Understanding context gives star of Awakening of Insects a deeper insight, Xing Wen reports.

It set the template for success and spawned many attempts to match its appeal, but few came close. Lurk, the smash hit 2009 TV series, highlighted the work and lives of underground Communist heroes before the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. Many other series tried to copy its formula for success but found that repeating history is difficult. Lurk received a rating score of 9.3 points out of total 10 on review site Douban.

Actors could only dream of becoming as bright and popular a star as Yao Chen, lead actress in Lurk.

But, for actor Zhang Ruoyun, 31, that dream came true. He stars in a new TV series, Awakening of Insects, which is being broadcast on Hunan Satellite TV.

He believes that to better show the complexity of the patriotic underground struggle in the war years, one has to fully digest background information, as well as context, and try to portray the character's psychology.

The Beijing Film Academy graduate is no stranger to spy thrillers. He has starred in Black Fox (2011) and Sparrow (2015) since he first broke into the entertainment industry in 2004.