Jiang Nian rubbed his hands together, ready to show what he was made of.
But before that, he still had some pick-up shots to film.
Because in the story, after Yue Buqun practiced the Bixie Sword Manual, he lied and claimed that the cassock recording the manual had been stolen by Linghu Chong—all so he could keep the technique for himself.
This thing, after all, was a secret technique passed down through Lin Pingzhi’s family. Naturally, Lin Pingzhi had to look for it.
And while searching, he accidentally stumbled upon Yue Buqun practicing the Bixie Sword Technique, and from outside the window, he overheard the whole thing.
Honestly, from a god’s-eye view, people could actually sympathize with Yue Buqun.
After all, just before this part of the story, because of the Bixie Sword Manual and old grudges, Cheng Buyou had brought the Songshan Sect disciples and a bunch of Jianghu thugs to corner them in front of the Medicine King Temple.
The great Huashan Sect.
Aside from Yue Buqun and Ning Zhongze, not a single person could step up and fight back!
In the end, if Linghu Chong hadn’t acted in time and driven them off.
That night, not only would Yue Buqun’s wife and daughter have been humiliated—even Yue Buqun himself would have died there.
But even so, the words Cheng Buyou left behind before fleeing—”The master is inferior to the disciple”—had deeply wounded him.
It changed his very nature, making him willing to do anything to become stronger.
Just to prove he was right, just to make sure the events at the Medicine King Temple would never happen again!
But while people outside the story could understand him.
Lin Pingzhi, inside the story, could not.
Because from his perspective, this was all a trap.
Whether it was taking him as a disciple or marrying Yue Lingshan to him.
Yue Buqun’s ultimate goal was the same as the Qingcheng Sect that had slaughtered his entire family—coveting his family’s “Bixie Sword Manual”!
And so, after Yue Buqun heeded Ning Zhongze’s advice and threw the cassock inscribed with the “Bixie Sword Manual” out the window.
Lin Pingzhi didn’t dare waste a single moment. He grabbed the cassock and fled as if his life depended on it.
He ran and ran, not knowing how long he’d been running.
Until finally, exhausted and gasping for breath, he collapsed to the ground.
Lin Pingzhi looked at the Bixie Sword Manual in his hands, disbelief written all over his face.
As if he couldn’t quite believe that the Bixie Sword Manual had actually fallen into his hands.
He read it over and over, confirming again and again.
His hurried movements were tinged with caution.
As if afraid it was all just an illusion.
Finally, after repeated confirmation, Lin Pingzhi laughed.
His laughter was wild and crazed.
Because after all his trials and tribulations, he had finally obtained the peerless technique that had thrown the Jianghu into chaos and caused the destruction of his family—the “Bixie Sword Manual”!
But the next second, Jiang Nian broke into violent coughing.
Seeing this, Director Hu Yijuan frowned. She remembered the script didn’t call for this, so she asked, “Should we call cut?”
“No need. This is just right. Or rather, this is how it should be!”
A glint flashed through Huang Junwen’s eyes.
Although this violent coughing had deviated from the script.
He had to admit—it was a brilliant touch.
You had to understand, Lin Pingzhi had just been through intense physical exertion, running for so long until he collapsed from exhaustion.
In such a state, if he burst out laughing, he would inevitably choke on himself.
At the same time, it also highlighted Lin Pingzhi’s current state of mind even more.
That he had finally made it through.
He had finally, in this turbulent Jianghu, grabbed hold of that last straw!
“Father, Mother, your child has finally found the Bixie Sword Manual!”
His face was flushed red from coughing, but Lin Pingzhi didn’t care. He just clutched the cassock and looked up.
As if Lin Zhennan and Madam Lin were watching him from the heavens right now.
And thinking of those two, Lin Pingzhi’s emotions surged uncontrollably.
A tear slid from the corner of his eye. His body trembled beyond his control, and even his breathing became rapid.
Lin Pingzhi made a vow: “Your child swears—I will master the Bixie Sword Manual! I will kill Yu Canghai and Mu Gaofeng with my own hands, those two dogs, to avenge you. Blood for blood!”
Having said that, Lin Pingzhi took several deep breaths, then with trembling hands, suddenly unfurled the cassock.
“Here it comes!”
Seeing this, everyone present silently thought to themselves.
Although they all knew what was coming next.
Their bodies still instinctively leaned forward. They held their breath, widened their eyes, wanting to carefully observe Jiang Nian’s reaction.
Because this scene could be said to be the most difficult part for Lin Pingzhi—and for the entire drama!
