Chapter 9.2
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Translated by Eve
Edited by Juurensha, Sora, Serefina
Eve: Hey! Before we start, I want to announce a little side project I’ve been working on. I’ve translated the Wulin Alliance’s Private Records Audio Drama. It’s an 18+ smutty BL audio drama and if you’re interested, here is ep 1. The next 3 and the extra will be coming soon~ EllaBells edited this ep, Elestrea subbed it and Meli uploaded it! Here’s the character info sheet as well to get to know the characters. And the spoiler thread!
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The result of tossing around all night with thoughts whirling around in his mind was that he was nearly unable to get out of bed on the dawn of the second day.
Sui Yuan covered his head while 5237 responsibly acted as an alarm to urge him to wake up. Sui Yuan shot it an especially bitter glance, “This is the first time I’ve noticed that your voice is really annoying.”
“Even if it’s annoying, you still have to quickly get out of bed! Today, there’s a plot-related event happening. You definitely cannot waste time, do you understand?!” 5237 made a face like that of an evil stepmother—Yesterday, Sui Yuan had tossed and turned restlessly in bed until late and was unable to sleep because of Zhao Xihe. It had already endured for a long time!
Sui Yuan got dressed rapidly with a bitter expression. He tidied up his appearance and attempted to put on some light makeup in the passing, as was the habit of his character—-as a man who was touching makeup for the first time, Sui Yuan was simply really curious. It was just unfortunate that he wasn’t too skilled at it. So that he wouldn’t ruin his beautiful appearance, he had no choice but to temporarily begrudgingly abandon that idea. This could be considered a big failure while playing a role.
As a popular instrumentalist, although his voice was important, his visuals were more important.You could be a mediocre singer, but your face had to look good. This had practically become the unanimously agreed upon convention amongst today’s music circle. And Li Kun, Sui Yuan’s role, was basically this kind of singer, who had a mediocre singing ability but a very pretty face.
Li Kun was baby-faced. When he looked at you with wide eyes, his childlike cuteness made people tremble. Furthermore, Sui Yuan’s character matched his outer appearance, so it made him appear even more pure and innocent, as if he was a prince who had walked out from an ivory tower.
Sui Yuan tugged at his soft bangs and examined the face in the mirror for what seemed like more than half the day. No matter how he looked at it, the face didn’t look like a bad character. He couldn’t help but narrow his eyes and put on a cold smile.
“...You’ve OOC-ed. Quickly change your expression back!” 5237 turned its head away, as if it couldn’t bear to look.
Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.
“...I feel that I only look like a villain if I do this...” Sui Yuan said innocently.
“Idiot! A villain is a villain, a bad character is a bad character, don’t confuse the two!” 5237 felt a bit resentful that Sui Yuan was failing to meet his expectations, “You are currently the white lotus mistress that has squeezed his way into their relationship, not the fierce and vicious BOSS who will destroy the world. There’s a big difference, you know!”
“...White lotus?” Sui Yuan only kind of understood.
“That’s right! A white lotus!” 5237 affirmed, “No matter if it’s a BG world or a BL world, there are always many white lotus roles. They appear pure and honest, just like a white lotus flower, but in fact, they are full of evil ideas. They especially like to play dirty behind someone’s back. If they’re caught, they play innocent and trick the masses.”
Sui Yuan suddenly felt enlightened and nodded. He raised his hand to pinch his own face, “...So what you’re saying is that this face is really suitable for doing this kind of...”
“That’s right! I never had the opportunity to encounter such a role before. From now on, we’ll certainly see a lot of these! It’d be good to get used to it,” 5237 rubbed against Sui Yuan’s shoulder and encouraged, “Although this kind of role is really disliked by people, I believe that you’re capable and will be able to act it out well!”
“No problem,” Sui Yuan felt rather confident, “It’s just acting innocent, right? I’m extremely skilled at that!”
5237: “...Suddenly, I have a bad feeling about this. It’s just a misconception, right?
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
After gaining a “deep” understanding of his character, Sui Yuan left the bathroom. At this time, he saw Huo Ke, who was waiting for him on the sofa in the living room.
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“Ah Ke Ge, sorry. Did you wait long? I didn’t sleep well last night, so today I was a bit late in getting up. I’m really sorry,” Sui Yuan revealed an apologetic smile, extending a hand to pull at the now standing Huo Ke’s arm. His voice was limpid and sweet, carrying a hint of tenderness. It made it impossible for people to get mad at him.
