How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 339 Visit
After a journey of more than half an hour, the bus finally arrived at the hotel.

Zhang Wen led the person to the pre-booked room and then waited in the corridor.

"Teacher Zhang, do I not need to stay here anymore?" Qiao Shuxin came out of the room. Everyone else was packing their luggage, but she was empty-handed and had nothing to pack.

"You'll all be classmates from now on, so get together more often in the evenings to chat and look out for each other," Zhang Wen said after hearing this.

Qiao Shuxin thought about it and felt that what Teacher Zhang said made sense. Maybe she could be assigned to the same dormitory as Han Zhixue, Zhou Lingyi and Sun Meng in the future, so she said "Oh".

Just then, another person came out of the room; it was Han Zhixue and her mother.

The two didn't have much luggage, just some changes of clothes, which could be put directly into their suitcases without needing to be taken out, so the process was relatively quick.

"Teacher Zhang, I'm sorry to have troubled you with this gathering," Han Suyun said politely, no longer as cold as she had been when they first met.

"It's no trouble at all. I'm more than happy that you parents could bring your children," Zhang Wen said with a smile.

Although this gathering will cost a lot of money, it will also bring a lot of customers to Xingxiang Art Examination Training Center, so he won't lose out this time.

Consider it money spent on advertising.

So, when you calculate it that way, he still made a profit.

"Teacher Zhang, there's something I've always wanted to tell you." Han Suyun suddenly became serious.

"What did you say?" Zhang Wen asked curiously. Could it be that she had taken a liking to him?
Although she is over forty years old, she has maintained a good figure and well-maintained skin due to her long-term work in dance. While she may not be considered stunningly beautiful, she still retains a certain charm.

“Teacher Zhang, you are a good teacher,” Han Suyun said.

"what?"

Zhang Wen was slightly taken aback, thinking: Had he been given a "good teacher" card?
Besides, isn't it common knowledge that he's a good teacher?

“Teacher Zhang, after leaving Beijing and returning to Shanghai, I have been reflecting on my mistakes over the years. I shouldn’t have disregarded Zhixue’s feelings and imposed my obsession on her. Fortunately, I met you, otherwise this mistake would have continued and eventually led to tragedy,” Han Suyun said with a face full of remorse.

Other parents sacrifice a lot for their children, but she makes her child sacrifice a lot for herself.

If she hadn't met Teacher Zhang, she would still be walking down the wrong path, unaware of her mistakes.

“Zhixue’s mother, you don’t have to completely deny your own efforts. The reason why Zhixue is so outstanding now is entirely due to you. Without your efforts, where would she be today?” Zhang Wen said seriously.

Selfish as it may be, it cannot be denied that the other party did indeed cultivate Han Zhixue into a talent. Otherwise, how could a high school student have a classical dance skill point of 55?

It's worth noting that many of the trainees at Tianxi Media don't even have such high dance skills.

"Sigh!" Han Suyun sighed deeply after hearing this, and said with a wry smile, "Teacher Zhang, please don't try to comfort me. I'm not a good mother."

"Mom, I've never blamed you. Actually, I love dancing very much, but compared to dancing, I'd rather be an actress," Han Zhixue said, taking her mother's hand.

“Zhixue, Mom respects your choice and hopes you can become a good actress,” Han Suyun said.

Han Zhixue's eyes reddened with emotion, and she finally hugged her mother.

"Zhixue's mother, please rest assured, now that I've led her down this path, I will guide her all the way," Zhang Wen said responsibly.

Han Zhixue was the best overall candidate for art exams he had ever seen.

He had even planned to sign the other person directly to his name after graduation, and with the help of god-level songs and scripts, they would definitely become a hit across the country.

"Teacher Zhang, what about me? Aren't you going to take me with you?" Qiao Shuxin, who was standing to the side, was very envious. Even if she got into Beijing Film Academy, she still wanted to follow this Teacher Zhang.

“You have your aunt to take care of you, so what’s the point of me taking care of you?” Zhang Wen said after hearing this.

The Gao family is an artistic family, a prominent figure in Beijing's entertainment circle. Qiao Shuxin's acting career will inevitably be smooth sailing, and he doesn't need to worry about her.

"..."

Qiao Shuxin fell silent.

A few days ago, her aunt told her that she must study hard after going to Beijing Film Academy, and that she would personally take care of her in the future.

