The Common Man's Return in Chinese Entertainment

Chapter 86: Benefits or Mission?

After spending about a week in the room, Ji Qingxu felt that he had a pretty good understanding of the script and the character, so he went to the training ground.

As soon as Ji Qingxu arrived at the training ground, Cheng Xiaodong came straight up to him.

"Xiao Ji, I have a task for you."

Seeing the somewhat ambiguous smile on Cheng Xiaodong's face, Ji Qingxu felt a sense of unease. "Director Cheng, please speak."

Cheng Xiaodong chuckled and pointed to the side, "You have a lot of scenes with that Miss Gao Yuanyuan. You can train with her and develop some chemistry."

Upon hearing this, Ji Qingxu raised an eyebrow slightly. "Coach Cheng, I haven't even gotten used to my own training yet, and you have so much confidence in me?"

Cheng Xiaodong laughed and said, "Xiao Ji, let's not beat around the bush. With your skills, you can learn all the moves in a day at most. Don't be modest. Li Cai is my student. I heard about you from him. Besides, you also trained with the female lead in the 'Ping Zong Xia Ying' crew, and the results were very good."

Seeing Cheng Xiaodong raise an eyebrow at him after speaking, Ji Qingxu chuckled and said, "Coach Cheng, it seems I have no choice but to agree?"

Cheng Xiaodong chuckled and patted Ji Qingxu's arm. "Little Ji, I'm doing this for your own good. You joined the crew late, and filming will start in a little over a week, so I can only speed things up."

"Okay, Coach Cheng, since you've said so, I agree."

"Okay...wait a minute."

At this point, Cheng Xiaodong glanced into the distance and lowered his voice, "Xiao Ji, Miss Gao has been training for a long time, and she is very familiar with the movements. It's just a matter of proficiency, so please don't use too much force."

Upon hearing this, Ji Qingxu remained silent and said, "Coach Cheng, do you have some misunderstanding about me?"

Cheng Xiaodong twitched the corner of his mouth. "Xiao Ji, as I just said, I called Li Cai. You trained the female lead on set to the point where she was crying and screaming, and you didn't treat her like a woman at all. Our drama hasn't even started filming yet and you've already changed the male lead. Miss Gao has a lot of scenes, so you absolutely can't let anything happen to her, or I'll really have no face to see Director Wang."

'

'

Damn it, how come Li Cai is so loose-lipped? I even helped him train the actresses on set. I'll definitely give him a good beating next time I see him.

Seeing Cheng Xiaodong staring intently at him, waiting for a reply, Ji Qingxu smiled helplessly, "Okay, I'll definitely pay attention."

Cheng Xiaodong laughed and said, "I believe you. Come on, let me introduce you to her. Do you know Miss Gao before?"

"I don't know him."

"It's alright, we got to know each other after two days of training. Miss Gao, let me introduce you to a business partner."

Hearing Cheng Xiaodong's shout, Gao Yuanyuan, who was practicing "sword techniques," stopped and stared intently.

When Ji Qingxu saw him standing next to Cheng Xiaodong with a smile, he blinked. What a kind-looking, handsome young man; his smile is really beautiful.

"Coach Cheng, you're not talking about this handsome young man, are you?"

"Haha, that's right, it's our handsome Ji Qing, Xu Ji. He plays Duan Tianya and has many scenes with you in the show. You two should get to know each other."

"Hello Qingxu, my name is Gao Yuanyuan, and I play Liusheng Piaoxu."

"Hello, Sister Yuanyuan. My name is Ji Qingxu, and I play Duan Tianya."

"Alright, now that you two are acquainted, you'll be practicing martial arts together until filming begins. Miss Gao, Ji Qingxu is very skilled, no less so than anyone in our stunt team. He'll be training you for the next few days. What do you think?"

"No problem, Qingxu. I'll be relying on you from now on."

L

"You're too kind, Sister Yuanyuan."

"Alright, Miss Gao, you continue practicing. I'll first familiarize Qingxu with the routine, and then you two can practice together once he's learned it."

"it is good."

Then Cheng Xiaodong led Ji Qingxu in another direction. After walking for a while, Cheng Xiaodong asked with a smile, "What do you think of Miss Gao?"

Seeing the slightly teasing smile on Cheng Xiaodong's face, Ji Qingxu chuckled and asked, "Which aspect is Coach Cheng asking about?"

Cheng Xiaodong laughed and patted Ji Qingxu's arm. "Well, I've given you the chance. The rest is up to you. Come on, let's familiarize ourselves with the moves first."

"it is good."

Out of the corner of his eye, Ji Qingxu glanced at Gao Yuanyuan, who was practicing diligently in the distance, and smiled. "How's Gao Yuanyuan doing?"

Of course she's a stunning beauty. She won "four runner-up titles and one championship" in the Hupu Goddess Contest. She's a well-known "big vase" in the Chinese entertainment industry, and she's just as good as Fan Bingbing. They can be said to have their own merits. She became a top star just by virtue of her looks. Even in her forties, she still received praise from many netizens for both her fame and appearance.

"Come on, Qingxu, let's begin."

"it is good."

Upon hearing Cheng Xiaodong's signal, Ji Qingxu immediately snapped out of his reverie and focused on his studies. While beautiful women were appealing, Ji Qingxu felt that his career was more important; with a successful career, he could attract any beautiful woman.

