What a Waste for Such a Valuable Talent to Join the Director Department!

As the main cast for Happy Family was finalized,

Lin Chuan also began preparing the crew.

A film crew was made up of more than just the director and actors.

It also included cinematographers, prop masters, special effects artists, makeup artists, sound technicians, martial arts instructors, and many others.

A film crew had at least several dozen people.

Of course, Lin Chuan could handle most of the jobs himself.

But now he had the funding to make a movie, and time was a factor.

So it was better to leave some positions to other people.

The prop masters, cinematographers, and others had all been poached from Golden Warrior by Ren Hang.

This film didn't have any action scenes, so it didn't need a martial arts instructor. For now, that was one expense they could save.

As for the behind-the-scenes effects work and the rest, the all-purpose Xiao Hei would continue to handle it.

After nearly three weeks, the crew for Happy Family was finally ready.

In fact, given Lin Chuan's efficiency, he could have put it together in even less time.

It was just that Lin Chuan needed to direct and star in this film.

Lin Chuan would play the male lead in Happy Family.

The male lead was an orphan, a pitiful man who had lost the will to live.

His slovenly lifestyle made him look puffy and weak.

Lin Chuan, on the other hand, ate regularly, exercised consistently, and loved life.

His energetic appearance was clearly a far cry from the character's.

So Lin Chuan spent a week immersing himself in the role and getting to understand the character.

At the same time, he used his Rubber Man Talent to give himself a "makeover."

So when Lin Chuan first arrived on set a few weeks later,

everyone was stunned by his appearance.

Looking at Lin Chuan's utterly dejected face, everyone on the crew was astonished.

Lin Chuan had gained at least twenty pounds.

His face was quite puffy, and he'd grown a ring of scruffy stubble.

Deep dark circles. Sluggish steps.

Two weeks ago, Lin Chuan had been a handsome young man full of energy.

Now, he looked like someone who'd been dumped, gone home hoping his parents would comfort him, only to discover they'd died in a car accident. After arranging their funeral, he'd learned they hadn't left him a penny of inheritance, only hundreds of thousands in debt.

One word summed it up: miserable.

Director Hou, the highest-ranking person on the crew, was the first to show concern.

"Lin Chuan, did something happen? If there's a problem, we'll deal with it right away. The school has your back!"

Lin Chuan's counselor nodded encouragingly. "It's okay. If something's wrong, just say so. I believe you're a strong young man."

Even the teary-eyed art teacher patted Lin Chuan on the shoulder and gave him a thumbs-up.

Lin Chuan could only laugh helplessly. What was all this about?

Lin Chuan said seriously, "I'm getting into character. Thanks for worrying about me. The makeup artist drew these dark circles on me. I'm fine!"

Everyone gathered around him again.

Xu Xiu, the art teacher, even rose onto her toes and poked Lin Chuan's dark circles.

Once they realized Lin Chuan was all right, they dispersed and prepared to shoot.

Director Hou sighed emotionally. "There aren't many actors who put this much effort into a role anymore!"

Director Hou could tell at a glance that Lin Chuan had gained at least twenty pounds for the role.

These days, few actors were willing to put themselves through that kind of hardship.

Some actors would get a tiny cut, slap on a bandage, and post on Weibo asking their fans for sympathy.

To them, gaining twenty pounds would be like killing their parents.

Of course, if Lin Chuan had heard those thoughts, he probably wouldn't have cared.

Although Lin Chuan really had gained twenty pounds, it was all thanks to his Rubber Man Talent.

When it came to the effort he'd put in, he might not have done much more than those young idol actors.

Besides, Lin Chuan didn't think gaining weight for a film—or putting in a lot of effort—deserved praise in itself.

The most important thing about making a film was that it looked good.

Everything else was nonsense.

After the misunderstanding was cleared up, they began filming the first scene of Happy Family.

The first scene took place in a shabby hourly-rate hotel room.

The room was so cramped that it felt as if you could bump your head on the ceiling if you stood up straight.

The furniture was also extremely basic.

