He's Lost His Mind

3 p.m., the parking lot of the Sun Moon Stars Restaurant.

Li Xun, Tang Jiahe, and Kong Teng watched Huang Zhou's car drive away. Then Tang Jiahe said, "Let's go. We need to report to President Dai at the office."

The three hailed a taxi and went straight back to Penguin Video's Innovation Building.

Tang Jiahe and Kong Teng both had cars of their own, but they'd planned to drink today, so neither had driven over. They hadn't expected a big star like Huang Zhou to drive himself, too. In the end, they hadn't had a chance to drink.

In the taxi, Director Kong Teng, who was sitting in the back with Li Xun, suddenly asked, "Have you ever thought about becoming a director?"

"Are you talking about me, Director Kong? What makes you ask?"

Kong Teng turned to look at Li Xun, his expression complicated. "Just now, over the course of more than two hours—almost three—you narrated the script without a single break. Even the hosts of the Spring Festival Gala mess up their lines, don't they? And they only have a few lines. Even then, that's after countless rehearsals. Don't tell me you rehearsed that scene countless times in private?"

"And yet you managed to get through the whole thing without a single stumble. It flowed smoothly from beginning to end!"

"More impressive still, your narration was vivid. The story was gripping, and nearly every character felt alive. I'm not exaggerating when I say that, as you described them, I could picture the actors who might play each character. I even found myself imagining how each role should be styled."

"You might not have realized it, but those almost three hours you spent narrating the script just now greatly advanced the work of a proper director like me. I'm a director. As I listened to your descriptions, I'd already started figuring out the camera placements without even realizing it. So do you understand just how vivid the scenes you described were?"

"If what you say paints such vivid pictures, what about the images in your own mind? I even feel like you've already got the whole TV series worked out in your head. You'd only need to copy those images down exactly, and you'd have at least a decent TV series. I'm now absolutely certain you have a talent for directing—and no small one, either! Maybe this is what people mean when they say the heavens have blessed someone with a gift. It'd be a shame if you didn't become a director!"

Tang Jiahe, sitting in the front passenger seat, nodded to himself. Then the three fell silent.

Li Xun couldn't help thinking, From the sound of it, I'd be perfect for stand-up comedy!

Penguin Innovation Building.

The three took the elevator to the fifth floor, where the original productions center was located.

They stepped out of the elevator and passed the Screenwriting Department. The office, which had been somewhat noisy, instantly fell silent.

Everyone in the office paused their work and watched the three walk by.

The scene was a perfect blend of motion and stillness.

The vast Screenwriting Department seemed frozen in place. Most people stared motionlessly at Li Xun and the others, while the three walked through the office toward President Dai's office as if they were passing through a still photograph.

At the door, Li Xun stepped forward and knocked. After they were invited in, the three entered.

They disappeared from view, watched by dozens of screenwriters.

The once-silent office erupted into chatter again.

"So the rumor was true? The new guy, Li Xun, really did land the A-Class original script?"

"I heard just now that his script got an A rating, and I didn't believe it. I thought it was a joke—one so ridiculous even an idiot wouldn't believe it. Come on, how could a new screenwriter with no track record get an A-Class production with his very first script? Are A ratings really that easy to come by now?!"

"Exactly! And he's only written the first six episodes. They're giving it an A rating based on just six episodes? Even if those six are amazing, what if the rest of the script is bad?"

"At 200,000 per episode, if there are fifty episodes, he'll be a millionaire in no time. Think Li has a girlfriend yet?"

There was no keeping a secret in this world. Since this morning, the rumor that the new guy, Li Xun, had landed an A-Class production had been circulating throughout the office.

The rumor sounded convincing, but hardly anyone believed it.

For one thing, there simply wasn't enough time.

Six episodes in two days?

Come on. Use your head before making up a story!

Even if you didn't have to think and only had to copy—if all you had to do was type out an existing script—how long would it take to finish six episodes?

Could a genius really just blow on it and make a script appear out of thin air?

But now Li Xun had suddenly shown up after being absent for most of the day, and, more importantly, he'd appeared alongside Producer Tang Jiahe and Director Kong Teng.

So it was confirmed?!

This new A-Class production really was the work of the newcomer named Li Xun?

Had the rumor somehow turned out to be way ahead of the truth again?!

Everyone in the office felt conflicted.

Wang Hai, Zhou Yao, Han Qiaoling, and Zhou Hongsu were all lost in thought.

Of them, the other two newcomers, Han Qiaoling and Zhou Hongsu, were perhaps the most affected.

