I Became Famous in the Entertainment Industry with High Martial Arts Skills - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: Taking the Second Lead

Perhaps, this young man really could bring her some surprises.

Ming Yang lifted her chin slightly, handing her business card to Xie Ci with a touch of arrogance.

“My professional contact information is on there.”

The black gold-embossed card contained only a concise name and contact info.

When Xie Ci reached out to take the card, his oversized suit jacket threatened to slide off with the movement, but Ji Xiuheng, standing beside him, reached out to steady it.

“Thank you both for giving me this opportunity. I will prepare thoroughly,” Xie Ci said with a firm tone.

He would seize every chance he got.

On the way back, Zhou Mo continued his role as the driver, his face behind the glasses looking somewhat dull.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Mo Li held that gold-embossed card, turning it over and over to look at it repeatedly.

“Xiao Xie, can we really go to Director Ming’s crew for an audition?”

Mo Li leaned back, asking somewhat nervously.

A week before Xie Ci wrapped, Mo Li had used the connections he gathered from the Diving Abyss crew to attend many gatherings, all to secure a suitable audition for Xie Ci.

Unexpectedly, in just a few short hours, Xie Ci had obtained the business card of Director Ming Yang, who had been winning awards consecutively in recent years.

Xie Ci leaned forward, speaking in a relaxed posture: “The time is set, exactly three days from now.”

“That’s great!” Mo Li couldn’t help but let out a cheer.

During this period, he had been running favors everywhere looking for auditions, feeling a mountain of pressure on his shoulders.

In the circle, good scripts are always a case of many wolves and little meat; successfully participating in a finely crafted drama is no easy task for a newcomer like Xie Ci.

Mo Li had run until his legs grew thin without finding a suitable opportunity.

“The role Director Ming wants you to audition for should be the second male lead. The originally scheduled actor had specifically trained with martial arts masters for a year,” Ji Xiuheng spoke up at the right time. “This role suits you well; seize it.”

He didn’t mention that he had also invested in this drama, only smiling to encourage the youth beside him.

Xie Ci was still a bit nervous, but hearing Ji Xiuheng’s words, he felt a strange sense of reassurance.

He smiled: “I will, Brother Ji.”

As soon as they got home, Mo Li excitedly shared the information he had gathered with Xie Ci.

“I was too embarrassed to be too excited while Movie King Ji was there, otherwise I’d look like such a country bumpkin.”

Mo Li was now like a fish in water, his steps much lighter.

“I asked Xiao Yun; her friend is doing promotion in Director Ming’s crew,” Mo Li said. “I heard that Director Ming’s costume political drama is intended for awards and will air during the golden time slot on Mango TV!”

Infected by his mood, Xie Ci thought of Ming Yang’s scrutinizing and doubtful gaze at the banquet, as well as Ji Xiuheng’s words of trust in the car, and a hint of competitiveness ignited in his heart.

A sudden burst of rain woke Xie Ci from his sleep. His body under his pajamas was still somewhat thin, yet it already showed a burgeoning vitality.

He stood up and went to the window to close the half-open pane he had left before bed. A few drops of rain hit Xie Ci’s face with the wind, making him shiver from the cold.

With a soft “thud,” the window upstairs closed.

Ji Xiuheng stood by the floor-to-ceiling window in his bedroom, a few strands of hair falling over his brow, making his usually mature and heroic face look a bit more languid.

A small patch of the floor was dampened by a few raindrops. The sound of the cold wind and heavy rain outside seeped in, along with that subtle sound of a closing window from upstairs, attaching themselves to the dark wood floor.

Han River Crossing was directed by the famous director Ming Yang, who held multiple hit dramas under her belt. The male lead was Li Zhaobai, who won the Best Newcomer award last year, and the female lead was played by the rising starlet Su Wu; the hype was not to be underestimated.

Therefore, this costume political drama had been under intense public scrutiny even before filming started.

