Chapter 53: The Beauty's Self-Attack! Emptiness or Weakness?

“What do you mean?” Nazha sensed an unspoken message in Zhang Yang’s words.

“Just a word of advice.” Zhang Yang looked at Nazha’s delicate face, his gaze earnest. “K-sis loves to market certain labels and personas for her artists, hoping to grab attention and gain fans.”

“For example, Po Shi. Tangren hired ghostwriters to spread stories about her being the younger cousin of Liu Yifei, calling her ‘little Liu Yifei.’ Or me—they tried to promote me as ‘little Hu-ge,’ the younger cousin of Lao Hu after his fame skyrocketed.”

“These constructed personas are double-edged swords. If you have high hopes for your future, don’t accept such arrangements. At least learn from Po Shi and avoid getting caught up in them yourself.”

Zhang Yang vividly recalled a particular interview where Nazha had claimed Xing Ye saw her photo in a newspaper and invited her to star in Western Journey: The Demon’s Story. She mentioned turning it down to focus on her studies, which many people criticized at the time as missing a great opportunity.

The interview was riddled with holes, and the fallout later was brutal. Yet at the time, the entire internet had been praising Nazha’s beauty and debating how Xuanyuan Sword—Tangren’s new series—was essentially using Nazha to ride the coattails of Demon’s Story to promote their own work. It was a common industry tactic.

“Oh, I understand now.” Nazha’s smile bloomed like a flower, sweetness spreading through her heart.

Zhang Yang must have been concerned she’d fall for the flattery from K-sis and the Sugar Man, so he’d chosen this topic to advise her discreetly.

If you care, just show it openly. Why be so cryptic? A hint of annoyance flickered in Nazha’s eyes.

Zhang Yang: ”…”

You’d better truly understand what’s at stake.

Half an hour later, Zhang Yang and Nazha arrived at Hengdian Zhuhai Fishing Village on a three-wheeled shuttle.

After paying the fare, they immediately contacted the casting director for Conquest: The_legend_of_western_journey. The director arranged for someone to meet them and escort them to the heart of the filming area.

It was just past lunchtime, crew members’ designated break. Zhou Xingchi, Huang Bo, Wen Zhang, Shu Qi, and other main actors sat together, chattering in Cantonese.

Zhang Yang stood at the fringe, listening quietly without interjecting.

After roughly ten minutes, Zhou Xingchi finally paused. Following a few words from Huang Bo, he turned to look at Zhang Yang, his gaze intense yet probing.

A few seconds passed before he nodded, picked up a folder from beside him, and pulled out several sheets of paper. Holding them aloft, he handed them to Zhang Yang. “Yangzai, right? Familiarize yourself with these lines. We’ll start your audition in five minutes.”

Zhang Yang accepted the papers and asked, “Xingzi, can I get made up?”

Whoa!

Surprise flickered across Huang Bo and the others’ eyes.

This youngster had actually called Zhou Xingchi “Xingzi”! Was he serious?

What they found even more astonishing was that Zhou Xingchi didn’t show the slightest hint of displeasure. Instead, he smiled. “Yes, you can get made up. Discuss your vision with the makeup artist. Your audition starts in two minutes.”

In other words, he was designing his own look and telling the makeup artist how to apply it. The auditions would begin in ten minutes, giving him an extra ten minutes for preparation.

“Five minutes will be enough!” Zhang Yang replied in perfect Cantonese.

Zhou Xingchi didn’t press the matter further and simply instructed someone to take Zhang Yang to the dressing room.

Once they were alone, Huang Bo curiously asked, “This youngster has no manners. Does it not bother you, Sir Zhou?”

Wen Zhang and Shu Qi, equally intrigued, silently wondered if Zhang Yang had some special background.

“Ha.” Zhou Xingchi didn’t answer directly but instead asked, “Do you think I’m not handsome enough?”

Huang Bo was at a loss for words.

Is that why Zhang Yang called Xingzhi ‘Kid’?

Five minutes later, Zhang Yang returned wearing ancient scholar robes complete with a hat on his head. His face had been painted deathly pale, with two dark circles under his eyes so pronounced they could rival a panda’s.

As he observed Zhang Yang’s appearance, a hint of delight rose in Zhou Xingchi’s heart. “I’m looking for the Eternal Vagabond, what inspired this look?”

“Eternal? Isn’t it ‘Testiculus Vacua’?” Zhang Yang shot back.

