Chinese celebrity: Debuted from Running Man

Chapter 293 A Good Script

……

Gu Qing hadn't been in the room long when the door was banged on again.

"Hey bro, open the door! I know you're home, don't hide inside and keep quiet!" Deng Chao's loud voice pierced through the door.

"Little Gu, hurry up, hurry up, we men are ready to fight! We're going to be late for the fight!" Chen Chichi's voice followed closely behind, with his unique, quirky tone.

"Has Baoqiang arrived yet? Brothers, gather together!" Zheng Kai's voice joined in.

The noise outside the door was deafening, even more lively than the entrance to a vegetable market.

“’Sister Xiaoya, open the door.’” Gu Qing shook her head and chuckled helplessly, putting down the script she was reading.

With the release of "The Mystic Nine" and "The Left Ear" one after another,
Gu Qing's remaining inventory consists only of the movie "Detective Chinatown" and the TV series "The Imperial Doctress".

In order to maintain a continuous stream of works, new film and television projects must be put on the agenda.

however,
The biggest problem right now is that we can't find a "good script".

He received a large number of scripts, but he couldn't find a single one of high quality.

Many of these projects were ones Gu Qing had never even heard of in his previous life. Investors only decided to start them on a whim because he's become famous now.

Gu Qing really didn't have the confidence to accept such a proposal.

His memories of his past life were a cheat code, but they also became an invisible shackle, making him hesitant to take any risks.

He longed to find scripts that had been critically acclaimed and commercially successful in his previous life, but no one had ever sent them to him.

Even if he's a top star, the number of truly good works he produces each year is limited.
Moreover, many of them have relatively low production costs.

Those investors knew perfectly well that they were not worthy of a top star and were certain that Gu Qing would look down on their small workshop, so they didn't even send over the script.

Unless Gu Qing specifically requests to go there by name, or volunteers himself.

But if he does that, the whole company will probably think he's crazy.

Even the production team must be wondering: What's gotten into this A-list celebrity? Why does he have to act in their "low-budget drama"? It's beneath him!

"Is there a more reasonable way for me to act in these dramas?" Gu Qing frowned and fell into deep thought.

The next second—

"Holy crap! A top-tier celebrity, huh? Even the older members aren't welcoming him?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, no wonder he's a billionaire, he's gotten arrogant, really arrogant!"

The door was flung open, and Deng Chao and Chen Chichi rushed in like a gust of wind, pinning Gu Qing down on the sofa without a word.
The two of them then proceeded to give each other a brutal and inhumane rubbing.

Zheng Kai stood to the side, hands on his hips, grinning so wide his eyes were almost invisible.

"You know I'm a top star and you still dare to treat me like this? Watch out, my fans will cyberbully you!"

Gu Qing struggled in vain, her face filled with despair.

"Oh my, I'm so scared~" Deng Chao and Chen Chichi laughed exaggeratedly, their hands never stopping.

It took quite a while for the commotion to subside.

"Little brother, where's Bao Qiang? Wasn't he with you?" Deng Chao asked, catching his breath.

"No, Brother Baoqiang has his own things to do and said he'll be there later."

As Gu Qing tidied her messy hair, she glanced down at her watch. "It should be soon."

"Xiao Gu, are you still wearing this watch?"

Zheng Kai, with his sharp eyes, immediately recognized it as the gift he had given him when they first met. Seeing how much Zheng Kai cherished it, Zheng Kai felt a warmth in his heart and his smile became even brighter. "I'll give you an even better one someday!"

"Brother Kai, this one is very good, I like it very much." Gu Qing put down his wrist, his tone sincere.

"Let's go! Let's go to the restaurant first, eat while we wait for them!"

Chen Chichi put one arm around Gu Qing and the other on Zheng Kai's shoulder, his stomach growling loudly in agreement, "I'm starving!"

“Oh, right, Xiao Gu,” Deng Chao said, remembering something, “didn’t you say you were bringing a guest? Is she the female lead from your movie? Why don’t we invite her along? It’s a good opportunity for her to get to know you.”

I'll introduce it to you all during tomorrow's recording.

Gu Qing waved her hand, "Tonight is a gathering of acquaintances, it would be too awkward for her to come alone as a girl."

He considered things more carefully. With seven or eight grown men gathered together, Deng Chao and the others would inevitably have a few drinks, so inviting a girl would indeed be inappropriate.

Moreover, his mother was also there; it would be even more awkward if she misunderstood and thought he was attending some kind of drinking party.

"Okay, I'll listen to you, let's go!" Deng Chao nodded and called for everyone to set off.

The group then traveled by car to the restaurant they had booked.

One after another, Li Chen and Wang Zhulan arrived. Finally, Wang Baoqiang rushed over, followed by a tall figure—Tong Liya.

"Baoqiang! I missed you so much!"

The brothers immediately went up to him warmly, embracing and exchanging pleasantries.

"Sister Ya Ya?" Gu Qing looked at the smiling Tong Liya and was clearly stunned for a moment.

"What? You're not welcoming me?" Tong Liya walked straight up to Gu Qing, a hint of reproach in her voice, and ruffled his freshly styled hair. "I've sent you so many messages, why didn't you reply?"

She was acquainted with everyone except Wang Zhulan; they had interacted or collaborated with each other.

"Sister Ya Ya, are you too busy with work? I'm a 'big star'!"

Gu Qing retorted, "I often can't even keep up with news from Brother Chao and the others."

"Okay, okay, you're the 'big star,' and I'm the 'little star.'" Tong Liya was amused by him and gave him a reproachful look.

"Liya, what brings you here? Where's Sicheng?" Li Chen, who had worked with her before, asked curiously.

"He's busy editing videos at home, so he sent me to appear on the show to promote it."

