The Entertainment Industry in Turmoil: Young Actresses All Want to Rise to the Top

There's always a story waiting for you to uncover.

September 8th, 9 PM, outside a cinema in Beijing.

Audience members who had just finished watching the late-night screening of "Monster Hunt" emerged in twos and threes. Some were discussing the plot, some were taking pictures of their ticket stubs to post on social media, and some were taking photos in front of the poster.

A young girl wearing a baseball cap stood in front of the poster, holding up her phone and flashing a big smile at the camera.

"Checking in! Fifth time!"

Passersby who heard this turned to look, some muttering, "Fifth viewing? Are you crazy?"

The girl heard it, but she didn't care. She just looked at the woman on the poster who was holding Huba and smiling with her eyes crinkling into crescents.

You don't understand, you don't know how she got through it.

She proved her popularity in television dramas with one hit series after another, and demonstrated her acting skills and box office success with one film after another.

You have no idea how hard she worked to support the company all by herself, or how difficult it was for her to stand on stage alone in front of hundreds of reporters.

But Tongling, who has been with her all along, knows, and I know.

So I want to tell her in my own way that you deserve it.

As a fan of Li Yitong, I am very proud!

The hashtag #MonsterCatching1.9Billion# has already reached the third spot on the trending topics on Weibo, and in the comments section, countless people are waiting for the 2 billion mark to arrive.

"Monster Hunt" easily surpassed 10 billion yuan at the box office on its eighth day of release, and by the thirteenth day, it had surpassed 15 billion yuan, becoming the first Chinese-language film to enter the 15 billion yuan mark.

自8月16日上映以来，这部电影已经连续24天拿下了单日票房冠军，从8月16日到21日更是连续六天单日票房过亿。

Today, September 8th, according to real-time data updated on the Maoyan app, the cumulative box office of "Monster Hunt" has exceeded 19.5 billion yuan.

It became the well-deserved champion of the highest-grossing domestic film history, and also the second highest-grossing domestic film history, second only to "Furious 7" with 24.26 billion yuan.

Today, if all goes well, a new record will be set for domestic films, becoming the first domestic film to gross 20 billion yuan.

Countless fans, industry insiders, and media outlets are eagerly awaiting the outcome.

During the day, the artists of Mohen also spontaneously promoted the event on Weibo once again.

Shen Mo: [Monster Hunt is a really good movie, I plan to watch it again tonight!]

Tian Xiwei: [Sister Yitong's performance in this movie was superb; "Monster Hunt" is definitely worth watching!]

Bai Lu: [Monster Hunt is great, incredibly great, absolutely fantastic!]

Meng Ziyi: [Sister Tongtong acted so well, and the filming was so beautiful! Everyone must go see "Monster Hunt"!]

……

As a result, in addition to the countless passersby already watching, countless fans rushed into the theater again today.

[19.8 billion! Just 10 million short! Breaking 2 billion! Let's go!]

[I'm ready to take screenshots and witness history!]

[Two billion! The first Chinese film to gross two billion!]

【Tongtong yyds! Li Yitong yyds! 】

[From "My Love from the Star" to "Monster Hunt," Tong has truly come a long way step by step; it's been so tough for her!]

[I definitely have to watch it again tomorrow to celebrate!]

So what if it's two billion? It's all thanks to Shen Mo's support.

[It's all about the power of capital. The plot of this movie is so bad it could be a children's film; anyone could have made it fall apart.]

It's just so-so, nothing special, nothing remarkable.

[Some people are just being sour! Anyone can break the 1 billion mark. Why don't you let your favorite actress try it and see if she can break 1 billion before you talk!]

Do you know why it's so popular? Because this movie hits the sweet spot for family-friendly comedy; young people are willing to watch it, and parents are even more willing to take their children to see it.

Why is the pickled fish sour? Because it's made with vegetables!

……

At his home in the capital, Shen Mo leaned back on the sofa, holding a tablet in his hand, with data constantly updating on the screen.

Li Yitong nestled in his arms, resting her head on his shoulder, her eyes fixed on the ceiling, afraid to look at the screen.

