Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The moment he saw Song Qianming, elder Qian was slightly surprised. It had been a long time since he had seen such a refreshing, clean, and smart young man.
Second miss Qian lifted her chin slightly in satisfaction. She had said that she had good taste, right?
âItâs a pleasure to meet you, elder Qian!â Song Qianming quickly stood up and greeted.
âHave a seat.â Elder Qian had a gentle look on his face. âHowâs your preparation going?â
âIâm willing to listen to elder Qianâs advice.â Song Qianming wasnât being modest, and was prepared to show him his acting.
Elder Qian didnât think there was a problem with his attitude, so he turned on the camera. âSince youâre ready, letâs do it. Xiao Er, rehearse the lines for him.â
âYes, Grandpa.â
Putting down the script, Song Qianming immediately adjusted his expression. This was the first time he was acting in front of someone other than Youhuan, but he didnât feel nervous at all.
He had experienced many assassinations in his previous life, so this was nothing to him. After all, in the treacherous palace in his previous life, he had been acting for nearly twenty years. It was only when his royal brother ascended the throne that he did not need to hide himself.
âThird brother, do you really have to go?â he roared with a hint of forbearance.
Second miss Qian read Chen Zeyuâs lines emotionlessly, âSecond brother, you wonât understand me. You donât understand patriotism and devotion to the country at all.â
âYes, I donât understand, but big brother has already sacrificed himself for this country. If something happens to you as well, what do you want grandmother and mother to do? â
âGrandmother and mother have you.â
âStop right there!â Song Qianmingâs voice grew louder, and his lips trembled. His eyes were filled with crazed emotions, but he quickly suppressed them.
âYes, Iâm not as righteous as you,â he mumbled and clenched his fist as he lowered his head. âSecond brother is not as brave as you.â
The script did not specify how this scene should be played out, but elder Qianâs eyes became more and more bright. âInteresting.â
Song Qianming raised his head again, and the look in his eyes changed. âNo matter what, as long as Iâm here, I wonât let you out of this house. You can scold me or hate me, but third brother, we canât let anyone else die in the Chen family.
The second Qian miss looked at him in surprise and continued to read, âWe canât let anyone die in our family, but can others? Second brother, I was wrong about you. I, Chen Zeyu, am ashamed to be your brother.â
Song Qianming was unmoved. âIâve already arranged a marriage for you. From now on, you can just stay at home and prepare to marry the girl.â
âYou â¦â Second miss Qianâs voice was involuntarily filled with emotion. âHow can you agree with mother about this? You know that I wish for a free love. Have you forgotten what we once said? I wonât marry her, I canât ruin the rest of a girlâs life.â
âItâs not up to you to decide if you want to marry her or not.â
âSecond brother, youâve really changed. I really have no respect for the current you.â
Song Qianmingâs eyes were deep, as if he was watching Chen Zeyuâs back as he left angrily. Then, he laughed at himself and returned to his room decisively, looking desolate and lonely.
âPa pa pa!â Elder Qian was not stingy with his applause. âNot bad, as expected of someone recommended by old He.â
âElder Qian, youâre overpraising me. Itâs good that I didnât embarrass teacher.â Song Qianming quickly adjusted his emotions and replied humbly.
âShe should be proud to have such a student. I really envy her! Sheâs lucky enough to find all the talented ones.â
âItâs all because of teacherâs good teaching.â
âItâs your good fortune to be able to learn from her. May I ask why you acted like that just now? Normally, Chen Zeshu would be pedantic and foolish if one only read these two pages of the script.â
Song Qianming explained his understanding. âThe three sons of the Chen family all received the same education. Thereâs no reason for the eldest and third sons to be patriotic while the second son is not. In my opinion, Chen Zeshu has to take care of his family and face the war at the same time. His elder brother died suddenly, and he unexpectedly had to bear the burden of supporting the family. He must be very confused and sad.â
âVery well understood.â Elder Qian nodded his head in admiration, âYou and I are thinking the same thing. However, even though you performed well in all aspects, I still canât guarantee you this spot. Do you understand?â
âOf course I understand. Iâm already very thankful that youâre willing to give me this opportunity to audition, elder Qian.â Song Qianming was not disappointed. He had tried his best, so he had no regrets.
Moreover, some things couldnât be obtained with oneâs own strength. In his previous life, even if his royal brother sat on the throne, he had to consider all his decisions carefully, let alone a director in this life.
Even if it was a famous director, he might have things he couldnât control. It could be seen from the arrogant man outside just now. That man was obviously not on elder Qianâs side, but he was on the filming set. This clearly explained the problem.
âXiao Er, you two exchange contact information. Have you signed a contract with an agency?â he asked Song Qianming.
âNo, I just terminated my contract with the previous agency.â
âThen which company did you sign with before?â second miss Qian asked curiously. âHow did you get buried for so long? Logically speaking, with your looks and skills, as long as youâre given slightly better resources, you should be able to become famous very quickly, right?â
âMaybe itâs just bad luck!â Song Qianming shook his head and laughed, then said seriously, âElder Qian, whether you hire me or not, thereâs something I must let you know in advance.â
âWhat is it?â
âActually, I only terminated my contract with my previous agency because the media exposed a piece of negative news about me.â
Second miss Qian was taken aback, then immediately asked, âWhat negative news?â
Song Qianming answered honestly, âI made a mistake when I was in university. I didnât know that the other party had given birth to my child behind my back. It was only a few days ago that the childâs mother fell seriously ill and couldnât take it anymore. That was when she exposed it to the media and came to me.â
The grandfather and granddaughter obviously did not expect this to happen. This was indeed a bit difficult to handle because the higher-ups could not tolerate artists with a bad reputation now. They did not know if his situation counted.
Thinking of his earlier performance and his honesty, second miss Qian could not help but speak up for him in front of elder Qian, âGrandpa, I donât think this counts. After all, itâs normal for adult men and women to have sex. Besides, the woman deliberately hid it from him, so he canât take responsibility even if he wanted to! Donât you agree?â
Elder Qian rolled his eyes at her. âDidnât you say that youâre only here to broaden your horizons? Why are you being biased suddenly?â
âIâm just afraid that youâll lose a good actor,â second miss Qian replied coyly. âGrandpaâ¦â
âAlright, alright, Iâll think about it.â
Second miss Qian wasnât too satisfied with this result, but with a look from her grandfather, she had no choice but to give up. She gave Song Qianming a look that said she had done her best.
Song Qianming smiled and thanked her. The rest was up to fate. If he really couldnât become an actor, there would always be another way out. He didnât believe that he, a prince, couldnât make something of himself in this society.