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

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When I came out of the lounge, the filming set had already been set up.

This scene is a highlight and a famous moment in the movie.

Zeng Guoxiang spent nearly forty minutes just setting up the lighting. On the one hand, he wanted to give Shen Mo and the other two some time, and on the other hand, he was indeed hesitating about whether to use cool light or warm light.

Cold light is too cruel, and warm light is too tender, but this scene doesn't need either of them; it needs the gray area between the two.

In the end, he decided to have the lighting team remove the main light, leaving only two side backlights and a reflector, so that the entire bathroom would be bathed in a semi-dark light.

Shen Mo sat next to Zeng Guoxiang, witnessing the birth of this famous scene through the monitor.

Because this scene involved Li Yitong taking off her clothes and revealing her underwear, and she is also the vice chairman of Mohen, Zeng Guoxiang replaced several female photographers for this scene early on, and the entire filming location was cleared out except for them.

At the time, the assistant director thought it was troublesome, but now that he sees Shen Mo sitting in front of the monitor, he feels that Zeng Guoxiang's arrangement was extremely prescient.

"All departments, prepare."

The first part of the scene is that Su Jiaming, with his arm around the drunk An Sheng (Tian Xiwei), has just reached the door of the rented house when they see Qi Yue (Li Yitong) squatting at the door. Qi Yue gets up, pulls An Sheng directly into the room, and then closes the door.

The surveillance footage showed that only Li Yitong and Tian Xiwei remained in the cramped rented room.

"A!"

Tian Xiwei threw herself onto Li Yitong, clinging to her shoulder, and said in a tearful voice, her breath reeking of alcohol, "Why did I scold you last time? I really didn't mean to."

After Tian Xiwei finished reading this line, her eyes immediately reddened. The script said she was supposed to be drunk and crying, but she was more emotionally invested in the role.

Because what flashed through her mind wasn't the plot of the script, but the argument she had with Li Yitong in her past life because of Shen Mo. She had a more explosive temper than Li Yitong, but she didn't cry. Instead, she finished yelling and hid in the bathroom to cry for a long time.

After coming out, Li Yitong didn't say anything, but simply bought her favorite milk tea and placed it in her palm.

Following the script, Li Yitong laid her down on the sofa. Tian Xi closed her eyes and reached for the cigarette in her pocket.

The lighter lit up, and a puff of smoke escaped from her mouth. Her voice changed from a sobbing tone to a low, hoarse one that sounded like she was trying to sound relaxed.

"My boyfriend suddenly died a month ago, and his wife kicked me out of the house for no reason, not even letting me pack my luggage."

"Thanks to Jiaming, I was able to stay at his house."

The camera slowly zoomed in on Li Yitong from the side to her face. She stood there expressionless, with only a very faint twitch at the corner of her mouth.

July was listening, but she didn't believe it. She saw her boyfriend with her best friend, and she felt terrible. She was desperately trying to hold back her tears.

Tian Xiwei continued to advance the dialogue.

"July, you're right. You and your mother are both right."

"I'm just unlucky!"

Tian Xiwei was choked by the smoke and suddenly coughed. Tears welled up instantly. She didn't waste this unexpected moment. Instead, she used the real tracheal spasm to push An Sheng's vulnerability and embarrassment to the extreme.

Li Yitong instinctively took half a step forward, looked down at Tian Xiwei, and then suddenly froze, abruptly withdrawing her movement.

When Li Yitong hears Tian Xi cough slightly, she instinctively wants to go over to her.

When July heard An Sheng cough, she would subconsciously think of going over to him, but the difference was that July was still conflicted and somewhat resentful, so Li Yitong withdrew her action.

Tian Xiwei got up from the sofa and staggered towards the toilet in the bathroom.

She knelt on the ground, her back arched, dry heaving, her back heaving violently.

"July, please save me, I'm in so much pain."