Zhou Xingchi’s eyes flickered as he shifted his sitting posture. “Right, you’re the very definition of ‘Testiculus Vacua’—not just eternally filled.”

Instantly, Zhang Yang’s expression metamorphosed. With eyes wide open in shock and a tinge of irritability, he warned, “Listen up, you can eat whatever you want, but watch your words!”

“You can’t even read this? Let me teach you. This is… Re~n XU. Oh.”

Suddenly realizing he misspoke, Zhang Yang quickly corrected himself, “No, no, no.” In less than half a second, he amended his statement to, “It’s Kong~xu!”

“I am Gongxu-gongzi, no, I’m not Kongxu-gongzi, I mean Renxu, um…” Zhang Yang’s voice trailed off as he realized he had spoken himself into utter havoc.

“Very well,” Zhou Xingchi said, his face splitting into a grin. “We’ll stick with Gongxu-gongzi!”

“It starts with ‘Kong’!” Zhang Yang insisted, sounding utterly dejected and hopeless.

“It’s all on you now,” Zhou Xingchi declared. “This role is yours, so unless you have any issues, sign the contract right away.”

Zhang Yang’s portrayal of Gongxu-gongzi—both in appearance and demeanor—perfectly matched everything Zhou Xingchi had envisioned. He couldn’t be more satisfied.

“Let me contact my agent immediately to discuss terms,” Zhang Yang announced, his demeanor instantly shifting into a pleasant smile. He pulled out his phone and dialed Cai Yining’s number.

At that moment, Cai Yining, Zhang Yang’s agent, was at the filming set of Great Masters Abound to check on progress.

After receiving hints from Zhang Yang, she felt she needed to make a surprise visit. She wanted to show concern for her actors and listen to Hu Ge’s evaluation of Jiang Jinfu, as well as observe his performance firsthand.

Despite watching him for several hours, she found Jiang Jinfu’s performance merely average compared to Zhang Yang’s impeccable talent.

This revelation intensified her desire to extend Zhang Yang’s contract and she began pondering how best to incentivize him.

Could we send Hu Ge out on auditions, having him bring along Zhang Yang as the male lead? she thought. But that wouldn’t give us enough control; we need a solid external script.

Or should I put Zhang Yang in the main role of “Refreshing 3+7,” making Hu Ge his supporting actor? No, Hu Ge is still the company’s backbone.

Then let’s keep an eye on outside opportunities and negotiate an exchange to win him over.

As Cai Yining was deep in thought, she received a call from Zhang Yang.

This time, she answered promptly, her tone exceptionally warm. “Hey A-Yang, did you need something?”

Hu Ge and Jiang Jinfu were baffled.

K-sis has been taken over by an imposter, they both thought.

If Cai Yining knew their thoughts, she would surely have scoffed, If you two could find such big-budget film resources that even Tangren can’t touch, I’d call you “bro” myself.

“What?!” Cai Yining’s voice shot up several octaves.

Tang Yan and others cast her puzzled glances.

On the other end, Zhang Yang pulled his phone away from his ear to clear it of wax. “I passed the audition for the third male lead in Director Zhou Xingchi’s new film,” he repeated. “K-sis, can you arrange for Sister Xu to handle the contract signing? Let’s not risk any delays.”

Prince Kongxu’s overall screen time was minimal, but each scene he appeared in was crucial. His role was indeed that of a third male lead, worthy of being featured on promotional posters.

“You’re not joking, right?” Cai Yining asked incredulously.

She had heard that Zhou Xingchi’s new film had already started shooting and that there was an important supporting role auditioning soon.

However, Tangren hadn’t managed to secure the script for the role, so she hadn’t arranged for any male talents from her company to audition. Additionally, she had specifically positioned her artists as idols, not actors.

“How could I joke about something like this? Or do you need someone from the production team to contact you?” Zhang Yang retorted.

“No need!” Cai Yining was merely stunned, not foolish. “I’ll be there immediately. Just wait for me at the set.”

Hanging up, Cai Yining made to leave at once.

Hu Ge noticed this and asked, “K-sis, what’s going on with a-Yang?”

“It’s good news,” Cai Yining replied, reluctant to say more.

But then she seemed to remember something and added, “He successfully auditioned for the male third lead in Director Zhou Xingchi’s new movie. I need to go discuss the contract.”

Hu Ge was puzzled.

The women from Tangren were even more confused.

Jiang Jinfu looked utterly lost.