Chapter 36: Signing

The fact that Lu Xu hadn’t been chosen for the role of Wu Shen was already public knowledge. Previously, Gu Sinian’s fans had mocked him over it.

At the time, Lu Xu hadn’t said much. For an actor, winning or losing a role was just part of the profession.

Now, however, with Son of Heaven achieving both critical and commercial success—surpassing Rising Sun in popularity—Lu Xu’s supporters were quietly pleased. Missing out on Rising Sun didn’t seem like a loss at all; after all, the role of Qin Zhao was a fantastic opportunity!

But what the fans never expected was that Lu Xu had gone through this.

The leaked chat showed Lu Xu remaining polite and professional throughout, even after receiving the rejection. He’d shown full respect to the Rising Sun team. Yet, instead of simply conveying the result, the assistant director had chosen to mock and belittle him with thinly veiled sarcasm.

[What an arrogant attitude. I’m seriously disgusted.]

[Thank goodness Lu Xu didn’t act in Rising Sun. I’ve never seen a production team this infuriating.]

While Lu Xu’s fans voiced their outrage, on the other side, Mu Qian—who had been especially combative lately—posted a new Weibo update:

[What do you mean by ‘obedient actors’? ???]

Mu Qian attached an image of a small cat with a mushroom cloud erupting over its head, perfectly capturing a director’s mood at the peak of fury.

The netizens finally realized that when Lu Xu was pushed out of the Rising Sun production team, the director at that time was Mu Qian!

The gossip-hungry netizens immediately flocked to Mu Qian’s Weibo to ask: [Director Mu, was this your advice to Lu Xu?]

Mu Qian replied: [Do I look like someone who listens to others?]

In the chat records, the assistant director had kindly reminded Lu Xu that the production team preferred obedient actors and told him not to be too sharp-edged.

The problem was that everyone could clearly see that Director Mu Qian himself was the one with a rebellious nature, full of sharp edges—sharp enough to poke holes in his opponents.

So, this so-called reminder—was it truly Chen Changyin’s idea, or was it someone else’s within the Rising Sun production team, other than the director?

[This melon (drama) will take half a month to digest!]

[What a spectacular show!]

The experienced melon eaters came to a conclusion—whether it was the conflict between Lu Xu and Lin Ge Entertainment, or between Mu Qian and Lin Ge Entertainment, the root of the problem must have been Lin Ge Entertainment.

During the time Lin Ge Entertainment was scrambling to contain the mess, the popularity of Rising Sun kept plummeting. Even though Rising Sun itself was worth watching, with so much gossip floating around, some viewers inevitably turned to other shows.

Moreover, the follow-up plot of Rising Sun completely failed to keep up.

[The gossip is more entertaining than the drama!]

The production team was fighting with the screenwriters, the former director fought the production team and the assistant director, the screenwriters fought the current director, and the current director flew into incompetent rages, cursing the audience. Interspersed with plummeting popularity, hacked accounts, and accidental slips, the netizens sighed—they were exhausted from all the drama.

As an outsider who got dragged into the storm, Lu Xu’s mind was equally in chaos. It took him a long time to untangle the web of relationships, and he remarked that for such a talented group of people to be crammed into the same production team, Rising Sun was truly extraordinary.

While this drama was unfolding with great intensity, the data for Son of Heaven remained completely unaffected.

After its popularity surged past 9,000, Son of Heaven’s daily viewership gradually stabilized. Although its growth rate wasn’t as rapid as before, it still firmly held the number one spot on the popularity charts, eventually breaking 10,000 on one particular day.

Historical dramas had always been a niche genre, and Son of Heaven was not purely a crowd-pleasing show—it had moments that were moving and others that were heart-wrenching. The current rate of growth was considered normal.

However, one day, well past the halfway point of the series, when Emperor Cheng in the story had aged from his prime into his twilight years, Son of Heaven’s popularity suddenly soared to over 12,000.

The reason was none other than the confrontation scene between Crown Prince Qin Zhao and Emperor Cheng.

Qin Zhao laid bare the very purpose of his existence as the Crown Prince. He expressed the resentment he had harbored for years and ruthlessly exposed his father’s true thoughts.

