Chapter 68 I Know
, while having dinner outside with the members of K-Team, just after ordering their food and waiting for it to arrive, Ji-sung took out his vibrating phone and glanced at it.The message that was sent...Before this, Chi Jingyuan thought that he could fly directly to Jordan after boarding the plane. However, he learned the day after that there were no direct flights from Seoul to Amman. Passengers traveling back and forth generally have to transfer in cities like Bangkok, Hong Kong, or Abu Dhabi before reaching their destination.
The entire flight is over twenty hours, not including the time spent on layovers. Coming back and forth adds up to forty or fifty hours.
Chi Jingyuan sat on the plane that had just taken off. Just thinking about this trip made him feel a little creepy. This long flight was really torturous for him.
"Would you like to take a nap now" Park Jae-hyun, who was sitting beside him, saw that Ji Seong-won didn't look well and asked with concern.
"Let's wait for a while, I'll be unable to sleep later if I sleep now." Ji Jingyuan shook his head gently, holding a file and looking at it without raising his head: "Persist until the transfer in Mandalay and then sleep again."
Every time this happens, it's time for him to catch up on his university coursework. Although he feels a little dizzy, he manages to learn something at least. It helps bring his grades closer to passing.
Just as the cast and crew of "The Untamed" were traveling by plane, discussions about it on the peninsula's online networks had already reached a fever pitch.
Yesterday morning, the news that Chi Jingyuan will be starring as Zhang Kelei, the male lead in , has been announced and after a day of fermentation, it has caused a lot of attention.
This is also Park Ji-won's first time acting in a drama after his breakout success in "The Heirs," and it’s been almost a year since he last took on a role. He's reprising the male lead, which has generated significant anticipation from both fans and casual viewers.
Especially among his fans,池景源 has a considerable fanbase who weren't initially drawn to him through EXO or their music performances. Many of them discovered him through his acting in television dramas, which led them to start paying attention to EXO and their songs. However, these fans might still primarily focus on his television drama works.
Pool Kyung-seo, after starring in two consecutive hit TV dramas and his popularity within EXO, has become one of the hottest actors among young generations in Korea. However, his filming frequency, which is basically one drama per year, has left his fans quite dissatisfied. They want to follow his dramas but can't find anything new to watch, so they can only rewatch "Reply 1997" and "The Heirs," which they have already seen countless times.
Previously often compared to Park Bo Gum by fans online, Lee Jong Suk has already filmed two TV dramas this year in the first half alone. He definitely won't be idle in the second half either, with a crazy schedule of three or four productions a year. That's practically an MVP.
Some fans think that ** company is really incompetent. Although Park Ji-young's dramas are popular, they don't seem to give their idols more resources. Some older fans believe that Park Ji-young is a bit lazy and doesn't want to film more dramas.
"Oppa finally remembered that he's an actor too! Best news I've gotten in the last month! Fight!"
Although I'm not really interested in this kind of TV series, if Yuan stars in it, I'll definitely watch it religiously!
I checked it out, "Undying" seems to be a workplace drama about Go. It sounds pretty boring, how come Yuan took on this kind of TV series His face, figure and charisma coupled with his stunning acting skills are simply explosive in the idol drama genre. As long as the script isn't that bad, he would definitely be successful if he acted in it. Why did he have to act in this workplace drama I'm a bit disappointed...
"The person above didn't look carefully. While "unborn" is indeed a Go term, this drama tells the story of a comprehensive trading company white-collar workplace, not about Go. Moreover, the cast is quite strong, all are capable actors who can perform well in movies. The fact that Park Kyung-won can play the male lead in this kind of drama also reflects his acting skills being recognized. Besides, if this kind of drama is well-made, it will be very exciting."
"Whether it's good or not, we don't know yet. All I know is that our oppa's last project was the lead role in 'The Heirs,' a hit drama on SBS written by Kim Eun-sook. This time, he can only take this cable TV show that no one has ever heard of before - some white-collar workplace drama. Apparently, it's an adaptation of a manga. I looked up the original manga and it wasn't popular at all..."
