Chapter 222: 222 Discussion

Chapter 222: Discussion

Lu Xu: "..."

Being pressured like this made him feel overwhelmed.

So Lu Xu started slipping away unnoticed, but no matter how he disguised himself, fans always managed to spot him in the crowd immediately.

In Lu Xu's own words, this was the curse of being too good-looking.

Meanwhile, his agent had amassed a pile of scripts for him. His break had been long enough that offers never stopped coming in, piling up into a hefty stack.

Though he hadn’t shot a film in a while, there was no doubt that Lu Xu remained the industry’s most in-demand actor.

Actors at their peak rarely get breaks—not only do they need to keep working, but the film industry demands their constant presence.

However, this time, after his adjustment period, Lu Xu didn’t jump into a new project because the annual awards season was approaching again.

Once more, Lu Xu didn’t submit for the Golden Flame Awards, even though the committee had made it clear they wanted him to enter. Despite his blunt words and behavior that alienated some key figures, Lu Xu was not just a box-office guarantee but also a frontrunner for Best Actor this awards season.

The Golden Flame Awards, though traditionally arrogant, couldn’t hold a candle to the Sunset Film Festival. In fact, many of the Golden Flame Awards’ categories and reforms were copied from major international awards.

Lu Xu had already won Best Actor at the Sunset Film Festival. If he had just submitted for the Golden Flame Awards, this year’s Best Actor trophy would undoubtedly have been his.

But Lu Xu flat-out refused.

In matters like this, Lu Xu was infuriatingly stubborn. The Golden Flame Awards even recruited top directors to persuade him, but Lu Xu remained unmoved.

The submission period had long passed, and the Golden Flame Awards were even willing to bend the rules for him.

Yet no matter how much they pleaded, Lu Xu stayed firm. He even laid out his own condition: "If Director Miao Zhi asks me to participate, then I might consider it."

The Golden Flame Awards organizing committee: "..."

As if they hadn’t thought of that?

Miao Zhi was even harder to persuade than Lu Xu. The committee dared to send people to convince Lu Xu, but with Miao Zhi, they didn’t even dare try. If Miao Zhi got truly upset, he might personally confront them.

Those from the older generation in the film industry still knew each other well. Even if Miao Zhi wasn’t personally familiar with them, he knew their mentors or seniors. If Miao Zhi really came knocking, they’d be publicly shamed.

Though they had already faced major backlash due to the results of the *Fearless Life* awards cycle.

Enlisting renowned directors as intermediaries was yet another humiliation.

Lu Xu was at least polite to these directors because they genuinely had good reputations and influence. As for why these directors agreed to step in, it was only because they didn’t want to see the Golden Flame Awards—an award their predecessors built—collapse entirely.

The current core members of the Golden Flame Awards were indifferent—they’d never experienced the hard work of establishing the awards. They weren’t the ones who put in the effort, set the standards, or pored over audience letters to select the most beloved films.

They hadn’t worked for it, but others had.

Several veteran directors had also advised the Golden Flame Awards’ leaders that regaining credibility required more than one actor’s return. Instead, the awards needed to adopt stricter criteria going forward, selecting truly worthy films.

It didn’t matter if there were fewer submissions. If no suitable films were found, they could withhold the award. Beyond that, they didn’t need to focus solely on the season’s obvious frontrunners—they could turn their attention to overlooked films and discover hidden gems.

They needed to gradually rebuild the audience’s trust.

But the current Golden Flame Awards organizing committee might not listen to such advice. Over the years, the awards had done little to advance the film market, yet their hunger for instant results persisted.

Leaving an award vacant wasn’t as simple as it sounded—it involved PR, the maneuvering of talent agencies, and, ultimately, the question of profit.

Even though the Golden Flame Awards have lost much of their former prestige, a Best Actor/Actress trophy from them is still valuable to actors. A skipped year means all the efforts by the actors and their agencies go to waste.

