Chapter 162: What a Pain in the Ass

Take Xiao Jingxuan's current film as an example. It is essentially an action drama, revolving around a male protagonist who is an official Chinese special agent. He receives a mission to protect an unknown national treasure hidden inside the Terracotta Army of the Qin Dynasty, which someone is attempting to steal. The protagonist must safeguard the artifact while figuring out ways to punish the petty villains coming from all directions to seize it.

The female protagonist is an ordinary tourist who inadvertently gets dragged into the chaos. Then... blah, blah, blah. Anyone watching this would definitely want to complain: could this plot possibly be any more cliché and cheesy?

If it weren't for the fact that Xiao Jingxuan starred in it, coupled with the solid performances of the other actors, the grand scale of the production, and the authentic panoramic views of the Qin Dynasty Terracotta Army, the movie would probably have had zero appeal, and its final box office earnings wouldn't have steadily climbed all the way up.

When she watched this film in her past life, Chu Luoxi didn't have very deep feelings about it. At that time, she hadn't yet started coasting through life, so her acceptance level was relatively high. But later on, she never bothered to rewatch it; otherwise, every single viewing would have made her want to vent. Now, she had even less interest in it.

Although it couldn't be classified as a completely terrible show, compared to the numerous classic films starring the great Xiao later in his career, this could truly only be considered the bottom of the barrel. Unfortunately, there was no other choice. Who told the domestic market to be so frustratingly mediocre?

It wasn't that the Great God Xiao and Director Leng Daji lacked vision; rather, the entire industry was simply like that. It was essentially picking the tallest dwarf in a field of short people.

"What's wrong? Bored? Is the acting that bad?" Xiao Jingxuan asked, noticing that Chu Luoxi had already yawned for the Nth time. Since this was his first movie, he was still very anxious about the audience's reaction.

If the box office for his debut film flopped, his progression into the film industry would stall, and anything that came after would be entirely uncertain.

The stigma of being a "box office poison" was far too terrifying.

"No, not at all. Senior is as impressive as ever, and the visuals are great, but the plot is just too... excruciatingly painful..." Chu Luoxi hesitated for a moment before using the description that best captured her inner feelings.

Xiao Jingxuan wore a wry expression before immediately understanding. Since he was also in the industry now, he was well aware of how glaring the weaknesses in the script were. He had signed onto the film a long time ago, so even if he found it unappealing later on, he had no choice but to go through with it. Besides, the domestic market truly lacked any decent scripts to choose from...

Actually, it wasn't just a domestic issue; foreign markets were the same, especially Hollywood blockbusters where the plot was always the weakest link. Audiences had even grown accustomed to ignoring the storyline entirely—just think about how agonizingly distorted a market must be to form a habit like that!

In trying to emulate Hollywood, the domestic industry failed to learn the good stuff while picking up plenty of the bad. Naturally, the movie's plot became even more tormenting. The constant obsession with visual effects and grand spectacles always gave people a sense of putting the cart before the horse.

"Sigh, I wonder how the final reception will turn out." Although this was also Xiao Jingxuan's first time seeing the completed version of the film, it seemed much weaker than he had imagined, and anxiety inevitably crept into his heart.

"Rest assured, the box office won't be bad. Nowadays, plenty of people watch for the visuals rather than the plot," Chu Luoxi said, spreading her hands in a reassuring gesture.

Until the results of a work are revealed, no one can predict how it will perform, but she knew the outcome clearly and remained completely calm.

In fact, one could already tell from the Great God Xiao's recent solo concert just how immense his pulling power was, leaving zero room for worry.

Xiao Jingxuan's popularity had been accumulating ever since his freshman year in college. It wasn't the superficial, overnight sort of hype, but a solid, undeniable level of fame.

Once the film screening ended, the public response seemed quite positive. By the very next day, the opening box office figures were tallied, and major media outlets scrambled to report on them. Chu Luoxi originally thought she had nothing more to do with the matter, but on New Year's Day, the production crew unexpectedly hosted a celebration banquet, causing her to be "kidnapped" by Xiao Jingxuan once again.

