Chapter 35 Chapter 35

When Qin Wen returned to Beijing with Gu Xing Shi, he still couldn't believe it.

He sat in the car, looking at the traffic and neon lights outside the window.

So prosperous and vibrant, unlike Baishan City and Chongshan City where he worked.

Qin Wen clenched his fingers tightly.

Although Gu Xing Shi seemed to believe in him, Qin Wen was self-aware. He might be reasonably good-looking, with decent observation and imitation skills, but Beijing was a place full of talented people. Could he really stand firm here?

He remembered that before returning to Beijing, Gu Xing Shi showed him the competition videos of Meng Yuan Sheng and Cheng Xin.

They were both shining on stage.

They were so excellent in both dancing and singing, not to mention that Meng Yuan Sheng could also compose.

But what about himself?

Perhaps soon, Gu Xing Shi would realize he had no talent and give up on him.

Thinking of this, his heart suddenly ached.

Recently, it had been like a dream for Qin Wen.

From childhood to adulthood, he had always been the protector and caregiver.

Even if the road ahead was uncertain, he had to grit his teeth and move forward; he didn't even allow himself to be weak.

But since Gu Xing Shi came, he experienced being cared for for the first time.

From checking into the hotel, from small things like meals to big things like the trip back to Beijing, Gu Xing Shi handled everything.

He also took him to bathe, eat grapefruit to ward off bad luck, and accompanied him to offer incense to his sister, even preparing the joss paper, candles, and offerings early. He was so considerate that there was nothing to fault.

More importantly, Gu Xing Shi possessed an extraordinarily determined confidence, making him feel particularly at ease.

Qin Wen was like a small boat that had been adrift for many years, finally finding a safe harbor to dock.

If at first, he only wanted to repay Gu Xing Shi, after these few days of getting along, he had become addicted to this sense of security.

At the thought of leaving Gu Xing Shi and losing this treatment, he felt panic in advance.

However, Qin Wen hid it very well. Gu Xing Shi didn't notice anything unusual and led him to the door of their residence.

It was a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment.

The furniture was simple but very clean. One door was tightly closed, with a small wooden sign hanging on it that read "Meng Yuan Sheng."

Gu Xing Shi introduced, "This is your roommate, Meng Yuan Sheng. He's the child you saved years ago. However, he'll be staying in the limited group's dorm for the next two years, only occasionally coming back."

Qin Wen was shocked.

Since learning that Gu Xing Shi wanted him to become an actor, he secretly looked up some information about the entertainment industry.

It said that the treatment of debuted and non-debuted artists was completely different.

Debuted artists, because they could make money for the company, would receive company attention, with good accommodation and various benefits.

But non-debuted artists were basically in the money-spending phase. To save costs, it was common for seven or eight people to share a room.

So Qin Wen was prepared, but Gu Xing Shi arranged for him to live next door to Meng Yuan Sheng. How fortunate was he!

However, Gu Xing Shi misunderstood his expression.

Because Qin Wen lacked dreams, to persuade him to sign, Gu Xing Shi had been highlighting Meng Yuan Sheng's life as a star.

As a result, the glamorous star on stage actually had to share a room with someone privately.

It was understandable that Qin Wen would be disappointed.

So he immediately assured, "Our company isn't wealthy yet, so for now, you have to share with A Sheng. We'll get a bigger place later when we have more money."

"No, no, that's not what I meant," Qin Wen quickly explained.

After listening to Qin Wen's nervous explanation, Gu Xing Shi was stunned.

He realized that he had been too naive.

In his opinion, Qin Wen, a jade with such talent, was born for the big screen and shouldn't be wasted on small roles.

Before returning, he had already found voice, stage presence, and acting teachers for Qin Wen, intending to carefully cultivate him and find suitable opportunities for him to shine.

For most actors, this was the ideal and happiest path.

But for Qin Wen, it wasn't the best path.

Qin Wen had a rough childhood and had seen the warmth and coldness of the world, so he had a strong sense of insecurity.

Compared to a smooth acting career, what he wanted was to be needed.

Previously, seeing Qin Wen admiring Meng Yuan Sheng and Cheng Xin's stage presence, Gu Xing Shi thought he envied their brilliance.

Now he understood that he only envied Meng Yuan Sheng and Cheng Xin's debut, their ability to earn money for him, their need for him.

