When the ten o'clock morning time that Tang Ning had set yesterday finally arrived, Jiang Yue was already sitting in the dressing room at the Beijiao Film and Television Base.
By this point, Jiang Kaiwen's gaze was completely glued to his phone.
He had pinned the work group chat to the top long ago, and all "do not disturb" settings were turned off.
The screen lit up every now and then as messages from the studio, the brand, and the magazine publisher popped up one after another.
Jiang Kaiwen's fingers swiped rapidly across the screen. When he scrolled to the data screenshot sent by Su Qing, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl upward. He quickly cleared his throat, trying to pull himself back into the composed state expected of an agent.
The official Weibo of 《VMAN》, Lamerd's domestic and international accounts, and Jiang Yue's studio released the teaser at almost the exact same second.
【《VMAN》 Cover Figure of the Year, Jiang Yue.】
【Official release in January. Please stay tuned.】
Jiang Yue saw this Weibo post, his gaze lingering on the main cover for a moment.
The photo was indeed more impactful than he had anticipated.
Set against a deep red and black background, placed within the nine-grid of the magazine's official Weibo, it looked like a newly unsheathed blade revealing its sharp edge.
Jiang Kaiwen pulled his phone back, looking down to continue refreshing the data, not forgetting to tease, “This is a top men's magazine, backed by the Lamerd brand.”
Jiang Yue opened his eyes and looked at him through the mirror, a hint of a smile in his eyes. “Didn't you order me last night that I had to go to sleep early to get enough rest?”
“Rest is important, but we also have to celebrate your career.”
Jiang Kaiwen said with amusement, showing him the latest page. “The teaser was posted not long ago, and reposts have already broken one hundred thousand. The mini-program is also getting heavily congested, and the publisher is currently adding more servers. Sister Qing said they are preparing to add a second batch of pre-sales.”
Jiang Yue raised his hand, gesturing for the makeup artist to pause for a moment. “How many are they adding?”
“They'll add them as soon as the first batch's quota is full. The second batch will add five hundred thousand.”
Jiang Kaiwen tsked. “They're really afraid of printing too few.”
Jiang Yue's fingertip lightly tapped on the armrest of the chair.
Five hundred thousand was not a small number.
Selling well was naturally a good thing. Magazine sales and brand buzz would all turn into bargaining chips at the next negotiation table.
He only took a quick glance before withdrawing his gaze. “Have the studio guide them. Keep promotions normal, and encourage fans to purchase rationally.”
Jiang Kaiwen was stunned for a moment, but he quickly understood.
He nodded. “Understood.”
Jiang Yue closed his eyes again, letting the makeup artist work on his look.
Jiang Kaiwen looked at him in the mirror, shook his head helplessly, and chuckled. “Third Brother, the way you talk now already makes you feel like a boss.”
Hearing this, the corners of Jiang Yue's lips curved slightly. “That's a good thing. It proves that you can worry less in the future.”
Jiang Kaiwen was almost driven to laughter by his words.
Worry less?
He glanced at Jiang Yue, thought of the trending topics from a few days ago, and silently filed this sentence under 'The Complete Collection of Yue-isms.' Not a single word in that collection could be trusted.
Today's shoot would pick up from the scene where Lu Ji was preparing to escape from Medicine Valley.
“All departments, prepare!”
As the clapperboard snapped shut, the wet mud covering the mountain path merged with the white vapor spewed by the fog machine, instantly creating a cold and damp atmosphere.
Supporting himself against the rough stone wall, Lu Ji stumbled forward with faltering steps.
He had injuries on his face, and his collar was stained with blood.
At the end of the mountain path, several corpses of his pursuers lay scattered haphazardly in the wet mud.
Lu Ji originally intended to leave immediately, but then something crossed his mind, and he stopped.
Kneeling on one knee, his fingertips searched the bodies until he finally retrieved a strange cloth pouch from the sleeve pocket of one of them.
Inside the cloth pouch was a broken silver needle, the pattern on its tail so fine it was almost invisible.
Lu Ji's eyelids twitched slightly.
This was a Meridian-Sealing Needle.
His master had used this kind of needle when teaching him autopsy and bone dissection. It was extremely unique and rare, normally of no use at all.
He turned the corpse over, examining it from head to toe, before his gaze finally swept over the soles of the shoes.
The soles were stained with black mud, which was mixed with paper ash and stale lime powder, carrying a very faint scent of adipocere.
Looking further up, the hand holding the saber had distinct, thick calluses on the web between the thumb and forefinger, yet fine white ash remained between the fingers, as if they had recently touched a coffin.
Lu Ji lowered his eyes, slowly pulling a torn corner of scented paper from the lining of the cloth pouch.
The corner of the paper carried a very faint scent of agarwood, a type of scented stationery commonly used by wealthy and noble families. The ink was also not the cheap kind used by ordinary people of the martial world.
Only four characters remained on the scrap of paper.
Southern City Mortuary.
Lu Ji stared at the line of characters, his gaze gradually turning cold.
Whoever could place the clues of the silver needle and the paper scrap together on a pursuer would not be just some rogue martial artist seeking revenge.
Lu Ji folded the scrap of paper, tucked it into his robes, and stood up with the support of the stone wall.
“Want to lure me there?”
He chuckled softly, but the laughter was devoid of warmth.
“Then I'll go see what exactly you want me to find out.”
“Cut!”
He Chuan stared at the monitor playback, raising his hand in satisfaction. “This take is a wrap!”
In the afternoon, the crew relocated to the indoor set of the Southern City Mortuary.
The Southern City Mortuary was the largest place for storing coffins within a hundred miles.
Inside, seven flimsy coffins were scattered about, the corpses covered with white cloths. A few dim oil lamps flickered in the corners, casting dancing shadows.
When Lu Ji pushed the door open and entered, he did not immediately walk inside.
He first stood outside the threshold, letting the wind gust in from behind him, gently rustling the edges of the white cloths.
There was no other sound in the room.
But along the way out of Medicine Valley, certain traces could not lie.
The pursuers behind him should have caught up faster, yet they had delayed by half an incense stick's time at the fork in the road.
When he fell into the rocky beach by the stream, the footprints behind him had been deliberately covered up.
There was also the old mechanism outside Medicine Valley that had been triggered; a white mark left by a pebble strike was now visible on its edge.
Had someone not secretly intervened to shield him, he might not have been able to drag his body all the way here.
Lu Ji did not know exactly where that person was hiding.
But he knew that the other party was definitely not far from him.
He walked to the foremost coffin, reaching out to rest his hand on the edge.
Using this movement, he also stabilized his weak, failing body.
The coffin's edge let out an extremely faint creak.
“In Medicine Valley, when those people truly wanted my life, you did not show yourself.”
The room remained quiet.
Lu Ji was in no rush either, merely looking down at the white cloth over the coffin.
He did not have much strength left to fight anyone now. He had to conserve every bit of energy he could.
His voice was as calm as if he were talking to himself.
“But the clues on them were too straightforward, as if someone was afraid I wouldn't grasp the key point and left them on purpose.”
The flame of the oil lamp flickered gently.
Out of the corner of his eye, Lu Ji swept over the direction where the lamp shadow wavered, knowing what was what.
The person was behind the innermost coffin.
Lu Ji continued, “Someone wanted to push me here, yet someone also didn't want me to die halfway. Whoever you are in the shadows, since you've followed me all the way here, there's no need to keep hiding.”
As his voice fell, an extremely soft scabbard friction sound came from beside the innermost coffin.
A figure clad in gray stepped out of the shadows.
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