Chapter 69
On the day of the preliminary selection.
Xu Ying arrived at the hotel early. As soon as she entered the hotel, she went straight to Zhou Xingyun's room on the fifteenth floor.
Zhou Xingyun owns a house in Shanghai, but since the audition was held in a conference room on the second floor of this hotel, she didn't want to waste time traveling back and forth, so she stayed at the hotel temporarily.
She even encouraged Xu Ying to move in with her.
"Look how convenient it is for me. I can go straight downstairs after I'm done tidying up. It would take you an hour to get here..."
Zhou Xingyun had just woken up and opened the door for Xu Ying, who went into the bathroom to wash up in her pajamas.
"Never mind, I still feel more comfortable at home," Xu Ying said, leaning against the bathroom door, declining the offer to keep her company.
Zhou Xingyun shrugged: "Okay."
Time passed slowly as Zhou Xingyun dressed and groomed herself. By the time she was finally ready, a phone call had already been made to Xu Ying's cell phone.
"Hey screenwriter, where are you? Our interview is about to start."
It was a staff member who called to urge them.
"Mr. Zhou and I are upstairs in the hotel, we'll be down shortly."
"Okay, okay, I was just about to contact President Zhou after I finished calling you, but since you two are together, I won't contact President Zhou."
"good."
Xu Ying hung up the phone and waved her phone at Zhou Xingyun: "Hurry up, someone downstairs is calling."
"That's good, let's go!"
The two went out and took the elevator down to the second floor.
The elevator doors opened midway, and several young and pretty girls walked in. When Xu Ying saw them, a thought immediately popped into her mind: Could they be the actors who came to audition today?
She was right.
These people didn't press the elevator button; once they reached the second floor, they all rushed out.
Xu Ying and Zhou Xingyun stood at the very back of the elevator, the last two to exit. They exchanged a glance and smiled knowingly at each other.
In the conference room.
Luo Ying and Zhou Yu have arrived, as has the casting director from the production crew.
When Xu Ying and Zhou Xingyun pushed open the door, all three of them looked up at the same time. Xu Ying greeted them, but her eyes were inevitably drawn to the large red carpet on the ground.
She looked around and noticed several cameras set up in the corner of the room.
"You arranged all of this?"
Zhou Xingyun sat down on the judges' panel and shook his head upon hearing this: "No, it's thanks to Director Zhou and the others."
Xu Ying also walked over.
There were five seats on the judges' panel, four of which were already occupied, leaving only the middle seat, whose name was written on the nameplate.
"Is it inappropriate for me to sit in the middle?"
Director Zhou and the casting director are both older than her, how can she sit in the middle...?
"Screenwriter Xu, you can do it. The casting this time still depends on you, especially the female lead. We might not be able to handle your description, hahaha!"
The director made a joke, which livened up the atmosphere in the room. Xu Ying stopped refusing and sat down in the middle.
"Then I shall accept it without hesitation."
"Sit down, sit down," Zhou Xingyun, who was sitting to her left, eagerly pulled her down to sit.
At that moment, the meeting room door was pushed open from the outside, and a staff member came in and asked, "Five teachers, it's almost time, shall we begin the interviews?"
The five men straightened up.
"Let them in."
The staff member responded and went out.
Before long, ten girls filed in and stood in a row in the center of the red carpet, introducing themselves one by one from left to right.
"Hello everyone, I'm Hu Yunnian from Shenyang..."
"Hello everyone, my name is Jiang Cheng, I am twenty-one years old, and I come from Yuncheng..."
There were a lot of people coming in for in-person interviews, a total of 1,200.
Xu Ying and her team couldn't possibly interview each of these people individually; that would be too inefficient. The first round of interviews was just a formality; as long as their appearance wasn't a major issue, they could generally pass.
Of course, if there are a few particularly outstanding ones, they will mark them separately for special attention.
The interview process was tedious.
Especially since she had to repeat the same things every round, Xu Ying's initial excitement quickly wore off, and by the end of the first day of interviews, her overall mental state was noticeably weaker.
"Interviewing is a grueling process," she said, adding that writing novels was far easier than interviewing.
Zhou Xingyun said weakly, "This is only the first day. Our preliminary test is scheduled for seven days. Just bear with it."
"We're leaving now, please drive carefully."
Luo Ying and Zhou Xingyun were both staying at this hotel. He said goodbye to Xu Ying and the others, then took Zhou Xingyun and left.
Director Zhou, who was standing nearby, also said, "Then let's go too."
The three of them all live in their own homes, and they happened to be taking the elevator together to the underground parking lot.
"Let's go, let's go!"
*
As the first round of interviews came to a close, Xu Ying couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
So far, she has not yet interviewed a leading actress she likes.
Although the preliminary interview format was a bit rough, in many cases, you can tell at a glance whether you have a connection or not.
With over 1,200 people interviewed, she hasn't met a single leading lady who caught her eye at first sight.
During the intermission, Xu Ying sat on the judges' panel, her face contorted in a grimace.
The interviewees this time came from all walks of life, from plump to slender, but she always felt that something was missing.