Just two days ago, the three of them had come to work together, chatting and laughing. Back then, they'd all been equally green newcomers. But somehow, in the blink of an eye, one of them had become a master whom the other two had to look up to.

How had this happened?

While everyone else in the office was stunned by Li Xun's sudden rise, Chen Yuning felt even more conflicted.

Five days ago, he'd sent President Dai his original script. After reading it, she'd told him that although it had some issues, it was basically good enough, though some details still needed revising.

Three days ago, he'd sent her the revised script. This time, President Dai had said it had basically passed and told him to wait patiently for an update.

Yesterday, when Producer Tang Jiahe hurried into President Dai's office, Chen Yuning had gotten genuinely excited.

He knew perfectly well that President Dai wasn't completely satisfied with his script. He understood that she was only keeping it as a backup because there weren't any other options. But when everyone started speculating about which IP or whose work would be given an A rating, he still couldn't help trembling with excitement.

That was right: his script wasn't impressive or particularly good. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't have been surprising if it had only received a C rating. But these were extraordinary circumstances, weren't they?

IQIYI Video's companion series to The Coroner, The Funeral Home, and Gua Video's major-IP production I Was a Detective in Ancient Times were both certain to be A-Class productions. Their two fierce rivals were coming on strong. How could Penguin Video, one of the three major video platforms, admit defeat before the suspense storm had even begun?

So perhaps his script wasn't very good, but through a twist of fate, Chen Yuning had been given this opportunity—a shortcut that could propel him straight into the ranks of A-Class screenwriters. Was that so wrong?

Maybe people would call him the most undeserving A-Class screenwriter at the company.

But so what?

An A was an A!

Even the worst A was still an A!

But just as Chen Yuning was starting to feel pleased with himself, a rumor appeared from who knew where. The original productions center really was starting work on an A-Class production, but the screenwriter who'd landed it was Li Xun, who'd been at the company for less than three days!

That was absurd. Whoever made it up had to be an idiot!

Three days on the job, and he'd landed an A-rated script on his second day?

Even if he wrote twenty-four hours a day, how many episodes could he finish in two days?

Did people really think writing a script didn't require any thought?

Then, today, just moments ago, Li Xun had shown up with Producer Tang Jiahe and Director Kong Teng.

So maybe that outlandish rumor was true?!

Chen Yuning suddenly felt his palms go cold.

Then disappointment flooded over him.

His script was in trouble!

An A-rated script was like a legitimate boyfriend. If the real boyfriend showed up, what use was the backup?

The vice president's office.

Dai Ying looked at the three subordinates who had entered her office and smiled. "It's been decided: an A-Class production, with the initial budget set at two million yuan per episode."

Dai Ying glanced at Li Xun, then continued, "After Chen Minghao read the script, he became very interested in the role of the Eighth Prince and has already agreed to join the project. When President Ma heard that even Chen Minghao thought so highly of the script, he immediately raised the production level back to A-Class."

Chen Minghao was forty-seven years old, a national-treasure-level actor in this parallel world. He'd won Best Actor at all three of the country's major awards and Best Actor at the Golden Globe Award. He was a top-tier actor who'd won countless awards both at home and abroad.

He was famously demanding when it came to scripts. In recent years, he'd become increasingly protective of his reputation and had rarely taken on roles. As he put it, he'd earned enough money. These days, acting was simply something he enjoyed, so he'd rather turn down a role than settle for one he didn't like.

Who would've thought that an actor so picky about his roles would decide to join the project and play the Eighth Prince after reading just six episodes of the script?

"Oh, right!" Dai Ying added as she looked at the three. "I just heard that Director Zhao Guocheng has offered Huang Zhou the male lead's second role in his new movie. So don't waste any more time on Huang Zhou. Find someone else as soon as possible. Let's try to start filming within a week."

Li Xun, Tang Jiahe, and Kong Teng exchanged glances.

Dai Ying continued, "What do you think about Xiao Bin playing Bao Zheng? He should be one of the better actors among the younger generation. He might not be as suitable as Huang Zhou, but there's nothing we can do about it if he's getting a role in Director Zhao's movie at the same time. After all, no one would turn down Director Zhao's movie for a web series that's filmed and released as it goes."

Kong Teng looked at Tang Jiahe and Li Xun, then said to Dai Ying with a serious expression, "President Dai, Huang Zhou has already agreed to play Bao Zheng!"

Dai Ying looked up at Kong Teng. "Are you joking?"

After asking, she looked at Li Xun and Tang Jiahe, and they both nodded.

Dai Ying was momentarily stunned.

Director Zhao's movie. The second male lead. He'd turned it down to act in a web series?

Had he lost his mind?