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C20—- No Regrets
Seven o’clock in the evening.
Lu Wenxing and Gu Yanshen had an appointment to eat in a restaurant near the mall. When Lu Wenxing was taken to the box by the waiter, Gu Yanshen was already waiting for him inside.
The restaurant was heated, so Gu Yanshen took off his jacket, he wore a slightly loose grey wool shirt inside, his eyes were lowered as he looked at the script in his hand.
“Sorry, I’m late.”
Gu Yanshen closed the script and turned his head to look at Lu Wenxing, who was wearing a beige jacket and carrying a paper bag.
“I’m the one who came early.”
After Lu Wenxing took his seat, he took off his jacket, “What does Teacher Gu want from me?”
Gu Yanshen handed the menu in his hand to Lu Wenxing, “Eat first, we’ll talk while we eat.”
They had to wait a while for the food, the box was too quiet because he and Gu Yanshen were the only ones there, Lu Wenxing wasn’t very comfortable, so he quickly asked another question.
“Teacher Gu, are you looking for me because of the audition?”
“Yes.” Gu Yanshen went straight to the point.
“I don’t know if you’ve read the novel ‘Hundred Ghosts’.”
Gu Yanshen thought that since Lu Wenxing took notes on movies, if he liked reading books, he would definitely make notes on that as well.
Lu Wenxing had read the novel. His curiosity was usually quite heavy, whether it was a novel, magazine, or history book, as long as it was interesting, he’d read it.
He would read a very strong literary novel, but also read a dog blooded novel.
“Hundred Ghosts” was a very popular fantasy novel last year, Lu Wenxing’s roommate recommended it to him. The novel had sufficient plot, suspense and the cliffhangers were also well placed, it was the kind of book he had to read at once, he couldn’t stop until it ended.
This was different from the type of movie Gu Yanshen usually starred in, Lu Wenxing had seen all of Gu Yanshen’s movies, most of them had realistic themes.
Gu Yanshen was 25 years old when he first won three Gold Movie Star Awards. Before that, he had won various awards, from supporting roles to leading roles.
In addition to Gu Yanshan’s excellent acting skills and characterization, a good movie also included an interesting story, as well as a profound intention and theme.
All of them were complementary to each other.
Lu Wenxing was still a little surprised, but thought about it and felt nothing.
Gu Yanshen had never done this kind of fantasy movie, but actors had to keep challenging themselves and their roles.
“Is this Teacher Gu’s new movie?”
“Yes.”
“I’m looking forward to it.” Lu Wenxing wasn’t a fan of Gu Yanshen, but he was a fan of his movies, to be precise he only liked the characters, not the person.
That was why he was just a little surprised when he first met Gu Yanshen.
“I’m also looking forward to it.”
Gu Yanshen looked serious and cold when he had no expression, the end of his eyes were slightly long, when he looked at someone seriously, it would give the illusion of tenderness and deep feelings, the sense of contrast was particularly strong.
Lu Wenxing had been watched so seriously by Gu Yanshen more than once, he was still a little overwhelmed. He lowered his eyes, and his thick and long eyelashes covered his unusual gaze.
Gu Yanshen withdrew his eyes, picked up the long glass on the table and took a light sip.
“I’m looking forward to working with you even more.”
The low and calm voice was like a feather falling on Lu Wenxing’s heart, very light yet a presence that was hard to ignore.
Lu Wenxing’s hand subconsciously tightened, his face and voice remained unchanged, “I’m sorry, I’m not interested in filming, I can only disappoint Teacher Gu’s expectations.”
His answer seemed like a perfunctory answer yet he couldn’t find a problem because his expression was too deceptive.
It was hard for Gu Yanshen to deny his words, especially when Lu Wenxing looked at him with a serious expression.
The two people were sitting face to face, they were obviously not far away, yet they seemed far apart.
If not for the first meeting, when Gu Yanshen had accidentally bumped into Lu Wenxing and noticed Lu Wencing’s carelessness during the audition.
He would have been decieved by Lu Wenxing’s well-behaved and modest performance.
Gu Yanshen was sure that Lu Wenxing, who he saw when he first met, was the real him.
When Lu Wenxing was complaining about his attitude, he accidentally overheard him, any other person would have been embarrassed and overwhelmed.
But Lu Wenxing wasn’t embarrassed, instead he looked liked nothing happened, and calmly greeted him.
But after two recording sessions, the two of them not only didn’t get acquainted, but seemed more distant.
The only time that Lu Wenxing showed a little bit of truth was during the bar recording.
Maybe it was the mood, maybe it was the atmosphere, Lu Wenxing half-jokingly watched him bartend, and urged him to watch the show.
In short, he was much more frank than the current response with ‘Teacher Gu’.
Gu Yanshen didn’t realize at this moment that his excessive attention to Lu Wenxing wasn’t there before.