Ming Yang had specifically signed contracts with several lead actors, requiring them to undergo training before filming to ensure the quality of the production.

However, with only half a month until the start of filming, the originally scheduled second male and female leads had both packed up and left. Thus, Ming Yang had to start new auditions urgently, forced to lower her original casting standards.

On the day of the audition, Mo Li put a hat on Xie Ci’s head, covering more than half of his face.

“We have to prepare for the possibility of exploding in popularity, preventing people from recognizing you ahead of time,” Mo Li muttered while picking out hats.

Currently auditioning was the Group for the second female lead. The character was a seductive and indulgent royal princess. The dozen or so actresses at the scene had clearly done their homework, putting a lot of effort into their makeup.

The audition room doors opened, and the actresses adjusted their states, filing in with their audition scripts in hand.

The audition room was well-insulated; not a sound leaked out.

An hour and a half later, the auditions for that group ended.

Some looked confident, while others hung their heads with red, swollen eyes; joy for some and sorrow for others.

“Next group.” The staff waved their hands, signaling the dozen or so male actors waiting outside for a long time to enter for their auditions.

Xie Ci took off his hat, holding the audition script with his memorized lines, and entered the audition room with the others.

The few people closest to him looked up, startled to find they had overlooked such a strong competitor, and the tension in their hearts grew even tighter.

“That group just now was okay…”

“Let’s see more.” Ming Yang was still a bit dissatisfied, always feeling that the actresses auditioning for the second female lead couldn’t reach the feeling she wanted.

Letting out a sigh, Ming Yang flipped through the script, her eyelids half-raised as she looked at the group entering.

Seeing the director turn her gaze toward them, the male actors auditioning instinctively stood tall, striving to show their most perfect side.

They had all heard the news that the second male lead of Han River Crossing was being re-cast and had been selected through an initial screening. Knowing the other actors in the room were competitors, the atmosphere was tense.

Han River Crossing was a standard costume drama based on a script by Song Ling, who was extremely skilled at political dramas.

At the beginning of script planning, Chief Director Ming Yang had set the tone: the main plot of court struggles would unfold from the male lead’s perspective, combined with the various aspects of civilian life from the female lead’s perspective tense and tightly interlinked.

What netizens anticipated most was that this drama, like Ming Yang’s previous ones, would be “filmed and aired simultaneously.” The director and scriptwriter held absolute authority, able to adjust subsequent plots in real-time based on audience feedback, allowing viewers a greater sense of participation.

Coupled with the cast itself, Han River Crossing had surpassed five million reservations on online platforms before even airing.

There was only one character in the audition script: the second male lead, Wan Yuya.

This character goes from servant to enemy of the male lead. In the early stage, he is a simple, timid, and neglected illegitimate son of an official, who saves the male lead disguised as a famine victim even at the cost of being scolded by his father. However, in the later stage, he becomes extremely hostile toward the male lead due to the destruction of his family. The drama of the two fighting in court for their respective masters is a major highlight of Han River Crossing.

The audition fragment was the key scene of the second lead’s “blackening.” From a young master raised in a secluded manor to a prisoner, Wan Yuya joins the camp of the villainous Sixth Prince after watching his only servant die to save him.

Xie Ci’s audition slot was in the middle. He stood below the stage, seriously watching the others perform.

The actor on stage was considered a third-tier star who had played supporting roles in many hit dramas over the last two years. The expression on his face changed, and following the movements of the acting partner, he stumbled back a few steps.

“You, how could you do this!” His tone was indignant, but his voice carried an irrepressible cowardice.

Ming Yang was drawn by this person’s vocal performance, showing a bit of interest, and made several marks on the evaluation form.

The acting partner moved roughly. Seeing this, he stepped forward a few paces, wanting to teach this young master—who couldn’t figure out his status a lesson, but it looked as if he had been pushed by someone, and he then angrily raised a knife to strike.

