Chapter 83
It was originally a dormitory for three people, but now that Su Ya has cleared out her things, the entire living room looks much more spacious, as if the space has become larger.
Xu Gui noticed that He Yuan seemed much more relaxed after Su Ya left, and blushed when she saw Xu Gui looking at her.
Perhaps afraid that Xu Gui would misunderstand and think she disliked Su Ya, she explained somewhat embarrassedly, "It's not that I dislike Su Ya, I just don't know how to get along with her..."
Su Ya's personality is really not good. To put it nicely, she is good at judging situations and reading people's expressions. To put it bluntly, she is a snob who is good at belittling the powerful and flattering the weak.
She's very sweet-talking to people who are more famous than her, calling them "sister" and "brother" all the time. But when it comes to He Yuan, who has been in the industry for many years but is still just an extra in various film crews, her attitude is not so good. Her words and actions always inadvertently reveal a bit of disdain.
He Yuan wasn't stupid; how could she not sense it? It's just that she was introverted and had hit many walls in this industry over the years, which had worn down her edges. So even though she knew Su Ya looked down on her, she didn't choose to confront her directly, but rather avoided direct contact.
So now that Su Ya has moved out, she might not be happy, but she is definitely relieved. At least she won't have to face Su Ya's disdain anymore.
After listening to her explanation, Xu Gui simply said "oh" without saying whether she believed it or not. Under He Yuan's somewhat awkward gaze, Xu Gui walked to the sofa and sat down to rest—her legs were weak after walking around the park.
"Um?"
Suddenly, Xu Gui noticed two notebooks on the coffee table. She picked them up and flipped through them, only to discover that they were actually two scripts.
These two scripts had clearly been read many times by their owner, with sticky notes on each page containing densely written character biographies.
Xu Gui looked at He Yuan and asked curiously, "Is it yours?"
He Yuan nodded, sat down next to Xu Gui, and took one of the scripts from Xu Gui's hand, saying, "These are two roles I recently secured. They're both minor roles with little screen time."
She was a little embarrassed.
Xu Gui flipped through it.
Seeing her curiosity, He Yuan explained, "The script you're holding is called 'The Master Thief,' a film that Director He is about to start shooting. The cast is incredibly impressive, featuring award-winning actress Meng Die and award-winning actor Qi Duan. Apparently, after it's finished, it's going to be submitted for the Lunar New Year film season..."
Director He's full name is He Zhao. He is an internationally renowned director. He is always present at the Lunar New Year film season. For any of his films, there are countless actors who want to participate. Even for a small role that only lasts a few minutes, there are many people who want to be in it.
The role He Yuan got was the kind where she only appeared for about one or two minutes throughout the entire movie, but even with that role, she got it through connections.
Xu Gui flipped through the script and saw the character biography written by He Yuan. For a character with only five lines of dialogue, her character biography was actually quite full and detailed, even extending to the character's life trajectory.
Xu Gui had just discussed with Kuang Ming that afternoon about taking on the role of Si Xuan in "All Under Heaven". However, she was still clueless about acting and how to play a character. After all, as a newcomer to the industry, she was still a novice when it came to acting.
So this can be said to be the first time that she has truly and clearly come into contact with what the word "acting" actually means.
"So this is how much preparation is required for acting!" she exclaimed in surprise.
"What about the other script?" she asked He Yuan with great interest.
He Yuan paused for a moment, first looking down at the script she had just taken from Xu Gui, then seemingly hesitating for a moment before handing it to Xu Gui.
"This script..." She pursed her lips, a little embarrassed, but her tone couldn't hide her excitement as she said, "The production team wants to invite me to play the second female lead!"
Xu Gui: "Wow!"
He Yuan was even more embarrassed by Xu Gui's straightforward reaction, but it was Xu Gui's supportive attitude that made her unable to help but reveal her deepest thoughts to him.
"This is the first time someone has asked me to play the second female lead," she said—which is ironic, considering she's been acting for so many years, this is the first time she's landed such a significant role.
