Chapter 71

As expected, as soon as they sat at the mahjong table, the three began to make faces. Qiao Bailu sat next to Xie Jiayuan and gave him instructions, but she was only half-baked. She could see whether she would win, but she couldn't figure out how to arrange the positions. She could only follow her heart and draw a path to the end.

Soon, the two of them had very little money in their hands. Mr. Qiao looked at them anxiously and said, "Oh, this is it!"

Mother Qiao stood on the other side: “Hey, don’t listen to your uncle’s nonsense!”

The two people had different opinions, and Qiao Bailu took the opportunity to choose another one to fight, but in the end, it still failed.

The noise lasted until eleven o'clock. Because Qiao Bailu had to go to Xie's house, Qiao's mother quickly prepared things and urged the two to get in the car. As for playing mahjong, wasn't Qiao Zhenting still there? He was also a master. He had been held by Qiao's father since he was a child and had no rivals in the village.

"Are uncle and aunt okay these past two days? Nothing major has happened in your family recently, right?" Qiao Bailu turned her head to look at Xie Jiayuan, who shook his head, "Nothing major. By the way, was it you who said that Zhou Mengyao was talking about hiring a lawyer?"

"Well, what's wrong? Your elder brother doesn't want to?" Qiao Bailu blinked, and Xie Jiayuan nodded: "No, I was just planning to thank you. It just so happens that my elder brother's major is suitable. He specializes in business. He has already agreed with Zhou Mengyao that he will go after the New Year."

The lawyer industry in Z City is not very prosperous, and the salary is not too high. Moreover, in this industry, they are paid commissions according to the business, and the bulk of the money is earned here. Brother Xie is also a newcomer. He is three years older than Xie Jiayuan. Even if he is skilled, someone has to be willing to hire him.

So, after two years of graduation, he still didn't make much money, and even his girlfriend broke up with him. He was planning to work while studying for a doctorate, and he chose a school in City B. The opportunity Zhou Mengyao provided couldn't be better. He didn't plan to develop business outside, and only focused on the work in the studio, and used his free time to study.

"Then where does he live? How about living in our house first? In the same room with you?" Qiao Bailu asked, nodding her chin. However, if that were the case, she would not be able to go to Xie Jiayuan's room casually in the future. If the two of them wanted to be intimate, they could only go to their own rooms.

"No, he plans to rent a house near the school. First, it's close to the school and he can go to the library at any time. Second, he can study quietly." If there are too many people, even if he is calm and doesn't care what others do, it will be affected to some extent. For example, if everyone goes to a dinner party together, can he always not go?

Moreover, Brother Xie was going to apply to Z Law University, which happened to be located to the south of their house and to the north of theirs. The distance was too far and it was inconvenient to travel back and forth.

"Okay then. By the way, does Big Brother plan to buy a car?" Qiao Bailu asked again. Xie Jiayuan shook his head and said, "No, he didn't make much money in the past two years. He also plans to study, so his tuition fee is just enough. He doesn't have money to buy a car."

Qiao Bailu nodded: "By the way, do you think Zhao Hean will like Mengyao?"

"What happened?" Xie Jiayuan was puzzled, and Qiao Bailu talked about the last party: "She asked me to find out about the situation, and then I took over and filmed the Biography of Empress Lü. I never had the chance, so I forgot about it. You see, it's been a year, and Mengyao herself didn't say anything, so she didn't forget it, right?"

"I guess they are together." Xie Jiayuan's words shocked Qiao Bailu, who immediately widened her eyes: "What? How did you know?"

"When I went to pick you and Zhenting up, I saw Zhao Hean picking up Zhou Mengyao. The two of them got into the car hand in hand." Xie Jiayuan revealed: "I saw it half a year ago. How could you not know about it? Didn't Zhou Mengyao tell you?"

Qiao Bailu gnashed her teeth and said, "This damn girl never told me anything! She was secretly with Senior Zhao behind my back! I was even thinking about bringing them together! This is really too much! I will never let her off!"

"Forget it. You promised to introduce her, but you forgot it immediately?" Xie Jiayuan was speechless. Qiao Bailu glared at him: "Whose side are you on? Am I not busy? I have to write scripts, keep an eye on the progress of filming, follow her to the TV station, and write novels. I am so tired every day. Look, I am so tired that I have lost weight!"

Xie Jiayuan felt distressed: "Oh, you have lost a lot of weight. I need to make up for it later. Let's go back and buy a cookbook. I will learn how to cook and make delicious food for you, okay? I need to gain more weight!"

"I'm not talking about that! I'm saying that Zhou Mengyao has gone too far!" Qiao Bailu withdrew her arm feeling a little guilty. In fact, she had not lost any weight, and her weight had not changed. Although she was busy, her mouth was never idle. She made snacks at home and sent them to the crew. When she saw a snack shop, she wanted to go over and have a look. The food in the refrigerator had never run out. How could she have lost weight?

"Oh, yes, she's gone too far! You invited her when you got engaged, but she didn't even tell you that she had a boyfriend!" Of course, Xie Jiayuan had to stand on Qiao Bailu's side, and they criticized Zhou Mengyao with a common hatred for the enemy.

Qiao Bailu took out her cell phone and went online to discuss with Zhou Mengyao whether good friends should have secrets or not. Zhou Mengyao was very troubled by what she said and had to call to explain.

"I thought you guys were busy at that time, so I didn't say anything."

"At first, he just asked me out for dinner, singing, and hiking. He just confessed his love to me half a year ago, and then I agreed. You know, Senior Zhao is very handsome, and I have been coveting his beauty for many years."

"I plan to wait until you guys come back after the Chinese New Year. Before we start working, Senior Zhao and I will treat you to a meal and announce it at that time."

"After all, when we first got together, we weren't very stable. What if we broke up due to personality incompatibility? Wouldn't it be a waste of your happiness to tell you? How can we all be friends in the future?"

"That's definitely not possible. Think about it, we both announced to the world that we were together, and then broke up. It would be too embarrassing to pretend to be friends in front of everyone. If we don't announce it this way, we both know it well and don't have to embarrass ourselves in front of everyone. This is the right choice."

"Alright, alright. I owe you a big meal. The one Senior Zhao and I treated you to doesn't count. I'll treat you separately."

"What, five times? You're dreaming. When you and Xie Jiayuan were together, I found out about it myself. You didn't confess it!"

"Okay, let's compromise, three meals! No more, you're already taking advantage!"

"Okay, okay, okay, you are the aunt and you have the final say. You can take as many as you want. I agree."

"I'm just waiting for you to come back. Hurry up. I've arranged the time for you. On the seventh day, you go visit Teacher Zhou. On the eighth day, we'll have dinner together, finalize the script, and contact the crew. On the ninth day, you follow me to the film and television city to rent a place. On the tenth day, we'll officially start filming, okay?"

Qiao Bailu hung up the phone contentedly: "Okay, when I get back, let Zhou Mengyao treat me. I must have a very, very expensive seafood dinner! I can only eat once a month, and it will take three months to finish it."

"You can't eat too much, just eat once every three months." Xie Jiayuan calculated and retorted: "Aren't you prone to allergies? Eating too much is not good for your body. Eat once every three months, just enough to last until the New Year."

It's not a big problem. She can eat fish, shrimp, and crabs. She's not allergic to any of them. It's just that her skin is prone to allergies, so Xie Jiayuan doesn't want her to eat too much of these irritating foods. It's okay to eat fish or shrimp every three to five days, but it's better to have a seafood feast at a longer interval.

Qiao Bailu was unhappy, and secretly made up her mind to go with Zhou Mengyao alone, which would save money for Zhou Mengyao.

"I'll tell Zhou Mengyao later, don't even think about going by yourself." Just as he made up his mind, Xie Jiayuan glanced at her and said lightly, "If I find out, my family won't buy fish or shrimp for a year."

The corners of Qiao Bailu's mouth twitched and she nodded silently.

Father and Mother Xie were still quite enthusiastic, and kept persuading Qiao Bailu to eat more: "Nowadays, those girls who want to lose weight and skip meals every day are so hungry that they look like dry sticks. Bailu, you are just right. Don't go hungry or you will suffer. Don't be afraid of gaining weight. Your uncle and I like chubby girls the most. Jiayuan likes them too. Jiayuan, don't you think so?"

Xie Jiayuan nodded while holding the bowl: "Well, it looks better to be a little fatter, plump, and blessed."

Mother Xie nodded vigorously: "Yes, yes, that's it. Come, eat more of this. Xie Jiayuan said you like to eat lotus root, so I specially asked someone for the recipe. Try it and see if it suits your taste."

“It’s delicious. Thank you, Auntie.” Qiao Bailu smiled quickly and reached out to cover her bowl. “Auntie, you don’t have to serve me more. I’ll do it myself. It’s too much. I’ll finish it first.”

Mother Xie nodded and ate with a smile. She looked at Qiao Bailu while eating. The more she looked, the more satisfied she was. After the meal, she stuffed a particularly thick red envelope: "You two are alone in City B, and there is no one to take care of you. You must take good care of yourselves. Eat and drink when you should. Don't worry about the expensive things. Later, your uncle and I will learn how to send things, and we will send them to you by express. Homemade things are clean and solid, so you can eat them with confidence."

Qiao Bailu blinked and looked at Xie Jiayuan. Xie Jiayuan raised his chin and pointed at the various boxes in the corner: "Mom and Dad plan for us to take all those to City B."

After saying that, he stood up and opened the box for Qiao Bailu to see. There were bottles of peanut oil, chili sauce, sesame paste and sesame oil, cornmeal, millet, pickled meat, pickled vegetables and pickled garlic. I don't know where Mother Xie got so many bottles.

"Auntie, isn't this too much?" Qiao Bailu was also surprised. Mother Xie waved her hand and said, "Not much, not much. We grew them all ourselves. Don't worry. Your uncle has already asked around. There's a courier in town. We'll take it over and have them packed carefully. We'll deliver it to you. You don't have to take it with you when you leave."

Qiao Bailu looked at Xie Jiayuan, and Xie Jiayuan nodded: "It's okay, there are a lot of these things at home anyway."

Qiao Bailu breathed a sigh of relief and thanked him with a smile. Brother Xie had decided to go to City B earlier than planned, so he had to buy another plane ticket. So the Qiao family simply returned to City Z earlier and took Brother Xie with them.

Zhou Mengyao arranged her schedule quite reasonably. She went to visit Mr. Zhou on the seventh day of the first lunar month to wish him a happy new year. She also took Brother Xie for a tour of the studio.

On the eighth day of the Lunar New Year, we had a dinner together. Brother Xie was also considered a member of the studio. We met and got to know each other. Then Brother Xie began to review the various contracts in the studio. Those that had loopholes were now patched up. Those that were not completed were also completed.

For example, several satellite TV stations now want the television copyright of The Biography of Empress Lü, and since it cannot be scheduled for three broadcasts, the price still needs to be negotiated, so the contract has to be drawn up separately.

On the ninth day of the first lunar month, several directors selected scripts that suited them according to their own expertise. The three Nanzhu had just finished their assignments, and the remaining girls were assigned immediately, each choosing the crew they wanted to go to.

The leading actor and director are both available, and the rest is to send casting notices to various film and television companies. This is a mutually beneficial thing, and those companies are also very willing to cooperate and select actors according to the requirements and send them to the selection.

On the tenth day of the first lunar month, according to Zhou Mengyao's plan, the filming started directly. But now, the casting has just begun. Zhou Mengyao had completely forgotten about it before, but now that things have come to a head, she suddenly remembered it. So, she hurriedly started casting again.

Their studio has now established a reputation. Although the first drama was not very successful, it did not lose money and made some money, which is considered stable. The second drama made Qiao Zhenting famous and created a market among young people. The third drama went from being just okay to being a huge hit. Not to mention last year, even eight years ago, The Biography of Empress Lü was a historical drama that could be ranked first.

Although the data is not as good as the Qing Dynasty trilogy, there was no online video at that time. The broadcast of the Biography of Empress Lü directly made Li Xue famous, and Qiao Zhenting went a step further, from a famous person to a big celebrity.

