"Eh? What happened?"
Xiao He was surprised that there really was a second part, and even more surprised that the moment he learned about its existence, it had already been aborted.
"The second part was originally intended to invite a certain person to play an important role, but she still refused."
Lin Yipeng let out a long sigh.
"Perhaps I was being too pushy with her, but this role was completely designed for her. If she's unwilling to come, then there's no need to film it."
Xiao He remained silent.
He thought he probably guessed which character Lin Yipeng was referring to.
Naturally, it was the landlady of Penglai Inn.
Director Lin had insisted from beginning to end that this character never show her face, with even her lines being minimal. Many of her words were conveyed through Shen Jue, the character Xiao He played, so Xiao He had vaguely suspected that Director Lin had planted foreshadowing for this character.
It's just a pity - if Director Lin doesn't film the second part, perhaps this character will never appear on the big screen.
Although he didn't know who the landlady in Lin Yipeng's mind was, Xiao He wisely didn't pursue the topic, simply acting as a silent listener.
"Forget it, let's not talk about this anymore."
Lin Yipeng was only dejected for a second before casually changing the subject, "You worked hard with today's livestream. I originally wanted to gather everyone together, but both you and Pu Rong are filming, so I won't disturb you."
"Director Lin worked hard too," Xiao He replied.
"Rest well tonight. When you return to Shanghai, I'll call you out for a celebration banquet."
"Okay."
After hanging up the phone, Xiao He began pondering this matter.
Coincidentally, Liu Rulan walked in: "How did it go? Did Director Lin reveal any plans for the next project? Is it the second part of Thief Catcher?"
Given how high the demand for the second part was now, she didn't believe Lin Yipeng hadn't noticed.
Xiao He shrugged helplessly: "He doesn't plan to film the second part."
Liu Rulan frowned: "Why not?"
"I don't know."
Xiao He didn't reveal Lin Yipeng's reason.
"Alright, what a pity." Liu Rulan sighed, "Then rest up, we need to hurry back tomorrow."
Reaching the door, Liu Rulan remembered something and looked back at Xiao He: "By the way, I asked you last time but you never told me - besides sword techniques, blade skills, and rock climbing, do you have any other standout skills that could be written into your resume?"
"Uh—"
Xiao He froze up.
His system had been stuck updating for several days now, so he didn't really have any skills to write into his resume!
"That depends on the situation." Xiao He rubbed his nose, answering vaguely, "Sister Liu, do you have a specific role in mind? You can tell me first, let me see..."
...see if I can learn it.
Liu Rulan made a light clicking sound with her tongue: "You say that as if you could learn it if you didn't have it."
Xiao He laughed dryly: "Hahaha..."
That might not necessarily be true.
"Then listen carefully—"
Liu Rulan pulled out her phone, took a deep breath, and Xiao He suddenly had a bad premonition—
"First, the male lead must be handsome, over 180cm tall, with a pleasant voice, high education level, proficient in foreign languages - English as the foundation, French preferred, skilled in cooking, able to play at least three musical instruments with piano and guitar as top priorities, preferably able to sing without being tone-deaf, capable of driving various vehicles including but not limited to race cars, motorcycles, helicopters, yachts, etc., and preferably able to ride horses, skateboard, and engage in some common extreme sports..."
Liu Rulan held her phone and spoke endlessly, those requirements longer than life itself making one's vision darken repeatedly. Xiao He's mouth twitched continuously until Liu Rulan finally stopped, then he asked in a dry voice: "Sister Liu, what you just read out... is the male lead's character setting, right?"
Liu Rulan put away her phone and smiled brightly: "It's the male lead's character setting, and also the actor requirements."
Xiao He: "..."
Thinking about how he had spent four years getting his driver's license but had hardly driven at all, Xiao He directly pushed Liu Rulan out the door: "It's too late, everyone should wash up and sleep, you hurry back, good night!"
Liu Rulan: "..."
Looking at the door that slammed shut, she shrugged helplessly: "I hadn't finished speaking yet. This script has been stuck in review for years, whether it can be filmed is still a question, there's no sign of it yet... Forget it, since this guy acts so confident that he can learn anything, let me stimulate him a bit—"
Then she turned and walked toward her own room.
After driving Liu Rulan away, Xiao He indeed recalled those ridiculous requirements again.
