How did a street urchin from the film crew end up in a Northern Song Dynasty drama called "The

The story takes place in 2020, in a room on the third floor of the Manhe Hotel, opposite Meiyuan Garden in Wuxi. The room is dimly lit and filled with smoke. A man in his forties leans lazily against the sofa, a cigarette dangling from his lips, a can of chilled beer in his hand, and his other hand constantly grabbing delicious duck necks from the table, chewing them heartily. His eyes are glued to the television screen, which is playing the popular drama "The Story of Minglan." At the same time, he chats casually with a young man in the same room.

"Hey bro, see that? I've seen this woman in person, she's nothing like the one in the show, hahaha..." The middle-aged man said with a laugh, pointing at the actress on the TV screen while chewing on a duck neck.

Hearing this, the young man immediately became interested and quickly asked, "Wow, Brother Jin, you're amazing! You manage to deal with so many female celebrities. Tell me, among all the celebrities you've worked with, who's the biggest star?"

The middle-aged man took another bite of duck neck and mumbled, "Well... it's hard to say! This drama was when I first entered the film and television industry. I was a complete novice, I didn't know anything. I didn't understand those so-called 'first-tier' star classifications either. Later, I found out about things like 'super first-tier,' 'first-tier,' 'second-tier,' 'third-tier,' and even 'eighteenth-tier'..."

The young man couldn't help but burst into laughter, interjecting, "Pfft... Haha, why did it jump straight from third-tier to eighteenth-tier after all? Did it miss out on a lot of stars of different levels in between?"

The middle-aged man shrugged, smiled helplessly, and explained, "Eighteenth-tier, what kind of star are they? I'm not even very clear on the specific classifications myself. But, we're in this industry, we can't let others know we don't know anything. If you encounter an actor you don't recognize, quickly and secretly look them up online. Just remember not to ask them randomly. If you ask and it turns out they're not a big star, that would be embarrassing." He then raised his eyebrows smugly, as if imparting valuable experience to a young person.

"That's true. Are the actors you hired a lot of trouble?" the young man asked with a curious expression.

"What's wrong? Is the actress you're dating a 'troublemaker'?" The man asked with interest after taking a sip of his beer.

"I don't know either! That little assistant is always causing trouble, constantly finding fault and complaining about me. One minute she's complaining that I didn't turn on the air conditioner beforehand, the next she's blaming me for not helping her carry the suitcase. It's such a headache!" The young man frowned, complaining helplessly.

"Oh? Really? Did she send you a message or call you beforehand?" the man continued to ask thoughtfully.

"No," the young man shook his head, a hint of confusion in his voice.

"Hmm...did you tell her that this is your first time working on a film set?" The man asked with a slight, enigmatic smile.

"Wow! You were right. How did you know?" The young man's eyes widened, his surprise evident.

"Is there even a need to guess? The moment you open your mouth, you're already telling them you're a greenhorn. Who else would they fool if not you? This assistant was definitely found temporarily in the group chat, a one-off deal. They want to perform well so that if an actor takes a liking to them, they can become their personal assistants. They're trying to climb the ladder by stepping on you. Anyway, you're a complete greenhorn, you don't know anything, haha." The man said with a laugh.

"Oh? I see! There's a twist to it all." The young man couldn't help but exclaim.

"She should be staying at our hotel, right?" the man immediately asked.

"Wow, Jin-ge, that's amazing! You're incredible! How did you guess that?" the young man asked, his face full of suspicion.

The man smiled slightly and explained, "What's the point of guessing? Personal assistants usually don't handle everything. If something's not right, they'll go directly to the actor's coaching department to complain. Why would they bother nagging you? If she does that again tomorrow, just confront her."

"How do we respond? What if they complain to the actors?" the young man said.

"Just ask her, isn't an assistant just someone who carries bags? I'll do it for you, so how about you share some of your salary with me? If she complains to the actor, it'll only make her look incompetent. She can't even handle a driver, what kind of assistant is she? Hehe." The man said with a laugh.

"Brother Xing Jin, if you keep nagging me, I'll do as you say. Brother Jin, what do you think the production team is thinking? The actors live so far away, and they have to be picked up from this hotel every day for makeup, and then taken to the set. Isn't that too much trouble?" the young man asked.

"You don't understand. Actors have their own accommodation standards, and we have ours. Besides, actors' working hours are calculated based on their status," the man said.

"Brother Jin, how do you determine a celebrity's status?" the man explained.

"It's not difficult to judge an actor's status. Usually, you can tell by the class of the hotel they stay in. Famous and high-ranking actors in our group stay in the Crowne Plaza, a high-end luxury hotel; slightly less famous actors stay in hotels next to the Crowne Plaza. As for the personal assistants of big stars, they stay in the same hotel as the actors; like the actor you brought in, who is an assistant assigned by the crew, he stays in our ordinary hotel now. Now you should understand, right? Hahaha..." The man said, letting out a hearty laugh.

"Sigh! It's true what they say, different people have different fates. Compared to others, we're nothing," the young man sighed.

"Brother, you're thinking the wrong way. They may seem glamorous, but they've paid a heavy price to climb the ladder. They have their troubles, and we have our joys. The important thing in life is the journey; the outcome is the same for everyone. Look at those actresses in 'The Story of Minglan,' off-screen they're in luxury hotels, have chauffeured cars and assistants, and on-screen they have to play women with tragic fates. It's all just the same old story. Don't think about it so much, go to sleep..." After saying that, the two of them went to bed...

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