The Vicious Female Supporting Character Must Die [Transmigration] GL - Chapter 9: Play Within a Play (1)
The Qin Emperor’s Ruins film shooting area was near a 5A tourist attraction in F City, reachable within half an hour on the highway.
Lu Zhiyu put on her wireless headphones, listening to light music, and began to read the updated information from the Soul Judgment Bell system, as well as searching for detailed information on the film she was about to join.
“General’s Tomb” was adapted from a best-selling novel, later authorized by the author to be developed into a wildly popular play in major theaters, possessing immense market value, and had previously won the highest national award for dramatic literature.
Therefore, this film was highly anticipated by domestic filmmakers, with hopes of it becoming a high-quality, excellent domestic masterpiece.
This film project was jointly invested by Guye Global Film and Television and Xinghuang Film and Television Entertainment, the first collaboration between the two most influential entertainment companies in the country. The production team for this film was bound to be formidable.
Gu Yinshu, leveraging her connections abroad, even paid a high price to invite the top international demolition and post-production special effects teams to follow the film production. This movie alone had over fifty newly built sound stages in the film area. Costumes and props were modeled on computers, then materials were purchased from the market and replicated one-to-one. The estimated capital investment exceeded 400 million, and it was slated for global release.
Lu Zhiyu looked at these materials, inwardly clicking her tongue. This movie looked like it was going to be a flop. Don’t listen to the marketing hype about it being a nominee for the Oscars and Golden Globes, or a guaranteed winner for Best Picture at the Golden Phoenix Film Awards. Looking at the cast, this movie was destined to fail. Even with Best Actress Gu Yinshu anchoring it, it would be truly strange if this group of young actresses and rising male stars could carry such a large production.
The entire cast list was filled with backdoor connections and “traffic” stars. The acting-focused actors, including Gu Yinshu, played insignificant, fleeting supporting roles.
The actress playing the female lead, the Empress of the New Daliang Dynasty, was Ruan Suhuai, a popular A-list “traffic” actress under Guye Global Film and Television. Although Ruan Suhuai graduated with a bachelor’s degree from a film academy, she was often a “vase” actress who trended on Weibo for her poor acting skills. At least in the early stages, this character was absolutely an acting novice who posed no obstacle to her acting career.
Then there was Yang Siyi, who played the male lead, the Crown Prince of the Duan Dynasty. He was the second male lead in the game, Gu Yinshu’s undercover agent at Xinghuang Film and Television, and currently the popular top star under the main company, Xinghuang Entertainment. He gave the same impression no matter what role he played; his character breakthroughs, transformations, and acting ceiling were not very significant. He could play the Crown Prince of Duan Dynasty, a flesh-and-bl00d character, well, but whether he could truly convey the character’s charm from the script was uncertain.
The Soul Judgment Bell suddenly rang faintly. A green light flickered in Lu Zhiyu’s pupils, and her expression momentarily froze as she shifted her gaze to the scenery outside the car window.
How profound must the resentment be for the Soul Judgment Bell to emit such a warning sound?
Their luxurious extended car had already exited the highway. To reach the Qin Emperor’s Ruins Scenic Area, they had to pass through an ancient Jiangnan town, where they needed to alight and transfer to a local rickshaw.
Outside the stopping car window, a magnificent 14-meter-tall ancient ginkgo tree stood lush and green. The uneven, thin stone slabs collected small puddles of water, suggesting a sun shower had recently passed.
It was already past the scenic area’s closing time, and tourists had long been dispersed from the narrow stone alleys.
A few security guards were patrolling, preparing to go off duty. They curiously turned to look at the people getting out of the van. Celebrities often filmed in this area, and if they were popular, getting an autograph could fetch thousands when resold.
Upon seeing an unfamiliar face emerge from the car, the initially restless security guards lost interest. They glanced at the filming permit in Lu Zhiyu’s hand and impatiently waved her through.
“Ding… ding… ding-ding.”
Lu Zhiyu had never heard the Soul Judgment Bell make such strange noises. She turned around. Through the Soul Judgment Bell’s system interface, the old house from the late Qing Dynasty where the van was parked was emanating eerie blue-purple ghostly energy, like a gushing spring.
As she meticulously observed the architectural style of the old house, those wisps of ghostly energy transformed into a wisp of smoke, shooting directly onto her wrist, forming a silver bracelet. Three purple, bud-shaped bells hung from her wrist, clinking crisply.
She looked at the patterns on the silver bracelet, resembling an ancient flying beast totem. The “pearl” eye had a chip, and the wings’ feathers were in a folded state. The intricate engravings gleamed with a faint golden luster, making it look like a burial object from a royal or noble family of a certain dynasty, displayed in a museum.
Swish, swish, swish, several notifications appeared before her eyes.
[Ding-dong, the Soul Judgment Bell has absorbed a large amount of ghostly energy and has upgraded to a physical entity. Shake it to {Soul Search}. It is invisible to all extraneous personnel except for staff of the Underworld.]
[Once the Ferryman obtains 100% trust from an evil soul host, they can use the {Soul Search} function to delve into the target’s resentful memories.]
[With the Soul Judgment Bell as a physical entity, the Ferryman gains immortality. To maintain the Soul Judgment Bell as a physical entity, please accumulate more merit, purify vengeful souls, and be helpful to others. Key targets provide additional value.]
Having the Soul Judgment Bell and immortality means infinite saves. This cheat is definitely useful.
Lu Zhiyu found it immensely amusing to hold the Soul Judgment Bell up and shake it. As the bells clinked, one purple bell suddenly turned blue, and a faint red glow seeped into her pupils.
A chill wind swept past her shoulder. Two people walked past Lu Zhiyu. They seemed to find her familiar and walked back towards her.
