The birth of an actor

Chapter 18 Neighbors
Anxin didn't sleep very well that night.

I've been dreaming all along.

You could even say that the dreams I had were quite terrifying.

In his dream, a figure wearing a McDonald's hat and an employee shirt, just like Li Qiao from "Comrades: Almost a Love Story," was constantly challenging him.

It's not quite right to say they're competing; it should be said that... Anxin has been watching Li Qiao and Li Xiaojun's lives in her dreams.

But if it were just that, it wouldn't be enough to be called terrified.

The most terrifying thing was that the Li Qiao in her dream was not Zhang Manyu, but herself.

Wearing his own face, he stood in front of the counter, selling to Li Ming, a McDonald's customer who had just arrived from the mainland and couldn't understand Cantonese. Together with Li Ming, they sold Teresa Teng cassette tapes, drank soy milk, ate glutinous rice balls, and finally, on a rainy night…

"!"

"Eeeeeeeeeee~ya!"

"Hmm~TEN~"

"Eh~~~"

"Wa ...

When I was awakened by a nightmare, I heard all sorts of strange noises at the same time.

"..."

Anxin paused for a moment, looking at the dim light outside, and subconsciously glanced at the clock on the wall.

4:40.

He had a terrible night's sleep after arriving in Yanjing.

After he came to his senses, he realized that the sound was coming from outside the door.

Fortunately, he recognized it, otherwise he would have been wondering which reckless person dared to disturb his peaceful dream.

Oh no.

It's a nightmare.

Recalling the scene in his dream where he and Li Ming kissed and made love, a chill ran down his spine again, causing him to shiver violently.

I wondered if this was the price of experiential learning?
As he pondered this, he got out of bed, pushed open the door, and went out.

I wanted to see what was going on.

As soon as I opened the door, I heard it even more clearly.

"Ah~ Ah~~ Ah~~~ Ah~~~~~"

The good news is the sound of human voices.

Bad news... What kind of lunatic would make this noise before 5 a.m.?

He was speechless.

But you can tell the sound is coming from right next door.

And... why does this sound like Peking Opera?
He was speechless, wondering who his neighbor was who was so inconsiderate. But the urge to urinate made him quickly walk out the door and run towards the public toilet at the alley entrance.

As he walked past, he glanced at the door next door.

The door was tightly closed, but some creaking noises could be heard coming from inside.

It's a bit noisy.

A moment later, after relieving himself, he started walking home. Just as he passed this house, he heard a song:
"Today, let's drink to our victory!"

"Until my ambitions are fulfilled, I vow never to give up!"

"There's plenty of time to show my skills later~~~"

"Willing to shed blood and sweat to write history... Oh oh~~~"

The sound grew closer and closer, as if it were only separated by a door.

An Xin stopped in her tracks, and the next second, after a thud in the door latch, the dark red door opened.

First, a birdcage came out, and then an old man wearing a shirt, gray trousers, and sandals with a "clattering" sound came out.

The first thing that struck An Xin when she saw the old man was his eyes.

Can't tell what it feels like.

It's not big, but it's not small either.

But that's not the point. The point is the old man's eyes... they were very bright.

Not right either.

That's not how it should be described.

Well... how should I put it?

Anxin looked at the old man in front of her, who was clearly also somewhat surprised.

From his eyes to his posture.

The old man just stood there at the door, and he had an air of... the kind of presence that comes with war and conquest.

Especially those eyes.

Bright and piercing eyes.

It's the kind of thing that makes people unconsciously stare at you and can't look away once they see it.

Even with a rather comical, powerful hairstyle, the flaws don't detract from the overall beauty.

"..."

"..."

Anxin looked at him with relief, and he, whose tone had abruptly stopped, also noticed Anxin.

After exchanging glances, the old man spoke first:
"Want to take a stroll?"

"Uh……"

Anxin paused for a moment, then nodded politely:

Good morning.

"Okay, good morning, see you later."

After saying that, he picked up the birdcage and left, and Anxin could hear him humming to himself:

"When Luo Cheng saw that I had bitten my teeth, he cursed me as a shameless little lackey..."

Lopsided.

Is this old man a Peking Opera singer?

Anxin was a little puzzled and walked back into the house step by step.

I definitely can't sleep.

He stood in the yard for a moment, then went back into the house and took out the book "An Actor Prepares".

He hasn't received his acceptance letter yet, and he's currently doing nothing.

Perhaps we should study it more thoroughly.

Because... just last night, he discovered the fun in acting.

It's like a child finding a brand new toy.

This trip... was unexpectedly interesting.

He's even considering this job as one of his "slacking off" options once he's financially independent.

Since you're interested, why not think about it more?

……

He read for a while until his stomach growled, then he snapped out of his reverie.

I checked the time and it was already past 6 o'clock.

He has no affection for the breakfast culture in Yanjing. He thought it was greasy when he was in school, and he still does now.

But we still have to eat out today.

He was going to Renmin University to check out that Sichuan restaurant.

So I washed my face and brushed my teeth, and just as I was riding my motorcycle out, I ran into the old man carrying a birdcage coming back.

Seeing Anxin riding a motorcycle, the old man was taken aback, glanced at the door, and asked:
"Have you eaten?"

"Uh... Hi, I was just about to go out to eat."

Are you an employee of this store?

"No, the shop is run by my uncle. I came here to study in September and am staying here temporarily. It's close to our school."

