Seduced the Obsessive NPC and Ran - Chapter 42

Chapter 42

From the moment Yan Jinge entered the dressing room, Yi Haotian hadn’t spoken a word to him, nor had he even spared him a single glance.

Yan Jinge didn’t pay any attention to Yi Haotian either.

The atmosphere between the two was cold and indifferent.

Yi Haotian couldn’t help but frown.

He was actually feeling quite displeased. In his memory, every time they met, Yan Jinge would look at him with passionate eyes. There had never been a situation where Yan Jinge wouldn’t even look him in the eye.

Moreover, it was one thing for him to be cold toward Yan Jinge, but what was the meaning of Yan Jinge treating him with this kind of attitude?

Back when Yan Jinge was relentlessly pursuing him, Yi Haotian found it annoying. He didn’t want to be with Yan Jinge at all, thinking the man was too desperate and lacked any sense of dignity.

But now that Yan Jinge was suddenly ignoring him, he felt uncomfortable.

Even if their previous emotional connection was gone, within the production crew, he was the male lead and Yan Jinge was the Third Male Lead. Based on their status alone, Yan Jinge should be showing him the utmost respect.

Now, he wouldn’t even say hello…

Did he not even see him as someone worth noticing?

Yi Haotian grew angrier the more he thought about it.

However, his anger soon dissipated.

Yan Jinge was just an idol; he couldn’t be called an actor, let alone a singer. Back during the survival show, he had nothing going for him except his face-his singing and dancing were both subpar.

How could a person like that compare to a solid actor like himself?

Once they started acting opposite each other, Yan Jinge’s true colors would be exposed. Once the drama aired, wouldn’t he just be trampled underfoot?

No.

It wouldn’t even take that long.

While filming, everyone on set would immediately notice the gap between them.

The thought of everyone saying that despite being from the same group, Yi Haotian’s acting was incredible while Yan Jinge’s was stiff made the corners of his mouth curl up.

Before long, the styling for the two leads was finished.

Yi Haotian took the initiative to stand up and find Jin Zuidong. “Sister Jin, the photographer is already waiting. Shall we head over?”

Jin Zuidong said with a smile, “Sure.”

She stood up and, as she passed Yan Jinge, patted his chair. “Jinge, we’re heading over first.”

Yan Jinge replied obediently, “Okay, Sister.”

Yan Jinge’s hairstyle was more time-consuming. By the time his styling was finished, over an hour had passed.

Lin Jiu came over halfway through and, seeing Yan Jinge’s appearance, said, “Oh, right, Jinge. The Third Male Lead you’re playing has two different personalities, so your makeup will be adjusted accordingly. You’ll need to shoot two versions for today’s character posters. You’ll have to come back later to get the makeup for the second personality done…”

Yan Jinge asked, “Is this makeup adjustment necessary?”

Lin Jiu hesitated. “Not strictly.”

Actually, both Xu Tang and the screenwriter had originally thought that since it was the same person, the makeup should be the same. The reason they eventually decided on different looks was because they weren’t sure if Yan Jinge had the ability to portray the difference between the two personalities through acting alone.

“Then there’s no need.”

Yan Jinge’s voice was soft. “I also feel that since they are essentially the same person, why do a second set of styling? After the contract was finalized, I read the full script. Whether it’s Wang Jialiang or Wang Li, they both identify as themselves, so they definitely wouldn’t deliberately change their appearance. This is also an important condition during the final sentencing.”

Lin Jiu raised an eyebrow.

That was easy to say, but if one didn’t rely on makeup, the difficulty for the actor would be immense. Could Yan Jinge-someone who came from a survival show and relied purely on his looks-really pull it off?

But it didn’t really matter.

These character posters would be released later in the broadcast cycle, once the audience discovered the dual personalities. Before then, the second personality would be kept a secret, with only a silhouette released.

Even if Yan Jinge’s performance wasn’t great in the short term, a silhouette wouldn’t reveal anything wrong. If he got into the groove during filming later, they could always do a reshoot.

Lin Jiu agreed immediately.

He took Yan Jinge to the shoot and, upon arriving, informed Xu Tang of the decision.

Xu Tang gave Yan Jinge a meaningful look.

Having been a director for so many years, what kind of people hadn’t Xu Tang seen?

Especially those who brought investment into the production.

Previously, he had thought that although Yan Jinge was pushed in by Chairman Song, he was quite sensible, didn’t act like a diva, was polite, and his attire fit the character of ‘Wang Jialiang’ well, showing he had put in effort.

But thinking about it now, Yan Jinge lacked a proper self-awareness of his own acting skills.

Perhaps this outfit was just a fluke, and he happened to get it right.

Or maybe Lin Jiu had prepared it for him.

While these thoughts crossed Xu Tang’s mind, he maintained a smile and said encouragingly, “That’s fine. I actually have confidence in Jinge. Since Jinge thinks he can do it, let’s give it a try.”

Yan Jinge: “Thank you, Director Xu.”

Inside the studio.

Yi Haotian and Jin Zuidong had already finished their shoot, and the second male lead was currently being photographed. Both had intended to leave, but seeing Director Xu arrive with Yan Jinge and the others, they proactively came over to say hello.

“You’ve all met before, right?” Director Xu said with a smile. “I won’t bother with introductions.”

Lin Jiu stood to the side and said, “Hello, seniors. I am Jinge’s manager. This is Jinge’s first time acting, so please look after him in the future.”

Jin Zuidong’s gaze lingered on Lin Jiu for a moment. She noticed that although he spoke politely, his attitude was neither humble nor pushy, without a hint of sycophancy. Being the oldest among the actors, she understood these social dynamics best. Seeing Lin Jiu standing so close to Director Xu, she knew this man was not simple.

