Chapter 151 151 Fairness and Justice

Chapter 151: *"Fair and Just"*

Both Zhao Yifan himself and his agency were mentally prepared for his scenes being cut.

However, while cutting scenes was one thing, the real issue was—now all the discussions about *Reversal City* were focused on Lu Xu, with hardly anyone talking about Zhao Yifan.

This was something Zhao Yifan couldn’t accept.

The trending topic was bought by Zhao Yifan’s agency. Though he didn’t actively bring it up himself, he silently went along with it.

It wasn’t until the topic trended that the audience realized *Reversal City*’s main cast wasn’t just Lu Xu—there was also Zhao Yifan.

Of course, he personally was also dissatisfied with how much the director and writer favored Lu Xu.

He was supposed to be the star of this movie!

When the hashtag #ZhaoYifanScenesCut first appeared on the trending list, it was ranked 22nd. An hour later, it suddenly jumped to #2—so fast it surprised even Zhao Yifan.

His agent quickly provided an explanation: "Plenty of people hate Lu Xu."

Zhao Yifan ran through the names in his head—among recent examples, there were Liu Rennong’s studio and Zhang Zhizhen, and further back, there were even more.

Since his scenes in *Reversal City* had been cut, Lu Xu was the obvious scapegoat, and this was indeed something that needed to be pointed out.

Sure enough, under the hashtag #ZhaoYifanScenesCut, fans were ranting about Lu Xu stealing Zhao Yifan’s spotlight.

"Just because Zhao Yifan doesn’t have as many fans, they think they can push him around? Would he dare do this if he were working with Yue Hui?"

“Of course, this isn’t solely Lu Xu’s fault, but Director Mu Lang really is too biased toward him.”

“He’s the lead, but he gets less screen time than a side character like Lu Xu.”

“This crew is garbage. Can you give Zhao Yifan an explanation? He worked hard filming, and the crew shouldn’t insult his dignity as an actor just because he made one small mistake, right?”

“Give Zhao Yifan the treatment he deserves as the male lead! No random nobody should get priority over him!”

The comment section of *Reversal City*’s official blog was overrun with Zhao Yifan’s fans.

Of course, not every fan was so worked up—some advised in the comments: “Can we wait until the movie finishes its run before protesting? If we protest now, it’ll just hurt the movie’s sales.”

However, the loudest fans didn’t care.

In fact, the reason Enne Entertainment chose to act at this moment was also because Zhao Yifan’s collaboration with Mu Lang had already ended. This was a critical period for *Reversal City*’s box office growth, and it was foreseeable that with praise overwhelmingly favoring Lu Xu, Zhao Yifan wouldn’t get much out of it.

Enne Entertainment made the first move to win him some pity.

Since the movie’s success came first, the *Reversal City* crew’s response would have to tread lightly.

…

The *Reversal City* crew didn’t respond immediately.

The hashtag #ZhaoYifanScenesCut quickly climbed to the top of the trending list, knocking *Sanctuary* off the top spots.

Director Mu Lang’s Weibo got bombarded, as did screenwriter Luo Kun’s. The so-called "villain," Lu Xu, was criticized even more harshly, but his page stayed clean—because Lu Xu’s fan count was over ten times Zhao Yifan’s, and his fans were known to be highly active.

No way they could win. Not a chance.

If Zhao Yifan’s fans dared to attack Lu Xu, Lu Xu’s fans would bury Zhao Yifan alive.

However, thanks to Zhao Yifan going viral, *Reversal City* suddenly gained multiple trending topics.

Of course—all of them were negative.

For example, Zhao Yifan getting chewed out by Mu Lang during the filming of *Reversal City*, or how he had to reshoot the same scene 20 times but Mu Lang still wasn’t satisfied. Or how Lu Xu received way better treatment on set.

Aside from talking trash about Lu Xu behind his back, Zhao Yifan’s reputation among fellow actors isn’t actually bad. Thus, in the eyes of the audience, he comes off as a serious, no-nonsense actor who puts in effort and dedication into his work.

When such a good actor faces such unfair treatment, fans weren’t having it.

The timing of Zhao Yifan’s viral moment was also quite opportune—just as paparazzi had recently exposed a certain celebrity for acting like a diva on set, using stand-ins for hands, feet, even their chest, sleeping in until noon before showing up, then immediately playing with their phone upon arrival.

Yet, these entitled stars still rake in huge paychecks, as if they’d hire a double for their junk too.

*"No way he’d let someone else sub for that—he’d probably stuff some padding to fake it."*

In contrast, the hardworking and dedicated Zhao Yifan was bullied—something fans couldn’t tolerate.

*"This is exactly why the stuff we watch keeps getting crappier!"*

*"...Shouldn’t Zhao Yifan be the one getting high pay and fair treatment?"*

On the trending list, not only were the usual star-chasing, entertainment-gossip fans joining the discussion, but even regular folks who normally don’t give a damn chimed in.