"What do you guys think Yuan Oppa's film and television resources have obviously downgraded, right ** Entertainment clearly gave all the resources to that Le Sserafim girl group, suppressing EXO and Oppa. It's really disgusting, those wannabe girl groups should just die."
The past day has seen lots of discussion on forums and fan clubs regarding Park Ji-hwan taking over the role. Many fans are expressing excitement and anticipation, confident that it will contribute to high viewership ratings. However, some fans feel a bit disappointed and less optimistic. After all, transitioning from an idol drama to a workplace drama, and from the chaebol heir Kim Tan to the office rookie Zhang Klai is a significant leap.
Moreover, the hype surrounding "The Uncanny Counter" doesn't seem as strong as last year's "The Heirs," causing many of his loyal fans to worry about Ji Chang Wook's declining resources in the acting industry. While blaming ** Entertainment, they also inexplicably dragged Red Velvet into it, hurling insults at them as well.
Now ** Entertainment's fans have formed a habit, no matter what bad things happen to their idols, they can always drag Red Velvet into it, as if they are a trash can where anything can be thrown.
This kind of atmosphere can't be changed just by Red Velvet increasing publicity, or appearing on stage and programs to increase exposure. The best way to change it is to use excellent songs and solid results in the next comeback to reverse public opinion. This is the most direct and effective method.
After all, they aren't a group with a history of bad deeds. They just debuted at the wrong time and happened to coincide with a popular trend, becoming a target for frustrated fans of several prominent groups to vent their anger.
Chi Jingyuan didn't know what the company's arrangements were for their next comeback. She hoped that the song selection, styling, and results would be better. At least they could improve the current situation and avoid being criticized so harshly.
After a torturous journey with over twenty hours of layovers, the cast and crew of "The Unborn" finally landed at Queen Alia International Airport in Amman. Ji Jingyuan slowly descended the boarding ramp, his legs wobbly as he stepped onto solid ground. He looked out at the deserted airport runway and felt a sense of rebirth with this grounding feeling.
This time, only a few actors came to Jordan for location shooting. As for the leading role, there's only Park Seo-joon, and all the scenes are related to him.
The crew gathered together to count the number of people, then hurried towards the airport exit. The staff at the gate, which were the crew members who had arrived earlier to prepare, had been ready for a long time. Seeing the head producer and Kim Won-sik, they immediately greeted them. After a brief exchange, they followed their lead as the group continued to walk outside.
"……”&a;a;*(……"
"EXO EXO!"
Because the film crew here was quite large, everyone looked East Asian and carried a lot of filming equipment. This eye-catching scene immediately attracted many people to stop and watch. Their noisy discussions seemed to indicate that such a sight was rare in Amman.
On the Jordanian side, they were speaking Arabic. This fell into Chi Jingyuan's language blind spot; he couldn't understand what they were saying. However, he was very sure that he heard several people shouting "exo". The tone of voice changed noticeably: the first time it was questioning, the second time it became excited.
Chi Jingyuan followed the sound and saw several young boys, about twenty years old, with typical local features. They looked like standard locals. After noticing Chi Jingyuan looking at them, they became very excited, waving their hands and shouting "EXO!" "Yuan!" repeatedly.
He hesitated for a moment, then waved to the other person eagerly. He then clasped his hands together in front of him and bowed slightly as a gesture of thanks.
The fatigue from the previous flight seemed to lessen a lot with the other person's call. Ji Jingyuan didn't expect that he actually had fans in Jordan, a country whose location he wasn't even very clear about before on the world map. EXO had never been active in this country. Seeing their excited postures, it was obvious they were very fond of EXO.
Even though their group name didn't properly pronounce the "E" sound, and they didn't have any cheering banners or seem to have bought any XO albums, Ji Kyeong-won still had an air of being adored.
A sense of warmth and comfort overcame me. I felt a surge of energy, and my body felt pleasantly warm.
This is a very real feeling in my heart, and it has nothing to do with the sun up in the sky or the high temperatures.
After leaving the airport, they got on a bus rented by the staff. After loading all the shooting equipment into the bus, it started and drove directly to the already booked hotel.
