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

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Over the course of several days, Tian Xiwei contacted Han Tian almost every day, but without exception, she was rejected each time.

To make matters worse, bad news also came from Gong Yuhan's side.

"Mr. Tian, ​​Director Zeng Guoxiang... declined."

Gong Yuhan's voice was filled with obvious frustration. "He said his schedule was too tight, but I asked around and he hasn't taken on any projects recently. He just doesn't want to."

Tian Xiwei paused for two seconds, then asked, "What's the reason?"

"He didn't say it explicitly, but the gist was... he felt that taking on a role in our company's production was too risky, and he didn't want to take that risk."

"Although the artists of Mohen sent you their blessings on Weibo, nothing has changed."

"Even," Gong Yuhan paused, "there are rumors that we've offended Mohen, and that directors in the industry should think twice about the consequences of taking our roles."

Tian Xiwei's hand stiffened slightly. "Can you find out who's spreading this?"

"I checked, and there are many similar rumors from various sources. It's impossible to find the root cause in a short time."

"I think it's the agencies of emerging young actresses that are putting in a lot of effort."

"In terms of TV dramas, you have 'A Little Reunion'; in terms of box office, you have 'Brother Fast'; in terms of awards, you have the Best Newcomer Award at the Beijing Film Festival. Among the new generation of actresses, your advantages are too great."

"Back when you were at Inkmark, your competitors might have considered the consequences of taking action, but now that you're going it alone, nobody wants you to succeed."

After hanging up the phone, Tian Xi leaned back in her chair and looked at the ceiling.

She had considered that it would be difficult to go it alone without using Mohen's name, but she didn't expect it to be this difficult.

I am the first person to terminate my contract with the Ink Trace Group.

From the outside perspective, contract termination is bound to lead to disputes.

Even though Shen Mo and Li Yitong both posted on Weibo to express their blessings, they would only think it was just for show. After all, if there really was no dispute, why would they terminate the contract?

If this is a business strategy, why didn't Mohen invest in it or come forward to support it?

Most importantly, she did not join any other agency; instead, she started her own company, which means she doesn't have any other companies in the industry to back her up.

Even though Lin Wei was trying to suppress the negative public opinion, she couldn't withstand the attack from all sides.

Today, a marketing account reveals that "Tian Xiwei's script is suspected of plagiarism," tomorrow, a big V analyzes that "Chenxi Media won't last more than three months," and the day after tomorrow, an "insider" reveals that "Tian Xiwei and Shen Mo's relationship has truly broken down."

Negative comments are like weeds; they grow back after being cut down, and you can never get rid of them completely.

After considering various factors, most directors with some reputation in the industry actually share the same idea as Han Tian and Zeng Guoxiang: they don't want to get involved.

Of course, in addition to the original director, she also considered finding some well-known directors who would rise to prominence in the future.

However, after making inquiries, it was discovered that Li Muge, Shen Ao, Xin Yukun, Wen Muye, Zeng Qingjie... had all been recruited by Mohen.

Tian Xiwei was stunned. She flipped through the list and looked at each name one by one. The more she looked, the angrier she became. Finally, she slammed the list on the table.

"Those two are really something!"

Tian Xiwei took a deep breath and put the list into the drawer.

"I'm telling you, you two are playing a Monopoly-style collection game. You're leaving no room for other companies to survive."

Tian Xiwei sat in her office, staring blankly at the computer screen for a long time.

She has a good script, enough funding, and two promising new actors.

But she couldn't find a suitable director. Without a director, there are no movies, and without movies, Dawn is just an empty shell.

Could it be? Filming it herself? But that's such a huge leap, and she's pretty sure she can't manage a film crew.

She picked up her phone, scrolled through her contacts, and went down from the top.

She scrolled down to the last name, Li Yitong, looked at it for a few seconds, and then slammed her phone face down on the table.

No, she came out to prove herself, not to have Li Yitong clean up her mess.

She already owes Li Yitong 200 million yuan; she can't afford to owe any more.

She took a deep breath, opened her notebook, and tried again to recall other potential directors; perhaps these two hadn't completely wiped out the rest.

However, while she was hesitating, Li Yitong called.

"Tian'er, come out for dinner."

Tian Xiwei was staring blankly at yet another row of crossed-out names on her notebook. "I'm not going, I have something to do."

"What business do you have? Come out here, I'm downstairs at your company."

Tian Xi paused for a moment, then walked to the window and opened the blinds.

