Translator: Ink Hub

Editor: Yoog

“Low EQ: You’re freaking senile. High EQ: Respect your brain.”

“Qike Video is perfectly portraying my mental state: alternating between giving up and going completely insane.”

“I’m dying of laughter. I’m trying to check the mental status of the person behind Qike Video’s account with one click.”

“Little Lin’s preaching success +1 +1 +1.”

“Gu Lenian Work PTSD +1. Honestly, before criticizing others, can these so-called industry seniors look at themselves? Can they stop pointing fingers at everyone else from their high and mighty positions?”

The collaboration between Lin Ji and Qike Video resulted in a ruthless mockery of Gu Lenian. The popularity of episode six of Siege Operation continued to soar, and Qike Video’s official blog gained a massive following as a result.

To some extent, this result wasn’t bad.

After Qike Video’s antics, “Gu Lenian Work” even gained its own dedicated encyclopedia entry, specifically referring to performances that intentionally lower one’s own standards.

It was said that Qike Video even wanted to register “Gu Lenian Work” as a trademark to make merchandise in the future, but they gave up after being rejected by the Trademark Office.

Lin Ji truly thought Qike Video had abandoned the idea, but they turned around and registered the trademark “GLN Works.” Before Gu Lenian himself could protest, Qike Video argued righteously, “Is Glutamine Works not allowed?”

Consequently, it was rejected again. “GLN Works” was acceptable, but pharmaceutical names could not be used as trademarks if Qike Video intended to use GLN as a reference to glutamine.

Qike Video: “…”

How hateful.

Netizens were incredibly amused by this. “Isn’t this way more interesting than Siege Operation itself?”

Gu Lenian was confident he would never collaborate with Qike Video again. Whenever he mentioned the platform, he inadvertently revealed his disdain. But he clearly forgot that collaboration is a two-way street. Gu Lenian could do anything to Qike Video, but in reverse, Qike Video could do anything to him as long as they were willing.

After the online commotion lasted for a while, the details of Gu Lenian’s collaboration with Maple Leaf TV were also disclosed by the media. Gu Lenian planned to create a spy drama, the very genre he excelled in. This indeed clashed with the theme of Lin Ji’s new show.

“If the broadcast times clash too, there will be more fun to watch.”

“They will definitely clash. Trust my intuition.”

Lin Ji also guessed they would clash.

Siege Operation had caused Gu Lenian to be a laughingstock for so long, and Qike Video had stirred up so much trouble that they almost ruined the reputation he had built over many years. Gu Lenian urgently needed to turn the situation around and salvage his precarious standing.

For him, the new drama was the first step in salvaging his reputation.

Reality matched Lin Ji’s intuition. Ever since it was confirmed that Lin Ji’s next drama had a spy theme, Gu Lenian had been constantly making inquiries at various satellite stations, wanting to know the specific air date of Lin Ji’s show on Sunrise TV.

As long as he won in the ratings, no matter how well Lin Ji manipulated public opinion, it would just be seen as a sign of Lin Ji’s own breakdown.

What supported Lin Ji was the viewership data. Once he lost the ratings, Lin Ji would be nothing more than an ordinary young screenwriter. It would be easy for Gu Lenian to deal with him then.

Lin Ji’s inner thoughts weren’t as complicated as Gu Lenian imagined. In his eyes, Gu Lenian wasn’t a significant opponent. He didn’t write scripts just to beat someone else. Of course, as a screenwriter, having a strong desire to win was normal; Lin Ji had always been ambitious.

Unknowingly, Lin Ji had already written up to the 20th episode. What he planned to write next was the most important segment of the plot in the entire script.

When writing Secretly in Love with You, Lin Ji focused on “spreading sugar” throughout, letting the sweetness increase episode by episode. However, the continuity of the plot itself wasn’t that strong; one or two episodes per plot point was enough. In the new script, the next ten episodes would revolve around a single large story.

This was also the most thrilling and dangerous experience in Lou Zhi’s intelligence career.

Lin Ji had already researched the materials. Although information on Lou Zhi’s early life was lacking, the audio-visual and written records of this specific period were very complete. During this undercover mission, the information Lou Zhi obtained significantly influenced the course of history.