"How much more is needed?" Her voice was soft, carrying a hint of expectation and a touch of worry.

Shen Mo kissed her earlobe, which was pressed against his cheek, and smiled slightly. "Eight million."

Li Yitong took a deep breath, and Shen Mo looked down at her: "Nervous?"

Li Yitong thought for a moment, nodded, then shook her head. "It's not nervousness, it's an indescribable feeling."

Shen Mo didn't speak, but gently held her hand. Li Yitong continued, "It's 1.9 billion. Actually, it's already number one for domestic films."

"But everyone is waiting for two billion, as if two billion is the new record."

Shen Mo smiled and pinched her cheek. "Twenty billion is not the end."

Li Yitong looked up at him, and Shen Mo continued, "Twenty billion is just the beginning."

"There will be 3 billion, 4 billion, 5 billion... You will make more movies and win more awards."

Li Yitong pouted and nodded, and Shen Mo lowered his head and placed a kiss on her forehead.

"So don't be nervous. If it doesn't break today, it will break tomorrow. If it doesn't break tomorrow, it will break the day after tomorrow. It's just a matter of time."

As Li Yitong listened to his words, the corners of her mouth slowly curved up. She leaned back on his shoulder and whispered, "Yes, I know."

-----------------

In a private room at a private club, several actresses born in the 80s gathered together. After spending the afternoon shopping, they had found a private room to have dinner.

Several glasses of red wine lay untouched on the table in front of us. After chatting for a while, the topic of "Monster Hunt," which was trending on social media that day, suddenly came up.

"Back then, they even asked me to audition for a role in 'Monster Hunt'," Bai Baihe said with a resentful look.

Tong Yao, who was standing next to her, took out her phone and opened the Maoyan box office statistics page. "It's already 19.94 billion."

"Two more hours," Shen Jiani, dressed in a black T-shirt, said softly. "We should be able to break through."

No one responded, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.

A few seconds later, Tong Yao suddenly chuckled and threw her phone on the table. "So what if it's broken? It's not like it's our movie."

Shen Jiani glanced at her but didn't say anything.

Bai Baihe picked up her glass of red wine, took a sip, and said in a light tone, "20 billion, you really dare to dream."

"We haven't even made it into a movie that grossed 10 billion yuan yet."

"If I were the one in it, I would be a movie star with 20 billion in box office revenue."

Tong Yao laughed upon hearing this, "She's Li Yitong, who are you?"

Bai Baihe's hand suddenly paused.

Tong Yao took a sip of red wine and continued, "She has Shen Mo, Mo Hen, and her entire team backing her up. What do you have?"

"You did get into the Beijing elite circle through your husband and obtained a lot of good resources, but isn't the Beijing elite circle now being suppressed by companies like Mohen and Tencent?"

After a few seconds of silence in the private room, Tong Yao suddenly rolled her eyes and looked at Bai Baihe mysteriously.

"By the way, Shen Mo's debut film, 'Love is Not Blind,' was with you, wasn't it? You didn't even get along with him back then?"

As she spoke, she raised an eyebrow and said, "If you were closer to him, this 'Monster Hunt' might be yours. Even if this one doesn't work out, the resources he has are enough for you to enjoy."

Bai Baihe slammed her wine glass down on the table with a loud thud. "Do you think I didn't try to get closer to him back then? I don't know why, but I always felt like he was deliberately keeping his distance from me."

Upon hearing this gossip, Tong Yao and Shen Jiani immediately became interested. "You actually hooked up with someone?"

Bai Baihe slapped Tong Yao across the face. "Why are you saying such nasty things? I just think this young man is quite handsome and has a good presence. I'm a female celebrity with some fame, but unfortunately, he won't listen to me."

Shen Jiani nodded and said seriously, "Could it be? He was already dating Li Yitong back then? So he ignored your advances. I didn't realize that such a big boss and star in this industry is such a pure-hearted person."

Tong Yao rolled her eyes. "Back then, he wasn't a big star or a big investor. Once he entered this industry, I don't believe he could keep promoting Li Yitong. Just you wait and see, Li Yitong may be young and favored now, but she'll be abandoned sooner or later."

