Chapter 12
Shen Wu looked at Fang Ci, searching his mind for the right words. After a few seconds, he found the ones Meng Huaizhi had used before and copied him, saying, “Professor Fang.” That should be correct.
But Wen Qiehua, who was beside him, was taken aback. “Professor Fang…?”
“Ah!” Fang Ci responded cheerfully, smiling warmly. “You’re Shen Wu, right? What are you doing here?”
“Director Wen hired me as a racing consultant.”
The two exchanged casual greetings and a few pleasantries.
Before long, Fang Ci was in a hurry to leave. “Old Wen, Xiao Shen, I have something to attend to, so I’ll be going now.”
Wen Qiehua quickly followed him. “I’ll see you out. Xiao Shen, let’s talk later!”
Once they were out of Shen Wu’s sight, Wen Qiehua immediately put on a different face. “Old Fang, how do you know Xiao Shen? No, why didn’t you help me persuade him? You…”
“I have a lead on the guests for Wonderful Adventure. I need to go back and handle it quickly, so I don’t miss this opportunity,” Fang Ci replied perfunctorily, his steps not slowing. “I remember your drama isn’t in a hurry, right?”
Racing Heartbeat had just started filming and was expected to shoot for another three or four months.
The story of Racing Heartbeat spanned from school to the workplace. The second male lead’s scenes were mainly in the school portion, but Wen Qiehua, unconventionally, had decided to shoot the workplace scenes first, then the school scenes.
The main reason was that he was skeptical about whether Qi Shijun could play a high school student well, so he was delaying it as much as possible.
Therefore, even without the second male lead, the crew could still operate in an orderly manner for the time being.
Fang Ci spoke as he walked, looking very anxious. “I have a way to get Meng Huaizhi. I’ll treat you to a meal after it’s done!”
“Do I need you to treat me to a meal? Old Fang! Don’t change the subject, I want him to play my second male lead…”
“I told you, I’ll definitely help you!”
“I know what you’re like when you’re lying!”
“I really have a way, I’ll tell you next time we have a meal…”
“Hey, don’t go.”
Fang Ci couldn’t win against Wen Qiehua. He thought for a moment and said, “This kid… ahem, might be different from the other young actors you’ve met. His main job is a race car driver, so he doesn’t care about an acting opportunity that’s handed to him.”
Wen Qiehua sighed. “I can see that.”
But Shen Wu fought hard on the racetrack, fearless and brave, giving his all in every small race. For someone like that, if he intended to get a piece of the entertainment industry pie, his attitude shouldn’t be so negative.
Besides, he was someone Meng Huaizhi treated differently.
Fang Ci had a sudden realization. “Could it be that you were too enthusiastic and he thought you were a scammer?”
Wen Qiehua rolled his eyes. “He even praised me for being responsible and said that there must be many actors willing to work under me.”
“I get it now,” Fang Ci figured out the cause and effect, and his guess was spot on. “He’s never acted before. Even if he didn’t think you were a scammer, he’d be worried that he wouldn’t act well and would drag down the crew.”
Wen Qiehua was stunned, clearly remembering something.
“Ahem,” Fang Ci covered his lips and lowered his voice. “For a kid like this, it’s not impossible to use a little trick, play the victim, and say that the crew will be ruined without him…”
Just, don’t let Meng Huaizhi know that this was his suggestion.
The two directors walked away, their voices lively.
“Hey!”
Shen Wu got out of the nanny van and looked back at the sound. It was a smiling Nan Dengwei.
His smile was sincere and from the heart, making one feel like they were being caressed by a spring breeze.
“Shen Wu, hi, my name is Nan Dengwei,” Nan Dengwei introduced himself gracefully. Halfway through, he lowered his head in embarrassment. “…I play the male lead’s sidekick in the drama.”
Shen Wu’s attitude was lukewarm as he nodded. “Mm, I know.”
Nan Dengwei’s smile grew even brighter. “Thank you for what happened this morning.”
He thanked Shen Wu openly, without caring that such an act might lead to him, who was already isolated and helpless, being bullied even more severely on set.
Shen Wu was just a racing consultant. He wouldn’t be here often and couldn’t help Nan Dengwei out every time. He must have known this, yet he still chose to come and thank Shen Wu.