Since the broadcast of "The Legend of Empress Lü", this film or the actors in it have been on the Xinbo Hot News every three days. Even people who don't watch TV very often know about this film and the actors in it.

Therefore, the studio is well-known in the circle. When the casting notice came out, there were quite a few people selected, which almost caused a sensation in half of the film and television industry.

Qiao Bailu wanted to turn herself into three people, running to this crew in the morning and that crew in the afternoon, and catching all three at once. Not only the appearance, but also the acting skills and the character reputation should be considered.

It took me a month to select all three dramas.

When we started filming, it was already April in the Gregorian calendar. At the same time, the White Orchid Television Awards Organizing Committee sent us a notice that The Legend of Empress Lü was on the list and was nominated for eight awards, including Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Screenwriter, Best Director, Best Historical Film, Best Supporting Actor, Best Cinematography, and Best Props.

Because Qiao Bailu was also nominated, she will also walk the red carpet this time. After much selection, she still chose Qiao Zhenting as her partner. Li Xue took a step back and partnered with Lin Xiao, who played Han Xin.

The award ceremony was broadcast live by S City Satellite TV Station. There were quite a few people attending. Although Qiao Zhenting was famous, he had little experience and had only been in the entertainment industry for two or three years. He was still young, so he was photographed in a position slightly forward in the middle.

As soon as he stepped onto the red carpet, a small group of fans around him started screaming. Qiao Zhenting smiled and waved his hand over there, paused, turned around to make it easier for the media to take pictures, and also had to take care of Qiao Bailu who was wearing high heels.

Qiao Bailu also smiled, but it was her first time appearing in front of so many people, and walking on the red carpet, so she was a little nervous, and the smile on her face was almost frozen.

"Sister, don't be nervous. Just treat the people in front of you as big carrots." Seeing that Qiao Bailu could hardly walk, Qiao Zhenting hurriedly said, raising his arms a little bit so that Qiao Bailu could hang on and feel more relaxed on her feet.

The host had received the script early on, and when he saw them coming, he introduced them with a smile, "The one walking over now is the popular young actor, Qiao Zhenting, who is also known as Prince Qiao. He is indeed a handsome guy, and he looks stunning in ancient costumes, and even more so in suits. The one next to him, I'm sure you haven't seen her before, but if I tell you her background, you will definitely know that this beauty is Miss Qiao Bailu, the screenwriter of The Legend of Empress Lü."

When Qiao Bailu's smile was a little stiff, when Qiao Zhenting was joking with the host, and when the brother and sister entered the venue together, they had no idea that the Internet was already in an uproar.

——Oh my god, the screenwriter of The Biography of Empress Lü is actually a young girl in her twenties! I can’t believe that such a mature script was written by a young girl!

——What's wrong with the little girl? Is it not allowed for her to be smarter and more talented?

——I just want to say that the screenwriter is so beautiful.

——Yes, yes, I wanted to say it just now, oh my god, what a beauty, I originally thought that my Empress Lu was Prince Qiao’s true love, but now I suddenly realize that this screenwriter is also very beautiful, and she is a different type from my Empress Lu.

——I just want to ask, why do they both have the last name Qiao? Is it a coincidence?

——Hahaha, it must be a coincidence!

——I just took a look at Prince Qiao’s new blog and discovered a shocking secret!

——+1, discovered a shocking secret!

…

——+10087, a shocking secret was discovered!

——Stop keeping us in suspense! Come on, what have you discovered?

——I compared the photos of him and his sister that Prince Qiao posted before.

——You don’t know until you tell me, and I’ll be shocked when I hear it. I suddenly realized that screenwriter Qiao’s face is quite similar to that of Master Qiao.

——I remember that some people used to slander me, Qiao Shizi, saying that there was someone behind me, otherwise, how could a kid who just debuted get the role of the male lead so easily!

——There really is someone behind Prince Qiao.

——Oh my God, there really is someone behind Master Qiao!

——Haha, I won't say anything more. Your Prince Qiao is so ugly, yet he still has the nerve to pollute other people's eyes! Is it because of his sister that he can become famous? The entertainment industry is really dark!

——Where did the haters above come from? There is someone behind our Prince Qiao, so what? Who said that a sister can't protect her brother? If I had a brother like Prince Qiao, if I had the talent of screenwriter Qiao, I would definitely make my brother famous.

——The people above are jealous and envious. It's a pity that you don't have such a handsome brother, nor the talent of screenwriter Qiao. Actually, I am quite good-looking. If I had a sister like screenwriter Qiao, my God, I would faint with happiness.

Then, the topic changed and everyone started discussing how wonderful life would be if they had a brother like Qiao Shizi or a sister like Qiao Bailu. Then, Qiao Zhenting became a hot topic again, and this time Qiao Bailu was also mentioned. The topic was called "National Brother and Sister".

The award ceremony began, and a group of people stared at the podium nervously. The first award was for Best Actor, and the second was for Best Actress. They had no hope for the first one, because Empress Lü was originally a women's play, and Qiao Zhenting could only be considered a supporting role.

What they are looking forward to is the second award. If they can win this award, they will have completely established their foothold and will have a say in the entertainment industry in the future.

"Nominated for Best Actress, Li Xue in The Story of Empress Lü, Chen Hong in The Wind Blows Through This Summer, Xia He in Scarecrow..." As the names were read out one by one, each person's role was shown on the big screen, as well as a more shocking scene in the film.

Li Xue's segment was the scene where Empress Lü was wearing a phoenix robe and attending court, Chen Hong's was the scene where the heroine was running in the rain, and Xia He was crying while holding Nan Zhu's body...

"Their performances are all very wonderful, and their characters are portrayed vividly. Empress Lü's majesty, Liu Jingjing's perseverance..." The host first commented on each character according to the script, and then smiled and said, "But there is only one Best Actress. Who is it? Next, we would like to invite the award presenter, the veteran actor with 40 years of experience, Ms. Si Moqin!"

As the music started, Teacher Si walked onto the stage with steady steps, stood in front of the microphone, opened the envelope, and pulled out the card inside: "The winner of the 14th Magnolia Award for Best Actress in Television Programs..."

The entire venue was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. It was a cliché metaphor, but it was very vivid. Everyone slowed down their breathing, especially Qiao Bailu and the others, who stared at the card in Teacher Si's hand intently, wishing they had X-ray vision.

Teacher Si paused for a moment with a smile on his face, and then continued: "The actress who played Lü Zhi is Li Xue!"

There was applause from the audience. Li Xue was still a little unresponsive. Zhou Mengyao quickly pinched her and said, "Go up to the stage and receive the award!"

Li Xue quickly stood up, and with excitement, she went to the stage to receive the trophy from Teacher Si. She bowed respectfully to Teacher Si, turned around, and her eyes were slightly red: "I have too many people to thank. I want to thank the screenwriter for choosing me to play this role, thank the boss for giving me this opportunity, thank the director, and thank my crewmates... I am where I am today because of you!"

Zhou Mengyao let out a sigh of relief. "It's done. I've won the Best Actress award. Next time, I'll get the Best Actor award. Then I'll be all set. Things will get better and better in the future."

Chapter 72

The award ceremony was more than half over, and the studio not only won the Best Actress Award, but also the Best Director Award. Soon it was the Best Screenwriter Award. Qiao Bailu was also nominated, but she never thought she could win the award.

There were many outstanding TV series last year and the year before last, and most of the screenwriters were veteran screenwriters. How could she, a kid who had just debuted and had only written three scripts, have such an honor?

Unexpectedly, when she was bored and guessing which of the nominees was most likely to win the award, the guest had already opened the envelope, pulled out the card, took a look, and said with a smile: "The winner of the Best Screenwriter Award is Qiao Bailu!"

Qiao Bailu had never expected that she would win an award. She was stunned for a moment before quickly standing up. Just now, when the director went up to receive the award, he almost tripped. She was in the mood to tease him then, but now she understood how nervous he was.

She wasn't nervous at first, because she had been on stage to receive a certificate of honor when she was in primary school. But with the cameras above and below her and thousands of people watching, she suddenly became nervous.

What should I do? What if my skirt is not properly pulled up? It will be embarrassing. Don't you always meet people whose skirts are not properly put on when walking? Either the zipper is not properly pulled up, the decorations have fallen off, or the lining of the skirt is stuck in the buttocks.

What if my hair is not done properly? Will the hairpin fall off? Should I squat down to pick it up or bend over to pick it up? Bending over is not a good idea, because the skirt is too short. But squatting down is not a good idea either, because the skirt is a little tight, and it would be even more embarrassing if it was torn.

What if she falls while walking? She seldom wears high heels normally. This is a rare occasion when she wears them, but she is not familiar with them. This is not an ordinary fall. She falls in front of the national audience. Moreover, she and Xie Jiayuan are being dug up on the Internet, and many people are watching the live broadcast. If she falls, she might become a hot topic.

I wanted to write a lot of things in my mind. I was a little dazed when I received the trophy. I took the microphone, took a deep breath, blinked, and imagined everyone below me as a big carrot: "Well, first of all, thank you to all the teachers in the organizing committee. I have a lot of people to thank for my success today. Haha, I guess everyone who receives an award has to go through this process, and I am no exception. Moreover, this is my first time to receive an award, so I am quite excited. I guess there are a lot of people to thank. Please don't think I'm being long-winded."

Some people laughed, but Qiao Bailu pretended not to hear: "Thank you to my teacher. Without your teaching, I wouldn't be where I am today. Thank you to my parents, who have always encouraged and supported me on my life journey. Without them, I wouldn't have come this far. Thank you to my friends, who are willing to help me unconditionally. Thank you to the director and my crew members, who are willing to trust me. Thank you, thank you everyone."

Qiao Bailu was really excited. After three scripts, she finally won an award. This was a recognition of her ability. From now on, her scripts would no longer be the same as the first one. Even if it was delivered to her door, no one would want it.

She said those words of thanks sincerely. When she started writing novels, her parents did not think that this line of work had no future and stopped her. Instead, they encouraged and supported her. When she was not famous, Zhou Mengyao was willing to believe in her and invested nearly 100 million to build a company, to attract talents, and to use her scripts to shoot TV series. When she was at her wit's end, it was Zhou He who brought her hope.

Without these, she would probably have to wait at least another ten years before she could make a breakthrough.

After raising the trophy and bowing again, Qiao Bailu walked off the stage with a smile and sent a photo of herself and the trophy to Zhou He - Teacher, I won the prize! Thank you for your years of teaching. I finally did not embarrass you.

Then send it to Qiao's father and mother to announce the good news. However, she doesn't need to send it, because they are actually watching the live broadcast over there. Maybe their son or daughter will win an award, and they will turn on the TV early in the morning to watch.

Finally, the crew of "The Legend of Empress Lü" won the Best Feature Film Award and the Best Costume Award, a total of four awards. For a large-scale historical film, it is considered average, but for a studio that has only shot three TV series, four awards are already very good.

As soon as the show was over, Zhou Mengyao suggested, "Let's go celebrate? We should be happy after winning the award. We have a day off tomorrow, so let's go have some fun tonight. Do you want to go?"

Qiao Bailu waved her hands quickly, "It's because you won the award that you have to be honest. The media is following us right now, and they can't wait to find a typical negative example. They are crying out in grief and anger, so you should just calm down. If you really want to celebrate, let's have a big dinner. Tomorrow night, we can get together at the hotel."

Although Zhou Mengyao was unhappy, she also knew that Qiao Bailu was telling the truth. Every time an award was given, the media would always pay close attention to it, finding fault with everything and criticizing the winners as if they were killing them.

The more this is the case, the more explosive it is, and the more people watch it. This can be considered a kind of curiosity among the audience - look, no matter how glamorous that person is on stage, when he gets off the stage, he is no better than us, drinking, fighting and making trouble, which is really embarrassing.

