"What's your name?" Director Li asked Shen Liannuo.
Shen Liannuo glanced at him sideways. "Is there something?"
The two words, as if squeezed out of a miser, carried a strong disdain.
"She's so similar, so incredibly similar!" The martial arts director slapped his hands together. "Isn't this the protagonist herself?"
He felt immense joy, as if he had found a treasure.
"I think her temperament is even more fitting," the assistant director said, hands behind his back, his eyes scanning Shen Liannuo from head to toe.
The gazes made Shen Liannuo extremely uncomfortable.
Her eyebrows furrowed, her eyes becoming sharp. "Keep looking at me like that, and I'll gouge your eyes out!"
"Liannuo, let me introduce you." Meng Jingwei stood up and pointed to several people. "These are all directors for the film crew. This is Director Li, the assistant director, the martial arts director, the assistant martial arts director, the costume director..."
After listening to Meng Jingwei's introductions, Shen Liannuo nodded. "Oh."
She glanced at them, then turned and sat down on the sofa, asking Meng Jingwei, "What did you want to see me about?"
However, before Meng Jingwei could speak, the martial arts director immediately stepped forward. "Beautiful, which performing arts school did you graduate from?"
"Liannuo, wait for me outside for a moment. I need to talk to them about something."
Meng Jingwei patted Shen Liannuo's shoulder and gave her a meaningful look.
Shen Liannuo understood and turned to leave the lounge.
Immediately, the directors surrounded Meng Jingwei, bombarding her with questions.
"This girl has such a great temperament."
"Who is she? Can she endure hardship? Can she perform wire work?"
"Is she a professional actress?"
"Meng Jingwei, you can't be reckless."
"While her temperament is good, can she pull it off? Without some skill, she won't be able to act out the fight scenes effectively."
...
Meng Jingwei listened patiently to them finish before explaining one by one. "Firstly, she's not an actress; secondly, her skills far surpass mine. Most importantly, she comes from a noble family, albeit one that has fallen on hard times. She is truly, truly suitable for the protagonist because her experiences are almost identical to the protagonist's."
Her words brought silence to the directors.
They looked at each other, unable to make up their minds.
Director Li pushed up his glasses, exclaiming, "Her image and temperament are truly exceptional, no doubt about it."
"But she's a complete novice. Can she act?"
"If she can't, we can teach her. New actors are also obedient and manageable."
"Ha, you must be joking. Does she look like someone who's easily managed?"
"If she's not suitable, where are we supposed to find a lead actress on such short notice?!"
...
They were divided in their opinions.
There were two options for casting an actress: one was to find someone who matched the original protagonist's image; the other was to spend a fortune on a popular, trendy young actress.
Tang Wanxing was an actress with both beauty and acting talent, but she stubbornly refused to participate, abandoning the project without any discussion, which nearly drove the directors mad.
"Meng Jingwei, let's discuss this further." Director Li stepped forward and said to her.
Meng Jingwei didn't overthink it and nodded. "Alright, you discuss it first. I'll head out."
She left the lounge.
Outside the lounge, Shen Liannuo paced back and forth at the entrance, her arms crossed.
Seeing her emerge, she stepped forward and asked, "So, you want me to be an actress?"
Shen Liannuo had visited the set before, but it had been cold during those days, and she had worn a mask and hat when she went out, so no one had seen her face.
Moreover, the directors were so busy they were constantly on their feet and naturally hadn't noticed her.
Meng Jingwei raised an eyebrow slightly. "Are you interested?"