I am a Big Player
Chapter 682 - 673, The End of Filming_1

Chapter 682: 673, The End of Filming_1

The barren yellow sand of North Fort in Yinchuan rose with the wind. A youth dressed in hemp clothing rode westward on horseback, bearing a long stick wrapped in white cloth across the horse’s back. From one end, the wrapped item resembled a long sword.

At this moment, the setting sun was a deep orange, offering a view of nothing but emptiness and desolation.

The youth on horseback turned back for a deep look at the city-state behind him, then spurred his horse into a wild gallop toward the west.

"Cut! Very good! That’s a wrap!" Director Li yelled through a megaphone from behind: "Ha ha, that look back was good. It wasn’t in the script, but you added it yourself!"

This was one of the scenes that Director Li had improvised for Ren He, where, after the Imperial Guard officer had failed to assassinate the protagonist and returned to the city only to face a series of vexations, he then got caught up in a massive conspiracy that led to the slaughter of his entire family.

As a result, the Imperial Guard officer was ironically saved by the protagonist, and the mastermind behind the massacre of his family was killed by the protagonist as well, indirectly avenging him. In the end, after the officer boldly helped the protagonist kill a team of spies from the Spy Bureau, he chose to retire from his position and set out to lead a nomadic life beyond the border.

Ren He’s ability to surprise Director Li was not for the first or second time.

The first was when the thirty formidable soldiers ambushed the protagonist outside the city.

The second time was when Ren He, playing the Imperial Guard officer, fought with the master spy. In that scene, the script merely required Ren He to kill all the master spies, the choreography for which had been predetermined, leaving no room for Ren He to fail.

However, after killing them all, Ren He took the initiative to remove his helmet, his face smeared with unrecognizable bloodstains, looking indifferently at the corpses strewn about in silence. His demeanor fully encapsulated a sense of weariness from the struggles for fame and wealth, earning Director Li’s enthusiastic praise.

This Imperial Guard officer was essentially a minor and insignificant character in the story. Even with his great martial skills, it was so. Coming from a humble background, he had fought and toiled to reach the officer’s rank, only to be disregarded by all, and even his family fell victim to a ruthless official.

By this point, he truly should have grown tired of it all, possessing considerable prowess himself, he could easily travel the world as a martial artist!

Being able to perform according to the script already classified one as a good actor, but being able to embellish the script made one even better!

Who doesn’t like a pleasant surprise? If an investment that was supposed to earn ten thousand ended up bringing in a million, anyone would be happy! Who wouldn’t like such a thing?

Director Li was no exception! For some reason, although Director Li had originally written the Imperial Guard officer as a minor character not worth mentioning, he had now come to like this character immensely.

And the third pleasant surprise came today, which was originally just meant to be a reshoot of his departure to the wilderness. Yet, the scene of reining in the horse and looking back under the sunset truly captured something essential.

Director Li, delighted, murmured to his assistant director, "Yes, a man from the Central Plains going far away to the wilderness would definitely feel a reluctance to leave. He must look back!"

The assistant director stood by, grinning without a word, realizing that Director Li had truly taken a liking to Lu Xiaotu, the extra. It seemed this actor might suddenly rise to stardom.

Suddenly, Director Li asked, "How about we shoot a sequel after this, with this Imperial Guard officer as the protagonist? After traveling far beyond the border, he returns to the Central Plains due to fame, fortune, and emotional reasons. Young, highly skilled in martial arts, we could definitely explore that. Besides, I instinctively feel that the audience will like this character!"

Ren He cheerfully rode back, having thoroughly enjoyed the thrill of being an extra over the past month. His Master Level Acting Skill ensured no major blunders would occur. Today’s scene required a distant shot, where the audience wouldn’t be able to see his face. When he removed his helmet previously, his face was covered in blood, also unrecognizable. Ren He was actually quite pleased with that.

Director Li even asked him if he wanted to reshoot a scene showing his face, worried that Ren He might feel slighted—after all, which actor doesn’t want the audience to remember their face? Since Director Li was considering giving Ren He a bigger role, he naturally wanted to win over his heart.

But Ren He insisted that it wasn’t necessary, earning Director Li’s praise for being sensible...

Today marked the final wrap of Ren He’s scenes. He didn’t have much else to do afterward, but Director Li still instructed Ren He to stay with the crew, mentioning that there were things to discuss after the entire crew wrapped up.

Zhao Fatty was the one who understood the situation best. Hearing Director Li say this, he knew what it meant—it was likely that Director Li wanted Ren He to stay with the team for the next film project, which probably had a suitable role for Ren He!

Ren He wasn’t in a rush. Director Zhang had called him just last week, telling him that he was on his way, as A Chinese Odyssey was about to start filming. Ren He was determined to stay with this crew throughout; the film held a different place in his heart, and he was worried about not being able to bring out the original flavor of the source material.

Moreover, Director Zhang wouldn’t let him leave, chastising Ren He on the phone for not taking his own business seriously and running off to be an extra in someone else’s production. "Is our work not satisfactory to you? Do you need to experience life by going to other crews?"

Ren He felt a bit sheepish: "I just wanted to experience life..."

Zhang Ming smacked his lips on the other end of the phone. This, now, was living—doing whatever one pleased, experiencing a hundred different lives, playing the game of life.

They were playing with life, while the rest seemed doomed to a life played by circumstances.

Nevertheless, Ren He’s experience as an extra gave Director Zhang some insight; the big boss could act, after all! Instead of going to other crews to experience life, he might as well come to his own. The question was whether he could persuade Ren He to join the crew for a film.

When Zhang Ming called Ren He, the martial arts series he was currently involved in had not yet wrapped up. At that time, Zhang Ming began to ponder: how did it make sense for his company’s boss to be acting elsewhere?

On Ren He’s side, just after Director Li had told Ren He to keep showing up on set, Zhao Fatty, with gleaming eyes, pulled Ren He aside, "You must remember what I’m telling you, don’t rush to join Li’s crew. Just say you still have some family matters to deal with. In any case, there are at least two more months before Director Li’s next film starts shooting. Director Zhang’s crew will be here soon, and you absolutely can’t miss this chance. I think you will definitely be chosen, it’s just..."

That was the part he left unsaid. Zhao Fatty wanted to explain that although Lu Xiaotu’s role in Director Li’s movie had become quite significant, the key was that it hadn’t aired yet—if it had, going to audition for Director Zhang would have carried more confidence.

Now, however, it was different; without a release, it was as if it hadn’t happened. If Ren He went to audition for Director Zhang now, it’d be like starting from scratch, at best just a bit better than any other extra.