After picking up her bag, Zhou Mengyao waved her hand: "Okay, let's just have a meal. Tomorrow is a day off, and everyone can rest at home. Let's meet at Phoenix Building at 5 pm tomorrow. I've booked a room in advance, so we can just go there when the time comes."

Qiao Bailu nodded with a smile and waved goodbye to everyone. Xie Jiayuan was waiting in his car not far away. As soon as Qiao Bailu entered, she hugged Xie Jiayuan's neck and kissed him: "I won the award, are you happy?"

Xie Jiayuan nodded with a smile, reached out to take the seat belt and fastened it for her: "Happy, do you want to celebrate? My brother just called to congratulate you. How do you want to celebrate?"

"Well, let's have a big meal!" Qiao Bailu went back without thinking. Qiao Zhenting muttered behind her: "Eat, eat, eat. Sooner or later, you will become a fat man. Let's see if anyone will want you then! You only know how to eat!"

Qiao Bailu ignored him and just looked at Xie Jiayuan with a smile. Xie Jiayuan reached out and rubbed her hair: "It's better to gain some weight. You are too thin now. However, you can't be too fat. So, you have to exercise after eating to keep healthy."

After thinking for a while, he said, "It just so happens that I have a day off tomorrow. I'll cook for you at noon? Invite big brother and we can have a meal together?"

"Okay." Qiao Bailu had no objection at all. As soon as she nodded, her phone rang. First, it was Qiao's father and mother who were as excited as ever: "Oh my, my daughter is amazing. She won a big prize! She's getting more and more capable. Zhenting didn't win the prize this time. You comfort him and tell him that it's okay. There will be next time. Tell him not to be sad and just keep working hard."

Qiao Bailu glanced at Qiao Zhenting and nodded with a smile: "Don't worry, he's not unhappy. There will be a next time. The next drama I prepared for him will be the male lead. He may win an award next time."

Qiao Zhenting came over with a smile and said, "Don't worry, Mom and Dad. I'm so capable, I'm sure I'll win a prize!"

"Please your sister and ask her to write a better script for you. Don't be disobedient." Qiao's mother nagging: "By the way, I saw the weather forecast and it said that it will rain in City B in the next two days. Remember to bring an umbrella when you go out. Don't get wet. Remember to close the doors and windows when you go out, and wear something thicker. I see your sister is wearing a skirt. Although the weather is not cold, it is still a bit cold when it rains. You must take care of your health, okay?"

Qiao Zhenting nodded, and when the other party finished nagging, they had already arrived home. Qiao Zhenting hung up the phone, followed into the house, changed his shoes, and quickly went in to turn on the computer: "Wow, I don't know if my fans are excited or not, I'm the headline today!"

I turned on the computer and glanced at the hot spots. I felt a little depressed: "I'm only fourth. I'm not even in the top three."

"It's good enough to be on the hot topic. Don't you think about how many people won awards today, and many of them are more famous than you." Qiao Bailu came over and took a look. The topic of the national sister and brother had been pushed to the last, and Qiao Zhenting's was still fourth. It can be seen that even if Qiao Bailu is popular, she is not from the circle, so the topic is not very hot.

However, who knows. When she becomes a big star who can make a person famous with a single script, her topic will also be on the headlines.

Shaking her head, Qiao Bailu went to wash herself. The next day was a holiday, so she didn't have to think about getting up early. But Xie Jiayuan, who was used to getting up early, got up quietly at six o'clock, washed up, and went to buy groceries.

First I made breakfast, then prepared lunch. I woke Qiao Bailu up at 8 o'clock and took her to the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth. It was 9 o'clock when they finished breakfast. Qiao Zhenting was doing sit-ups on the yoga mat in the living room with dumbbells. Qiao Bailu was sitting on the sofa with her computer, typing. The sound of the computer and the sound of cutting vegetables in the kitchen mixed together. It didn't seem noisy at all, but very warm.

The dishes were all ready, and Xie Jiayuan started cooking at 10 o'clock. He had to stew fish, braise spareribs, and steam rice, and he was very busy. He had to check the recipe occasionally. He usually ate at school, and he couldn't come back often to cook because he was busy in the laboratory, so he was not very skilled.

But his advantage is that he has talent and has a very precise control over seasonings such as salt and sugar. He always uses just the right amount, not too much or too little. Even if one has only read the recipe once, the dishes he makes are delicious.

Qiao Bailu sniffed and smelled a fragrance in the kitchen. Was this the smell of frying honey peanuts?

He reached out and pinched Qiao Zhenting's arm: "Go and get some peanuts to eat."

Qiao Zhenting was depressed: "You won't go by yourself?"

"I'm too lazy to move. Go quickly." Qiao Bailu pushed him, and Qiao Zhenting had to get up and trot to the kitchen. After a while, he brought out a bowl with a handful of peanuts. Xie Jiayuan said in the kitchen: "Eat less, it's time to eat soon."

Qiao Bailu didn't answer either. She pinched a pill and put it in her mouth. She took a tissue and put it aside. She wiped her hands after eating one pill, typed a paragraph and ate another pill. Qiao Zhenting also changed his movements and did a plank, with his elbows on the ground and his hands tapping his phone in front of him: "Sister, what do you think, should I take an advertisement?"

"Why, your agent said he wants to get you an advertisement?" Qiao Bailu asked curiously, and after thinking for a while, she said, "Actually, I personally don't agree with you taking advertisements. You are mainly an actor, and you are not very famous now. Big-name merchants will not look down on you, and if small-name merchants take it, it will damage your reputation. So, why not wait another two years?"

"But my agent said that my exposure rate is too low." Qiao Zhenting looked up at her. Qiao Bailu frowned: "Didn't you not take any advertisements last year? Once the biography of Empress Lü came out, wouldn't it still be very popular? Speaking of which, isn't your agent Cao Ming? Did he instigate you to take advertisements?"

"No, he didn't say he wanted to take the advertisement. He just said that my exposure rate is too low now. The popularity of the Biography of Empress Lü is about to drop. I have to shoot a TV show again. It will probably take more than half a year or a year. If I don't get exposure, I will be forgotten slowly."

"It's okay. You can shoot and broadcast it at the same time. You can shoot four episodes a month and broadcast one episode a week." Qiao Bailu waved her hand, paused and added: "Exposure rate is not a problem. Let Cao Ming find some better entertainment programs later."

After a pause, he continued, "Or, I'll ask around to see if there are any magazines. It's better for you to shoot a magazine cover than to shoot an advertisement. Okay, you don't have to worry about this. It seems that we have to hurry up and find an agent. He is really a little nervous to take care of six people by himself."

However, she was a little unhappy after all. She had said before that she didn't want Qiao Zhenting to shoot commercials casually. Since the beginning of filming the Biography of Empress Lü, Qiao Zhenting only occasionally released a few stills and appeared on entertainment shows twice, with a very low exposure rate. He was able to get by at that time, but this time it has been more than half a year, and there is one episode per week. He actually complains about the low exposure rate?

Could it be that he saw Zhenting became famous, so he wanted to make more money quickly?

If this is true, then the vision is not good, it is too short-sighted. He does not know how to plan the long-term path for an artist, he can only see the immediate benefits, and is unable to take on heavy responsibilities.

Touching his chin, Qiao Bailu called Zhou Mengyao and asked, "Has our studio received a lot of advertising endorsements recently?"

Zhou Mengyao nodded with a smile: "Yeah, how did you know? Don't you always dislike asking about this kind of things?"

Qiao Bailu knows her strengths. Although the studio belongs to her and Zhou Mengyao, her strengths are writing scripts and following the filming of the crew. She is not very interested in the work arrangements of the studio.

Zhou Mengyao is the manager who has everything under one roof, while Qiao Bailu knows very well what is important.

"Something is wrong with Cao Ming. He urged Zhenting to take on commercials. You should think about it. I'm afraid someone can't resist the temptation." Shooting commercials makes money quickly and easily. A TV series has 80 episodes at most, and usually 20 to 30 episodes. Qiao Zhenting was lucky. He became famous overnight, so he only made 200,000 or 300,000 per episode. It took more than a year to make a series, and he was exposed to wind, rain and sun. In other words, after a year and a half, he only made more than 2 million. You can attract fans when the TV is broadcast, but after the TV is over, you will disappear in front of the audience.

But if you shoot an advertisement, it can be done in an hour if you are fast, and it will take three to five days at most if you are slow. One advertisement can cost hundreds of thousands of yuan. Even if it is less, 50,000 or 60,000 yuan, what about ten advertisements? It only takes ten days, and you can get hundreds of thousands of yuan.

Moreover, an advertisement will be played in a loop for at least one year. During this year, the audience can see your face and remember your face. How can they not be moved?

"Okay, I got it. Don't worry, I have found two agents, one for Zhenting and Xiao Dingran, and one for Li Xue and Lin Xiao. I will ask someone to go to the crew to find Zhenting tomorrow. You can take a look while you are there." Zhou Mengyao responded with a smile.

"What's going on?" Qiao Bailu asked hurriedly. Zhou Mengyao heard the sound of turning on the computer: "Wait, I'll send the information to your email, you can take a look for yourself."

After I hung up the phone, I refreshed my mailbox and saw a new email. I opened it and it was a standard job application document. Name, age, photo, etc.

It was a man, in his twenties, wearing glasses, and looked very gentle. Glancing at his name, Kong Wenhua, graduated from Communication University, had a broker qualification certificate, and used to work for Shengrong Media, but I don't know why he terminated his contract.

Qiao Bailu stared at the photo and observed it carefully. He looked quite...smart and reliable.

"What are you looking at?" Xie Jiayuan asked beside him. Qiao Bailu looked up and said, "Have you finished cooking? Mengyao found a new agent for Zhenting. I want to see who he is. However, his resume doesn't mention why he wants to change jobs. I'm not sure if he can be used."

Xie Jiayuan took a quick look and had no idea: "Looking at the photo, it's pretty good, but I'll have to meet you in person to tell you the details. Are you busy? If not, come over and help me."

Qiao Bailu nodded quickly, put the notebook on the coffee table, and went to the kitchen to help.

They said they were helping, but in fact they just tried the sweet and salty food and ate a few bites.

At 11:30, Brother Xie came over and congratulated him as soon as he entered the room. Speaking of Kong Wenhua, Brother Xie nodded and said, "I know about this. I was the one who drafted the contract. He was originally the agent of a third-tier celebrity in Shengrong. The celebrity found a sponsor of his own, and Kong Wenhua disagreed with this, so the two of them had a falling out."

"What about Shengrong's upper management?" Qiao Bailu asked hurriedly. Brother Xie shook his head and said, "Just look at Kong Wenhua's current situation. The sponsor that the little star found is quite rich. He invested in a TV series, and Shengrong replaced her agent. Kong Wenhua no longer has anyone under her. She is considered to be in cold storage."

If an agent doesn't have a star, then he is like having no job. The company only pays the agent a base salary, and the other part is the commission from the star. The base salary is only a small amount, less than 2,000 yuan, which is barely enough to pay the rent.

Growing up as a small star, and looking at the stars of the entire company from a small star, Kong Wenhua also felt deeply that his ideas were incompatible with Shengrong, so he made a prompt decision and changed jobs.

Fortunately, he doesn't have any stars on his hands, is young, has no resources or background, and the company doesn't make things difficult for him.

"His values are quite positive. For this reason, I agree 70% of the time. The remaining 30% depends on his ability. If he is a loser, we will have to change him when the time comes." Qiao Bailu made the final decision. Qiao Zhenting was speechless: "Find me an agent, right? Why don't you listen to me?"

Qiao Bailu snorted: "If you have any opinions, please speak up. It's up to you whether to speak or not, and it's up to me whether to listen or not."

"I want to find a beautiful agent." Qiao Zhenting said quickly, and Qiao Bailu nodded: "Well, I heard it, you can eat now."

Qiao Zhenting looked at her eagerly: "What then? Can you give me a beautiful manager?"

Qiao Bailu ignored him at all. She was busy serving the fish soup to each person. After finishing her meal, she planned to go out for a walk with Xie Jiayuan. It was a rare holiday and she couldn't stay in the house all the time.

