Pirates began to dominate the Chinese entertainment industry.

Ji Yun continued speaking without waiting for an answer.

"It's not that she's pitiful, it's that she's proud. She lied to people, but she didn't want the children to see her in such a pathetic state."

But you're still acting like a complete fraud, putting on a show of "fear after the fact." I don't need your formulaic acting!

He walked into the room, picked up a worn-out plastic comb from the doorway, and, treating Li Bingbing as an ordinary actress, said bluntly:

"This comb is an important prop for her to maintain her image before seeing the child, and you didn't even notice! Is this your confidence that you don't need to rehearse?"

Li Bingbing, a senior figure, was both embarrassed and annoyed to be scolded by the young Ji Yun.

She gritted her teeth and didn't say anything, but her eyes began to look serious.

She walked to the door, glanced into the room, and then looked at the comb.

Suddenly realizing that this young director was really serious about making a movie, even having thought of the subtext of a prop... her anger dissipated considerably.

"Want to give it a try?" Ji Yun asked.

Li Bingbing looked at him, her attitude softened, and she nodded.

……

"start!"

Wang Baoqiang rushed over from the other end of the corridor, his face showing anger and anxiety at being cheated.

He chased after her to the door of the rented house, but Li Bingbing slammed the door shut from the inside.

"Give me back my money! Give me back my money!" Wang Baoqiang pounded on the door.

Inside, Li Bingbing leaned against the door, panting heavily. Like most actors, she acted conventionally, paying no attention to her image in front of the child.

Ji Yun frowned behind the monitor, but did not call "cut".

Li Bingbing took a few breaths, turned around and went into the inner room, picked up the little girl, and whispered words of comfort.

At that moment, the knocking on the door stopped.

Li Bingbing glanced cautiously at the doorway, her expression slowly shifting from "relief" to "complexity." She knew the person outside had seen her.

"Cut," Ji Yun called out, stopping the game.

Li Bingbing put the little girl down, came out, and asked, "How is it?"

"The first part is incorrect. For example, you didn't use a comb to tidy up your messy hair."

Li Bingbing was taken aback, then looked a little embarrassed: "I... forgot. Let's do it again."

"It's not that I forgot," Ji Yun shook her head, directly exposing her excuse. "It's that you don't truly understand why you needed a comb. You think the first thing you should do after running back is 'catch your breath' because you're still in a state of deception, you're afraid. But I want to remind you, the moment this woman entered this house, her identity as a mother always came first!"

Li Bingbing remained silent for a few seconds.

"You need to think: the children are inside. You don't want them to see you all sweaty and disheveled. So the first thing you do when you walk in is to make yourself 'look normal'!"

"Thank you, Director." Li Bingbing nodded, thanking Ji Yun softly for the first time.

She took a deep breath and walked back to the beginning of the corridor.

The second time, after rushing into the house, she did indeed pick up a comb first, quickly combed her hair twice in front of a small mirror on the table, and tried her best to tidy her appearance before going in to see the child.

The problem is that her movements are too "acted." The way she combs her hair is deliberate and stiff, like she's completing a task rather than acting out a natural reaction.

Ji Yun called "Cut" again.

"Look at me."

This time, he didn't waste any more words. Instead, he walked up to Li Bingbing and did something that surprised everyone.

He picked up the comb and, in front of everyone, pretended to be an actress combing his hair.

He didn't make any exaggerated movements; instead, he naturally smoothed his hair, like a small gesture everyone makes when they get home. Then he turned around and quickly adjusted his expression—from "tired" to "smiling"—in less than a second.

"That's it," Ji Yun said. "It's not about performing hair combing; it's about 'quickly fixing your hair when you get home,' it's the instinct of 'not wanting to worry your child.'"

Li Bingbing looked at Ji Yun, her lips moved, but she didn't say anything.

Xu Zheng stared wide-eyed at the scene.

He has met many different kinds of directors, but few are willing to personally demonstrate such a delicate performance, and do it so professionally.

"This kid... he really is a junior from the acting department." Xu Zheng looked at Zhao Liying beside him.

Zhao Liying, however, was staring at Ji Yun and didn't hear him speak at all.

"Let's do it again. This time, let's try to get it in one take."

Everyone held their breath.

Wang Baoqiang rushed over, banged on the door, and shouted.

Inside the house, Li Bingbing rushed in, casually smoothing her hair. This time, the movement was as natural as breathing. Then, she quickly adjusted her expression and greeted the children in the house with a normal demeanor.

Her voice was gentle, but there was a hint of sadness in her eyes that could only be captured in a close-up shot.

The shouting outside the door stopped.

Li Bingbing looked towards the door. Her gaze changed four times in that instant: first, "thankful" (she hadn't frightened the child), then "puzzled" (why didn't he call out), then "painful" (she realized the other person might have seen what was happening inside), and finally, a complex mix of "guilt" and "helplessness."

She didn't say any lines, but her eyes said it all.

The camera slowly pulls back, moving from Li Bingbing's face to the dimly lit stairwell by the door. Wang Baoqiang stands there dumbfounded, unsure how to face this situation.

"Card."

After Ji Yun shouted this, there was a full five seconds of silence in front of the monitor.

Xu Zheng was the first to applaud.

"Awesome," he said, without a trace of sarcasm in his tone.

Li Bingbing came out of the house, her eyes still red. She walked up to Ji Yun and looked at him respectfully.

"Director Ji, I'm so sorry I couldn't get here earlier. You're the most knowledgeable young director about acting I've ever worked with."

The five seasoned veterans from Tangren looked at each other in disbelief. One of them whispered, "Damn, even Li Bingbing is impressed. This kid... he's doing a pretty good job as a director, much more meticulous than those TV drama directors."

Zhao Liying stood in the corner, her eyes shining like stars. She clapped her hands vigorously until her palms were red.

Ji Yun simply nodded calmly and said, "That's a wrap. Congratulations everyone on finishing filming! Happy New Year!"

He turned around and walked towards the monitor, his expression indifferent.

The detail about combing hair just now was from an interview he watched in his previous life when Li Bingbing was acting in "The Meg" ten years later. She mentioned that when she played a mother, she would use "tidying up her appearance" to express the character's self-esteem.

It's just that it was used ten years earlier than planned.

After Ji Yun finished speaking, she asked Zhao Liying to distribute the prepared red envelopes to everyone, 2000 yuan each. Since it was New Year's Eve, there was no wrap party, and everyone took their red envelopes home.

The crew cheered "Thank you, director!" and the festive atmosphere of the Lunar New Year returned.

After spending a month together, they were completely convinced that Ji Yun was indeed a great director.

As everyone was parting, Tang Ren and the others found Ji Yun and quietly apologized for their past doubts and cold treatment of her.

Ji Yun smiled, not taking it seriously, and patted them on the shoulder, saying, "No need to apologize, I already had President Cai deduct a month's salary from your pay."