Chapter 744: I'll Mobilize Them
Lao Nanfeng's hand, holding the script, trembled ever so slightly.
The role, "A Soldier from the Daling River Border Army," resonated deeply with Lao Nanfeng. Before he became Commander Lang's deputy, he too had climbed his way up, step by step, from a humble soldier. Seeing those five characters, "A Soldier from the Border Army," he almost immersed himself completely in the role.
Delving deeper into the script, Sun Chuanting had described the situation at Daling River Border City with such vivid detail, almost as if he had been there himself.
Li Daoxuan, using the co-sensing feature, was also reviewing the script provided by Sun Chuanting. After reading through it, he couldn't help but marvel, "This guy truly lives up to his reputation as a border affairs expert. Even without having been to Daling River, he can depict its situation with such incredible detail. It's truly commendable."
"He must have gathered an astonishing amount of information!"
Lao Nanfeng's expression darkened. "I can personally star in this movie. The crucial question is, which city should we choose as the set for Daling River City?"
This truly was a problem!
Filming a movie required suitable locations. Last time, for "Mu Guiying," Lao Nanfeng had borrowed Li Xianggui's large courtyard to stand in for Tianbo Mansion. But this time, they needed to film Daling River City, which was no small town. They couldn't just erect a makeshift wall and call it Daling River City.
Puzhou City wouldn't work either. Its cultural atmosphere was too rich, and its martial spirit too subdued, making it unsuitable for portraying a border city on the northeastern front.
Lao Nanfeng broke into a sweat. "My Flower World Star Agency doesn't have the power to mobilize an entire city's population to act! How much would that cost? We'd never recoup it at the box office."
Just as they were discussing this, the Heavenly Lord pushed the door open and entered, smiling. "Excellent, we'll use Han City! Your Flower World Star Agency won't need to do anything; I will mobilize the residents of Han City myself."
Lao Nanfeng and Tie Niaofei immediately bowed together. "Greetings, Heavenly Lord."
Lao Nanfeng said, "Heavenly Lord, for you to mobilize the residents of Han City just so your humble subordinate can earn some box office revenue, you truly show too much favor. Your humble subordinate is at a loss for how to repay you."
Li Daoxuan chuckled, "It's not just to help you. This is to let the common people see the difficulties on the northeastern battlefield and understand the gravity of the world's situation. It's for their enlightenment, not for your agency! Don't flatter yourself."
Lao Nanfeng grinned. "Heh, either way, your humble subordinate is getting a good deal."
With the Heavenly Lord's command, Lao Nanfeng's spirits instantly soared.
This movie truly had to be made well now!
The Heavenly Lord had spoken, calling for the entire city's residents to help, which meant the Heavenly Lord would provide powerful and substantial support. No longer would they have to rely on old footage for editing, like with "Mu Guiying." No, they would go big!
Lao Nanfeng's gaze immediately fell upon Zao Ying, who had returned with Tie Niaofei. "Instructor Zao, the Battle of Daling River involves fighting the Manchu forces, so we'll definitely need cavalry. We'll need your Gao Family Village Cavalry Battalion to help."
Zao Ying retorted, "You want me to play a Manchu? No way!"
"Don't worry, you won't be acting," Lao Nanfeng chuckled. "The Manchu side doesn't have female generals. We just need your cavalry battalion soldiers to play the parts."
Zao Ying said, "They probably won't want to play Manchus either."
Lao Nanfeng argued, "My beloved subordinate, Commander Chen, even sacrificed himself not long ago to play Xiao Tianzuo. What's wrong with your men playing Manchus?"
Zao Ying squinted at him. "I heard Commander Chen gets chased and sprayed with bamboo water guns by children whenever he goes out now."
Lao Nanfeng was speechless.
Nearby, Commander Chen couldn't hold it in and let out a miserable wail.
Lao Nanfeng quickly patted Commander Chen's shoulder, comforting him softly, "Don't worry, don't worry. This time, I'll arrange for you to play a great Ming general to restore your reputation."
Commander Chen was overjoyed. "Then who will I play this time?"
Lao Nanfeng announced, "Zu Dashou!"
"Pfft!" Commander Chen nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood five meters away. "No! Brother Nanfeng, you can't do this to me!"
Li Daoxuan burst into laughter. "Commander Chen, what can you do? You have the face of a notorious villain. Just accept it."
Commander Chen protested, "What does 'face of a notorious villain' even mean? Heavenly Lord, please don't mock your humble subordinate too! I'm truly miserable; everyone's jeering at me on the streets now."
After a round of laughter and banter, "A Soldier from the Daling River Border Army" officially began its casting, preparation, rehearsals, and other operations.
This production was a massive undertaking, not only enlisting the militia soldiers from Lao Nanfeng's unit but also recruiting Zao Ying's Gao Family Village Cavalry Battalion, along with the residents of Han City...
Super-production! Super-scale!
No expense spared! —
The entire city of Luoyang was gripped by panic.
Just moments ago, a terrible piece of news had reached Luoyang.
Chuǎng Wang, leading a main rebel army of over a hundred thousand, had crossed the Yellow River at Kaifeng Ferry.
After bypassing Kaifeng Prefecture, the rebels began advancing southwest, burning, killing, looting, and committing every atrocity imaginable along the way.
General Zhang Yingchang, the regional commander of Henan, led his troops across the Yellow River from the north bank, pursuing the rebels. However, Zhang Yingchang was slow from the start, departing two days later than the rebels.
Moreover, the government troops could only march thirty li a day, while the rebels could easily cover more than fifty li a day. There was simply no way to catch them.
All of Henan's capable fighting forces were in Zhang Yingchang's hands.
If he couldn't catch the rebels, then other officials had even less hope of dealing with them.
Luoyang was less than four hundred li in a straight line from Kaifeng.
In other words, the rebels might descend upon Luoyang at any moment.
Prince of Fu Zhu Changxun was currently holed up in the Governor's office, refusing to leave.
"Governor Fan, the safety of my Prince of Fu's Residence now rests entirely on your shoulders!" Zhu Changxun declared, shamelessly insisting that Fan Shangzheng take responsibility.
Henan Governor Fan Shangzheng, who had no troops himself, said with a bitter expression, "Your Royal Highness, this official also has no soldiers. All military forces have been handed over to General Zhang Yingchang."
Zhu Changxun's voice instantly rose three octaves. "Then what are we to do? What are we to do? If the rebel army attacks Luoyang, am I supposed to defend it with my own head?"
Fan Shangzheng murmured, "That might not be out of the question."
Zhu Changxun roared, "What did you say?"
Fan Shangzheng pretended he hadn't said anything at all.
Zhu Changxun was furious. "I understand now! If the rebel army attacks Luoyang, you'll just run, won't you? After all, the entire Henan province is your jurisdiction; you can run anywhere within it and later just claim you went elsewhere to organize local militias against the rebels, absolving yourself of all responsibility. But I cannot run! My fiefdom is in Luoyang. I cannot leave Luoyang even if it means death. You just want to sell me out and escape!"
Fan Shangzheng scoffed inwardly but maintained a placid expression.
Just then, the door opened, and Bai Yuan walked in from outside, a smile on his face. "Oh, you're both here? Perfect, perfect!"
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