Xu Gui flipped through the script and discovered that it was a crime drama, a TV series, not a movie.
He Yuan said, "I've worked with the director before. At the time, I was just an extra with two lines, but the director said I was a very good actor! He also said that if there was an opportunity in the future, he would look for me to work with again..."
She thought the director was just being polite and didn't take his words to heart. But unexpectedly, just half a month ago, she suddenly received a call from him, who solemnly invited her to be the second female lead in his new drama.
He Yuan's eyes shone as she spoke of these things.
She started working in the film and television industry at the age of seventeen, playing countless roles. Everyone says she has good acting skills and can convincingly portray any character. But what good is good acting skills? After all these years, isn't she still just an unknown, low-level actress working in the film and television industry?
Calling her an 18th-tier actress is an understatement; to put it bluntly, she's just an extra, or at best, a slightly better actress among extras.
This is the first time in all these years that a director has actually approached her and invited her to work with him because of her good acting skills.
He Yuan couldn't help but feel respected.
Xu Gui glanced at the script in his hand and asked, "Are you going to act in both of them?"
Upon hearing this, He Yuan nodded and pointed to the movie script, saying, "In 'The Thief,' I don't have many scenes, just two lines. It might take less than a day to film, so it won't delay the filming of 'The Murderer.'"
Therefore, she can take on both roles.
“Hmm,” Xu Gui pondered, then suddenly pointed to the script for the movie “The Thief” and said, “Let’s shoot this one, and abandon the other one.”
He Yuan was bewildered: "Why? 'The Murderer,' 'The Murderer'... I'm the second female lead!" She couldn't sit still any longer.
For He Yuan, this was her first time playing the second female lead and the first time she had taken on a role with so much screen time. In addition, the director was someone she had worked with before. She really couldn't understand why she could give up this drama.
If it's because "The Thief" is a big-budget production and is bound to be a hit, then what does that have to do with a minor role like her?
When a movie becomes a hit, people first remember the lead actor and the director, and then a memorable character in the film. But viewers will never remember the small-time character who sets up a stall on the roadside.
Putting these two dramas together, no matter how you look at it, "The Murderer" should be the top priority. However, Xu Gui is now asking He Yuan to give up on this one.
"Xu Gui, why did you make us give it up?" He Yuan couldn't help but ask, her voice soft.
Xu Gui frankly told us, "Because this drama is finished filming, it will never be broadcast. You've filmed for half a year, but it's all for nothing."
He Yuan was taken aback: "Why, why?"
"Do you know anything about the male lead in this drama?" Xu Gui asked her.
He Yuan recalled what the director had said about the male lead of the drama: "...The male lead is Pei Qi, who is very famous."
Unlike "The Thief," which was aimed at the Spring Festival season and had an investment of over 1 billion yuan, boasting an extremely luxurious cast and crew with most of the main actors being seasoned veterans, "The Pursuit of the Murderer" is a more idol-oriented drama.
The cast of "The Murderer" is mostly young stars. Pei Qi, the male lead, is a currently popular idol. He became a hit with his previous drama and his acting skills are quite good, at least among popular idols. Therefore, he is currently enjoying great popularity and has many fans.
He Yuan hadn't had much contact with the other person, and said uncertainly, "He seems like a decent person, right?"
Anyway, the other person has a good reputation online, and her friends also say that the other person has a good personality.
Xu Gui nodded slightly and said, "This person is indeed not bad..."
Just as He Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, Xu Gui changed the subject and said, "But the sugar daddy he's hooked up with has a husband who's not easy to mess with."
"? Cough cough cough!" He Yuan almost choked on her own saliva. She looked at Xu Gui in a daze, and slowly realized that she seemed to have just heard some amazing news from Xu Gui.
Pei Qi, the sugar daddy... If this news gets out, it might just crash Weibo.
He Yuan asked in a low voice, "So, Pei Qi's sugar daddy's husband will bury our show?"
Buried?
Xu Gui listened to this "professional term" and thought it was quite apt. Connecting it with the preceding text, he could understand the meaning of the words at a glance.
