Chinese Entertainment: Becoming a Superstar After a Breakup

Chapter 123 The Eight Trigrams

"Shen Ze, you just graduated this year, right? Your lines are really good; I could hear them clearly even from over there." Some abilities still shine, like lines. The one who asked him this was Jiang Xin.

"You're making him blush with all the praise, and he's still just a kid," Liu Tao laughed. Women do get bolder, and of course, they're willing to tease young people. Compared to them, Shen Ze is definitely not in the same age group.

However, this first scene does demonstrate his ability. Putting everything else aside, his delivery of lines is so clear that you can hear him clearly even with your eyes closed. Don't think that anyone can do that; there are far too many lines that are unclear or indistinct.

Furthermore, his voice is very distinctive. It's not Shen Ze's usual speaking voice; it's a deep voice, what fans often call a "deep bass." With this AI-generated voice, Shen Ze really doesn't have any weaknesses when it comes to delivering lines.

The bass line also has a penetrating quality, and what some people consider to be magnetic, which is why Jiang Xin thinks his lines are good.

On the second day, Shen Ze had no scenes at all. On the third day, he had three scenes, and he completely coordinated with Liu Tao's schedule. In the first season, Xiao Bao Zong really didn't have many scenes.

However, the fact that he was able to become a breakout star in "Ode to Joy" despite having only a small role, and then be promoted to the male lead in the second season, fully demonstrates the original charm of this character.

In fact, after reading the script and drawing on his experiences from his previous life, Shen Ze knew that he probably wouldn't be filming the second season. The character of Xiao Bao Zong was very charming when he had few scenes, but he would become greasy when he had more.

Unlike Xiao Baozong's dull and controlling nature and Lao Tan's restrained distance, Xiao Baozong is passionate and direct, with high emotional and intellectual intelligence, and the ability to solve problems. For example, in the script, when Andy asks for help, he will step in to help Fan Shengmei solve her family's problems.

This kind of character—who passionately pursues and helps women, is outwardly flirtatious but inwardly devoted—is quite popular, and because of the limited plot, it has an air of mystery.

However, there's a problem with this character. You're passionate and direct, which is fine when you have less screen time, but when you have more screen time, doesn't it come across as a bit clingy and persistent?

Actually, watching these dozens of scenes is also a pursuit, but because there are few scenes, it's like the kind of tool that girls like. The domineering CEO falls in love with me, I need to stay by his side, I don't need to disturb him, and every appearance is a strong interaction.

However, with so many scenes, there always needs to be a plot to fill them. If the style of the first part continues, with more appearances and his own performance, it's normal for him to become the king of oil.

Of course, these are ideas that Shen Ze pieced together based on his memories from before his rebirth and his current perspective.

However, it should also be related to the actor. It has to be said that the role of Xiao Bao Zong was a breakthrough for the original actor, who directly landed leading roles in various major productions thanks to this flamboyant character.

So it seems the second part isn't so serious, otherwise there wouldn't be so many similar characters later on. If they really pay attention, it wouldn't be a big problem.

However, it doesn't matter to Shen Ze. He doesn't need any more roles. He's just transitioning now. He wants to check off his roles whenever he sees a good one. It wouldn't be good to miss out on such a great role. By the time the second season is filmed, he probably won't be at the same level as he is now.

The filming of "Ode to Joy" is progressing smoothly. He spends most of his time waiting and getting to know the main characters, especially Liu Tao and Jiang Xin. He has only met Jin Dong once and they no longer have any scenes together.

As for Wang Kai, he had never met him. His scenes were in another group, and he didn't have much interaction with Liu Tao's group. Each of the five beauties in Ode to Joy had her own storyline. Shen Ze's storyline was with Liu Tao and Jiang Xin, and occasionally with a few other people.

"Shen Ze, want some cookies?" Yang Zi handed Shen Ze a box of cookies while he was scrolling through his phone.

"Thank you." Shen Ze tactfully took one, even though he didn't like it, but he had to give it to him out of courtesy.

"I have a question for you," Yang Zi asked, clearly eager to learn.

"Pretend I didn't take it, I've put it back for you, look." Shen Ze quickly put the cookies back into the box, apparently there was something else going on.

"You're being too stingy. If you keep acting like this, I'll expose your secret," Yang Zi said.

"What secret?" Shen Ze asked.

"Pretending, huh? Some people were dating back in school, and I know who they are," Yang Zi said.

"What do you mean? I don't know." Shen Ze realized that this was gossip. For this kind of thing, it's best to pretend you don't know.

As for your exposé, it was definitely a joke. However, it seems that Yang Zi did know about him. Since they were only one year apart and she started dating Dilraba early, it wasn't difficult for her to find out.

"Are you pretending to be stupid?" Yang Zi was helpless; this person wasn't cooperating at all, and her gossipy heart was already itching to get started.

She was chatting with her classmates when they happened to mention that Shen Ze was in the same film crew, and they started talking about Shen Ze's love life. She didn't know much about it back then, but now that they were filming together, she was quite interested in finding out more.

Shen Ze would never bring up something that was already in the past. If people knew about it, they knew about it, but there was no way they could get them to ask him about it again. If this got out, it might not have much of an impact on him; at most, he would lose some fans, but that wouldn't affect his superstar system. However, if it affected Reba, that would be troublesome.

However, the fact that Yang Zi asked her whether she was very charming now might be a way of finding a topic to talk about. She might not like her, but she definitely didn't dislike her.

However, Shen Ze had absolutely no feelings for her, and he didn't know why. Maybe it was the influence of "Home with Kids" or some other factor.

Before they knew it, filming was already halfway through. Shen Ze even made sure to check the schedule to avoid any conflict with the promotion of "The Coffin in the Mountain".

Before joining the crew, he had already discussed the filming schedule. He didn't have many scenes, so he mostly had to wait. It was easy for him to get leave approved. They didn't say how many scenes he had to film in a day, or that if he filmed less, the production would be halted. It wasn't that important.

However, if filming had been done quickly, it could have been completed before the movie's premiere. But Shen Ze didn't want that. Fifteen scenes were filmed in ten days, which was slower than expected.

"The Coffin in the Mountain" still has a few days of promotion, but it's only in Shanghai and Beijing. There's no money to hold a big premiere, and there's no need for advance screenings. Nowadays, every step costs money, but Shen Ze doesn't have any, and Taihe won't invest any funds either.

However, Shen Ze was quite satisfied. Although the screening share on the first day was only five percent, it was not bad for a low-budget film like this, especially for an art film.

It's normal that it doesn't get as many screenings as "Mountains May Depart," as Director Jia is not someone Xin Yukun can mess with. However, for Shen Ze, as long as it's released, that's fine. He's also quite curious: now that "Monkey King: Hero Is Back" has grossed over 1 billion, and his "Heavenly Mandate" has already grossed 500 million, how will this movie's box office reach that level?

(Two more chapters to be released before midnight)

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