Li Yitong walked over, roughly grabbed the shower head on the wall, turned it on, and sprayed water on Tian Xiwei.

The moment the cold water sprayed out, Tian Xiwei screamed in shock and fell backward to the ground.

The water was really cold, and Tian Xiwei insisted on not using warm water, saying that warm water would make An Sheng's reaction seem fake.

Cold water was poured over her head, soaking her entire back.

She lay on the floor, bracing herself against the tiles, water streaming down her hair and sticking to her face in strands, looking utterly disheveled.

Tian Xiwei suddenly stood up, lunged forward, grabbed the showerhead, and poured the water over her head. Her fierce action almost made the photographer gasp.

"You wanted to drench me the moment we met, didn't you!"

"what!"

Come on!

Li Yitong instinctively wanted to snatch it back; she didn't want to water it.

However, Tian Xiwei resisted Li Yitong's grip and forcefully pulled back, pressing the showerhead onto her head.

The two struggled in the cramped bathroom, and Li Yitong finally managed to snatch the showerhead back and throw it on the ground.

"Didn't you always want to get me soaked?"

"Why keep pretending?"

Tian Xiwei brought her face close to Li Yitong's, "I'm afraid Jiaming will see."

"The door is locked now, Jiaming can't get in!"

Her hair was plastered to her face, water droplets rolled down her brow bone, and her eyes were full of mist, making it impossible to tell whether it was cold water or tears.

"I'm tired just thinking about you."

Li Yitong gave a soft snort and slowly said, "You're tired for me?"

"Then don't pretend if you're so tough!"

She turned around, picked up the black lace lingerie from the hanger, and held it up to herself.

"What is this?"

"Didn't you say you weren't going to wear it?"

"Don't you want freedom?"

"What? Changed your style?"

"Because Jiaming is here, isn't that right?"

After saying that, Li Yitong threw the underwear on the ground.

Then he took off his coat and reached for the buttons on his thin shirt, one, two, three... until he roughly unbuttoned them all.

On the monitor, Li Yitong raised her chin and pointed to the most ordinary white cotton underwear she was wearing.

For the first time, her voice rose: "Jiaming likes this!"

Then came the second note, which rose at least eight keys higher, the voice cracking as it released all the pent-up frustration that had been building up in July for years.

"Jiaming likes it this way!"

"Jiaming likes this kind of rustic style!"

Tian Xiwei instinctively rushed over to help her button up her clothes, even though her hands were trembling with cold, and her knuckles bumped against Li Yitong's collarbone.

"Do you think you know Jiaming well?"

Do you think Jiaming loves you very much?

Li Yitong frantically shook off Tian Xiwei's help.

July's pent-up anger and frustration towards An Sheng stemmed from her long-suppressed resentment.

"No one in this world loves you except me!"

"Nobody loves you!"

July's roar struck An Sheng's brain, leaving her stunned on the spot.

Tian Xi stared at her blankly, her hands still trying their best to help Li Yitong button up her clothes.

Her anger and resentment vanished instantly, and water dripped from the stray hairs on her forehead.

Her eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"Take Jiaming with you."

Her voice suddenly became very soft and steady, and the hysteria from before was gone.

"If you absolutely had to choose, who would you pick between you and Jiaming?"

"I'd definitely choose you!"

This is what An Sheng said to July.

At this moment, Tian Xiwei's eyes were filled with Li Yitong.

An Sheng was willing to give up Su Jiaming for Qi Yue.

Tian Xiwei didn't know if she would be willing to leave Shen Mo for her, but she knew that Li Yitong would definitely be willing to leave for her, or rather, for Shen Mo.

She was like this in her past life.

"Stop deceiving yourself, okay?" July's lines continued, and although Li Yitong's voice was trembling, her chin was still held high.

Tian Xi shook her head slightly, and the mist in her eyes finally condensed into tears, which fell down.

Why did we become like this?

"CUT!"

Their assistants, Quan Quan and Cheng Cheng, immediately rushed inside with blankets.

