Chapter 294: Movie King Rong's Difficulties

Lin Yunan felt that her concern was very reasonable.

"They all have their own reasons," he said. "Firstly, the remuneration they get for being in the show is not low. Actually, Extraordinary Risks is quite well-known among the top tier celebrities. Now, let's talk about the individuals. Zheng Chenhao is a veteran king with a hardcore style. The female fans who like him are all in their 30s. If he doesn't get new fans, he will soon become obsolete."

Xia Ling nodded.

This was one of the difficulties the kings and queens faced. After reaching the summit, they had to maintain their position well. Otherwise, their careers would go downhill if they did not pay enough attention.

Being forgotten after achieving success was worse than never gaining fame.

At the start when she was in Imperial Entertainment, she remembered that Chu Chen said that older people appreciated Zheng Chenhao's style more. However, Chu Chen also joked that Xia Ling could attract all types of people and could become a classic act in her era in the years to come. As for Zheng Chenhao, if he did not change his style, he would become outdated.

"This is really a problem." Xia Ling said.

Lin Yunan smiled. "That's why I don't recommend that you pair up with him. Among the three male stars, he is not considered the most outstanding one. Compared to Bai Murong, the enchanting king, and Rong Ping, the gentleman, he lacks in competitiveness. Furthermore, you are rising in fame now. No one knows whether his change in style will be successful, so even if he pairs up with you, what will happen in a few years? People will recall this past event and feel that you did not make the best choice because you liked such an outdated man."

Xia Ling could not help but doubt his overconfidence.

"Every celebrity will become outdated one day," she said. "For example, Leslie Cheung. Although he has passed away for a long time, he is still a classic today. Hey, the Diva Xia Ling is also a classic." She did not forget to praise her past life a little.

Lin Yunan said, "Trust me, Zheng Chenhao doesn't have those two's potentials."

"What potential?" Xia Ling was curious.

"Dying young."

Xia Ling was speechless.

On the other hand, Li Lei's poor mood was gone as he laughed.

Xia Ling glared at him, and Li Lei quickly covered up his smile. "This is truly an ability... Hahaha."

Although he laughed, he understood Lin Yunan's thoughts and explained to Xia Ling. "Do you know what the most fascinating yet heartbreaking thing in the world is? When famous people never grow old. Yes, it is dying young. Leslie Cheung and Xia Ling died during their most splendid years, and the fans will always have their best image in their hearts. They're very lucky because the fans have not gotten bored of them yet. Due to this, they are still sentimentally attached to the stars so they will live forever in the people's hearts and become an eternal classic."

Xia Ling did not really agree with what he said.

Did he mean that she became a classic of her era because she died early?

"There are also a few megastars who lived to old age." She rebuked indignantly.

"That's even rarer than a phoenix." This time, it was Lin Yunan who replied. "Xiao Ling, I hope that you will live a long life and be famous for a lifetime. When you are around seventy years old, I still hope that you can help me earn a lot of profits..."

Li Lei looked at him viciously. "No matter what, you will die first!"

Lin Yunan was speechless.

Xia Ling sighed. Were these two done fighting?

Lin Yunan quietly changed the topic. "In short, I hope that you can be famous for a lifetime and become a classic of your era. After your death, my son's grandson can continue to reap profits using your name— Why are you glaring at me?" His last few words were directed at Li Lei. "So even if the Li family goes bankrupt, you and your children can still live on her wealth. Double insurance. Do you understand?"

Only then was Li Lei finally speechless. His feelings were very complicated. On one hand, he was pleased that Lin Yunan acknowledged that he and Xiao Ling would grow old together and have children. On another hand, his type of acknowledgment was way too special.

He almost did not know what sort of facial expression he should put on.

Lin Yunan buried his head in his journal and calculated. "Xiao Ling, you were born to be a star. As long as you are careful and work hard, with a little luck, even if you don't die young, you can surely become a classic of your era when you are old. However, Zheng Chenhao? He is not worthy of you. Now, he is on a downward spiral and soon will be quickly forgotten and abandoned after being famous for a while."

"Then who do you think I should choose?" Xia Ling asked. "Bai Murong? Rong Ping?"

"Choose Bai Murong." Li Lei said.

At the same time, Lin Yunan insisted. "My recommendation is Rong Ping."

Li Lei looked at Lin Yunan unkindly. Why was this manager always at odds with him?!

