Xuan Yuan Sword: Scar of Heaven was fairly ordinary in terms of quality. Because it pioneered the weekly drama format, its influence couldn't match the Immortal Sword Series, or even Swords of Legends.
Yet when you looked at all the TV ratings, influence, and buzz from 2012, it was undoubtedly a successful, outstanding fantasy romance. It was all the rage that summer, beating 99 percent of the year's prime-time dramas, let alone ordinary ones.
Hunan TV, the ratings king among regional stations, set a record for domestic weekly dramas and held it for three years. The show also broke all kinds of online viewing records, benefiting its cast—including Liu Shishi, Tang Yan, Nazha, Lin Gengxin, and Hu Ge—to varying degrees.
But the male lead was the one who benefited least from the show's success, becoming little more than a backdrop for the second male lead.
Everyone who watched the series thought Old Hu was the male lead and Jiang Jinfu was the second male lead.
Of course, that was because of Hu Ge's status. He'd also gotten extra scenes.
As a result, Tang Yan, who played the second female lead, was mistaken for the female lead, while Liu Shishi, the actual female lead, was reduced to the second female lead.
Both male leads were Earth Emperors, and a long-lived internet meme emerged.
Yuwen Tuo (Hu Ge): "To show my respect, I can do without the Xuanyuan Sword."
Xuanyuan Sword: "To show my respect, I can do without Earth Emperor Chen Jingchou (Jiang Jinfu)."
The male lead had been miserably reduced to a backdrop, a foil, a stepping stone for the second male lead.
Of course, that also had a lot to do with Hu Ge's fame.
Zhang Yang had a plan for this, naturally: get his hands on Hu Ge's script. The show hadn't even started filming yet, and it wouldn't air until next summer. He might as well secure the role first.
Thinking this, Zhang Yang picked up his glass and raised it to Jiang Jinfu. "Fuzi, is the male lead role already yours for sure?"
"The contract's signed." Jiang Jinfu grinned proudly.
"Congratulations." Zhang Yang raised his glass again, then asked, "Do you know if Old Hu has signed yet?"
"You can forget about the second male lead." Jiang Jinfu thought he'd seen through Zhang Yang's intentions and feigned regret. "Senior Hu Ge's in Hong Kong these days, negotiating for a film called The Last Affair. They reached an agreement today, and he's on his way back. Tomorrow, he'll come to the company and finalize the second male lead role."
Zhang Yang's eyes lit up.
He was coming tomorrow to finalize the role, which meant it hadn't been finalized yet.
Given the gap between his standing at Tangren and Hu Ge's, Zhang Yang knew there was no way he could take the role if Hu Ge had already signed.
But before Hu Ge signed, he had a way to beat him to it—and Old Hu would even be the one to offer it to him.
"Looks like I can only try for the third male lead, Zhang Lie."
He had his eye on the second male lead, but on the surface, Zhang Yang looked a little downhearted. He drained his glass and said, "Something's better than nothing. You three keep drinking. I'll head back and ask my agent if I can try for the third male lead."
Since it concerned his acting career, the other three didn't try to stop him. They just politely told him to be careful on the way.
"Fuzi, I really admire you," Zhang Bohan said. "You haven't even finished your second year of college, and you're already starring in Tangren's fantasy drama. The cast is so strong, too. You'll be a top star in no time."
"We can't compare to you at all," Zhang Zhe chimed in. "Brother Yang can't compare to you, either."
At the mention of Zhang Yang, something seemed to click for Jiang Jinfu, and his expression turned smug. "Don't say that. Brother Yang's the Student Union vice president, and he was recently voted into the top ten most handsome guys in the school's history. The teachers recognize his acting talent and keep urging him to join the drama troupe. How could I compare to him?"
"I heard he had some trouble with Sister K, which is why he's been half-blacklisted."
Zhang Bohan and Zhang Zhe immediately caught on.
Jiang Jinfu was jealous of Zhang Yang, and he was telling them that although Zhang Yang was a Tangren Artist, he was worse off than a freelancer.