The waiter knocked on the door to deliver the food, and the conversation between the two temporarily halted.
Gu Yanshen had ordered a few dishes before, and when Lu Wenxing came, he added a few more, making the table full.
This was a Chinese restaurant that brought together the specialties of various places.
He had eaten with Lu Wenxing when he recorded the variety show before, and Lu Wenxing picked spicy dishes, so Gu Yanshen ordered a few delicious dishes according to his preference.
“Let’s eat first.”
Lu Wenxing had no opinion on what Gu Yanshen said. He just didn’t understand why Gu Yanshen was insistent on letting him act in the movie to the point of personally coming to him, it seemed too magical.
Why was he looking for him? Shouldn’t the role be played by Wen Yu?
How come it wasn’t the same as the plot he knew?
Was there a deviation, or was it caused by his change?
The reason why Lu Wenxing was determined to quit the industry wasn’t because he really wanted to quit, he liked filming and enjoyed it very much. But he was worried that changing the plot would lead to a butterfly effect.
Suppose he didn’t leave the entertainment industry and didn’t go for the cannon fodder storyline. Then would it be like the novel, how the world consciousness forced him to complete the plot line.
Lu Wenxing had been worried about this problem.
What he could be sure of now was that the plot hadn’t been interfered with by the world consciousness.
But even if it wasn’t now, what about later?
Lu Wenxing thought that withdrawing from the industry was the best option because, there was a chance the world consciousness would trigger the plot. But as long as he wasn’t in the entertainment industry, he wouldn’t even be half a threat to the protagonist, perhaps the world consciousness wouldn’t interfere with him.
But Lu Wenxing had a more daring idea.
It was that the world consciousness simply didn’t exist, or was unable to interfere with him, so even if he stayed in the entertainment industry, as long as he didn’t mess with the protagonist, there wouldn’t be a forced plot.
But all the enumerations were Lu Wenxing’s conjecture alone, it hadn’t been verified, he could only choose a safer exit from the industry to reduce the risk.
“Try it, spicy diced chicken.”
Gu Yanshen could eat spicy food, but usually he didn’t. He paid more attention to eating light and healthy, he often filmed movies in a row, in order to remain healthy, he had to regulate his diet and fitness.
Today’s order was mostly in line with Lu Wenxing’s taste, so he chose dishes with heavy oil and spicy food.
Lu Wenxing reached out and picked up a piece of diced chicken with spicy seeds.
The color was brownish red and oily, but it looked quite appetizing.
In his family, Ms. Lu and Mr. Xie and Xie Chengfei didn’t eat spicy food, Lu Wenxing usually accommodated their tastes when they ate together, but when he was alone, he ate spicy food.
The spicy diced chicken was spicy and salty, it was soft to eat, and had a sweet undertone.
Lu Wenxing thought it was delicious, his eyes brightened and his mood seemed much better.
During the meal, Gu Yanshen only recommended delicious dishes to Lu Wenxing, and didn’t mention anything related to filming.
When Lu Wenxing was almost done eating, Gu Yanshen began to ask some hobby-related topics, and finally led the topics to movies and TV series.
For example, he would ask Lu Wenxing which he liked better, science fiction or suspense.
After mentioning the film, he would ask Lu Wenxing what he liked about it.
Then Lu Wenxing found that as long as he could say the title of the film, even if it was a cold niche film, Gu Yanshen had seen all. And he had a deep impression on each one, he could talk from the plot to the role, and then to the movie itself.
Whether it was the theme of the film, the intention or the casting, and character building, Lu Wenxing had his own unique views.
Gu Yanshen didn’t try to analyse whether he was right or wrong, it wasn’t a matter of right and wrong, because the different perspectives would also lead to different understanding.
To Gu Yanshen’s surprise, Lu Wenxing’s viewpoint, there were many places they had the same opinion.
Because of this, Gu Yanshen was even more certain that Lu Wenxing’s lack of interest in filming was definitely a lie.
As long as Lu Wenxing was willing, they could have a lot of common topics.
“Which character do you like in the novel ‘Hundred Ghosts’?”
“I like Xue Ningning.”
Like all book fans, Lu Wenxing also liked the persona of the female lead the most, the female lead with the surname Xue, single name Ning, Xue Ningning was a nickname that fans of the novel called her.
Gu Yanshen wasn’t surprised, “In addition to Xue Ning?”
“Mo Xu.” Lu Wenxing finished, and asked, “Mr. Gu plays Mo Xu, right?”
“Yes.”
“Xue Ning’s actor is Song Jiajia.”
“So this is the third time that Mr. Gu and Sister Jiajia are working together?”
It was Gu Yanshen’s turn to be surprised.
The first time he and Song Jiajia worked together was three or four years ago, when Song Jiajia wasn’t as famous as she was now, and was only a third or fourth tier actress.