Lin Yunan ignored him and carried on with his analysis. "Bai Murong? He's too much of a player. In a year, he had too many love affairs with female celebrities, there are at least four or five of them. He changes his girlfriend as quickly as he changes clothes. Although his female fans are accepting of this and feel that this is symbolic of male charm, this would be hurtful for a female star. If you're a woman who can only stay with Bai Murong for three months, they will mock you as his ex-girlfriend."

This was truly not a good reputation. Even Li Lei started to frown slightly.

Lin Yunan jokingly looked at him. "Now, do you still want him to pair with Xiao Ling, Big Boss of Skyart Entertainment?"

I absolutely don't want to, ok?! Li Lei's heart was aching. The thing he wanted to do the most now was to deduct Bai Murong's salary! If Bai Murong weren't such a player, this season's Extraordinary Risks would be so safe and perfect! Unfortunately, now, he could only blatantly watch Xiao Ling choose an unfamiliar man who was called, what was it, Rong Ping?

"You better have a good reason why she should choose Rong Ping." Li Lei gritted his teeth.

"Rong Ping's motive for joining this show is the same as ours." Lin Yunan said. "Rong Ping has been a movie king for around ten years and has a clean slate as he was never involved in any love affairs with female celebrities. Now, there is news circulating that he is gay. This gossip tends to be vicious, and he is unhappy about it, so he wants to do something to prove his sexual preference."

"There's nothing wrong with being gay." Xia Ling reasoned. "The industry is so open now, there surely are girls who like gay male idols."

"Those who can tolerate this sort of pressure are part of the minority." Lin Yunan sympathized with Rong Ping on this aspect. "Maybe he is receiving an increasing number of love letters from male fans and can't bear it any longer."

"Haha." Xia Ling never thought of that and started laughing. "Alright then. So we are choosing this person who desperately needs to prove that he is heterosexual?"

Lin Yunan replied, "That's right. Of course, this is only our initial plan, we don't know if it will work. I need to discuss this with Rong Ping's producer, Jimmy. In reality, many female stars are interested in this show, and there a large group of people for the producers to pick from. If you can get Rong Ping's acknowledgment, it will be easier for you to be selected."

What that meant was, even if she wanted to join this show, the producers might not want her.

Xia Ling was very melancholic. What did that mean? In this life, she was very miserable.

( ๑>ω•́ )b In this lifetime Xia Ling won't die young and rise beyond a Phoenix. That I'm sure of 😆💕💕👍 🤔 But I guess he does make a point there. A few more years and maybe people would have gotten tired of her and moved on to another artist.

Really like this manager. He is thinking of the long term instead of the short term benefits. Even Li Lei can't rebut him in this aspect 🤣

"Who are our current competitors?" Li Lei asked.

Lin Yunan said, "Two female celebrities have been confirmed. They're Imperial Entertainment's Luo Luo and Pegasus Media's Zhou Yanxue."

Luo Luo? Xia Ling was rather surprised. "Luo Luo? Do you mean the one who lives with me?" These few days, Luo Luo was very busy and was always outside, so they did not have the time to talk recently, and Xia Ling did not even know that she was going to be on this variety show.

"Yes, she is the Luo Luo who lives with you." Lin Yunan said. Before he proposed this project to Xia Ling, he did his homework. "Luo Luo is lively and cute. She is also humble and not easily affected by others. She is able to tolerate any strange acts. You know, those that many women refuse to shoot in order to maintain their image."

"Yes." Xia Ling agreed. Luo Luo had no problems in that area. She was very personable like a girl-next-door who was seen frequently on the streets. She was fine with doing weird things and did not complain when she was met with female celebrities that were hard to please.

Choosing Luo Luo was very suitable.

"What about Zhou Yanxue?" She asked.

Lin Yunan said, "Zhou Yanxue is a new famous TV actress that just recently received the Best Newcomer Actress Award. Her style is a bit like yours — a cold temperament and independent personality. Although she is cold and charming while you are cold and arrogant, the overall difference is not very big. The difficult thing is that since the show has already chosen her, the producers may not be willing to choose you as it is not good for two female celebrities with the same personality to be on the show."

Well, the coincidence rate was too high.

If she were part of the producers, she would also not make this choice.

"Do you need me to solve this problem?" Li Lei suggested. In this industry, behind-the-scenes selections were not only based on ability but also depended on connections.