Tong Liya smiled and thanked Chen Chichi for giving up his seat, then naturally sat down next to Gu Qing.

"Huh? Where's Baby?" Wang Baoqiang looked around, not seeing any familiar figures, and asked in surprise, "Haven't she arrived yet?"

"It's getting late, I'll make a call and ask."

Deng Chao took out his phone and dialed, "Baby, where are you? Your brother and Baoqiang are here... Huh? Are you feeling unwell? Are you alright?"

"...Oh, okay, then you get some rest. We'll come back to see you after we finish eating...Are you already going to sleep? Alright then."

He hung up the phone, a puzzled look on his face. "Why are you suddenly feeling unwell?"

"Baby isn't coming?" Chen Chichi asked.

"Hmm, he said he had no appetite and told us to eat properly." Deng Chao didn't think much of it, picked up his chopsticks and called out, "Come on, let's not wait any longer, let's eat first."

Gu Qing remained calm and focused on eating the food in front of him.

“Little brother,” Tong Liya picked up a piece of pork rib for him and asked with concern, “Have you decided which school you want to go to?” “What do you mean? Little brother, you’re planning to go to school?” Deng Chao was so surprised that he almost dropped his chopsticks on the table.

I thought Gu Qing had gone mad.

"I didn't plan to formally study there. I just felt that my acting skills had hit a bottleneck, and I wanted to go to the film academy for further study," Gu Qing explained.

"This is the film academy? I thought you went to school there. You gave me quite a fright!"
"Young man, with your current status, do you really need to take classes? Going wherever you want is just a matter of a word, so what are you hesitating about?"

Deng Chao laughed, thinking that he was overthinking it.

"Brother Chao, is your younger brother hesitating between the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Film Academy?"

Tong Liya looked at Deng Chao, her senior from the Central Academy of Drama, seeking his support, "Senior, which one do you think is better?"

"Is there even a question? Of course it's our Central Academy of Drama!"

Deng Chao immediately straightened his back, looking proud. "Look at your acting skills, Brother Chao! Which of the Beijing Film Academy students here is better than me?"

He deliberately scanned Chen Chichi, Zheng Kai, and Li Chen.

"Holy crap! Old Deng! You're putting on an act!"

What's wrong with Beijing Film Academy?

"So what if you won a Best Actor award!"

Chen Chichi, Zheng Kai, and Li Chen, three alumni of the Beijing Film Academy, were instantly ignited and refuted each other in unison.

"Which of the top directors active in the industry today didn't graduate from Beijing Film Academy?"

"I'm going to tell my uncle right now! Deng Chao, you're finished!"

"Xiao Gu! Don't listen to him! The Central Academy of Drama doesn't allow students to film outside during their first year! You'll get ripped off if you go!"

The three of them took turns offering their earnest advice to Gu Qing.

Wang Zuzhu and Wang Baoqiang watched with great interest.
One came from TVB, the other was a self-taught talent; they had no such "sweet troubles," and just chuckled as they watched the show.

"Your Beijing Film Academy has so much traffic! But do I need your traffic boost? He's already a top star!"

Deng Chao retorted, his face flushed and neck red, "If you really want to hone your acting skills, you have to come to our Central Academy of Drama!"

Besides, with my status, how could the school not give me special treatment? Our Central Academy of Drama is keeping up with the times!

The atmosphere at the dinner table instantly became tense, with a fierce debate erupting between the Central Academy of Drama and the Beijing Film Academy.

"Heh, you only talk about traffic, but you don't mention connections at all?"

Chen Chichi sneered and retorted precisely, "If Xiao Gu comes to Beijing Film Academy, he'll definitely be the focus of the entire school, a perfect recruitment ambassador! Then, acting in Director Zhang's and my uncle's movies would be a piece of cake, wouldn't it? Does your Central Academy of Drama have that kind of resource?"

"I..." Deng Chao was speechless for a moment.

The two groups were arguing fiercely.

"Isn't enrollment starting next January? Why the rush?"

Gu Qing was completely bewildered.

He was indeed hesitant about whether or not to pursue further studies.

Going or not going, there are advantages and disadvantages to both.

At least his company certainly doesn't want him to go.

Gu Qing can easily earn millions from a single commercial performance. If he were to go to school, even if he could still act, he would still lose at least hundreds of millions in income.

and,

With Gu Qing's current acting skills, she's more than capable of starring in a period drama. Just by selling her looks, she could act for at least another 10 years.

Compared to acting in serious movies and seeking awards, acting in idol dramas is definitely a low-cost, high-reward endeavor.

You can easily make a fortune.

But the price to pay is the need to desperately 'consolidate popularity'.

Honey, one of the "Four Little Flowers" (a term referring to four popular young actresses), is the most direct example.

She was a talented and insightful actress in her early years, but in the end, she gave up honing her acting skills and focused solely on idol dramas, while also engaging in various marketing campaigns outside of film and television.

The result is that she has remained a top-tier actress for a long time, maintaining her status as a leading star.

But the price paid was: being hated by everyone.

Investors and business owners in the industry looked down on her, and actors of the same caliber despised her, which led her to work alone in the later stages.

online,
Aside from the unwavering support of the male fans, they are almost always the target of ridicule.

What: distorted face, old, ugly, pretentious, disgusting...

Gu Qing had seen plenty of these abusive comments in his previous life.

Many people criticized her, saying she'd made enough money and should retire from the entertainment industry when she got older.

Having enjoyed the adoration of millions, who can bear the loneliness?

then,

As they get older, they desperately try to act in serious dramas in an attempt to change their image, and that's the reason.

"Acting skills... must be practiced!"

Gu Qing made a decision; he was currently enjoying the brightest side of the world.

He couldn't bear to leave either.

……

The meal was quite enjoyable amidst the banter and jokes.