Brother Xie glanced at the aggrieved Qiao Zhenting and couldn't help laughing: "Your sister is doing this for your own good. Celebrities are more likely to have scandals, but fame gained through scandals is just like a mirage that will disappear in the wind. So, she has to choose a better agent for you to give you a more solid foundation."

"I know." Qiao Zhenting dragged out his voice, wanted to say something, paused, and didn't say it.

After dinner, Qiao Bailu was about to change her clothes and go out with Xie Jiayuan when she heard Qiao Zhenting shouting in the house: "Hey, sister, come quickly, someone is slandering you online."

Qiao Bailu frowned and entered Qiao Zhenting's room, and saw several posts on the Haijiao Forum, all talking about the new screenwriter Qiao Bailu's plagiarism. Qiao Zhenting opened them one by one, and the content was roughly the same.

Everything written is plagiarized from the Biography of Empress Lü, and the poster's ID is "Reveal the Truth".

He said that one of his friends was a classmate of Qiao Bailu in college and his grades were much better than Qiao Bailu's. He was so thoughtful to post his transcript here, but no one knew where he got it from.

Qiao Bailu took a quick glance and found that it really matched her grades in college, not a single point different. There was even a school stamp below, which could not be faked.

So, does the person who slandered me have connections in the Academic Affairs Office? Or does he have a friend who is very good at computers?

Next, it is about the friend of the host, who is very talented. At the freshman party that year, a stage play amazed everyone. Seeing this, Qiao Bailu couldn't help but touch her chin again. Is this talking about Huang Qiwen?

So, this matter is to step on myself to promote Huang Qiwen? Whose idea was it? Was it Huang Qiwen's own idea, or was there someone behind Huang Qiwen?

In fact, this post is well written. The first paragraph shows the achievements of the person being plagiarized, proving that the person being plagiarized is more talented. The second paragraph shows the work of the person being plagiarized, proving that the person being plagiarized is also accomplished. In the third paragraph, Qiao Bailu continued to read on.

The corners of his mouth could not help but twitch. The third paragraph talked about how hard the plagiarized Huang Qiwen worked to create the script of The Biography of Empress Lü. It took him three years from preparing materials to writing the script, but it was actually plagiarized by Qiao Bailu.

To be honest, this post is quite provocative. Firstly, Huang Qiwen's achievements are indeed real, and secondly, for a script like The Biography of Empress Lü, two or three years of creation time is already very short according to the level of a normal person.

How long did Qiao Bailu take? Less than a year.

"These people are so abominable!" Qiao Zhenting muttered, "They didn't see it with their own eyes, so how can they believe everything others say?"

Xie Jiayuan and Brother Xie also came in and took a look at the post. Brother Xie frowned and asked, "What are you going to do?"

"Sue." Qiao Bailu blinked: "Find the person who posted this and sue her for defamation. Brother, are you sure about this?"

Brother Xie frowned and pondered for a while. "Tell me about your thoughts and the information you looked up when you wrote the biography of Empress Lü. I am 80% sure that I can win the lawsuit. But you should also be prepared. If the other party can post like this, there must be someone behind him. If the power behind him is too strong, things will be hard to say. In addition, there is no precedent in China for suing for online speech. First, it is difficult to find the poster, and second, the evidence is vague and weak. Do you understand what I mean?"

The remaining 20% are various variables.

"I understand. It seems we can't go out this afternoon. Jiayuan, can you find this IP?" Qiao Bailu turned around and asked. Xie Jiayuan nodded, turned on another computer, and began to trace the source of the IP.

Qiao Bailu took out her phone and called Zhou Mengyao again. Since they were going to sue, the studio had to make a statement. It wasn't that she was making a fuss, but now was the time for her to become famous. If she made a mistake, she might be suppressed in the future. Therefore, she must not let anyone tarnish her reputation at this moment.

So what if it was the first Internet prosecution case in China? The first person to dig for gold would make a lot of money, and there might even be some benefits if he won.

Chapter 73

While Qiao Bailu was planning to sue, an account suddenly appeared on Xinbo. Its name was "Reveal the Truth". It posted a novel. Qiao Bailu only needed to read the beginning to know that the script "Empress Lu" was adapted into a novel.

What made Qiao Bailu depressed was that when she wrote the script, she did not adapt it from her own novel, but wrote it directly. Nowadays, the popular novels on the Internet are about ancient times, either time travel or rebirth, pure ancient words, especially historical ones. Although there is a market, the market is not very good. Moreover, she did not have time at that time, so she just wrote the script directly.

"Now, the first thing we need to do is to find the person behind the network, and secondly, find evidence to prove that Bai Lu did not plagiarize. Bai Lu, do you have any way to prove that this novel is a plagiarism of your script?"

Brother Xie asked. Qiao Bailu frowned slightly, thought for a while, and then shook her head: "Now that the Biography of Empress Lü has been broadcast, the thread of the whole play is very clear. She really wrote it according to the script, so the content of the script must be the same. Just from the content, I can't say that the script came out first."

The other party said that she wrote the novel and only kept it in her computer, waiting to be revised into a script, so she didn't publish it. Although Qiao Bailu was the original author, during the filming, due to confidentiality issues, basically no one except the people in their studio had read the complete script.

"Now we can only find evidence from the time." Xie Jiayuan was busy on the side. Zhou Mengyao held the teacup and said, "Let's be more precise. Since it is said to be plagiarism, why didn't you say anything when the Biography of Empress Lü was first played? Why did you have to wait until Bai Lu won the award before saying anything?"

Qiao Bailu rubbed her brows and said, "I have already published a statement on Xinbo and raised this question. The other party said that they were classmates at the time and didn't want to break up, but now they don't want the public to be deceived."

"Risking the Magnolia Organizing Committee to frame you, Huang Qiwen must have found a big shot this time, right?" Yao Lingling, who was sitting on the other side, touched her chin and turned to look at Zhou Mengyao: "Can you find out Huang Qiwen's recent movements?"

The organizing committee had just given Qiao Bailu the award, and then there was a commotion over there about Qiao Bailu plagiarizing. This was a slap in the face to the organizing committee through Qiao Bailu - look at the winner you chose, she's actually a plagiarist! How blind!

Zhou Mengyao nodded: "I have asked someone to investigate. I think we will have news tomorrow. If she has not left City B in the past two years, it will be very easy to investigate. If she has left, we will probably have to wait for two days. But this matter cannot be delayed. The longer it is delayed, the more disadvantageous it will be for us."

"How are the materials for the prosecution going?" Zhou Mengyao turned to ask Brother Xie, who shook his head, "It's not ready yet. We need to collect materials and find a target for prosecution. We are not sure who is behind the IP address that can reveal the truth. A code name is not enough. Don't worry. Give me two days to prepare. Now you can release the news of the prosecution online first."

Zhou Mengyao nodded. The computer had been placed next to her. She pulled it over and refreshed it on the Haijiao Forum first, then opened the new blog to refresh it.

When the incident first broke out, Qiao Zhenting was the first to react and firmly stood on the side of his sister Qiao Bailu. He has a lot of fans, and with the support of Li Xue and others, he can be considered a force that can withstand the attack from the other side.

Now, it is estimated that the other party's water army is increasing, and the fans are at a disadvantage. Xie Jiayuan shouted from the side: "Bai Lu, open E'e, I will send you a screenshot, you post it on Xinbo."

Qiao Bailu responded quickly and opened it to take a look. It was a series of names and IP addresses. One IP address corresponded to at least four or five people. Open the new blog and post the picture.

Soon a series of messages appeared below.

——There is a hacker standing behind my sister!

——Speaking of which, I am also a die-hard fan of Sister. I still remember an incident several years ago when Sister just debuted. At that time, a hacker also came out to save the beauty.

——The person above is going to talk about this.

——I remember too, my sister who was hung on the wall.

——Hahahaha, there is actually someone lurking in my Xiaofen Forum?

——Come on, come on, I’ll kindly give you the address.

——Get lost, you plagiarist!

——Plagiarism is shameful!

——The above person is a psychopath, and has been identified!

——Water army get out of the entertainment industry!

——Huang Qiwen□□!

——I’ve already said that my sister couldn’t have plagiarized. You are a bunch of idiots who just follow the crowd and can’t even see such an obvious false accusation. Are your heads full of water?

——There is also flour, which will become a paste if you shake it.

——Sister, hold on, we believe in you!

——Sister, hold on, we believe in you!

…

——Sister, hold on, we believe in you!

Even though Qiao Bailu was depressed and angry, she couldn't help but smile when she saw the fans' messages. She posted a new post - I have decided to resort to law to wash away the black water thrown on me. Those manipulators behind the scenes, let's wait and see.

He closed the notebook and turned to look at Xie Jiayuan: "Are you tired? We can only find a rough address, how are we going to catch him?"

"It depends on the judicial department." Xie Jiayuan finally raised his head, turned his neck, and moved his shoulders: "Okay, the Internet trolls have roughly figured out the truth. The address that revealed the truth is also in City B. I can only find out that it is in Hailian District. The details will depend on you."

Zhou Mengyao nodded with a smile: "It's good to be able to find this step. Your level is almost there. By the way, when you lived on campus before, didn't you have a roommate who was in the computer department?"

It is said that the two dormitories had dinner together, but unfortunately she was in a hurry to go home and missed it.

Xie Jiayuan nodded, feeling a little depressed. He used to say that since he could help Bai Lu with things on the Internet, he wouldn't need anyone else. But now it seems that he still needs others.

Forget it, forget it. Everyone has their own expertise. With his level, checking an IP address, writing a small program, and looking at data are already very good. To reach a truly high level, we still need to hire someone from a professional computer department.

"I'll give him a call." Xie Jiayuan nodded, took out his cell phone and started contacting He Liang.

Zhou Mengyao then said to Brother Xie: "We are suing in the name of our studio. What kind of materials do you think we need?"

"I'll write the indictment. I'll ask Bai Lu about the evidence list in detail later. Also, give me the director's contact information. No one else can access this script except the studio, right? When Bai Lu finished writing it, was it saved in the computer? Where did you copy it? Do you remember the time clearly?"

After asking a few questions casually, he said, "In addition, you will need a copy of the studio's business license and a copy of the organization code certificate, both of which must be stamped with the official seal." As he spoke, he started typing on his notebook.

Qiao Bailu began to try to recall the details that could be used as evidence: "When I started writing the script, I was already a senior in college. I rarely went to school. In addition, my computer had a password, especially for documents. I had to set another password, so I was sure that no one could see my script. There were archives in the computer. I have always been cautious. In addition to the computer, there is another disk with documents. The disk has always been in the drawer of the room. No one can touch it except to take it to the copy shop. When I went to copy it..."

Brother Xie would carefully consider each item, and then ask more detailed questions: "Do you usually print documents at any copy shop?"

"Of course not. How could I just go to a random copy shop for something as important as the script? Apart from printing scripts, I don't usually use a printer. On the one hand, it's because I'm lazy, and on the other hand, it's because I want to save money. I always go to Sister Zhou."

Remembering that Brother Xie didn't know Zhou Yanhua, he explained, "It's Zhou Yanhua, a distant cousin of Mengyao. She helped me in the past. My teacher was introduced by Sister Zhou. She now manages two magazines and has a copier in her company."

"Did anyone see you when you went to make copies?" Brother Xie asked again. Qiao Bailu nodded: "Every time I went there, I went there when they were working and there were people around. The whole magazine can testify to that."

Zhou Mengyao touched her chin and said, "I think it would be more cost-effective for our studio to buy a copier. Not only can it copy scripts, but also contracts and other things. We will definitely need it in the future, so the sooner we buy it, the sooner we can use it."

Qiao Bailu nodded: "Yes, I didn't think of it before, you should buy it quickly."

Two days later, the online debate became more and more intense, and Zhou Mengyao finally brought new news: "Huang Qiwen has indeed found a backer. Did you watch the urban drama Hai Lan Lan that aired last year? It was written by Huang Qiwen."