On the screen, the Crown Prince’s gaze was cold as ice, and his every word of questioning effortlessly evoked the audience’s emotions.

In that moment, Qin Zhao finally lived up to his title as Crown Prince.

The video of Lu Xu and Cheng Yun’s performance in the scene quickly surpassed ten thousand shares—the Crown Prince’s grief had burst through the screen. At that moment, these two no longer looked like father and son.

Cheng Yun’s acting needed no further praise. Son of Heaven reintroduced him to the audience, earning him the title of a “hidden gem actor” in their hearts. Yet in this scene, Lu Xu’s expression, voice, and presence demonstrated a maturity that matched Cheng Yun’s skill.

[To think… Lu Xu is only in his early twenties this year.]

[So both Mu Qian and Liu Chunfeng were willing to cast him in roles. These two directors are pretty selective…]

[Qin Zhao’s character setup wasn’t actually that great, to be honest. It’s not as impressive as Wu Shen’s in Rising Sun. If an actor couldn’t grasp the nuance, Qin Zhao would have been nothing but a shadow under Emperor Cheng’s brilliance. But Lu Xu brought Qin Zhao’s presence to life. He wasn’t just a tool—this Crown Prince had flesh and blood.]

[I feel so heartbroken for the Crown Prince! I’ve already watched Qin Zhao’s edited video dozens of times.]

[+1 +1 +1. I used to think Lu Xu was only good at arguing…]

Although Qin Zhao’s character had already exited the story, among the carousel of roles in Son of Heaven, his presence ranked among the top.

As a historical figure, Qin Zhao had been portrayed by other actors in various dramas. Some versions of Qin Zhao appeared overly weak, while others presented him as a failure—pathetic and insignificant.

He was merely a foil to highlight the success of others.

In a way, Lu Xu had given Qin Zhao a new interpretation.

For Qin Zhao, there was no way forward and no way back. The Crown Prince position, which had entangled him for his entire life, was one he had occupied for a full forty years.

How could forty years as a Crown Prince possibly be easy?

Even someone extraordinarily gifted might not have endured that long stretch of time, and perhaps would have acted faster and more ruthlessly than Qin Zhao did.

As a former and now renewed fan of Lu Xu, Tan Qi had rewatched Qin Zhao’s cut scenes from Son of Heaven dozens of times. She was grateful that the drama had become popular because it meant more fans like her appeared online. Now, Tan Qi’s homepage recommendations were flooded with content about Qin Zhao. Every refresh brought her a new video.

Tan Qi wasn’t the type of fan who analyzed details, but other fans were. Qin Zhao’s character had been scrutinized repeatedly, and through that, she noticed countless details she had missed before.

The fans were so talented! They were true masters of details!

Of course, it all started because Lu Xu’s performance was just that good.

During his time with Verse, Lu Xu hadn’t shown any noticeable acting talent. Fans from that era had a fixed impression that Gu Sinian was more suited to acting. Everyone thought that when Verse disbanded, Gu Sinian would be the only one from the group to pursue an acting career.

Perhaps… it wasn’t that Lu Xu couldn’t act, but rather that Lin Ge Entertainment had constantly pushed the narrative that Gu Sinian was suited for acting. Just like the negative rumors surrounding Lu Xu, over time, those stories became a reality.

[The world has finally discovered Lu Xu!!]

[Thank you, Lu Xu, for proving yourself! I can now boldly say, I’m a fan of Lu Xu!]

[Aghhh, the underdog comeback story really moved me!]

The success of Qin Zhao’s character had caused Lu Xu’s Weibo followers to double. Recently, aside from comments like “I wish I had Lu Xu’s mouth,” the rest of the comments were protests about him not being more active.

Lu Xu: “…”

Indeed.

His Weibo was mostly filled with content criticizing others, and occasionally he would repost task-related posts. As his fans put it, he was definitely an active presence… just a little too active.

But in a way, Lu Xu’s over-the-top liveliness, paired with the dark, weak, and deep roles he portrayed, was part of his charm.

Fans really loved his contrast.

And!

Lu Xu, with his stunning face, had never posted a selfie. Most of the pictures online were stills from his dramas or paparazzi shots.

Another fascinating thing about Lu Xu was that, although he had a strong online presence, he rarely appeared in public.

