Chapter 66 Chapter 66 Strange Audition
Xia Nuan didn't know what to say about Ji Mian. The filming location of "The Sun Can't Penetrate" was a million miles away from the capital. Ji Mian was really crazy to come to find her.
Xia Nuan took a deep breath and walked over: "Why did you come all the way here to see me? What's the matter that can't be said over the phone?"
Ji Mian turned around, his pupils glowing amber in the sunlight, as if he could see through all her unspoken words. "I'm just worried that if I don't come to see you, you might hang up on me again like you did just now."
Xia Nuan looked away feeling a little guilty. She hadn't deliberately ignored the call, and you hadn't contacted her before—
Footsteps were heard, and when he was two steps away from Xia Nuan, Ji Mian suddenly stopped, bent down slightly, and his eyes were level with Xia Nuan.
"Ah Nuan, congratulations."
Xia Nuan was caught off guard and looked into his eyes, holding her breath unconsciously.
The temperature of Ji Mian's gaze was so hot that it almost left a mark on her skin.
Xia Nuan's eyelashes trembled, her expression was dull for a moment, and she suddenly couldn't say anything.
Xia Nuan hummed, turned around uncomfortably and walked into the apartment building.
Ji Mian's eyes darkened little by little, and a hint of sadness appeared between his brows. He stood in the distance with a somewhat lonely look.
Xia Nuan walked to the elevator and pressed the button, but found that no one followed her.
She turned around and glanced at Ji Mian who was still standing there, and urged him helplessly, "What are you still doing standing there? Come here quickly."
Ji Mian was stunned for a moment, then his eyes gradually brightened, his lips that had been pursed until they turned pale suddenly relaxed, and even the corners of his mouth turned up.
But he still stood there and just shook his head: "No need, A Nuan. I came here just to see you."
There was an unconcealable attachment in Ji Mian's voice, and the emotion in his tone was almost tangible, so gentle that it was almost heartbreaking.
He kept looking at Xia Nuan, not moving his eyes away at all, not even blinking.
This time it was Xia Nuan who was stunned.
Their eyes met again, Xia Nuan lowered her eyes and avoided his sight again.
Ji Mian looked at her intently and asked, "Are you sure when we're going to leave?"
"Two days later."
When Ji Mian heard this, his eyebrows curved.
"Then I came by chance. At least I saw you before you left. However, I couldn't see you off on the day you left."
"Anuan, everything went well."
Ji Mian did not stay here long.
Xia Nuan looked at his back, and her heart inexplicably felt like being brushed by a feather, so light that it was hardly noticeable, but it made her heart itch slightly.
Three days later, in the afternoon, at Los Angeles International Airport, the California sunshine poured down generously on the ground.
The scorching sun almost melted the earth. Xia Nuan put on sunglasses and a sun hat. The moment she walked out of the cabin, a heat wave hit her in the face. The air was trembling slightly, forming a sharp contrast with the cool air in the cabin.
Lin Dayong followed her out and blurted out, "It's really hot."
Fortunately, after walking through the corridor and reaching the hall, the coolness hit my face and the heat was isolated outside again.
The people coming and going were all foreigners, and Xia Nuan finally felt the real experience of going abroad.
The two picked up their luggage, and Xia Nuan looked at the sign and walked towards the airport exit.
Although Lin Dayong had been to the United States before, this time was completely different from the past. He was immersed in his own excited thoughts and suddenly found that Xia Nuan had stopped.
"Xiao Xia, what's wrong?"
Xia Nuan frowned and shook her head: "It's okay."
Even as she said this, her brows furrowed subconsciously. Was she mistaken? Why was Lou Su here? Shouldn't he be touring in Europe?
Xia Nuan glanced over there again.
A few meters away, a tall man was leaning against the wall. He was wearing sunglasses, a simple white T-shirt and jeans, but a cowboy hat on his head. He stood there so arrogantly.
As if noticing Xia Nuan's gaze, the man suddenly raised the whiteboard in his hand with her name written on it.
The corner of Xia Nuan's mouth twitched. It really was him.
The smile on Lou Su's lips grew wider, he waved and began to walk over here.
Lin Dayong was still wondering why Xia Nuan hadn't left yet. When he heard someone calling Xia Nuan's name, he turned his head and looked in the direction of the voice.
Damn, why didn’t this guy inform me before he showed up here?
Fortunately, there are not many people around now. Doesn’t this guy know that he is also famous abroad? ! ! !