A black van was parked on the side of the road downstairs. The window was rolled down halfway, and Li Yitong, wearing sunglasses, waved to it.

Tian Xi's lips unconsciously curved into a slight smile. "What brings you here?"

"I've come to pick you up for dinner. Come down quickly, I'm hungry."

"Oh." Tian Xiwei hung up the phone, picked up her bag and went out. When she went downstairs, her steps were a little faster than usual.

Li Yitong chose a Japanese restaurant with good privacy. The private room was on the second floor, and you could see the street view outside by opening the window.

Tian Xi sat down cross-legged, picked up her teacup and took a sip. The aroma of barley tea spread on her tongue, warm and comforting, which eased her nerves that had been tense for several days.

Li Yitong sat opposite her, not in a hurry to order food, but stared at her for a few seconds first.

"You've lost weight again."

Tian Xi rolled her eyes: "It's only been a few days, how could you lose weight so quickly?"

"Your eyes are all dark circles under your eyes. You didn't sleep well. It breaks my heart."

Tian Xiwei didn't speak, and lowered her head to drink her tea.

Li Yitong also stopped talking, picked up the menu and started ordering: salmon sashimi, sweet shrimp, grilled eel, chawanmushi (steamed egg custard), and miso soup—all of which were Tian Xiwei's favorites.

As Tian Xi listened to her reciting the names of the dishes, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.

After ordering, Li Yitong put down the menu, rested her elbows on the table, put her chin between her hands, and looked at her with a pout.

"I've taken care of Han Tian's situation for you."

Tian Xiwei paused for a moment as she poured tea.

"He will come to your company tomorrow to sign a cooperation agreement with you."

Tian Xi paused for two seconds, then looked up at Li Yitong.

Li Yitong looked relaxed, with a slight smile on her lips.

Tian Xiwei put down the teapot, rolled her eyes, and said, "Do you think I'm stupid? Do you think you're that capable? Why does he keep throwing all sorts of titles at you?"

Li Yitong's upturned lips paused, and she frowned as she looked at her.

"Sigh, it's fine if you look down on him, but don't look down on me."

"What do you mean I have such great abilities? Your Sister Xue has a lot of influence in the entertainment industry now."

Tian Xi scoffed and pouted, offering no rebuttal.

She was just subconsciously projecting her past life's status and position onto the picture; in terms of influence in the industry, she really wasn't at the level where a single sentence could change a director's mind.

But in this life, Li Yitong is a leading lady with a box office of 2 billion yuan, the number one actress born in the 90s, the boss of Mohen Capital, and a person whom half of the entertainment industry has to give face to.

If she says it's resolved, then it's truly resolved.

Tian Xi looked down at the teacup. The barley tea was a dark color, reflecting her own face in a blurry way.

"How did you solve it?" Her voice was muffled.

"Don't worry about that."

Li Yitong picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of salmon, put it in her mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and mumbled something.

"Anyway, he'll be at your company to sign tomorrow, so you just need to prepare the contract."

It wasn't that she didn't want to tell, but she only knew the general idea. Although she insisted that she had solved it herself, Tian Xiwei actually guessed correctly. It was Shen Moqian who sent her to impersonate him.

Han Tian is a master's graduate of Beijing Film Academy. His teacher is Jiang Wei, who directed the TV series "Hunting Ground". Shen Mo had met him at some gatherings at Beijing Film Academy. Through Jiang Wei's introduction, Shen Mo met Han Tian.

The rest was a matter of course. With Shen Mo's endorsement and the agreement to deepen cooperation, Han Tian agreed to take on the film "Your Wedding" almost without hesitation.

Tian Xi looked at Li Yitong, opened her mouth as if to say "thank you", but swallowed the words back.

What she owes Li Yitong is something that cannot be repaid with a simple "thank you".

Li Yitong saw through her thoughts and tapped her chopsticks in the air.

"Don't overthink it. I'm helping you not because I think you can't do it."

"It's because I know you can do it, you just need some help to give you a push during the takeoff phase."

She paused, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly.

"Besides, if I don't help you, am I supposed to ask Shen Mo to help? Rather than letting him help, I'd rather do it myself, at least you won't feel indebted to him."

Tian Xiwei's eyelashes trembled slightly. She raised her head and looked at Li Yitong.

Li Yitong's expression was very calm, with a hint of a smile in her crescent-shaped eyes, looking carefree.

Tian Xi lowered her head slightly, picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of salmon, dipped it in soy sauce, and put it in her mouth. She put too much wasabi in it, and it made her eyes red from the spiciness.

