Chapter 155: "Ghost Traces" Begins Filming
Since "Ghost Traces" had no existing fan base, the official Weibo account registered for it initially had no followers. This changed when the official account mentioned Rong Yu and posted a picture of his profile, with the caption: "The splendid view remains, but the person cannot return."
Unlike the initially released picture where the person had their back turned, this one showed the person in red turned slightly sideways, allowing people to recognize Rong Yu's profile.
He wore a long red trench coat, with silver cloud patterns visible on the shoulders and the hem printed with black blooming spider lilies.
In the promotional still, Rong Yu had his head slightly tilted back, revealing his neck, which appeared fair against the red collar, with the distinct Adam's apple and a gentle jawline.
Further up were the contours of his lips. Usually thin and crimson, here they were pale, dry, and cracked, utterly bloodless, with fine cracks spreading from the corners of his mouth like a spiderweb extending across his face.
His eyes seemed to gaze at a point above, slightly widened, with the whites of his eyes completely black and the pupils a blood-red.
A single tear of blood trailed from the corner of his eye, past the cracked skin, leaving a bloody mark on his pale face.
His somewhat long hair fell loosely, the strands visibly dry, coarse, yellowish, and disheveled.
This was one of the appearances of the male lead, Jing Sheng, in "Ghost Traces."
Rong Yu quickly reposted this Weibo from the "Ghost Traces" official account with the comment: "Hello, Jing Sheng."
The Yuxiang Rousi fans soon followed Rong Yu's Weibo to see the series' name, but upon searching, found no original work with the same title, nor had they heard of this series before.
This meant it was a completely new series that would rely on fan power for promotion.
Comment 1: I'm here, I'm here! I followed Brother Rong's lead. I'll gladly take the picture, and by the way, can I ask, is this a supernatural series? What role is our darling playing? Can you give a little hint?
Comment 2: Blind guess: he's playing a zombie. Look at that makeup.
Comment 3: Doesn't he seem more like a ghost? Is our darling going to play a ghost?
Comment 4: No matter what he plays, I'm totally here for this image! Just saw this is a movie, wishing it great box office success in advance!
However, the celebratory comments didn't last long. As midnight approached, the "Ghost Traces" official Weibo posted another picture of a figure from behind.
This figure had brown curly hair and wore a beige checkered suit, appearing somewhat petite, with a black single-strap backpack.
Just as fans were eagerly anticipating which handsome guy they would see when he turned around, the "Ghost Traces" official Weibo lived up to expectations by posting a new update, mentioning Ming Qian with the caption: "A person's heart can change."
The Yuxiang Rousi fans, upon seeing Ming Qian's profile, collectively: "..."
Ming Qian also quickly reposted this with the comment: "Hello, Jiang Qing."
The Qiansha fans, who had rushed over excitedly via the link upon hearing Ming Qian had a new series, also: "..."
The previous situation with "Extreme Joy" was different; since both actors had new series airing, it was normal for them to be invited onto the same promotional show. But for them to now be in the same production crew? This development was perplexing.
Because online feuds had been so intense, many had selectively forgotten that Rong Yu and Ming Qian were still members of the same boy band. From that perspective, the two acting in the same series wasn't particularly problematic.
The problem was that their respective fanbases had already become fiercely opposed, like fire and water. Having them act in the same series now would be like creating a powder keg.
Furthermore, being in the same boy band and being in the same series were quite different.
When fan conflicts occurred within the same boy band, the arguments could generate publicity, potentially boosting the band's visibility and increasing traffic. Even if the attention was not entirely positive, it still had a measurable effect.
However, the situation was different when the two were in the same production. If their fans continued feuding, while it might generate some heat for the series, it also risked damaging the series' reputation. This was especially critical for a movie, which relied heavily on box office performance after its release. If the fans tarnished the movie's reputation and deterred general audiences before its premiere, the box office numbers would suffer, ultimately hurting its chances of success.
For newly debuted artists, every work served as a touchstone and a critical entry on their resume. Naturally, every fan wanted their idol's resume to be impressive and flawless.
[Touchstone: a hard stone formerly used to test the quality of gold or silver by the streak left on it, now used figuratively to mean a standard or criterion by which the quality or value of something is judged]
Furthermore, if the movie became a box office hit and performed well financially, the investors would reap significant profits and attract more attention from future investors. The artists involved would naturally benefit from this success.
Once their market value increased, movie and television scripts would undoubtedly come knocking at their door.
Perhaps considering this, when the two fanbases unexpectedly encountered each other, they fell into an eerie silence, with neither side initiating a confrontation for a while.
This strange atmosphere continued until marketing accounts caught wind of it, eagerly drafting provocative posts and enthusiastically publishing them.