In the script fragment, the person killed here is the second lead’s childhood servant. The two have deep feelings, and this part requires expressing intense, multilayered emotions from shock to fear to regret; it is the emotional highlight of this scene.

The actor on stage looked stunned, his lips trembling incessantly, “You… you actually dare to kill!”

With that, his gaze turned angry, and he rose to lunge forward, only to be pushed down by the acting partner, two lines of tears falling from his eyes.

Shen Fang let out a soft “tsk,” saying with some regret: “The movements are a bit stiff, though the lines and acting are decent. Keep him as a backup.”

Although it was slightly imperfect, compared to the previous ones, the performance was already quite delicate.

Beside her, Ming Yang nodded, agreeing with her friend’s assessment, and gave a score of 7.5 in her notebook.

Compared to the string of low scores above, this was already a standout.

Soon, it was Xie Ci’s turn to go on stage.

Before performing, Xie Ci spoke in a low voice to the acting partner: “Teacher, when you push me later, please use force; try to be as realistic as possible.”

The other person gave him a surprised look.

He had seen people ask him to move lighter, but this was the first time he’d seen someone ask him to hit harder.

Out of professional ethics, he agreed, and he couldn’t help but feel a bit more curious about the excessively handsome actor before him.

Xie Ci stood steady on the stage. On the empty audition stage, the entire performance space belonged to him.

“Start!” Ming Yang said.

Xie Ci’s eyelids were lowered. When he raised his eyes again, they were completely replaced by trembling alarm.

The acting partner used force, giving Xie Ci a heavy push on the shoulder.

With a “thud,” Xie Ci fell like a snowflake, landing hard on the cold floor.

The acting partner: !

Ming Yang, below the stage, remained calm. Watching Xie Ci’s calf tremble slightly from fear, her brows showed some satisfaction.

Xie Ci timidly raised half of his face, his voice weak in resistance: “You, how could you do this!”

A beauty humiliated—this scene on stage instantly caught the attention of everyone present, who couldn’t help but be drawn in by Xie Ci’s emotions and lines.

The acting partner also snapped into it. Holding the prop broadsword, he swung it down heavily as before. Xie Ci, unable to stand because of weak legs, looked on with eyes nearly splitting. He crawled wretchedly on the ground, wanting to get close to the servant whose life was gradually fading.

Between the movements, Xie Ci’s eyes were already brimmed with tears. His dark pupils looked as if they were soaked in water, causing the hearts of the judges below to tighten.

He propped up half his body, and after a few hesitations, he resolutely tried to lunge forward to embrace the servant’s corpse.

The tears were hanging by a thread, yet they never fell.

Xie Ci’s tone trembled, clearly in a fit of rage: “You!”

He paused for a moment, saying through gritted teeth: “You actually dare to kill.” With that, he struggled to rise, wanting to avenge his servant, but because he lacked the strength to even truss a chicken, he was pushed down heavily again.

“Patter.”

That large tear hanging from his lashes hit the ground. When he raised his eyes again, they were stained with a blood-like hatred.

Even though he knew it was just acting, the partner was startled and took a long time to react, his heart thumping wildly.

Xie Ci stood up. “Thank you all for your cooperation. My performance is finished.”

The people below had yet to emerge from the performance just now, but Ming Yang, in the jury, was already full of satisfaction. She settled it with a final word: “Very good! A very precise performance.”

She stood up, walked to the edge of the audition stage, and scanned Xie Ci up and down with satisfaction. “Do you know how to ride a horse?”

The area around Xie Ci’s eyes was pink, his tears not yet dry. Hearing the director’s question, he nodded and answered: “Yes, I’ve ridden before.”

As he answered, half a tear slid down with the blink of his eyes, accentuating his bright dark pupils.

The smile on Ming Yang’s face grew even wider. “Let’s end the audition here. Xie Ci, follow me to try a horseback riding scene.”

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