Of course, Huo Ke, who had long since understood his “true nature”, was not enthralled by him at all. Sui Yuan’s attempt at acting intimate only made him feel uncomfortable from head to toe. He really wanted to yank his arm out of the other’s grasp.
Huo Ke was rather skeptical. Sui Yuan’s face was so thick to be able to hug, kiss, and even have sex with Eason behind his back, and yet still be able to smile at him so naturally without a hint of guilty conscience.
“It’s fine. You’re just in time,” Huo Ke smiled, as calmly as before. However, he couldn’t cover up his estrangement. He didn’t say anything more to Sui Yuan and took the lead to open the door and leave the apartment. He discreetly put a distance between him and Sui Yuan while walking.
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Sui Yuan, who was experiencing being avoided for the first time, felt that it was quite novel. Fortunately, he was dedicated to his work and did not much provoke the other out of curiosity. Only, before he left, he couldn’t help but automatically turn to glance behind him. He found it a bit regrettable that Eason’s room was still tightly shut.
Huo Ke, who saw the disappointment in Sui Yuan’s eyes, sneered, but also felt inexplicably sad.
——After all, they were the man he had once loved dearly and the friend he had once cared deeply for. They were part of the band that he had once wanted to do anything for.
Now, it seemed that it was a preposterous joke. It had all been his own wishful thinking.
Huo Ke’s mood seemed extremely terrible. Sui Yuan tactfully allowed him to reminisce over his past life. He obediently smiled at their manager who was waiting for them in their van and greeted him cheerfully.
The manager’s expression relaxed. Although Sui Yuan’s worth wasn’t very high, he grew up cute and was good with people. If he could, the manager would be willing to take care of him longer. So, although this audition had been discovered by Huo Ke and had been obtained through Huo Ke’s efforts, the manager still took the chance to bring Sui Yuan, who had also expressed interest in the audition. This let Sui Yuan get a very good deal without having to put in any of the work.
As one can well imagine, this made Huo Ke, who already loathed Sui Yuan, feel even worse. He was already at his limit trying to keep himself from turning hostile towards Sui Yuan.
Sui Yuan already knew everything. After all, this had been clearly written in the plot! Unfortunately, as an actor, he was not remorseful at all, nor did he have a guilty conscience, or anything like that. Therefore, the brilliant smile on his face was particularly natural and genuine, making Huo Ke really want to slap him.
5237: ...This ability to pull aggro was even stronger than that of the original Li Kun. Truly skillful!
On the way, Huo Ke remained silent due to his bad mood. The manager looked at his expression impatiently. He naturally became a bit more distant with him because of this attitude. He only chatted with Sui Yuan about the upcoming audition, telling him about how he should respond. On the contrary, he had thrown Huo Ke to the side.
After all, Sui Yuan, who was playing this kind of “actor” role for the first time, had never had access to this kind of knowledge. So, he listened to the manager very earnestly. Afterwards, Sui Yuan nodded his head when the manager repeatedly warned him “to not be nervous, just act normally and show your talents” and seriously tried his best to grasp the role he will be auditioning for.
5237: “...You know that your goal isn’t to succeed in the audition, right?! To even research the role, just what are you playing at?!”
Sui Yuan’s movements froze. He then silently averted his eyes.
——Once he got a role’s character settings, he involuntarily wanted to act. This was absolutely an occupational disease!
Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.
This time’s audition was for a minor supporting role. However, it was very popular. After all, this was a big production by the famous director Zheng Bin. Even the Film Emperor Le Sen, who rarely appeared on TV after switching to the big screen, was invited. It’s obvious as to what kind of success this production will have.
Director Zheng Bin had extremely stringent expectations for his own work. His fame was great, his background strong and solid, and he was capable of completely putting an end to any kind of back-door connections or under-the-table rigging. He wanted every character in his works to be as perfect as possible. The audition this time was for the sake of choosing actors to play several supporting roles he had yet to find a suitable actor for. While the screen time for these supporting roles was not very long, they were rather spectacular and required a lot from the actors. Since he didn’t have any suitable actors on hand, he had no choice but to hold an audition, hoping to find several pearls amongst the fish.
Of course, as it would happen, he really did find some.
