Chapter 16.4

In the end, it was Jin Lie who took Su Qian to the audition.

There was a bit of traffic on the road, and they arrived at the Shencheng Theater later than expected. After thanking Jin Lie, Su Qian hurriedly got out of the car and ran into the main entrance.

It wasn’t until her figure disappeared that Jin Lie slowly withdrew his gaze. The car moved forward, and while waiting for the traffic light, he glanced over and saw Su Qian’s phone and personal resume left on the driver’s seat.

Always forgetting things.

The numbers on the traffic light kept changing, Jin Lie hesitated for a few seconds, then turned the steering wheel to change lanes.

…

By the time Su Qian arrived, many people had already finished their auditions and left. There were still a few waiting for their numbers to be called, each of them looking a bit nervous and uneasy.

Relatively speaking, having enough experience gave her a great advantage. Su Qian was very well-prepared, and her grasp and understanding of the role were more than sufficient. Most importantly, her memory was exceptional, and she had memorized the lines for these scenes in a very short time.

Another person finished their audition and came out, their expression not very good, looking like they were about to cry but holding back.

“It’s okay, if this one doesn’t work out, we’ll try others.”

“Easier said than done, where are there so many opportunities for me!”

“There’s nothing we can do about it.” The middle-aged woman looked around and then whispered, “I heard that the role of the second female lead has already been decided. It was given to an artist from Tiansheng Entertainment.”

“Again with this company! They always love to do this kind of thing…”

“Shush, lower your voice, who made them so powerful…”

The voices gradually faded away, but the remaining people were uneasy because of this conversation.

Su Qian looked at the script, not surprised at all in her heart. The boss of Tiansheng Entertainment is Zhou Bingyan, backed by the power of the Zhou family. And Tiansheng is currently promoting Chu Piaopiao, it’s not surprising that she would do this kind of thing.

Coincidentally, the role she was auditioning for today was the second female lead.

“Number 485, number 486, it’s your turn!”

Su Qian closed the script and slowly stood up. Today, she wanted to see if Tiansheng could really beat a predetermined outcome.

There were three judges in the room, two men and one woman. The one in the middle was the director of this movie – Wang Qisheng.

He wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, had a scholarly demeanor, but his gaze when looking at people was as sharp as an eagle’s.

Su Qian first introduced herself, and then began to perform with the co-actor.

“Wait a minute.” Wang Qisheng closed the resume and glanced at them, “Don’t perform according to the script, improvise a scene.”

The actress who was acting with her was taken aback, her fists clenched in nervousness, “Im…improvise?”

“What, can’t you perform?”

“No problem, go ahead with the question.” Su Qian gave her a look.

The female judge consulted with Wang Qisheng for a moment, pointed to a scene in the script and said, “Perform this scene. A was framed and thought it was done by B. The two were originally best friends, but because of this misunderstanding, they had a falling out and completely broke up.”

“You have five minutes to discuss.” Wang Qisheng said.

Number 485 hadn’t come out of her nervousness yet, but Su Qian had already thought about the development of the plot.

Su Qian: “Which one do you want to play?”

“What?”

She patiently repeated, “A and B, which one do you want to play?”

Number 485 paused slightly, “B… no, no, no, A is better…”

Su Qian made a decisive decision, “Okay, then I’ll play B. Although it’s improvisation, no matter how you perform, you can’t deviate from the character setting. You start like this…”

Five minutes passed quickly.

The female judge knocked on the table, and signalled them to start.

Number 485 took a deep breath, turned around, and looked straight at Su Qian.

Su Qian gave her a look without changing her expression, then in a second, she got into character, putting on a face of disbelief and grievance.

The speed of her facial change made number 485’s heart tremble, and she was quickly drawn into the scene by Su Qian’s eyes, “From now on, I will never believe any word you say!”

As soon as the words fell, a slap landed on Su Qian’s face.

.

Jin Lie parked the car and walked into the theater, just in time to catch the end of Su Qian’s audition.

He stood at the door of the room, waiting for people to come out, thinking about returning the phone and blaming her carelessness. But when Su Qian came out, he saw the fresh red palm print on her face, and his eyes immediately turned cold.

“Why are you back?” Su Qian asked in surprise.

“Your phone.” Jin Lie handed her the phone, and pointed his chin, “What happened to your face?”

“Oh, it’s for work.”