As they were talking, the other parents also came out of the room.

When everyone learned that Teacher Zhang had paid for five nights' accommodation in advance so that they could enjoy their stay in Beijing for a few more days without worry, they were touched by this thoughtful gesture and felt incredibly fortunate that their child had met such a guide.

It must be the blessings of our ancestors that I was able to encounter such a good teacher.

Zhang Wen counted the people and, after confirming that everyone had arrived, led them to the hotel restaurant.

As the old saying goes: dumplings before getting on the train, noodles upon getting off.

Zhang Wen ordered a bowl of noodles with soybean paste for everyone, along with some refreshing side dishes. Lunch was just a simple meal, while the welcome dinner would be the main event.

If the welcome dinner is held at noon, and everyone eats, drinks, and chats, will we still be able to go to Tianxi Media in the afternoon? We can't just rush through it all, can we?

Since we're going to have a visit, we should do it in detail to satisfy the students' curiosity, rather than just giving them a cursory glance.

This would make him seem like a perfunctory teacher.

Perhaps eager to visit Tianxi Media, the trainees ate incredibly fast. Zhou An only took five minutes, while Qiao Shuxin, who took the longest, only took twelve minutes.

Those who knew were eager to visit the entertainment company, but those who didn't might have thought it was a special forces tour.

Soon, the group left the restaurant in a large group, boarded the bus parked outside the hotel, and headed to their first stop of the day: Tianxi Media.

The bus drove along the ring road for about twenty minutes and soon arrived at our destination.

The car door slowly opened, and students and parents got off one after another. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the modern building in front of them, looking at this star-making factory.

More than twenty people walked into the company gate together, startling Yu Qing, who was standing at the front desk, so much so that she stopped what she was doing, thinking that they had come to the company as a group of fans.

However, upon seeing Teacher Zhang Wen walking among the crowd, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

"Teacher Zhang, this is..." Yu Qing, the receptionist, asked while curiously observing the people behind Teacher Zhang.

The group included both men and women, ranging from teenagers to those in their forties and fifties; judging from the composition, it did not resemble a fan club.

“These are my students and their parents. The students are all new students from Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Film Academy this year. I brought them to visit Tianxi Media, firstly to let them experience the environment of a top entertainment media company in China, and secondly to recruit talent for the company. President Li knows this,” Zhang Wen said.

Yu Qing nodded in understanding, without doubting Teacher Zhang's words. Firstly, there was no reason for the other party to lie to her, and secondly, if they were to lie, they wouldn't have brought up President Li.

Who is Mr. Li?
That's the company's boss.

Using Mr. Li's name to deceive her, what's the difference between that and falsely conveying an imperial edict?
Thinking of this, Yu Qing looked at the people behind Teacher Zhang and gave a professional smile, "Welcome to Tianxi Media. I wish you all a pleasant afternoon. Please come in."

These young people are all freshmen from Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Academy, definitely rising stars. They might even sign with Tianxi Media in the future. How could she, a mere receptionist, dare to neglect them? Zhang Wen secretly gave Yu Qing a thumbs up, then led everyone towards the elevator.

Both elevators stopped on the same floor, with the first one arriving at the artist training department.

"Everyone, this is the artist training department of Tianxi Media." Zhang Wen stepped out of the elevator and introduced the department to the students and parents behind him.

"Hello, Teacher Zhang."

"Teacher Zhang, you're back."

The training department staff greeted Zhang Wen warmly upon seeing him.

Zhang Wen responded to each of them and led everyone toward the practice room.

When the students and parents saw how polite the other staff members were to Teacher Zhang, they immediately realized that Teacher Zhang held a special position in the training department.

Everyone has only heard that Teacher Zhang works as a training instructor at Tianxi Media, but now it seems that even if he is a training instructor, he is definitely not a simple one.

"The work of the artist training department is to tailor personalized training plans for artists based on their characteristics, market demands, and the company's development plans, clearly defining the training objectives and content..."

As Zhang Wen walked, he introduced the place to everyone.

"Here, we will provide professional skills training for artists, such as acting, vocal music, dance, etc., to improve their abilities in these core areas. In addition, we will also provide image shaping and management for artists, including etiquette training, such as standing posture, sitting posture, and walking posture..."