However, to the disappointment of these marketing accounts, both fanbases remained quiet as mice, showing no intention of starting a fight, which greatly disappointed them.
But the marketing accounts didn't give up. They paid to push the topic onto the hot search list. Unfortunately, shortly after it rose, the heat quickly died down. Latecomers didn't even get to see it before the topic fell off the trending rankings.
The speed at which the hot search was taken down was practiced to a heartbreaking degree.
Previously, when the two sides fought, they would remove their own negative hot searches, which would often resurface due to interference from the opposing side. Now, with both sides united to remove the hot search bought by the marketing accounts, the speed was almost too fast.
Many bystanders who saw the topic went to the "Ghost Traces" official Weibo to observe, but unfortunately, they didn't witness the fan war they expected and could only leave regretfully, perhaps following the account for future drama.
The next day, the "Ghost Traces" official Weibo continued to release promotional stills of other actors. The actor playing the psychologist was a male star named Wei Hai, an artist under Huansheng Entertainment. Having debuted five years ago, he had built a fan base, but Huansheng's main focus for promotion hadn't been on him in recent years, and his previous agent wasn't very capable, so his resources had been mediocre.
Now, after Yin Chengjue's restructuring of Huansheng, which involved removing artists and agents whose loyalties had already shifted to other companies, these previously overlooked artists finally got their chance to shine.
Although it sounded simple, orchestrating the departure of agents and their artists who intended to jump ship still required considerable effort from Yin Chengjue. However, due to the discreet handling of the negotiations, the matter never leaked online. Many within the company couldn't understand why some artists, whom Huansheng Entertainment had promoted to first or second-tier status, would leave so quietly.
From Yin Chengjue's perspective, it made no difference that Huansheng Entertainment had elevated these artists to first or second-tier status. In his past life, these people—alongside Ming Qian—had collectively abandoned ship when Huansheng encountered difficulties, completely disregarding the substantial resources the company had invested in their careers. They were solely concerned with securing their own futures.
In his view, such people might very well achieve greater success elsewhere—but that would be entirely their own accomplishment. A company had no use for those who would abandon it in a crisis. It was far better to let them depart early and cleanly, thereby freeing up valuable resources to be redirected toward artists who were truly worth nurturing.
Like Wei Hai, for example, and the newly trained five-member boy band.
Wei Hai's fans were thrilled to see their idol, who hadn't appeared in a new movie for a long time, making a comeback. They immediately rushed to the "Ghost Traces" official Weibo to cheer and celebrate.
Wei Hai played a psychologist, so his promotional still featured him wearing a white lab coat with his hands in his pockets.
He had long, light gray hair tied loosely at the back with a cord and wore silver, lower-rimmed glasses that reflected light in the shot, making his gaze from above the lenses seem somewhat mocking. A silver chain dangled from the left side of the glasses, and even in a static image, one could almost sense its sway.
The most unsettling part was his wide grin, with his tongue out, licking his canine tooth.
Wei Hai naturally had a slim build and a small face. Combined with his slightly lowered head and the camera angle, his smile made his mouth seem to dominate the lower half of his face, perfectly embodying the classic 3D "yandere" image.
[Yandere: a Japanese term derived from "yanderu" (mentally ill) and "deredere" (lovestruck), describing a character archetype who displays initially affectionate and loving behavior that twists into violent, obsessive, and manipulative tendencies, often driven by an extreme desire to possess their loved one]
The "Ghost Traces" official Weibo released over ten promotional stills in a row without explicitly stating who the lead roles in the movie were. However, it was almost immediately clear that the leads were among Rong Yu, Ming Qian, and Wei Hai.
Rong Yu's red attire was stunningly beautiful, Ming Qian's features were delicate and pretty, and Wei Hai's smile was eerily enchanting.
Coupled with their noticeably more refined makeup compared to the other actors, it would be hard to believe they weren't important characters even if someone claimed otherwise.
After gradually revealing the cast, the "Ghost Traces" crew posted a group photo from the incense-offering ceremony at the start of filming, wishing for a smooth shoot. The comments section was flooded with blessings.
Especially for supernatural horror films like this, such rituals were considered essential. Some crews even invite masters to perform ceremonies to ward off bad luck, preventing any encounters with unclean entities during filming or capturing anything supernatural on camera.
Director Mo, having directed this genre for many years, was well-versed in these practices. The master he invited was an old acquaintance who offered a discounted rate, more affordable than the market price.
Although Yin Chengjue didn't particularly believe in such unscientific phenomena, since it was a ghost film, even if ghosts and spirits didn't actually exist, allowing such ceremonies for the actors' peace of mind was permissible. So, he approved the expense.
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