"Yang Yi, come quick! There's news about you!"
Yang Yi was in the bedroom packing up the clothes, hats, cosmetics, and various odds and ends Murphy had brought and stuffed into the suitcase, when Murphy, who was watching TV in the living room, suddenly shouted.
Last time, Niu Meiling had demanded Murphy renew her contract, but Murphy, after seeking Yang Yi's advice, resisted the woman's sweet talk and sent Mo Xiaojuan to negotiate with the company.
Murphy really couldn't play mind games with others, but Mo Xiaojuan had a natural knack for it, mastering the art of stalling with finesse.
One word: delay!
No matter the excuse, just drag it out and avoid renewing the contract too early.
Niu Meiling was furious but couldn't do anything about Mo Xiaojuan. When she couldn't take it anymore and wanted to bypass Mo Xiaojuan to persuade Murphy directly, Murphy—tipped off by Mo Xiaojuan in advance—called in sick and took leave to go home, with Mo Xiaojuan temporarily taking over her communication devices.
Now, the "sick" Murphy was lively as ever watching TV in the living room. She had taken refuge at Yang Yi's place, planning to stay for a few days.
Of course, Murphy herself didn't want things to turn out this way.
She wanted to record her songs properly. She had been eagerly hoping to release this album, which carried so many of her hopes, as soon as possible. But now, all this fuss was delaying the process, and it weighed on her heart.
Fortunately, she knew that Yang Yi and Mo Xiaojuan were acting in her best interest, and she didn't stubbornly do anything foolish. Plus, at Yang Yi's place, the little girl, who hadn't seen her mom in a while, happily chattered away with Murphy, gradually lifting her spirits.
"What news? How could I be in the news?" Yang Yi walked out of the bedroom, puzzled.
He was such a low-key person—how could he end up in the news?
"Daddy, come sit here!" Xixi was snuggling with her mom watching TV. When she saw her dad come out, she happily patted the spot next to her. She loved being sandwiched between her parents—it made her feel so secure!
As Yang Yi sat down, Murphy pointed at the TV and laughed, "Director Chen is coming to Jiangnan to shoot a TV series—isn't that your book?"
On TV, Chen Fengchen and a few others were on stage, speaking confidently to a group of reporters. Behind them, though, was the backdrop of another period drama.
Murphy said regretfully, "You missed it. Earlier, Director Chen mentioned you and your book when answering a reporter's question, saying he'll be heading to Jiangnan next month to prepare for the new crew."
"I heard Daddy's name too!" Xixi raised her little hand to back up her mom.
Yang Yi smiled and ruffled Xixi's hair, then said to Murphy, "It's fine. The rights are sold, so the rest is up to Director Chen. I don't have any say in it. I can only hope he lives up to his reputation and does a good job."
For his work being adapted into a film or TV series, Yang Yi wasn't as indifferent as he had been when he just posted his stories online. He genuinely hoped the adaptation would match the quality of the original in his past life and not ruin the classic.
But there was no helping it. Director Chen Fengchen was notoriously strong-willed and wouldn't let anyone meddle in his productions—not even the original author. All adaptations and filming were handled by him or people he trusted.
If it weren't for the fact that his past works were decent, Yang Yi really wouldn't have wanted to hand over these two pieces to Chen Fengchen.
Now, Yang Yi was also studying scriptwriting on his own. He thought that if he ever sold the film or TV rights again, he might as well sell the finished script outright.
If they filmed according to his script, at least it wouldn't stray too far from the original story, right?
But Yang Yi had never read a script for any movie or TV show—how could he have known he'd time-travel? Why would he read scripts? So starting from scratch to learn scriptwriting was proving quite difficult.
Just then, a reporter on TV asked Chen Fengchen, "Director Chen, have the lead actors for *Soldiers* been confirmed? We're curious about who's playing Xu Sanduo and who's playing Chengcai?"
It wasn't that a mere bestseller had already made every reporter familiar with it. The reason some reporters could easily name "Xu Sanduo" and "Chengcai" was mainly because Chen Fengchen had long hinted that he was casting for the new show, and the ever-persistent reporters had done their homework.
"*Soldiers* is an excellent story. It not only tells the growth journey of an ordinary soldier from the countryside but also creates many vivid characters. So I don't think that in this show I'm directing, only Xu Sanduo and Chengcai are the leads. Others, like Captain Yuan Lang, Squad Leader Shi Jin, Wu Liuyi, Gao Cheng—they can all be considered main characters, even leads!"
Chen Fengchen was also a master of deflection, perfectly sidestepping the reporters' eagerness to know which actors he'd collaborate with for his new show.
It wasn't time to reveal that information yet. The veteran director naturally knew the benefits of keeping the public's appetite whetted.
But the reporters wouldn't let him off so easily. One who was called on followed up, "Director Chen, we all know you're famous for nurturing new actors. So for this cast, will you be picking from third- or fourth-tier stars or even non-professional actors?"
"Who said that? I also like working with established actors! Look, Xie Yuchen is sitting right next to me, isn't he?" Chen Fengchen pointed to the male actor beside him, who had come for the wrap-up press conference.
Xie Yuchen was considered a near-A-list actor, but sitting next to the old director, he was still nervous and could only offer a helpless smile at the teasing.
"Alright, this is the wrap-up press conference for *The Sword*, so please stick to related questions. As for *Soldiers*, I'll say one more thing, and then I won't answer any more!"
"Right now, the role of Xu Sanduo hasn't been cast yet. I've had several actors audition, but the results weren't satisfactory. So I'm not ruling out the possibility of choosing a new actor. If anyone wants to try for this role, feel free to send your audition video to Assistant Ruan's email..."
Chen Fengchen's words immediately stirred up the reporters, who clamored to ask, "Is this an open casting call for the lead? Any special requirements, Director Chen? Why didn't the other actors fit?"
But Chen Fengchen stuck to his word. He just sat up there with a smile, saying nothing.
After a noisy commotion, the reporters had no choice but to switch to other questions.
"Director Chen is pretty good. He wants to find the best actors for your book," Murphy said with a smile to Yang Yi, now that the news interview had moved on from his book.
"Yeah, the role of Xu Sanduo is hard to cast. An actor without any rural background probably couldn't pull it off. I tend to agree with Director Chen using new actors. Among the young extras out there, many come from the countryside," Yang Yi nodded.
"You're both ignoring me!" Xixi pouted, feeling like she had no presence sitting in the middle.
"What are you saying, Xixi?" Murphy quickly responded.
"I'm saying they stopped talking about Yang Yi later!" Xixi said with a sulky pout. "I couldn't hear Daddy's name anymore."
Yang Yi and Murphy were taken aback, then couldn't help but burst out laughing.
This little one—she was really paying close attention!