"Spicy." She sniffed.

Li Yitong handed over a tissue without saying a word.

Tian Xi wiped her eyes, suppressing the soreness, and picked up her chopsticks again.

"There's one more thing."

Li Yitong put down her chopsticks, crossed her hands on the table, and her expression became much more serious.

"I have a suggestion that can help you break the deadlock."

Tian Xi looked up at her.

Li Yitong raised an eyebrow. "Why don't you change your attitude towards me? Or how about you beg me?"

As she finished speaking, the corners of her mouth slowly curled up, and her crescent-shaped eyes were full of cunning.

Tian Xi paused for a second, then instantly switched to a different expression.

She put down her chopsticks, clasped her hands together, rested her chin on her fingertips, tilted her head, blinked her almond-shaped eyes, pouted slightly, and spoke in a voice so soft it could melt your heart.

"Snow~ please~"

The sound was drawn out, with a slightly coquettish upward inflection at the end.

Li Yitong was amused by Tian Xiwei's expression and laughed out loud, but she didn't speak immediately. Instead, she picked up her teacup, took a slow sip, and enjoyed the visual impact of Tian Xiwei's "simp" expression.

Tian Xiwei remained in that position, blinking as she looked at her.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

"Li Xue, if you don't talk, I'll hit you!"

"No, no, no." Li Yitong put down her teacup, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "I'll talk, I'll talk."

She sat up straight, her expression changing from sly to serious. "Why don't we work together on a film?"

Tian Xiwei paused for a moment.

"If you don't want to be associated with Shen Mo, fine, but you're not going to reject me too, are you?"

Li Yitong spoke softly, but her eyes were serious.

"As long as we work together on one film, all the negative rumors about your betrayal and ingratitude will disappear instantly."

Tian Xiwei frowned slightly and fell into deep thought.

This is indeed the best and simplest solution. Li Yitong represents Mohen, and the outside world's speculations of "ingratitude," "betrayal," and "falling out" will be directly shattered by this powerful blow.

but!

Wasn't the reason she left Mohen just to prove herself?

If we do that, wouldn't we be going back to square one?

Li Yitong noticed her hesitation and flicked her forehead.

"Ouch—it hurts!" Tian Xiwei covered her forehead and glared at her.

"If you want to prove yourself, you have to make a breakthrough first."

Li Yitong's tone became unusually serious, "We can't even start the game now, how can we prove it?"

Tian Xi opened her mouth slightly, wanting to refute, but found herself unable to speak.

Li Yitong is right. She can't even find a director now, and she can't even start filming her first movie. How can she talk about proving herself?

"Furthermore," Li Yitong continued, "you're not just going to prepare projects for Zhou Ye and Zhang Ruonan, and actually become a pure producer and boss, without ever making films again?"

Tian Xi paused for a moment, "I have to prepare a project for myself to film."

Tian Xiwei fell silent. She was so focused on proving herself and building a big company that she forgot to prepare projects for herself.

Now that Chenxi has signed Zhang Ruonan and Zhou Ye and prepared two dramas for them, what about herself?

I am also an actor, and I also need to create works.

Tian Xiwei raised her head and looked at Li Yitong, "So, what project will we be collaborating on?"

She paused, then her lips curved slightly in a self-deprecating smile.

"Besides, if the two of us are the female leads, whoever is the male lead will have to be on tenterhooks every day, right?"

Li Yitong smiled mysteriously, a sly glint in her crescent-shaped eyes.

"Just find a male lead who can be a supporting character; the main thing is that the two of us work together."

Looking at her expression, a thought suddenly flashed through Tian Xiwei's mind.

A name that was discussed by countless people in a past life, a movie with two female leads.

Her eyes suddenly lit up. "You mean..."

Li Yitong smiled as she watched Tian Xiwei's lips move, and then said the same thing as her.

"Soulmate"

The two looked at each other for a second, then laughed at the same time.

After laughing, Tian Xiwei's expression gradually became serious.

Li Yitong continued, "Moreover, the original director of this drama was Zeng Guoxiang."

"Soulmate is an art film with two female leads. It has a small budget, a short production cycle, and little pressure. Most importantly, it is a film that is extremely suitable for winning awards."

"With his extensive network of connections in Hong Kong and the help of Mohen, it's not impossible for us to recreate the glory of this movie from the past."

As she spoke, Li Yitong leaned forward slightly.

"After filming this movie, he had a better understanding of our relationship, so it was only natural to invite him to direct your movie 'Better Days'."

