Reborn in the Hong Kong entertainment industry in the 1980s

"What's going on? What happened? Why are you all acting so strangely?" Wang Shasha noticed the staff members were speaking haltingly and walked out with a puzzled look on her face.

In the photography studio, Wang Shasha immediately spotted a stranger standing there, yet someone who looked somewhat familiar. He was exceptionally tall, exceptionally strong, and exceptionally…dark-skinned.

Wang Shasha was stunned for a moment before recognizing that the person was Mingxu.

“Mingxu?” Wang Shasha was stunned.

Mingxu greeted her with a grin, "It's me, I'm here. Where's your costume?"

Costume?

Where did you get a costume to fit someone as big as a bear?

Wang Shasha was so angry her face turned pale. "Where have you been? You've gotten so fat and dark-skinned in just a short time! What have you been doing?"

Wang Shasha was about to lose it. Where was the once handsome and dashing Mingxu? He was dark-skinned and muscular, like a big black bear. He didn't look like a refined and elegant young master from a noble family at all! He looked like a murderous bandit! He wouldn't even need makeup to play a bandit leader!

"What can I do? I don't have to film, so of course I'll go on vacation," Mingxu replied casually.

"Mingxu, how can you act with me when you're this fat?" Wang Shasha was already short, and now standing next to the dark and chubby Mingxu, she looked even smaller, like a young lady from a noble family and a bandit.

"Why can't I act together? Isn't this great?" Mingxu showed off his physique and said with satisfaction, "Don't you think I look like I belong to a military family right now?"

"You're such a fatso! Look at yourself in the mirror!"

"Where have I gained weight? Where have I gained weight?" Mingxu actually went to the full-length mirror to look at himself.

Wang Shasha really wanted to slap him. "You've gained so much weight compared to before!"

Mingxu protested his innocence, saying, "I used to be malnourished and thin. Now I'm in my healthiest state. At my height, anyone under 200 pounds is considered thin. I still have a lot of room to improve my weight before reaching 200 pounds."

Wang Shasha didn't want to talk; her chest ached a little.

Mingxu, however, sincerely told her, "Knowing I was going to play a descendant of a military family, I especially valued this opportunity. To fit the image of Yang Zongbao, I painfully gained eighteen pounds. Yang Zongbao came from a military family. I've researched it; historically, generals were generally very strong, some even exceptionally tall. Otherwise, how could they wield broadswords and charge into battle with weapons? And—"

Mingxu rolled up his sleeves and showed Wang Shasha his tanned arms. "See? Even my skin tone suits the role perfectly. Ancient generals often led troops into battle, training every day without sunscreen. Under the constant sun exposure, they were all basically very dark-skinned. I even considered this. Aren't I dedicated? Isn't this perfect for the image of Yang Zongbao?"

"You're perfect for a dead man!" Wang Shasha couldn't take it anymore. She was already petite, and compared to him, Mingxu was as big as a mountain. Standing next to him, she looked like a blade of grass on that mountain. How could someone like that be suitable to play a couple? "You're so dark you wouldn't need makeup to play an African! Mingxu, are you doing this on purpose?"

“If that’s how you think, there’s nothing I can do,” Mingxu said, looking quite helpless.

Wang Shasha was so angry that she ran to Qiu Lihua's office to complain to him.

Faced with Qiu Lihua's accusations, Mingxu was very sincere, saying, "Perhaps my understanding of the scion of a military family is flawed. If you don't like my current image, I can lose weight. Give me six months, and I'm sure I can. With those six months, I can also become fair-skinned. However, a pale and thin pretty boy just doesn't seem to fit the image of a scion of a military family..."

Half a year?

Wang Shasha was in a hurry to finish filming, to broadcast the film, and to win the award. How could she possibly spare half a year for Mingxu to lose weight and to whiten his skin?

If filming is to proceed as planned, the role of Yang Zongbao will have to be recast.

Wang Shasha thought of all the suitable male actors in the station and decided to cast Lu Xinghe.

Although Lu Xinghe rarely acts in period dramas, in this series, Yang Zongbao is a supporting character to Mu Guiying, with limited screen time. Since Lu Xinghe isn't good at martial arts, they should limit his action scenes.

So, Wang Shasha asked Lu Xinghe to play the role.

Lu Xinghe's affair with Athena caused quite a stir. Although the two later got married, his image plummeted. Coupled with his married status, he was not well-liked by some young female viewers, and recently he has been appearing in fewer and fewer dramas, with his roles changing from leading men to supporting characters.

Wang Shasha invited him to play Yang Zongbao, which was considered his best role recently. Since he didn't have any other projects lined up, Lu Xinghe readily agreed.

Yang Zongbao's costumes were designed based on Mingxu's height and build. Lu Xinghe was a little shorter than Mingxu, so his costumes had to be altered.

Fortunately, there weren't many things that needed to be changed, and the costume was finished in just a few days. After Lu Xinghe tried on the costume, Wang Shasha saw the final photos and felt that she and Lu Xinghe were a better match in terms of appearance.

Although Mingxu is a good actress and a great fighter, she is too tall, making her relationship with Lu Xinghe far less harmonious.

"This is an unexpected surprise," Wang Shasha said with delight.

The costume photos are done, the other pre-production work is complete, the director has been found, and the entire cast and crew for "Mu Guiying" is assembled.

Now all that's missing is the script; once we have the script, we can start casting the other roles.

Wang Shasha then pressured Yao Wenlong to finish writing the script as soon as possible.

Yao Wenlong immediately called Hu Xiaoxiao to report on Wang Shasha and the "Mu Guiying" production team.

“Wang Shasha invited Lu Xinghe to play Yang Zongbao, and the director and everything else have been chosen.” Yao Wenlong said, “Xiaoxiao, why don’t I give her the revised script and let her have her fill of fighting?”

Although Hu Xiaoxiao told him that there was no need to revise the script, the petty Yao Wenlong still wrote two scripts, including a special script for Wang Shasha that was entirely action scenes.

Hu Xiaoxiao held the phone in one hand and picked out a suitable lipstick from a storage box with the other. "Who is the director she hired?"

"Director Ge Songying is a director under Linda who is very good at filming period dramas and also good at filming women. However, although Director Ge is good at filming women, he is much worse at filming action scenes. As long as there are enough action scenes in the script, even if Director Ge is very good at filming, he will not be able to show his skills."

Hu Xiaoxiao picked out a lipstick, put it aside, and said to Yao Wenlong on the other end of the phone, "Okay, I understand. You don't need to worry about Wang Shasha about the script. I'll go to the TV station to pick up the script tomorrow."

Yao Wenlong was overjoyed, "Xiaoxiao, you're going to film 'Mu Guiying' too?"

"From beginning to end, I was the one who filmed it, and only I filmed it."

"But what about President Qiu..."

"You should leave work early today, get a good night's rest, and we'll know the results tomorrow."