Poseidon in Arknights

“Let’s put the casting on hold for now, Miss Nian,” Xi Yue waved her hand. “Let’s talk about the script first. We can discuss the roles later.”

"Oh, that's true."

Chapter 120: The Script of "Witty Ideas"

"Yeah, the script is the most important thing." Croissant realized at this moment. Whether a movie is good or not depends on the script, besides special effects and props.

However, Croissant still has some confidence in Nian's script. After all, with such a high salary, it shouldn't be bad. Even if Nian, the big director, isn't good, he should be able to hire a good screenwriter to write the script.

"First of all, the female lead is a detective, and a famous one at that, very popular in the Lungmen area."

"A suspense story. I have a feeling it's going to fail." Xi Yue listened to Nian's story with a smile, but a sense of foreboding crept into her heart.

Unlike other suspense works, the dramatic scenes are of paramount importance. In fact, the quality of a suspense work almost entirely depends on its dramatic scenes.

"The story begins with the female protagonist and the male protagonist going on a date at an amusement park."

"Wait, we don't have any boys here." Exusiai raised her hand, her eyes questioning. "Should we look for someone else?"

If that's really the case, Exusiai wouldn't want to agree. Back then, when describing the female protagonist, Yuuki was the only one among them.

If they really wanted to squeeze a guy into the relationship, even if it was just for a date, Exusiai would be the first to object.

"It can be changed~" Nian waved her hand dismissively. "We can change it to the second female lead and the female lead having fun at an amusement park, it's just a pretext anyway~"

"As for the relationship, changing it to best friends wouldn't be bad either."

"Is it really okay to change the script so casually?" Exusiai scratched her head. She didn't know much about making movies, but logically speaking, the script shouldn't be changed so casually, even before filming started.

"It's okay, we haven't started filming yet anyway~" Nian waved his hand, it was just a small matter, it wasn't about changing the plot, it was just changing a person.

"Next, the female protagonist discovers a gang of thugs conducting a secret transaction in a dark corner of the amusement park, and she follows them."

'Hmm?' Xi Yue raised an eyebrow; this opening sounded familiar.

"Then, unfortunately, the female lead's stalking was discovered by the gangsters, and she was knocked unconscious on the spot. Then, to ensure that the female lead was definitely alive or dead, they stabbed her in the chest again."

'Silk…' The more Xi Yue listened to Nian's story, the more familiar it sounded.

"But what they didn't expect was that the female lead's heart was on the left side, so their finishing blow didn't kill her."

"After a period of time, the female protagonist wakes up. She knows that if she shows herself again, it will lead to the gang hunting her down again, and even her family will be in danger."

"Oh, and then the female lead disguises herself, infiltrates the underworld, and takes down the gang in one fell swoop, right?" Upon hearing this, Exusiai immediately recalled some similar gangster thrillers she had seen before.

"What are you interrupting for?" Nian glanced at Exusiai. "I haven't finished speaking yet, listen to me."

"Okay, okay, you tell me." Exusiai obediently sat back down.

"Then the protagonist discussed this matter with his best friend, who is also the second female lead. In order to protect the protagonist, the second female lead brought the protagonist back to the detective agency."

"This detective agency was originally opened by the main character and the second female lead. However, unlike the main character, the second female lead's detective skills are quite poor, and she is virtually unknown in the industry."

Hearing this, Yuuzuki sighed and rubbed her forehead. She understood now; this script was definitely a copy of a certain elementary school student's death story.

However, there was no shrinking pill, and the identity and situation were revealed from the beginning. The venue was limited to Lungmen, and the purpose was to wipe out the gang. Compared to the Grim Reaper Elementary School Student who has been around for 20 years, it is much simpler.

Of course, it's also possible that this is just a movie, not an anime or a TV series, so there's no need for unnecessary foreshadowing to expand the scope, and a movie doesn't need such a heavy scope.

At least for now, the script for this movie is reasonable. As long as nothing unexpected happens during the later crime-solving scenes, the movie should be watchable.

Well, as long as they don't cause any trouble.

"However, a problem arose for the two of them: the detective agency was struggling to make ends meet without its lead actor..."

"Wait a minute, I have a question." Croissant looked at Nian with some curiosity. "Weren't those two playing together at the amusement park? How come they're suddenly in debt? Don't those two have a habit of saving money?"

“They’re all minor details, minor details!” Nian slapped the table. “At worst, we can just put the whole screen black and write something like, ‘A long time has passed, and we’ve gained nothing.’”