Out of the corner of her eye, Gao Yuanyuan glanced at Ji Qingxu, who was practicing his moves in the distance. A hint of doubt flashed in her eyes. Why did she feel like she had seen this handsome young man somewhere before?

However, Gao Yuanyuan clearly remembered that the two of them had never met before, otherwise she would have had no recollection of them at all.

But the sense of familiarity was real. After thinking for a while without figuring it out, Gao Yuanyuan shook her head and continued practicing her swordsmanship. However, during her subsequent practice, Gao Yuanyuan often lost focus and would occasionally glance at Ji Qingxu in the distance.

Putting aside the question of whether the two had met before, Gao Yuanyuan discovered that Cheng Xiaodong was not lying. Ji Qingxu was very skilled; he could learn a move after just one demonstration. Moreover, his movements were more graceful and elegant than Cheng Xiaodong's. This gave Gao Yuanyuan a vague sense of anticipation for their upcoming training together.

After practicing for a day, Ji Qingxu had mastered all the moves.

So before finishing work that evening, Cheng Xiaodong asked Ji Qingxu to train with Gao Yuanyuan the next day, and Ji Qingxu agreed.

The next morning, Ji Qingxu got up early according to his biological clock, finished training, had breakfast at the hotel restaurant, and then went to the training ground.

Gao Yuanyuan arrived shortly after.

"Qingxu, you're here so early."

Seeing Gao Yuanyuan looking at him with surprise, Ji Qingxu smiled and said, "It's just a habit from years of martial arts practice."

Upon hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan suddenly realized, "Oh, I see. I said I was early enough, but I didn't expect you to be here even earlier. So...shall we begin?"

"Okay, let's warm up first."

"it is good."

After warming up, Gao Yuanyuan suddenly said, "Qingxu, haven't we met somewhere before?"

Seeing Ji Qingxu looking at her with some confusion, Gao Yuanyuan's face, which had been flushed from warming up, turned even redder. However, thinking about how she had been pondering this question all night, Gao Yuanyuan didn't care about being a little abrupt and said with a smile, "I don't know if it's just my imagination, but I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."

Ji Qingxu was somewhat surprised upon hearing this. Could it be that she still remembered him after more than a year, when she glanced at him during her time as an extra in "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber"? Or was it just a woman's unique intuition?

So Ji Qingxu smiled and said, "Yes, I have met Sister Yuanyuan before."

Upon hearing this answer, Gao Yuanyuan blinked curiously and asked, "You said you've seen me before? Outside?"

"Yes, I worked as an extra at the Beijing Film Studio during the National Day holiday in 02. At that time, Sister Yuanyuan was filming 'The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber' there."

""

Upon hearing this, Gao Yuanyuan asked in surprise, "You worked as an extra in the 'Heavenly Sword and Dragon Sabre' TV series?"

Ji Qingxu replied with a smile, "Yes, back then, a few of my roommates had never acted before and wanted to see what it was like, so we went to the Beijing Film Studio and worked as extras for a few days."

Upon hearing Ji Qingxu's account, Gao Yuanyuan paused for a moment, then clapped her hands excitedly and said, "I remember now! It was during the filming of the Wan'an Temple Pagoda scene. You were wearing Wudang or some other sect's uniform and standing at the very back. You were tall and... very handsome. Jingwen and I both saw you. We even talked about you later. I said I felt like I'd seen you somewhere before. Turns out I wasn't mistaken."

"Yuanyuan has a good memory."

Gao Yuanyuan said with a smile, "It's mainly because you're so handsome. We were wondering where the crew found such a handsome extra."

Ji Qingxu smiled and said, "Should I reciprocate by praising Yuanyuan's beauty?"

"Haha, it's not impossible."

"Sister Yuanyuan is so beautiful."

Hearing Ji Qingxu praise her, Gao Yuanyuan shyly smoothed her hair. "Well, let's start training then. Filming starts in a few days."

"it is good."

Seeing Gao Yuanyuan's somewhat shy appearance, Ji Qingxu thought to himself, "Do all the women in this industry have multiple faces? Fan Xiaopang also showed a shy look from time to time when she first met me, but she completely revealed her true nature after we got to know each other."

Ji Qingxu felt a surge of curiosity, wondering what Gao Yuanyuan was like in private.

"Should I continue with the previous training exercises, or should I do it differently?"

Hearing Gao Yuanyuan's question, Ji Qingxu smiled and said, "Sister Yuanyuan, show me the moves you learned before."

"it is good."

Gao Yuanyuan took a few deep breaths, then made a starting gesture with a serious expression, "I'm starting."

"Um.

""

"Swish, swish, swish!"

Watching Gao Yuanyuan earnestly demonstrate with the wooden sword, Ji Qingxu nodded slightly. Who said Gao Yuanyuan was just a pretty face? Judging from her movements, it was the result of long-term training.

Well, that's not quite right either. Actions are actions, and acting is acting. But Ji Qingxu seemed to understand why no actresses known as "pretty faces" were ever born in later generations.

Calling actresses "flower vases" might seem derogatory to many, but it's not necessarily a negative term within the entertainment industry.

First of all, actresses who are called "pretty faces" must be good-looking. This is a prerequisite, and not just ordinary good-looking. They must have the kind of beauty that allows them to stand next to anyone without being overshadowed. In addition to their looks, they must also have a unique temperament that distinguishes them from other women.