SM Chapter 5
by VolareChapter 5 Sheng Mingqian, Can You Give Me One More Chance?
Afterwards, Ye Lai lay on top of Sheng Mingqian, his left ear pressed against the position of his heart. Sheng Mingqian’s heartbeat was distant yet powerful, like a sound from beyond the heavens.
“Mingqian, didn’t you say you’d be back on the weekend?”
“What?” Sheng Mingqian’s voice was stern. “Don’t want me to come back?”
Ye Lai shook his head: “Of course not, I want to see you every day. Don’t you have to film today?”
“Daytime scenes. I attended a promotional event in the evening and came back after it ended.”
“When did you get back?” Ye Lai raised his head, only to realize that the bedroom lights were already off. It was pitch black in front of him, and his gaze chased after the direction of Sheng Mingqian’s breathing.
“Eleven o’clock.”
“Ah, if only I had come back earlier, I could have spent three more hours with you, what a pity.”
While Ye Lai was speaking, his fingers were still drawing circles on Sheng Mingqian’s chest. Gradually, he often said such words, the tone was light, and it was impossible to tell how much sincerity there was. Hearing it in Sheng Mingqian’s ears, it sounded more like an off-the-cuff post-coital flirtation.
Ye Lai gave a big yawn, rolled off Sheng Mingqian, and hugged Sheng Mingqian’s waist tightly: “Good night Mingqian, sweet dreams.”
Lying next to Sheng Mingqian always brought a sense of infinite security. Ye Lai indeed had a good dream that night, dreaming of the past.
The day he truly got close to Sheng Mingqian, the good weather was a rich and beautiful scene that no filter could lay out.
Ye Lai debuted at the age of 20 through a talent show, but only became popular in that one summer of the show. After that, he never achieved much, taking on a few MVs, supporting roles in TV series, and some small advertisements and commercial performances.
In this circle where countless idols can emerge overnight and the renewal and iteration is too rapid, Ye Lai is a small actor who has always been wandering outside the thirty-eighth tier. It wasn’t until Zhang Yihao managed to get him an audition opportunity for Sheng Mingqian’s new film “Live Dissection.”
Speaking of luck, the audition opportunity for that role was originally Yang Xingzhou’s, but because he had a car accident and needed to recuperate, Zhang Yihao finally managed to get it for Ye Lai.
Ye Lai didn’t sleep all night on the day he received the audition notice, and shamelessly collapsed the bed board of his rented house. He entered the entertainment circle not for fame and fortune, but just to get one step closer to Sheng Mingqian. He wanted to stand in a place where he could see Sheng Mingqian.
However, after three years of hard work, he could still only see him through the screen.
The role he was auditioning for was the male fourth lead in the movie. That was a marginal character who drifted in society. During the day, he was the only porter who wore a white shirt to the construction site. In that dusty, dirty and chaotic construction team, he was the only “decent person.” But at night, he was the “corpse” covered with lice in the middle of the city, waiting to rot, unwilling and depraved intertwined, twisted and contradictory.
The male fourth lead’s scenes in the movie were not too many, but he was a key figure.
For half a month before the audition, Ye Lai carefully studied the script and the character’s biography, pondered the character’s psychology and personality, and earnestly memorized the lines. In order to better understand the role, Ye Lai tried to experience the character’s living environment and deliberately went to live overnight in a dilapidated low building in a shantytown.
Perhaps it was because he was lucky, or perhaps it was because God had mercy and he was not destined to die. The next morning, as soon as he walked out of the gate, the low building behind him collapsed with a bang. Thick yellow dust swept over his head. Ye Lai, with his back to the low building, was covered in sand and dust, and he couldn’t even open his eyes.
When he completely regained his senses, Ye Lai turned his head blankly, looking at the collapsed building debris, looking at the steel bars and cement piercing into the sky. The fear and lingering fear at that moment also made him better understand the character’s growth path and contradictory psychology.
Ye Lai got up at five o’clock on the day of the audition, specially put on a white shirt that matched the character’s personality, combed his hair meticulously, and wore leather shoes bought from a street stall, which were polished brightly, and the cheap leather shoes exuded a strong leather smell.
The suit pants just covered the leather shoes, not an inch more or an inch less. A white square handkerchief was tucked in the pants pocket. The handkerchief was cut from a white towel for wiping sweat. Ye Lai bought needles and thread and carefully hemmed the edges. The stitches were fine and even. That was what he had practiced for half a month. Finally, he bleached it with bleaching powder.