Whether Lin Pingzhi’s tragic image as a character could hold up depended entirely on how Jiang Nian performed right now.
“Can he do it in one take?”
“How will Teacher Jiang play it?”
“Madness, or disbelief?”
Countless thoughts flashed through people’s minds.
Under their eagerly anticipating gazes.
Lin Pingzhi unfurled the cassock and looked closely.
Instantly, a line of large characters came into view: Bixie Sword Manual. To practice the divine technique, one must first castrate oneself!
“Castrate oneself?!”
Seeing these two words, Lin Pingzhi froze.
There was no expression on his face.
He just shakily placed the cassock on the ground, carefully, tremblingly unfolded it completely, then lay down on top of it, grabbing his sleeve and wiping it over and over.
He looked again—the words hadn’t changed at all.
Lin Pingzhi’s pupils contracted. He wiped it again in disbelief, only to find it was still the same.
Instantly, he was stunned.
Seeing this, not far away, Huang Junwen’s brow furrowed slightly.
The way Jiang Nian performed this part was actually not bad.
Whether it was the reaction or the movements, they fully expressed Lin Pingzhi’s incredulous psychology upon learning of the Bixie Sword Manual’s drawback.
But…
How should he put it…
“The performance is a bit lacking. Not much impact!”
Beside him, Jin Yong—who had been invited to watch—made a sharp critique of Jiang Nian’s performance.
Although he wasn’t in this line of work, because his wuxia novels had been adapted into films and shows countless times, every single adaptation would invite him to serve as a special screenwriter.
Over time, Jin Yong had gained some understanding of filming.
Plus, Lin Pingzhi was a character he had created.
So he could tell at a glance what was going on with Jiang Nian.
Flat.
Too flat!
Unless the camera focused entirely on Jiang Nian’s movements.
Otherwise, the overall effect was just too bland and dull.
“Director Huang, is this the person you told me was Lin Pingzhi himself?”
After giving his evaluation, Jin Yong looked at Huang Junwen, his tone full of interrogation.
Originally, because of Jiang Nian’s appearance, Jin Yong had plenty of objections to him playing Lin Pingzhi.
But since it was the investor’s decision.
There was nothing Jin Yong could do to change it, so he figured he’d just avoid it altogether—not visit the set, not even plan to watch the show.
But Huang Junwen kept singing Jiang Nian’s praises, boasting about how amazing he was, doing everything he could to get Jin Yong to come visit the set.
Jin Yong got a little curious from all the talk, so he came.
And this was what he walked into.
Instantly, Jin Yong felt like he’d been scammed. He was furious.
Picking people blindly? Fine. Bad filming? Fine.
But you made such a mess of it, and you still insisted on making the original author come watch.
Watch what you’ve done to this show.
This was basically shitting on his head, and after finishing, still reaching out to ask him for toilet paper!
This was going too far!
Jin Yong’s eyes were full of displeasure.
Seeing this, Huang Junwen’s heart skipped a beat.
As a director, he naturally knew Jin Yong had always had plenty to say about Jiang Nian.
Inviting Jin Yong this time was partly to improve Jin Yong’s impression of Jiang Nian.
On the other hand, it was also to get the original author to walk around the set more, interact with the actors.
That way, when they did promotions, they’d have hooks and talking points.
Things like “Jin Yong’s pick for the most faithful adaptation of XXX” and so on.
But now it seemed.
He might have messed up!
Huang Junwen broke out in a cold sweat. He quickly explained, “Um, Elder Jin, don’t worry. Filming is like this—performance fluctuates. Right now it might just be that Teacher Jiang isn’t in a good state. A little adjustment and it’ll be fine.”
Jin Yong sneered. “Are you sure?”
Huang Junwen nodded. “I’m sure.”
Then he picked up the megaphone, about to call cut and have Jiang Nian adjust.
But just then.
Huang Junwen’s gaze landed on Jiang Nian.
And he suddenly froze.
In front of him, at some point, Jiang Nian had raised his head and was quietly looking at him.
But that wasn’t the point. The point was the expression on Jiang Nian’s face.
It was a twisted countenance that Huang Junwen had never seen in all his years of filming.
His mouth was split open, revealing neat white teeth.
The corners of his mouth curved upward, looking like he was smiling.
But in his eyes, there was a sorrow so profound it had nearly become something tangible.
Smiling?
Crying?
Neither was accurate.
If he had to describe it, Jiang Nian’s expression was… despair!
The despair of learning that practicing the “Bixie Sword Manual” required self-castration—despair toward life, despair toward the world, and the despair of wanting to die but being unable to!