In truth, the Christmas release window was exceptionally favorable. Not only did it connect directly to New Year's Day, but if the Lunar New Year fell early, it could even catch the very beginning of the Spring Festival screening period. To be honest, it was an extremely delicate timing slot; normally, ordinary people wouldn't be able to secure such an advantageous position.

Consequently, the first-week box office earnings for Xiao Jingxuan's debut film continued to soar, looking exceptionally encouraging.

"I heard you filmed Director Fan's *Blood Phoenix*? Any interest in doing movies?" Bei Luanyong gently swirled the wine in his glass, showing genuine curiosity toward Chu Luoxi.

Naturally, it was simply the professional interest a director holds toward an actor. He had recently heard quite a few favorable evaluations regarding Chu Luoxi, and he couldn't help wondering: were people perhaps exaggerating? After all, she was just a newcomer who hadn't even fully graduated yet!

He couldn't even imagine how Chu Luoxi, who could portray a tender, water-like imperial concubine, would handle a gritty, blood-and-iron military drama, nor what she would look like in such a role. However, he was well aware of Fan Li's discerning eye; if Chu Luoxi truly wasn't suitable or performed poorly, Fan Li definitely wouldn't have cast her.

It was just that Fan Li that fellow kept his confidentiality measures so airtight that Bei Luanyong hadn't even caught a glimpse of the footage yet.

"Director Bei, are you joking?" Chu Luoxi widened her eyes and replied with manufactured modesty.

Although she felt a trace of surprise inwardly, Chu Luoxi knew very well that Bei Luanyong's remarks were far more diplomatic than genuine. Most likely, he was once again showing consideration for Xiao Jingxuan's sake.

The entertainment industry was a place where people said what others wanted to hear, and certain things truly shouldn't be taken at face value.

Bei Luanyong seemed well aware of the situation and didn't push the conversation any further. He merely offered a faint, enigmatic smile without elaborating.

Chu Luoxi sighed inwardly. People nowadays loved playing these elaborate guessing games where everyone had to read between the lines—it was utterly exhausting! Since she was feeling lazy, she couldn't be bothered to overthink it; whatever was meant to come would naturally arrive in due time.

Bei Luanyong had always been renowned for directing action films. In her previous life, as a well-known martial arts star, Chu Luoxi had actually been highly favored by him. However, until the time of her rebirth, Bei Luanyong seemed to have already retired due to old age, and the two of them had never truly collaborated even once.

Bei Luanyong came from humble roots and was entirely self-taught. As a director, he had virtually no professional education, relying completely on trial, error, and on-set learning to climb step by step to the position he held today.

Yet, that journey of growth must have been overwhelmingly bitter and filled with countless hardships. Inevitably, there had been numerous opportunities and temptations along the way, and Bei Luanyong understood the art of compromise and sacrifice exceptionally well; otherwise, he would never have achieved his present glory.

The weakness of such individuals, however, was that their foundation lacked absolute security, making them easily swayed by external factors. Even when it wasn't what he truly desired, he would often be forced to compromise due to harsh reality.

In her past life, every time Bei Luanyong prepared to shoot a new film, he would inevitably encounter a leading actor or actress he simply couldn't refuse. As a result, he never managed to shoot a project tailored to his own vision with Chu Luoxi as the lead, right up until the end.

To put it nicely, he was worldly and knew how to be flexible; to put it bluntly, he lacked agency and constantly allowed himself to be led by the nose. Those protagonists were either wealthy or powerful—both of which he lacked.

Therefore, when such figures forced their way into his projects, Bei Luanyong found himself completely powerless to decline. Yet, he stubbornly clung to a certain persistence: whenever he wanted Chu Luoxi, he wanted her to take the absolute lead. If she couldn't be the female protagonist, he would rather not cast her at all, which ultimately resulted in them missing every single chance to work together.