"Is that so..."
Shuya was a little disappointed, but it was only to be expected.
If experts really were as common as dogs, he would have run into one by now.
"Then how did Grandpa find them?"
"Who knows? Anyway, I've never met them."
Inoue Hikoo shrugged. Now that he'd shown Shuya the materials and had his fill of bragging to his genius son, he wanted to get back to work.
Before leaving, though, he said to Shuya, "I do think you've got a real knack for martial arts, Shu-chan. I've been watching how quickly you've improved lately. Maybe you're what those Great Hua wuxia novels call a martial arts prodigy?"
"Could that be?"
After hearing that, Shuya felt there might be something to it.
Could this... be the real perk of having crossed over?!
Section 46: Aiyah, Don't
Just one day after Shuya's worldview had been turned upside down, he got the chance to face a martial arts expert.
Aoki Shin had barely finished talking about it when it happened.
Jackie Chan had brought people over to sign the contract.
Aoki Shin told the cast to come to the TV station and meet Jackie Chan.
Shuya and Mai weren't the only ones who'd have scenes with Jackie Chan.
Jackie Chan's character also interacted with the heroine after she'd grown up, so the actual heroine would be coming too.
Shuya arrived at the TV station early.
Aoki Shin was already there when he got in.
When Shuya saw him, Aoki Shin was pacing back and forth nervously. He didn't look like a producer at a major TV station at all.
"Uncle Aoki, is it really necessary?"
Aoki Shin shot Shuya a sidelong glance. "What would you know? The big brother is special."
All right, then. He was a true superfan.
Horiuchi Susumu, standing nearby, was much calmer.
Shuya was speechless.
He'd looked up some information yesterday and learned that Jackie Chan was incredibly popular in the Japan Administrative District. Aoki Shin's reaction wasn't all that strange.
What was stranger was the young actress playing the heroine, sitting nearby and trembling uncontrollably.
She looked like she could barely keep her legs together.
Shuya shook his head and spaced out to one side, thinking about qi.
All sorts of evidence now pointed to its existence. Shuya felt he had to do something about it.
If this world had such supernatural powers, he couldn't imagine any transmigrator passing them up.
Even if they weren't as powerful as he'd imagined.
Shuya was completely absorbed in his thoughts and wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone.
It wasn't until Mai arrived that he chatted with her to pass the time.
The two of them talked for a while before they heard Aoki Shin cry out, "What? Are you serious?!"
"Y-yes!"
A production assistant Shuya had barely seen before spoke to him nervously. He apologized repeatedly, then hurried off.
"What happened?"
Seeing the alarm on Aoki Shin's face, Shuya went over to ask.
"...I just got word that the interpreter we'd booked was in a car accident and is in the hospital."
Aoki Shin rubbed his forehead.
"Didn't Mr. Chan bring an interpreter?"
"No. Since we invited them, we wouldn't expect them to hire their own interpreter."
Aoki Shin said gloomily, "What terrible luck. It'll be hard to find an interpreter at the last minute."
This world wasn't like his previous one.
Leaving aside the traffic situation in this era, the real problem was that people from Great Hua weren't very interested in going abroad to study or work.
There were interpreters, but they weren't easy to find at the last minute. They had to be booked in advance.
"I thought Mr. Chan had made a lot of English-language films with Western countries. His English should be pretty good... Never mind, forget I said anything."
Shuya never overestimated the English skills of people in the Japan Administrative District.
They really were that bad.
Aoki Shin's face had gone pale. Jackie Chan was almost there, and now they'd made such a huge blunder.
He was about ready to shut down completely.
He could only send people rushing around the station to look for help, but nobody knew Great Hua Language.
Some people spoke English, but they were either out working or busy with their shows. Nobody was free to come help.
"It's over. It's all over."
Aoki Shin's face was ashen.
Shuya watched coolly from the sidelines.
He didn't rush in to save the day. If things really came down to it, he'd reveal that he knew Great Hua Language and step in as the interpreter.
That was Shuya's strategy for keeping a low profile. He'd been deliberately showing unusual traits in a measured way, letting people across Japan grow accustomed to his differences while carefully cultivating his image as a genius.
