“Jiang Nian, how about you switch to being a variety show regular?”
Halfway through the drive, Yang Mi suddenly suggested.
She knew it might sound like she was conceding defeat, but given the intensity of Liu Kai and his allies’ blacklist, there was no other option but to lie low for a while.
The problem was that Jiang Nian was still too new in the industry. Even if Yang Mi wanted to use her connections to rally others to support him, she couldn’t—because no one else had any stake in Jiang Nian’s success. They had no reason to go out of their way to help him.
Unless—
Unless Yang Mi sent Jiang Nian out to… persuade those female celebrities with his charm.
But knowing Jiang Nian’s personality, if she dared to treat him like some kind of gigolo, he’d definitely turn on her.
So after mulling it over, the only viable path left was for him to become a variety show personality.
After all, Liu Kaiwei and his crew might have significant influence in the film and television circle—enough to crush Jiang Nian there—but in the variety show world, they were practically irrelevant.
Because variety shows don’t care about your connections; they care about your popularity and your ability to draw viewership. As long as you meet their requirements, they couldn’t care less whether someone has blacklisted you—they’ll hire anyone.
Jiang Nian understood her reasoning and her concerns.
But…
“Let’s wait a little longer. No rush.”
Jiang Nian said this not because he didn’t appreciate her help, but because he genuinely wasn’t interested in doing variety shows.
His system was the Film and Television Martial Arts Emperor System—it only unlocked characters and granted skills when he took on acting roles and received scripts. And for now, the only unlockable character type was eunuch.
Were there eunuchs in variety shows?
Obviously not.
And even if there were, how powerful could a eunuch in some random variety show possibly be?
So Jiang Nian wasn’t keen on wasting time on something so unrewarding. That was why, every time Yang Mi brought up variety shows, he dodged the topic.
Yang Mi didn’t know any of this. She just heard his answer and assumed he was still pinning his hopes on The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate. She sighed softly but didn’t press further.
She could understand how he felt. He’d finally landed a leading villain role, poised to launch his comeback and ride all the way to the top—only to get blacklisted immediately after wrapping, with no roles in sight.
That kind of drop was enough to break even the most resilient industry veterans, let alone a young guy in his twenties like Jiang Nian.
“I just hope he doesn’t do anything rash,” Yang Mi thought, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.
Little did she know, at that very moment, Jiang Nian was staring at the receding scenery outside the window, already mentally plotting Liu Kai’s grave.
Ever since he’d learned from Zhang Linyu that Liu Kai had blacklisted him, he’d already prepared for the worst.
He just hadn’t expected Liu Kai to be this ruthless.
Originally, Jiang Nian had been willing to compete fairly.
But now, that was clearly out of the question.
“If fairness can’t protect me, then don’t expect it to protect you either.”
“Don’t let me find out where you are.”
Half a Month Later, Minor Cold.
With the New Year approaching, the festive atmosphere was growing stronger by the day.
People were busy beating drums and gongs, preparing for the celebrations.
And Jiang Nian received a phone call from Xu Ke at exactly noon.
“Mr. Jiang, are you free?”
Xu Ke’s hearty voice came through the speaker as soon as Jiang Nian picked up.
Jiang Nian patted Yang Mi, who promptly rolled aside. He walked to the bedside, lit a cigarette, took a deep drag, and said, “Yes, I am. What’s up, Director Xu?”
“Oh, nothing much. It’s just that we’ve been working overtime and The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate is finally finished and approved. It’s set for the New Year’s box office slot, so I was hoping you could help out with the promotional tour.”
Xu Ke chuckled as he explained his purpose.
Every movie goes through a massive promotional blitz before release to let audiences know it exists. And for New Year’s slot films, the marketing push is absolutely insane—it’s a complete circus.
Not only do they run TV ads, but they also organize nationwide tours with the lead actors and host various film-related events.
If Jiang Nian were still just a bit player, this wouldn’t have concerned him.
But he was the male lead villain of The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate—and also the character with the most personal charisma in the entire film.
Xu Ke wasn’t about to let him off the hook.
Jiang Nian thought for a moment. “Alright. Where?”
Since all his skills were already maxed out and there were no new characters to unlock or abilities to learn, Jiang Nian had found the past half-month incredibly dull.
His routine had been: wake up, eat, play around, sleep.
He was starting to get bored.
Tagging along with Xu Ke on a nationwide tour actually sounded like a decent way to pass the time.
Having received his affirmative answer, Xu Ke gave him an address and hung up.
Seeing Jiang Nian put down his phone, Yang Mi sidled up to him. “Heading out again?”
“Yeah.” Jiang Nian nodded. “The movie’s about to hit theaters. I’ll probably be traveling with Director Xu for the next half-month, doing promotions.”