She didn’t play the female lead, but a supporting character number four.
The movie was well received, but the character played by Song Jiajia wasn’t likeable, she didn’t become popular because of this movie.
But the movie gave Song Jiajia new opportunities, so Song Jiajia rose up step by step.
The second collaboration was the variety show.
This third time, that was, the movie “Hundred Ghosts”.
Gu Yanshen caught the point of Lu Wenxing’s words, “You’ve seen ‘The Chase’?”
“The Chase” was the first movie that Gu Yanshen and Song Jiajia collaborated on.
After asking, Gu Yanshen didn’t think it was surprising that Lu Wenxing had seen it, even if he had seen all his movies, it didn’t mean anything.
“I’ve seen it, I’ve seen all of Mr. Gu’s movies.”
Gu Yanshen suddenly felt a little out of control, even though he knew that Lu Wenxing simply stated that he had seen his movies, but Lu Wenxing looked too focused and serious, and even those peach blossom eyes were full of amorous feelings, so it was hard not to arouse his imagination.
“Wenxing is my fan?” When Gu Yanshen asked this question, he was a little nervous.
“Sort of.”
“What do you mean by sort of?”
“It’s just that every character Teacher Gu plays happens to be my favorite.” Afraid that he didn’t understand, he added, “Role only.”
Gu Yanshen: “……” His heartbeat instantly calmed, as if it hadn’t been beating violently.
“Then if someone else played these roles, would you be his fan?” Gu Yanshen suddenly took the meaningless question seriously.
Lu Wenxing: “Don’t ask hypothetical questions.”
Gu Yanshen: “……”
Although he was a little unhappy, at last, Lu Wenxing wasn’t being polite, the two of them finally had a breakthrough in their relationship.
“You just said you like Mo Xu more, right?”
“The one I like more is Xue Ningning, followed by Mo Xu.” Lu Wenxing corrected him in a serious manner.
Gu Yanshen: “……”
Was it necessary to be so serious?
Gu Yanshen understood that Lu Wenxing wouldn’t take the initiative to fight for camera time when recording the variety show, it was probably because he had little interest, and from the topics he talked about at ordinary times, he could tell that Lu Wenxing was similar to him.
Only when he was addressed would he look at the camera and answer seriously.
Because Lu Wenxing wasn’t interested in those topics, when it came to the topic he was interested in, he would be more relaxed.
“OK, anyway, your favorite is Xue Ning and Mo Xu.” Gu Yanshen paused for a second and continued, “If that’s the case, I see no reason for you to refuse the audition.”
“If the audition is successful, you can get up close and personal with ‘Xue Ning’ and ‘Mo Xu’ and can incorporate your own views on the role you’re playing.”
“There are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people’s eyes.” Gu Yanshen looked at Lu Wenxing with a focused expression and a serious tone.
“But Wenxing, if you are willing, maybe you can become Hamlet.”
What Gu Yanshen meant was that everyone had different opinions about the work, but Lu Wenxing may be able to become the work itself as long as he agreed to audition, and he could use his own opinions to shape the character.
This was an irresistible temptation for an actor who loved acting.
Lu Wenxing: “…!”
He had made a mistake!!!
He was completely led by Gu Yanshen today. Gu Yanshen had been lowering his guard from the beginning, starting with that plate of diced spicy chicken, Gu Yanshen was testing his preferences.
Talking to him about movies, talking about roles … The topics they talked about earlier were actually paving the way for his last words.
He had to say, Gu Yanshen was really too good.
He also had to admit, Lu Wenxing was moved.
But reason still pulled hiS impulsive heart back, and the words of acceptance turned around in his mouth.
To be honest, he felt a little insensitive, if he was any other person, he wouldn’t get invited so many times by Gu Yanshen.
Not even mentioning other people, Lu Wenxing himself, if he didn’t know what the so-called plot was, he would have agreed the first time he asked.
Probably seeing Lu Wenxing’s hesitation. Gu Yanshen didn’t urge Lu Wenxing to promise. He raised his glass and poured the bright juice in the next cup, and gently touched Lu Wenxing’s glass.
Gu Yanshen came by car, he couldn’t drink, so he chose to drink juice, but it didn’t stop him from feeling like he was drinking wine.
Lu Wenxing returned to his senses, picked up the glass of wine on the table, the two people with different minds, both drank.
“Wenxing, you don’t need to rush to reply.” Gu Yanshen smiled, thoughtfully giving Lu Wenxing time to think.
“I want to ask a question.”
What Gu Yanshen said was I want to, not can.
After saying this, Gu Yanshen asked directly, “You actually like filming very much, why do you say you aren’t interested?”
“No need to argue, whether you like it or not, I can tell.” As Gu Yanshen spoke, his gaze was fixed on Lu Wenxing.