Qiao Bailu was a little surprised: "Did she really write it? Why haven't I heard about it?"

"Because we didn't pay attention to it. We were busy promoting and filming Empress Lü's Rebirth last year. Besides, we only paid attention to historical dramas. No one really paid attention to urban dramas."

The most important thing is that when people watch TV, they rarely pay attention to who the screenwriter is. Zhou Mengyao is more concerned about which company produced the TV and whether it will conflict with her own productions. Qiao Bailu is more concerned about whether the show can be successful and that there must not be any problems during the filming process.

"How can an urban drama be compared to our historical drama?" Qiao Bailu was puzzled. After thinking for a while, she suddenly clapped her hands: "Oh, I was wondering why the name Hai Lanlan sounds so familiar. It turns out I've heard of it before."

Then he muttered to Zhou Mengyao. When he went to the award ceremony, a screenwriter of an urban drama, who was also nominated for Best Screenwriter, chatted with Qiao Bailu on the spot and mentioned the name Hai Lanlan.

"Huang Qiwen didn't get a nomination, but the TV series Hai Lanlan was nominated for Best Supporting Actress, and it was said that a spot in our crew was transferred." Qiao Bailu shook her head and asked, "You said there is someone behind Huang Qiwen, who is it?"

"You know Shengrong, right? I told you last time that Kong Wenhua graduated from Shengrong." Zhou Mengyao raised her eyebrows: "Huang Qiwen joined Shengrong after graduation."

Qiao Bailu blinked: "Didn't they say that Shengrong's ethos is not very upright?"

"Well, you are right. I asked someone to find out about Huang Qiwen. Huang Qiwen has been dating a senior executive of Shengrong recently. That person probably wants to promote Huang Qiwen, so he found you as a stepping stone."

Qiao Bailu looked depressed: "Why did you find me?"

"Maybe because it's interesting? You two are classmates in the same class, and both became famous in school through stage plays. Now you are both on the road to screenwriting. You are both pretty and there are a lot of topics. Don't you know that you have the title of beautiful screenwriter on the Internet?"

Zhou Mengyao said with a smile, and Qiao Bailu shook her head: “I only know that I am called the national sister, and my fans all call me sister.”

Now that we have found the cause, things will be much easier. He Liang is also an expert. Compared with Xie Jiayuan who could only find out a rough address, he even hacked into the other party's computer and found a lot of information.

Zhou Mengyao was naturally very tempted by such talent, and she followed him around in circles: "Are you really not going to consider coming to our studio? The salary is good, and it's not a busy job. You just need to maintain the website, manage the official page, etc. It's very easy. Would you consider it?"

He Liang shook his head and refused with a smile: "My current job is pretty good, and I don't want to change it for now. I'll wait and see. I say, Bai Lu, why is your luck so bad? Every time you want to become famous, you are framed. If it weren't for the difficulty in moving the script of the stage play, I guess even that would have happened once, right?"

Xie Jiayuan said angrily: "If you are done with your work, leave quickly. Aren't you going on a date?"

"This is really throw it away after use. Forget it, I'm your good buddy. I'll go back now. If you have anything, just call me." He Liang said with a smile. Qiao Bailu patted Xie Jiayuan and said, "Don't, Jiayuan, I'm kidding you. You helped us a lot. Stay for dinner. I ordered takeout and it will be delivered soon. Is your girlfriend off work? If she is, you can pick her up. Otherwise, let's go out for dinner?"

Suddenly, he remembered that Qiao Zhenting lived with him. He was now quite famous, and it was not easy to expose his residence. Although he guessed that He Liang's girlfriend was not a fan, she didn't know him, so it would not be nice to let someone come to her house rashly.

He Liang shook his head: "No need, we are all classmates, there is no need to be polite. Even if I don't consider Xie Jiayuan's face, I have to consider Han Xiulan's face."

Bella Qiao blinked, a little surprised: “Han Xiulan?”

"Well, I forgot to tell you that we got together the year before last. Speaking of which, I have to thank you two very much. If I hadn't been to the Literature Department so often, I wouldn't have met Xiulan."

He Liang blinked and smiled, "Thank you, brother."

Xie Jiayuan touched his chin: "I accidentally became a matchmaker. You are really smart. Now that you are with Han Xiulan, you have to treat her well in the future, okay? I would like to congratulate you first. You finally got the beauty."

Qiao Bailu was speechless. This world was too small. Before, Xie Jiayuan said that his friends found girlfriends because they often went to the School of Arts. She thought it was a joke, but unexpectedly, she actually met a couple.

After seeing He Liang off, Zhou Mengyao hurried out with the materials. At the same time, she also made appointments with several magazines and newspapers, and paid attention to the handling of public opinion while filing a lawsuit.

On the online side, Liu Aiping is in charge. While collecting information that is unfavorable to Qiao Bailu, she also has to throw dirty water back in a well-reasoned manner. For example, Huang Qiwen did some not-so-good things when she was in school, and exposing them now could cause controversy.

This case is actually very simple. As long as we find evidence, either Qiao Bailu's script came out first or the other party's novel came out first. Qiao Bailu has documents in her computer as evidence. When a document is saved, there is a time stamp, the last time it was revised, and the time when the document was first created. Fortunately, her computer system has not been changed in the past two years.

Huang Qiwen said that the computer had been repaired and the original version could not be found. Now this version was slowly recalled. In terms of time, it was after Empress Lü spread it. If the computer is repaired and the system is reinstalled, the documents will generally not be lost. Even if it is lost, as long as the disk is still there, there is a great possibility of finding it.

They sent someone to take Huang Qiwen's computer away, and after two days of searching, they said they couldn't find the documents.

With this time issue and the fact that Huang Qiwen did not have the original document, the case was basically settled, although the evidence was a little thin. But the court also made a clear judgment - Qiao Bailu did not plagiarize, and the Biography of Empress Lü was indeed Qiao Bailu's original work.

But when Qiao Bailu sued Huang Qiwen, it was for defamation. In the end, the person who revealed the truth was not Huang Qiwen, but a girl in her twenties named Li Min. She only said that she couldn't stand Qiao Bailu and didn't throw any dirty water on Huang Qiwen.

Although He Liang found the real person and the contents of the computer, he could not find the evidence of the transaction. The other party was too filial and there was no trace of it in the computer. The account on Xinbo was also Li Min's, not Huang Qiwen's.

So, at this point, Huang Qiwen had completely distanced herself from the matter. Those Internet trolls only published comments that were unfavorable to Qiao Bailu online and did nothing else, so the defamation case was not established.

This is not the future, where you can go to jail for forwarding 500 messages. What's more, those people did not forward more than 500 messages.

The defamation case was not established, and Huang Qiwen was not affected. Li Min was ordered to pay 20,000 yuan for plagiarizing the Biography of Empress Lü. But does Qiao Bailu need this 20,000 yuan?

After leaving the court, Qiao Bailu wanted to throw the bag in her hand at Huang Qiwen's face, but Huang Qiwen smiled brightly: "Bailu, I'm really sorry, I didn't expect that someone would use my name to go against you. I guess, are we both being fooled? Is that Li Min just now crazy about becoming famous, so she dragged us both into the water?"

Qiao Bailu frowned and ignored Huang Qiwen. She turned around and saw the media waiting outside. She paused and walked over directly: "Hello everyone, the case is over. You are still waiting here in such a hot day. It's really hard work."

The cameras immediately turned around: "Ms. Qiao, what is the final result of this case? You really didn't plagiarize, right? What's the matter with the novel on the Internet?"

"I really didn't plagiarize. The judge is very fair and gave me an innocent verdict." Qiao Bailu smiled and waved her hand: "Don't worry, since I'm here to tell you, I will definitely tell you the complete result."

"This time, the incident started because the IP "Reveal the Truth" accused me of plagiarism, and then a novel version of the Biography of Empress Lü appeared online. Naturally, I wanted to protect my rights, so I decided to take the case to court."

"The person who revealed the truth was a woman named Li Min. She lost the case and was ordered to pay me 20,000 yuan. Huang Qiwen was not punished. These things were eventually found to have nothing to do with Huang Qiwen. Although I don't really believe it, I have no evidence, so I can only let it go."

Huang Qiwen hadn't walked far yet, but when she heard these words, her face changed: "Bai Lu, how could you do this? I am a victim just like you. That Li Min just wanted to drag the two of us into this, and she just picked someone to be the scapegoat. You and I have been in the same class for many years, don't you know my temper?"

Qiao Bailu sneered, turned around and got into the car. She was planning to break up with Huang Qiwen, so there was no need for her to pretend to be good friends in front of the media.

When she was in college, Huang Qiwen could always get away with the rumors by saying it was a joke. Now she claims she was a victim and she really wants to think she is innocent. Is there anyone in the world so stupid as to believe her?

After returning home, Qiao Bailu immediately posted on her new blog - Some people, God is watching what they do, don't think you can really claim to be innocent without evidence. Why didn't Li Min say anything but others said you, Huang Qiwen?

Then, the result of today's trial was posted. The Internet immediately exploded, some said Huang Qiwen might really be wronged, some said Huang Qiwen was a scheming bitch, she didn't step forward, let others do all the bad things, and in the end all she had to do was act innocent.

The court trial results are out, and no one says that Qiao Bailu plagiarized anymore. Some passers-by immediately became fans, and some haters became passers-by.

Qiao Zhenting was very proud and posted his handsome photo online - the rain has passed and the sky is clear. My sister has been wronged, so I plan to treat her to a big meal~

A group of people lined up below to ask where to eat, hoping to meet someone by chance or to be fed. Qiao Zhenting laughed when he saw this, turned around to show off to Qiao Bailu, and patted his wallet: "Come on, I'll really treat you to a big meal. We're done, and there are many people who have contributed. Let's call everyone and have a meal together."

As soon as Qiao Bailu nodded, Zhou Mengyao called: "Bailu, we were taken advantage of! Damn it! I was wondering why that shameless Huang Qiwen would use such a low-level method. It turns out that her purpose was not to plagiarize! She was taking advantage of you and Zhenting, and our studio!"

Chapter 74

"Go to Xinbo and see what that shameless Huang Qiwen just posted. Damn it, she's using us to hype herself up!" Zhou Mengyao said angrily, while Qiao Bailu had already turned on her computer.

There is no need to search specifically, the first hot topic is - a new historical drama written by a beautiful screenwriter. When I opened it, the top was a new announcement from Shengrong Company, saying that the latest work of beautiful screenwriter Huang Qiwen, Empress Wu Mei Niang, was about to start filming. It was an investment of 800 million yuan and the most popular actress in the entertainment industry, Cheng Meijia, was invited to star in the TV series.

At the beginning, no one paid attention to who Huang Qiwen was. Even though she had been a screenwriter and had written TV series, the market response was average, with neither profit nor loss, so she was not famous.

But Qiao Bailu is different. The TV series she starred in as soon as she debuted became very popular. She single-handedly made the popular young actor Qiao Zhenting famous. She established her foothold with the second series, and the third series started to sell well. Not only did many people in the circle pay attention to her, but even people outside the circle were very familiar with Qiao Bailu because of Qiao Zhenting. So her popularity is almost comparable to that of a second-tier female star.

The story of Huang Qiwen and Qiao Bailu is like an unknown 18th-tier star being involved in a scandal with a second-tier star. Originally, everyone was curious, who is Huang Qiwen? Now when it is mentioned, the reaction becomes like this - Oh, the screenwriter who said Qiao Bailu plagiarized.

For those who know, that sentence is a joke or an explanation, it is just an attributive without any other meaning. But for those who don’t know, the meaning of this sentence has changed.

After quickly reading the entire news, Qiao Bailu was extremely angry. She said that she and Huang Qiwen had never interfered with each other before, so why did Huang Qiwen have to be so desperate to get herself into trouble? After the lawsuit, they didn't get any benefits, and she didn't suffer any losses either, so why bother?

Who would have thought that people don't care whether they waste time or energy, what they care about is whether they can build a reputation.

