An authentic portrayal
Earlier this year, the National Radio and Television Administration, the country's top industry regulator, held a seminar on The Lead, bringing together the show's creators and industry insiders to examine its success.
The series has garnered over 1.08 billion online views, achieved an average episode rating of 4.18 percent, far exceeding the industry's 1 percent benchmark, and sparked widespread conversation across platforms including Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote.
Behind those numbers lay a production process defined not only by creativity but also by endurance.
Chen Yan, the novel's author, remembers visiting the set in Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province. It was a sweltering summer day, with temperatures climbing above 30 C. Yet, the actors were dressed in heavy winter costumes for scenes set during winter.
As Chen walked past a pigpen where two hogs oinked loudly, clearly awaiting their meal, he saw Liu, clad in a thick padded jacket, quietly pouring several ladles of swill into the trough.
"That scene transported me back to a time impossible to forget," Chen recalls. He says Liu's performance gave him an almost immersive sense of reality.
For Liu, achieving that level of authenticity required months of preparation long before filming began. Qinqiang Opera — believed to have matured during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) — is known for its powerful vocals and bold physicality. It demands both strength and emotional intensity, and performers typically start training as children, studying for years before they even set foot on a stage.
Liu had just two months to prepare. She joined the production team early for intensive and closed-door training, where her days were packed with dialect coaching, singing, recitation, acting, and acrobatics, often for more than 10 hours a day.
She also practiced demanding techniques, including wo yu, a posture requiring the performer to squat slowly with extreme flexibility, and chui huo, a stunt involving bursts of flame blown from the mouth.
For Liu, however, such preparation was not merely an obstacle to overcome. It was a necessary immersion.
"Every performance in front of the camera, whether in opera or dance, comes down to the training, accumulation, and refinement that happen day after day behind the scenes. As actors, this is something we must do. Only by doing it well can we bring our best to every scene," she says.