He was indeed just like he was described in the novel: a warm, kind, optimistic, and unyielding little sun.
A perfect match for the cold and unapproachable Meng Huaizhi.
Shen Wu cleared his thoughts and offered a smile in return. “You’re welcome.”
“It’s almost time, let’s hurry to the set,” Nan Dengwei suggested.
The afternoon shoot was about to begin. The actors were resting in their respective spots, reading scripts, playing on their phones, touching up their makeup, or chatting.
The female lead of Racing Heartbeat, Lin Yanran, was different from the male lead, Qi Shijun. She was a talented young actress selected by Wen Qiehua through auditions, with a clean background.
Among the popular young actresses, she was one of the most beautiful, and her acting was also outstanding. Unfortunately, her personality was a bit too mild. She didn’t fight, didn’t grab, didn’t cause trouble. For several years, she had been stuck in a state of being not quite at the top but not at the bottom either, just like Wen Qiehua.
Lin Yanran’s real personality was that of a typical young girl, who loved to eat melon seeds, gossip with her friends, and admire handsome guys.
A short-haired girl played Lin Yanran’s best friend in the drama, and their relationship in private was also good.
The two were whispering about something when the short-haired girl suddenly exclaimed, “Really!? Are you really going to be on the second season of Wonderful Adventure?”
“You’d better not tell anyone. I signed a confidentiality agreement, so I can’t announce my participation now,” Lin Yanran said mysteriously, then changed the subject. “By the way, is Qi Shijun here yet? I need to run lines with him first.”
The short-haired girl’s expression was odd. “He’s over there showing off to a group of people, saying that he just had a drink with Director Fang Ci and secured a spot on Wonderful Adventure.”
This time, it was Lin Yanran’s turn to exclaim, “Really!?” She paused, a trace of disgust showing in her beautiful, bright eyes. “If he keeps showing off like that, he’s dancing on Director Fang’s last nerve. Even if he was given a spot, it could be taken back, believe it or not.”
In the end, she lowered her voice and muttered to herself, “Believing he can get on Wonderful Adventure is less believable than Meng Huaizhi parachuting in.”
The short-haired girl smiled. “Then I’d rather believe he can get on.”
Lin Yanran smiled.
Shen Wu and Nan Dengwei returned to the set. On the way, he received a call from his manager, Nie Bo.
“Shen Wu, I have great news! Didn’t you dislike the N-th male lead role? Now, you don’t have to worry about your acting skills not being good enough for a main role either.” Even through the phone, Nie Bo’s excitement was palpable. “Do you know the hottest variety show right now, Wonderful Adventure? Director Fang Ci personally sent someone to deliver the contract. As long as you nod, you can sign it right away.”
Shen Wu vaguely remembered meeting Fang Ci at the KTV last time. Meng Huaizhi had said that Fang Ci wanted to invite him on a variety show, and it seemed to be Wonderful Adventure.
Shen Wu didn’t know if they had reached an agreement and hadn’t asked at the time. But from what he knew of Meng Huaizhi, the latter would most likely not accept an invitation to a reality show.
Nie Bo added, “The guests who have been confirmed so far are all popular artists. There are only two spots left, and they actually gave one to you… You should come back and sign it as soon as you have time. This opportunity won’t come again.”
Shen Wu grasped the key point: there were only two spots left.
Such a scarce spot, and one of them was given to him.
If the other spot was intended for Meng Huaizhi, then even if Fang Ci couldn’t get Meng Huaizhi and had to settle for second best, the last guest would have to be at least a first-tier artist with outstanding skills.
Not long after he hung up the phone, he happened to pass by Qi Shijun.
Qi Shijun didn’t pay any attention to this racing consultant. His current thorn in the side was the annoyingly good-looking Nan Dengwei. He saw Nan Dengwei approaching and ordered arrogantly, “You, stop.”
Nan Dengwei smiled politely. “Qi-ge, what’s wrong?”
“Take a milk tea from here,” Qi Shijun was generous for once. “I bought them for the crew.”
“Thank you, Qi-ge,” Nan Dengwei smiled and went to pick a milk tea from the bag, unceremoniously using both hands to take one cup each.
One for himself, and the other for Shen Wu.