Even in his last life, Huo Ke was deemed an actor with great future prospects. After his rebirth, playing this kind of supporting role was very easy. Naturally, with just a glance, the talent scouting Zheng Bin decided on him. He entered the cast and got acquainted with Le Sen all over again. Then, with the other’s help, he set off on his own splendid acting career. As for Sui Yuan who had taken advantage of Huo Ke to participate in this audition, he should go home with his tail between his legs. After that, he was seething with jealousy and hate towards Huo Ke who had succeeded in getting a role. Behind his back, he would secretly play some dirty tricks to try and sully the other’s reputation in vain.
Sui Yuan silently put away his character introduction and began his own mental preparations —he was currently Li Kun, who couldn’t act, not Yue Minghui, the role for today’s audition. He was Li Kun, not Yue Minghui...
“What’s your name?” A person suddenly asked in his ear.
Sui Yuan reflexively raised his head, “Yue Minghui.”
The manager:”..................”
Huo Ke: “..................”
5237：“...Idiot【Facepalm】.”
“Hahaha...” Apparently delighted by Sui Yuan’s stupefied reaction, the extremely handsome man laughed brightly in spite of himself. He winked teasingly, “Then, Mr. Yue Minghui, what role have you come to audition for today?”
Unlike Eason’s delicate features, this man’s appearance was even taller and handsomer. He emitted an air of a mature man’s temperate and masculine charm. He fully deserved his title of being the country’s most popular actor.
Sui Yuan turned his head and did a facepalm. A moment later, he pulled himself together and exposed a pure, sweet smile, “I’m sorry, Le Ge. My name is Li Kun, and I am auditioning for the role of Yue Minghui. I had just been too immersed in thinking about the role and let you see such a joke.”
“That is a good thing, “ Le Sen raised his eyebrow, pointedly. He also glanced at the manager who had on a sycophantic expression and Huo Ke, who was a bit stiff and whose heart was beating wildly because of this sudden encounter. Soon after, he smiled gently at Sui Yuan, “Your appearance isn’t bad, Good luck auditioning.”
Story translated by Chrysanthemum Garden.
“Yes! Thank you Le Ge!” Sui Yuan thanked him repeatedly. His pure eyes were full of longing and hope. His gaze that suggested he felt overwhelmed by Le Sen’s favour, followed the other’s silhouette until it was out of sight. The feeling in his heart however was rather complicated.
With only these two sentences, Sui Yuan could not distinguish whether or not he was Zhao Xihe. He thought that it didn’t feel quite right. However, according to the plot, Le Sen would never take the initiative to speak to him.
——Actually, if Zhao Xihe didn’t want to, then with the other’s acting skills, Sui Yuan would probably be unable to recognize the other at a glance....
Sui Yuan felt a bit frustrated and hung his head. For once, he didn’t care about the manager, who was barely restraining his own excitement, or about Huo Ke, whose eyebrows were furrowed, and left on his own to think about his own worries.
Director Zheng Bin’s gaze was cruel. Although there were a lot of people auditioning, the elimination rate was also very high. Not a long time passed before it was Sui Yuan’s turn.
Sui Yuan’s role of Yue Minghui was a role that was both easy and difficult to play. It was difficult for a simple reason—-he was someone with the mental age of a child.
Yue Minghui was the male lead’s younger brother. When he was small, he had a fever while alone at home. By the time he was discovered, while he had been saved, the fever had scorched his brain, leaving him with an intellectual disability. Although his IQ was forever that of a 7-8 year old, he was safeguarded extremely well by his family. He was bright, pure, and clean. Even if he was a bit foolish, he was extremely loveable.
Sui Yuan walked into the audition room, a bit at a loss. It’s not so hard for him to act like foolish; in fact, he wasn’t sure how to not act like one.
——Once he got his character settings, he wanted to act. He ought to chop off his hands ---no---it should be his head!
“He’s the one you think is suitable for this role?” Zheng Bin turned his head to whisper to Le Sen beside him.
When Le Sen had mentioned Sui Yuan, Zheng Bin had quickly and thoroughly researched his profile. He was a bit discontent with the fact that Sui Yuan had only ever shot a music video and had no acting experience whatsoever, but since his appearance was fitting, almost like the character come to life, then it wasn’t like he couldn’t give the actor a chance. After all, everyone started off as a newbie.
