Chapter 98: 098 Observing

Chapter 98: 098 Observing

Shao Yao softly clapped from the sidelines.

Although he was just an observer, he could see how handsome Lu Xu was in this scene, effortlessly transitioning from the nerdy "Chang Qing" to the dashing Yan Huan.

If he were to act alongside such an actor, he would only experience a smooth and seamless performance.

Jiang Lin was understated and righteous, Huang Luning was warm, and Yan Huan was completely suave and handsome. He felt that Lu Xu didn’t even need much preparation to fully capture the essence of the character.

As an observer, he could easily imagine how the audience would feel watching this scene in the cinema.

Lu Xu truly was—a natural at acting.

But being friends with such a person, he felt no jealousy at all, only pride for his friend.

Whether it was due to talent or sheer effort, Lu Xu was the role model right beside him.

Shao Yao no longer thought that acting was difficult because, no matter how hard it was, Lu Xu would always do better than him.

This person would always put his heart into the roles he played, and as long as he could keep acting, he would keep shining.

Shao Yao was just passing through this time; he also had a scene to shoot. The director had given him a day off today, and since his filming location wasn’t far from Lu Xu’s, he decided to stop by and see him.

But once again, he felt motivated by Lu Xu.

Facing Lu Xu, Shao Yao occasionally felt a twinge of inferiority. Among his peers, Lu Xu was the most dazzling, and no one could outshine him.

But compared to his feelings of inferiority, he gained much more.

...

The moment Gao Xingchuan called "Cut," the handsomeness of Yan Huan faded from Lu Xu. He happily ran over to Shao Yao, and the two planned to eat near the set.

In this regard, Lu Xu deeply admired Shao Yao, who seemed to know every great restaurant nearby—even if it was a place he hadn’t tried before, his feedback after trying it was always exceptionally positive.

Lu Xu took off his costume, removed his makeup, and changed into his usual attire.

He looked no different from usual, but after this scene was shot, Mei Yu, who played one of the participants, Qian Beichen, quietly wiped his sweat: "That move of his really put a lot of pressure on others."

Lu Xu probably didn’t even realize it, but as a fellow actor, he could feel the pressure emanating from the character of Yan Huan.

Although the other was smiling, the smile didn’t reach his eyes.

In the script, Yan Huan was inherently a character whose thoughts were hard to decipher, but with just a bit of investment in the performance, one could feel the aura that the character of Yan Huan exuded.

The switching was too seamless.

In short, the longer other actors worked with Lu Xu, the more they understood why Yue Hui had chosen him to play Yan Huan.

The role of Yan Huan could only be played by Lu Xu.

The fluency of his performance and the ease with which he handled the role were in no way inferior to Yue Hui.

It’s worth noting that Yue Hui was already one of the top male actors in the country.

Mei Yu laughed: "He makes me feel scared."

"I’m scared too," Yue Hui looked at him, "but he really did perform exceptionally well."

At the start of the year, at the Starlight Awards, Yue Hui’s acceptance speech came from the heart.

After watching *The Path of Bones*, he understood that Lu Xu is an incredibly talented actor. As an older actor, he naturally felt pressure from being pursued by such a young talent.

But after actually acting opposite him, the pressure only intensified.

Lu Xu is excellent at acting, whether it’s his understanding of the role or the attitude he displays during performances.

He doesn’t overshadow other actors, but his own brilliance is just too striking.

Especially in scenes where he portrays Yan Huan, others will be overshadowed if they don’t stay focused and put in the work.

Lu Xu is also great at separating his on-screen persona from his everyday life. On set, he’s all business, but off set, he’s easygoing and even a little endearing.

Lu Xu isn’t a hassle—that’s the conclusion Yue Hui came to.

Yue Hui once saw an online video about Lu Xu, with interviews from directors and actors who’ve worked with him. Yue Hui still recalls that nearly everyone said working with Lu Xu boosts filming efficiency.

Now, Yue Hui has the same experience.

The filming of *Deception* is incredibly efficient.

Yue Hui feels very at ease with the filming process.

At Yue Hui’s age, most of the actors he collaborates with are much younger than him. Although he can still land leading roles, the TV shows and movies he acts in will inevitably feature newcomers promoted by certain companies.

Yue Hui is tactful and would not publicly criticize any newcomer. He mostly encourages and praises them, but objectively speaking, as an actor, being interrupted during filming is not a pleasant experience. When his emotions are well-prepared, being suddenly interrupted feels like losing momentum, and he has to readjust afterward.

After that, it’s considered good if the scenes can be smoothly completed.

Many times, Yue Hui knew that his fellow actors were not performing well, and the entire crew knew it too, but the director still let it go easily because he understood that even after multiple retakes, these newcomers might not perform better than before.

Better to focus on what’s coming next.

But when working with Lu Xu, it was basically one take from start to finish, and only external factors would cause an NG; it would never be due to performance.

Shi Xinshan was a master of cunning, and Yan Huan was equally strategic. How could he not feel exhilarated by their scenes together?

Among the actors of Yue Hui's generation, he was one with a very long career. Few of his peers made it big, and many had left the industry due to health or family reasons. Even among those who did make it big, the opportunities for collaboration were becoming fewer.

In "Watchmen," he worked with Ren Ningyi, whose scenes were cut quite a bit, but during their scenes together, Yue Hui was still quite pleased.

"Watchmen" had a start-stop rhythm. While working with Ren Ningyi was smooth, working with Gu Sinian was awkward—strange, really.

Films like "The Deception" that he enjoyed shooting were rare.

...

