Song Shi'an, head down, picked through the tomatoes and eggs without looking up. "I don't want any. School starts tomorrow. I just want to play it safe this year. I'll take on some supporting roles, or even special invitations."
Ji Shuyao was at a loss for words. Half a year had passed, and he still couldn't figure out Song Shi'an's thought process.
The male lead roles that others would fight tooth and nail for are pushed away by him like hot potatoes. He's so frustrated that he's drinking chrysanthemum tea every day to keep things hanging on.
For the next half hour, Ji Shuyao reasoned with them and appealed to their emotions, talking about everything from career planning to commercial value, from fan expectations to market trends, until his lips were almost worn out from talking.
Song Shi'an remained unmoved, responding with "uh-huh" sounds as he poured the chopped tomatoes into the pot and stir-fried them.
Ji Shuyao only shut his mouth after Song Shi'an reduced the sauce over high heat and served the dish.
He lowered his head and smelled it; it actually looked quite approximate. Song Shi'an served two bowls of rice, and the two of them began to eat.
Ji Shuyao wanted to say a few more words of advice, but after taking a bite of scrambled eggs with tomatoes, he swallowed his words and decided to finish his meal before continuing.
It wasn't until he left the villa and closed the door that Ji Shuyao remembered what he had come there for.
He got into the car, slapped his thigh, and picked up his phone to message Song Shi'an: "The lead actor isn't going, but you better take a good look at the new script!"
Song Shi'an replied with a cat nodding emoji. Whew, that was close, I almost lost my life.
When Ji Shuyao saw the cat in his reply, he sighed, tossed his phone onto the passenger seat, and rubbed his temples.
He realized that Song Shi'an had his own unique understanding of casting, and that every performance he gave was indeed a pleasant surprise. He decided to let him be and drove straight away from the villa area.
Song Shi'an took the documents from the table upstairs and lay down on the bed to start flipping through them.
The script tells the story of a male protagonist who travels back to ancient times and becomes rich. He is good at math, physics and chemistry and can go anywhere in the world. It's a very classic plot.
Is he obsessed with period dramas? His already precarious scalp is starting to throb.
I spent two hours reading the script. The beginning was a bit boring, but the further I read, the more meaningful the plot became.
It doesn't feel like a typical nonsensical wish-fulfillment novel. It tells the story of someone gradually becoming incredibly wealthy, enabling ordinary people to support their families and leading the country to prosperity. Overall, it's quite good.
But he was aiming for the role of the female lead's younger brother, Wei Jinghong.
From a young age, he was unruly and rebellious, a typical spoiled brat who frequented brothels, played with crickets, and manipulated people's hearts. His biggest concern was his older sister Wei Jingge, whom he was known as a sister-obsessed person.
The ending was also quite unexpected. The young man, full of youthful vigor, died fighting for his country and family. Wow, another character reversal.
Now I know why TV dramas like to make these kinds of shows; he really enjoys watching them.
I still feel a bit unsatisfied after watching it. Now I know what it feels like for fans to have a heart attack after watching it. I put the script aside and fell asleep in less than three seconds.
The next day, when the alarm rang, my post-holiday blues hadn't worn off, and I just couldn't get out of bed!
He checked his phone; it was still early, he'd sleep for another five minutes.
When I opened my eyes again, it didn't feel like I'd slept for very long; how did an hour pass...?
Since he wasn't in a rush, he leisurely picked out an outfit.
A beige loose-fitting V-neck knit sweater paired with light blue washed wide-leg jeans, the cuffs of which bunch up at the top of white shoes.
I took a close look at myself in the mirror, and it seems like I look a little different lately. Is it just my imagination?
He brushed the stray hairs from his forehead and looked closer. He couldn't possibly be going through puberty again at his age...
I slung my backpack over my shoulder, ran to the empty garage, pulled out my long-forgotten electric scooter, and sped off to school.
He bought a jianbing (Chinese crepe) on the way, and as soon as he got to the dormitory and opened the door, he shouted in a strong voice, "Kids, Dad's home!"
He was met with a life-size cardboard cutout of Thunder, which almost sent him flying.
He leaned back abruptly, almost dropping the jianbing guozi (Chinese crepe) from his hand.
Jiang Ye laughed out loud while lying on the bed, "Hahaha, it seems I'm not the only one who was scared!"
Song Shi'an steadied himself and glanced at the signboard, which was about his height and took up most of the entrance. "What is this? Is it some kind of anime character?"
Chi Xun peeked out from behind the computer, looking at them with a resentful expression. "This is a life-size standee of mine that I specially came several days in advance to snag. It's a limited edition!"
Song Shi'an looked at the sign again and asked curiously, "Is it only sold here?"
Chi Xun sighed, "Who's even in Capital?! All the events are in Capital! If I hadn't seen the news beforehand, I wouldn't even have been able to get a spot in line."
Song Shi'an smiled and handed over the backpack, "These are some local specialties from my hometown, please share them."
Jiang Ye jumped off the bed and snatched the hand that Chi Xun was holding back. "I got it first this time!"
"You already have so many snacks, why are you trying to take them from me!"
Song Shi'an shook his head helplessly. When will they stop being so childish?
He walked to his bed and took out the local specialties one by one from his backpack.
The fermented tofu made by Mother Song, the spicy snack gift pack bought by Father Song, and several packets of brown sugar glutinous rice cakes, a specialty of South Pond Village.
He divided it into three parts, and casually pushed Chi Xun's standee towards him. "You should at least move this standee a bit, so it doesn't startle people every time they open the door."
Chi Xun reluctantly stood up and moved the signboard next to the window.
After finishing his jianbing (Chinese crepe), Song Shi'an took his textbook from the bookshelf and went to his major class.
Before even reaching the teaching building, I saw quite a few people standing outside looking up at it.
Curious, he looked up following their movements. What was up there? The sky was cloudless, the weather was quite nice. He looked away and continued walking towards the classroom, while someone behind him whispered something.
"Is the news reliable? Wasn't today his first major class? He's not going to skip it, is he?"
"I don't know. I've been squatting here for ages and haven't seen it. It's probably not coming."
Song Shi'an sat down in the last row right on time, exhaled, and said he was just in time.
Professor Wang entered with a thermos, glanced around the classroom, and said with a smile, "Students, it's been a long time! How was your Spring Festival? I'm sure you all had a great time."
A few people chimed in with their own comments.
Professor Wang placed his water glass on the podium, adjusted his glasses, and said, "Now that the holiday is over, I hope some of you will take note of the make-up exams next week. If you fail the make-up exam, you'll have to retake the course. You don't want to keep seeing this old man, do you?"
Song Shi'an then remembered that he hadn't checked the score yet, but there shouldn't be any problems. Don't panic, just stay put.
Halfway through a class, he heard a chattering sound outside the window. Turning his head, he saw several faces pressed against the windowpane. He really wanted to yell at them; people can be terrifying!