"That's about it..." she said. "When your drama was being filmed and still under review, Pei Qi's affair with his sugar daddy was exposed. His sugar daddy has a husband, and that husband is rich and powerful."
Therefore, the husband, "in a fit of rage for his wife," directly blacklisted Pei Qi's people. As for all the TV dramas Pei Qi had participated in during this period, they were also buried along with him, with no hope of ever airing them.
So, He Yuan's first drama as the second female lead was buried without even making a ripple.
At first, He Yuan could still laugh, her heart filled with curiosity about hearing gossip. But when she heard the rest, she thought, "..." So I'm one of the main characters in this gossip too?
He Yuan: Suddenly I can't laugh anymore.
She took a breath and spent several minutes processing the news Xu Gui had told her. Finally, she gave a bitter smile and sighed, "Maybe I'm just not destined to be the protagonist."
At this moment, He Yuan felt somewhat disheartened.
She has been struggling in this industry for so many years. Whenever she felt like giving up, she would grit her teeth and persevere with the thought that "maybe I will become famous next time." Until now, the TV series "The Murderer" can be said to be the closest she has ever come to her dream.
But now, before this dream even began, it has already been declared over. He Yuan can't help but wonder if she is simply not suited to be an actress, or even to the entertainment industry.
Perhaps she should have left this industry long ago... This wasn't the first time she'd had this thought, but this time it was the strongest.
Just when she was feeling down, Xu Gui, who was sitting next to her, suddenly said, "Who said you weren't destined to be a protagonist?"
"..." He Yuan's heart trembled, and she slowly raised her head, silently looking at Xu Gui.
Xu Gui looked at her strangely, "I didn't say you couldn't be the lead... this!"
She picked up the script for "The Thief" and said with bright eyes, "If you act in this, you'll definitely get the lead role!"
He Yuan looked at Xu Gui in shock and said softly, "This is a work by the internationally renowned director He, and the lead actors are the award-winning actress Meng Die and the award-winning actor Qi Duan. You're talking about me?"
She pointed to herself, "Can I be the lead in this movie?"
“Xu Gui, I think you must have made a mistake!” she said.
She wouldn't even dare to dream of something like this; it's just too unrealistic.
"You don't believe me?" Xu Gui looked at her.
He Yuan's eyes darted around as she said, "It's not that I don't believe you, it's just that what you're saying is really unlikely... Who is Director He Zhao?"
She simply looked directly at Xu Gui, met her gaze, and said helplessly, "Director He's leading roles are all award-winning actors and actresses, or at the very least, veteran actors that the audience is very familiar with. Why would he let me be the lead?"
"Okay, even if something unexpected happens during filming and a lead role becomes vacant, Director He is unlikely to take my side. You don't know how many actors in the entire entertainment industry want to work with Director He and star in his movies. It's like a swarm of locusts crossing a river; almost every star wants to be in his movies!"
“I just don’t want to,” Xu Gui replied.
He Yuan: "...Pfft."
She couldn't help but laugh, and the gloomy mood in her heart could no longer be maintained. She said, "There are indeed people like you who are not interested, but such people are very rare. Anyway, as long as Director He speaks up, there are plenty of actresses willing to participate in his dramas. Director He would only be interested in me if he were crazy."
"Are you really that insecure about yourself?" Xu Gui asked thoughtfully. "Is it because you think your acting skills aren't as good as others'?"
Upon hearing this, He Yuan reacted strongly, saying excitedly, "How could my acting skills be worse than others? Do you know how many years I've been an actress? Twelve years! I dropped out of school at sixteen and started acting. I'll be twenty-nine soon..."
She said, enunciating each word clearly, "I don't think my acting skills are worse than anyone else's!"
Xu Gui smiled at her reaction and said, "If that's the case, what are you worried about? As long as that director He Zhao's eyesight isn't failing him, he'll definitely be able to tell that your acting is very good. Why do you think he won't choose you?"