Soon, Zhou Mengyao sent another address. Qiao Bailu opened it and it was obviously a press conference. Huang Qiwen was wearing a white dress, looking very pure and beautiful, and she was smiling at the reporters.

——Ms. Huang, is it true that screenwriter Qiao sued you for defamation? Did you slander screenwriter Qiao in the beginning? Now that the truth is out, how do you plan to explain this matter?

"Hey, if I have the chance, I still want to say sorry to Bai Lu. Although that incident was not my fault, I was kept in the dark and had no idea what happened at first. When I received the court summons, I was still thinking that although Bai Lu and I were not particularly good girlfriends, we were still friends and I had never offended her. Why did she sue me without saying a word?"

"Later, I found out what happened. I didn't know Li Min, and I didn't know why she said Bai Lu plagiarized my novel. But if you think about it, you know it's impossible. The Biography of Empress Lü is already so famous. If it was plagiarism, why did they have to wait until the TV station finished broadcasting it before breaking the news? Bai Lu didn't think clearly at the time, so she misunderstood me. I can understand that."

——Why did Li Min mention you instead of others?

"I think it's probably because Bai Lu and I are of similar age and have similar achievements. If I had just picked someone randomly, no one would have believed it, right? As for why Li Min framed Bai Lu and me, I think it was probably for fame. But she didn't expect that Bai Lu would take prompt action and take the case to court, so the matter turned into a lawsuit."

Qiao Bailu almost dropped her mouse. At first, she implied that she was narrow-minded. When something happened, she didn't ask her old friend for clarification, but quietly took it to court. The word "mean" was almost spoken out loud.

Then he implied that he was innocent, that Qiao Bailu was taking the opportunity to cause trouble, and that Qiao Bailu was a fool. It turned out that Qiao Bailu was a sharp-tongued person who would not forgive others when he should. He was just short of having the words "white lotus" written on his face.

"Which magazines are these reporters from?" he asked through gritted teeth. Zhou Mengyao's mouse clicked twice. "The ones leading the topic are reporters from Xinhe and Hailuo websites. The others are not too famous. I thought, since it's hype, why don't we take the opportunity to announce our TV series as well?"

"No, we don't have to announce everything. Just say that our studio has a new movie coming out. The subject matter, name, and leading actors must remain confidential. Huang Qiwen will hold a press conference, and so will we. How many reporters can you find?"

"It would feel a bit like falling behind and repeating what others have said if we speak out now. What I mean is that we should make public the transaction between Huang Qiwen and the top management of Shengrong..." Zhou Mengyao was a little hesitant. They were all girls, and she understood that if the transaction was really made public, Huang Qiwen's reputation would be ruined, and her future marriage might be in turmoil.

But on the other hand, she felt that Huang Qiwen had brought this upon herself. She was a good girl, but she didn't love herself or respect herself. She had to step on their studio to become famous and Bai Lu to get opportunities. This was simply intolerable. She wasn't a pushover who could be easily bullied by others. What was the difference between Bai Lu being wronged and herself being wronged? She and Bai Lu were not just partners, they were sisters.

Huang Qiwen was allowed to use such despicable means to throw dirty water on Bai Lu, but they were not allowed to fight back?

Qiao Bailu was also a little hesitant. After thinking for a while, she asked, "Do you know the name and position of that senior executive?"

"We have photos. If we ask around, we'll know, right?" Zhou Mengyao said. Qiao Bailu shook her head. "You can ask around first to see what position this senior executive holds. Will Shengrong be affected by losing such a person? If not, we can release the photos. If so, we'll have to find another way."

The studio has just started to develop. If Sheng Rong cannot be abandoned, then they cannot use eggs to hit stones. If they can be abandoned, considering that he previously helped Huang Qiwen to smash bricks against the studio, it doesn't matter if the photos are sent out.

As for what will happen to Huang Qiwen in the future, Qiao Bailu doesn't have much sympathy. Anyway, everyone has to pay for what they do. She was able to do it in the beginning, so now she has to bear the consequences.

Now she has swallowed the grievances given to her by Huang Qiwen silently. What if someone else uses the same method on her in the future? The studio will only become more and more famous, and she will also rise higher and higher in the future. In the future, other people's methods may become more and more advanced and powerful. Is she going to tolerate it again and again?

Although an outburst now would not stop all kinds of means from being used in the future, at least this time, it was a warning to others, and no one would resort to any means again in the short term. And taking this opportunity, she moved up a level and brought back the Best Actor Award for Zhen Ting. The higher she stood, the more she saw, and the better she could keep it.

Zhou Mengyao responded, thought for a moment, and then comforted him, "Don't worry about it. The crew has already started work. Hurry up and follow up. Don't let these things delay our filming. There are three crews. It's busy enough for you to go to one a day."

"I see. I was planning to go there tomorrow." Qiao Bailu also forced a smile: "Don't worry about it alone. If you need any help from me, just let me know. I'll go post a new blog first."

"Well, the relationship has already been torn apart anyway. No matter how nice Huang Qiwen said at the press conference, you don't have to care. Just scold her if you want." Zhou Mengyao said with a smile, but she was a little troubled by the people behind Huang Qiwen.

How should I put it? Although Shengrong is not the leader in the industry, it is still a behemoth compared to their studio. Mr. Zhou is also famous in City B, but Mr. Zhou's base is not in the entertainment industry. He has weight elsewhere, but few people are willing to listen to what he says here.

They had completely offended Sheng Rong. As long as Sheng Rong blocked the review of the TV series, their studio would basically have no future.

Although it was just a battle between two screenwriters, it didn't make sense for Sheng Rong to help Qiao Bailu, the enemy, instead of protecting his beloved general. Therefore, the best way now was to find a helper who could unite and withstand the giant Sheng Rong.

If you want to find someone to cooperate with, you have to give them some benefits. The only ones that can be offered by our studio are Li Xue, Qiao Zhenting, and Qiao Bailu. But Li Xue and Qiao Zhenting are still filming. By the way, the supporting actresses and male actors in the three dramas have just been decided, and these quotas cannot be used to exchange. So, we can only use Bailu's script to exchange?

But Bai Lu is now following three crews, and she is probably too busy to be apart. Zhou Mengyao pressed her forehead, this is the disadvantage of a small studio, there are not enough resources at critical moments.

Maybe I can ask Teacher Zhou? Teacher Zhou hasn't written for two years. If Teacher Zhou can give me a script... In the circle, there are more than one or two people who want Teacher Zhou's script.

Thinking about this, Zhou Mengyao quickly called Zhou He. Actually, the two families had nothing to do with each other, but because Zhou Yanhua was in the middle, they could be related.

As soon as the call was connected, Zhou Mengyao hurriedly called uncle sweetly, told him what happened before, and finally made her request: "I was thinking, please give me a script, preferably a movie script, which has a short cycle and can be effective immediately. I don't know if you have any good scripts recently. If it can help me out, then you will be a great help to me."

Zhou He hesitated for a moment and asked, "How are you going to solve the Bai Lu issue?"

"It's divided into two steps. The first step is to check Huang Qiwen's background and then decide whether to release the photo. If the photo cannot be released, we will hire a network of cyber soldiers to expose Huang Qiwen's true colors. The second step is to prevent Sheng Rong from suppressing our studio. Therefore, we need to find a partner first. The filming cycle of a movie is not short, at least one year. With this year, Bai Lu's three dramas can be released. By then, she will have made a name for herself, and Sheng Rong will have to think twice before taking action."

"You've thought it through. It just so happens that I have a script here. I've been busy with it for the past two years. However, I will never allow my script to fail. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Uncle, then our studio can just take Xiaotou." Zhou Mengyao quickly changed her mind. At first, she asked for the script because she wanted to use the script to control the people from other film and television companies. Now, she wanted Zhou He to come forward and make connections for the studio, and she asked for protection for Zhou He's sake.

Zhou He paused for a moment and couldn't help laughing: "You are quite clever, girl. So tell me, who has time available in your studio now?"

"Uncle, it's hard to say. It depends on whether your script is for men or women. We can't just let anyone in, right?" Zhou Mengyao said with a smile, and then a little embarrassed: "Look, you are Bai Lu's teacher. Bai Lu has never written a movie script..."

Zhou He coughed lightly and said, "Alright, alright, the little girl has a lot of tricks up her sleeve, don't worry. Bailu is my student. If she is wronged, would I not say a word? I was originally thinking about when Bailu would remember to look for me, but I didn't expect you to show up first. Just wait and let Bailu come to me in person later."

Zhou Mengyao quickly agreed, and couldn't help wiping her sweat after hanging up the phone. What a big mistake. She didn't even think of asking Teacher Zhou for help at the beginning! The entertainment industry actually values the relationship between teachers and students, especially those who have helped each other.

Qiao Bailu and Mr. Zhou's family have a close relationship. This time, she only thought that she could solve the problem by herself, but she forgot that they could also find a backer. Literati have many reputations. Qiao Bailu is Zhou He's disciple. Qiao Bailu has the reputation of plagiarism, which is not a good thing for Zhou He.

He quickly called Qiao Bailu again. Qiao Bailu was also shocked. She didn't bother to read the message. She called Zhou He right away and said with a flattering smile, "I just thought I could solve it myself, so I didn't want to trouble the teacher. Since the teacher accepted me as a student, I should enjoy my blessing. But not only did I fail to bring honor to the teacher, but something like this happened. I was afraid that the teacher would be angry, so I didn't dare to tell him."

"Yes, yes, I know I was wrong. If I encounter something like this again in the future, I will definitely ask the teacher for help."

"Really, teacher, I know I was wrong. Mengyao told me about the script? Oh, actually, even if Mengyao hadn't told me, I would have planned to ask you for help. But I didn't think of looking for a script at first. I thought you know a lot of people, maybe you have friends in the media, and you could come forward and say something. Shengrong wouldn't be too upset about this kind of thing."

"Yes, the bigger the company, the more it has to pay attention to its reputation." Qiao Bailu was also quick-witted. She quickly made a few excuses to cheer Zhou He up, and then talked about the script again: "A man's play? But isn't it too early for Zhenting now?"

"No, he's just a supporting actor, the second male lead, not an important role. Zhen Ting is not without achievements. He played Nanzhu when he debuted, and later won the Best Supporting Actor award, so he is considered qualified."

Zhou He said gently, "Don't worry. The script has just been completed. From now on, we need to find a film and television company and select actors. It will take at least three months to prepare everything. Aren't you filming a TV series now? Finish Zhenting's part first, and then you can join the crew. The filming of TV and movies is different. Sooner or later, you will have to deal with movie scripts."

This was definitely a good thing for Qiao Bailu, so she quickly agreed. As for time, isn't there a famous saying? Time is like water in a sponge, you can squeeze it out.

After hanging up the phone, I hurried to the crew with my notebook.

From then on, the siblings began their busy lives. Qiao Bailu was better off. As long as she made the main idea of the script clear and made the director understand her meaning, the three crews could just move around.

But Qiao Zhenting couldn't do that. Originally, his mythological drama was a unit drama. At first, he planned to shoot four episodes a month and broadcast one episode a week. But now, time is too tight, so Qiao Zhenting's scenes were all moved forward.

There are daytime scenes and nighttime scenes. The key is that this mythological drama has quite a lot of scenes at night, and Qiao Zhenting often has to work until midnight. Even if he lives on the set, he has very little time to rest.

As for Huang Qiwen, she made a fuss on Xinbo for a while. Later, Qiao Bailu stopped showing up, and the studio completely ignored Huang Qiwen and treated her as if she didn't exist and had no opponent. Her performance almost became a one-man show, and finally she couldn't continue and ended it.

As for posting the photos, it didn't happen in the end. The person Huang Qiwen had hooked up with was in a very high position, and Sheng Rong couldn't leave him for the time being. So, he could only swallow his anger for the time being.

But Zhou Mengyao didn't let Huang Qiwen have an easy time either. She found a well-known MLM account on Xinbo and went through the whole thing from beginning to end. She then found a well-known account to repost it, and specifically pointed out several of Huang Qiwen's scheming intentions.

