Love Variety Show: The despised me exploded in popularity

Chapter 488: Chapter 272 Xu: Is my arm wearing a special-grade chef’s armband?

The ancient city originally had a name that was quite artistic, Lingdu.

Later, disliking the name for its inauspicious connotations, they changed it to a more awkward one, and people, finding it troublesome, simply called it the ancient city. The film and television city was located at the northeast edge of the ancient city.

The site of the film and television city was somewhat elevated, known as Qinglong Mountain.

Not far away, the courtyard walls rose high, with roofs featuring double eaves and restful slopes, and layer upon layer of wooden dougong, pavilions, terraces, and towers, with carved balustrades and painted rafters, indistinguishable between the Tang, Song, Ming, and Qing Dynasties—a classic film and television city template.

Low-budget web series are generally filmed here; they’re not particularly concerned about the correctness of costume, props, and makeup—as long as it’s ancient, it’s good to go.

None of this mattered to Xu Qingyan, who, looking at the orderly scene before him, felt a sense of achievement well up within. He had finally pulled it off.

But an eighty-episode drama wasn’t only financially unsustainable for him; it also felt a bit too much like flooding the Jinshan Mountain. He had accordingly processed it, artificially shortening the watered-down episodes.

He certainly needed to make money, but if his first series turned out both lengthy and diluted, the company might not survive till a second one. He wasn’t thinking about making a sequel, solely focusing on steering the series towards being a high-quality comedy.

Xu Qingyan actually saw things very clearly: leave professional tasks to the professionals. He didn’t understand filmmaking, so he left directorial matters to Wei Wufeng.

As for the operation of the crew, he had a rudimentary understanding, so he took responsibility for production. Not understanding many things was fine, as he generally learned on the job without delay.

Xu Qingyan’s strength lay in getting the script produced; on the other hand, the original series was limited by budget and era, so the theme song and insert songs weren’t exactly outstanding.

The situation now was… he had an entire music library to choose from and could freely match songs as long as he wished. For traditional-style songs, as long as they fit the discussion, they were used.

Because it was the first, it deserved everything.

“The Legend of Martial Arts” had relatively few characters, with the main roles starting with Tong Xiangyu: the daughter of Longmen Escort Agency’s owner, betrothed to the head of the Hengshan Sect.

She didn’t expect her fiancé to be a lecherous and greedy man who was thrown off a cliff by the disciples of the Hengshan Sect for embezzling funds to build a house, and Tong Xiangyu became a widow before she even saw her fiancé.

Facing her fiancé’s unexpected account cancellation, Tong Xiangyu decided to settle down in the Seven Heroes Town alone, opening an inn to raise her younger sister-in-law.

Bai Zhantang: former thief saint, current waiter, falls in love at first sight with the widowed shopkeeper. Intends to retire from the jianghu, personality: this thief saint is very strong but exceptionally cowardly.

His skill is the Sunflower Acupoint Hand, a hard control skill, frighteningly so.

Guo Furong: the daughter of the great hero Guo, selfish and arrogant, wishes to traverse the jianghu to surpass her father’s fame. Dying before achieving mastery, she becomes a menial worker.

From a penniless heroine to a debt-ridden servant, she is intent on escaping the Tong Fu Inn, contributing to the main conflicts in the early plot.

Her skill is Overturning Seas and Rivers, which is firmly restrained by Bai Zhantang’s Sunflower Acupoint Hand. A female warrior cannot overcome a hard control mage; attempting to flee, she finds escape impossible and can only slack off and muddle through each day.

Stealing a half-day’s leisure in a transient life, then stealing a bit more money. It’s not that she doesn’t do anything proper; it’s that even the passing dogs outside the inn would get a kick or two.

Lu Qinghou: of ancestral distinguished officialdom, akin to the top leader in the municipal party committee. Famous at a young age, not so remarkable when grown-up, but still decent enough to end up poor and down-and-out.

Passed the imperial examinations as a Scholar but failed to become an advanced scholar, sold the ancestral inn to Tong Xiangyu, and became an Account Master. Personality: a cynical Scholar, yet also possessed the integrity of a literatus.

Li Bigmouth: a cook, whose old mother is blind and who grew up in poverty. Personality: both self-loathing and arrogant, accustomed to being oppressed, loves to argue, contributing to some of the comedic moments in the drama.

Mo Xiaobei: Tong Xiangyu’s younger sister-in-law, future leader of the Hengshan Sect, a major devil. In truth, she’s a tomboy, a mischievous monkey; with too much wisdom comes much harm.

Zhu Wushuang: Bai Zhantang’s junior sister, beautiful, gentle, and capable. Can do needlework, manage household tasks, and care for others, always putting herself last.

Personality: drifts alone in the jianghu, doesn’t want to trouble others, has a people-pleasing personality.

Arrest Officer Xing: the arrest officer of Seven Heroes Town, a shrewd character, whose greatest dream is to live a comfortable life without exertion. Somewhat crafty in personality but also possessing the loyalty and courage of a small figure.

Yan Xiaoliu: initially honest and kind-hearted, sincere in his dealings, gradually becomes selfish, stubborn, and a petty person, the creator of major crises.

Supporting roles: Shopkeeper Qian, Madam Qian, the county magistrate Lou,… these people made up such a “The Legend of Martial Arts,” and many episodes were cut after simplification.

On the set, Wei Wufeng’s eyes were frighteningly red as he stared expressionlessly at the shooting of the first scene. Xu Qingyan and Zhou Mian also watched with equally serious expressions.

Choosing the cast was not Xu Qingyan’s responsibility; after all, even if he wanted to take it on, he couldn’t. This world is very pragmatic; when the balance is insufficient, dreams vanish.

Fortunately, after much hesitation, Wei Wufeng still retained Li Liangxing, the actor playing Li Bigmouth, not for a lack of people, but to give face to Xu Qingyan.

The actor for Bai Zhantang was Li Sheng, whose aura didn’t stand out. It was apparent he used to be good-looking and had a foundation for comedy.

Scholar was played by a genteel-looking actor, Guo Furong appeared quiet and pretty, but after makeup, she seemed lively and fiery. Mo Xiaobei was played by a cute, rather shy young actor.

The alignment between the actors’ personalities and their roles wasn’t a problem; as long as they could act out those states upon starting the shoot, that would suffice.

By all accounts, there should also be a script read-through.

A script read-through was done in the past to help actors become more familiar with the script, facilitating discussion with the screenwriter, director, and producer on the spot.

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