“Ou Yan, make yourself clear. What do you mean by ‘substitute’?”

Ou Yan glanced at Lu Youze and mocked, “Why should I explain? I’m not President Gu. I don’t have to cater to you in everything.”

“Mr. Lu,” Yuan An interjected, afraid that the two would start arguing. Having worked in this industry for so long, he knew a bit about their personal grudges. “Didn’t Mr. Gu tell you?”

“Tell me what?” Lu Youze asked again.

He had already guessed the answer—he just wanted to confirm it.

“How enviable,” Ou Yan sneered sarcastically. “Our esteemed Best Actor Lu once kept a golden canary. After being betrayed by the canary, he now finds himself as President Gu’s pet, locked in a gilded cage.”

With that, he turned around and walked away, his exit flamboyant and carefree.

Ou Yan really had a sharp tongue, just as ruthless as the original Lu Youze. Neither was much better than the other. Fortunately, Lu Youze wasn’t the real one, so he wasn’t affected.

“Director Yuan, don’t mind him. Please continue,” Lu Youze said with an impassive expression, looking at Yuan An.

Yuan An wiped away non-existent sweat from his forehead, feeling a bit impressed by Lu Youze.

“On the first day I joined the crew, President Gu specifically instructed me that all of your action scenes would be performed by a stunt double.”

As expected. He had already guessed it when Ou Yan mentioned it.

Lu Youze was genuinely furious. He had thought that after they got together, Gu Xuanzhe would have a clear understanding of his personality by now. He never needed this kind of “special treatment” when it came to work. Instead of making him feel “cared for,” this arrangement felt like an insult to his professionalism.

“Director Yuan,” Lu Youze suppressed his anger and smiled at Yuan An, “Has my stunt double arrived?”

“He’s already here.” Yuan An pointed to a young man practicing not far away. “That’s him—his name is An Xin, easy to remember. He’s a hardworking guy. Even on days without action scenes, he’d come early to discuss moves with me and watch you act.”

Lu Youze followed Yuan An’s gaze. An Xin had a similar height and build to him. From the back, they even looked about seventy to eighty percent alike.

“I’ll go talk to him.” Lu Youze said and walked toward An Xin.

An Xin was still struggling with how to make his moves look the coolest. He swung his prop sword repeatedly, unsatisfied with each attempt. He was so focused that he didn’t notice someone approaching.

He was too immersed in his practice. His sword nearly stabbed Lu Youze in the eye. Even though it was just a prop, it would still be dangerous if it hit him.

“So—sorry!” An Xin quickly retracted his sword. His facial features were somewhat similar to Lu Youze’s, and he looked flustered. “I didn’t do it on purpose! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” Seeing the other person on the verge of tears, Lu Youze felt like the villain instead. He stepped closer and patted An Xin’s shoulder to reassure him. “You don’t have to be so nervous.”

An Xin looked even more nervous now, fidgeting with his clothes, his whole posture uneasy.

Lu Youze felt a little hurt. Did he look that intimidating? But seeing how seriously An Xin had been preparing, he hesitated on how to bring up the matter.

After all, one sentence from him would make all of An Xin’s efforts over the past days go to waste.

“An Xin, I want to discuss something with you.” Lu Youze looked at him seriously. For the sake of the show’s overall quality, he decided to be the bad guy. “President Gu seems to have misunderstood me. I don’t need a stunt double.”

“Mr. Lu, are you dissatisfied with me?” An Xin’s eyes welled up with tears. Despite his tall build, he was surprisingly expressive and, evidently, a bit of a crybaby. “If there’s something I didn’t do well, please tell me. I promise I’ll do better next time!”

“You’ve misunderstood. It’s not like that.” Lu Youze had a soft spot for hardworking people and didn’t want An Xin to feel disheartened. “Your moves just now were really impressive—better than I could do. But you should know how many action scenes I have as the lead actor. If every action scene is performed by a double while I just show my face and pose, it would be disrespectful to the audience. Excessive editing would ruin a good drama and waste the hard work of the entire crew.”

An Xin lowered his head and murmured, feeling wronged, “But… this is our job.”

“An Xin, don’t take it the wrong way.” Lu Youze patted his head gently, smiling. “You guys are incredibly skilled and work really hard. Many actors rely on you because they physically can’t do the stunts themselves. The success of a show wouldn’t be possible without your contributions.”

“Then…” An Xin looked at him expectantly.

“But at the moment, I can still handle these stunts myself.” Lu Youze glanced at An Xin. The guy had been diligently working, yet because of his own insistence, he was about to lose this opportunity. Lu Youze felt the need to make it up to him. “As an apology, I’ll grant you a small request within my abilities.”

“Really?” An Xin’s eyes lit up, his voice full of excitement.

“Yeah.” Lu Youze nodded.

“Then, Mr. Lu, can I take a photo with you?” An Xin scratched his face shyly. “And… could you sign it? I’m actually a fan of yours! When people say I look like you, I feel so happy. I want to become an actor like you—someone who brings every character to life.”

Talking about his idol and dreams, An Xin’s face shone with youthful enthusiasm and hope for the future. Seeing him like this, Lu Youze couldn’t help but recall his own younger self—seventeen or eighteen, full of passion, believing that hard work would bring success, dreaming of becoming a lead actor and using his performances to move audiences.

“Then why did you choose to be a stunt double instead of an actor?” Lu Youze asked curiously.

“I didn’t get into film school,” An Xin admitted, looking a little embarrassed. “But I haven’t given up! At first, I worked as an extra—playing corpses, beggars, that sort of thing. Later, I met some people who told me to try auditioning. I went to a few auditions, but they all said I lacked experience. One time, a director actually picked me, but then the producer pushed in someone else at the last minute for the role I had auditioned for.