A wave of heartache suddenly surged in Gu Xing Shi's heart.

He instantly overturned the path he had planned for Qin Wen.

"From tomorrow, you'll have classes in the morning according to the schedule I gave you. As for the afternoon, you might have to work harder and go to auditions."

Qin Wen's eyes lit up: "I'm not afraid of hard work!"

Actually, the schedule Gu Xing Shi gave was very demanding.

Wake up at six in the morning, exercise and practice vocalization, then have breakfast at 7:30. To maintain his figure and skin, breakfast, although nutritious, was bland.

Classes start at 8:30, three hours without a break, then lunch, also bland diet food.

If there were no auditions in the afternoon, he had to take online film appreciation courses.

If there were auditions, if lucky, it might only take a few hours in Beijing, but if unlucky, in other cities, he would have to fly there and back on the same day.

Even Gu Xing Shi thought it was excessive, but he had to be cruel.

Although Qin Wen was one year younger than Meng Yuan Sheng, for the increasingly competitive entertainment industry, he was a bit older. Moreover, he hadn't had any professional training before, so to surpass others' ten years of skills, he could only work hard.

However, Qin Wen exceeded his expectations.

He didn't complain about the schedule, and his learning was terrifyingly focused. He would correct any mistakes pointed out by the teacher the next day and never repeat them.

Some teachers even subtly told Gu Xing Shi not to be so strict with his artist; Qin Wen's progress was already very fast.

Gu Xing Shi couldn't help but laugh and cry.

However, the teachers soon discovered that it wasn't Gu Xing Shi's problem; Qin Wen was simply a hard worker.

And he wasn't just hard-working, he was also very talented.

Once, Gu Xing Shi returned after finishing his work, just in time for the acting teacher's class. He gave Qin Wen a set scenario and asked him to act it out.

At that time, Qin Wen had only taken two classes, his first contact with such acting training.

He only thought for five minutes before starting to act.

The less-than-ten-minute segment directly made the teacher cry.

These teachers were senior industry professionals Gu Xing Shi had hired through Liang Wen Jun's connections.

He had trained countless actors, so Qin Wen's performance was exceptional.

No matter how excellent Qin Wen performed in class, his several auditions all failed.

Although Qin Wen felt disappointed, he felt more sorry for Gu Xing Shi.

Gu Xing Shi didn't doubt Qin Wen's acting skills but found it strange.

After all, these crews were carefully selected.

He had already eliminated chaotic crews and fiercely competitive large crews, choosing medium-sized investments with normal crew atmospheres and less popular roles like the third or fourth male lead.

These roles weren't difficult; with Qin Wen's acting skills, he shouldn't have been rejected.

So, he found Liang Wen Jun with this doubt.

Liang Wen Jun laughed after hearing this: "You've fallen into a misunderstanding."

Gu Xing Shi immediately said, "Sister Wen Jun, please explain."

Liang Wen Jun said, "These roles don't require high acting skills. 100 points of acting skill and 60 points of acting skill are similar. Most crews will leave these roles to artists with connections, for example, to return favors or those recommended by investors. So, him not being selected wasn't his problem; those positions were already taken."

Gu Xing Shi frowned and complained, "If that's the case, why bother auditioning people? It's a waste of time."

But after saying that, he realized he was naive again.

But Liang Wen Jun said, "You're right, but everyone is betting on that tiny chance."

The rules of the entertainment industry were always cruel.

Ability didn't guarantee success.

Gu Xing Shi hung up the phone and fell into thought.

He felt slightly frustrated but quickly recovered and began to think about solutions.

Qin Wen's acting and appearance were fine.

If he wasn't in a small, unknown company like Le Shi, he would have already succeeded.

Ultimately, he was holding him back.

Gu Xing Shi irritably scratched his hair.

But Le Shi's situation was what it was; he couldn't create a big company out of thin air.

Thinking of this, a sudden flash of inspiration struck him.

He couldn't create a company, but perhaps he could create a backer?

-

Since taking on Tang Ling's task, Sun Hong Fei had devoted himself to it.

Although he had assured Tang Ling, when he actually took over, he realized the difficulty.

The biggest problem for most entertainment companies was either a lack of resources or a lack of high-quality artists.

Although Gu Xing Shi only had Meng Yuan Sheng and Cheng Xin, looking at their current popularity, who could say they weren't high-quality? They were worth ten or more.

