In the days that followed, although Director Feng's auditions had concluded, the online quarrels never stopped.
The main point of contention was that, while the actors Director Feng chose had status and traffic, not everyone accepted them for their acting skills.
The actors' actual abilities became one of the reasons these selections couldn't convince the public.
Another reason, naturally, was that the controversy itself generated heat, which only made it hotter.
After returning, Cheng Xue bought a large batch of trending topics praising Chen Yulin's acting and his ranking, securing the spot of Third Male Lead for Chen Yulin and sending his fans into a period of joy and online revelry.
But the problem was that in Director Feng's film, there were other young male actors with similar screen time and similar status to Chen Yulin.
Director Feng hadn't even assigned specific rankings yet, and Chen Yulin was already claiming the spot?
Then what am I supposed to be?
You can't let this Chen Yulin, someone who has never been a male lead, overshadow them, can you?
So Cheng Xue didn't need to worry about Chen Yulin continuing to drag down Liu Zehang—his own people had already started fighting first.
The others were happy to watch the spectacle, quietly withdrawing their own names from the chaos and standing by to observe.
...
In the end, amid this "chaotic" barrage of insults, Director Feng's new film "Silent Search" officially began shooting.
At roughly the same time, Director Ren's new film "Law of the Jungle" also officially started production.
Although the scale was smaller than Director Feng's new film, many people still gathered to leave comments on the related posts and updates.
"Ahhh, it's Director Ren's new movie! I'm so excited!"
"Director Ren is finally filming a new movie! I've already replayed his old films to death—hurry up!"
"Director Ren has been so low-key this time; I almost missed the news."
"No choice—the competition next door came on strong; couldn't beat them."
"Wow, it's Zehang and Xiao Xiao again! The two brothers are collaborating again!"
"Dream crossover! The Zhu brothers are stepping out—who are they going to stab this time?"
"Director Ren, do you dare to slap the whole movie right in our faces?"
"Uh, am I the only one who thinks this is ridiculous? Xiao He was just a tiny newcomer who hadn't even played a Second Male Lead before, and it's been less than a year. Now suddenly he's co-leading with Liu Zehang—what a resource handout—tsk tsk—"
"Nope, only you think it's ridiculous. Xiao He's acting has always been pretty good. It's not like he's being hyped without talent. The domestic entertainment industry finally has a newcomer with unique qualities. We're thrilled, so sour chickens stop cheering here."
"Is his acting really that good? He still got rejected by Director Feng. But must admit, Liu Zehang and that guy match well—both leftovers rejected elsewhere; it's their own fault they're reduced to the same crew."
"??? Haha, maybe you should check Director Ren's resume before speaking. How dare you say 'reduced to'? That's rude."
"Fans of one side, don't stir trouble. Our Brother Zehang and Xiao He have always been close; we look forward to their collaboration. Don't muddy the waters."
"Clicked. Honestly, I think Director Feng's new movie is laughable: among a bunch of Best Actor winners like Hu Wen and He Jinnian, he picked the retired Tong Junhui; among people like Liu Zehang, Su Ji, and Xiao He, he picked Chen Yulin. In the end, he keeps choosing the worst performers. What is this? Director Feng likes to train actors? It's really hard to guess. Fans will come argue that the director chooses by character fit, not just acting, tsk tsk."
"Upstairs, you're brave. If fans come, I'm running."
...
The online debate didn't affect the crew's filming. After completing the opening ceremony, Xiao He and the others began preparing for the crew's first scene.
This shoot would mainly take place in three locations: one set within Shanghai's urban area, one set to be completed separately in a soundstage, and the final, most important location with the most scenes—the mysterious Death Island in the plot.
"Law of the Jungle" was jointly produced by Shanghai Rongguang Film Company, Shanghai Shenghe Film Company, Fruit Film, and others. It was directed by Ren Changwen, scripted by Shen Zhongcheng, with an investment of 300 million, a large portion of which was spent entirely on the island.
The chosen island for filming is located in Haishi. It used to be a tourist destination, but a recent hurricane left the island's buildings and infrastructure severely damaged, so the island is still under repair.
However, that environment suited the film's background: the island's own ruin and disorder saved the crew a lot on set construction.
After they finished filming the scenes before going to the island in Shanghai, they could prepare to board the island.
"Lin Yu'an, Xu Ning, be ready."
Ren Changwen shouted from behind, holding a megaphone.
"Ready, coming."
Xiao He and Liu Zehang stood up from their seats and walked onto the set to wait.
As the first scene after the start of shooting, this scene wasn't very difficult—it was just Lin Yu'an and Xu Ning's first meeting.
-------------
Outside, the night was hazy; only a few neon halos leaked through the hospital window and fell on the floor. Lin Yu'an, who had been busy all day, sat at the bedside, half-asleep, his face showing exhaustion.
At that moment, the hospital room door was suddenly pushed open.
A tall figure stood in the doorway.
Lin Yu'an forced his eyes open a slit and looked at the person in the doorway, realizing it was a stranger he didn't recognize.
"Could it be someone coming to collect a debt again?"
Lin Yu'an mumbled sleepily, rubbing his eyes. He was about to say something when the stranger grabbed his collar, hoisted him up, and carried him out of the hospital room.
"Hey—"
Lin Yu'an wanted to loudly demand who he was and what he was doing, but when he saw the person in the bed, he quickly held his tongue, not daring to make too much noise and wake the patient.
So Lin Yu'an was carried by this suddenly appearing stranger to the hospital stairwell.
"Who are you? Who sent you?"
Lin Yu'an watched the man before him warily; his drowsiness had entirely vanished.
"This is for you."
Xu Ning handed an invitation letter to Lin Yu'an.
Just looking at the invitation felt very high-end; even the seal on it was flecked with gold, clearly valuable.
Lin Yu'an was stunned for a moment, then remembered something. His pupils shrank and his gaze landed on the invitation in Xu Ning's hand. "What is this?"
"What, playing dumb?"
"This is the name you registered with yourself." Xu Ning sneered and shook the invitation in his hand. "It was your own choice. Now pretending to be clueless is a little boring. And I can guarantee—if you make me return empty-handed, you'll die a very miserable death."
Facing Xu Ning's cold, almost murderous stare, Lin Yu'an fell silent for a moment, forced a smile, and then took the invitation with trembling hands. "Thank you."
"Good." Xu Ning nodded slightly, then turned and started walking away. "I'll come pick you up in two days. Remember to leave a will. I never deal with corpses."
Lin Yu'an frowned. "I still don't know your name."
Xu Ning lazily waved his hand:
"You can call me Xu Ning."