“I see.”
Yang Mi wasn’t entirely thrilled about this. She’d been trying to steer him toward variety shows all this time, hoping to kill his desire to act in films—so naturally, she didn’t want him getting involved with movies again.
But then she thought about it: this was his first film, and barring any miracles, it would also be his last. If she stopped him from going, it would seem rather heartless.
So she decided to let him have his way.
“I’ll wait for you to come back, then.”
“Alright.”
Jiang Nian nodded, booked his tickets on his phone, took a quick shower, and called a taxi to head to the airport.
How is he doing?
Inside a lavish hotel, standing on the highest floor overlooking the glittering nightscape below, Liu Kai took a sip of red wine and asked his agent.
The “he” in question was, of course, Jiang Nian.
Ever since his earlier oversight—when he’d accidentally let Jiang Nian slip into Xu Ke’s Flying Swords production—Liu Kai had been keeping a very close eye on Jiang Nian’s movements.
He asked about it almost every other day.
Not because he actually cared, of course.
But because he wanted to be ready to crush any opportunity Jiang Nian might find before it could take root.
His agent was used to this by now. He glanced at his phone.
“Same as before—he’s been traveling around the country with Director Xu, doing promotions. But…”
“But what?” Liu Kai turned to look at him.
“But judging by the online buzz lately, Jiang Nian seems to be generating quite a bit of interest. And I’ve heard from people in the industry that two directors have taken notice and are considering casting him.”
Liu Kai frowned. “Who?!”
Damn it. When he’d been blacklisting Jiang Nian on his own, it was one thing if someone still wanted to hire him—after all, his individual influence wasn’t that terrifying.
But now he’d mobilized so many people to join the blacklist—who the hell was so blind as to still take Jiang Nian on?
The agent slowly uttered two names: Jiang Buwu and Jia Zhangke.
Liu Kai’s angry expression instantly froze.
Because these were both heavyweights he couldn’t afford to offend.
Jiang Buwu was one of their country’s top-tier directors, a cultural emissary of sorts to Hollywood. He held enormous prestige both domestically and internationally. His film Let the Bullets Fly had been analyzed so deeply that it became practically a cult classic. Add to that his position as a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, and it was safe to say that—unless the government itself intervened—there wasn’t a single person in the entire film industry he was afraid of.
And the other, Jia Zhangke—he was equally formidable.
His filmography might not be extensive, but he’d won nearly every major award at home and abroad. On top of that, he was the president of the China Film Directors’ Guild and a professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts!
“Not them—how the hell did they take a liking to Jiang Nian?!” Liu Kai took a swig of his wine, deeply frustrated.
He just wanted to crush Jiang Nian—why did it have to be so difficult?
“Are you sure this information is reliable? Jiang Nian is so young and delicate—his style doesn’t even match theirs!”
Liu Kai asked, still in disbelief.
His agent merely shrugged. “Who knows? That’s just what people are saying. Could be rumors. Want to handle it?”
Liu Kai’s eyes flickered.
He thought for a moment. “Handle it—we absolutely have to handle it!”
Liu Kai knew this wasn’t a rational move. It was like being led around by the nose.
But he had no choice. He’d already poured too much manpower, resources, and connections into this blacklist campaign. If he backed down now, not only would all his previous efforts go to waste, but he’d become a laughingstock in the entertainment industry, never able to hold his head up again.
His agent wasn’t surprised by the answer. “Should I go talk to Director Jiang and Director Jia, then?”
“No need!” Liu Kai said. “Given their status, talking to them probably wouldn’t do any good anyway. I’ll handle this myself. You can leave.”
His agent nodded without asking further questions, simply exiting the room and closing the door behind him.
After he left, Liu Kai pulled out his phone, checked the itinerary he’d obtained for Jiang Nian, and dialed a number.
“Hello, it’s me, Liu Kai. I need you to teach someone a lesson.”
“I’ll send you his name and address shortly.”
“Money’s no object.”
“I want him disfigured.”
He paused, then added, “But try not to make it look deliberate—make it look like an accident. Paying him off is fine, but whatever you do, don’t kill him. Can you handle it?”
After a moment of silence on the other end, a voice replied, “Done.”
Liu Kai hung up, a ruthless glint flashing in his eyes.
There’s a saying: if you can’t solve the problem, solve the person who created it.
He couldn’t touch Jia Zhangke or Jiang Buwu—but could he really not touch Jiang Nian?
Liu Kai refused to believe that after Jiang Nian was disfigured, those two would still want him. How could he possibly bounce back then?
“So what if you’ve latched onto that bitch Yang Mi?”
“Mess with me, and no one can save you.”
