Xiao Wen certainly didn't want to swallow this bitter pill. They were all from the same company, and if Xu Shen succeeded this once, this kind of suppression would become the norm. He and Brother Cheng were in the same boat; he absolutely couldn't allow Brother Cheng to be bullied by a senior employee like this!
Who does Xu Shen think he is? There's more than just Brother Cheng in the car today!
So Xiaowen stormed out of the Land Cruiser studio with great fanfare, but as she approached the car, she immediately changed to a pitiful expression and weakly complained to President Zhang for a long time!
The atmosphere around President Zhang grew increasingly tense... After hearing Xu Shen's outrageous remarks, it felt as cold as the dead of winter!
"Did he really say that?"
Zhang Chaohe already disliked Xu Shen, and the last time Xu Shen rudely gave him a hard time only made his impression of Xu Shen even worse.
He immediately called Jiang's special assistant, using euphemistic language to express his heartache and anger at being locked out.
Assistant Jiang had never seen such a brainless person on the job before... She silently wondered if it was because the fans had praised these celebrities too much that they were too lazy to even pretend to be the most basic working-class virtues.
How dare they openly sabotage the emperor's favorite! Good heavens!
So, just a few minutes later, Xiaowen witnessed the most satisfying scene ever—a large group of people poured out of the studio entrance, led by Xu Shen, who had just put on his costume.
He looked flustered, and because he only had time to apply a layer of foundation, his face was pale and colorless, looking like an anxious egg rolled in flour.
Xu Shen was followed closely by his arrogant assistant, who looked even more frightened and seemed eager to rush ahead of his own artist, clearly trying to salvage the job.
Zhang Chaohe felt like he was being hastily greeted by a corrupt local official during an incognito visit. Similarly, Cheng Jixue resembled the Empress accompanying the Emperor on an incognito visit, and Xiao Wen was barely like the Grand Eunuch... He struggled to maintain his cold, domineering CEO expression and didn't laugh out loud.
In Xu Shen's eyes, not only was Little Zhang furious, but he also had a dangerous sneer on his lips.
Xu Shen and his group were filled with trepidation—none of them had expected that Boss Zhang would value this newcomer so much, and even personally disguise himself to come to the audition!
Thinking back to how he had so cleverly instructed his assistant to sabotage Cheng Jixue, Xu Shen really wished he could travel back in time and punch himself twice.
He tried to explain, "Mr. Zhang...this is all a misunderstanding!"
"Yes, it's a misunderstanding."
Cheng Jixue quietly looked down at her knees, appearing fragile, aggrieved, yet resilient on her own. Sitting inside her, President Zhang exuded a low-pressure aura, like the calm before a storm, even his tone was remarkably flat: "What's Shen Ge's level of fame?"
When the company's boss addressed him as "Brother Shen" in a sarcastic tone, Xu Shen broke out in a cold sweat. He apologized frantically, "I'm so sorry, Mr. Zhang. My assistant misunderstood and caused Mr. Cheng a lot of trouble. I'm truly sorry!"
Cheng Jixue looked up, her expression a mixture of restraint and stubbornness, her sincere gaze tinged with a hint of brokenness and pleading: "President Zhang, please don't be angry. This must all be a misunderstanding. Brother Shen certainly didn't mean to say those things. It's just that Xiaowen has suffered a lot of injustice, and I feel so guilty..."
Xu Shen gritted his teeth. "Can't you talk properly? What a hypocrite!"
Could this womanizer be trying to use Mr. Zhang's influence to force him to apologize to a lowly assistant?
Before he could even decide to humiliate himself, Xu Shen's assistant darted forward. This man was also adept at reading people, and immediately grasped Xiao Wen's hand with a sincere, apologetic expression: "I'm so sorry, I was a little too hasty and my tone was a bit harsh just now. Don't take it to heart, young man. I'll treat you to a meal sometime!"
With Zhang Chaohe around, everything became much easier to communicate with, and everyone's language comprehension and facial expression control abilities improved significantly.
Xu Shen's team even went so far as to give all the dressing rooms to Cheng Jixue, moving themselves to other dressing rooms to demonstrate their humble and caring attitude towards their colleague.
Xiao Wen, having received Cheng Xuelan's private instructions, did not forget to take a group photo with Xu Shen and Cheng Jixue in the dressing room, forcibly defining all the previous actions as "visiting the set," and resolutely preventing any further attempts to cause trouble or play the victim.
Xu Shen's face turned green with a smile, but fortunately his foundation hadn't smudged. At most, his features looked a bit strange, but at least Xiao Zhang didn't find anything wrong with him, and soon he was dismissed as if he had been granted a pardon.
The costume designer and makeup artist, who were completely stunned by the performance, stammered, "Is...is it really Mr. Zhang?"
Zhang Chaohe put his hat and mask back on and said, "It's me. You guys start, I'm just wandering around."