Su Qian was facing away from the inside and didn’t notice that the expressions of the three judges changed when they saw Jin Lie.

Jin Lie’s gaze passed through the venue and coldly landed on them. However, the corner of his mouth hooked up in an obscure way, “Isn’t acting all fake? How come it became real hitting with you?”

“That’s how it’s real.”

Although the slap hurt, looking at the reactions of the judges, she knew it was worth it. She had acted in so many plays, and just by looking at the director’s eyes, she knew whether he was satisfied or not.

Just now, although Wang Qisheng’s expression was calm, there was still surprise and admiration in his eyes.

Jin Lie withdrew his gaze and deliberately asked, “So, how did it go?”

“I don’t know, do your best and leave the rest to fate.”

“You’re so easygoing?”

Su Qian’s eyes moved slightly, and she whispered, “I heard that this role has been predetermined.”

…

The door slowly closed, and the three judges were silent for a few seconds.

“Was that Jin Lie just now?” The male judge muttered quietly, “Jin’s is the biggest investor…”

The female judge glanced at Wang Qisheng and couldn’t help but remind, “When has Director Wang ever cared about such useless things when casting?”

Even if someone begged for a predetermined role, he never agreed outright. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be today’s audition.

In fact, even if he hadn’t seen this scene, he would have suggested giving this role to Su Qian. In terms of appearance, she was the most suitable among hundreds of people. Speaking of acting skills, the short five minutes just now had already given him a deep understanding.

Young actors are not without those who seriously hone their acting skills, it’s just that too few of them get noticed. And Su Qian, she definitely has talent and is willing to work hard. That loud slap just now, it sounded painful.

In the silence, the phone on Wang Qisheng’s desk rang. The name “President Zhou” prominently appeared on the screen.

A dozen seconds later, Wang Qisheng seemed to have made up his mind—

He hung up the phone decisively.

—

Su Qian went to the restroom to touch up her makeup. After seeing her face in the mirror, she puffed out her cheeks. The red mark was clearly visible, and it looked a bit miserable. To be honest, that woman’s hand was really strong, and her face was still a bit numb.

Su Qian used foundation to cover the mark, then applied some lipstick. The woman’s face in the mirror was once again flawless.

Walking into the lobby, Jin Lie was surprisingly still there. Of course, Su Qian wouldn’t flatter herself by thinking he was waiting for her.

“I thought you had already left.”

“I just took a call, and I’m about to leave now.”

The two walked out shoulder to shoulder, and the scorching sun made Su Qian frown, “Are you going home?”

Jin Lie raised his eyebrow slightly, “Still want to hitch a ride?”

“Just asking.” Of course, it would be great if she could hitch a ride, the sun was so strong and her skin was very delicate.

Jin Lie had noticed from a long time ago that this woman was particularly good at giving herself a way out. To put it bluntly, she was insincere.

He curled the corner of his mouth lightly, and raised his hand to hail a taxi for her, “I have something to do at the company, I need to go back.”

“It doesn’t matter, any car is the same.” Su Qian didn’t think much, she just gratefully straightened his crooked tie for him, then swiftly got into the car.

Her graceful side face was faintly visible through the glass window, and the rich peach scent from her seemed to have not dissipated yet.

Jin Lie raised his hand to adjust his tie, then turned and got into his car.

Just as he sat in the driver’s seat, Zhong Ning called. There was a meeting in twenty minutes, and he dutifully reminded his boss not to forget.

Before hanging up the phone, Jin Lie suddenly remembered something, “Has the role for the movie we recently invested in been predetermined?”

Zhong Ning was taken aback by the question. He knew about the project, but he hadn’t paid attention to the casting issue. These kinds of things are usually handled by the lower levels, and they generally don’t interfere unless there are special circumstances.

“I’ll ask right away.” Zhong Ning sensed something and cautiously asked, “Mr. Jin, where are you now? There’s a meeting in twenty minutes.”

“I’m at Shencheng Theater, delay it by half an hour.”

“Okay, got it.”

After hanging up the phone, Zhong Ning quickly checked. Sure enough, there was an audition at the theater today. And why would Jin Lie be there in good health, the answer was already very clear.

All sudden changes have an unexpected reason. And the lady, probably is Mr. Jin’s surprise.

Seeing through everything, Zhong Ning immediately contacted the project manager. The predetermined role doesn’t need to be thought about, just wait to be passed!

—