Nazha's God-Tier Understanding

"The Legend of Jiang Yuyan?" Nazha's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly.

Don't say it, but you really have to say it, she had some impression of the name Jiang Yuyan, but she couldn't recall it for the moment.

After recalling for a full half-minute, she decided to give up: "Brother Yang, who acted in this TV series? I have some impression but can't remember."

Zhang Yang had been waiting for her to ask and replied, "The male leads are Xie Tingfeng and Zhang Weijian."

"Impossible!" Nazha instinctively questioned, "I'm a huge fan of Xie Tingfeng. There's absolutely no TV series or movie of his called The Legend of Jiang Yuyan, let alone starring him and Zhang Weijian together."

Like Da Mimi, Nazha was a fan of Xie Tingfeng from before her debut until she became popular.

If Xie Tingfeng hadn't been so obsessed with cooking and hadn't suffered the blow from that incident in '08, coupled with the decline of the Hong Kong film industry, his achievements might have been even higher, though he wasn't doing poorly to begin with.

"Then what TV series do you say Xie Tingfeng and Zhang Weijian starred in together?" Zhang Yang retorted.

"Of course I know, The Little Fish and His Flowers," Nazha answered fluently.

"Then what was the name of the main female villain in that TV series?" Zhang Yang continued to ask.

The name Liu Xi immediately flashed in Nazha's mind, but then she thought he was a eunuch.

When it came to female villains, it had to be the ruthless Yaoyue, but she was eventually drained of her martial arts by Jiang Yuyan.

"Jiang Yuyan!?" Nazha finally realized.

"It took you six seconds to answer," Zhang Yang said with a smile, looking away from his watch, "You're a bit slow on the uptake."

Nazha suppressed the urge to roll her eyes and said, "It was clearly The Little Fish and His Flowers, why do you call it The Legend of Jiang Yuyan? Jiang Yuyan wasn't even the second female lead, was she?"

Zhang Yang felt he needed to retract his previous statement.

Nazha's reaction wasn't just a bit slow, it was quite slow.

But she was oblivious and continued to ask and answer herself: "According to the official pairings, the female leads were Su Ying played by Yuan Quan and Tie Xinlan played by Fan Xiaopang. Shouldn't my favorite little fairy be the second female lead? I think Yaoyue and Lianxing also had a lot of screen time..."

The implication was, could Jiang Yuyan even be considered?

Zhang Yang crossed his arms and stared at her face with interest, asking, "Of the people you just mentioned, who was still alive at the end of the finale?"

Nazha's voice abruptly stopped.

She suddenly remembered the shadow Jiang Yuyan had left on her when she was chasing the drama back then.

Because she liked Hua Wuque and wanted him, Jiang Yuyan killed without batting an eye. She used every trick in the book, from inviting him into her palace and actively seducing him to constantly setting traps and causing havoc, truly scheming with all her might.

In the end, she didn't succeed, but she managed to trap and kill all the other female characters.

"Hiss." Nazha suddenly realized, "She killed everyone until only the title was left."

"That's a very accurate summary," Zhang Yang snapped his fingers and smiled, "A woman who killed her way through the entire cast, even controlling the emperor, wouldn't have died if it wasn't for her obsession with Hua Wuque."

"From a disadvantaged illegitimate daughter who suffered greatly to someone who wielded immense power, do you think this show shouldn't be called The Legend of Jiang Yuyan?"

As a fan of Xie Tingfeng, Nazha watched the show with a subjective perspective, so it was normal that she hadn't noticed this point.

Now that Zhang Yang had pointed it out, she had to admit his summary was accurate, but her doubts only grew: "What does this have to do with you doing so much for the minor character Zhao Kuangyin?"

"I call you slow, and you really don't think," Zhang Yang said, amused by Nazha.

Nazha really wanted to ask why she wasn't thinking.

The Little Fish and His Flowers was so heavily impacted that only the title remained, and it could even be changed to The Legend of Jiang Yuyan. This indeed had nothing to do with Zhang Yang's role as Zhao Kuangyin.