Ye Lai looked in the mirror for a long time, and only went out after confirming that his clothes and image were right.
–
–
The audition location was in a hotel. When he arrived at the film preparation office, Ye Lai saw the door with the sign “Audition Room” hanging on the corridor.
The staff told him to wait in the rest room first, and someone would call his number when it was his turn.
Ye Lai sat upright on the chair in the rest room, his back straight, his eyes staring at a black spot on the corner of the table, not even blinking.
Sitting next to him were two boys who were also waiting for the audition, and they were whispering to each other.
“Damn, I’m too nervous. I heard that Director Sheng is personally selecting the actors, because the role of the male fourth lead is very special.”
“Director Sheng has very high requirements for the role, and he won’t let go of a single detail. I have to memorize the lines again.”
“I hope the audition is successful,” another boy clasped his hands together and prayed, “I really like Sheng Mingqian.”
Ye Lai’s eyes moved slightly, and he said in his heart, I also like Sheng Mingqian, very…very much.
Sheng Mingqian is a person standing on the top of the mountain, and Ye Lai is still at the foot of the mountain, mixed in with the crowd of people looking up, his sight can be ignored.
But since the age of nineteen, the direction of that sight has never changed or stopped.
Ye Lai stopped his thoughts, took a deep breath, and continued to silently recite the audition lines in his heart.
“Ye Lai, it’s your turn.” An hour later, a staff member suddenly opened the door and came in, calling Ye Lai’s name.
Ye Lai’s heart stopped for a moment, and he stood up quickly. Because the range of motion of getting up was too large, the chair legs rubbed against the floor, making a harsh sound.
The two people next to him retreated in disgust, and were still discussing: “The leather smell on his body is so strong, it’s killing me. Can’t he change to a better pair of shoes?”
Ye Lai stood there foolishly, until the staff at the door called him again impatiently: “Who is Ye Lai, come to audition quickly, if you don’t come, it will be regarded as you automatically giving up the audition opportunity.”
“I am Ye Lai.” Ye Lai anxiously reported his name.
“Hurry up, don’t dawdle.”
The door of the audition room was half-closed, and Ye Lai heard the voices inside.
The woman said: “The kid just now was not bad. At present, I think he is the most suitable for the male fourth lead. What do you think, Director Sheng?”
Ye Lai heard their discussion, and his heart skipped a beat. There were at least seven or eight people who came to audition for the male fourth lead today. He was just one of them. Could it be that they had already decided? Could it be that he had no chance?
Ye Lai wanted to hear Sheng Mingqian’s answer, but he didn’t wait. The staff member saw that he was not moving at the door, pushed him from behind, and pushed him directly in.
“Come in quickly, what are you standing there for?”
Ye Lai staggered a few steps and almost fell. After he stood firm, he raised his head, and his gaze suddenly collided with Sheng Mingqian’s eyes. Those stern eyes were like pine and cypress trees covered with snow in the depths of winter, matched with distinct lips, the whole person looked without any warmth, and Ye Lai was so cold that his legs trembled.
In the middle of the audition room, there were only three tables covered with red tablecloths. The tables were placed with the director’s and casting director’s signs, with their respective names written on the signs.
Less than five meters away, so close, Sheng Mingqian was sitting in the middle of the three in casual sportswear, with a pen and paper in his hand.
Ye Lai forced himself to stand still. Even though he had prepared well before the audition, his throat was still dry at this moment, and it was difficult to even open his mouth to speak.
“Are you ready?” The casting director on the far right by the window was impatient. Seeing that Ye Lai had been staring at Sheng Mingqian in a daze, he reminded him.
Ye Lai blinked, forced his eyes away from Sheng Mingqian’s face, but he failed. He looked at him, his slightly trembling lips opened slightly: “I, I am ready.”
“Then let’s start.” This time it was Sheng Mingqian who spoke, and his voice was as cold as his person.
Ye Lai stood still, adjusted his breathing, bowed slightly and introduced himself: “Hello, directors and teachers, my name is Ye Lai, the role I am auditioning for today is Chi Wen in “Live Dissection”…”
“Okay, no need to introduce yourself,” Sheng Mingqian interrupted him, “Let’s start directly. Audition clip, Chi Wen has a conflict with his co-workers at the construction site…”
Ten minutes later, Ye Lai walked out of the audition room with his head drooping and his eyes blank.
