mijobooks Chapter 201 Tan Yu's Growth
Chapter 201 Tan Yu's Growth
When Lu Ran arrived at Xingyao, it was already past four in the afternoon.
He originally wanted to go directly to the eighth part of the long-running drama to find Tan Yu, but he was stopped by the receptionist as soon as he entered the gate.
"Mr. Lu!" The young woman's eyes lit up like searchlights. "You've finally arrived at the company! Mr. Li was just asking you the other day if you moved your workstation to TuTu Technology!"
Lu Ran gave an awkward laugh after being teased by the receptionist.
However, he was thick-skinned and said without batting an eye, "Nonsense, I'm working remotely, very efficiently. Where is Mr. Li?"
"We're in a meeting. Why don't you go to your office and rest for a while?"
"No, I'm going to the eighth long-running drama."
As a former leader of the Eight Long-running Drama Series, I still have a lot of affection for it.
Lu Ran even felt that things were much easier back when they were still in the short drama department than they are now.
As my position rose higher and higher, my workload became increasingly tiring.
However, Lu Ran is a good person and knows how to delegate authority.
As for how well his subordinates performed, he couldn't be bothered to care.
But now it seems that Xingyao really doesn't tolerate idlers. Even though the people who come to his department are all people who have been eliminated from other departments, he still feels that they are doing a good job.
Thinking to herself, she walked towards the elevator as if she knew the way well, but after taking two steps, she turned back: "By the way, are the plants in my office still alive?"
"Uh..." The girl's expression was subtle. "The administration helped us change it to a new one last week."
"...Understood."
He asked this question to see how the company would treat him.
Although he felt that Li Mo probably wouldn't have any issues with him, he couldn't be sure.
It seems that at least they still approve of him as director.
The eight long-running dramas are on the third floor, taking up half the entire floor.
Lu Ran remembered that at the beginning, the eight-part drama series only had one office, but in less than half a year, things got better.
Because it occupied half a floor, Lu Ran almost thought he had gone to the wrong place when he got out of the elevator.
The corridor was plastered with posters of "Meteor Garden" and "The Starry Night," and there was a banner on the wall that read "Starry First Department." I wonder which sycophant put it there.
The most outrageous thing is that there are actually two stone lions placed at the entrance of the department.
The stone lions also have red ribbons tied around their necks, with the words "Eight Mighty Warriors" written on them.
"..."
It's pretty cringeworthy. I could write a martial arts version of "Where Are We Going, Dad?" for them later.
Lu Ran took a deep breath and pushed the door open to go inside.
"Brother Lu!!!"
A scream almost killed him.
When Tan Yu saw that it was Lu Ran coming, he rushed out from behind the desk and pounced at the speed of a 100-meter sprint. Lu Ran reacted quickly and dodged to the side, and Tan Yu fell directly against the wall.
"Ouch--"
"Your welcome ceremony is quite unique," Lu Ran said, looking at the walls covered with posters of eight of their works, "Who taught you that?"
"I learned it from that kid Liu Jun!" Tan Yu rubbed his nose and turned around, his eyes red, whether from the bump or from excitement, it was hard to tell. "He said it makes you seem more enthusiastic!"
"I didn't see any enthusiasm, but my stupidity was quite obvious."
Liu Jun poked his head out from the workstation next to him, looking innocent: "Brother Lu, I'm not taking the blame for this. He insisted on jumping over it. I told him he would bang his head against the wall, but he didn't believe me."
Zhao Dapeng also came over, his face beaming as if he'd found a fortune: "Brother Lu, you've finally arrived! Tan Yu talks about you every day, we're sick of it!"
Sun Tianyu quietly added, "He mainly wanted you to praise him."
Tan Yu turned around and glared at him: "You talk too much!"
Lu Ran looked at these few clowns and couldn't help but laugh.
More than six months ago, these people were notorious problem employees within Xingyao.
Of the four rich kids, only Sun Tianyu is somewhat reliable; the other three are basically typical playboys.
But now?
They are now F4, the hottest idol group of the new generation, and the core members of eight long-running dramas.
Tan Yu became the minister, Liu Jun became the second-in-command, Zhao Dapeng was in charge of external liaison, and Sun Tianyu even started writing scripts in silence—it is said that a recent urban romance script he wrote has been noticed by Li Mo and is ready to be approved as a project.
From the former "Star F4" to the current Idol F4, Lu Ran knows that they haven't had it easy either.
Sometimes, having a good script doesn't guarantee fame; you still need to put in a lot of effort.
