Chapter 13: Audition

In the end, Tang Qu had no choice but to resort to the most common solution for meals—ordering takeout.

Tang Qu ordered a bowl of wontons and, while eating, opened the materials Zhang Yong had given him to review.

He liked to prepare in advance. Although he knew the role he was auditioning for wasn’t a major one, he still felt it was necessary to thoroughly understand the ins and outs of the production team.

First, he looked into Director Chen’s background. Director Chen specialized in TV dramas and had never directed a movie, but his dramas were always hits. Competing dramas dreaded going head-to-head with his works. Moreover, Director Chen didn’t care about an actor’s seniority. Tang Qu noticed that many of Director Chen’s dramas featured newcomers, yet the shows remained highly popular. This was the mark of a truly talented director.

Tang Qu was looking forward to collaborating with such a director. The success of a drama depended equally on the actors and the director.

After familiarizing himself with Director Chen, Tang Qu began reading the script.

The role he was auditioning for was that of a master, a true Immortal Exiled from Heaven. The script described the Pure Profound Venerable as someone untainted by worldly desires, detached from mortal concerns, and untouched by the mundane. Yet, this very person fell into demonhood to protect his disciple, ultimately meeting his demise around the midpoint of the story. The disciple, who was the protagonist, embarked on a path to dominance after his master’s death.

However, as Tang Qu carefully studied the script, he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. It seemed to him that the relationship between the Pure Profound Venerable and his disciple wasn’t just that of a master and student.

After revisiting the script, Tang Qu became increasingly convinced that the Pure Profound Venerable was more like the disciple’s unattainable ideal—a white moonlight! But wasn’t this supposed to be a serious romance drama? There was indeed a female lead later in the story.

Tang Qu wasn’t unfamiliar with such plot devices—they were often used to grab attention—but the way it was handled in this script felt overly explicit!

Tang Qu spent half the night thoroughly reading the script and gained a general understanding of it.

Once he grasped the emotional tone of the script, Tang Qu felt confident.

The audition was in five days. To ensure Tang Qu could rest well, Zhang Yong gave Li Xin some time off, and Tang Qu didn’t have to attend classes recently.

In the past, Tang Qu had rarely gone out due to his identity. Although few people recognized him now, he had already developed a habit of staying at home. During these five days, he hardly went out, instead catching up on movies and other media from this world. Tang Qu noticed that the world he was in now differed significantly from his own—it felt like a parallel universe.

During this time, he also received a report card with straight A’s. Tang Qu’s academic performance was outstanding.

People naturally have a soft spot for high-achieving students. As Tang Qu looked at the report card, his heart ached even more for the original owner of this body. Summer vacation was approaching, yet there hadn’t been a single call from home. Even for an adopted child, such neglect was unacceptable, especially when the child was so exceptional.

The one-bedroom apartment showed no trace of family. The only photo in the room was a solo picture of Tang Qu from his teenage years—delicate and adorable, yet even then, a hint of melancholy lingered between his brows.

As for why Tang Qu kept that photo, he knew from his memory that it was taken when he went to have his younger brother photographed. The photographer took a picture of him as well, and Tang Qu thought it was specifically taken for him, so he treasured it dearly. However, from Tang Qu’s perspective, it was clearly just a casual shot. This also showed how much Tang Qu yearned for familial affection.

The more he thought about it, the more Tang Qu’s heart ached. He had grown accustomed to the fickleness of human relationships, but the original owner of this body was just a child—an orphan who had finally thought he had found a family, only to become an outsider again in the blink of an eye. He reached out and gently touched the photo.

“I don’t know if you can still sense this, but it’s okay. From now on, I’ll be your family. We’ll be the closest of kin.”

Five days later, Zhang Yong came to pick him up for the audition.

Seeing Tang Qu’s clean and fresh appearance, Zhang Yong’s eyes lit up: “You look very different today.”

Tang Qu flashed a sunny smile: “I’m going for an audition today, so I need to look spirited.”

Zhang Yong nodded: “That’s the right attitude. Young people should be full of vitality. Let’s go!”

When they arrived at the audition site, Tang Qu noticed there weren’t many people there.

He whispered, “Are there so few people auditioning?”

“This audition is only for the role of Qing Xuan. According to insider information, many big companies have their eyes on this role and have submitted profiles of numerous candidates, but Director Chen has filtered them out, leaving only a few. That guy over there is a current trending star. He just had a drama air a couple of days ago and gained a lot of fans, but even he has to wait here for his turn. And that other guy has played the male lead in a few dramas, but he’s still very serious about auditioning for Director Chen’s project.”

Tang Qu glanced over and indeed, they seemed different from the usual newcomers.

“What about the others?”

“The rest are all newcomers like you, but they definitely won’t pose a threat to you.” His artist had been learning from Old Zhang for so long; if he couldn’t outperform these people, then all that training would have been for nothing.

“Brother Yong, are you that confident in me?”

Brother Yong raised an eyebrow: “Of course. If I’m not confident in my own artist, who else should I be confident in?”

The audition wasn’t conducted one by one; instead, everyone was in the room together, taking turns to perform.

“Relax. If we pass, great. If not, it’s okay. We’ll have other opportunities.” Worried that Tang Qu might be nervous, Zhang Yong specifically reminded him before he went in.

Tang Qu wasn’t particularly nervous, but he noticed that Zhang Yong seemed quite tense.

After Tang Qu entered, Zhang Yong wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead. This wasn’t his first time bringing an artist to an audition, so why was he so nervous this time?

Once inside, Tang Qu was surprised to see that Director Chen himself was present for the audition of just a supporting role. Tang Qu found a spot at the side and stood there, waiting to be called.

What Tang Qu didn’t notice was that Director Chen had already silently taken notice of him when he entered.

The order of the audition was also carefully arranged. Newcomers were randomly selected, while the two with a fanbase were placed at the end—partly because they were confident in their acting skills and didn’t need to compete with a bunch of newcomers, and partly to avoid demoralizing the newcomers too much. This was an unspoken rule.

Tang Qu still had some expectations for the newcomers. He wanted to understand the level of actors in this world, so naturally, he couldn’t just focus on the very best.

However, Tang Qu was a bit disappointed. Whether it was due to nervousness or something else, these new actors either forgot their lines or looked awkward. Tang Qu shook his head inwardly; they clearly lacked experience.

Director Chen also looked grim. Even when he usually worked with newcomers, their acting was passable, but looking at today’s group, they were truly nothing more than pretty faces!

“Next, Tang Qu.”