Lin Dayong walked up to Lou Su and was about to say something when he saw Lou Su slide past him.
"Surprise!" Lou Su approached Xia Nuan.
Lou Su raised his eyebrows and pulled down his sunglasses with his fingertips, revealing his sparkling eyes, which stared straight at Xia Nuan.
This wasn't exactly a surprise; the flight from Los Angeles to Berlin took over ten hours. Xia Nuan took a deep breath and said seriously, "Why are you here? Isn't the Berlin show tomorrow night?"
"Do you remember my performance time?" Lou Su's voice rose noticeably at the end, and his eyes lit up.
Xia Nuan didn't say anything and remained silent.
Lou Su coughed lightly, shrugged his shoulders, and said in a relaxed tone: "There is still a day left. Besides, it's only a dozen hours, and we can sleep on the way--"
He was about to say something, but he saw Xia Nuan's brows furrowed under the brim of her hat, and his voice stopped abruptly.
Lin Dayong looked left and right, then sighed and walked a little further away.
Xia Nuan said calmly, "Do you think I'm moved by flying all the way from Berlin like in an idol drama?"
Lou Su's smile froze for a moment, he opened his mouth but said nothing.
Xia Nuan pursed her lips, turned and left.
Lou Su suddenly panicked. He quickly caught up with Xia Nuan and wanted to reach out and grab her, but then he retracted his hand.
"No," he said softly, his voice low and sincere, "I didn't do this to impress you. I never thought of that. I just, I just haven't seen you for a long time, and I want to see you, even if it's just for a short time."
The airport broadcast sounded, the final reminder for boarding the Lousu flight.
He glanced at his watch and said with a wry smile, "Looks like I have to go."
Xia Nuan felt a pang of bitterness in her chest.
"Go ahead, don't delay your work."
She finally said this, but her voice was even colder than she had expected.
"Good luck with your audition." Lou Su laughed dryly. Before turning around, he suddenly pulled out a small box from his pocket and stuffed it into her hand. "This little thing for you. It's not something expensive, I just thought you would like it."
Before she could refuse, he had already strode away.
Xia Nuan lowered her head and opened the box. Inside was a small silver bookmark with a delicate jasmine flower carved on the top, her favorite flower.
"Infatuated men and resentful women always make people sad." Lin Dayong appeared beside her again at some point, shaking his head and sighing.
Xia Nuan quickly closed the box and stuffed it into her bag, saying somewhat helplessly, "Brother Lin, stop talking nonsense. Have you arranged a hotel?"
"Of course, if you still don't trust me, the special car is waiting outside."
Lin Dayong took the luggage and suddenly sighed: "Xiao Xia, you know I'm a bit of a chatterbox. But sometimes, giving others a chance is not a bad thing."
Xia Nuan pretended not to hear and strode towards the exit.
The suites at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel are spacious and bright, with the famous Walk of Fame just outside the window.
Xia Nuan stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the bustling tourists downstairs, her thoughts racing.
Can I seize this opportunity?
Lin Dayong knocked on the door and walked in with a tablet.
"Tomorrow's preliminary selection process has been announced. The first round is an English-language situational performance. I heard that Dirk Dudley, the assistant director of 'Poetry in the Rain,' is one of the judges. He has a very sharp eye."
Xia Nuan nodded. This audition opportunity was hard-won. The female lead was being auditioned worldwide.
If she could really succeed, Xia Nuan suddenly shook her head and said, "Don't think too much about it. Just make sure you do your best. For the rest, you can take it one step at a time."
Lin Dayong hesitated for a moment. "Xiao Xia, Lou Su asked me to tell you that he has a concert in Los Angeles in three weeks and has reserved VIP tickets for you."
Three weeks later, if she could pass the first round of auditions, she would definitely concentrate on preparing for the next round of auditions; if she failed, she would probably have returned home.
Xia Nuan turned around, expressionless: "Tell him I'm busy."
Lin Dayong sighed and said nothing more.
The next morning, Xia Nuan arrived at the audition location half an hour earlier than the agreed time.
The production company of "Poetry in the Rain" is Walt Brothers, a world-renowned film and television company.
Although Xia Nuan arrived half an hour early, there were still many people in the audition room. Actresses from all over the world were chatting in twos and threes, and the air was filled with tension and anticipation.
Among them are several Hollywood Best Actress nominees.
Xia Nuan stood quietly by, her heart beating uncontrollably. She clenched her palms gently, suppressing the trembling of excitement.
She hadn't felt this way in a long time.
