Chapter Fifty-Five: Analyzing Scenes, Taking Notes, and the Importance of the Work Itself

Twenty years ago, Ren Yi rose to fame thanks to his portrayal of the gangster boss Liang Weiqiang in "Savage Expansion," impressively capturing the character’s madness. In the same year, Wang Fei became widely known for his role as the twisted, murderous doctor Tao Jun in "No Witness," chilling audiences with his depiction of high-intelligence crime—polite and gentle, often assisting the police in solving cases, yet secretly a deranged killer.

Two decades have passed, but Liang Weiqiang and Tao Jun remain subjects of frequent discussion. Thus, Lin Xing began his research with these two dramas.

While dissecting these shows, Lin Xing took meticulous notes. Over the past few days, he had watched several documentaries on anti-crime cases—true accounts of major incidents, including predatory lending, "soft violence" collections, and organized crime. He focused particularly on the reactions of the criminal leaders.

After all, "Sweeping Black Waves" is based on many real-life cases, and Lin Xing’s character, Zhou Bo, is inspired by several actual criminals.

Zhou Bo was involved in every type of vice—gambling, drugs, prostitution. He ran nude loans, violent collections, forced women into prostitution, used drugs to control bar hostesses and push them into selling sex—he had done it all. Zhou Bo’s KTV nightclub was a nest of crime.

Besides, Zhou Bo owned a hotel in Jinghai, another den of illegal activity. The VIP presidential suite was reserved for entertaining high-powered guests.

All these scenarios have real-life counterparts. For instance, predatory lending in a certain province trapped many college students in nude loans; some were driven to suicide, others to prostitution, and the ultimate perpetrators turned out to be KTV owners.

Worse still, after investigations, it was revealed that the mastermind should have been sentenced to death long ago.

Lin Xing reviewed these real cases, focusing on the criminals’ demeanor during interviews: arrogant and dismissive before arrest, still nonchalant and provocative during trial, truly terrified only upon learning they would face the death penalty.

The death penalty is the greatest deterrent.

Lin Xing jotted that down in his notebook.

By 9:40 p.m., he had finished analyzing "Savage Expansion." Older dramas, he thought, had a crisp intensity—this show spanned nearly twenty years, yet only had eighteen episodes.

Compare that to recent series: you’re lucky if you get fewer than thirty episodes.

After his research, Lin Xing checked Weibo again.

Throughout the day, discussions about Lin Xing on Weibo hadn’t waned; some still questioned his qualifications.

Of course, they focused on Lin Xing’s backing by capital.

Yesterday’s "leak king" had targeted the entire celebrity scene, so fans banded together in defense. But today, with the official announcement of "Sweeping Black Waves," things were different.

Why Lin Xing? What has he done to deserve this?

Moreover, Lin Xing had gained widespread popularity with his role as Du Fei in "Just Waiting for You," threatening some established figures.

Though he posed no threat to Chu Chen, Niu Xiang, or Bian Pengtao, he did affect rising stars like Li Xingchi and Feng Jin.

Resources are limited.

Even veteran actors are fighting for roles; when Qi Bing saw his resources taken by Lin Xing, he took action—so it’s no surprise other celebrities did the same.

Now, Lin Xing was bold enough to take a role in "Sweeping Black Waves," so how could people let him off easily?

Other celebrities didn’t need to act directly; their fans could simply steer the narrative.

That’s why, even into the evening, the trending topics remained lively.

"Capital" is often a universal scapegoat—this time, fans from all camps wielded it against Lin Xing.

Lin Xing’s popularity, earned from playing a domineering CEO in "Just Waiting for You," was already precarious.

Such is the nature of public opinion.

When everyone is condemning one person, even if you think he’s decent, you stay silent to avoid standing out.

But silence often equates to agreement.

Still, Lin Xing wasn’t without defenders.

First, his fans—though the official support group had disbanded, they remained in touch and defended him.

Then, Sister Dao used her resources; she wouldn’t engage in a fandom war, knowing that even if Lin Xing was right, public perception could turn against him.

Moreover, some rational influencers spoke up for Lin Xing.

For example, "Old Zhong."

She was present once again, posting on Weibo: “I hope everyone waits before judging. If Lin Xing truly had capital, would he have languished for ten years? Besides, his performance in ‘Farming With Stars’ and ‘Just Waiting for You’ was visible to everyone. Even if you don’t trust Lin Xing, can you doubt Zuming? When has Zuming ever bowed to capital in his productions?”

Once again, "Old Zhong" spoke for Lin Xing, but her words had little effect.

She was always an outlier among influencers.

Other influencers didn’t much like her.

She didn’t take money, didn’t market herself—what kind of influencer is that?

That annoyed many people.

Does it make her seem superior?

Now, with Old Zhong repeatedly defending Lin Xing, speaking up even amid such a storm, she became a target.

Many accused her of being a paid account run by Lin Xing.

But Lin Xing knew—Old Zhong truly had nothing to do with him or his company.

He noticed that Old Zhong’s fighting spirit was impressive; she directly confronted many critics.

Lin Xing thought the current chaos wouldn’t change anytime soon.

Because overturning public prejudice takes more than a day.

No wonder Sister Dao advised him to ignore public opinion and focus on studying the script.

What use is monitoring public sentiment now?

Public opinion is often fickle.

An artist could be vilified one month, then exalted the next thanks to their work.

Take Miao Ya: in April, she was criticized for stealing roles, yet last month, her film "Forever and Ever" transformed her into a goddess.

It bears repeating: artists are judged by their work.

Lin Xing’s task now was to delve deeply into the role of Zhou Bo.

Changing public opinion depends not on popularity and media control, but on his performance.

That takes time.

The next day, Lin Xing headed to "Fashion Men."

"Brother Xing, here’s the outline for the upcoming interview and the theme for the shoot. Please take a look," said his assistant, Xiao Nan, in the car.

Lin Xing took the document and frowned slightly.

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