As for resources, as someone from Sweet Orange Video, Sun Hong Fei knew very well. They weren't lacking; the two had the best resources in the entire group, which would make others envious.

If it couldn't reach Mr. Gu's heart, how could it show Mr. Wen's love?

Just then, Sun Hong Fei heard that Gu Xing Shi had signed a new actor, supposedly an actor who had been frequently rejected in auditions.

Sun Hong Fei slapped his thigh.

Ugh!

Why was Mr. Gu so stubborn!

With a backer like Mr. Wen, why didn't he use it and insist on relying on hard work?

Not everyone has my Old Sun's foresight!

But Sun Hong Fei thought again.

Wasn't this a great opportunity?

He could help Mr. Gu and solve Mr. Wen's task.

Get to work!

Sun Hong Fei immediately sprang into action.

-

After figuring out a solution, Gu Xing Shi quickly finished his work and personally accompanied Qin Wen to the audition.

This time, they auditioned for a historical drama called "Six Fan Gate Secrets," a suspenseful detective story. Qin Wen's role was the third male lead, Yu Chang Yan, a gentle and affectionate rich young master.

He secretly loved the female lead, Rong Yu, but dared not confess. His role in the team was a money-spender, a rather flat character.

Gu Xing Shi deliberately changed his clothes, a "battle suit" chosen by Liang Wen Jun. Although expensive, in this "respect the clothes, then the person" circle, such expenses were necessary.

He also dressed up Qin Wen, instructing him to put on a cool demeanor before taking a rented luxury car to the audition hotel.

Before coming, Gu Xing Shi had used the system to thoroughly understand the crew.

The director, Gao Shen, was a graduate of the film academy, originally a screenwriter who became a director because screenwriters had little say.

This was his first drama as a director, self-written and directed.

Gao Shen was talented and had been a screenwriter in previous crews, almost single-handedly handling the crew's fly pages.

Fly pages were temporary script revisions due to various reasons after filming began.

Most screenwriters just passed, but Gao Shen didn't. He was bold, even surpassing the main script.

He carried this habit into this drama.

The current script was rough, and filming might rely on fly pages.

Besides this flaw, Gao Shen was upright, with good interpersonal relationships, so there shouldn't be many problems in the crew.

Therefore, even though Gu Xing Shi didn't like the role much, he still let Qin Wen audition.

More than ten people auditioned for the third male lead.

Gu Xing Shi barely knew anyone. He scanned the room and found his target.

He was a bland-looking young man, accompanied by a woman on the phone, his agent.

The young man was in brand names, holding an iced Americano, not looking at the script, with a proud air, as if to say he was a shoo-in.

They must have checked the auditioning actors, knowing they lacked background, that the audition was a formality, so their attitude was relaxed.

Gu Xing Shi gave Qin Wen a look, and he pushed up his sunglasses, revealing a 500,000-yuan watch.

Sure enough, the young man's expression changed.

He stood up, pulling his agent aside, saying something, the agent looking suspiciously at them.

Gu Xing Shi couldn't help but smirk.

The prey was hooked.

Soon, the agent approached them, tentatively starting a conversation.

Gu Xing Shi initially ignored her until she mentioned her company's name. Then he lowered his sunglasses, revealing his eyes, familiarly saying, "Meng Yu Film's people? How's Mr. Fan's peacock fish from abroad?"

The agent was startled.

Everyone in the circle knew Mr. Fan loved fish but that's all.

Unless they were close, who would know about the peacock fish? She only knew from Mr. Fan's secretary.

Her first reaction was that this was some big company's young master.

She subtly looked at Gu Xing Shi.

His clothes were simple yet luxurious; his pants were more expensive than her artist's outfit.

His artist was stunning.

His excellent bone structure, naturally handsome features, and exceptional temperament, even hidden by sunglasses.

He looked like a company's key artist.

He was wearing cheap clothes but an expensive watch.

The agent knew the watch; many rich second-generation children liked it. Her gaze shifted to Gu Xing Shi.

He wasn't wearing a watch.

The watch was probably from Gu Xing Shi.

Giving such an expensive watch away casually, only spoiled young masters would do that.

The agent had heard that spoiled young masters played around with their family's wealth.

Had she met one?