“The feeling of purity that his appearance evokes...is rather natural and appropriate. There’s no fake feeling of this being an act or imitation, “ Le Sen whispered back, “Foolish.he’s probably actually foolish by nature?”
Zheng Bin silently turned his head to glance at Sui Yuan, at a loss. He couldn’t help but admit that this child was indeed pure to the point that it seemed as if Yue Minghui had stepped out himself—except for the expression in his eyes, which was a bit too quick-witted.
When he thought of this, Zheng Bin slightly furrowed his brows. He shot a fierce look at Sui Yuan, “Raise your head. Make your expression a bit more foolish, more bewildered. Turn yourself into an intellectually handicapped person with the IQ of a 6-7 year old.”
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Zheng Bin’s manner was excessively imposing. His commanding tone that suggested that this was the natural order of things, made Sui Yuan subconsciously fulfill the other’s request. Upon doing so, he immediately saw Zheng Bin’s satisfied expression.
“Not bad. Indeed, a good seedling. You’ve got a good eye,” The latter half of the phrase was directed towards Le Sen with a smile. Upon seeing Zheng Bin’s expression that looked as if he had found treasure, Sui Yuan immediately felt a bit bad—what about his agreed upon dejected parting after having been rejected?!
“I saw him as soon as I entered. He had on a silly appearance, thinking about who knows what. I asked him for his name. Unexpectedly, ‘Yue Minghui’ was what I received,” Le Sen narrowed his eyes, feeling overjoyed as he recalled that scene—how strange, he had never thought that it was so easy to make him laugh.
Zheng Bin looked helplessly at Sui Yuan, whose cheeks were flushed and head hung because he knew that he had lost face. He also swept a glance at Film Emperor Le Sen, who seemed like he was addicted to laughing. He let out a light cough to hint to Le Sen that he should show some restraint and tapped the pencil in his hand against the desk, “Ok. Li Kun, go back first and wait for further news. If you’re chosen, we’ll dispatch someone to let you know.”
In the end, Zheng Bin gave him an ambiguous answer.
Although he was rather satisfied with Sui Yuan’s “acting”, because he was too “new”, Zheng Bin who had awfully rigorous requirements for his actors did not dare to carelessly start using him. He intended to see if there were any other more suitable choices after him. If there weren’t any...then it’d be a case of choosing the best person amongst the mediocre. At least this child’s image fits and his understanding of the role isn’t bad, so slowly teaching him wouldn’t be too much of an effort.
Sui Yuan replied affirmatively and did not dare to show his “innocent, pure, white lotus” side again. He was afraid that if the director felt him pleasing to his eye, then he would decide to choose him. As soon as he exited the audition room, his manager who had been waiting for a long time met him at once, inquiring how the audition had gone.
“Director Zheng said that we should go back and wait for news,” Sui Yuan replied, helplessly.
The manager was a bit disappointed. He had originally thought that, with Film Emperor Le Sen’s words, to get this unimportant role would be a sure thing. Only, when he thought about Zheng Bin’s strict and fussy reputation, he felt that this kind of result was rather reasonable.
“Your performance isn’t bad. Continue to work hard,” the manager patted Sui Yuan’s shoulder in encouragement. After all, his impression of Sui Yuan wasn’t bad. Seeing Le Sen’s attitude towards Sui Yuan, the former probably also has a good opinion of him. As such, his manner was even gentler than normal.
While Sui Yuan and the manager were chatting, Huo Ke was called into the audition room.
——Compared to Sui Yuan who was completely inexperienced in acting, Huo Ke, who had already acted in who knows how many roles, had a clear advantage, no? Huo Ke’s expression darkened, before rapidly returning to a pleasant one. He had finished his preparations for the audition.
——I’ll let him be happy first, and let his expectations rise, so that his fall will be all the more miserable.
The author has something to say:
I had originally planned to temporarily put this story down to write a manuscript for another, but after seeing all of these comments and landmines (uhh it’s something you can buy on JJWXC to send to the author as a form of support, aside from/in addition to buying the chapters)...So I was compelled to do this...You all saw this! QAQ
Juurensha: Oh Huo Ke, you should learn that it’s probably better to try and lead with your strongest attack.... And I’m not sure who Zhao Xihe is in this world, but I’m sure he’s here somewhere!
Serefina: natural airhead attacks
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