Bai Baihe and Shen Jiani glanced at Tong Yao but did not respond.

Even if Li Yitong is abandoned in the future, she has at least achieved success now.

The first female lead in China to have a film grossing 2 billion yuan.

The thought involuntarily resurfaced in Bai Baihe's mind.

If only I were the female lead in "Monster Hunt," I'd be the first actress to star in a film with a box office of 2 billion yuan. My career would definitely be smooth sailing, and I'd reach the pinnacle of success...

……

At the same time, in a private room of a Japanese restaurant on the East Third Ring Road, Feng Xiaogang finally managed to get Chen Daoming, Zhao Baogang, and Zheng Xiaolong to come out after a long wait. The group sat around a table with sashimi and sake on it.

Even after a few drinks, Feng Xiaogang's eyes were still glancing at his phone screen from time to time. The screen was displaying the real-time box office figures for "Monster Hunt": 19.96 billion yuan.

Chen Daoming picked up a piece of sashimi and put it in his mouth, then looked at Feng Xiaogang teasingly: "What? Envious?"

Zheng Xiaolong took a sip of sake and burst into laughter: "Envious? I think he's just jealous!"

Zhao Baogang pointed at Zheng Xiaolong with his finger: "So what if you're jealous? Isn't it normal for Xiaogang to be jealous? The box office of one of his movies is more than all my movies combined have reached. Don't even mention Xiaogang, I'm jealous!"

Chen Daoming glanced at him and shook his head: "You're talking nonsense. You're just a TV drama director, and you've only made two movies in total. Of course you can't compare."

He paused, then turned to look at Feng Xiaogang, "However, Xiaogang, times have changed. People these days spend two billion at a time. You really don't need to compare yourself to them..."

Feng Xiaogang took a deep breath, turned to look at Chen Daoming, and said with a wry smile, "What do I have to compare? I've made over a dozen movies, and the highest-grossing one only made 6 million. How can I compare?"

Zhao Baogang poured wine for Feng Xiaogang, "If you can't take it, just admit defeat, bow your head and apologize. It's no big deal."

"Now that both of my bosses, Mr. Wang and Mr. Wang, have fallen, although you were an insider and participant in what happened before, your involvement was not significant, so they shouldn't target you."

At this point, he suddenly laughed, "Although she spoke very assertively and put on a good show, her acting skills were still lacking in front of me."

"After all, we're young!" he said, exchanging laughter with Zhao Baogang and Zheng Xiaolong.

"I thought I was the only one who felt this way, turns out you feel the same way!" Zheng Xiaolong chimed in.

"But that's normal," Zhao Baogang said. "After all, she's just an actress. The real boss is Shen Mo behind the scenes."

"The reason we brought Li Yitong out to meet us that day was probably to pave the way for her."

Chen Daoming took a sip of his drink. "Paving the way is the right thing to do. Although they have capital, we still have some connections and influence in this circle."

"Moreover, looking at the box office of this movie today, I think Li Yitong really made the right choice in choosing the path of acting."

Feng Xiaogang also raised his glass and clinked it with the others. "I can't back down now. Not to mention what people in the industry would think if I backed down, my own group would curse me to death."

"At most, I will not use underhanded tactics to target them, but will put the competition fairly and squarely on the basis of the results of the works."

Chen Daoming raised an eyebrow. "Is this why you invited us to dinner today? So confident?"

Feng Xiaogang gave a wry smile and nodded.

"Brother Daoming, could you please pass on a message? I want to make a statement: I admit defeat and hope to return to normal competition in the future. But it's impossible for me to openly admit my mistake; I have my pride too."

"As for movies, I was quite confident about our film 'Mr. Six' last month, but the recent surge in the price of 'Monster Hunt' has scared me away."

"Even if I'm very confident, I don't believe that 'Mr. Six' can break box office records. My goal is just to make money."

Chen Daoming nodded, then changed the subject, "Tell me, how did they manage to produce such a continuous stream of hit dramas and high-grossing movies?"

Zhao Baogang thought for a moment and then slowly said, "To be honest, I don't know how they did it, but I guess a big part of the reason is that they were willing to spend money."