Lu Xu spent three months filming in "The Deception" crew. "The Deception" started shooting earlier than the broadcast of "The Year I Was 18," and the film wrapped up around early November. By the end of the year, a pile of miscellaneous tasks built up, and Xu Wen had a bunch of tasks waiting for Lu Xu.

"Awards, summaries, summaries, awards..." Lu Xu rubbed his forehead, "Why do all these activities take so long?"

"The Deception" is also planning to be released after the Starlight Award.

At this rate, Gao Xingchuan would have to edit at lightning speed.

He won't have any free time during this period.

"These are all the tasks that piled up after the finale of 'The Year I Was 18,'" Xu Wen said with his hands in his pockets, "You were in the crew, and I went through a lot of trouble to delay these tasks. Do you understand?"

Lu Xu immediately got the hint: "...You've worked hard."

Xu Wen was right. Perhaps because "The Year I Was 18" was so positive, the show's reach was much wider than Lu Xu expected—there were many formal events like summary meetings and recognition events.

Xu Wen kept Lu Xu from attending some of these, while Mu Qian and Jin Mu filled in for him at others.

But since Lu Xu himself now had free time, he still had to show up for the events he was expected to attend.

On the business side, Xu Wen still controlled the number of endorsements for Lu Xu, maintaining strict standards and selecting only well-known brands.

"There's also the company annual meeting. You've been skipping it for years. If you don't attend this time, the boss will chew me out."

Lu Xu looked embarrassed.

Fortunately, Xu Wen was a seasoned professional at Feiyang Entertainment, and the company's higher-ups gave him some face. They only complained a little, which didn't hinder Lu Xu from bringing in revenue for the company.

With three hit dramas in a row, Feiyang Entertainment's profile had been growing steadily, and the company's financial statements were much stronger than in previous years.

The executives didn't want to make Lu Xu feel too pressured. If they somehow lost him, every agency in the entertainment industry would be vying for him.

So, in the following period, Lu Xu was extremely busy.

Although he was impatient with long, boring meetings, these sharing and summary meetings invited audiences to share their thoughts on the shows, which was something that moved Lu Xu.

After all, seeing his work appreciated and his roles acknowledged were some of the greatest joys in his life.

Huang Luning wasn't aiming for the stars, but if Huang Luning could influence one or two people and make the world a little better, Lu Xu would consider it worthwhile.

This was his happiness as an actor.

The year-end was simply too hectic. Xu Wen had originally arranged for Lu Xu to attend a fashion show abroad, but that had to be canceled.

He mentally apologized to Brand G. Their contract was nearing its end, and the brand had specifically raised Lu Xu's endorsement fee. Accepting the money without meeting the commitments left the agent feeling guilty.

Fortunately, Brand G didn't mind.

For Brand G, Lu Xu's willingness to renew his contract and avoid poaching by competitors was already a win.

Securing a top-notch endorser was no easy feat.

Especially someone like Lu Xu, whose career skyrocketed after endorsing them, had the Brand G executives grinning in their sleep.

Moreover, as a spokesperson, Lu Xu was actually quite qualified.

In his hit dramas, he wore a lot of Brand G clothes in "The Path of Bones." In "Voices of the Dead" and "The Year I Was 18," the character settings didn't match, but in private, whenever Lu Xu appeared on camera, he was essentially a living billboard for Brand G.

Brand G really couldn't find a more dedicated salesperson than him.

Besides, Lu Xu's busyness was also related to Brand G—first, the Starlight Award nomination list was about to be announced, and second, "The Deception" was scheduled to be released after the Starlight Awards. Whether it was the award ceremony and red carpet or the movie's promotional tour, Lu Xu would bring massive exposure to the brand.

Before the end of the year, Lu Xu finally attended Feiyang Entertainment's annual meeting.

Mainly to support his agent.

The actress Xu Wen had previously signed had left the company, and he went through a low period at Feiyang Entertainment. Now that Lu Xu was under his management, Lu Xu was indeed popular, but not showing up at the annual meeting gave Xu Wen no chance to show off.

Xu Wen: "...Am I that childish?"

"You are," Lu Xu smiled at him. "Thank me. I'm the best person to you in the whole company."

Xu Wen: "..."

The agent decided to keep quiet.

Although... Lu Xu only made a brief appearance at the annual gala, it filled the agent with pride.

It couldn’t be helped; the person he brought up was just that popular.

For Lu Xu, the annual gala was just a small interlude, but what he didn’t expect was that just by attending it once, someone would leverage him for publicity.

This person was a newcomer who had been signed under Feiyang Entertainment for a little over a year. Lu Xu had never met him before. It was quite normal for artists from the same company to take photos together at the annual gala, and Lu Xu received many photo requests.

Lu Xu couldn’t quite recall who he’d taken photos with, as he wasn’t very familiar with most of the celebrities at Feiyang Entertainment. Even Cheng Yun and Guo Yining, whom he knew, didn’t like attending such events.

The newcomer posted six pictures on Weibo, all of them with Lu Xu, and his wording made it seem like he was close to Lu Xu. When fans commented, he dodged their questions, saying things that were easily misunderstood, like "Brother Lu is really kind," "His encouragement makes me want to become a better actor," and "Finally met my idol in person, ahhhhh!"

However, not long after, several trending hashtags related to Lu Xu and this newcomer appeared on Weibo.

#Su Zhao Successfully Chased His Idol# #What Does It Feel Like to Get Close to Your Idol# #Su Zhao Qin Zhao#

Lu Xu: "?"

While this newcomer named Su Zhao was blowing up on social media, Lu Xu was trying hard to recall who he actually was.