"Yes, the black screen transition is reasonable."

"In short, in order to make money, the female owner had to reopen the detective agency, but because she couldn't show her face, she asked a friend she knew to get them a miniature camera and a miniature earpiece."

"The female lead sits in the office and, with the help of cameras and earpieces, assists the second female lead in solving crime scenes and murder cases."

"Yes, that makes sense. Since we've revealed our identities, we don't need an anesthetic, so we can just use the earpiece." Yuuki nodded in agreement, indicating that it was reasonable and acceptable.

“Because the female lead’s detective agency is very famous, people came knocking on their door very quickly after it reopened.” Nian flipped through the notebook. “And this first case is the most classic locked-room murder case.”

"Oh, a locked-room murder case." Exusiai nodded slightly; this is a trope most often used in suspense works.

A place that looks like a locked room must have some kind of hidden mechanism, or the murderer used some clever trick to drop the key inside, making the room look like a locked room. It can be said to be the most classic plot in suspense works.

"I won't go into the details of the case; you'll find out when we start filming~" Nian unfolded her fan, covering her face, and looked at everyone with feigned mystery.

"In short, the process is that the female protagonist determined by observing the scene that the murderer killed the victim who hung the alarm clock back on the wall by hitting the wall, so he had no need to enter the room to commit the crime."

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent. Everyone stared wide-eyed at Nian, and at that moment, everyone shouted out a sentence.

"what?"

"How about that? A perfect method of committing the crime, right?" Nian looked at everyone smugly. "As long as no one goes into the room, no evidence will be left inside. And if there is no evidence, then it is the most perfect locked room."

Xi Yue shook her head helplessly. She probably understood why movies from that year were so bad. With a plot like this, which audience would be willing to buy into it?

"What's wrong? Everyone's quiet. Are you surprised?" Nian looked at everyone smugly, but all she got were disinterested glances. "Wh-what's wrong?"

"No, it's nothing." Exusiai slumped on the sofa and waved to Nian. "It's just that I suddenly don't really want to participate."

“Agreed.” Croissant looked up at the ceiling. “This plot is so ridiculous, I have absolutely no interest in participating.”

Sora nodded: "I have a feeling that if I participate in the filming and broadcast of this kind of movie, my idol career will also be affected."

"..." Texas stroked Red's tail beside her. She took a Pocky stick out of her pocket, put it in her mouth, and said, "I have absolutely no desire to watch this movie."

"Why is it like this?" Nian looked at everyone and slapped the table. "Why do you all seem to have suddenly lost confidence?"

“Nian,” Xi Yue looked at Nian helplessly, “do you know that there’s an unwritten rule in suspense works?”

"Hmm?" Nian thought for a moment but wasn't quite sure what Xiyue was referring to. "What unwritten rule?"

“It’s very simple.” Xi Yue looked at Nian, crossed her hands and made an X. “First of all, the methods used by the murderer in the plot must not involve superpowers such as hitting a cow through a mountain or killing someone through walls or from a distance.”

"Oh, you mean that? I know." Nian nodded. "So?"

"So that's the reason." Xi Yue looked at Nian helplessly. "You know there are feelings involved? And yet you still made this mistake."

"So what?" Nian stood up, hands on hips, looking at Xiyue. "If you want to be a good director, how can you follow those outdated rules?"

“Yes, you’re right.” Yu Yue smiled and nodded, then changed the subject, “However, a movie that can’t be accepted by the audience is meaningless.”

"These unwritten rules can become rules because they are selected by the audience and recognized by the public."

"If you don't dare to challenge these rules, how can you become a great director?" Nian said stiffly, looking at Xiyue. "And how do you know it won't succeed?"

Xi Yue looked at Nian speechlessly, holding her face: "Nian, let me ask you, what do you think a suspense movie should be about?"

After thinking for a moment, Nian looked at Xiyue and asked, "A brilliant deduction?"

Xi Yue nodded: "Yes, that's right. The murderer's ingenious method of committing the crime and the detective's brilliant deduction are the most important parts of a suspense movie that audiences can talk about."

"It's like a clever math problem. The murderer provides the problem and leaves behind clues. The detective leads the audience step by step to unravel the mystery, solve the problem, and identify the murderer."

"This is the essence of suspense movies. What everyone wants is an unsolved mystery, a perfect murder method, and the exhilarating feeling of the truth being revealed."