The female protagonist in her mind should be gentle and beautiful on the outside, but cunning and manipulative on the inside. Such a person should have gentle yet firm eyes, clear yet sly.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Noticing that something was wrong with Xu Ying, Zhou Xingyun turned his head and asked a question.
Xu Ying shook her head: "It's nothing, I was just thinking about who should play the female lead."
"I've got a few candidates in mind for the female lead. We can keep an eye out for them during our second round of interviews next week..." Director Zhou interjected from the other side, "So, screenwriter, have you got anyone in mind yet?"
Xu Ying shook her head.
Everyone knows she has no candidates on hand. In the past two days, other people have joked more than once that her requirements are too strict. There are quite a few outstanding ordinary people who came for the interview, but she doesn't like any of them.
She smiled wryly: "These ordinary people are very outstanding, but their eyes are not right."
It was his eyes again.
This wasn't the first time Xu Ying had said her gaze was off. Zhou Xingyun clutched his head in anguish and said, "What kind of gaze do you want?"
Of course, the director could have his own preferred candidates, but deep down, Zhou Xingyun trusted Xu Ying the most, so she was also anxious when Xu Ying couldn't find anyone to choose from.
"Let's see, maybe we'll run into each other today," Luo Ying gently nudged Zhou Xingyun's arm, signaling her to be mindful of the occasion.
Zhou Xingyun glanced at him sideways, then shut his mouth and said nothing more.
*
Outside the conference room.
Li Tingyu sat on a red plastic stool prepared by the staff, clutching her paper resume, and muttered to herself, "Hello everyone, I'm Li Tingyu, I'm from Jiangcheng, and I'm twenty-five years old..."
Twenty-five years old may not be much for people in the entertainment industry, but for those outside the industry, it's already too late to enter the business at this age.
Li Tingyu knew all too well that it was too late.
She had wanted to be an actress since high school, but no one in her family supported her. Unable to withstand the pressure from her family, she could only apply to a language school that her parents were satisfied with.
Now, so many years have passed, and she has been working for two years since graduation, but in the dead of night, she still thinks of her former ideals.
She suppressed her true feelings and lived the stable life her parents envisioned.
Until two months ago, she saw the casting call for "Legend of the Qing Dynasty" on her DaYan account, and at that moment, she felt her heart pounding.
She casually closed the announcement.
But she couldn't lie to herself. From that day on, she would search for the official website of "Legend of the Qing Dynasty" on Dayan every now and then, and she looked at the actor recruitment announcement over and over again.
She didn't follow the official website for "Legend of the Qing Dynasty," she just repeatedly searched and browsed it, and she even found the original novel and read it once...
To register or not to register?
Her inner balance kept shifting, and amidst this constant torment, the day before the application deadline arrived. Unable to resist, she quietly submitted her resume.
She didn't tell anyone about this registration.
Even after receiving the first round of interview invitations via text message, she didn't reveal a single word to anyone around her. She simply took two days off from work, citing family matters, to attend the interviews.
She has a very stable mindset.
She was open to whatever outcome of the interview.
It would be good if she passed, but if she didn't, then she would have done her part for her acting career and wouldn't have any regrets, Li Tingyu thought.
However, when it was almost her turn for the interview, she couldn't help but get nervous. She sighed, realizing that she still wanted to be selected.
"Numbers 110 to 120, come in," a staff member called out at the door.
Immediately, a group of girls stood up outside the door, including Li Tingyu, whose number was 116 given to her by the staff.
It was finally her turn.
Inside the meeting room, ten young and beautiful girls lined up in a row. Xu Ying immediately noticed Li Tingyu, who was fourth from the right. Li Tingyu had a standard oval face, paired with willow-leaf eyebrows and almond eyes, giving her a classic and elegant look.
Modern attire is actually her disadvantage.
If a professional team were to dress her up in ancient costume, her beauty would probably increase several notches.
"Hello, teachers. My name is Li Tingyu..."
When it was Li Tingyu's turn to introduce himself, Xu Ying listened very attentively.
The voice is clear and gentle, and the pronunciation is clear and articulate. Hmm, very good. With such a tone and performance, after being trained by a professional teacher, there shouldn't be any problems even if I do the dubbing myself later.
To be honest, Li Tingyu wasn't the most beautiful among the many interviewees, but Xu Ying took a liking to her at first sight. It's just that mysterious; as long as the feeling is right, everything is negotiable.
......
The interview ended, and a girl left.
Xu Ying lowered her head, put a checkmark next to Li Tingyu's name, and added an extra little star.
Wow!
Zhou Xingyun, who was standing next to her, immediately noticed Xu Ying's little action. She turned her head and looked at the list of candidates. When she saw who Xu Ying had marked as a candidate, she looked up in surprise.
Li Tingyu?
This girl is pretty, but is she so outstanding that she needs to attract special attention? It doesn't seem so.
She asked, "Is she special? I didn't notice it before."
My self-introduction was quite standard, and I looked no different from the others.
Xu Ying glanced at her sideways. She was in a good mood and joked with her, "That's why I say you're not good at casting. You've let all the good roles slip away."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