He was too nervous when he saw Sheng Mingqian, and the lines he said were stiff, and his limbs seemed to be rusted. Although the casting director told him to go home and wait for the notice, Ye Lai knew that he definitely had no chance.
The opportunity to get close to Sheng Mingqian was ruined by him, and his efforts these days were all in vain…
Ye Lai sat on the chair in the corridor, rubbed his hands hard on his face a few times, and cursed himself in his heart——
Ye Lai, you are really useless, you have always been so useless, you will mess up everything, you will always be the dead grass that only deserves to grow in the mud pit at the foot of the mountain, waiting for the roots in the soil to slowly rot and die.
The last person finished the audition, with a smile on his face, and waved goodbye to the director before coming out.
Ye Lai put down his hands. The three directors in the audition hall walked out with a stack of folders in their arms. Several people were still discussing the selection of actors.
“The last one was also good. This role can be considered to be selected between the two of them. Director Sheng, which one do you think is more suitable?”
Sheng Mingqian appeared in Ye Lai’s sight again. He didn’t even look at Ye Lai in the corridor, and followed them in the opposite direction of the corridor.
Ye Lai looked at Sheng Mingqian’s back getting further and further away. He was not reconciled, not reconciled to waiting for rot. He stood up and shouted at Sheng Mingqian’s back, not knowing where the strength came from.
“Sheng Mingqian, can you give me one more audition opportunity?”
Ye Lai’s voice echoed in the corridor. The echo hit the wall and floated back to his ears in bits and pieces, knocking on his heart one by one.
Ye Lai’s feet were like stepping on clouds, waiting for the verdict of that back.
The three people turned their heads together. The casting director glanced at Sheng Mingqian to see the expression on his face. Most of the people who came to audition were young juniors, which one of them didn’t respectfully call him Director Sheng?
There was indeed a slight change in Sheng Mingqian’s eyes. The casting director pointed at Ye Lai: “Didn’t I tell you just now? Let you go home and wait for the news.”
Ye Lai didn’t answer his words, just looked at Sheng Mingqian: “Sheng Mingqian, can you give me one more chance?”
There was light from the window at the end of the corridor, all shining on Sheng Mingqian’s body. His eyes fell in a dark shadow area, and Ye Lai couldn’t see the expression on his face.
Just when Ye Lai thought he had no chance at all, Sheng Mingqian suddenly took two steps forward.
Ye Lai’s eyes lit up, knowing that he had a chance. He didn’t hesitate, and didn’t even wait for Sheng Mingqian to speak. He adjusted his breathing and got into the role in one second, re-performing the audition clip just now, standing in the corridor, saying the lines hoarsely after his emotions were full.
“Don’t touch me, look at your dirty faces and hands, you deserve to be maggots in this reinforced concrete, crawling along the dark sewers, I am different from you, I will be successful in the future, I will stand at the top of the city, overlooking everything…”
After Ye Lai finished speaking, he shook his cuffs, straightened his back, took out the white handkerchief from his suit pants pocket, calmly wiped the collar that had no dust, and after wiping it, he slowly shook the handkerchief open, carefully folded it and put it back in his pocket.
Ye Lai performed in the corridor as if no one else was there. Many staff members had gathered in the corridor. Sheng Mingqian stood there with his arms folded, quietly watching Ye Lai.
After the last line and physical action ended, Ye Lai stood up again, impatiently looking for those eyes, and took out the white handkerchief again to wipe the sweat on his forehead that had come out because of his excitement.
Sheng Mingqian looked at the handkerchief and leather shoes in Ye Lai’s hand and asked, “Did you prepare this outfit yourself? The script doesn’t have a white handkerchief and black leather shoes, it only wrote a white shirt and suit pants.”
Ye Lai unfolded the handkerchief to show Sheng Mingqian, and also said his understanding of the role bit by bit. Ye Lai said a lot, but Sheng Mingqian still had that expression.
Ye Lai’s breathing was rapid. When the heartbeat in his throat was about to fall to the ground, he finally waited for Sheng Mingqian to speak.
“Ye Lai, right?”
Ye Lai nodded sharply: “I am Ye Lai.”
“The role of Chi Wen is yours. Go back and wait. The cast and Crew will notify you when it starts.”
The heart in Ye Lai’s throat didn’t fall, and was steadily held up by Sheng Mingqian’s words. He looked at Sheng Mingqian’s peach blossom eyes and smiled, starlight twinkling: “Sheng Mingqian, thank you.”