"When we do projects, we think about how much money we can make," he said, looking at everyone. "But when Mohen and his team do projects, they think about whether the money is enough and whether they can make a good film."

Zheng Xiaolong frowned: "Spending money doesn't necessarily mean you'll make money!"

Zhao Baogang picked up his wine glass, smiled, and took a sip. "Spending money doesn't guarantee making money, but you definitely can't make money without spending money."

After a few seconds of silence at the table, Zhao Baogang continued, "Look at a few years ago, Mohen's 'My Love from the Star' and 'The Journey of Flower' had a starting budget of 50 million, which is higher than the cost of many of our big-budget films."

"With money invested, directors can confidently shoot the footage they want, actors are motivated to refine their performances, and post-production teams have the resources to create sufficient special effects."

"It's actually that simple. Mohen just did its job well, and that's why it became a masterpiece."

Feng Xiaogang nodded thoughtfully: "It's very simple. If you improve the quality, you'll naturally have a high probability of producing high-quality products."

"But how many companies have the capital backing of InkSign? And how many companies are as lucky as InkSign, releasing one hit product after another?"

"Even if you attract a lot of investment for a particular project, if it flops, that investment will instantly become a death sentence."

Zhao Baogang raised his glass and clinked it against Feng Xiaogang's: "I agree with you."

"Every film they release becomes a hit; it really is a matter of luck. Even Tang Ren, after several hit period dramas and fantasy dramas, went through a period of silence for a few years, didn't he?"

Feng Xiaogang nodded, "Even Zhang Yimou and I couldn't keep making hit movies all the time. It's just that we're lucky that someone is willing to value us and invest in us."

"All I can say is that Mohen has the resources to keep trying and making mistakes," Zheng Xiaolong said after a moment of silence.

"However, I really look forward to the day when Mohen's good fortune runs out and after a few consecutive flops, will Shen Mo still be willing to continue investing heavily?"

Zheng Xiaolong's words made the group exchange smiles, raise their glasses, and drink them down in one gulp.

Setting down his wine glass, Feng Xiaogang suddenly smiled wickedly. "However, I am quite curious about something."

"You guys think Li Yitong and Shen Mo are a couple, right? Can she keep being favored by Shen Mo forever?"

Chen Daoming thought for a moment, then smiled and asked, "If we're not together, will you have Li Yitong temporarily hold the shares and become the chairman after he goes to jail? And will you give her the substantive position of vice chairman after she comes out?"

"I've seen their previous interviews, and it seems they started from scratch together. Although they haven't officially announced it, I don't think anyone considers them to be single."

Zhao Baogang nodded. "Their fans probably assume they're together, and they might even be secretly shipping them. After all, official announcements are boring; the sweeter it is, the sweeter it is when you discover it yourself."

"Oh ho, you know all this stuff?" Zheng Xiaolong teased, looking at him.

Zhao Baogang replied, "It's because Li Yitong's box office has been so high lately, and she's all over the trending topics. I was just browsing related news and comments on Weibo when I had nothing else to do, and I saw it in their super topic."

"But I feel it's unrealistic to keep praising him like this," Feng Xiaogang couldn't help but retort.

"Newcomers are constantly emerging in this industry, and there are even prettier young girls every year. Li Yitong is very beautiful now, but will she still be this beautiful when she's 27 or 28, or 35 or 36? I don't think so."

Zhao Baogang smiled, a hint of emotion in his voice: "But even if she falls out of favor in the future, two billion is a real sum now... enough for her to live on for a lifetime. She's only in her early twenties, isn't she?"

"Twenty-four? Twenty-five? Anyway, very young." Chen Daoming thought for a moment, then sighed, "It's good to be young."

Zhao Baogang also remarked, "Being young is good, but more importantly, she has that kind of luck."

"Yes, it's fate." Zheng Xiaolong picked up a piece of sashimi and put it in his mouth.

"Having a man like Shen Mo, with two billion in box office revenue, stunning good looks, superb acting skills, and most importantly, being young enough—that's fate!"

He paused, his tone carrying a hint of complexity.

"We and many artists in the industry may work ourselves to the bone our whole lives and still not reach her starting point."