Wei Wei was also sharp, and immediately noticed something was off. He gestured to Jian Yang with a side motion, “Mr. Jian, it’s our honor to have you here. My senior has been waiting for you for a long time.”

Jian Buqing noticed Wei Wei and his expression softened a bit. He turned to Jian Yang and said, “Why are you here? You haven’t been home these past few days, your mom has been worried sick.”

Jian Yang still remembered being grilled at the dinner table at home about why his plan to sell himself didn’t succeed. His mom only cared about whether Jian Buqing had been frightened, saying, “If you’re dead, let me know, I’m going to eat.”

“Don’t embarrass the family, Jian Yang.” Jian Buqing blocked the elevator doors.

Jian Yang, in a hurry to attend the audition, pushed Jian Buqing aside and clapped his hands, “Talking to you is bad luck.”

Jian Buqing, used to being weak, fell to the ground with the momentum. His manager quickly supported him, “Jian Yang! What are you doing to your brother!”

Wei Wei stood in front of Jian Yang, “Mr. Jian, do you need some time to deal with personal matters? I can delay the audition.”

Jian Yang pretended to be calm, “This small matter doesn’t require Director Xu to wait. Let’s go.”

The manager gave a look and handed Wei Wei a business card, “Jian Yang and Buqing are brothers, any argument between them is a family matter. I’m Buqing’s manager, if you need anything, contact me directly in the future.”

“Alright.”

Not wanting to cause trouble, Wei Wei accepted the card and didn’t make things difficult.

It could have ended there, but Jian Buqing wanted to say more negative things about Jian Yang, “Jian Yang, mom and dad have found you a new match. You should come home tonight, don’t make the family worry.”

Wei Wei was disgusted, sending his own brother off to another person’s bed and having the nerve to say it in front of strangers.

Jian Yang calmly replied, “No problem, tell your parents to send a car to Guan Ciyan’s house to pick me up, then I’ll go home.”

“Thrown out already, and you’re acting like this?” Jian Buqing seemed to have something on Jian Yang, “You didn’t trick your way into this audition, did you?”

Jian Yang clapped Wei Wei on the back, “He’s insulting your intelligence, saying you were easily tricked by me.”

Jian Buqing thought Wei Wei was from Director Xu’s side and quickly tried to explain, “I didn’t mean that.”

“So what do you mean?” Jian Yang pretended to ask, “Oh, you mean Director Xu has low intelligence and I tricked him easily?”

“You…” Jian Buqing couldn’t believe it, “Jian Yang, how did you turn out like this?”

“Of course, I was taught well by mom and dad,” Jian Yang said casually.

Unable to gain the upper hand with words, Jian Buqing put on the airs of an older brother, “You’re coming home tonight. Stop learning all this nonsense from outside, change out of your beggar clothes, don’t make mom and dad angry.”

Ding—

The elevator opened.

Uncle Zhang came out, followed by a young man holding a gift box. “Young Master, I came to deliver your clothes.”

Jian Buqing laughed, “Young Master? Which family’s Young Master are you?”

The Jian family only had one “Young Master,” and Jian Yang’s status at home was almost like that of an heir, while outside, he was still puffing himself up.

Uncle Zhang, hearing Jian Buqing’s voice, asked Jian Yang, “Who is this?”

Jian Yang: “The small nerve of a family of small nerves.”

Wei Wei: “Pfft—”

Jian Buqing understood, “Oh… you’ve attached yourself, huh? No wonder you’re the right material. Don’t listen to your parents’ arrangements, you’ll regret it. Don’t think you’ve found a backer just because of a couple of auditions. Come home tonight, your parents have arranged things for you.”

In Jian Buqing’s eyes, Jian Yang was nothing more than fuel for the Jian family’s development, ultimately a tool for marriage or a plaything for some big shot. Any good things he got were just charity from others.

“We’re leaving.” Jian Buqing threw a glance at Jian Yang and arrogantly entered the elevator.