“What are you doing standing here looking so spaced out? Are you inviting ghosts or getting possessed?”
Bai Xirou, with a coat draped over her arm, couldn’t help but turn back and walk up to Lu Zhiyu when she saw her standing there shaking her head and moving her limbs strangely.
Lu Zhiyu instinctively put her hand behind her back and smiled without showing her teeth at Bai Xirou, saying, “I’m just reviewing my script. There are a few lines I haven’t memorized yet.”
Bai Xirou’s face had been expressionless, but upon hearing Lu Zhiyu’s words, she couldn’t help but laugh. She turned her head and snorted, looking askance at her. “You’re just a minor supporting character, like me, with at most ten minutes of screen time. What’s there to review? Besides, your acting is terrible; you won’t improve in a short time. Instead of wasting your effort, you should think about how to gain an advantage in ‘Super Star Idol’.”
Lu Zhiyu said indifferently, “Small supporting roles have their advantages too. A short, brilliant performance can sometimes be the most memorable.”
“…”. Bai Xirou smiled faintly, a look of disdain on her face.
She still remembered the web drama Lu Zhiyu starred in. Although it only had twelve episodes, her exaggerated acting successfully turned the well-conceived web drama into a poorly rated one on Douban. It originally had only a 3.5 rating, which the director secretly paid for shills to boost.
Although she hadn’t formally studied acting, she had honed her skills as an extra in the film city and had undergone systematic acting training. She was certainly better than Lu Zhiyu, an overseas returnee high-achiever who knew nothing about acting.
Some of the flagstones in the ancient town scenic area were carved with auspicious patterns, considered relics. To protect these cultural artifacts, there were regulations regarding the weight of vehicles entering and exiting the area, and the narrow passages of the scenic area made rickshaws the primary mode of transportation.
Lu Yuan called for a rickshaw driver. She pulled Lu Zhiyu aside and whispered, “Sister, later you and Sister Xirou will ride in the same rickshaw. It’s Sister Xirou’s birthday soon, and I haven’t been able to decide what gift to get her. Can you help me ask her?”
Lu Zhiyu watched Lu Yuan’s big eyes flutter at her, her smile far more eager than when she helped with her own errands.
Thinking of the suffering Lu Yuan endured at the hands of the perverted Du Yueze for her sake, and knowing the young girl’s struggles, she decided to do a good deed and nodded resolutely. “Don’t worry, it’s a small matter. I’ll help you ask.”
Lu Yuan beamed, “Sister, you’re much easier to talk to than before.”
Lu Zhiyu raised an eyebrow, “Oh?”
Lu Yuan shoved a bottle of mineral water into Lu Zhiyu’s hand, licking a salty popsicle, and said innocently, “Before, you were always complaining about this and that, as if the whole world was against you. Whenever something went wrong, you’d try to commit suicide or self-harm. You were crazier than a madman. You’ve always been so lucky since childhood. Even in this situation, there are still people protecting you. I was very jealous of you, and many times when I did things for you, I felt unbalanced. Now, you’re much more normal, and I actually feel a bit relieved and much more relaxed when I’m around you.”
Lu Zhiyu felt a bit thirsty. She twisted open the mineral water cap and took a sip, her eyes narrowing warily as she glanced at Bai Xirou. “Then I must have made things difficult for you before.”
Lu Yuan pouted and said, “Anyway, don’t always butt heads with Mr. Du, otherwise I’ll be the one who suffers.”
She always thought she would find a way to get Lu Yuan back to a normal life, back to school, so she could also find a reliable agent.
Lu Zhiyu added inwardly, then hummed in affirmation. She turned around to see Bai Xirou already seated in the scenic area’s rickshaw.
She walked gracefully towards it, spoke a few gentle words to the young assistant, then lightly stepped onto the carriage board in her sneakers, taking the empty seat next to Bai Xirou.
Bai Xirou looked up at Lu Zhiyu, who had lightly settled down, with slight surprise. Then her beautiful face turned back as if nothing had happened. She clasped the bag on her lap and said, “Why did you get on? Where’s my assistant?”
Lu Zhiyu smiled sweetly, placed the script on her lap, and humbly said, “I looked over my character’s scenes and it seems I’ll have a shared scene with you, so I wanted to ask how you plan to act that part.”
Bai Xirou, with her classical phoenix eyes, glanced at her disdainfully. Her gaze returned. “I’m playing the second princess held hostage in the Daliang Dynasty. Our shared scene is a flashback, and it might be completely cut due to film length. I think you should know that.”
Lu Zhiyu opened the script in front of Bai Xirou and said casually, “With such a big production, who wouldn’t want to show their face and get some exposure? Even if it’s just a few minutes, if the performance is good and it stays in, there’s still a chance, right?”
A hint of embarrassment appeared on her face, and she said softly, “Actually, I came to you because I wanted to ask for your guidance. You have more acting experience than I do. If you could teach me this time…”
Then, her topic shifted. “By the way, when’s your birthday? I’d like to treat you to dinner.”
“My birthday? It’s next Tuesday, May 19th.”
Bai Xirou bypassed Lu Zhiyu’s earlier rambling. She rubbed her smooth fingernail with her thumb. Her smile was fresh. “Alright, we haven’t properly gotten to know each other yet, and we’ll undoubtedly be working together in the future, so we should definitely have dinner. But don’t make it my birthday dinner. That day should be spent with special people.”
She added, “Oh, right, I still owe you an apology.”
Lu Zhiyu smiled, noncommittally.
The exit of the ancient town was the Qin Emperor’s Ruins Scenic Area. The two couldn’t find a topic of conversation, but the talkative rickshaw driver greatly alleviated their awkwardness.