HuaYu: Starting with Photography to Navigate the Entertainment Industry

"Tang Yan?"

Tang Yan hadn't heard from her since their last meeting.

In addition, he's been so busy these past few days that Xu Lang has even forgotten about her.

Hearing Reyizha say this, he was genuinely quite surprised.

"What happened to her?"

"Tang Yan hired a photographer herself and we arranged to take photos today. She just finished the shoot and came out, and she told me that it seems like the photographer took some photos of her without her consent."

"Taking photos secretly?"

Xu Lang couldn't help but chuckle. Being secretly photographed by a photographer was perfectly normal!

He works in this industry himself, so he's very familiar with the shady dealings involved.

"The person came out, didn't they? As long as they're alright, that's all that matters!"

Xu Lang didn't take it seriously at all and just gave a perfunctory reply. Besides, Tang Yan had nothing to do with him, and he didn't want to offend people in the industry for her sake.

Not worth it!

But to everyone's surprise, Re Yizha refused to cook.

"Xu Lang, how could you say that? If these photos get out, how will she ever act again? Will she even be able to stay in the entertainment industry?"

Upon hearing Re Yizha's words, Xu Lang suddenly remembered something:

In her previous life, Tang Yan was indeed "secretly photographed," it seemed to be some kind of wedding photo shoot. For a while, leaked videos and photos were flying everywhere.

Xu Lang hadn't seen it, but many of his friends had, and it was said to be quite explicit.

"She became quite famous later, didn't she? It didn't affect anything!"

Xu Lang was still reluctant to get involved, but Reyizha, being a chivalrous person, couldn't ignore her best friend's accident.

"Xu Lang, you're a photographer too, you must know how to handle this. Even if you don't want to get involved, you have to think of a way to get the evidence!"

Re Yizha said, then pressed for an answer:

"Where are you? We're coming to find you!"

Xu Lang was truly defeated by Re Yizha. He had taken her body, so he couldn't just turn around and abandon her!

"Sigh, I knew there's no such thing as a free girl!"

Xu Lang sighed inwardly and gave the address of the barbecue restaurant.

Seeing that Xu Lang had finished his call, Jiang Wei asked curiously:

"Third brother, what's wrong? Is something the matter?"

"It's alright, come on, let's drink!"

As Xu Lang and Jiang Wei drank, their minds were filled with thoughts of the photographer secretly taking pictures.

In a way, this is similar to installing cameras in hotel rooms in later generations; it's not quite an industry chain, but it's pretty much the same.

In his previous life, Xu Lang worked as a freelance photographer and later opened a photo studio, where he met many photographers and joined many groups.

After getting to know each other better, someone would occasionally post some explicit photos in the small group.

Just by looking at the angle of that photo, you can tell it wasn't taken normally.

Later, Xu Lang learned that there were people who specialized in taking these secret photos.

Someone secretly takes photos, initially when they encounter attractive clients, then they take the photos for their own enjoyment.

But after a while, I found that it wasn't all that great.

Therefore, under the inducement of some people, these secretly taken photos are sold.

There are people who collect these secretly taken photos.

Otherwise, where do all the photos on some websites come from?!

Some people have approached Xu Lang wanting to buy these kinds of photos, and Xu Lang's response was:

"I'm only interested in consensual sex; I'm not interested in being secretly filmed or forced!"

Ultimately, this thing is illegal.

As he was thinking, he saw two people walking in from outside the shop; it was Reyizha and Tang Yan.

Upon seeing the two beautiful women, the guys at the barbecue restaurant immediately began to stare at them.

Jiang Wei nudged Xu Lang with his elbow and pointed at the hot pitcher, asking:

"Third brother, a hot bowl of noodles, is it for you?"

Before Xu Lang could reply, Re Yizha led Tang Yan toward him.

As Xu Lang got closer, he noticed that Tang Yan's pretty face was filled with anxiety and fear, her eyes were red, and tears were welling up in her eyes, as if she had just been crying.