“You know what? The most rebellious thing I did when I was eighteen was to defy my father’s opposition and give up studying abroad, then I changed my college entrance exam choice to film school.”
Lu Wenxing looked at Gu Yanshen in surprise, how could he have expected the growth history of a movie star to be like this.
“This is the most rebellious thing I have ever done, yet it is also the most fortunate.”
“I don’t know what you are worried about? I just want to tell you that a rebellious decision isn’t necessarily wrong.”
These words caused Lu Wenxing’s heart to beat violently a few times.
The most rebellious decision wasn’t necessarily wrong.
Seeing Lu Wenxing’s relaxation, Gu Yanshen spoke again. “Wenxing, can you tell me what you’re worried about?”
Lu Wenxing pressed down his violently beating heart, when it came to this, he was too worried.
He was worried about the plot, worried about being a cannon fodder, worried about getting his family involved…
However, this couldn’t be said to Gu Yanshen, no one would believe it. Maybe Gu Yanshen would think he was being paranoid.
Lu Wenxing calmed down and lied.
“Next semester is tight, so I can’t spare the time.”
“You can’t even spare a month?”
“A month?” Lu Wenxing looked at Gu Yanshen in surprise.
Gu Yanshen didn’t know why he reacted so strongly to this, he nodded and replied.
“Yes. The person I want you to audition for is the teenage ‘Mo Xu’, which is the other me.”
In Hundred Ghosts, one of them was an illusion and the other was real.
However, the’ Mo Xu’ that had been conjured up didn’t account for much in the plot, but it was also a very important existence. In addition to the personality contrast between the two people, it was more of a foil effect. The contrast between the two would make the’ Mo Xu’ after all his difficulties, fuller in terms of human settings.
“Teacher Gu asked me to audition for the teenage ‘ Mo Xu’?”
Lu Wenxing didn’t know for a moment whether he should be surprised that this role would be played by two different people, or whether he should be surprised that the audition quota left by Gu Yanshen turned out to be such an important role.
“Yes.” Gu Yanshen noticed Lu Wenxing’s attention to time, so he continued in that line.
“The teenage ‘Mo Xu’ appears for a few episodes, at most a month, filming for the character will be done.”
“The variety recording has three more episode, it finishes during early March. But this movie starts shooting in February, and the role would be concluded by March if it goes well.”
When Lu Wenxing decided to withdraw from the industry, he set a time to issue a statement of withdrawal after the broadcast of “Weekend Without Limits”, but if the period of filming was before he withdrew from the industry according to Gu Yanshen, then ……
“It’s getting late, I’ll send you back.”
“No need to bother Teacher Gu, I can go back by myself.”
Gu Yanshen lightly laughed, “Since you call me Teacher Gu, I should take care of you.”
“Let’s go.”
He didn’t give Lu Wenxing the chance to refuse, Gu Yanshen took the car key and left with Lu Wenxing.
The car was driven out of the underground garage and soon disappeared into the night.
Along the way, Gu Yanshen didn’t mention anything related to the audition, and dropped him at his school gate before leaving.
It wasn’t until Gu Yanshen’s car disappeared from Lu Wenxing’s sight that he withdrew his gaze and walked towards the dormitory building.
There weren’t many students staying at school during the winter holidays, but there were still teachers on duty, and the dormitory was also available as usual, but the cafeteria wasn’t open, so he had to go out to eat or order take-out.
After returning to the dormitory, Lu Wenxing took a shower, laid on the bed and played with his phone for a while, he looked at the time and texted Gu Yanshan.
[ET] Has Teacher Gu arrived home yet?
[ET] I’m home.
[ET] Thank you for taking me to dinner today, rest early.
【. 】 Good night.
Lu Wenxing also told him ‘good night’, then he turned off the lights, but he couldn’t sleep. He couldn’t help thinking of what Gu Yanshen said before he left.
“I hope this time, Wenxing can give me the answer I want.”
After Lu Wenxing woke up, he saw an alert for a Weibo post from Xie Qingfei, and at the bottom was a photo.
The photo was taken in Xie Chengfei’s classroom, on the blackboard, a few big words was written on it.
-No regrets
[x] Inspirational quotes from our class for the college entrance exam.
Lu Wenxing stared at that photo for a long time.
Finally, he exited Weibo and opened the call log then he called back the first phone number.
Since he had decided to withdraw from the industry, he didn’t want to leave with regrets.
–Ringring
The phone rang for a while but no one answered, the ringing and Lu Wenxing’s heartbeat gradually overlapped, it would hang up automatically after a minute, Lu Wenxing’s breathing became more rapid.
–Ringring.
“Hello, Wenxing?”
The familiar cold voice rang out, Lu Wenxing’s heartbeat subconsciously accelerated, he suppressed his heart’s tension and tried to make himself sound calmer.
“Teacher Gu, can I… still participate in the audition?”