In front of the monitor, Zeng Guoxiang took off his headphones and slowly leaned back in his chair.

The set was quiet for a few seconds, then erupted in thunderous applause.

The moment the "CUT" sound rang out, Li Yitong pulled Tian Xiwei over and hugged her tightly.

Her eyelids closed, and a tear silently slid down her cheek.

Tian Xiwei buried her wet face in her shoulder, her shoulder blades trembling slightly through her soaked clothes.

"Let's not end up like this, okay?"

Shen Mo strode into the rented room, saw the two people embracing each other, and reached out to pull them into his arms.

The female cameramen wisely turned off their cameras and followed Quan Quan and Cheng Cheng out.

After a long while, Li Yitong raised her face, tears still clinging to her eyelashes.

Tian Xi leaned against her chest, her lips a little pale.

Li Yitong reached out and brushed a strand of wet hair that was stuck to Tian Xiwei's cheek behind her ear, then wiped the water off her face.

Shen Mo bent down, put one hand under Tian Xiwei's knees, and supported her back with the other hand, lifting her up from the water-stained tile floor.

Tian Xiwei didn't open her eyes, but simply pressed her face against his chest.

The weather at the end of April was still a bit too hot to take a cold shower.

When the three returned to the lounge, Quan Quan had already turned on the heater.

"Put me down, I'm going to the fitting room to change."

Shen Mo smiled slightly and shook his head. "I'll change it for you."

Tian Xi looked up and glared at him. "You wish!"

Li Yitong smiled slightly, walked to the side, took the clothes Chengcheng handed her, stuffed them into Shen Mo's hand, and then patted his shoulder.

Go!

Tian Xiwei suddenly turned to look at Li Yitong, "Li Yitong, you!..."

Li Yitong smiled and slapped Tian Xiwei's bottom.

"This is all I can do!"

Shen Mo smiled as he looked at Li Yitong, and ignoring Tian Xiwei's struggles in his arms, he carried her towards the fitting room.

Li Yitong took another towel from Quan Quan and wiped her face. Although she wasn't completely soaked during the scene, her face still had quite a few water droplets on it.

Her eyes were fixed on that fitting room, where Tian Xiwei's cursing and Shen Mo's laughter could be clearly heard. Li Yitong couldn't help but smile.

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Although LeEco's stock price closed at the daily limit on the first day of trading after the resumption of trading, the trend clearly slowed down on the second day, with the market fluctuating between rises and falls, and the trading volume shrinking by nearly 30%.

In an effort to boost the stock price again, Mr. Jia personally led a team, inviting dozens of media outlets from over a dozen platforms to join the Fengshen Closed Training Camp.

When the media arrived, the trainees had just finished a round of physical training and were lined up on the playground, all wearing dark blue training uniforms.

Chen Xingxu stood in the second row of the queue, fourth from the left; Yu Shi was in the third row, second from the right; and Chen Muchi and Li Yunrui were on the side, a little further away.

Under the watchful eyes of the media, the male artists in the training camp showcased their training results one by one.

The horses' hooves kicked up mud, and the trainees crouched low on their backs, the reins taut in a straight line.

After dismounting, he picked up the weapons beside him, and the sword and spear drew arcs in the air, the sound of them cutting through the air crisp and clean.

The sound of camera shutters clicking filled the air.

Boss Jia finally stood at the very front of the line, his gaze sweeping across the crowd.

"Each of you has the potential to become Ji Fa."

"Let us all be made gods!"

That afternoon, media reports began to be released in a concentrated manner.

Visiting the Investiture of the Gods Training Camp: This Group of Young People Can Hold Up the Banner of Chinese Fantasy for the Next Generation

From auditions to intensive training: How LeEco made movies using the "hard-working" method.