"The Artist Training Department mainly serves two types of people: established artists and new trainees. Today, I'm taking you on a tour of the daily training of new trainees."

Zhang Wen arrived at the outside of a practice room, grasped the doorknob, and gently pushed the door open. Music was coming from inside, and a dozen or so young people in their twenties were dancing to the rhythm.

They swung their arms and swayed their bodies with abandon, every movement full of power and tension, including some highly difficult moves.

Their T-shirts were already soaked with sweat, but no one stopped.

The trainees watched intently, their hearts filled with astonishment.

Apart from He Xingyi and Zhou An, who applied for film and television directing, the others had all been exposed to dance, some even starting to learn it from a young age, and some even participated in many performances and won some awards.

However, compared to these trainees, the difference is not even a little bit.

Among them, perhaps only Han Zhixue has the strength to fight back.

She dances so well, and she's still just a trainee?

What level do you need to reach to debut?
Originally, everyone was very happy to pass the art exam and receive the admission notice. They were filled with a sense of superiority, believing that they had already stepped into the entertainment industry and that becoming a star was just around the corner.

But now, seeing these trainees dancing so well and still training hard to get a chance to debut, my sense of superiority vanished instantly.

Is the entertainment industry really this complicated?

Of course, some people are just trying to comfort themselves.

My goal is to be an actor; I don't need to be a great dancer.

However, next, under Teacher Zhang's guidance, they arrived at a performance classroom.

The trainees here are performing in groups, and the content of their performances consists of exciting clips from plays and movies.

Watching everyone's performance, those who had been comforting themselves before could no longer find any reason to comfort themselves, feeling as if their souls had been hit by a thousand points of damage.

This isn't about broadening their horizons; it's about bringing them here to be taught a lesson.

Next, Zhang Wen led the students and parents on a tour of the vocal training, dialogue training, physical training, and so on, taking an hour and a half to complete the tour.

However, after the visit, all nine students who were originally full of energy became listless, and even Qiao Shuxin was no exception.

She had visited Tianxi Media, but never the training department, and never observed the trainees' daily training.

In comparison, her usual dance training and performance training are incredibly easy.

"Teacher Zhang, were all those people we just looked at trainees?" Zhou Lingyi's father couldn't help but ask, feeling that any one of them could easily outshine his daughter.

"Mm." Zhang Wen nodded.

"How much longer until they debut?" Mr. Zhou continued to ask, a question that was also of great concern to other parents and trainees.

If they can debut quickly, people can feel more at ease. But if it takes a long time, it's a bit discouraging.

“The training department conducts an exam for all trainees at the end of each month. If they pass, they will receive some resources, such as participating in talent shows or auditions. If they are lucky, they can debut; if they are unlucky, they will have to go back to the training camp. The people you just saw were trainees who failed the monthly exam,” Zhang Wen said.

"..."

Everyone was speechless for a moment.

None of the trainees I just saw passed the exam?

This exam must be incredibly difficult!

If it were them, they would probably be completely wiped out.

"Why are you all silent?" Zhang Wen asked with a smile.

"Teacher Zhang, that's so discouraging," Zhou Lingyi said softly.

“Yes, compared to them, I feel like I’m nothing. They can’t even debut, so I have no chance at all.” Sun Meng’s voice was full of disappointment.

The others nodded in agreement with Sun Meng's idea.

Only He Xingyi and Zhou An, who are studying film and television directing, seem to be doing better.

"What, you're already discouraged?" Zhang Wen said nonchalantly, "These trainees are generally two or three years older than you, so it's normal that they're more outstanding than you. Once you go to Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Theatre Academy, with systematic learning and professional guidance, you will definitely surpass them."

"Can you do it?" Wang Jiayi asked, sounding a little unsure.

"Of course, the performance programs at Beijing Film Academy and Huaxi Academy are among the best in the country, and they are cradles of stars. Every year, their students become the focus of attention in the entertainment industry. When you receive your admission notices, you already have a halo around you. As long as you study hard, you can debut in two or three years, and you might even become famous overnight."

Zhang Wen brought the students to visit the training department so that they would know how fierce the competition in the entertainment industry is, and not to become complacent just because they were admitted to Beijing Film Academy or Huaxi Academy of Drama.

Now that the goal has been achieved, it's natural to offer encouragement and boost confidence.

This was his last lesson for these students.

……

(End of this chapter)