The two exchanged glances and immediately started putting Zhang Yang down while praising Jiang Jinfu. Zhang Yang wasn't there, after all. They might as well make Jiang Jinfu happy; maybe he'd help them get into the cast.
Meanwhile, Zhang Yang went outside alone to walk the streets, devoting half his attention to the Entertainment Industry Opportunity Manual. He turned to the second page.
He knew it wouldn't be easy to get the second male lead role in Xuan Yuan Sword: Scar of Heaven through conventional means. He did have a way, but when you had a cheat, you had to try it out first.
The booklet was called "Entertainment Opportunity Guide."
As the name suggested, it would guide you to opportunities in the entertainment industry.
A little fame relied on hard work; great fame relied on fate—and these opportunities were what they called fate!
[Time: March 9, 2011, 21:17 Location: Outside the Imperial Capital Bird's Nest Stadium Guide: (Locked/1 Character Point)] [Time: March 9, 2011, 23:11 Location: Outside the back entrance of XX Nightclub, Hong Kong Guide: (Locked/1)] [Time: March 10, 2011, 10:24 Location: Outside Liu Shishi Exclusive Artist Lounge, Tangren Film Company, Shanghai Guide: (Locked/1 Character Point)] [Time: March 10, 2011, 13:22 Location: Stairwell on the third floor of Hunan TV Station Guide: (Locked/1 Character Point)] [Time: March 10, 2011, 17:40 Location: Room X, fourth floor, XX Club, Imperial Capital Guide: (Locked/3 Character Points)]
Five lines of information appeared on the page.
They were opportunities related to the entertainment industry that would arise in the next 24 hours. Sure enough, the guide gave precise times and locations.
"I get it. The locations and times of the opportunities update in real time, but I can't know exactly what will happen in advance."
"But if I spend Character Points, I'll get the method for obtaining the opportunity directly, giving me a chance to seize it."
In that instant, Zhang Yang thought of many things.
He guessed these so-called opportunities involved someone in the entertainment industry showing up at a particular place at a certain time and encountering some kind of trouble—or even danger.
If he knew about it in advance, he could wait for them and help resolve the problem, earning their gratitude and friendship. Or perhaps he could get leverage over them.
China was a society built on personal connections. With the Entertainment Opportunity Guide, he could easily build a network of contacts and say wherever he went, "I have a friend who..." or "Do me a favor."
There was only one way to find out if that was really how it worked.
"The opportunities in the Imperial Capital and Hong Kong are out of reach. Even if I flew there now, I wouldn't make it in time."
"The opportunities in Shanghai and at Hunan TV happen too close together. I can only choose one."
"As for the last one, I remember XX Club has a membership system. Even the most basic membership costs a million. I doubt an ordinary member can get onto the fourth floor, so I can't seize that opportunity for now."
"..."
After thinking it over, Zhang Yang realized he had only one real choice.
He was already in Shanghai, and he was a male actor at Tangren. Since he was planning to beat someone to a role tomorrow, he might as well go back to the company.
"By the way, what's Sister Shishi been up to lately?"
Standing beside a large tree, Zhang Yang rubbed his brow and tried to think it through.
If he could figure out what trouble Liu Shishi might run into, he could come up with a solution and save the one Character Point.
But although he and Liu Shishi were friends, he didn't know what she'd been dealing with lately. He couldn't think of anything.
"When it's time to spend, don't be stingy."
"If I can get Liu Shishi to put in a good word for me, I'll have a much better chance of landing the role."
Opportunity favored the prepared.
So—
"Unlock," Zhang Yang murmured to himself.
[Time: March 10, 2011, 10:24 Location: Outside Liu Shishi Exclusive Artist Lounge, Tangren Film Company, Shanghai Guide: Buy Scripture Pavilion, 240 to 350 in length, for daily use, cotton-soft surface, not mesh.]
Zhang Yang: ???
Was this an opportunity to get himself arrested?
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