Interview with Boss Jia: Becoming a God is Not a Gamble, But an Inevitable Path

The accompanying photos show neat rows of students on the playground, sweat stains on their training uniforms, close-ups of students gritting their teeth, and a silhouette of Boss Jia standing in front of the rows with his back to the camera.

The top comments section on Weibo was also filled with messages that all shared the same message.

"Looking forward to the film's deification," "Go, new generation of actors!" "This is the attitude of making movies seriously."

One press release also indirectly mentioned Chen Xingxu, saying that he "has a serious attitude towards training, never misses a movement class, and was specifically praised."

A few comments occasionally popped up in the comments section about "former Mohen artists", but they were quickly overshadowed by more voices expressing "expectations for new actors".

On the afternoon of the day the press release was issued, LeEco's stock price saw a small rally at the end of the trading day.

Shen Mo sat in his office, looking at the stock price of LeShi that had surged again due to the press release about the set visit to "Fengshen", and couldn't help but smile.

He pressed a button on the landline on the table.

"Have Zhao Feng, Chen Jun, Lin Wei, and Zhou Wanqing come here."

Five minutes later, the four of them sat down at Shen Mo's desk.

Zhao Feng spoke first, "The short positions have already been entered in batches."

"The average price at which we established our positions was controlled near the daily limit up price, and our current short positions exceed 500 million."

"The positive news of LeEco Pictures' acquisition has been largely digested by the market. Today's market is already showing signs of fatigue. The rally at the end of the day, which was driven by the press release, had limited strength, and the follow-up buying was significantly weaker than on the first day."

He pushed a report in front of Shen Mo, saying, "If negative news follows, you can gradually increase your position during the decline."

Shen Mo took the report, glanced at the core data, and then looked at Chen Jun.

Chen Jun pulled a list out of his briefcase and spread it on the table.

"Currently, we hold more than 2 billion yuan in debt owed to LeEco."

"The mobile phone supply chain accounts for 60%, sports copyright subcontractors account for 30%, and the rest are scattered claims from film and television production."

"We contacted the owners of the remaining suppliers who hadn't sold their goods, and most of them decided to unite and sue LeEco for overdue payments, but I slowed down the pace."

He paused for a moment, then said, "Once our signal arrives, they will simultaneously file a lawsuit."

"Can you keep it under control?" Zhao Feng asked.

"That's easy. Those bosses have waited for half a year, a week or two won't make a difference," Chen Jun said.

"And I gave them a heads-up, saying that LeEco's cash flow wouldn't last until this year."

"Moreover, with our 20 billion yuan in debt leading the way, they can't wait to follow suit and cheer us on. Now they all see us as their saviors and are very obedient."

Before Shen Mo could call her name, Zhou Wanqing spoke up and pushed a document into the middle of the desk.

The cover reads "LeEco Business Status Investigation Report," and it's contained in a transparent folder, about two centimeters thick.

"We have collected all the information on LeEco's actual operations and asset and liability situation."

"The combined debt from the mobile phone business, sports rights, and automobile sector has exceeded 20 billion."

"LeEco's operating cash flow has been negative since the fourth quarter of last year, and its main business revenue cannot cover interest expenses at all."

"More importantly," she pulled a detailed list from the documents and pushed it to Shen Mo's side.

"Boss Jia's personal share pledge ratio has exceeded 90%."

"In other words, if LeEco's stock price falls by more than 30%, his pledged positions will all be liquidated."

Zhao Feng's eyebrows twitched when he heard the number.

He only knew that the pledge ratio was high, but he didn't expect it to be this high.

Lin Wei picked up the conversation, "My media channels are all in place."

"Sixteen core media outlets in the financial, entertainment, and technology categories have been arranged."

"Once the launch is confirmed, these messages will be released in batches."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Feng's lips curled into a wicked smile.

"Then let it rise a little longer."

Shen Mo put the pen on the table and leaned back in his chair.

"The higher Boss Jia's flag is planted, the better. The higher the flagpole, the deeper the crater it will leave when it falls."

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