Otherwise, why would so many famous people in their past lives not have any outstanding works despite debuting for so many years?
"Alright, stop joking around." Lu Ran walked towards the conference room. "I've seen the finished product of 'The Starry Night,' let's talk about that today."
Tan Yu's eyes lit up when he heard this, and he eagerly followed after them.
He was the department head, but when he was in front of Lu Ran, he would automatically become his subordinate.
Recently, his father has been praising him frequently, which makes Tan Yu feel determined to follow Lu Ran closely.
In the conference room, several people sat around a long table, all staring at Lu Ran as if they were concubines waiting to be chosen.
Lu Ran didn't waste any time and spoke directly:
"To sum it up—it's well-made."
Tan Yu's mouth instantly stretched to his ears in a wide grin.
"but--"
Tan Yu closed his mouth again.
Lu Ran suppressed a laugh: "But there are a few details that can be improved. For example, in the argument in the rain in episode sixteen, Tan Yu, your emotional outburst was a bit over the top. It would be better if you toned it down a bit. The scene with Manxue was handled very well; you almost led her astray."
Tan Yu scratched his head: "I also felt a bit tired after filming that scene, like my body was completely drained..."
"That's because your acting wasn't good enough, not because you were too invested." Lu Ran was merciless. "Go back and read that scene in the script ten more times, and think about Zhong Tianqi's feelings at that time—he was angry, not crazy. Anger has levels, but madness doesn't."
"Got it, got it." Tan Yu took out his notebook and wrote it down seriously, looking much more focused than when he was in school.
Liu Jun, standing to the side, gloated, "Brother Lu, what do you think of my acting? How was it?"
"You?" Lu Ran glanced at him. "The character you played, did he think he was particularly handsome?"
"That's right!" Liu Jun puffed out his chest. "I'm the visual center of F4!"
"That's the problem." Lu Ran tapped the table. "You're playing a character, not yourself. The character is a spoiled brat, that's true, but he also has a sentimental side. You had this 'I'm the coolest' expression the whole time, and the audience wanted to punch you."
Liu Jun's smile froze on his face. He was playing the illegitimate son who appeared at the end and fought with Zhong Tianqi for the inheritance.
I thought he acted very well, but who knew that in Lu Ran's eyes, he was the biggest flaw.
Zhao Dapeng and Sun Tianyu were struggling to hold back their laughter.
"And you two too." Lu Ran looked at them. "Although your roles are mostly supporting characters, you are actually supporting characters with your own unique characteristics."
"But you didn't bring out the characteristics they should have in their performances."
Zhao Dapeng and Sun Tianyu nodded, their playful expressions fading as they carefully took notes.
After Lu Ran finished speaking, he took a sip of water and looked at Tan Yu: "Overall, this film gets an eight out of ten. The editing rhythm is good, and the camera language has improved. It's clear that you've learned a lot from Director Chen. Manxue's performance is the biggest highlight. Tan Yu, you dragged the film down a bit, but overall it's passable."
Tan Yu let out a long sigh of relief, then looked aggrieved again: "Brother Lu, can't you praise me first and then scold me? You just start criticizing me right away, my little heart can't take it."
"I'm afraid you'll get arrogant if I praise you first." Lu Ran put down his water glass. "After 'Meteor Garden' became a hit, you guys have all been quite stable, which is great. There are too many examples in the entertainment industry of people becoming famous overnight and then quickly fading into obscurity. It's not easy for you to be able to focus on your new drama."
Lu Ran said this from the bottom of his heart.
He knows all too well what people in the industry are like; just a few days ago, he saw a news report about a minor celebrity acting like a big shot.
Although Tan Yu and his group aren't exactly A-list celebrities, they're at least second- or third-tier in terms of fame. If it were anyone else, they'd probably have gotten arrogant by now.
Therefore, Lu Ran's praise was very sincere, and everyone quietly enjoyed it.
Tan Yu scratched his head, becoming unusually serious: "Brother Lu, to be honest, I was arrogant too. When I first became famous, people would surround me and ask for autographs whenever I went out, and I walked with a swagger. Then one time, I saw a fan holding my photo and crying. I asked her what was wrong, and she said she had liked me for three years and had finally met me in person."
He paused, his voice lowering, "Three years. I'd only been in the industry for six months, and she'd liked me for three years. That's when I realized that fans didn't like me as a person, but rather the Dao Ming Si they imagined. If I kept drifting along, I'd disappoint them sooner or later."
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