He Yuan was speechless for a moment, then said, "Xu Gui, you're a newcomer, so you don't understand. Sometimes, what kind of role you can play isn't based on your acting skills..."
Xu Gui asked, "He Yuan, do you believe me?"
He Yuan was stunned. She looked at Xu Gui's serious expression, opened her mouth, but couldn't utter the words she wanted to say.
Xu Gui said, "If you trust me, choose the script 'The Master Thief.' Trust me, you'll be the lead actor."
After saying this, Xu Gui went back to his bedroom to wash up, leaving He Yuan alone in the living room.
He Yuan didn't know how long she sat in the living room. She looked at the two scripts, feeling completely confused and unable to make sense of anything. She barely slept that night, and even when she did, she kept having dreams. So when she woke up the next morning, she was completely dazed, and when she walked out of the bedroom, she felt like she was floating.
However, as soon as she stepped out of the bedroom, her feet touched solid ground because she saw Xu Gui's agent.
Her somewhat muddled mind suddenly cleared, and He Yuan looked at Kuang Ming, politely greeting him.
Xu Gui was sitting to one side eating breakfast. When he saw her coming over, he turned to her and asked, "He Yuan, you're up! Come and have breakfast. Kuang Ming bought a lot!"
He Yuan glanced at the breakfast on the table and found that Xu Gui hadn't been polite at all; there was indeed a lot of food on the table. She looked over and immediately spotted soy milk and fried dough sticks, steamed buns, and porridge. Clearly, the person who bought the breakfast had also considered her, their roommate.
Since that's the case, she didn't stand on ceremony with Xu Gui and said, "Then wait for me to wash my face!"
After she finished washing her face, she sat opposite Xu Gui and ate breakfast with her. As for Kuang Ming, he sat to the side while they ate breakfast. He Yuan politely asked him about it and received the answer that he had already eaten.
Xu Gui ate very quickly. By the time He Yuan sat down to drink her porridge, she had already finished her breakfast.
Seeing that she had finished eating, Kuang Ming finally spoke up.
"You seemed quite busy after having dinner with me last night..." He spoke with a sarcastic tone, clearly a seasoned sarcastic person.
Upon hearing his words, Xu Gui knew what he meant. She instinctively reached for her phone and asked, "Am I trending again?" Otherwise, how would Kuang Ming know she was so "busy" last night?
Kuang Ming snorted and began to lecture her.
"You shouldn't have spoken so rashly. Your reckless words have brought matters that had nothing to do with you into your life." Kuang Ming's implication was similar to what Yan Xiaomi had said to Xu Gui last night.
"If the person who committed suicide is alright, that's fine, but if she had actually jumped, then even if you weren't in trouble, you would be in trouble!"
Kuang Ming looked at her seriously and said, "Next time you encounter something like this, I hope you will think twice before acting and consider the consequences!"
Xu Gui: "But if I don't do anything, she'll really jump into the river. If she jumps in, she'll die."
Kuang Ming was speechless for a moment, then said, "I didn't mean for you to ignore things, I just wanted you to think about them more... Oh well, at least the final result was good. That lady is alright, and you are alright too. There's a lot of positive feedback about what happened to you online."
He Yuan didn't specifically listen to their conversation, but since they were in the same living room, their conversation inevitably got overheard.
He Yuan: Trending topics? What trending topics?
She glanced at Xu and Gui, then took out her phone, secretly opened Weibo, and found the post related to Xu Gui.
"... #Woman contemplates suicide, but hears fortune teller say she has won millions in the lottery#."
He Yuan, after seeing the trending topic title: ? ? What the heck?
It has to be said that this title, which can be described as UC-style, really attracted her.
"I want to see what's going on here," she said, rolling up her sleeves and clicking directly into the trending topics.
A minute later, after reading the whole story and even seeing the video, He Yuan said: "...Xu Gui is so amazing."
She knew Xu Gui could tell fortunes. She had watched Xu Gui's live streams and seen many of his trending topics, but she didn't pay much attention to them. After all, although they were roommates under the same roof, they didn't have much interaction.