Xia Nuan lowered her eyes, and suddenly the corners of her lips curved up.
But, she likes it very much.
At nine o'clock in the morning, the staff randomly distributed number tags to the actresses present.
Xia Nuan ranks in the middle.
One of the Korean actresses was whispering something in Korean, glancing at her from time to time with obvious contempt in her eyes.
Each person auditioned for a few minutes, and there were thirty people.
When it was Xia Nuan's turn, it was almost twelve o'clock. The staff called her name.
Inside the audition room, three judges sat behind a long table. The middle-aged man in the middle, wearing black-framed glasses, must be Dirk Dudley.
The female judge on the far right looked at Xia Nuan and said, "Please introduce yourself in English and share your understanding of Lillian, the heroine of "Poetry in the Rain."
Xia Nuan took a deep breath, and fluent British English flowed from her lips.
She talked about her understanding of the character of Lillian.
Lillian was born in the United States to parents of Asian descent and lived there until she was ten years old.
Both her parents were travelers, but because their plane crashed, she was taken back to China by her grandmother. After her grandmother passed away, she began to travel around the world in search of her parents' traces...
Dirk Dudley looked at her and nodded, then finally spoke: "In one minute, Lillian's reaction when she found out her only relative, her grandmother, had passed away."
Xia Nuan closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her whole temperament had changed.
Her shoulders trembled slightly, and her eyes changed from confusion to horror to despair, and finally fixed on a heartbreaking smile.
"Well done." Dirk Dudley smiled at Xia Nuan, but there was a hint of emotion in his voice that Xia Nuan couldn't understand.
As she turned to leave, the Korean actress happened to come in.
As they passed by, the other party snorted coldly at him and whispered in English: "Go back to your China and don't embarrass yourself in Hollywood."
Xia Nuan narrowed her eyes slightly and suddenly remembered who this person was. It was Kim Seo-ji from South Korea, who was once very popular in China for a while.
The year she won the Silver Rooster Award, Kim Seo-ji was nominated for Best Actress.
"Forking Road" was her first film. At that time, not many people were optimistic about her, and even she herself did not think she could win an award.
One of the most popular candidates for the award at that time was Kim Seo-ji, but later on, Kim Seo-ji faded out of the Chinese market.
No wonder she is hostile to me.
Xia Nuan didn't stop and walked past her with an expressionless face, without even giving her a glance.
But Dirk Dudley's voice suddenly appeared behind her: "Miss Kim, before you judge others, please make sure you have enough ability. Miss Xia's performance just now was very good."
Jin Ruizhi's face turned pale in an instant.
Xia Nuan turned around in surprise and met Dirk Dudley's meaningful gaze.
Xia Nuan's eyelids suddenly twitched uncontrollably, but quickly returned to normal, as if the momentary abnormality was just an illusion.
Lin Dayong saw Xia Nuan coming out: "Xiao Xia, how was the audition?"
Xia Nuan shook her head: "I don't know either, but there is one thing that is very strange."
"What's up?"
Xia Nuan briefly explained what had just happened.
"Why would an assistant director, whom I'd never met before, speak publicly for me? Furthermore, the actress hadn't even auditioned yet. His behavior was a bit too strange."
Lin Dayong frowned, shrugged, and said with some confidence, "Maybe the atmosphere in the United States is different? Besides, as you just said, we haven't met him before, so there can't be any conflicts of interest. Maybe he just admires you so much that he spoke up for you."
Am I really thinking too much?
Xia Nuan pursed her lips into a straight line, but she always felt that things were not that simple.
The first round of results will be announced a week later.
Xia Nuan successfully entered the top fifteen, but the Korean actress was eliminated.
When Lin Dayong heard the news, he was delighted the entire day: "I knew you could do it, Xiaoxia. That Jin Ruizhi really deserves it. If she hadn't been there mocking you, the assistant director probably wouldn't have heard it, and you might not have been eliminated."
Xia Nuan didn't respond. She still felt something was amiss. Her intuition was always spot on. There must be something wrong here that she wasn't aware of yet.
But even so, this was a Hollywood audition, and she couldn't jump to conclusions based on unfounded guesses in her mind.
The second round of auditions was scheduled for two days later, and the main content was to demonstrate acting skills through situational dialogues.
This time, the staff distributed a very thin booklet to each of the fifteen people present.
"Everyone will receive a different script, so please prepare carefully. This time, each person will have half an hour to audition."
This time, Xia Nuan was the last one to go in.
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