Chapter 131: The Ostracized Lin Ze

After analyzing the situation, everyone nodded in agreement.

[The veteran, he has a stockpile of songs, and based on the analysis above, perhaps this time... could Shi Zhongyin actually beat Lin Ze?]

[At first thought, it seems impossible, but if you think about it carefully...]

The teaser, of course, did not end there.

Next, it showed Lin Ze drawing number one, while Su Zitan smiled very happily.

Then, Lin Ze was seen lying alone on a chair in the large lounge, his arm covering his eyes, looking quite dejected.

Su Zitan, meanwhile, was gently covering her mouth, tears welling up in her eyes.

[What is going on here? Could it be that Brother Lin messed up his performance?]

[Yes, that’s most likely it. And with Elder Shi and Xu Shenshen performing exceptionally well this time, it seems Lin Ze has lost.]

[Serves him right. Why did they have to go and participate in that acting show? They should have stuck to their day jobs instead of getting distracted. They’ve really let the fame go to their heads.]

Lin Ze cooperated with the narrative perfectly.

He posted on Weibo: "Sigh..."

Then Su Zitan posted on her personal Weibo: "It's okay, let's keep working hard."

These two posts caused yet another uproar.

Everywhere online, people were talking about how Lin Ze was failing to focus on his primary profession. He was blasted by critics who claimed he was arrogant, arguing that if a young person got carried away now, they would be finished in the future. They called him unreliable and said that his own talent would eventually ruin him.

Meanwhile, Lin Ze had arrived at the set of "I Am an Actor."

"Brother Lin Ze is here?"

"Hello, hello! I listen to your songs often; I really love them!"

"Hello, looking forward to working together."

Upon arriving on set, Lin Ze shook hands with everyone. Among those present, he hadn't met many in real life. After a few polite exchanges, there wasn't much left to say. The only people he knew were Tang Chuan and Zhang Ya.

Lin Ze shook hands with Tang Chuan.

Tang Chuan smiled at him, "What brings you to our show? Acting isn't as simple for you as singing, you know."

"I wanted to break into the acting industry, so this is me taking my first step."

As soon as Lin Ze finished speaking, the others smiled with a touch of disdain. Every year, there is no shortage of singers who want to enter the acting industry. For most singers, singing simply doesn't pay as well as acting, which is why so many want to cross over.

However, while many come, many are also forced to retreat. Some even arrive with a smile only to leave in tears after being criticized, with even their original fans abandoning them. Did he really think acting was easy?

Lin Ze also shook hands with Zhang Ya. In full view of everyone, Zhang Ya even tried to brush her fingertips against the center of Lin Ze's palm. Fortunately, Lin Ze pulled away the moment they touched; in fact, Zhang Ya's fingers only curled slightly just as he released her hand.

Zhang Ya's expression remained unchanged, and she instead revealed an innocent smile. "We’re all newcomers here, let’s do our best!"

Lin Ze quickly shook his head. "No, no, only I am the newcomer. You are a seasoned actor; please take care of me!"

Zhang Ya was quite a bit older than Lin Ze and had been in the industry for a long time, so there was nothing wrong with what Lin Ze said. However, the other actors picked up on the underlying subtext. After the previous episode, Zhang Ya had used her acting skills to edge out another contestant. She was now considered accepted by everyone and had become half an insider on the show. For Lin Ze, a newcomer, to say such things right after walking in—even if they had personal grievances, wasn't this a bit much?

A few of them huddled together, whispering a few words.

The recording of the show soon began, and the first task was team formation. Everyone used a drawing method. There were nine actors, and three would be the team leaders. The director held nine wooden sticks, and the nine actors drew them at random.

Tang Chuan and two other actors drew the long sticks. Lin Ze looked at the number of people; there were six others remaining, so if each leader picked two, it should be...

Tang Chuan, almost without thinking, looked at Zhang Ya beside him. Having promised to look out for her, he naturally had to bring her along. Zhang Ya nodded at Tang Chuan and moved to his side. As for the others, they picked their team members very quickly, selecting two people in an instant.

"Sorry, Lin Ze, we're all old partners here..."

"Understood, understood." Lin Ze nodded, his expression giving nothing away.

The last person did the same, reaching out and picking two people. Now, Lin Ze was the only one left on the field, which naturally meant he formed a one-man team. This situation rarely happened, and even the director reminded the others, but there was no reaction from them through their earpieces.

The show had both edited and full versions. Now that the selections were made, there was no other way. The director was anxious; a star like Lin Ze was not someone they could afford to offend. At the very least, he had to be allowed to finish his performance; they couldn't let his fans feel he was being bullied. Otherwise, both the actors and the production team would be torn to shreds.

It seemed they would have to handle this through the editing...

Once the teams were set, the four groups headed to their respective rehearsal rooms. After half an hour of rehearsal, the competition would begin. Each group would perform, followed by critiques and scoring from the mentors. The final scores would be decided by the live audience and the mentors. As for the team with the lowest score, the mentor would decide who among them had performed the worst and would have to leave the stage.

Once they reached the rehearsal rooms, the situation inside would be transmitted to the live venue via cameras for everyone to see.

A projection appeared in the rehearsal room. There were three short clips to choose from. Lin Ze looked around, feeling a bit curious.

When the first clip played, Lin Ze's expression suddenly turned to one of surprise. It was actually a film segment about singing a confession to someone, and the song being sung was the movie's theme song.

"What is this? Is the production team doing this on purpose? Can this even be called acting? There are only two lines of dialogue, and the rest of the segment is just singing?"

"How much were they paid to bring Lin Ze here? Is this even allowed?"

"Rigging the game? Interesting."

Lin Ze looked at the camera. Was this production team trying to use him as a shield? Were they trying to get him dragged into the criticism along with them? Lin Ze didn't even consider this segment and looked directly at the next one.

The second one was even more absurd. It was a movie about a band, and the segment was the finale where the band members reunite and perform a song on stage.

"..."

Lin Ze was once again speechless, unable to say a word. He could only look at the final segment.

Thankfully, the last one was normal. And... it was very difficult. It was a role where an actor who only had a three-minute cameo in the movie played a murderer giving a statement. Although it was only three minutes, it was hailed as the highlight of the entire film.

This director... is targeting me!