Lao Nanfeng's hand trembled slightly as he held the script.
The title alone—"A Soldier of the Daling River Border Army"—made his heart stir.
Before he had become Commander Lang's deputy, before he held authority or command, he too had been nothing more than a nameless soldier stationed at the frontier. He had climbed his way up step by step, bleeding and surviving, relying on nothing but stubbornness and fate.
Those five characters struck straight at his memories.
As he continued reading, his breathing gradually slowed.
Sun Chuanting's depiction of Daling River Border City was astonishingly detailed. The climate, the barracks, the morale of the soldiers, the uneasy calm before battle—it all felt vivid, as though the man himself had once stood on those walls, staring into the frozen northern plains.
Even Lao Nanfeng, who had fought on the frontier, found it hard to fault.
At the same time, Li Daoxuan was reviewing the script through the co-sensing interface.
After reading it through, he couldn't help but comment quietly:
"This man truly lives up to his reputation as an expert in border affairs. Even without having personally been to Daling River, he can reconstruct the place with such precision. That's not something you can do by imagination alone."
"He must have gathered an enormous amount of information."
Lao Nanfeng nodded unconsciously, then frowned.
"I can personally take on the lead role," he said slowly. "That part isn't a problem. The real issue is this—where do we film Daling River City?"
That question brought the room to a brief silence.
Filming a movie required a suitable location. Last time, when they shot Mu Guiying, they had barely managed by borrowing Li Xianggui's courtyard and passing it off as Tianbo Mansion.
But this time was different.
Daling River Border City was not some private residence. It was a major frontier stronghold. You couldn't just build a short wall, hang a banner, and pretend it was real.
Puzhou City was immediately ruled out.
Its atmosphere was too scholarly, too commercial, too peaceful. It simply didn't possess the harsh, martial character of a northeastern border city that stared daily into enemy territory.
Tie Niaofei thought for a moment, then said,
"What about Han City?"
Seeing Lao Nanfeng turn his gaze toward him, Tie Niaofei continued.
"Han City's scale is close to that of Daling River City. It's part of the Tongguan Circuit—military administration runs deep there. The city itself has a heavier, sterner atmosphere than Puzhou. More importantly, it's close to Gao Family Village."
He hesitated briefly, then added,
"If needed, we could even mobilize the residents of Han City to assist with filming."
The moment those words left his mouth, Lao Nanfeng broke into a cold sweat.
"Mobilize… the entire city?" he said weakly. "My Flower World Star Agency doesn't have that kind of authority. Do you have any idea how much that would cost? Even if we sold out every seat, we'd never make the money back."
At that moment, the door creaked open.
A familiar figure stepped inside, smiling.
"Han City it is," Li Daoxuan said calmly. "Your Flower World Star Agency doesn't need to mobilize anyone."
"I will do it."
Lao Nanfeng and Tie Niaofei were startled and immediately bowed.
"Greetings, Dao Xuan Tianzun."
Lao Nanfeng straightened and said earnestly,
"Dao Xuan Tianzun, for you to mobilize the people of an entire city just so your humble subordinate can make a film… this is far too much favor. I truly don't know how I could ever repay it."
Li Daoxuan waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't flatter yourself," he said. "This isn't for your agency."
"This is so the common people can see what the northeastern battlefield is truly like. So they can understand the weight of the times they live in."
"It's for enlightenment."
Hearing this, Lao Nanfeng grinned.
"Heh. Either way, your humble subordinate profits."
With the Dao Xuan Tianzun's words, Lao Nanfeng's spirits soared.
This film had to be done properly now.
If the Dao Xuan Tianzun was personally mobilizing Han City, then this production would no longer be constrained by resources. No reused footage, no patchwork editing like before.
They were going big.
Lao Nanfeng immediately turned his gaze to Zao Ying, who had returned together with Tie Niaofei.
"Instructor Zao," he said, "the Battle of Daling River involves fighting the Manchu forces. We'll need cavalry. Your Gao Family Village Cavalry Battalion will have to assist."
Zao Ying's expression stiffened.
"You want me to play a Manchu?" she snapped. "Not happening."
Lao Nanfeng laughed.
"Relax. You won't be acting. There are no female generals on the Manchu side anyway. We just need your cavalry soldiers to fill the roles."
Zao Ying folded her arms.
"They probably won't want to play Manchus either."
Lao Nanfeng countered smoothly,
"Commander Chen sacrificed himself not long ago to play Xiao Tianzuo. What's wrong with your men playing Manchus for a bit?"
Zao Ying narrowed her eyes.
"I heard Commander Chen gets chased by children with bamboo water guns every time he goes out now."
Lao Nanfeng went silent.
Nearby, Commander Chen let out a long, miserable wail.
Lao Nanfeng quickly patted his shoulder.
"Don't worry, don't worry. This time, I'll arrange for you to play a proper Great Ming general. We'll restore your reputation."
Commander Chen's eyes lit up.
"Really? Who do I play?"
Lao Nanfeng said cheerfully,
"Zu Dashou."
"PFF—!"
Commander Chen nearly spat out a mouthful of old blood.
"No! Brother Nanfeng! You can't do this to me!"
Li Daoxuan burst into laughter.
"Commander Chen," he said, "what can you do? You just have the face of a notorious villain. Accept your fate."
Commander Chen protested bitterly,
"What does 'face of a notorious villain' even mean? Dao Xuan Tianzun, please stop mocking me. I'm already miserable enough—people point and laugh at me in the streets!"
Amid laughter and argument, the project "A Soldier of the Daling River Border Army" officially entered preparation.
Casting.
Rehearsals.
Logistics.
Mobilization.
This was no longer a small production.
It drew in Lao Nanfeng's militia, Zao Ying's Gao Family Village Cavalry Battalion, and even the residents of Han City.
A true super-scale production.
Meanwhile—
The entire city of Luoyang fell into panic.
A dire piece of news had just arrived.
Chuǎng Wang, leading a rebel force exceeding a hundred thousand, had crossed the Yellow River at Kaifeng Ferry. After bypassing Kaifeng Prefecture, the rebels swept southwest, burning, killing, and looting as they advanced.
Zhang Yingchang, Regional Commander of Henan, led his army across the Yellow River in pursuit—but he was already two days behind.
Government troops marched thirty li a day.
The rebels marched fifty.
There was no catching them.
All of Henan's usable forces were under Zhang Yingchang's command. If he failed, no one else could stop the rebels.
Luoyang lay less than four hundred li from Kaifeng.
In other words—the rebels could arrive at any moment.
Prince of Fu, Zhu Changxun, had barricaded himself inside the Governor's office, refusing to leave.
"Governor Fan!" he shouted. "The safety of my Prince of Fu Residence rests entirely on your shoulders!"
Governor Fan Shangzheng forced a bitter smile.
"Your Royal Highness," he said, "this official has no troops. All forces are under General Zhang Yingchang."
Zhu Changxun's voice shot up.
"Then what are we supposed to do? If the rebels come, am I to defend Luoyang with my own head?"
Fan Shangzheng muttered,
"That might not be impossible."
Zhu Changxun roared,
"What did you say?!"
Fan Shangzheng pretended to hear nothing.
Zhu Changxun seethed.
"I see it now! If the rebels attack, you'll run! Henan is your jurisdiction—you can flee anywhere and claim you were organizing militias. But I can't run! My fief is here. You want to sell me out!"
Fan Shangzheng sneered inwardly, but said nothing.
At that moment, the door opened.
Bai Yuan walked in with a smile.
"Oh?" he said. "You're both here? Perfect."