There was a TV stand less than half a square meter in size, with an old television on top that was barely bigger than a watermelon.

And a mattress on the floor.

The scene's plot was simple: the hopeless male lead was about to kill himself with sleeping pills.

At the stage manager's call of "Action!" the film began rolling.

Facing the camera, Lin Chuan sobbed miserably.

He grabbed a huge handful of sleeping pills and shoved them into his mouth as if they were free.

The next second, the camera pulled back.

The phone rang. Lin Chuan turned to look at it.

Then he turned back and looked at the sleeping pills scattered on the floor.

The phone kept ringing, as incessant as a death knell.

All the while, Lin Chuan kept crying miserably. Tears even ran down the corners of his eyes.

Lin Chuan looked at the ringing phone, then at the bottled water provided by the hotel.

He noticed the label said it cost ten yuan a bottle.

Lin Chuan looked both heartbroken and helpless.

Pfft!

Lin Chuan spat out the sleeping pills in his mouth.

They shot out of his mouth like bullets from a machine gun.

Lin Chuan ran to the phone, picked up the receiver, and wiped away his tears.

"I'm not staying for the whole day. I'm just renting by the hour. Can't a grown man stay in an hourly-rate room by himself?"

The landlord's voice came through the phone.

"Of course you can. Absolutely. I just mean, look at the time. It's two hundred for a few hours and four hundred for the whole day. Why not pay a little extra?"

Lin Chuan angrily hung up.

"Two hundred for a few hours, four hundred for the whole day. I came here to kill myself, and now I have to pay another two hundred. This is so tragic."

Lin Chuan rushed into the bathroom and quickly rinsed his mouth.

He was going to go downstairs and give the landlord the extra two hundred yuan.

But on the way back, his vision blurred. Lin Chuan tried to stay on his feet, but his legs gave out, and he collapsed onto the floor.

The landlord from the phone call just now

came into the room, grumbling.

"He's doing all this just to get out of paying two hundred yuan. So cheap!"

Before he could finish, the landlord saw Lin Chuan sprawled on the floor and hesitated.

"What's going on?"

"Wake up, young man."

Seeing sleeping pills scattered everywhere, he hurried inside, flipped Lin Chuan over, and began pressing on his chest.

"Oh, this kid! If you're going to die, do it somewhere else. What bad luck!"

Under the landlord's compressions, Lin Chuan rolled over and spat out the pills stuck in his throat.

"Are you okay, young man? Young man?"

When Lin Chuan called, "Cut,"

the crew finished filming its first scene without a hitch.

Lin Chuan wiped his mouth and started to get up.

The actor playing the landlord shook Lin Chuan's hand sheepishly and helped him to his feet.

Lin Chuan smiled and nodded, indicating that he was fine.

Just then, Xu Xiu, the art teacher, who'd been holding back laughter, finally couldn't help letting out a snort.

When she realized everyone was staring at her, Xu Xiu's Social Anxiety kicked in. She wished she could dig out a three-bedroom apartment with her toes and crawl inside.

She waved her hands repeatedly and apologized. "I'm sorry, Lin Chuan. I know your character is really miserable.

"But I don't know why—I just can't help laughing. I'm sorry!"

Just then, Director Hou from the acting department led everyone in applause.

After clapping, he gave Lin Chuan a thumbs-up.

"Lin Chuan, that performance just now was truly incredible."

After he spoke, he glanced at Lin Chuan's counselor and remarked, as if deliberately or not,

"What a waste for such a valuable talent to join the Director Department!"

Hearing that, Ma Wei, the counselor, straightened up and smiled.

"I know Lin Chuan is a genius in the acting department. There's nothing wrong with becoming an actor and joining the acting department, but he could have an even brighter future as a director in our Director Department."

Hearing this, Director Hou couldn't help sighing.

The counselor wasn't wrong. Compared to being an actor, directing really did have better prospects.

Of them all, only Xu Xiu, the teacher who'd accidentally laughed at the start, looked completely bewildered.

Did I miss something?

I was right here the whole time, wasn't I?!