Zhao Yifan’s situation resonated with many: *"In real life, there are too many of these entitled jerks who get all the perks while always putting others down, claiming they got where they are through hard work. But the truth is, the harder you work, the more they take advantage of you—the more you do, the more work piles up, and the more you get scolded."*

*"Some people really... You’re barely scraping by as it is, but as long as you can breathe and talk, they’ll still mess with you."*

*"I’m not saying Lu Xu’s one of those elitist types, but I do think Zhao Yifan’s treatment is unfair."*

There’s an unwritten rule in the entertainment industry (as summarized by Lu Xu)—whenever something happens to his rivals, reporters always rush to interview him first.

This time was no exception.

Lu Xu was still on the set of *Fearless Life*, swamped with promo and filming. He was run ragged, but fortunately, the protagonist of *Fearless Life* was someone who pursued their ideals relentlessly, so his round-the-clock grind fit the character perfectly.

He had just finished several scenes when the director informed him that reporters had been camped out for two days.

Lu Xu was aware of the controversy surrounding Zhao Yifan’s deleted scenes—after all, it was all over trending. Based on past experience, he knew reporters would come asking for his take, so he didn’t hesitate to give the interview.

The reporter asked Lu Xu: *"It’s said that Zhao Yifan was frequently scolded on set—is that true?"*

*"Occasionally,"* Lu Xu replied. *"I got scolded too, but it happened less later on."*

*"Then why was it only Zhao Yifan who kept getting scolded?"*

Lu Xu looked puzzled.

The reporter stared at him, equally puzzled by his puzzled expression.

Lu Xu seemed even more confused, as if carefully choosing his words: *"Because... he just wasn’t cutting it?"*

*"Director Mu Lang is indeed very strict,"* Lu Xu explained. *"If you NG more than three times, getting laid into is normal—the director doesn’t hold back."*

*"At first, I had scenes where I NG’d more than twice, but once I stopped NG’ing, the director stopped scolding me."*

As the reporter noted down Lu Xu’s answers, they compared them to Zhao Yifan’s on-set treatment—according to Zhao Yifan’s side, the director remained unsatisfied even after he shot the same scene 20 times.

Which meant... he NG’d 20 times?

The logic holds—clearly, the reason Lu Xu doesn’t have to do retakes is that he performs well!

Lu Xu delivers his scenes well; why would Mu Lang scold him for no reason?

...Some of Zhao Yifan’s fans took to attacking Lu Xu over this, and no matter how you look at it, it just makes Lu Xu come across as the victim.

The reporter asked Lu Xu other questions, most of which he answered. Reporters were well aware of the tension between Lu Xu and Zhao Yifan—there had been plenty of publicity stunts during the filming of *Reversal City*. But no matter what, it was Zhao Yifan who initially dissed Lu Xu, and now, it’s Zhao Yifan again complaining about unfair treatment in the *Reversal City* crew while allowing his fans to relentlessly bash Lu Xu under the trending hashtag.

Eventually, the reporter became uncomfortable pressing Lu Xu further on the issue and simply shifted the topic to Lu Xu’s new film.

At this point, Lu Xu mentioned how he was working nonstop.

Naturally, the reporter's mind started connecting dots.

Why is Lu Xu so busy?

Oh, because he’s balancing promo runs and filming at the same time.

He wouldn’t have to be this busy, but since Zhao Yifan stopped attending *Reversal City*’s promotional activities, isn’t it only fair that Lu Xu picks up the slack?

So...

The reporter didn’t explicitly side with Lu Xu, but based on experience, Lu Xu’s explanation held water.

If a single shot takes 20 takes and still isn’t satisfactory, it probably isn’t the director’s fault, right?

Would Mu Lang really go to such lengths to make things difficult for Zhao Yifan?

Mu Lang is a veteran director in the industry, and most reporters are familiar with his style. Strict as he may be, he’s not the type to intentionally harass actors.

The reporter quietly posted the interview content online.

"Pfft… 20 takes for the same shot? Any working-class folks still sympathizing with him? The rest of the crew are the real workhorses here."

"Right, he’s just using the '20 takes' number to emphasize how hard he’s trying. Honestly, if some idiot can’t fix the same spreadsheet after 20 revisions, I’d curse their ancestors—not just yell at them!"

"For context: 20 NGs mean the co-stars have to repeat the same scene 20 times, and so do the lighting crew, props, cinematography, costumes, touch-ups, director... every single step has to be redone 20 times."

"Say no more. Just imagining it makes me want to turn into a crazy monkey!"

"I wouldn’t just yell at him—I’d smack him!"

After the hashtag #20NGs trended, Mu Lang finally spoke up to address the situation.

Contrary to Enne Entertainment’s expectations, Mu Lang’s stance was firm: "Actors exist to serve the script alone. I won’t compromise the balance of the story for any actor’s scenes. What’s on screen now is *Reversal City* at its best."

Mu Lang didn’t deny cutting Zhao Yifan’s scenes, believing the film would improve as a result.

"If you demand fair treatment from the crew, then give the crew fair treatment in return. As a lead actor, fulfill your promotional duties for the film. You can’t demand fairness while nursing grudges against *Reversal City*."

"I admit I’m strict and harsh in criticism. But if you reduce your NGs, I’ll reduce my critiques accordingly. On this point, I hold all actors to the same standard."