She smiled warmly. “Jinge and I hit it off immediately. I already told him that if he has any difficulties with acting, he can come to me.”
To the side, Yi Haotian hadn’t reached his current status by being a fool.

He could be arrogant in front of Yan Jinge, but he would never break character in front of Director Xu or anyone else. Exuding elegance with his flirtatious peach-blossom eyes, he flashed a smile at Yan Jinge and was about to speak when Yan Jinge cut him off.

Yan Jinge turned his head and said respectfully, “Director Xu, I see they’ve finished over there. I’ll head over to take my costume photos now.”

“Sure, go ahead,” Director Xu agreed immediately.

Yi Haotian’s words choked in his throat, leaving him with a stifling sense of frustration, unable to spit them out or swallow them back down.

Yan Jinge had interrupted him on purpose!

It was definitely intentional!

How did he dare do that in front of Director Xu? Wasn’t he afraid of making the director angry?

Oh…

He was a kept man, after all.

Heh.

What an idiot. He was acting so recklessly now because he had a sugar daddy, but once he was discarded and everyone started trampling on him, he’d learn his lesson.

He wondered who was blind enough to take an interest in Yan Jinge.

Yi Haotian was still young, after all. Having lost face, his displeasure was written all over his face. His expression soured, the corners of his mouth drooping, and a sharp glint flickered in his eyes.

Jin Zuidong’s gaze swept over Yi Haotian’s face, and the corners of her mouth curled upward.

A good show was about to begin.

Lin Jiu nonchalantly pulled out his phone and started typing.

Director Xu, meanwhile, acted as if he hadn’t noticed a thing. He remained cheerful, his eyes fixed on Yan Jinge as he went to take his photos.

Yan Jinge had never been in the entertainment industry before, but the Original Host had some experience-though not much. Under the photographer’s guidance, Yan Jinge quickly finished the first set of photos.

A warm-smiling, somewhat naive college student was captured in the frame.

Yi Haotian hadn’t left yet, still wanting to ask Director Xu who was backing Yan Jinge.

Jin Zuidong wanted to watch the drama, so she stayed as well.

“Director Xu, doesn’t Yan Jinge need to change his makeup? Are you going to wait here the whole time?” Yi Haotian asked in a low voice.

Xu Tang glanced at him. “Yan Jinge said he wanted to try it without changing his makeup.”

Yi Haotian froze.

Yan Jinge?

Without changing makeup? He wanted to portray the difference between two personalities just like that?

Did he think he was a Movie King?

Yi Haotian was a dedicated actor. As the Male Lead, he had already read the script several times over the past few weeks, so he naturally knew the plot for the Third Male Lead role Yan Jinge was playing.

To be honest, the character was indeed excellent, but the demands on the actor were high. Yi Haotian had been tempted by it himself, but as he was always the Male Lead, he couldn’t possibly play the Third Male Lead just for a good character.

That would be lowering his status.

He might even get scolded by his career-focused fans.

But just because he could successfully play the role didn’t mean Yan Jinge could!

Yi Haotian sneered inwardly.

He wanted to see how Yan Jinge would make a fool of himself.

Inside the studio, the previously warm Yan Jinge had completely transformed.

His expression turned cold and indifferent as he casually brushed his hair back. The once-neat strands became messy, revealing his full forehead.

His eyes, which had been partially obscured by his long bangs, immediately captured everyone’s attention-his gaze was like a blade, cold as it met the camera. With just a slight expression of impatience, he sent a chill down everyone’s spine.

In an instant, that aura of wild rebellion emerged.

The smile on Director Xu’s face faltered.

He furrowed his brows, appearing even more dissatisfied with Yan Jinge as he stepped forward. He said to Yan Jinge, “He is the second personality. He has a heart full of ideas and ambitions, but he rarely gets to appear. Every time he does, it’s because the primary personality is in danger.”

Yan Jinge nodded. He could actually relate to that feeling.

It was as if… he had seen someone with that exact expression before. During the subsequent shots, he followed the feeling in his mind and added several other layers of emotion.

Director Xu stared at the monitor, looking at the results. He nodded and said, “Not bad.”

To the side, a flash of admiration crossed Jin Zuidong’s eyes. She said to Director Xu, “It seems Jinge is quite a talented person.”

Director Xu only gave a grunt of affirmation.

Seeing this, a dark look flashed across Yi Haotian’s face.

Everyone knew Director Xu Tang had a good temper; even if someone’s acting was terrible, he wouldn’t really scold them. But those in the industry knew he was a master of the editing room, and more importantly, he rarely praised anyone.

Yet he had actually praised Yan Jinge?

How was that possible?

Yan Jinge had never been exposed to this field. He wasn’t classically trained and should have been completely clueless about acting. How did he end up receiving Director Xu’s praise instead?

Yi Haotian had watched from start to finish along with the others, but he didn’t think Yan Jinge’s acting just now was particularly brilliant.

It certainly wasn’t unique.

If he were the one filming, he would definitely do better than Yan Jinge.

Why did Director Xu only praise Yan Jinge?

Was it because of the capital backing him?

Yes.

It had to be.

Yi Haotian felt indignant, finding it disgusting to be overshadowed by Yan Jinge like this. Just then, the sound of footsteps came from behind.

Standing a few meters away, Lin Jiu, phone in hand, was the first to turn around. He called out, “Chairman Song. You’re here.”

He walked over quickly.

The others in the studio heard the voice and looked over as well.

Yan Jinge, who was standing beside Director Xu looking at his costume photos, blinked when he heard the name.

Why was he here?