Qi Shijun was taken aback by this, but he was in a good mood and not interested in bickering with the petty Nan Dengwei. He added, “I’m going to be on the second season of Wonderful Adventure next month. We should film our scenes together as soon as possible, or you’ll have to adjust your schedule according to mine. But you’re usually free all day, right?”
His words were a blatant show-off of his upcoming participation in the popular variety show, and also a subtle jab at the obscure Nan Dengwei for being idle, with nothing to do all day and no other jobs.
Nan Dengwei replied cooperatively, “Is it Director Fang Ci’s show?”
Qi Shijun seized the opportunity to show off again. “Yes, he just left. I had a few drinks with him and secured a spot. You’ve probably never met him, right?”
Shen Wu was silent, lost in his own thoughts.
Just now, his manager Nie Bo had called him. There were only two spots left on Wonderful Adventure.
One spot Fang Ci wanted to reserve for Meng Huaizhi. Even if he really couldn’t get Meng Huaizhi, it wouldn’t be so bad as to let Qi Shijun pick up the scraps.
As for the other spot, the contract had already been sent to Star Entertainment, and Nie Bo was anxiously waiting for him to go back and sign it.
Shen Wu and Nan Dengwei walked away, out of Qi Shijun’s line of sight.
“Ahhh, I’m so angry!” Nan Dengwei clearly saw Shen Wu as one of his own and vented his frustration without holding back.
“Why does it have to be Qi Shijun! What’s so great about him? I’m so mad,” Nan Dengwei said. “Shen-ge, I think you’d be much better on Wonderful Adventure than him. It’s a pity you debuted late. If Director Fang had met you, he would definitely think you’re better…”
Shen Wu was slightly taken aback by his words, then coughed lightly.
Fang Ci really did look for him.
And Qi Shijun, who was acting all high and mighty on the set…
Most likely has no chance.
Fang Ci swiftly handled the variety show invitation for Shen Wu and rushed to M+ Entertainment without stopping.
“This time, you have to be on Wonderful Adventure, no matter what,” Fang Ci said mysteriously.
But Meng Huaizhi was unmoved, saying the same thing again, “I’m not going on a variety show. Professor Fang, if it’s still about this, you don’t have to waste your time coming here again.”
“I invited Shen Wu,” Fang Ci said.
Meng Huaizhi looked up and said faintly, “That’s good.”
Then he lowered his eyes again.
“Wonderful Adventure will air next month. It’s a good opportunity to help him stabilize the popularity from the trending topic. He doesn’t have any representative works. Going on a variety show to gain and solidify fans is a good choice,” Meng Huaizhi said, reviewing the documents in his hand while talking to Fang Ci. “Is the contract signed?”
“The contract has been sent to Star Entertainment,” Fang Ci only answered half of Meng Huaizhi’s question.
Meng Huaizhi had to stop writing and look up.
Fang Ci smiled and continued, “A contract needs to be signed by both parties to be effective, right?”
Meng Huaizhi’s brow furrowed slightly, and his already cold gaze grew even colder.
Fang Ci had repeatedly bothered him using his status as a teacher, and Meng Huaizhi had given him face. Thinking about what he was about to say, Fang Ci’s throat tightened, and his palms grew clammy.
“As long as you agree to be on Wonderful Adventure, I’ll sign the contract with Shen Wu.”
Meng Huaizhi: “Are you giving me conditions?”
Fang Ci gave a wry smile. “With Shen Wu’s current fame, he wouldn’t get a spot on Wonderful Adventure. But if you’re willing to do me this favor, I’m willing to do him this favor. ‘Good friends’ on a reality show together, looking out for each other, isn’t that a good thing?”
Meng Huaizhi didn’t reply.
After a long moment, he rubbed his brow, but the faint layer of frost still wouldn’t melt. His tone didn’t betray much emotion. “Professor Fang, you should go back first.”
Fang Ci’s heart was in his throat, but he pretended to be cheerful. “Then I’ll leave your contract here. Remember to take a look at it when you have time.”
He threw down the hot potato of a contract with a sense of relief and hurriedly fled Meng Huaizhi’s office. Just as he pulled the closed door open a crack and the fresh air from outside filled his lungs, a barely audible sound came from behind him—
“Mm.”
Like a thin layer of snow falling on a pedestrian’s warm shoulder, melting in an instant.
