After coming out of the office, Zhou Yan went to the logistics to get a key and took Cheng Xia to the artist apartment arranged by Tianxuan to get him familiar with the environment.
The artist apartments were located diagonally opposite the Tianxuan Building. The community was well managed and no one was allowed to enter without an entry card. The underground of the apartment building was a large parking lot with east and west entrances and exits, making it difficult to be blocked by the paparazzi. Living here, the privacy and safety of the artists could be adequately protected.
Cheng Xia took the elevator upstairs with his agent.
The apartment he was allocated was 3303. It was a 60 square meter single apartment. The space was small but it was well-equipped. It had a separate bathroom and was full of kitchen utensils. A small dressing room was intimately designed to be next to the bedroom. The living room had a soft fabric sofa and a glass coffee table. The background wall behind the TV was simply painted, there was a large LCD TV and a bookcase next to it.
The layout of the apartment was simple and warm. Cheng Xia walked around the house and really liked the environment. Zhou Yan gave the community access control card and room key to him before saying, “Cheng Xia, you will live here from now on. Go back and pack your luggage and move in as soon as possible.”
Cheng Xia nodded. “Yes. Sister Yan, you’ve worked hard. I will go back in the afternoon to pack my things!”
“Yes, call me if you need anything.”
Zhou Yan drove Cheng Xia home. After arriving home, Cheng Xia hurriedly packed up his things. His parents knew that the company had arranged an artist apartment for him and also helped him pack together. That night, Jiang Qiong cooked a sumptuous meal to bid farewell to her son. The next morning, his father drove the car to help Cheng Xia move.
Cheng Xia didn’t have many things. There was just a box of clothes, toiletries and some sports car models.
The two of them sent Cheng Xia to the apartment building. Cheng Xia excitedly took his parents on a tour of the single apartment before swiftly placing his sports car models he had collected for many years on the wooden stand next to the TV.
The couple saw that the apartment was in good condition and finally felt relieved. Cheng Yiming came to the French windows and looked at the building diagonally opposite them. “Is that the Tianxuan Building opposite you?”
Cheng Xia walked to his father’s side and smiled. “Yes, our company’s headquarters is very stylish, right?”
Cheng Yiming spoke seriously, “Tianxuan is indeed a strong entertainment company but just because you signed with them doesn’t mean you will fly into the sky. You should be down to earth and work hard step by step…”
Jiang Qiong couldn’t help interrupting him. “Okay okay, you have started preaching again. Cheng Xia’s ears are going to grow calluses.”
Cheng Xia wasn’t bothered by his father’s various words. He knew that as he moved into the artist apartment and officially started his career as an actor, the chances of seeing his parents in the future would become less and less.
He took a deep breath, adjusted his expression and walked over to hug his parents with a bright smile. “You can rest assured that I will work hard. Perhaps you will see me on TV soon!”
Jiang Qiong couldn’t help laughing. “You can really speak big words. How can we see you on TV so soon? You are just a newcomer!” She patted her son on the shoulder. “Take care of yourself and call your family when you have time.”
Cheng Xia didn’t directly say he would be participating in Chen Yijun’s MV shooting. He said goodbye and sat on his bed to send a message to Zhou Yan. [Sister Yan, I have moved into the apartment.]
Zhou Yan quickly replied. [Okay, come to Tianxuan’s office at 3 o’clock in the afternoon to find me.]
At 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Cheng Xia showed up at Zhou Yan’s office on time. There were several people in the office, all of whom looked unpolished. Cheng Xia smiled politely at the strangers and walked over to greet Zhou Yan. “Sister Yan.”
Zhou Yan nodded, got up and walked over to the young people. “The four of you are all newcomers signed to Tianxuan at the same time. Let’s first get to know each other.”
He previously heard that Zhou Yan would take four newcomers after the grouping. Cheng Xia saw them for the first time today and couldn’t help being curious. He looked at his peers.
One of the men was taller than 1.85 meters and was handsome and sunny. However, Cheng Xia had seen too many handsome guys at the film academy and didn’t feel much about this handsome alpha. Speaking of looks, Cheng Xia thought that President Pei was the most handsome alpha he had seen so far.
The alpha’s self-introduction brought Cheng Xia back to reality. “Hello everyone, my name is Zhou Jiawen and I am a junior in the acting department of the Academy of Drama. I have played the third male lead in ‘For You’, the second male lead in ‘Little Corner’, the third male lead in ‘Midnight Bell’…”
He mentioned a bunch of drama names. Cheng Xia hadn’t heard of them. Obviously, they were online dramas that didn’t make much of a splash. However, for newcomers, it was normal to make their debut in low-cost dramas so people became familiar with their faces.
Immediately afterward, a thin girl stood up. The girl’s eyes were cold and her voice showed a sense of alienation when she spoke. “My name is Xue Ling and I’m a student of the film academy. I have acted as the third female lead in two ancient costume dramas, ‘The Wind Rises’ and ‘The World of Chivalry’.”