Then, Gu Xing Shi ordered Qin Wen, "Qin Wen, I'm thirsty. Get me some water."

Qin Wen stood up and got water.

This confirmed the agent's guess.

If it was a young master, she couldn't afford to offend him; there was no need to offend him for a third male lead role.

Her phone rang.

The agent was startled, then went to the window to answer.

Gu Xing Shi sat, not as calm as he appeared.

He saw the agent's hesitation, unsure if it would be enough for her to give up the audition.

Their backer was real; his was fake.

But, he saw the agent's face change, pulling her artist away.

Passing him, she apologized, "Mr. Gu, we're sorry, we didn't know you liked this role. We were presumptuous."

They quickly left, as if chased.

Gu Xing Shi: "?"

Qin Wen returned with water, passing them, seeing the artist looking enviously at him, then being pulled away.

Qin Wen returned, finding the other actors looking at Gu Xing Shi.

He went to Gu Xing Shi, giving him water, asking, "Mr. Gu, what happened? Did our plan work?"

Gu Xing Shi was also confused.

The fake backer... was this effective?!

Then, Qin Wen's audition began.

Gu Xing Shi ignored it for now.

Qin Wen gave him his sunglasses and watch, then went into the audition room.

Director Gao Shen and the casting director were present.

Gao Shen looked at Qin Wen's resume, surprised by its cleanliness, then amazed by his face.

Gao Shen, although a screenwriter, had been a photography assistant, and saw how photogenic Qin Wen was.

He admired him before asking, "You've never acted?"

Qin Wen answered calmly.

Gao Shen knew the role was for Meng Yu Film, so he wasn't concerned, waving, "Just act the scene where Yu Chang Yan buys a hairpin for Rong Yu but sees her and the male lead being intimate."

Qin Wen closed his eyes, then opened them, his cold eyes becoming gentle. Even his posture changed.

He extended his right hand, his left hand subconsciously under his right.

It was a gesture of rolling up sleeves.

Ancient wide sleeves were elegant but cumbersome, requiring rolling up for movement.

The script didn't have this, and he wasn't in costume, but he did it naturally.

He must have read the character profile and filled in the details.

This one action showed his dedication.

Gao Shen's casual expression disappeared; he sat up straight.

As the creator, the actor's respect touched him.

The scene was simple.

Qin Wen finished quickly.

Gao Shen immediately realized this role was too easy for Qin Wen.

He wondered how Qin Wen would perform in a more challenging role.

But he remembered the role was already taken.

Even if he liked Qin Wen, he had to accept reality.

His mood dropped.

The casting director said, "Director Gao, Meng Yu Film left."

"Left?!" Gao Shen was already unhappy giving them the role. "They think the role is set and didn't even go through the motions?"

"No..." The casting director's expression was strange. "His agent messaged, withdrawing from the audition."

"Ah?" Gao Shen was confused.

Why?

Meng Yu Film had worked for this role... to withdraw?

Then, he received a call.

The person said they were Sun Hong Fei, Sweet Orange Video's cooperation manager.

Gao Shen's drama was a web drama, so he tried not to offend anyone. He didn't know why the manager was calling but chatted politely.

Sun Hong Fei asked, "Director Gao, you're auditioning? I want to discuss something."

"Among the actors auditioning for the third male lead, is there one named Qin Wen from Le Shi Entertainment?"

Gao Shen: "...Yes."

Sun Hong Fei: "Le Shi Entertainment's Mr. Gu has a close relationship with our Mr. Wen. Mr. Wen heard he liked this role and hopes you'll give him face."

Gao Shen: "Ah... ah?"

Mr. Wen?!

That Mr. Wen?!

He was scared. A third male lead didn't require Mr. Wen's involvement.

Sun Hong Fei continued, "Mr. Wen trusts Mr. Gu's judgment. Sweet Orange Video will invest an extra ten million and buy exclusive broadcast rights."

Gao Shen was stunned.

He preferred Qin Wen; he could use his favorite actor and get ten million more, and Sweet Orange Video buying the exclusive rights meant no worries.

This wasn't an audition!

This was a gift!

Gao Shen's attitude satisfied Sun Hong Fei. He said meaningfully, "Mr. Gu and Mr. Wen's relationship shouldn't be publicized... you understand?"

Gao Shen understood: "Don't worry, I'll handle it!"