“Eventually, a friend suggested that since I somewhat resemble you, I should try stunt work. That way, I could get closer to the industry and maybe meet the right people.”

An Xin must have been bottling up these frustrations for a long time. He rambled on without realizing it, only to suddenly stop when he noticed he had been venting in front of his idol.

“Mr. Lu, s-sorry.” An Xin quickly apologized out of habit. “I didn’t mean to burden you with all this. I just…”

“It’s nothing.” Lu Youze stood there, appearing to An Xin like a glowing figure. “I’m really happy that you can tell me these things. It proves that I am still someone worthy of trust.”

An Xin stared blankly at Lu Youze, feeling that he was different from the rumors. As a stunt double, he had been on many sets and had heard countless actors and crew members talk about Lu Youze, mostly describing him as arrogant, rude, and reckless—extremely difficult to get along with. To these people, Lu Youze had nothing going for him besides his acting skills.

An Xin didn’t believe these rumors. He thought that someone capable of portraying every role so vividly couldn’t be as bad as they said.

Although his physique closely resembled Lu Youze’s, this was actually the first time he had the opportunity to be his stunt double, and also the first time he was able to interact so closely with his idol.

The rumors were clearly misleading. Mr. Lu was obviously a kind and serious man when it came to his work.

“Mr. Lu, you’re the best.” An Xin blurted out emotionally, and the moment he finished speaking, his face flushed bright red. Oh no—he had accidentally spoken his true thoughts out loud. It seemed like he kept embarrassing himself in front of his idol.

Caught off guard by the sudden compliment, Lu Youze was momentarily stunned before he let out a soft chuckle.

Though An Xin bore some resemblance to him in appearance, their personalities were completely different. At that age, Lu Youze had already been a seasoned veteran in the industry, while An Xin’s straightforward and sincere nature made it easy for him to make friends. However, in the entertainment industry, such a personality could easily lead to being taken advantage of. Fortunately, An Xin had encountered him.

What could he say? He wasn’t exactly a saint, but this kid struck a chord with him, and he also felt somewhat guilty toward him. Giving him a hand was just something he did along the way.

In the end, whether An Xin could make it in this industry would depend on himself.

“An Xin, I really don’t need a stunt double for now.” Lu Youze patted him on the shoulder. “But there’s still a role in the production that hasn’t been cast yet. Would you like to give it a try? Don’t worry—Director Wu isn’t like those directors you’ve worked with before. As long as you have the ability, he will take you in.”

“Can I?” An Xin lacked confidence. “It’s rare for you to think so highly of me, Mr. Lu. I’m afraid I’ll embarrass you.”

“What’s there to be afraid of?” Lu Youze gave him a firm pat on the back. “Every big star has failed multiple times before making it. Even I didn’t succeed on my first audition. Just go for it. If you don’t get the role, you can stay with the crew and observe. This production has many experienced actors—you’ll definitely learn a lot.”

“Thank you, Mr. Lu.” An Xin looked at Lu Youze gratefully. He felt that this conversation would become one of the most important moments of his life. He would take these words as a guiding principle, motivating himself no matter how many times he failed in the future.

“Alright, I have to get back to work. Don’t worry about the details—I’ll make arrangements, and you’ll be informed when it’s time for the audition.”

“Then, Mr. Lu, if you have any questions about action scenes, feel free to ask me anytime,” An Xin said, but then felt like he was being arrogant. With Coach Yuan around, how could it be his turn to advise? Not to mention, Mr. Lu was so outstanding—he excelled in everything he did. “Ah, sorry, sorry, forget I said that.”

“An Xin, you should be more confident.” Lu Youze said, “When it comes to action scenes, you’re more skilled than I am. I’ll definitely need your guidance in the future.”

“Then I’ll be leaving now.”

Since today’s filming mainly consisted of night scenes, the shoot would take place in the evening. Gu Xuanze had some urgent matters to handle at his company, so he used the time before filming to take care of them. Although Lu Youze really wanted to have a proper conversation with Gu Xuanze, he could only wait until after filming.

Besides, he had something more important to do right now.

“Coach Yuan.” Lu Youze walked over to Yuan An with the script in hand, pointing to a scene he had marked with a red oil-based pen. “Could you demonstrate the martial arts moves for this action sequence tonight?”

“But didn’t Mr. Gu say to use a stunt double?” Yuan An hesitated. “Mr. Lu, these moves are a bit complex. You’ll be filming tonight—are you sure there’s enough time to learn them?”

“I can do it!” Lu Youze spoke confidently, his presence already overpowering the other party. “Just teach me—I’ll take full responsibility for the outcome.”

This must be the aura of a true superstar. Yuan An relented. The action sequence he had choreographed was complicated but not so dangerous that a stunt double was necessary. Mr. Gu was just being overly cautious.

Finding an open space, Yuan An carefully demonstrated the entire sequence.

“Mr. Lu, have you memorized it? Do you need me to go through it again?”

“No need.” Lu Youze’s success was a result of both talent and hard work. He had already memorized the entire sequence after just one demonstration. He smiled at Yuan An. “Coach Yuan, thank you! You can get back to work—I’ll practice on my own. If I need help, I’ll call you.”

“Alright then.”

After Yuan An left, Lu Youze began practicing the moves over and over. He quickly memorized all the movements and could execute them effortlessly.

Not far away, Ou Yan was lounging comfortably on a rattan chair, wearing sunglasses and memorizing lines. Every now and then, he glanced toward Lu Youze, a perplexed expression appearing on his seductive face.