Therefore, Huang Qiwen's reputation as a scheming bitch was completely established. But none of this had anything to do with Qiao Bailu. What was the best way to attack an enemy? Make your enemy's life better. Qiao Bailu was also planning to let Qiao Zhenting compete for the Best Actor Award, but she didn't have time to keep competing with Huang Qiwen.

In September, Zhou He called Qiao Bailu and said, "We have already found a film and television company, Baina Films. Bring Zhenting over here and we will go meet the director."

As for the cooperation between the studio and the film and television company, it was handled by Brother Xie and Zhou He. As long as Qiao Zhenting's acting skills were up to standard and the contract was signed, the role of the second male lead would belong to Qiao Zhenting.

Just before departure, Qiao Zhenting suddenly poked his head out of the room and said, "Sister, Kong Wenhua said she will come to pick us up later."

"Kong Wenhua?" Qiao Bailu blinked. Zhou Mengyao had found an agent for Qiao Zhenting before, and Kong Wenhua had also contributed a lot to Huang Qiwen's previous incident. Some of the remarks made by Qiao Zhenting and Qiao Bailu on their new blogs were made up by Kong Wenhua and were very inflammatory.

In addition, although Kong Wenhua did not explain Huang Qiwen's identity and some internal affairs of Shengrong due to industry rules, he also gave some hints. In addition, he is also a real talent. In the past few months, he has helped Li Xue get a supporting role in a movie. Of course, the screenwriter is not as good as Zhou He, but the production company is also second-rate, which is not bad.

"Bai Lu, Zhen Ting, have you had lunch?" Kong Wenhua was waiting downstairs in the car. When he saw the siblings coming out, he opened the car door and asked, "I brought the contract with me. If it's okay later, Brother Xie said he would just sign the contract and bring it back."

"Well, I'm going to audition, but I don't know the result yet." Qiao Zhenting said with a smile. He wasn't too nervous because Zhou He was there. As long as he didn't make any big mistakes, the role would basically be decided, just like Zhou He's previous anti-Japanese drama. However, there was no need to explain it in too much detail to Kong Wenhua.

"There are some snacks in the back, feel free to take them." Kong Wenhua said with a smile, started the car, and drove to Baina Film and Television Company. Zhou He and the director were waiting on the 12th floor, so they could just go up.

Qiao Bailu greeted Zhou He with a smile, and Qiao Zhenting also behaved very well.

"This is the Qiao Zhenting I told you about. Look at his appearance. Doesn't he look good?" Zhou He said with a smile. The middle-aged man looked Qiao Zhenting up and down and nodded. "His appearance is indeed good, but it's still hard to say whether he can do it. Let's not waste time talking. You do a segment."

Then he handed the script to Qiao Zhenting: "Have you read the script before?"

Qiao Zhenting shook his head honestly. Zhou He smiled and said, "No one has read the script. Just pick a paragraph at random."

"Then act out the scene where Ying Ruyu's true identity is revealed." The director said immediately. This play is a martial arts play. The hero is a descendant of a martial arts family and is naturally unrestrained. The story begins because many murders have occurred in the martial arts world. The leader of the martial arts world issued a call to gather the martial arts world to find the murderer.

Most people tend to believe that the murderer is a cultist, but the leader of the martial arts world has a high IQ and says that there must be evidence, so he selects martial arts rookies and asks them to investigate the case.

Ying Ruyu is Nanzhu's good friend. Unlike Nanzhu, Ying Ruyu is truly worthy of his name, a gentleman like jade, gentle and upright. Every movie needs a villain, and Ying Ruyu is the biggest villain in this script.

Gentle and gentle in the early stage, but ferocious and crazy in the later stage, this role is a real test of acting skills. If he plays it well, Qiao Zhenting can reach a higher level. If he plays it badly, optimistically speaking, he will fall into clichés, and pessimistically speaking, he will become a stereotyped person.

Qiao Zhenting held the script in his hand, took a deep breath, and didn't rush. He carefully read the outline at the beginning, and then turned to the scene where Ying Ruyu was exposed. He calmed down and pondered for a long time before looking up: "Director, I'm ready."

He took a step forward and placed the script on the table. He took another step back, and the look on his face changed. His face was expressionless, but his eyes were filled with madness. His fingers trembled nervously for a few times. After a while, the corners of his mouth turned up, revealing a weird smile: "So what if it's me? These people deserve to die!"

As he spoke, he took a step forward, leaned forward, and the smile on his face widened. His voice was very gentle: "You want to kill me to avenge them? I am a brother who grew up with you. They have nothing to do with you. For them, you want to kill me?"

Then, veins popped out on his neck, but the smile on his face remained unchanged. He just opened his fingers into claws, raised his arms slightly, and said in a sinister tone, "Come on, let me see if your blood is the same as theirs."

Chapter 75

What is different from other movies is that the villain has no hardship, he is just a perverted killer who likes the smell of blood and the pleasure of killing. Qiao Zhenting's audition just now was also given a score of 7 by people in Qiao Bailu's circle.

However, the director didn't say anything after watching it, and tapped his fingers on the armrest of the sofa. Qiao Bailu was unsure of his attitude, so she looked at Zhou He. Zhou He shook his head slightly, signaling her to keep quiet.

Qiao Zhenting was a little nervous, but he stood there without moving. After about two or three minutes, the director said, "Turn around so I can see."

Qiao Zhenting turned around quickly, but because he didn't know the director's purpose, he turned slowly. The director didn't urge him, but just nodded: "Can you lose ten pounds in a month?"

Qiao Zhenting's eyes lit up immediately and he nodded quickly: "Yes."

"Okay, report to the crew in a month. I'll have someone send you the location later." The director smiled and turned to look at Zhou He: "The seedlings are good. Although they are a little tender, they can grow if they are cultivated well."

After a pause, he said to Qiao Zhenting, "How do you feel about your audition just now?"

"I think it's okay. In my understanding, Ying Ruyu is a person with a twisted nature..." Qiao Zhenting said quickly. The first impression seemed to be good. Maybe the director's questions were meant to give him some advice, and he couldn't miss it.

The director nodded slowly. "That's right. Ying Ruyu doesn't have any difficulties. He grew up in luxury. Killing is a hobby for him. At the same time, he feels that seeing others running around like headless flies, the whole world is looking for the murderer, and almost everyone is in a panic, is a kind of pleasure for him..."

Qiao Zhenting nodded quickly, and the director continued, "For a person with such a twisted mentality, facial expressions cannot be used alone. He needs to have some kind of morbidity, such as neurotic movements, but he has not been discovered, and the movements cannot be too obvious. Your current figure is just right for playing ordinary roles, but if you want to play a slightly morbid person, you still need to be thinner."

"TV screens are different from movie screens. Movie screens are bigger and show more things. Even the slightest flaw will be magnified countless times in front of the audience."

Perhaps because he was in a good mood, or perhaps because of Zhou He's kindness, the director did not hold back and excitedly commented on Ying Ruyu's image. Zhou He also said a few words from time to time, pointing out the character's personality, the meaning he wanted to express, and the changes in the early and later stages.

This was a rare opportunity, and Qiao Zhenting listened attentively. Qiao Bailu also occasionally summarized some characteristics of movie scripts and things that should be paid attention to on the big screen. The four of them were so engrossed in what they were saying that they didn't notice that it was dark in the blink of an eye.

Zhou He stood up first: "It's so late, let's just go eat. Lao He, come on, let's go have a drink."

Director He was a little hesitant, so Qiao Zhenting quickly said, "Director He, go ahead. I want to thank you for your guidance today. It's late now anyway, and it would be troublesome to go home. Why don't we eat outside?"

"That's right. It's getting late now. My sister-in-law has probably cleaned up the dishes. Don't bother her." Zhou He pulled Director He, and Director He had no choice but to nod: "Okay, but you can't drink. My wife is pregnant and can't stand the smell of alcohol and cigarettes recently."

"Why drink? My apprentice is here. It's not good for girls to drink at night." Zhou He also smiled and asked Qiao Bailu and her brother to get in the car. The group went directly to a Hunan restaurant.

For the next month, Qiao Zhenting was in dire straits. He had a bowl of oatmeal and a boiled egg for breakfast, and then went straight to the gym. He practiced with his personal trainer for an hour, then jogged for an hour. For lunch, he had either beef or chicken, and a fist-sized piece of rice. In the afternoon, he practiced with the equipment for an hour, followed by a personal trainer's class, and jogged for an hour. For dinner, he had a bag of yogurt and three eggs. If he was very hungry, he would add two cucumbers.

When Qiao Zhenting came back two days ago, he fell on the sofa as soon as he entered the door, and didn't even want to lift his arms until he went to sleep.

Qiao Bailu felt sorry for him, so she stopped cooking at home and went to eat in the cafeteria with Xie Jiayuan every day. She also packed up all the snacks at home and gave them away, so that the kid wouldn't have to look for them everywhere when he was hungry.

If the base number is large, losing ten pounds a month is actually quite normal and can be easily achieved. But Qiao Zhenting himself is not fat and has a very normal figure. In this case, losing ten pounds is quite difficult.

I work so hard every day, but only lose one kilogram a week. After a month, I'm down to four kilograms. What should I do if I still need two kilograms?

Qiao Zhenting was about to cry: "Is this okay? Sister, do you think I have lost weight? Do I look sick at all?"

Qiao Bailu felt very distressed and pinched her almost fleshless face: "I think it's about time. How about you wear a pair of high heels when the time comes? People look much thinner when they are taller. If that doesn't work, I'll buy you a body shaper."

"What the hell is a body-shaping garment?" Qiao Zhenting looked confused. Qiao Bailu went back to the room and brought out a small vest: "This is it, feel it."

She often sits down to type, which makes her belly fatter, so she bought this one specifically to control her stomach so that she can eat less at lunch. But after using it for two days, she felt really uncomfortable. She would rather go running for two hours every day than wear this one.

Qiao Zhenting pulled at it with both hands, looking speechless: "I can't wear it at all, right?"

"There are large sizes, but they must be uncomfortable to wear. How about this, don't you have to go to the crew tomorrow? Ask the director first if it's okay for you to wear it like this. If not, we can talk about it later." Qiao Bailu had no choice but to grab the clothes and throw them aside: "Quick, show me a part first, the part before death."

Qiao Zhenting didn't want to move, but Qiao Bailu kept pulling him, so he had to get up. He recalled the plot and lay down on the ground. His aura changed and a smile appeared on his face, but it was a very strange smile, and he looked like a puppet.

"It's finally over. I'm going to die too." His eyes rolled mechanically, staring in one direction, and he licked his lips with his tongue: "My blood tastes fishy too."

In the blink of an eye, there was no sound. Qiao Bailu thought he was brewing something, but after waiting for a long time, there was no response. She called twice but there was no response. She called again, and the person lying on the ground turned over and changed direction to continue sleeping.

Qiao Bailu's mouth twitched. She wanted to pull him up, but she didn't have enough strength, so she simply threw a summer quilt on him. She had to wake him up quickly. Even if it was hot, the air conditioner was on. If he caught a cold sleeping on the floor, how would he go to the crew tomorrow?

The next morning, Kong Wenhua came early again to pick up the siblings and sent them to the crew. Director He and Zhou He had already arrived and were talking together. Qiao Bailu hurried over and Zhou He motioned for her to stand beside him.

As for Qiao Zhenting, he was an actor, so he could only wave his hand and follow Kong Wenhua to the dressing room.

Today we're taking makeup photos, and the actors in the crew are getting to know each other, so it's not too busy. Zhou He led her around the crew: "Compared to TV, the props in the movie are much less, but they are also more important. Some of them have to appear repeatedly. The general principle is basically the same, that is, there can be no things that are out of date..."

"The shooting of the final makeup photo depends on the publicity method. Generally speaking, we choose a scene with more serious conflict or a scene that shows the face."

