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For example, Liu Jiawei, who played the major villain Wu Guowei in the film; and Zhao Miao, the child star who played the young male lead, Cen Qiubai.

Both of them joined the production the day before filming began.

As a top-tier superstar who had repeatedly won Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor awards both domestically and internationally, Film Emperor Liu's arrival was exceptionally low-key. He brought only two assistants and a makeup artist. The two assistants were also carrying pastries and drinks that Film Emperor Liu had bought for everyone. His approachable manner immediately won praise from the entire crew.

Compared to the Film Emperor's low-key warmth, Zhao Miao's entrance was far more high-profile. As the child star most beloved by domestic audiences and the one with the greatest box-office appeal, Zhao Miao had always been known for his bad temper and fondness for throwing his weight around. Thus, whenever he joined a production, his manager had to accompany him to make arrangements. On top of that, Zhao Miao, who had always been poor at taking care of himself and loved causing trouble, brought four assistants, a makeup artist, and a PR planner. The makeup artist and PR planner had each brought along a junior assistant as well.

A large group of people trailed behind Zhao Miao as they bustled into the production. Zhao Miao sat down before everyone with an expressionless face. After taking off his sunglasses, Yue Sennan, who was signed to the same agency as Zhao Miao, was the first to greet him. "Xiao Miao, you're here? Why did you join the production so late?"

Zhao Miao casually swept his gaze over Yue Sennan, twirling his sunglasses in his hand as he bluntly asked, "When did Autumn Dew White change directors? Do I need to report my schedule to you?"

Yue Sennan apparently had not expected Zhao Miao to come at him so aggressively, and he froze.

Zhao Miao's manager smiled faintly and said politely, "Sorry, there was a bit of traffic on the way from the airport to the set, so Xiao Miao is in a bad mood. Please don't take it to heart."

Yue Sennan gave an awkward laugh. "Brother Sun, you're joking. Everyone in the industry knows Xiao Miao's temper. How could I mind something like that?"

That was true enough. Zhao Miao had arrived late, yet neither Director Fang Kaizhi nor the producer had dared make a sound!

Zhao Miao gave a scoffing laugh and did not acknowledge Yue Sennan's barbed words at all. He first nodded at Rong Xiu, then puffed out his cheeks toward Liu Jiawei and complained unhappily, "We were clearly on the same flight, Jia Wei, yet you got here so much earlier than me. If I'd known, I would've just ridden over with you!"

Liu Jiawei smiled. "You insisted on taking the limited-edition car. We waited so long for dispatch, then ran into traffic. It's perfectly normal that you arrived late."

Zhao Miao clicked his tongue and glared displeasedly at the producer. "So it's obviously the production's fault. It was clearly stated in the contract, so why didn't you fulfill it? Did you think I would wrong myself to accommodate someone else's mistake? Do I look that easy to talk to?"

The producer was sweating profusely under Zhao Miao's questioning and could only apologize with a bitter smile. He even personally twisted open a bottle of the drinks Liu Jiawei had brought for everyone. After much coaxing, he finally soothed the anger Zhao Miao had been holding in after having to change cars at the last minute and getting stuck in traffic for so long.

Lu Heng looked at Zhao Miao, who sat before everyone with an air of utter arrogance, then at his manager Sun Shuliang, who stood beside him and kept smoothing things over. He could not help curling his lips into a smile.

This was the important reason why he had insisted on joining Autumn Dew White, even if Yue Sennan made things difficult for him and the production team and investors picked him apart.

He simply wanted to get to know Sun Shuliang and Zhao Miao again as quickly as possible—his most valued manager and best friend from his previous life.

If there were no major changes in this life, then in a little over two years, Huaxia Imperial Entertainment, having regained its footing, would fully acquire Star Entertainment. Before then, he had to become the friend Sun Shuliang and Zhao Miao trusted most. Then he would persuade them to stay at Huaxia Imperial Entertainment after Star Entertainment was acquired, rather than be misled into jumping to Yingdun and ultimately meeting such a lamentable end.

Perhaps noticing Lu Heng's overly delighted smile, Zhao Miao turned his round eyes on him and raised a brow. "You're Lu Heng, the one who helped the police catch bad guys?"

Before Lu Heng could react, Zhao Miao gave a light snort and leaned forward, moving close to him. "You're pretty amazing! I heard you know martial arts too? You can beat seven or eight people by yourself? I watched the Exchanging Lives video. I heard it was completely unedited. Is that true? Since your martial arts are so good, can you teach people? How about you teach me martial arts, and I teach you acting? Let me tell you, I'm super good at acting too..."

Seeing how Zhao Miao became uncontrollably chatty whenever he met someone he liked, even gradually leaning against them, Rong Xiu could not help laughing. He said warmly, "Xiao Miao, that's enough. Don't scare Xiao Heng."

"He's a hero! He wasn't even afraid of a gun, so would he be afraid of me?" Zhao Miao rolled his eyes, then looked at Rong Xiu with a sly grin. "I heard you have a cross-dressing look in this film, Brother Rong. It's supposed to be very pretty?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, he turned his attention to Lu Heng. "You have a cross-dressing look too? Wouldn't that make a hero into a beauty? That gimmick alone would be enough to draw everyone into the theater! This production really knows what it's doing!"

The cheerful atmosphere among the group made Yue Sennan even more awkward. He tried several times to force himself into the conversation but could not get a word in. In the end, he had no choice but to make an excuse and leave for the moment.

Watching Yue Sennan's hurried retreat, Liu Jiawei suddenly smiled for no apparent reason. "Now that he's gone, why don't you have some water and take a break?"

Zhao Miao sneered. "I've already been very restrained! I heard he only announced that I was going to audition after both Director Fang and Brother Rong agreed that Lu Heng should play the young male lead. He was obviously using me as a shield! I started acting in films at four years old. What haven't I seen? He competes with me for the top spot at the company, then screws me over like this outside? The fact that I didn't curse him out to his face already shows how well-mannered I am!"

Zhao Miao punctured that thin layer of pretense with a single sentence. Liu Jiawei and Rong Xiu smiled as though helpless, but they both understood perfectly well.

To outsiders, a production was a single whole. It ought to have a shared point of interest. But to the people within it, the investors, production company, directing team, screenwriters, and even the actors were all separate individuals. Whoever had greater power and stronger means possessed more say.

Yue Sennan was the male lead of Autumn Dew White, but most of the script's focus and highlights rested on the second male lead, Han Lusheng. Even the major villain Wu Guowei had richly developed scenes. By comparison, the male lead Cen Qiubai's role was not particularly outstanding.