Li Yitong's idea was indeed very good and met Tian Xiwei's needs, but there was still one question, and Tian Xiwei frowned.

"The production company behind this movie is Inkhen, right?"

Li Yitong raised her hand to interrupt her: "Don't be in such a hurry to refuse, let me finish."

"Although this film is produced by Mohen, I will be the producer to ensure that he doesn't interfere in anything and won't get in your way."

Tian Xi opened her mouth slightly, as if to say something, but then held it back.

"Once this movie starts filming, all the negative comments from the outside world will shut up."

"You, Tian Xiwei, are not betraying me, nor are you ungrateful. You're just changing the way you continue to cooperate with Mohen."

"This way, all the films you want to shoot later can proceed normally, and you won't have to owe Shen Mo a favor."

Tian Xiwei fell silent. She looked at Li Yitong, and Li Yitong looked at her as well.

She took a deep breath. "Okay."

Li Yitong raised an eyebrow: "No more hesitation?"

"I won't hesitate anymore." Tian Xi shook her head slightly, a smile curving her lips.

"You're right, I need to get off to a good start. Only after I've made a move can I prove myself."

"Besides, I already owe you two hundred million, so I don't care about owing you a little more."

She paused, slightly raised her chin, and the fire in her eyes ignited again.

"But let me make this clear: this project is just a collaboration. I'm still with Chenxi, so don't think I've bowed down to him."

Looking at her stubborn expression, Li Yitong couldn't help but laugh. "I know, I know, your CEO Tian is the most independent. I promise I won't let him get involved at all."

Tian Xiwei was taken aback by her words, glared at her, but the corners of her mouth were still turned up.

Li Yitong picked up her teacup and held it out to Tian Xiwei. "May I wish us a pleasant collaboration?"

Tian Xiwei looked at the teacup in her hand, picked it up, and clinked it against hers. "It's a pleasure doing business with you."

The crisp sound was particularly clear in the quiet private room.

The two of them took a sip at the same time, put down their cups, looked at each other, and then laughed at the same time.

After holding it in for a long time, Tian Xiwei finally relaxed and laughed happily. Her shoulders trembled slightly, her dimples appeared, and her eyes shone like two stars.

Looking at her, Li Yitong couldn't help but smile too, her crescent-shaped eyes curving into two rainbows, and the corners of her mouth turning up high.

The waiter brought out dessert, which was the shop's homemade honeydew melon ice cream. The pale green ice cream scoop was served in an exquisite ceramic bowl, garnished with a few pieces of fresh honeydew melon and a mint leaf. The presentation was so delicate that it looked like a work of art.

Tian Xiwei picked up a spoon, scooped out a little and put it in her mouth. The ice cream melted on her tongue, the sweetness of the honeydew melon mixed with the milky aroma, and it was cool and refreshing.

She happily shook her head, her shoulders trembling slightly in rhythm, like a kitten that had stolen some honey, radiating a sense of satisfaction.

"It's so sweet!" she mumbled, then scooped out another large spoonful and stuffed it into her mouth.

Looking at her satisfied expression, Li Yitong suddenly rolled her eyes and a sly smile appeared on her lips.

She rested her chin on her hand, tilted her head, and spoke slowly in a nonchalant tone.

"Am I as sweet as you, Tian Xiwei?"

Tian Xiwei's spoon stopped abruptly in mid-air.

This sentence sounds familiar.

"Are you hotter than me, Li Yitong?"

He had teased Li Yitong back then, and now, karma was coming back to haunt him.

Tian Xiwei's face turned red without her noticing, the blush spreading all the way to her ears, like a boiled shrimp.

Seeing her like this, Li Yitong clapped her hands like an otter, threw her head back and laughed heartily, laughing so hard that tears welled up in her eyes.

"You, you—"

Tian Xiwei finally realized what was happening and found her voice, "Li Yitong, you're copying me!"

"Who copied you?" Li Yitong wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, unable to suppress the smile on her lips.

"This is my original work! At most, it just uses the same sentence structure as yours!"

Tian Xiwei was speechless, so she could only angrily scoop out a large spoonful of ice cream and stuff it into her mouth to cool down her burning face.

The ice cream was sweet, but her mouth was now filled with the shame and sweetness of being teased; the sweetness in her heart completely overshadowed the sweetness in her mouth.

Now I can't even taste what ice cream tastes like.

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I saw that Tong Jie is on the cover of GLASS magazine's April issue today, so I'll give away two copies at the end of the month!

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