The silent glint of blades, the urgency of being on the edge of a cliff—Lin Ji felt his blood boiling just by reading the records. Simply writing it out in a plain manner wouldn’t be enough to capture the story’s magnitude.

“Headache,” Lin Ji sighed.

Hearing that Lin Ji had a severe case of writer’s block lately, Tian Yao and Wen Qing invited him out for a meal.

It was already the end of October. The temperature in C City could drop in an instant. Tian Yao and Wen Qing had originally planned to treat Lin Ji to Western food, but on the way to the restaurant, a gale suddenly began to howl. The wind was so strong that they huddled together like quails and decided to head to hot pot instead.

Tian Yao and Wen Qing were currently in high spirits. With the end of the year approaching, Secretly in Love with You still held the top spot on Qike Video’s viewership charts. If nothing unexpected happened, it would maintain its crown until the very last day of the year.

Qike Video had previously claimed that the summer slot would be the “strongest summer slot in history,” but even though good shows were released one after another, not a single one could beat Secretly in Love with You.

The two of them didn’t think this was their own credit, but the success of the show had indeed benefited them immensely. Previously, Tian Yao was an obscure producer and Wen Qing was unknown. They had only filmed one work with zero fame. In the entertainment industry, there were thousands of people like them.

But now, projects from both streaming platforms and satellite stations were extending olive branches to them.

There was a rumor in the circle that Tian Yao was an expert at managing people, given that even the difficult Lin Ji had been handled by him.

Tian Yao was confused. That’s just because Lin Ji is a good person.

But no matter how hard he tried to explain to others, they simply didn’t believe him.

Tian Yao couldn’t help but feel indignant for Lin Ji. What a great person he was! Being able to collaborate with such a screenwriter was a blessing for any producer or director.

Setting aside his writing talent, the word “better” was the only standard in Lin Ji’s dictionary. On set, he never shirked his duties. Even when facing trouble, he would discuss and resolve it with others.

So what if Lin Ji was a bit fierce online? If he weren’t fierce, he would only encounter lowlifes like Xiao Cheng and Gu Lenian.

Tian Yao felt that talking even a few extra words with such lowlifes ruined one’s luck. Did Lin Ji actually enjoy bickering with them?

It was purely because those lowlifes loved finding trouble with him.

“It’s the end of the year. Are you interested in participating in some industry events?” Tian Yao asked. “Our crew has received a lot of invitations lately.”

The end of the year was the peak season for award ceremonies. Since the viewership of Secretly in Love with You was excellent, they were receiving a high concentration of invitations for events like the Television Drama Gala, even if they weren’t yet eligible for high-spec Category A awards.

Tian Yao and Wen Qing had already attended several events. The female lead, Wang Ruoqiang, was currently a rising star, so she had even more invitations. Only the screenwriter, Lin Ji, spent all his time fighting online.

Tian Yao’s only assessment of Lin Ji was that he was a homebody.

This man was already on the screenwriter wealth list, yet his daily routine still consisted of reading books, watching dramas, and writing scripts. When he did go out, his clothes were very casual and had nothing to do with being trendy.

Even though… out of the three of them, Lin Ji was the best looking.

Lin Ji was tall and thin, but unfortunately, he wasn’t interested in anything else. He spent every day pondering over his scripts. The outside world loved to analyze how Lin Ji manufactured hits like God of War Returns Home and Secretly in Love with You. Tian Yao felt the answer was simple: one would know naturally after meeting Lin Ji in person.

“Let me think about it,” Lin Ji said. “Send me the time and location.”

Tian Yao couldn’t help but make a disgusted face. “I already sent it last time. Do you just forget things in the blink of an eye?”

Lin Ji hadn’t originally planned on attending any events. He wanted to finish the script in one go. However, while discussing the script with Sunrise TV, the platform suddenly asked for his help in casting.

Casting was usually within the director’s scope, but in a crew where the screenwriter’s authority was high, the writer also had a certain degree of influence.

“Teacher Lin, this script is written too well. Teacher Lou and his sisters are very satisfied. They entrusted me to tell you that since you wrote the script, you must be the one who can select the most suitable actors,” the producer explained.