During the journey, Chi Jingyuan sat by the window in the bus and was quite interested in watching the street scene outside. This place seemed to be closer to the center of Amman. The surrounding houses were completely different from what he had imagined as low and backward. Apart from many delicate three- or four-story buildings, there were also many beautiful high-rise office buildings in the distance.
However, if you look closely, you can find many historical buildings with clear traces of history mixed in among them. But they don't seem out of place at all; instead, there is a kind of unique harmony.
The six-lane highway from the airport to the city center was quite wide, and there was a lot of traffic. It only took a few minutes to see many cars speeding by.
After driving for a while, they entered Amman's new city district. All the crew members on the bus, just like Ji Jingyuan, were leaning out the window excitedly watching the street scenes. For most of them, this was their first time in an Arab country.
Arabic script, like earthworms, was everywhere I looked. The people on the street were dressed in a dazzling array of colors, but what stood out most was the number of people wearing red checkered headscarves and black robes. According to a staff member up front who kept giving us information about local customs, these should be Bedouin people from Amman, this is their tribe's traditional dress.
These people looked as if they were from a different century compared to the ordinary-dressed and modern Western-suited pedestrians beside them.
...what's most interesting is that you can see many people walking down the street leading camels. It's a sight to see camels and cars sharing the road, which feels very novel for travelers like Ji Jingyuan who came from East Asia.
Lagging and advanced dance together, tradition and modernity run parallel, two completely different styles intertwined yet possess their own unique charm.
This is Chi Jingyuan's first impression of Amman, Jordan, a city he has never been to before.
It feels pretty good, quite novel. It made him feel like the 20 hour flight wasn't wasted.
Chi Jingyuan took out his phone and snapped a few pictures of street scenes and selfies. After a while, the bus arrived at the hotel they had booked.
Everyone first went to the designated room, put down their things, washed their faces and tidied up. Then they went to the conference room that had already been rented and briefly held a production meeting. The producer of the crew, Lee Jae-won, and director Kim Yuan-sik listened to the staff who had arrived earlier to prepare for the work report. Then, Kim Yuan-sik explained the shooting plan in Jordan again in detail.
Filming in Jordan was still quite intense. After the meeting, there was no break and the crew went straight to the prepared set to start working.
This time, the filming location for "Unlife" is in the old city center of Jordan. It was only when Chi Jingyuan arrived here that he felt like he had reached the place he imagined, a place that was more old-fashioned and backward.
Unlike the new city they had just passed, with its towering buildings visible from afar, the old city of Jordan was a sight to behold. A tangle of people, vehicles and camels filled the streets. While crowded, every aspect, from the roads to the architecture and even the attire of the locals, exuded an aura of antiquity.
The gap between the old and new cities feels much like that between Gangbuk and Gangnam in Seoul.
The shooting regulations and location had already been prepared by the advance team. After the film crew arrived, they immediately took over the on-site work in an orderly manner, starting to define the shooting area and process, as well as installing all kinds of filming equipment.
Pool Kyung-won is particularly optimistic about the drama "The Uncanny Counter" not only because the script is well-written and he hasn't tackled a workplace drama before, but also because during his conversation with Kim Won-suk, the latter told him that the drama received the greatest support from both the broadcasting station and production company. The entire filming crew used equipment typically found on movie sets to ensure the visuals had a higher quality feel.
Wearing just one, it makes "The Untamed" and ordinary electricity
The play clearly widened the gap.
Although the outside world is not optimistic about because there has been no precedent for workplace drama boom in the peninsula, N attaches great importance to this major project celebrating its 8th anniversary. A lot of resources have been invested to ensure its success.
After arriving on set, the film crew officially went into action. The director led his team to install equipment and check out the location, while actors like Ji Jingyuan were taken to a rented temporary makeup room nearby to get ready.
Because it's a workplace drama, this show doesn't require overly dramatic makeup. It only needs light makeup to cover up some imperfections on the actors' skin, making them look more energetic and camera-ready.
However, as the male protagonist, Park Kyung-won will also showcase some of the character's traits in other places besides these.
"Jingyuan's xi skin is really good, if it were according to the director's requirements, those wouldn't need much makeup at all."