In fact, this issue isn’t unique to the Golden Flame Awards—most film-related awards face similar problems to some extent. It’s just that the Golden Flame Awards encountered it earlier.

The Golden Flame Awards had its glory days and went through a difficult rise, and it played a major role in the development of domestic cinema. But now, that’s all in the past.

...

Though the story between Lu Xu and the Golden Flame Awards is brief, it could fill three days and nights of storytelling.

Lu Xu’s film career has been smooth sailing, while in contrast, the Golden Flame Awards have been made to look like a joke. The awards’ slump isn’t ending anytime soon—this is the price they paid for hiring Liu Rennong back then. But the cost isn’t Liu Rennong’s to bear; the Golden Flame Awards have to choke down that bitter pill themselves.

The biggest question on everyone’s mind this awards season is: can Lu Xu win his third Contention Award?

The reason for this discussion is that Lu Xu’s performance in *Dough Figurine* is so good you can’t look away.

In the past, if he didn’t win, no one batted an eye.

But to date, no male actor has ever achieved the rare feat of winning three Best Actor trophies at the Contention Awards—the difficulty is simply too high. Even if an actor who already has two Best Actor trophies tries for a third, something always trips them up.

To some extent, this is intentional on the part of the Contention Awards committee.

The point is to spread the love; no single actor should monopolize them for multiple years.

But Lu Xu has already won a Sunset Film Festival trophy, and beyond that, during this year’s awards season buildup, *Dough Figurine* is in a league of its own in terms of attention and momentum.

*Dough Figurine* is undoubtedly a powerhouse.

Story, acting, cinematography… it’s flawless.

The only obstacle is—Lu Xu himself has already won two Best Actor trophies.

At his age, even just being nominated makes him stand out as young among the nominees.

“I don’t care, I don’t care—*Dough Figurine* deserves to win. If it doesn’t, I’ll riot.”

“Same here—*Dough Figurine* deserves it +1. Lu Xu’s performance was truly stunning. This year’s nominees aren’t particularly obscure—I’ve seen all five, and Lu Xu’s performance is the best of the bunch for me.”

“Lu Xu should pull it off again!!! Though I feel the Contention Awards won’t give him Best Actor this year, since he’s already won several. *Fearless Life* winning was already a breakthrough—if *Dough Figurine* wins too, the judges would push back hard.”

“Important reminder: This year’s Jury President for the Contention Awards is Liao Yusheng.”

“Yikes, game over.”

As everyone knows, Liao Yusheng is a veteran director who’s hardheaded and set in his ways, leaning toward traditional works. He’s especially stubborn, seemingly incapable of compromise—if he wants something done, it *gets* done.

If he’s the Jury President, it means this year’s Contention Awards winners will largely reflect his will—Liao Yusheng is both stubborn and combative. For a film he favors, he wouldn’t mind going to bat with other judges.

Even as a regular jury member in the past, he was known for standing his ground. Now that he’s leading, it’s easy to imagine he’ll fight for his preferred film.

The only question is—which film does he favor?

Almost by default, everyone has written off *Dough Figurine* from Liao Yusheng’s “favorites” list.

“…Come on, don’t be like that. You never know?”

“Honestly, Lu Xu’s chances aren’t that high. It’s a shame, but awards consider many factors—not just performance. Unless Lu Xu’s performance, even with handicaps, still crushes his competitors.”

Lu Xu has high popularity and buzz, but in terms of award predictions, he’s not the frontrunner.

The other four actors nominated this year are equally accomplished. At the very least, awarding the prize to any of them wouldn’t result in the awkward situation of *Fearless Life* missing out on both Best Director and Best Actor at the Golden Flame Awards.

"And Liao Yusheng probably doesn't like actors like Lu Xu—he tends to favor more low-key types and thinks Lu Xu is too ostentatious."

"Ostentatious??? I can't deny everything else, but I absolutely question that conclusion. Lu Xu isn't ostentatious—he's just popular. His popularity naturally brings attention. Who wouldn't be under a spotlight with over 20 billion in box office? If that counts as being ostentatious, then maybe Lu Xu should never leave his house again."