To be honest, with some effort it wasn't impossible - cooking and musical instruments, he had Magic Hands, so he should learn quickly. Although he was indeed tone-deaf when singing... but if it can be fixed then he's a good singer, he felt that was fine. It was just that pile of vehicles requiring driving skills...
Xiao He shrugged somewhat helplessly. These things weren't something you could master just because your hands could do it - they required more experiential knowledge and practical reaction.
And forget flying helicopters, he hadn't even ridden in one!
Unless—
Xiao He took out his Skill Copy Capsule.
He almost forgot, he still had one opportunity to copy a skill...
Xiao He stared at the capsule for a moment, then finally shook his head, put away the capsule and opened his computer.
He began searching for basic information about director Lin Jiexiu.
Lin Jiexiu was now sixty years old, with his wife Qu Qiuyan, they had one son and one daughter. Their eldest daughter was currently working in the financial industry, while Lin Yipeng was Lin Jiexiu's child born in his later years. From his school days, he had shown Lin Jiexiu's directorial talent, having independently directed a ten-minute campus stage play that shocked many people at the time, but later gradually faded from public view. Some early media even called him "a wasted prodigy."
Of course, there was no need to mention these comments now - one "Thief Catcher" was enough to break all doubts.
But these weren't Xiao He's main investigation targets.
His gaze fell on the name Qu Qiuyan.
Qu Qiuyan - if you asked the younger generation now, they probably wouldn't know who she was at all. But if you asked their parents' generation, they would probably blurt out "Goddess Qu"!
That era had many award-winning actresses and many divas, but there was only one person who could be called a goddess by countless fans - Qu Qiuyan!
Qu Qiuyan was considered a legendary figure in Chinese cinema. She created countless memorable classic roles, even winning all major domestic and international best actress awards, setting historical records. Even the American media weekly back then rated her as [Asia's Most Influential Female Artist] and [Asia's Most Beautiful Goddess]. Her influence and achievements almost became the imprint and symbol of an era. If you wanted to talk about Chinese film history, you absolutely couldn't avoid mentioning her.
Qu Qiuyan and Lin Jiexiu were considered mutually achieving, but they could also create popular classic works separately. Back then, they were often jokingly called "Asia's strongest couple." Whenever they attended award ceremonies, the awards would definitely be divided between the couple first, without any controversy - they were simply that strong.
However, just when everyone thought Qu Qiuyan would continue developing in the entertainment industry, or like her husband transition to education, an accident occurred.
During an advertisement shoot, a crew member accidentally threw a real Molotov cocktail instead of a prop onto Qu Qiuyan, immediately igniting raging flames. Qu Qiuyan screamed in agony in the fire. Although the crew promptly used fire extinguishers to put out the flames on her body, Qu Qiuyan still suffered severe burns, even facial disfigurement.
From that day on, a star fell from the sky and completely disappeared.
Qu Qiuyan completely withdrew from the entertainment industry, and no one knew what her final condition was.
Some said she went insane after being disfigured and was sent to a mental hospital by Lin Jiexiu; others said she was actually burned alive on the spot, and being sent to the hospital was just humanitarian treatment; still others said she did survive but became neither human nor ghost, finally taking pills to end her life and leave this world forever one day.
At that time, online speculation was rampant, but the person involved never appeared again. Even Lin Jiexiu rarely appeared in the media. Even when some media managed to break into the school to see Lin Jiexiu, he refused to answer and drove them out.
Thus ten to twenty years passed in a flash, and people had long gradually forgotten her existence, with many even thinking she had died.
However, Xiao He knew that Qu Qiuyan was not dead.
Although he hadn't personally seen Qu Qiuyan's current condition, Xiao He had previously seen Lin Yipeng's social media post about going home to celebrate his mother's birthday, so he was quite certain that Qu Qiuyan was alive.
And based on the foreshadowing Lin Yipeng had planted earlier in Thief Catcher, Xiao He boldly guessed that the landlady of Penglai Inn role was actually prepared by Lin Yipeng for his mother from the beginning.
No wonder the landlady's voice wasn't clear and crisp, and Shen Jue's feelings toward the landlady were more filial admiration.
This way, many things from before made sense.
One could imagine that if Qu Qiuyan were willing to participate in Thief Catcher, this movie would reach even greater heights.
It's just a pity - the trauma and pain from back then weren't something everyone could face calmly many years later, especially after falling from the peak.