The costume designer was even more excited than the makeup artist. While adjusting the costumes and wigs, he kept glancing at Mr. Zhang – even covered up like this, Mr. Zhang himself looks good; the camera really does diminish beauty!
The makeup artist, however, was more interested in Cheng Jixue. She excitedly shook the makeup brush in her hand and exclaimed, "Wow, what brand of skincare do you use? Your skin looks so good!"
"I'm not using double eyelid tape anymore!"
"No need for lifting patches anymore!"
While the dressing room was filled with joy, Xu Shen's place was shrouded in gloom. He had just entered the room when he broke a cup, and now everyone was on edge, with the staff not daring to utter a sound.
The assistant said cautiously, "We drew the scene where Changming persuades the female lead. Let me ask them what they drew next."
This scene depicts the second male lead trying to dissuade the female lead from going to her death, but ultimately being angrily accused of being selfish and cowardly, leading to his breakdown and outburst. The entire scene is filled with dramatic emotional fluctuations, which is a great test of an actor's emotional explosiveness. It is almost the easiest scene to stand out among all the audition questions.
It was also a segment that Xu Shen had carefully prepared.
Xu Shen finally heard some good news, and his expression softened a little. He sipped water through the straw in his cup: "What about that guy surnamed Cheng? Which section did he smoke?"
“Uh… he drew the scene from Changming’s first murder.” The assistant’s tone was strange: “What’s so dramatic about that?”
Xu Shen was so happy he almost laughed out loud: "Scenes that are too easy to act out tend to be bland and uninteresting. He really didn't gain any advantage at all!"
To leave a lasting impression on the director, you must have outstanding scenes to support you. His lottery result was a winning start!
As a result, when everyone was fully made up and ready to officially start the audition, Xu Shen bumped into another "Changming" as soon as he stepped out of the corridor.
The other man had eyebrows like distant mountains and lips like pearls, and his golden crown and black robe made him look as vigorous as an ancient rock, as radiant as a god descending to earth.
Then look at his own bulging costume, and think about his eyeshadow that was so bright red it seemed to go out of style, all to highlight his wicked and evil nature.
Xu Shen took a step back.
Damn it, is this the live interpretation of "whoever is uglier is embarrassed"?
A note from the author:
I'm so heartbroken trying to reach the word count for this list!! Yesterday I angrily wrote 5,000 words, and today I've been cutting and rewriting until I'm practically tearing my hair out 555;
If you're interested, my little darlings, please bookmark this column! ≥w≤
Thank you to all the little ones who fed us!
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter 19
Xu Shen drew number two and entered the venue at the same time as number one, while the remaining four waited outside.
The scene was orderly. As a newcomer without any works to back him up, Cheng Jixue should have been the most transparent and marginalized person. However, his exceptionally good appearance and clean background made him a prime target for chatting and gossiping.
Even a young actor who started out acting in male-oriented dramas came over to praise his song "Jie A" and said that the number of his own inspirational video clips had increased dramatically overnight.
At this point, another assistant chimed in, "Yeah! These days, even corny videos are all the rage. The elementary school kids downstairs from my house are singing this as soon as they get home from school!"
Cheng Jixue smiled with her lips pursed, looking quite embarrassed: "It's mainly because Mao Ge's songs are so well-written. We are all very grateful that this stage has allowed more people to see his talent."
Zhang Chaohe felt it was quite a pity. When a song becomes a popular song on short videos, it means that while it may increase its popularity to some extent, it may also damage its public image to some extent.
While they were chatting, Xu Shen and another actor finished their audition. When Xu Shen came out, he had a strange smile on his face—a smile mixed with excitement, satisfaction, and smugness. He glanced subtly in Cheng Jixue's direction—
But I saw a pair of cold and calm eyes hidden under the brim of a hat.
Zhang Chaohe stared at him across the bustling crowd, and even though he didn't make any move, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him.
Xu Shen's smile faded as he suddenly recalled the day he returned from the party. He went to see Du Ze, feeling embarrassed and resentful, but Du Ze only asked him, "Why did you offend your boss?"
"Your contract has six months left, plus the automatic renewal clause to avoid copyright disputes, so you'll have to wait at least another year under his supervision. If he blacklists you, you'll have to disappear from the public eye for more than a year."
"You know what the price of disappearing for a year is, right?"
Xu Shen was well aware of what this year-long hiatus would bring. The entertainment industry changes faster than turning the pages of a book; newcomers would quickly siphon off his fanbase, and he didn't have any outstanding works to solidify his public image...
A ban for over a year is no different from a ban for life.
"So I'm just supposed to wait for him to pity me?" Xu Shen paced anxiously, like a crazed, trapped beast. "He's already promoting new talent, and you're being suppressed too, right, Ze-ge? Can't you think of a way?!"