"Some people are really bending over backwards to come up with excuses for why the pup shouldn't win. Unfortunately, even if he had half as many awards and half the box office, his track record would still outshine most others."

Fans are at a loss for words.

Every year that Lu Xu is nominated, a wave of detractors emerges during awards season. In the past, these critics could at least offer a few coherent, semi-reasonable arguments, but now, aside from rehashed arguments, can't they at least try something credible?

In the fans' eyes, it's pure nonsense. If gossip accounts can only produce commentary at this level, they might as well go shovel dirt.

If *Dough Figurine* fails to take home any wins at the Contention Awards this year, fans will definitely be disappointed. But the achievements Lu Xu has accumulated over the years have given them enough confidence.

Even if *Dough Figurine* falls short, Lu Xu’s next trophy is inevitable.

After so many years in the industry, not only has Lu Xu become more confident himself, but his fans have too. This confidence was built by Lu Xu, piece by piece.

An actor’s glory is also the glory of his fans.

...

After his win at the Sunset Film Festival, Lu Xu noticed someone had tagged him as "International Leading Man" on Weibo. He took a screenshot and quietly sent it to his agent: "This really doesn't match my low-key persona."

Xu Wen: "Do you even have that kind of persona?"

"...Of course I do," Lu Xu retorted, barely holding back a jab. "It's like naming your dog 'International' and suddenly the whole family feels cosmopolitan."

His agent couldn't help but remind him, "Your nickname is Lu Puppy, not Lu International."

Lu Xu: "...Forget I said anything."

Then Zheng Xiao sent him a screenshot of an overseas Chinese media outlet describing Lu Xu—even more absurdly—"his jaw-dropping pecs wow the globe!"

Lu Xu: "............"

He already found "handsome enough to wow the world" corny enough, but now "jaw-dropping pecs wow the globe"? Absolutely—*ridiculous*.

Might as well say *Ma Yanwen* conquered the world.

...What “pecs”? He doesn’t have any!

Lu Xu shot Zheng Xiao an eye-roll emoji: "What exactly do you spend all day looking at online? Can’t you read something ethical, classy, and substantive for once?"

Zheng Xiao claimed someone had sent it to him, but that person didn’t dare forward it directly to Lu Xu, so they used him as a messenger.

Lu Xu: "Let me guess—that ‘someone’ is you?"

Zheng Xiao chose silence.

Lu Xu remarked that he had a keen insight into Zheng Xiao’s character.

In short, the exaggerated phrasing used by the media made Lu Xu wonder whether he’d somehow ended up starring in some risqué film, making him briefly question his career choices.

Where exactly does he have jaw-dropping pecs?

...Somehow, this article caught the attention of domestic gossip accounts, who not only posted it online but also sparked fierce debates about Lu Xu’s chest, roping in loads of bored keyboard warriors.

#Too much free time#

#Go get a real job#

Lu Xu surreptitiously submitted complaints, but they all failed.

#The whole world's gone crazy#

He couldn't be bothered to argue anymore.

...

After the Contention Award ceremony officially began, Lu Xu’s focus shifted to the awards.

Regarding this year’s nominations, Lu Xu’s mindset was: go for it if possible, and if not, there’s always next time.

The nominees had already met with the judges. When Lu Xu first encountered Liao Yusheng, he just thought he looked stern and humorless, but not as terrifying as the rumors suggested.

Compared to previous years, this year’s Contention Award didn’t change much, only adding a small tribute segment. One could guess that while Liao Yusheng had some ideas of his own, he largely respected tradition.

A stern demeanor beats overconfidence—at least based on Lu Xu’s experience working with directors, the serious types tend to be more receptive to input, while the overconfident ones aren’t necessarily so.

In reality, by the time nominees participate in Contention Award-related events, the winners are mostly already decided. Unfortunately, Lu Xu couldn’t read the answer on Liao Yusheng’s face—the man remained completely unreadable throughout.