Jian Yang shook his head in frustration and said to Uncle Zhang, “Thanks, Uncle Zhang, but I’m in a hurry for the audition. I’ll change later.”

“Is your outfit alright?” Uncle Zhang was only concerned about Jian Yang’s work and had rushed over.

Jian Yang reassured him that it was fine, then turned around to see Wei Wei with an eager look. He spoke first, “If we don’t go now, we’ll really miss the audition.”

“Alright, business comes first.” Wei Wei quickly led Jian Yang inside.

The elevator sign pointed to the audition room, and they walked down the corridor. At the end of the hall, the door was open and the room was brightly lit. Since the door wasn’t closed, they could hear everything clearly.

“I’ve never seen someone act like a big shot before even debuting, not even doing the audition, just showing up and leaving. What’s going on?”

“Although their temperament is good, they really do look like a rich kid, very fitting for the role.”

Wei Wei and Jian Yang exchanged a glance, both understanding—this was yet another case of someone already being decided for the role.

“Senior.” Wei Wei knocked on the door.

“You’re here, come in.” Director Xu, wearing a hat, had his left foot resting on his right thigh, and the resume in his hand was wrinkled, which he casually threw into the trash.

Jian Yang had put eye drops in this morning, and now his eyes were clear. He saw Jian Buqing’s photo on the resume. He secretly rejoiced—Jian Buqing had been spoiled by the Jian family, showing off outside, thinking he was popular just because others didn’t offend him out of respect for the family.

“Senior, this is Jian Yang, whom I mentioned to you last night.” Wei Wei motioned for Jian Yang to stand forward.

“Take off the contact lenses, let me see your face.” Director Xu said.

The familiar opening…

Jian Yang casually explained, “I’m not wearing colored contacts, this is the natural color of my eyes.”

“Golden pupils?” Director Xu dragged the last syllable, making it unclear whether he was impressed or dissatisfied.

Wei Wei stepped in to smooth things over, “Let’s try the scene first. For a modern drama, the golden pupils won’t break the immersion, in fact, it’s a memorable trait. No one else in the entertainment industry has that.”

Director Xu adjusted his hat, pulled out a script, and said, “Try this one, the most important thing for the role is the feeling.”

“Thank you, Director Xu.” Jian Yang smiled easily. Under the camera, he was in his comfort zone. Compared to the tension outside, he preferred to let his abilities speak for themselves.

“Your smile looks good, fits the character. Go ahead, you have five minutes to prepare.” Director Xu smiled at Jian Yang, and his slightly irritated mood was eased a bit by Jian’s smile. “Props master, prepare the props. Wei Wei, come over here, I want to talk to you for a moment.”

Jian Yang walked to the corner to understand the character. The director must have been discussing Wei Wei’s basic situation, and Jian trusted Wei Wei and believed in his own professional skills.

The script described a story about a rich second-generation who, for fun, pretends to be poor at a regular school, makes friends, then falls out with them after his identity is exposed. Eventually, due to the differences in their social status, they grow distant after graduation.

The scene Jian Yang had was about the rich second-generation’s birthday, inviting friends to a high-end restaurant for dinner. He had to portray both the demeanor of a wealthy person while also pretending to be poor on the surface.

When Wei Wei sent him the audition clip in the morning, Jian had already gotten the feel for it and deliberately wore a torn shirt to fit the poor image.

The props master had quickly set up the “high-end restaurant” scene. Jian Yang observed the sample dishes on the table, thinking about how to convey the feeling of both wealth and poverty in just a few minutes of performance.

This character was perfect for him—he had risen from poverty to become a second-tier star, experiencing both the rich and poor life. However, the protagonist’s wealth wasn’t the small comfort he once had, but the kind of wealth that had been passed down from his grandfather’s generation, without ever lacking money.

So, how would someone that rich eat?

—That would be Guan Ciyan’s way of eating.

Jian Yang remembered how he had eaten with Guan Ciyan, and inspiration suddenly struck him.