Fans had been screaming for a while, torn between wanting Lu Xu to post a selfie or to start filming a new project soon.

It seemed like Lu Xu would prefer the latter, but the former was the easier request to fulfill.

Recently, Lu Xu had been choosing a management company. After weighing his options, he still felt that Feiyang Entertainment was the most suitable choice. The other companies were expanding into various other businesses, not focusing solely on managing actors. Lu Xu didn’t mind the company’s expansion, but the additional businesses these companies were involved in had little to do with acting, and some weren’t even related to the entertainment industry at all.

Lu Xu certainly didn’t want to be pulled out of a drama halfway through to attend promotional events for a business venture.

In the following days, he spent a lot of time discussing contract details with Xu Wen. Feiyang Entertainment’s contract terms were very detailed, even covering business operations. However, Lu Xu wasn’t a complete novice. The contract he had signed with Lin Ge Entertainment was still fresh in his mind, and it had made the potential pitfalls crystal clear.

He added a few personal stipulations and then signed the contract.

After wrapping that up, Lu Xu could finally pass all the business offers his way to Xu Wen.

He really didn’t have the energy to pick through the business opportunities himself.

After the airing of Son of Heaven, Lu Xu’s business invitations increased. There were even some offers for fashion magazine shoots, but in his view, these invitations still seemed mediocre and not worth the effort.

After all, he was just a supporting character in Son of Heaven. If he had been the lead, the offers would have been different.

Sure enough, Xu Wen straightforwardly told him: “There are only one or two short-term collaborations worth signing; the rest are unnecessary.”

Feiyang Entertainment, however, had some long-standing business connections, and Xu Wen could help Lu Xu secure those.

Apart from business opportunities, Lu Xu had also received quite a few invitations from drama productions. Objectively speaking, the companies reaching out to him were mostly small-budget ones, mainly focusing on historical dramas and modern idol shows.

But Lu Xu wanted to try different genres.

“I’ll help screen the scripts for you first,” Xu Wen said. “If we’re just looking at quality, it’ll be easy to choose.”

“But—” Sitting down on the not-so-spacious sofa in Lu Xu’s home, Xu Wen glanced around. “Shouldn’t you be considering moving to a new place?”

He had expected Lu Xu to be living in a luxurious mansion, driving a fancy car, with every detail from his hair to his shoes meticulously groomed to match the image they had discussed when talking about scripts. Instead, the person who opened the door had hair that was mussed up from sleep. He was still handsome, but compared to their first meeting, Lu Xu now exuded a laid-back, homey vibe.

It was clear to Xu Wen that Lu Xu didn’t pay much attention to his appearance.

He also didn’t seem to care much about where he lived. The apartment he was staying in wasn’t particularly large, and it wasn’t the type of neighborhood a celebrity would typically choose. At the very least, the security was inadequate.

Right now, Lu Xu didn’t seem to have any concerns about it, but in the future… it would definitely become an issue.

Fortunately, the apartment wasn’t too cluttered, and there was no sign that anyone else was living there.

In this industry, it was normal for celebrities to have personal lives, but Xu Wen hoped that his clients would prioritize their careers. He didn’t want to experience another round of dealing with messes and leaks that needed to be fixed.

The manager was very satisfied with Lu Xu as a client and was looking forward to working with him. He had no doubt that Lu Xu would become a huge star in the future.

Although Lu Xu had many demands, Xu Wen could tell that his high standards were based on his ambition and pursuit of a successful acting career.

Lu Xu knew exactly what he wanted. This type of actor was highly focused on improving himself, and his energy was never wasted on distractions.

“Pleasure working with you.” The manager extended his hand, and they shook firmly.

Lu Xu quickly updated his Weibo bio, adding the contact email for Feiyang Entertainment.

Sharp-eyed fans noticed this change right away.

But no one was faster than Feiyang Entertainment’s official account. Almost immediately, they made the official announcement that Lu Xu had joined their agency.

Instead of using Lu Xu’s official photo, the image featured a cheerful puppy riding a bicycle toward a wooden house, with the Feiyang Entertainment logo printed on the house.

Translation: “Lu Xu is officially ours now—don’t even think about it!”

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