This spy drama was being prepared by Sunrise TV, so the producer was naturally assigned internally. The “Teacher Lou” mentioned by the producer was Lou Zhi’s grandson. Lin Ji had met him once while gathering materials.

As everyone knew, when filming the deeds of a real person, the most important thing was to respect the facts. Obtaining the approval of the person’s family and descendants was crucial.

Sunrise TV couldn’t give Lin Ji a top-tier salary, so they tried to give him as much freedom as possible during the collaboration. They didn’t limit his creativity and gave him casting rights. In the contract, they even agreed to a profit-sharing ratio that exceeded the market rate, provided the new drama achieved good ratings.

Reality proved that Lin Ji had underestimated the level of trouble involved in casting.

The news of Sunrise TV’s new drama looking for actors had been leaked. Everyone knew that the casting rights belonged to Lin Ji. In an instant, Lin Ji’s email was flooded with resumes. He received dozens of self-recommendation letters in his private messages every day. Actors who had worked with him before also came to test the waters, hoping to play a role in the new drama.

Lin Ji was annoyed.

He only wanted to find the actor most suitable for Lou Zhi first.

After seeing a total of ten missed calls one morning, Lin Ji grew furious. He kicked the casting rights for the other roles back to Sunrise TV. Sunrise TV wasn’t a novice when it came to filming; they should be more experienced than him in choosing actors.

Lin Ji only planned to participate in the casting for Lou Zhi. He asked Sunrise TV to first pick a few actors whose image and temperament were relatively close to Lou Zhi’s. He would then decide based on their past performances.

If he couldn’t find a suitable actor, he would go out and try his luck.

It just so happened that Tian Yao had invited him to an event, so Lin Ji agreed. He would use this chance to observe the ecosystem of actors in the industry.

Sunrise TV was very efficient. Once Lin Ji asked for actors, the platform immediately brought over a stack of lists. There were a total of eight or nine male actor candidates. Lin Ji recognized a few of them and had watched their dramas.

Lin Ji first rejected two actors he felt were unsuitable. Compared to the role of Lou Zhi, these two actors’ temperaments were too rugged.

Lin Ji then filtered out those whose acting skills he felt weren’t up to par.

The real Lou Zhi was quite good-looking, belonging to the type that appeared gentle and harmless. If one’s acting wasn’t good enough, it would be difficult to show the duality of Lou Zhi as an ordinary person and an intelligence officer. These actors were more than capable of acting in idol dramas, but they were still lacking when it came to handling the role of Lou Zhi.

Lin Ji watched dramas for several days, filtering as he watched. Finally, only one actor remained on the list.

“Qin Yi is indeed acceptable. He looks quite a bit like him too.”

Qin Yi was around 34 or 35 years old, right in the prime of a male actor’s career. Qin Yi didn’t start in idol dramas; he began acting in serious dramas as soon as he graduated from the National Film Academy. He had been a supporting actor and a lead. His acting was good, but his fame had always been mediocre.

In recent years, the “Uncle Circle” trend had started to blow fiercely, and Qin Yi had also used this momentum to become popular. He was now among the most trending group of television actors.

Sunrise TV decisively sent an invitation to Qin Yi.

Two days later, Qin Yi’s management company responded. They said Qin Yi himself was quite interested in the script and was willing to discuss a collaboration with Sunrise TV.

Sunrise TV was also quite happy. No matter what kind of show was being filmed, casting was the top priority. Once the role was set and the subsequent preparations were finished, filming could begin.

Since Qin Yi was coming over, Sunrise TV and Lin Ji waited for the other party to inform them of the time and location.

They waited one day, but the other party didn’t appear.

They waited two days, and he still didn’t come.

On the third day, just as Sunrise TV planned to contact Qin Yi to check the situation, news suddenly spread on Weibo that Qin Yi was about to star in Maple Leaf TV’s new drama.

NOTES

“Uncle Circle” (叔圈 – shu quan) : A term for mature, middle-aged male actors who have a rugged or sophisticated appeal, as opposed to “Little Fresh Meat” (young, pretty idols).

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