The third person was a boy around 1.75 meters in height with a cute baby face and a clear voice when he spoke. “My name is Qi Xiaotian. I am a freshman at the film academy and I have acted in many TV dramas as the protagonist’s teenage version. By the way, I am an omega. I’m 18 years old and have signed with Tianxuan some time ago.”
Was this a child star? No wonder why he looked familiar.
It was Cheng Xia’s turn and he stepped forward, openly admitting, “My name is Cheng Xia. I’m 18 years old and a freshman at a film academy. I currently have no formal works. It is nice to meet you.”
He spoke very honestly but once the three of them heard he had no works, they obviously weren’t very enthusiastic.
Cheng Xia didn’t mind. It was like this in the entertainment industry. It was supported by countless famous celebrities while the unknown small stars could only mix in at the bottom. No one wanted to waste too much time on the small and unknown artists.
He was a small, unknown actor now.
The three people Sister Yan brought over today actually had a competitive relationship with him. They were under the same agent. Once it came to how resources were allocated, it depended on who took it first and who took it later. It was impossible for this group to be a good bowl of water. Cheng Xia wasn’t so stupid as to be ‘good friends’ with artists under the same agent. It was fine as long as they got along on the surface and didn’t try to trip him behind his back.
The four people finished introducing themselves and Zhou Yan distributed the copied materials to everyone. “This is the school drama that President Pei will invest in next. The opportunity is given to all the artists in our Group C. For newcomers, it is an extremely rare opportunity to play the protagonist or an important supporting role. Go back and read the information carefully. It is best to become familiar with it.”
“In addition, I have selected four assistants for you. They will go with you to the studio for filming, arrange the nanny cars when going out, book airline tickets, order meals, etc. If you have any questions, ask your assistant. If your assistant can’t answer it then find me.”
She nodded to the people behind her and the four assistants went to greet their artist.
The one who came to Cheng Xia was a small female beta. She was around 25 years old and she smiled cheerfully. “Hello Cheng Xia, you can call me Sister Rong. I have been an assistant for several years. You can contact me directly if you have any life problems, including your meals. I can go to your place to cook for you.”
Cheng Xia showed her a sincere smile. “Yes, Sister Rong!”
The other artists and assistants got to know each other. Then Zhou Yan clapped and concluded, “In the next month, the most important thing is to thoroughly understand the information I gave you, carefully consider the key roles and participate in the audition in the best state! This time, the director and screenwriter will come in person for the audition. Everyone will have equal opportunities. I hope you perform well and try to get a suitable role. Do you understand?”
The four people replied in a united voice, “Understood!”
Zhou Yan nodded. “Go back. Once the audition time is set, I will call to let you know.”
The four of them left the office one after another.
Qi Xiaotian enthusiastically took the initiative to add the three of them as friends and Cheng Xia accepted out of politeness. After Qi Xiaotian was added, the other two were naturally added or it would be too embarrassing. So on the surface, everyone happily scanned each other’s QR codes and added each other on WeChat, exchanging a few polite words.
They walked out of Tianxuan and the other three went back to the artist apartments together. Cheng Xia thought for a moment before turning in another direction.
10 minutes later, he went to a bookstore at the intersection. This bookstore was decorated in a warm and elegant style and it sold novels and comics popular among young people. Cheng Xia walked to the counter and asked politely, “Hello, do you have the novel ‘Folding Paper’?”
The sister at the counter smiled softly. “Yes. It is in the hot novels area in the front corner.”
Cheng Xia walked to the corner. Sure enough, he saw a large number of new ‘Folding Paper’ books in the ‘Hot Novels’ area. The cover of the novel was a scene of the two protagonists playing an origami game together in the classroom. Both of them were in school uniforms and had smiles on their faces. Sunlight came in through the side window, shining on the faces of the two protagonists. The warm light made people recall their pure and beautiful student days.
Cheng Xia took two books and went to the counter to pay for them. One was for collection and one was for use.
The information Zhou Yan gave him was a photocopy of the documents given by President Pei. It included a detailed outline of the story and character biographies. It was enough to understand what the school novel was about. However, this information was compiled by the copyrights department for President Pei.
President Pei was so busy that it was impossible for him to look through every novel brought by the copyrights department page by page. As the boss, he could only look at the plot outline and character setting to see which books were worth investing in.
However, as an actor, it wasn’t enough to just look at this. It was only after reading the full text of the novel or the script that they could understand the character and the heart of the character more accurately. Then it was possible to bring the character to life.
At present, the script adaptation hadn’t come out so Cheng Xia decided to read the original novel several times. This opportunity was hard to get and he had to take it.
The young man happily returned to his apartment with the two brand new unopened books. He opened the cover and was about to read it seriously when his phone lit up and an unread message appeared on the screen.
[Little Cheng Xia, I am Sister Yijun. The director of the MV has contacted me. I will have the nanny car pick you up at 10 o’clock tomorrow morning. The stylist will help you with makeup and hair and the clothes will be provided by sponsors. You just need to bring yourself. See you tomorrow!]
“……” Cheng Xia was a bit flustered.
Ready to shoot so soon? Sister, aren’t you too resolute?
Proofreader: Cat