Pirates began to dominate the Chinese entertainment industry.

"I listened to your speech." Ji Yun looked down and saw her own reflection in her dark, beautiful pupils.

"Are you mocking me?" Li Ying sighed softly. "After all these years of working at the world's best schools and in the best companies, I still don't have your kind of intuition. It seems I really should consider leaving."

"Want to start your own business?" Ji Yun's eyes lit up.

"I don't know, let's see if there are any positions available in the core management teams of those Wall Street investment banks." Li Ying looked at him curiously, "What, do you have a recommendation?"

"I'd like to ask you to do some work for me," Ji Yun said without any politeness.

"Dream on~" Li Ying rolled her eyes at him, "You don't even have as much capital as I do."

Ji Yun wasn't surprised that he was rejected. After all, he had only just started making his fortune and the money hadn't even arrived in his account yet, so naturally he couldn't win over such a top Wall Street elite.

Even years later, Mr. Ma from Hangzhou had to visit her three times in the United States to persuade her to return, not only giving her a partner position but also real power in managing the business.

"Unless~" Li Ying stared at him and suddenly said meaningfully.

Ji Yun tilted her head to look at her.

"Unless you can make that shot again like you did just now," Li Ying said, her eyes gleaming, "I'll come work for you."

Ji Yun smiled easily, "That will be soon."

The collapse of Lehman Brothers in the second half of the year was the most shocking and iconic event of this financial crisis, and the beginning of the collapse of the American financial myth.

"Soon?" Li Ying was taken aback. "How soon?"

"A few months, I guess," Ji Yun said casually.

Li Ying glared at him, feeling he was teasing her again, and playfully tossed her hair, saying, "You never tell the truth!"

"This time it's guaranteed to be authentic."

……

Once the crew got back on track, the filming progress accelerated considerably.

They searched for locations all around Shanghai to film, and finally, on Lunar New Year's Eve, they filmed the last two scenes.

A small square next to the Yangtze River Wharf in Shanghai.

During the Spring Festival, the crowds are chaotic, noisy, and disruptive, which is very annoying.

"Has Li Bingbing arrived yet?" Ji Yun put down the script and asked Zhao Liying, who had come to deliver hot water.

He glanced at his phone; it was already past 3:00 PM. Ji Yun didn't care, but the others were still rushing home for the New Year.

"Not yet. Her assistant said she has an event and will arrive before the official start of filming." Zhao Liying looked somewhat timid. Li Bingbing is still the top female star in her company, and her personality is quite sharp and domineering, so she is still a little intimidated when facing her.

Ji Yun frowned; it seemed there was no time for rehearsal beforehand. But he didn't say anything. The other party was a top-tier actress and a film queen; her presence was a favor to Tangren Media, and he couldn't afford to lose his temper.

Upon hearing this, the others finished setting up the scene and went to find places to rest, their expressions not very pleasant. They were already quite unhappy about having to work on New Year's Eve, and now there was this troublesome woman dragging things out.

Five Tangren employees and Xu Zheng squatted by the roadside smoking, their eyes full of impatience, but also mocking Ji Yun, a small director, for being so heavily suppressed by a big star in the industry.

About ten minutes later, Li Bingbing and her assistant finally arrived late.

Ji Yun stood up and greeted him with a smile.

Li Bingbing frowned when she saw his appearance, but didn't say anything explicitly.

Ji Yun pretended not to see anything and began to explain the plot of the script to her.

Filming started smoothly, except that Li Bingbing played the victim on the street and swindled Wang Baoqiang out of money. Later, Wang Baoqiang bumped into her at the dock, and the three of them chased after her until they arrived at a dilapidated old neighborhood, where the two main characters witnessed her real life.

However, when the scene where the female con artist runs home occurs, Ji Yun and Li Bingbing have a disagreement.

On set, the narrow stairwell was packed with people.

Xu Zheng sat by the monitor, flipping through the script. Occasionally, he glanced up at Ji Yun, who was directing Li Bingbing, and his lips twitched slightly. His expression clearly said, "How could a student like you possibly direct such a complex scene?"

The previous scenes lacked genuine emotion and were uncomplicated in terms of camerawork; the main appeal lay in the two leads' antics and comedic antics, relying primarily on his and Baoqiang's performances. But this scene was different. It was arguably the most emotionally complex segment of the entire film, and also the one that truly tested the director's skill. He had absolutely no idea that Ji Yun had the ability to direct this scene well.

Li Bingbing stood opposite Ji Yun, arms crossed, her makeup simple, wearing an old cotton-padded jacket, her hair deliberately messy. She was one of the "Four Dan and Two Bing" (a group of four top actresses and two top actresses in China), a recipient of the Huabiao Award and the Hundred Flowers Award, and had been in the industry for ten years; she had seen all sorts of big directors. Facing Ji Yun, she wore a polite smile, but her eyes held a hint of disdain.

"Director Ji, I've thought about this scene." Li Bingbing's tone was gentle but firm. "I think after the female swindler runs back, she should first have an expression of 'fear', and then turn to 'heartache' when she sees her daughter. That would make the scene more nuanced."

After listening, Ji Yun didn't immediately refute, but instead asked, "Sister Bingbing, have you ever played a mother before?"

Li Bingbing paused for a moment: "...Not yet."

"Have you ever thought about this?" Ji Yun said, "This woman is out there swindling money every day, and her daughter's illness has dragged on for so long. Every time she comes back after swindling money, when she faces her daughter, is the first emotion that comes to her heart 'fear'?"

Li Bingbing frowned.

Ji Yun didn't wait for her reply and turned to walk towards the rented room at the end of the corridor.

The room was only seven or eight square meters, containing only a bed, a table, and a dim light bulb. Faded cartoon stickers covered the walls, and a large pile of junk was stacked against the wall. Several little girls in tattered clothes were drawing nearby, and a five-year-old girl lay on the bed, covered with a thin blanket, her face sallow.

Ji Yun stood at the doorway, turned around and said to everyone, "I want to use a long take for this scene."

"A long take?" Cinematographer Wang was the first to frown. "Director Ji, this hallway is so narrow, and there's even less room to turn around inside. How can we shoot a long take?"

"The camera pans in, following the woman from the stairwell all the way into the apartment." Ji Yun gestured with her hand. "Niu Geng stops at the door, the camera moves over his shoulder, into the apartment, and focuses on the female con artist and her daughter. Then it slowly pulls back, returning to Niu Geng's face. He turns and walks away, the camera pausing in the empty stairwell."

Xu Zheng put down the script and stood up.

He comes from a theatrical background and is very sensitive to long take sequences. Ji Yun's design means that the emotional progression of the entire play relies entirely on the actors' performances and camera movements. Without editing assistance, any mistake in any part would require starting over.

"You're..." Xu Zheng carefully chose his words, "very ambitious."

The unspoken message: You're too arrogant!

Li Bingbing understood, and her expression changed slightly. The long take meant she had to continuously execute a series of actions: rushing into the house, closing the door, picking up her daughter, delivering her lines, realizing no one was at the door, and showing a change in expression. Her emotions couldn't falter, and her performance couldn't be fake. This is a huge challenge for any actor.

"Director Ji, I don't think it's necessary to take the risk," Li Bingbing said tactfully. "Shooting in separate shots and editing in post-production will produce just as good results, and it's even safer."

Ji Yun glanced at her and suddenly smiled. Comedy relies mainly on the actors, but for this kind of emotional scene, he had to achieve the highest standard.

"Sister Bingbing, do you know what's the most touching thing about this female con artist?"