Finally, Xi Yue, as if disappointed in her, slapped the table and said, "And what about you? You gave us a locked-room murder case. While everyone was wondering how the murderer managed to kill the victim in this perfect locked room, you told us that the murderer killed the victim remotely using a method that involved hitting someone from a distance."

"There's no need to read any further. Someone will slam the door and leave once they get to this point." Xi Yue looked at Nian, who had turned his face away. "In the end, there's only one ending for your movie, Nian: another super bad movie in the history of suspense films."

"Is it really that bad?" Nian turned her head away and muttered twice, "It should be alright, it can't be that bad..."

The number of people watching the movie is decreasing, but I think there will still be some who go to see it.

"Ah, maybe a few people will watch it when it airs," Kong said after thinking for a moment. "After the first wave of people finish watching, I guess no one will watch it anymore."

Exusiai stroked her chin: "It's hard to say. Maybe some people like watching bad movies and will go out of their way to see just how bad they are."

At this moment, Nian seemed unable to withstand the successive blows and leaned back in her chair, clutching her chest.

Xi Yue looked at Nian and shook her head helplessly: "Nian, even if you want to make a good film, you can't make it like this. Challenging the public's perception is not a good idea."

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

After thinking for a moment, Muirsey, who was sitting to the side, said, "To be honest, if Miss Nian really can't handle dramatic scenes, there's no need for you to challenge yourself with suspense films. You could just go and make action movies."

"As long as those kinds of movies are entertaining to watch, the action scenes are good enough, and the fighting is exhilarating, as long as the dramatic scenes don't have any major problems, people will still come to see them."

"Shooting an action movie?" Nian stroked his chin thoughtfully, but shook his head after thinking for a moment. "But wouldn't the action choreographer completely steal the show?"

"Huh?" Muirsey looked at Nian strangely. "How come the action choreographer stole the spotlight?"

“You said it yourself, as long as the action scenes are exciting enough, the dramatic scenes don’t need to be cared about.” Nian looked at Muirsay. “In that case, who would care about the script I worked so hard to write?”

"Ah, Yuan, so you care about this?" Muirsey looked at Nian. "Well, think about it from a different perspective. Being able to bring that action director over here is also a skill of yours as a director."

Nian shook his head: "No, no, I absolutely can't let my limelight be stolen."

“I don’t think this script is good enough. Let’s look at another one.” Nian flipped through the notebook. “Let’s see this one…”

"Oh no, Miss Nian, we've lost interest." Everyone quickly waved their hands to stop Nian; they didn't want her to lose faith in the movie.

They finally understood: Nian was clearly a terrible player with a huge addiction to bad games, and it seemed that the other party had already flopped many times, so they probably didn't care anymore, or had gotten used to their movies flopping at the box office.

But they can't do that. They don't want their first acting career to be ruined by such a terrible movie. After they participate in the film and it is released, they want to make sure it's good.

No matter what, Penguin Logistics is considered a prominent figure in Longmen. But after this movie is made and released, they might be told by everyone they meet, "Oh, they're the ones who made that awful movie."

They would really lose face if they did that, and they wouldn't be able to stay in Longmen. So, in order to continue living in Longmen, they resolutely refused to participate in the movie that year.

"Hey, what's going on?" Nian looked at everyone in surprise. "You were all so excited just now."

“No, we were just being disrespectful, we are very sorry.” Croissant bowed to Nian. “Please find someone else, Master, we are really not up to the task of writing your script.”

"No, I have other scripts too."

Chapter 121: Year, Age

In the end, no one could stop Nian from telling her whimsical scripts. Fortunately, after listening to them once or twice, everyone got used to it and instead became enthusiastic about participating in another activity.

Of course, I'm not referring to filming, because they really can't bear the embarrassment. It's that every time you point out a flaw, several of them start discussing it all at once.

For example, what are the flaws in this plot, what rules were violated, and what are the many illogical parts of the story?

Even the once confident Nian, after such repeated blows and further attacks, slumped in her chair, leaning back, staring at the ceiling with lifeless eyes.

"Alright, alright." Xi Yue stood up and patted Nian's head. "Stop lying here like a corpse, get up and eat."

"Hmm." Upon hearing the word "eat," Nian sat up abruptly, glanced at the hot pot on the table, and grinned as he took out a small bag from somewhere and handed it to Xiyue. "Your hot pot isn't quite right. Add some of this and it'll be more satisfying."