“Sure,” Du Ze said with a half-smile, looking at Xu Shen’s reddened eyes. He knew he had stirred up Xu Shen’s panic. “The best way to keep your current position is to terminate the contract in advance.”
Xu Shen's steps froze instantly, as if he had heard something unbelievable: "Brother Ze, you also know about my breach of contract penalty..."
“130 million, I know.” Du Ze said calmly, “Besides that, you also need to worry about Li Yimao.”
Xu Shen's eyes flickered: "Brother Ze, you were the one who arranged for him to write the paper back then."
Du Ze laughed out loud. He patted Xu Shen's shoulder affectionately and said meaningfully, "Shenzi, if this gets out, it won't just be me who's worried."
It's hard to describe Xu Shen's feelings at that moment. It was as if a cold, slippery snake was crawling up his spine, and fear and anxiety gripped his heart, plunging him into an icy abyss.
Their eyes slowly met, Xu Shen lowered his head, and quickly left the scene.
Inside the audition hall, Lu Xun slammed his pen on the table, crossed his arms, and leaned back, saying, "Tell me, whose connections did you get?"
At the beginning of the actor selection process, Lu Xun only distributed some of the relevant scripts to the shortlisted actors, and his cunning lay in the fact that the scripts he gave out were not entirely excerpts from the official script!
For confidentiality reasons, the scripts related to Changming that each person received were secondary processing products that Lu Xun personally filled in, which also led to some character interpretations that the actors could not deduce based on the audition scripts they had on hand.
To put it more seriously, they might even create a different version of "Changming" from the official script due to interference!
Hsu Shen was only glad that he had carefully prepared for this scene, but he didn't know that his perfect performance clearly exposed the fact that someone in the directing team had specially directed him to create a "close-up" feel!
So, the scene where Lu Xun smiled and asked him to improvise was not an opportunity to give him extra points because he thought highly of him—Lu Xun was deliberately testing him to see what kind of antics he could pull off!
As expected, Xu Shen delivered a three-part acting performance of pouting, glaring, and roaring, before leaving with a smug look on his face.
The production team kept their eyes down, heads bowed, and no one spoke. Lu Xun laughed in exasperation, "Fine, since that's the case, to be fair, the rest of you will each have to add an impromptu segment."
So when Cheng Jixue came in for the audition, he keenly sensed that the atmosphere on set was strange. Only the camera occasionally made a faint crackling sound, and the directors all had blank faces, as if the auditioning actor owed them money.
Lu Xun had high expectations for him, and was even more pleased to see him in full makeup. He also knew that the atmosphere on set was like a funeral parlor, and was afraid that Cheng Jixue would be nervous because he had no audition experience. So he forced a smile to comfort him: "It's okay, don't be nervous. Just act as you are supposed to and do your best."
Cheng Jixue was a little surprised. However, his acting style was very unique. Just like when he usually played the role of "Cheng Jixue", his approach was to first analyze a specific character trait, then put himself into the character's body, and naturally make corresponding reactions according to the character's way of thinking and personality.
Neither an experience-based nor a method-based approach, the character is himself, but not based on his experiences; it is more like a creation and construction that combines art and design.
Therefore, no matter how many improvisational segments Lu Xun requested, he could only obtain an "independent Changming" if Cheng Jixue was willing.
The Changming created by Cheng Jixue is naive and cruel. He lacks empathy for the humans in the lower realm, so killing is no different from casually picking a flower or brushing away a wisp of fog. However, the gods' favoritism towards humans is deeply engraved in his bones, and he is clearly aware that killing is wrong.
"Changming" gently wiped his fingertips with a clean tissue, then lowered his hand and placed the tissue on the ground.
There is a fictional corpse there.
Only after "Changming" drifted away did Lu Xun reveal a hint of satisfaction. He clapped his hands to signal the end of the audition, and Cheng Jixue turned around, quietly waiting for his impromptu question.
"It's a bit of a disadvantage for you to draw this scene. It's not as effective as the previous scenes with their intense and full emotions. So, how about you start by performing a scene of Changming when he first arrives in the human world, and then perform a scene of his reaction when he learns that he will not be able to return to the heavenly realm for a thousand years due to an accident?"
This statement set a small trap for Cheng Jixue—Lu Xun first mentioned other people's scenes, then hinted to the director team that he wanted to see Cheng Jixue's performance when he lost control of his emotions.
Unable to return to the heavens for a thousand years, forced to associate with mediocre humans... How infuriating that must have been for a proud and arrogant god?
However, according to the script Cheng Jixue received, "Changming" himself wouldn't be swayed by such intense emotions. To fulfill the director's hints would mean Cheng Jixue would have to deviate from the character—
Or perhaps he never truly understood the role; he was just like Xu Shen, who received a special script.
Lu Xun squinted and saw Cheng Jixue give him a smile that belonged to "Changming". His smile was well controlled, innocent and carefree with a touch of naive indifference.