Chinese Entertainment: Becoming a Superstar After a Breakup

The night was dark and silent, not even a dog could be heard barking, but it wasn't oppressive at all, since there were cameras filming in front of us and twenty or thirty people around.

Shen Ze stood on the slope, his face a little pale. The woman in front of him had her head down. This was Huang Huan, the name of his girlfriend in "The Coffin in the Mountain".

This plot is the most important part of Shen Ze's drama. It all starts with the couple having just finished a stressful argument. In order to keep Xiao Zongyao, played by Shen Ze, Huang Huan lies and says that she is pregnant. Xiao Zongyao doesn't dare to tell his family, and he himself doesn't accept that she is pregnant.

Just as the atmosphere reached a stalemate, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows beside them.

"Xiao Zongyao, right?"

"White Tiger, are we going home?" Shen Ze asked with a hopeful look, wishing he hadn't heard anything.

"We're all acquaintances, so I won't waste any more words. Here's the deal: you give me ten thousand yuan as hush money."

"If you don't give it to me, I'll say that the village chief's son slept with a virgin and got her pregnant. Then I'll see how your father can remain the village chief." Baihu had a smug look on his face.

Although it's not good to say it like that, the actor who plays Baihu, putting aside his acting skills, just looks like the kind of person who's not easy to mess with, a thug. Maybe he's used to playing villains. Although the actor Xin Yukun found isn't famous, he's definitely more in line with the plot, otherwise, the rating wouldn't be so high.

"You're extorting me, I have no money." Shen Ze lacked confidence. For him, this role wasn't difficult. It was about a young man who was unwilling to be ordinary but didn't have much ability. This was actually the same as when he was in his early twenties in his previous life. He couldn't see himself clearly and always thought the future would be better, until life slapped him in the face again and again, and he finally accepted that he wasn't that good.

"You won't give it to me, huh? Fine." White Tiger turned to leave.

"White Tiger." Shen Ze tried to pull him away, telling him to stop talking nonsense and leave quickly, and started tearing at him.

"You want to fight?" Baihu shouted, trying to call for help, and pounced on Shen Ze. The two instantly started fighting. The movements weren't intense, but they were filled with panic. Shen Ze was just instinctively resisting and pushed Baihu away, causing him to trip.

"Cut! Shen Ze, push harder, don't be shy, push with all your might," Xin Yukun said to Shen Ze.

Even knowing it's acting, it's fine when it's just dialogue, but when it comes to physical fights, Shen Ze isn't used to it.

"Yeah, Xiao Shen, you pushed the key points and we passed. You don't have a grudge against me and want to do more takes, do you?" the actor playing Bai Hu laughed.

He laughed, completely losing the sinister look he had just had. He was an actor from a local theater troupe, specializing in villainous roles.

"Shen Ze is kind-hearted, and you're not happy about it?" Luo Yun, who plays the role of Huang Huan, laughed.

"I haven't even mentioned you yet, but you're really ruthless. Anyone who didn't know better would think we're sworn enemies," said Zhu Ziqing (Baihu).

"Let's do it again, try to get it right in one take." Xin Yukun looked at the sky and said. As soon as he spoke, the set fell silent. The director still had authority. Although everyone knew that the crew was short of funds, actors are actors.

This time, Shen Ze let loose. He couldn't quite gauge the situation, but having learned from his previous experience, he managed to go through with it normally.

Then we'd wrap up and go back to sleep. There were a lot of night scenes in this movie, so we could only catch up on sleep during the day. Plus, there were a lot of shooting tasks. According to the director, the original plan of shooting for a month and a half had to be compressed into a month. We had to rush to get enough footage.

Shen Ze, who was playing a major role for the first time, recalled that when he was filming "The Coffin in the Mountain," his character had far fewer scenes than the footage they shot.

This makes sense, though. Sufficient footage is needed to cut out the storyline the director wants. If it were just the part shown in the movie, it could be filmed in a day. The key is for the director to find the storyline he wants from endless footage.

We ate steamed buns for lunch. You could tell how hard the crew had worked. From having meat with every meal at the beginning to now having various cabbage stews with potatoes and some cured meat, it felt like the producer had done his best. The filming location was even provided by the producer himself; it was his village, which saved them a lot of money.

Filming is actually a very boring thing, just like work. Nobody likes work, right? What they like is the glory of being in front of the camera. But Shen Ze is very content. He won't get carried away. In his previous life, he worked hard for a few coins, and he never stopped.

But even without any fame, given the importance of this role, he was able to receive a salary of 10,000 yuan. This was due to his educational background, and it seems that his salary was considered high within the production crew.

At this time in his previous life, he was already doing an internship at a junior college, earning only a few hundred yuan a month. He had to face machine tools every day and was covered in rust. It was nothing like how comfortable he was now, sitting around waiting for his scenes to be filmed. He finally understood why so many people wanted to climb the ladder. They were willing to push their limits for resources, even if they couldn't become famous, the pay was still very generous depending on the importance of the role.

As the days went by, Shen Ze became familiar with the filming rhythm. Xin Yukun preferred to film in the evening or early morning, and rarely filmed in the middle of the day. This was probably related to the style of the drama, which had a touch of suspense.

However, the storyline involving him and the village chief reminded him of the movie "Silent Witness" that he and Dilraba watched at the cinema during the National Day holiday. It was about a father taking the blame for his daughter. "The Coffin in the Mountain" also had this storyline, and he wondered if Xin Yukun had borrowed from it.

That night, Shen Ze was scrolling through his phone in his room when he heard someone knocking on the door.

"Shen Ze, someone is looking for you."

"Hey, who is it? What brings you here?" Shen Ze looked at Dilireba outside the door and wondered why she had come without saying a word.

"What, you're not welcome? It's not convenient to go in. I'll give you some time to let her leave?" Dilraba said.

"What are you talking about? It's always something irrelevant," Shen Ze said. His girlfriend is always sarcastic and unpredictable when they meet. What should he do?

"Not only did you not hug me right away, but you also wouldn't let me in the door and wouldn't let people suspect anything. But baby, I believe you, but I have to constantly remind you that you have a girlfriend," Dilraba said.

Seeing the others in the yard come out to watch the commotion, he pulled Dilraba into the house. The others were also gossiping, saying things like, "Is this Shen Ze's girlfriend? She's really beautiful."

Then, the production assistant who had just told Shen Ze that someone was looking for him immediately proved this point: Dilraba really likes to assert her dominance around Shen Ze.

The arrival of Dilraba surprised the production team. After all, Dilraba is a star, and in terms of looks, she definitely surpasses ordinary people.

As soon as Dilraba entered, she rushed into Shen Ze's arms. This was one of the things that Shen Ze found surprising about her. Despite her height, looks, and figure being those of a mature woman, she was surprisingly soft and sweet. It was quite nice.

Dilraba's arrival brought a beautiful sight to the crew, but the beauty only lasted for two days before she returned to Shanghai. However, it was agreed that she would meet up with Shen Ze at his hometown. Shen Ze's end date had also been confirmed, earlier than expected, with the crew disbanding on the twenty-eighth day after joining the crew.

It wasn't a wrap-up, it was the disbandment of the crew, but according to Xin Yukun, they already had enough material.

Shen Ze is also going home for the Chinese New Year.