Lin Yunan looked at him. "Zhou Yanxue has weak backing. If you do something, it is easy to succeed. However, that would be wasting your talent on a petty job. Also, walls have years. If something like this frequently happens, Xiao Ling's reputation would be negatively affected." Li Lei should use this weapon at the crucial point during an unexpected situation. It is not worth it to use his trump card for these small matters.

"So, you decided to settle this yourself?" Li Lei asked.

"I will settle it with Xiao Ling." Lin Yunan corrected him and looked at Xia Ling. "After you are done filming, attend a dinner party with me. I will introduce the producers of Extraordinary Risks to you."

"Is this counted as an audition?" Xia Ling asked.

Lin Yunan smiled. "Yes. There is no real audition for this show. After the producers have seen you and feel that you are suitable, everything should be ok. Now, what you have to do is to make sure they feel that you are worthy and make you the third participant. Otherwise, in the worst case, let Li Lei squeeze out Zhou Yanxue for you so you can replace Zhou Yanxue."

"Don't they serve the same purpose?" Xia Ling asked.

"Wrong." Unexpectedly, Lin Yunan scoffed again, and his sense of superiority was showing. "These two cases are completely different. If you get the third spot, it will be because you relied on your own strength, but if you squeeze out Zhou Yanxue, it may not be good for your reputation in the future as it will lead to hate and enmity, understand?"

Many artistes who had relentlessly worked hard already treated her differently because of her love affair with Li Lei. What right did she have to advance in career so easily while the others had to work themselves to death?

Actually, Xia Ling did not think that her life was easy, but the other artistes definitely did not think this way.

This was why people hated her in her past life. The other artistes were just not on par with her. Her backing made them disillusioned and caused them to channel all their dissatisfaction and resentment towards her.

Lin Yunan was thinking about her future reputation.

This seemed useless, but it may decide her fate sometime in the future.

Xia Ling was very grateful and felt fortunate that she found such a reliable manager. She trusted Feng Kun's eye for talent even more.

"That's decided then." Lin Yunan said, "After you finish work tonight, you will come with me to meet the producer. Li Lei, you have to go home alone. And just to let you know, you can't visit in the future, and you can't frequently meet Xiao Ling anymore. Before the filming of Extraordinary Risks, Xiao Ling needs to have a clean slate for a period of time without any love affairs. Understand?"

Li Lei understood. Only after a clean break was the news of a new romance more natural.

Otherwise, if a reporter took a picture of her with a man today and there was another man beside her the next day, what would it mean?

However, Big Boss Li was very unwilling. He was her true boyfriend, no true pursuer. How could he lose to a fake scandal partner? "I will be careful." He tried to bargain with Lin Yunan. "I won't visit, but I will still pick up Xiao Ling and go on dates with her. If even these are forbidden, then don't think of creating a fake scandal with Rong Ping."

This was his limit.

Lin Yunan frowned and looked at Xia Ling.

Xia Ling also felt that Li Lei was being a little dictatorial and could not help but say, "This is not something you can decide for yourself." This was essential her business, and she could completely decide for herself.

Li Lei became a little dejected.

Xia Ling's heart softened and thought about it. "Alright, you can pick me and eat with me. However, you can't do it as frequently, and you have to be careful not to be photographed by the media representatives, ok?" She did not want to lose him and was trying to find ways to sustain their relationship which required both of them to work together.

After hearing what she said, he was no longer downcast.

"Ok." He smiled and agreed.

After this situation was successfully settled, that night, Lin Yunan brought Xia Ling to have a meal with the producer of Extraordinary Risks.

The producer was a very professional middle-aged man who was very satisfied with all aspects of Xia Ling. He heard that this girl was very co-operative and the staff who had worked with her all praised her, so there would never be conflict. This was very important for a show that was working with top tier celebrities as it would reduce a sixth of the trouble during filming.

What was even better was that she was acquainted with all three of the male stars who were participating in the show. She was in the same team as Zheng Chenhao in the Nebula Music Festival, she was in the same movie as Rong Ping, and she had trained at Skyart Entertainment which Bai Murong was from... There were many topics to link them together.

However, there was really a problem with Zhou Yanxue as both of them had cold personalities, and it would be too boring if both of them appeared in the same show.

"Let me think about it again," the producer said.