"In terms of script description, movies need to be big and dramatic, with more obvious conflicts, and not long-lasting, especially in terms of action and facial expression descriptions. The reason why movies are superior to TV is because the requirements are higher than those of TV. The same plot, when put in a movie, is magnified dozens or hundreds of times. If the eyes are not right, the whole film cannot be shot, and the acting requirements are also higher..."

Qiao Bailu listened very carefully. Occasionally, when a stage manager or staff member passed by, Zhou He would always find a point to teach: "For example, this thing has certain requirements for its placement. Putting it here can reflect that the scene is very hasty. Why is it hasty? Because Ying Ruyu's mask is about to be exposed. It is a hint, a foreshadowing..."

"Okay! Now that everyone is here, let's get started. We'll take some promotional photos in the morning, and then we'll officially start shooting in the afternoon. If we stop for a little longer, we'll have to spend an extra day's worth of money. Let me tell you, our crew has no money..." Director He said carelessly while standing on a stool. He clapped his hands, attracting everyone's attention, and pointed to the other side: "I specially invited the best studio to take the promotional photos, so you all should pay attention!"

A woman in her thirties, wearing a black and bright yellow hip skirt, clapped her hands and asked, "Which one do you want to take pictures of first?"

Director He stretched out his hand and nodded: "Chen Dewei, Cheng Meijia, you two go first."

Chen Dewei plays Nanzhu, and Cheng Meijia plays the female lead. One wears a sky blue robe and smiles brightly, while the other wears a water blue dress and smiles gently. The man is handsome and the woman is beautiful, radiant and dazzling.

A cameraman came forward and started taking photos attentively, occasionally giving instructions on some movements. However, because it was a promotional photo, the movements also needed Director He's approval and had to match the plot.

Qiao Zhenting watched from the side, recalling the script, seeing what actions Ying Ruyu had taken in the play, and then trying to figure out the expressions and movements he should have later.

At the beginning, Ying Ruyu was a gentleman as gentle as jade. This was simple. Qiao Zhenting just had to do it well, holding the chess piece in one hand and smiling at the camera.

Kong Wenhua thought about it, asked Director He, and then turned around and looked for Qiao Bailu with a smile: "The director said that we can put two photos on Xinbo, but only Zhenting's, and no one else's."

Qiao Bailu nodded, took out her phone to secretly take a photo, and then posted a new blog - Isn't my stupid brother very handsome today? By the way, Qiao Zhenting.

After Qiao Zhenting finished taking the photos, he took out his phone and refreshed it, and there were already a lot of comments from his sister.

——It’s so handsome, the screen is so dirty, I want to lick it.

——The prince is always handsome~

——Come to think of it, the feeling of this still is different from the previous ones. This one looks very gentle.

——The man upstairs with Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils, I also think he looks very gentle. I like gentle male gods the most.

——I am addicted to the gentle smile of my male god...

——Please, please, what should I do if the screen is soaked with water? How many times do I have to lick it dry?

——Please tell me what drama my idol is going to act in?

——Bronze ball, I must contribute to the ratings of my idol when the time comes!

——My dear male god, have you finished filming your previous mythological drama? When will it be released?

After thinking about it, Qiao Zhenting also took out his mobile phone and forwarded this comment: "It's almost finished filming, and it will be broadcast next week. You must remember to watch it. Love you~"

It was Qiao Zhenting’s first time to act cute, and he was quite nervous. After he posted, he started to refresh the page. Then he was stunned. The comments came too fast and too many, and once he refreshed the page, he could no longer see the previous ones.

Moreover, almost everyone had agreed that the first line would be "mummies". Qiao Zhenting blushed slightly and couldn't help but snort. He was quite proud of himself because his fans were so cute.

"I'm leaving first. I'm going to check out the Shinhwa crew. I'll probably be back around three o'clock. Ask Kong Wenhua to come with me. I'll buy some snacks later. When Kong Wenhua comes back, ask him to distribute them to everyone."

It was Qiao Zhenting’s first time in front of a big screen, and almost all the people present were his seniors. If he wanted everything to go smoothly and he wanted to learn more, he had to be well-behaved and obedient.

Qiao Zhenting nodded in agreement, and seeing that it was getting late, he hurried to get the lunch boxes from the crew. In the past, he had filmed TV shows in his own studio, and Zhou Mengyao was very generous. The crew's working meals were of very high standards, with meat and chicken legs, and the meals were served hot.

Now, the rice is still hot, but the standard has been lowered a lot, and there is almost no oil in the dishes. Not to mention chicken legs, there is almost no lean meat, all fat, and not much.

Qiao Zhenting had to maintain his figure, so he didn't dare to eat fatty meat, and could only eat vegetables. While eating, he hoped that Qiao Bailu would come back soon, even if it was just a snack. He hadn't eaten snacks for a month.

While the siblings were busy on the set, Zhou Mengyao also began to promote Qiao Zhenting's mythological drama. The title of the drama is very straightforward, it is called "City with Monsters". Qiao Zhenting is Nanzhu, and his real identity is Long Qizi Bi'an, who upholds justice and distinguishes right from wrong, and is a symbol of fairness and justice. In the modern city, he is a cold lawyer wearing glasses.

The story is a series of units, composed of various small cases, some of which are caused by real monsters, and some are caused by human hearts. Bi'an appears from the beginning and runs through the whole play. This is a play without a female lead. From beginning to end, there is no clear CP.

One episode a week, each episode must leave a suspense. Four episodes in a unit, a total of 60 episodes, can be broadcast for more than a year. It just so happens that there is a Magnolia Award this year, but not next year, so it will be able to catch up with the Magnolia Award the year after next.

On the day of the premiere, Qiao Zhenting was still in the crew of Jianghu. Others in the studio had other work, so she dragged Xie Jiayuan along, and the two of them sat on the sofa waiting for the show to begin. This time Zhou Mengyao showed up again, and they found the B City Satellite TV Station, booking a prime time slot from 8 to 9 pm on Saturday night. Each episode was one hour long, and it would take an hour and a half if there were commercials.

"Zhen Ting looks pretty handsome in this look?" Qiao Bailu smiled and stuffed a cookie into Xie Jiayuan's mouth. Xie Jiayuan nodded: "Yeah, it looks pretty good. By the way, I have already written my graduate thesis. If nothing unexpected happens, I will probably be able to study for a doctorate by the beginning of next year."

Qiao Bailu was shocked and turned around quickly: "What did you say? The graduate student's thesis has been written?"

Counting with my fingers, when did Xie Jiayuan start studying for a master's degree? Has it been a year now? Oh, it seems to be exactly one year. Can you graduate from graduate school in one year? Are you kidding? If you are such a monster, such a genius, why didn't I see you skip a grade when you were in college?

"Studying in Country M is different from studying here. I started all over again from my freshman year." Xie Jiayuan saw the doubt in her eyes and explained, "Graduate courses are relatively simple. I was also very busy during this period, leaving early and returning late, so I was able to complete all the courses in one year. But a doctorate will probably take a little longer."

Qiao Bailu opened her mouth wide. At first, she knew that Xie Jiayuan was a smart man, extremely smart, but she never thought that Xie Jiayuan was actually a genius! Did she find a genius with a super high IQ?

"No, I'm just a little smarter than others at most. I still need to be diligent." Xie Jiayuan explained helplessly: "Maybe, I'm not as smart as Liu Yueze, but Liu Yueze is only in his second year of graduate school. In addition to studying, he also has dates and plays every day. In addition to studying, I do experiments. In addition to going to the library, I also read books when I come back..."

Thinking about the life in the past year, Xie Jiayuan didn't want to recall it. It was too hard. After getting engaged, he should have been able to leisurely show his love with Bai Lu, but what was the result?

I go out at five in the morning, have lunch at school, have dinner at school, and come back at eleven at night. When I have a day off, I either cook a big meal for Bailu or search for information online.

Others have twenty-four hours in a day: eight hours for sleeping, three hours for eating, three hours for resting, and two hours for other trivial matters. Eight hours for study and work is enough.

I sleep for six hours, eat for one hour, rest for one hour, and the remaining sixteen hours are all used for study and experiments. There are 365 days in a year, and I can only rest for fifteen days, including the week of the Chinese New Year.

Fortunately, Bai Lu was sensible and went to school to have dinner with him every day. If it were someone else, even if they were engaged, they could still call it off. It made him cry just thinking about it, but if he could graduate early and start over again, he would still make the same choice.

"Wow, you're so capable!" Qiao Bailu cheered, holding Xie Jiayuan's cheek and kissing him hard on the forehead: "In this way, you can graduate and work immediately?"

Xie Jiayuan smiled and put his arm around her waist: "Yes, I will be able to support you soon, dear, shall we get married?"

Qiao Bailu blinked: "Do you think this is a proposal?"

"Yes, you know, I don't have any romantic ideas." Xie Jiayuan couldn't help but touch his nose: "If you want, I'll think about it again? Come up with a more romantic idea?"

"No, no, I don't care about those formalities. We have been together for so many years, we are an old married couple, there is no need." Qiao Bailu shook her head quickly. Romance is very touching, but Xie Jiayuan is a person who only does things and never talks.

For example, if you have something to worry about, he will help you with advice. If you are hungry, he will bring you food. If you have a happy event, he will cook a big meal for you. If you are sick, he will take you to the hospital, supervise you to take medicine, and remind you to drink water.

In all these years of being with him, she only heard him say "I love you" in the past two years. Qiao Bailu had never heard sweet words like "You are my heart and my liver".

It would be too difficult for such a person to plan a romantic proposal ceremony.

"Well, but I'm not mentally prepared today, so it doesn't count. Besides, there are only two of us, and even if the proposal is successful, we'll just be happy by ourselves, so it doesn't count this time."

Qiao Bailu said with a smile, stretching out her hand and pinching Xie Jiayuan's nose: "Let's do it again when there are many people around, okay? Also, you are too insincere this time. You need a ring to propose, right? Where's your ring?"

Xie Jiayuan slapped his head and said, "I almost forgot. I just said it because the atmosphere was right and I felt it. I forgot the most important thing. Well, this time it doesn't count. Let's do it again next time."

Seeing Qiao Bailu nodding with a smile, Xie Jiayuan couldn't help but lean forward and kiss her pink lips. They were too busy during this period, and although they usually kissed goodnight and goodmorning, they were just superficial.

The atmosphere was just right today. Xie Jiayuan kissed her intently and gradually went deeper, wishing he could hold the person in front of him in his arms. The slight panting sound drowned out the dialogue on TV, but the male lead on TV was Qiao Zhenting, who would pop up from time to time, as if he was in person. Xie Jiayuan always felt guilty. It was too embarrassing to be intimate with someone else's sister in front of his brother.

So, he got up and carried the person to the bedroom.

The next day, she was woken up by the ringing of her cell phone. Qiao Bailu fumbled for the phone on the bedside table and answered it directly without even looking at the name. Then Zhou Mengyao laughed, "The ratings are out. Guess what they are?"

"It must be a lot, otherwise you wouldn't be so happy. Tell me."

"5.4, ranked first among urban dramas. The satellite TV station is so happy this time. They just said a few polite words before, but this time they said they would hold a celebration party for us. They also said that if our studio has any scripts in the future, please give priority to their station. Their attitude has changed a lot."

Zhou Mengyao said with a laugh, Qiao Bailu was speechless: "Didn't you change your attitude after the last time you talked about Empress Lü?"

"That's different. The first broadcast of "The Legend of Empress Lü" was not on the satellite TV station, so the benefits it brought to them were limited. But this time it was premiered on their station." However, even if it was the second broadcast, the ratings were over 5.

"Forget about the celebration party. Just ask for more benefits in the future. You should pay more attention to the nominations for the grand prizes and remember to submit your application materials. Okay, just kneel down and greet me if you have nothing else to do." Without waiting for Zhou Mengyao to speak, Qiao Bailu quickly hung up the phone.

He pulled the quilt upwards and smiled widely. It had just started airing and there was still room for growth. With this ratings, was the Best Actor award firmly in his pocket?