Huang Junwen was stunned. He just stared blankly at Jiang Nian, his mind going blank.
Seeing this, beside him, Jin Yong’s brow furrowed deeply.
He wondered what kind of stunt Huang Junwen was pulling.
Didn’t he say Jiang Nian’s state wasn’t good and needed adjusting?
Why was he standing there like a statue after getting up?
He was deeply confused, so he followed Huang Junwen’s gaze and looked forward.
Instantly.
“!!!”
Jin Yong’s pupils suddenly contracted.
A current of electricity shot up his spine, reaching his brain in an instant, exploding and making every hair on his body stand on end!
As the author, he understood the character of Lin Pingzhi all too well.
Which meant that upon seeing Jiang Nian’s extremely twisted expression.
In a daze, Jin Yong seemed to see Lin Pingzhi’s tragic life flash before his eyes.
Losing his father, losing his mother, being used, being schemed against, with nowhere to call home in all the world.
Even his only lifeline hid arsenic within it, demanding he end his own bloodline!
And now, Lin Pingzhi was standing right in front of him.
That despairing gaze seemed to be questioning Jin Yong.
“Why did you make me suffer this wretched life?”
It pierced Jin Yong to the core, bringing grief surging up from within.
He quickly averted his gaze. Without realizing it, tears were already streaming down his face.
If even the two of them were like this, then needless to say, Huo Jianhua, Chen Qiaoen, and the others nearby were no different.
After noticing Jiang Nian’s expression, every single one of them froze on the spot, not knowing what to say.
“Are we done yet?”
Not far away, Jiang Nian’s mouth had gone dry from waiting. He noticed the group still hadn’t moved, so he couldn’t help but ask.
You guys can stand there spacing out all you want.
But he was still there with his big teeth bared.
The cold wind blowing in was drying out all his saliva.
Could they at least give him a definitive answer on whether this take worked or not?!
Hearing this, people finally snapped back to their senses.
Huang Junwen quickly grabbed the megaphone. “Cut, cut, cut—pass! Direct pass!”
He was about to lose his mind!
If Jiang Nian’s previous performance had just been standard, then after that expression came out, this performance could only be described in one word—divine!
No joke, this was fucking divine!
How on earth did Jiang Nian make that expression?!
“Elder Jin, did you see that? Jiang Nian’s expression just now.”
“I swear, holy shit, in all my years in this industry, I have never seen anyone express that kind of utter desolation, absolute despair, yet inability to die—through just a single expression!”
Snapping back to his senses, Huang Junwen immediately found Jin Yong, venting the indescribable shock in his heart!
Without exaggeration, just that one expression from Jiang Nian was enough to go down in the history of cinema!
And this was different from Yuhuatian.
Yuhuatian was because Jiang Nian had created a new image of a eunuch.
But this—this was purely acting skill, brute-forced!
“This is fucking incredible!”
Huang Junwen’s scalp tingled. He completely couldn’t understand how Jiang Nian had thought of this expression, or how he had managed to pull it off.
As for Jin Yong, after coming back to his senses and noticing the tears on his face, he quickly wiped them away, saying as he did:
“I saw it. I saw it.”
“Director Huang, you were right. Jiang Nian—he really is Lin Pingzhi himself!”
After witnessing Jiang Nian’s godlike performance, Jin Yong’s temper had completely vanished. He was utterly convinced.
In this moment, he realized just how narrow his previous views and impressions of Jiang Nian had been.
He couldn’t play Lin Pingzhi well?
No!
For Lin Pingzhi to be played by him—that was an honor for the character!
“And I actually wanted to kick him out.”
“I must have been insane!”
Jin Yong felt incredibly fortunate that he had no real say on this crew.
Otherwise, if he had actually driven Jiang Nian away because of his personal feelings, he would now be slapping his own thigh in regret!
People say good roles are hard to find, but in reality, a good actor who can fit a role and bring it to life is even harder to find!
Not to mention that Jiang Nian wasn’t just bringing Lin Pingzhi to life—he was a top-tier actor capable of elevating the character of Lin Pingzhi to an entirely new height. That was one in ten thousand!
Seeing Jin Yong’s reaction.
Huang Junwen couldn’t help but feel a bit smug.
After all, he had begged and pleaded before, but Jin Yong had refused to come no matter what, saying over and over that Jiang Nian’s Lin Pingzhi was no good, acting all high and mighty.
And now? After seeing Teacher Jiang’s acting, he was dumbstruck!
Satisfying!
So satisfying—like finally clearing his name!