Now, after looking at it carefully again and again, she couldn't help but feel a bit more amazed by Xu Gui.
"That's really impressive..." She secretly glanced at Xu Gui, wanting to ask her about last night, but she was afraid that their relationship wasn't close enough and she might be too forward.
After finishing breakfast, she lingered for a moment, but finally couldn't suppress her curiosity and leaned over to Xu Gui to ask, "Xu Gui, did that woman who threatened to jump into the river yesterday really win the lottery?"
Xu Gui nodded: "I have no reason to use this to lie to people."
He Yuan exclaimed in surprise, somewhat envious: "Thirty million...!" Although City A is a first-tier city with many millionaires, it is still an unattainable number for ordinary people like them who struggle to earn even ten thousand a month.
With 3,500 yuan, there's so much you could do; He Yuan felt really good just thinking about it.
Many people share He Yuan's sentiments, and numerous discussions can be seen under that trending topic:
[I'm so envious! When will I ever win 30 million? No, I'm begging for 30 million! Give me 3 million, or even 300,000, and I'll be perfectly content. I'll quit my job and go back to my hometown to farm.]
[This young woman's reaction to contemplating suicide is so real. Before she won the lottery: "Let me go, let me die!" After finding out she won 30 million: "Suicide? Jumping into the river? Slander! It's all slander! All she cares about now is that 30 million!"]
[Just the scenarios Xu Gui imagined are already making me excited. I can already picture the reactions of this young lady's ex-boyfriend and family when they find out she won 30 million. This is practically a realistic and satisfying novel!]
[Sigh, thankfully she was alright in the end. Actually, listening to this young woman's tearful story broke my heart. Who would want to commit suicide if they couldn't bear it anymore?]
[This woman appeared to have been drinking. Drinking makes one's emotions even more uncontrollable; if it weren't for the people around her trying to stop her, she probably would have jumped already.]
[Is this really not acting? Who is this Xu Gui? How did she know this woman had a lottery ticket, and that ticket won? Can she really tell fortunes?]
[Our tortoise really can tell fortunes! Check out this video, ladies, you should watch it, our tortoise is incredibly good at fortune telling!]
After the show ended, Xu Gui disappeared from the public eye. Everyone was wondering when they would see her again, but unexpectedly, she appeared on the trending topics again just two days later.
Netizens commented: "I thought we wouldn't see each other for a long time, but I didn't expect to see you trending on social media so soon."
Of course, besides mentioning Xu Gui, some netizens were also discussing the old lady who wanted Xu Gui to calculate whether her daughter-in-law's baby was a boy or a girl. Most netizens were not very kind to her.
Sometimes I really don't understand. They're women themselves, yet they still persecute the next generation of women. Shouldn't they empathize with their own wives and treat their daughters-in-law better?
According to what you, Xu Gui, said, this old lady never had a son in her entire life, so why does she insist that her daughter-in-law have a son?
This kind of person is psychologically disturbed; they can't stand seeing others do well when they themselves are not doing well.
[Hopefully this daughter-in-law sees this and can get rid of this family soon!]
...
Looking at the online discussions, He Yuan couldn't help but nod in agreement; many netizens' words resonated with her deeply.
Of course, there were also some comments that weren't very pleasant, but He Yuan selectively ignored them. After finishing scrolling through Weibo, she sat there blankly, feeling a sudden emptiness in her heart.
She remembered the advice Xu Gui had given her the night before.
She wondered: Should she really give up "The Killer" and choose "The Thief" instead?
If Xu Gui's fortune-telling is so powerful, then Pei Qi's matter might be true... If so, the choice Xu Gui made is indeed the best. However, He Yuan always felt a sense of loss that she couldn't quite explain.
She looked at Xu Gui and couldn't help but ask, "Xu Gui, you said I would become the lead in 'The Thief,' how did I become the lead?"
Xu Gui glanced at her and said, "Just curious."
He Yuan nodded honestly.
Xu Gui said, "This...?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