According to his plan, he shouldn't reveal that he could speak Great Hua Language for another year or two.
But if he had to, there was no harm in doing it early.
Besides, people across the Japan Administrative District had pretty much gotten used to Shuya's quirks by now. He was just used to being cautious.
Time passed relentlessly. A production assistant came to tell Aoki Shin that Jackie Chan had arrived.
Aoki Shin forced a smile and led his cast and production staff out to greet him.
Shuya blended into the crowd and watched the awkward scene unfold.
Jackie Chan hadn't come alone. He'd brought several muscular men who were over six feet tall.
Jackie Chan himself was quite tall, with rugged, handsome features. He wasn't as muscular as the men accompanying him, but his lean, powerful build was still visible through his clothes, making him a perfect fit for popular tastes.
Maybe Shuya had already made up his mind beforehand, but the moment Jackie Chan walked in, his presence seemed to fill the entire space. Something invisible seemed to swirl around him.
Shuya didn't dare ask anyone if they felt it too. Based on what he'd learned from wuxia novels, an expert like Jackie Chan would probably hear him even if he spoke in a whisper.
He observed them in secret.
Aoki Shin steeled himself and stepped forward. Horiuchi Susumu, the director, wore an expression that said, I have no status, I'm a nobody, don't look at me. He casually hid behind Aoki Shin, ignoring his pleading glance.
Aoki Shin was sweating profusely.
Jackie Chan had no idea what was going on. Smiling brightly, he greeted him in English. "Hello, nice to meet you. I'm Jackie Chan."
He held out his hand.
Aoki Shin nervously wiped his palm before gripping Jackie Chan's hand tightly.
"H-hello!"
He replied haltingly in English. Even if he was terrible at it, at least he could manage a greeting.
But that was as far as he got.
Aoki Shin flailed his hands around in a panic. "Sor, sorry? The, the, trans... trans-what was it? The interpreter? He, he...??? Yes, the car! The car, come? Boom!"
He mimed a car, then exaggeratedly acted out an explosion.
Shuya dug his nails into his thigh, fighting hard not to laugh.
But Jackie Chan was a world-famous star who'd seen plenty. He kept a polite smile and said, "Don't be nervous. Calm down. Hmm, do you understand? Calm... down."
He slowed his speech, carefully enunciating each word.
Unfortunately, Aoki Shin was already in such a panic that he didn't take it in.
Jackie Chan was polite, but the men behind him were another story. They looked like men of action with more muscle than brains.
Muscle Man A turned to the others and said, "What the hell's he saying? Is this guy crazy?"
Muscle Man B shrugged. "How the hell should I know? His English is such a mess, who could understand him?"
Muscle Man C said, "Hey, is he saying the interpreter was in a car accident? Is that why he's apologizing?"
Muscle Man A cried out in surprise. "You can understand that? Come to think of it, Liangzai, you watch Japanese movies all the time, don't you? Get up there and help the boss!"
Muscle Man C—that was Liangzai—was pushed forward by his companions. His face changed, but it was too late to escape.
"Liangzai, you know Japanese too?"
Jackie Chan asked curiously.
"I, I know a few words."
Liangzai's face was full of guilt.
Aoki Shin was overjoyed. Thinking Liangzai knew Japanese, he quickly said, "Sir, you know Japanese? That's wonderful!"
"We're terribly sorry. The interpreter we arranged was hit by a car!"
"By the way, what should we call you?"
"..."
Liangzai started to speak, stopped, then started again.
At last, he managed to squeeze out three words:
"Yamete kudasai?"
Dead silence.
Section 47: You Little Brat, You're a Little Rascal!
The whole place fell silent.
It wasn't just Aoki Shin's side. Jackie Chan's side was just as quiet.
Muscle Man AB's faces twitched. They'd finally figured out what kind of Japanese movies Liangzai watched.
Seeing how awkward things had become, Liangzai cautiously ventured a guess:
"I-ikou?"
"Dame?"
"Ha, hayaku?!"
"Ki...mo..."
Liangzai didn't get the chance to finish.
"Cough, cough. Sorry."
Without changing his expression, Jackie Chan pulled the sweating Liangzai back.
Before you continue