Sitting in front of the mirror, Dy Sister placed both hands on Chi Jingyuan's head, gazing at the face in the mirror that lit up her eyes. She couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
"...Because he wasn't supposed to speak much while getting his hair done, Ji Jingyuan smiled and nodded in thanks."
"During our previous meeting, we designed the hairstyle for Zhang Kelei, the male lead, based on your facial features according to the director's requirements."
While she worked, she explained to Ji Jingyuan: "Ji Jingyuan xi's features are relatively soft. To better showcase the character's personality and circumstances, hairstyles need to be considered at times. When you expose a large forehead, your whole person appears very energetic, highlighting your facial features and bone structure. Coupled with your gaze, it's easy to create a powerful image of a workplace elite. This style is very suitable for Zhang Kelei's appearance in the later stages of his growth in the TV series."
"However, in the early stages, Zhang Klai was a newbie entering the workforce and faced many setbacks. He felt disadvantaged and confused. This wouldn't fit your forehead-revealing hairstyle, so to differentiate and showcase Zhang Klai's growth, in the beginning, we will have Liu Hai cover your entire forehead like a student. This way, it somewhat conceals Jingyuan Xi's inherently advantageous appearance, reducing the disparity. It also shows the character traits of the male lead at the start."
"... Pool View blinked, indicating that he understood."
From his "OLF" era onwards, **dy has designed styling for Ji-won that consistently features a forehead reveal. This is because it best accentuates the superior beauty of his face. He rarely sports the long fringe style that was popular a few years ago and covered the forehead, unless there's a specific stage requirement.
Under dy sister's effort, Chi Jingyuan's styling was quickly done. He went to the nearby changing room and changed into a standard black suit, white shirt and leather shoes for his office attire.
Standing before the mirror once more, Chi Jingyuan looked at the handsome and imposing young professional reflected back at him. With a smirk playing on his lips, he gave a satisfied smile that captivated the nearby designers (dy) and female staff members so much they couldn't help but stare and even wanted to whip out their phones to take pictures.
This type of formal western wear isn't something that Ji-yuan has tried very often before. It's completely different from the stage performances he did during his idol period, the only similarity being that both are very charming.
Not long after, Jin Yuanshi had finished his work. He brought people back and pulled Chi Jingyuan, who had been waiting for a while, over to start going through today's scenes with him.
The beginning of is told in reverse chronological order, placing the plot and scenes from the last few episodes at the very beginning of the first episode. This leaves a deep sense of mystery and entices the audience to follow along and unravel the puzzle.
This is also a common technique in Korean dramas.
However, the scenes depicting this childish drama were filmed in Jordan. At this point, Ji Jingyuan, playing Zhang Klai, is not the rookie protagonist who just entered the workforce, but rather a Zhang Klai who has grown a lot through his own hard work and effort.
This segment of the plot is about a very important sample from the company being stolen by someone named Xu Jin and escaping to Jordan. Zhang Kele then seeks help from his colleague Zhao Daili and goes to Jordan to chase him. In the end, through accurate judgment and hard pursuit, Xu Jin is caught, perfectly resolving this crisis.
The scenes of Zhang Kele and Zhao Daili meeting are well-written.
"We'll shoot it the day after tomorrow. I've already applied for the street photography permit, so we'll film the most important chase scene first." Kim Yonsil pointed to the street ahead with his finger, still holding a drawn story board, and explained the scene to Ji-seong and the other actors.
"Act one begins here. Jingyuan first walks from the street corner across to the opposite side, looking around for someone. Then he receives a phone call from Zhao Daili."
Although Zhang Klai was actually quite nervous at this moment, Jingyuan you can't overdo it. You can only show a little nervousness, but more importantly, you need to project confidence in your own judgment. Understand First, try to get a feel for it. We'll start shooting the first scene in five minutes.
After a year away from acting, Ji Jingyuan closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and then nodded with a confident and serene smile.
I understand.
This novel is first published on Taiwan Novel Network.ecutive songs on stage, transforming this large-scale concert attended by numerous idols into what seemed like their own private concert.Following this, on November 16th, EXO flew to Yokohama, Japan....