It's understandable that a sophomore girl, alone in another city, would be quite anxious if something like this happened.

Xu Lang was about to speak when Re Yizha spoke to Jiang Wei and the others first.

"We have something urgent to attend to, and we need to borrow Xu Lang for a while. You don't mind, do you?"

Knowing that Xu Lang was unwilling to leave, Reyizha directly cut off his escape route.

That girl is ruthless!

Jiang Wei and his two companions are the kind of people who can't resist Re Yizha when they see him.

What's more, Reyizha was accompanied by an even prettier woman, Tang Yan.

Now, let alone borrowing Xu Lang, even if the three of them tied Xu Lang up, none of them would hesitate for a second.

"Third Sister-in-law, you're being too kind. Take it, use it as you like!"

Jiang Wei immediately grabbed Xu Lang and pushed him to the side of Re Yizha.

"Holy crap, you bunch of heartless bastards, you even sell your own buddies!"

"Haha, aren't our own buddies just for selling!"

And so, Xu Lang had no choice but to follow Re Yizha and Tang Yan out.

After finding a quiet spot nearby, Xu Lang looked at Tang Yan.

"What happened? Tell me!"

Tang Yan wiped her eyes, sobbing, and said in a wronged tone:

"I found a photographer online..."

She was only halfway through her sentence when Xu Lang couldn't help but sigh.

"Why bother finding photographers online when there are so many photographers around?"

Xu Lang's words were practically a direct question to Tang Yan: Why didn't you ask me to film this?

"I..."

Tang Yan opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything.

Hot Oneza, who was standing nearby, couldn't stand it anymore and replied directly:

"You're asking for two thousand yuan per photo right off the bat. Who can afford that?"

"Ha, it's all about the price, isn't it?"

Xu Lang understood this; it was normal.

He then looked at Tang Yan, "Tell me, how did he give you a discount?"

"I...we agreed that if I take a set of wedding photos for him, he'll take the photos I want for free."

"Wedding photos?"

Upon hearing those three words, Xu Lang's heart skipped a beat.

"Holy crap, the leaked photos of Tang Yan in my previous life were actually her wedding photos, so there's no escaping it, it must be this time!"

Recalling the explicit content he'd witnessed in his previous life, Xu Lang couldn't help but glance at the pitiful Tang Yan before him. For a moment, he felt a surge of curiosity.

"I'd really like to see what kind of scale it is!"

But soon, his chaotic thoughts were driven back by Re Yizha's gaze.

"Xu Lang, Tangtang said that the photographer was very suspicious. When taking pictures, he was always a bit absent-minded and made Tangtang stand in some unreasonable positions and pose in some unreasonable ways."

Can you analyze this for me? Did that person do something behind the scenes?

Upon hearing Re Yizha's words, Xu Lang could conclude that...

"She was definitely filmed without my knowledge!"

In 2004, cameras weren't that advanced, so in order to avoid being discovered, they could only be installed in inconspicuous places.

In order to be close enough and to ensure that the camera can capture clear images, specific locations and specific actions are the hallmarks of covert filming.

Upon hearing Xu Lang's conclusion, Tang Yan's face turned pale instantly, and tears streamed down her face again.

Seeing her like this, Xu Lang knew that the process of taking the photos must have been unusual, and that the other party must have captured something crucial.

Otherwise, Tang Yan wouldn't be in this situation.

Seeing Tang Yan like this, Re Yizha's saintly heart kicked in again.

"Xu Lang, we have no evidence and can't call the police right now. You have to think of something, otherwise, what will happen to Tangtang?!"

Xu Lang pondered for a moment, then asked:

"Which photographer is it? Where are they?"

"It's just ahead, across the street on the north side, that's the photographer called Xiaofeng."

"Xiaofeng?"

Xu Lang did indeed recognize the name. In his previous life, because they lived close by, he had dealt with Chen Xiaofeng, the boss of Xiaofeng, several times.

Thinking about Tang Yan's revealing photos, Xu Lang felt a bit more motivated and said:

"I'll go try and see if I can get it back."