Zhao Kuangyin wasn't Jiang Yuyan.

Wait!

Nazha suddenly understood, glancing around her surroundings, and whispered, "You want to create a Legend of Zhao Kuangyin?"

"You're overthinking it," Zhang Yang shook his head, "I'm not a big star, nor am I an investor. Zhao Kuangyin's role in this drama is a minor subplot; it's impossible to add so many scenes."

He remembered that The Legend of Dugu was scheduled to wrap up on April 6th, which was 20 days away. Many actors had already finished their scenes and left the crew, and the main actors' scenes were almost done. It was impossible to film more for his role, Zhang Yang.

"If it's impossible to add so many scenes, then you still want to add some?" Nazha had become smarter this time.

"Mm," Zhang Yang nodded.

"Can this work?" Nazha felt it was difficult, for the reasons Zhang Yang himself had stated.

"It depends on the person," Zhang Yang said leisurely, "Do your best and leave the rest to fate. If you don't try, you'll never succeed."

If he succeeded, when The Legend of Dugu aired, despite his limited screen time, he might become a winner comparable to the male lead and second male lead, and in the long run, he might even gain more.

He still had some faith in the marketing capabilities of Tangren, that old internet troll company.

Hiding his thoughts, Zhang Yang proactively visited Yan Yikuan after his scenes were finished to build some rapport.

There were no night scenes scheduled for today, and even if there were, it had nothing to do with Zhang Yang. He ate his boxed lunch with Nazha on set and then returned to the hotel, where he began writing the plot he had conceived.

Around eight o'clock, his phone suddenly rang.

"They're here?"

A smile appeared on Zhang Yang's lips.

He changed into casual clothes, grabbed his phone and room key, and opened the door.

"Holy crap!"

Zhang Yang was startled by Nazha, who was standing at the doorway: "What the hell are you doing?"

Nazha hadn't expected Zhang Yang to suddenly open the door, and she was actually a bit startled herself.

But seeing Zhang Yang flustered for the first time, she found it quite amusing.

Her gaze swept over Zhang Yang's attire, and she asked doubtfully, "Brother Yang, are you going out?"

"Yeah, a gathering with friends. It's not convenient to bring you," Zhang Yang directly shut down any possibility of Nazha tagging along.

"At this late hour, even if you asked me, I wouldn't go," Nazha thought to herself, Who cares? but she actually felt a bit annoyed.

Meeting Zhang Yang's questioning gaze, she spoke frankly: "Today on set, I saw you doing so many things. I was curious, do you have to learn all of it seriously?"

Perhaps it was because she was new to the world, but she found those things to be such a hassle.

Couldn't she just be simple, a beautiful vase or an actress?

Nazha's question reminded Zhang Yang of Reba.

In 2024, Reba had been a top star for so long. Not to mention comparing her to the '85 flowers, even the younger actresses of her generation and the '95 flowers had established their own studios and gone independent. Yet, she was still just a contracted artist under Jiaxing, unable to even command a makeup artist on set.

A good horse gets ridden, a good person gets bullied.

You can have the ability not to bully others, but you must have the ability not to be bullied.

"If you just want to be a good actor and star, then you only need to understand, not necessarily learn. This way, you won't be sold out and still have to count the money for them," Zhang Yang said earnestly. "If you plan to be a manager, or even cultivate your own artists in the future, then if you have the aptitude, learn it. If your talent isn't enough to learn it, then just be a good star."

Nazha nodded: "Got it. You don't just want to be an actor and star. No wonder Sister K doesn't like you."

Zhang Yang: "..."

"Any other questions?"

"No, have fun tonight," Nazha flicked her hair and took her leave.

Zhang Yang didn't pay her much mind. He put on his mask and headed to a nearby XX Empress Bar, arriving at a private room.

Pushing the door open, he saw Huo Jianhua, who had been aloof and reserved like an old cadre during the day, drinking and singing. Beside him, several attractive women were pouring him drinks and offering him fruit.

Zhang Yang removed his mask, a smile on his face: "Brother Hua, long time no see."

It had been a long time since they had properly hung out together.