“Can we start?” The props master finished setting the scene.

Jian Yang nodded.

Looking around the surroundings, he quietly said, “With this meal, I could have eaten two years’ worth of fried rice outside the school gate, right?”

No one else was acting with him, so Jian Yang continued performing.

He naturally walked to the main seat, sat down, and faced a table of expensive, beautiful dishes. While he exaggerated with his mouth, his eyes observed the “people” at other seats. After a while, he picked up his chopsticks and, among all the rare delicacies, he took a bite of vegetables.

After a couple of bites, he put down his chopsticks and started playing on his phone.

“Click—time’s up.”

The five-minute audition time was over, and Director Xu’s eyes lit up. “Not bad, there’s a lot of room for self-expression, was that all part of your thought process? Wei Wei, did you show him this beforehand?”

“Senior, I haven’t even seen the full script, how could I send it to him?” Wei Wei was speechless. “This is Jian Yang’s strength. He gets into character quickly. He’ll perform even better on set. Wow, this is the first time he’s really shocked me.”

“Hmm, not bad, not bad. He calculated the money when using it, and didn’t care when faced with a feast. He expressed both the lifestyle of the poor and the habits of the rich very well. Well done.” Director Xu praised him endlessly.

Jian Yang didn’t know how to respond. If he asked about it himself, it would seem arrogant. Fortunately, Wei Wei understood and spoke on his behalf. “Senior, let Jian Yang take this role.”

“This…” Director Xu’s expression immediately darkened. “If it were up to me, I would give you the lead today. But you know, the investors have their requirements, I can’t guarantee you the lead role.”

“Director Xu,” Jian Yang spoke up. “Besides the lead, I’ve also looked at the character sketches of the other roles. The protagonist’s friends, who later become doctors, businessmen, and scholars, their backgrounds and personalities are fully fleshed out. This film focuses on the friendship ensemble, and I’m not concerned about being the main perspective to tell the story. I’d be happy to try the other supporting roles.”

Wei Wei shot Jian Yang a look, signaling him to stop talking. If it were just a supporting role, why would he bother going to his senior? With Jian Yang’s abilities, he could surely get supporting roles elsewhere.

Jian Yang was sincere, “Of course, the lead role would be great, but I haven’t had any works yet, and I really need a good story and character to show the audience and investors. So, Director Xu, if you’re satisfied with me, I’d be happy to try other roles as well.”

“This kid,” Director Xu’s expression turned serious. He pointed at Jian Yang and said to Wei Wei, “Why don’t you keep someone like him for yourself?”

“Heh, senior, you know, I’ve got a pile of exaggerated web drama scripts, all low-budget. It’d be amazing if we can finish filming. Jian Yang would just be wasting his talent with me.”

“You’re still the same,” Director Xu said to Wei Wei, then turned to Jian Yang, “I know your capabilities. I can’t guarantee the lead role, but I’ll definitely give you a role in the main cast.”

“Great!” Jian Yang’s eyes lit up with joy. “Then, Director Xu, let’s exchange contact details.”

Jian Yang was so happy, his almond eyes squinted with a smile. Director Xu sighed, “Youth is great, this look is perfect for playing a high school student.”

After thanking him repeatedly, Wei Wei led Jian Yang out. Wei Wei secretly and eagerly whispered to Jian Yang, “Let Guan Dong^[1]Guan dong refers to Guan Ciyan, The use of Guan Dong instead of Guan Ciyan in the text might be a form of informal or shorthand way of referring to the character. It could be a nickname, a casual … Continue reading step in and get you the lead role. If he steps in, all the investments will back off.”

“Why would he step in for me?” Jian Yang politely declined.

“You’re already living at his place. If he won’t do this for you, what’s the point? You can fool him with feelings, but not money,” Wei Wei said seriously.

Zhang Bo’s voice floated from behind, “The young master doesn’t take advantage of others.”

Wei Wei and Jian Yang froze instantly.