If Anxin only said a few simple words, it would be fine, but when he spoke in long sentences, the old man could tell that he had a Northeastern accent.

"Are you from Northeast China too?"

"Correct."

Where are you from?

"Soothing the pine trees".

"Oh?"

The old man's eyes lit up:
"Next to Changbai Mountain?"

"You know?"

"Yes, I know. Hey, I have a question for you. Do you know about a medicinal herb in your area called Tripterygium wilfordii?"

Anxin was taken aback.

He asked instinctively, "They don't sell it in Yanjing?"

The old man was immediately happy:

"you know?"

"Yes, I know it. It's used to treat bone diseases and rheumatism."

"Can you get it? I asked at your house before, but you didn't have it. You live in Fusong, do you know anyone who can get this?"

An Xin found it somewhat absurd and asked in bewilderment:

"Isn't this something that every traditional Chinese medicine shop has?"

"What I want is genuine Changbai Mountain thunder vine."

"...Wild?"

"Yeah."

A look of expectation appeared on the old man's face:
Can you get your hands on it?

Anxin thought for a moment and said:

“If you’re talking about fresh ones, I can’t give them to you. That stuff is poisonous and needs to be processed before it can be used. If I give it to you and something goes wrong, I can’t afford the risk. But if you’re talking about processed wild Tripterygium wilfordii, I can get it.”

"……you sure?"

Perhaps because he agreed too readily, the old man felt a little uneasy.

I'm relieved and happy.

Tripterygium wilfordii is indeed a traditional Chinese medicine.

but……

What to say.

In Changbai Mountain, ginseng is the rarest thing. As for other things, it's just a matter of whether the mountain hunters want to pick them or not, not whether they can get them at all.

So, Anxin nodded:

"Yes, my grandfather was a mountain herder, and I would encounter quite a lot of those things every time I went into the mountains."

"!"

Upon hearing this, the old man seemed to have his doubts dispelled and said directly:
"Could you get me some?"

"Sure, how much do you want?"

How many?

"I don't know. That stuff likes to grow on hillsides; it doesn't have a fixed habitat in the Changbai Mountains. But it's not worth much, so we don't collect it much. If you want to use it, I'll call home in a bit and see how much I can get."

"Okay! I'll calculate it as eighty-one jin for you, alright?"

"So expensive?"

"...?"

When Anxin said this, the old man was speechless.

He wondered to himself, who was the customer, him or the child?

So he explained:
"Pharmacies usually charge around 25 or 30 yuan for wild ones, and around 40 to 50 yuan for wild ones. But those are all from the south. What I want is wild Tripterygium wilfordii that grows in Changbai Mountain. As long as it's the right product, this price is fine, okay?"

"Row."

Anxin readily agreed:

"But let me make this clear first, that stuff takes time to process. If I remember correctly, after harvesting it, you have to soak it in water for two or three days, then slice it and repeatedly dry and soak it. The whole process takes at least a week. And it'll take even longer to send it to me..."

"I can wait as long as the goods are right. Kid, what's your name?"

"Peace of mind. Peace of mind in the sense of safety, peace of mind in the sense of heart. What is your surname?"

"No need for formalities, my surname is Ye."

"Uncle Ye, I'll call home in a bit and tell them about it. Is that alright?"

"...You can really get your hands on it?"

"Ha~"

Anxin chuckled softly and said:

“This stuff is everywhere in Changbai Mountain. If you’re worried, I’ll bring it to you directly after I get it. If it’s not the right thing, I won’t take a penny, okay?”

Perhaps it was his confident attitude that brought a smile to the old man's face:
"Alright, then I'll wait for your message?"

"Okay. I'm off then."

"Go."

The old man smiled and nodded:
"Come visit us when you have time; a close neighbor is worse than a distant relative."

"Row."

Anxin responded again and rode off on her motorcycle.

He still kept this matter in mind, but he was puzzled as to why the old man insisted on using the thunder vine from Changbai Mountain...

Aren't those things everywhere?

What's so new about it?

……

Around 6 or 7 a.m., he rushed to the familiar yet unfamiliar Renmin University, taking advantage of the morning breeze.

Before even entering the school gate, I just looked at the surrounding streets and felt a strange and unfamiliar sadness.

There is no going back.

But then... everything came back to normal.

At the same time, he also saw the Sichuan restaurant owned by Liu Qiangdong.

In his previous life, after starting school, he worked part-time at this store as a dishwasher.

I have to admit, Dong Ge is kind-hearted.

At the time, he was paid ten yuan a day.

Just go around lunchtime and after 9 pm every day.

Wash dishes and clean.

Three hundred a month.

96 years is a long time for a student.

It was during his work that he discovered something: the chef in the kitchen and the cashier at the front desk were dating.

At that time, the restaurant's cashier system was that when customers ordered, the waiters would write it on the menu, and the menu would be copied into two copies, one in the kitchen and one at the front desk. The two copies would be checked daily to calculate the revenue.

After these two started dating, it was as if they were on the same side.

When the waiters took orders, there were ten tables of customers. Initially, they only recorded the orders for eight tables. The remaining two tables were simply told to the kitchen verbally, without using a menu.

Later, it gradually escalated.

From eight tables, to seven tables, then to six tables... Keep in mind, the number of people who can wash dishes without worry is right there.

At first he didn't care, but as he gradually realized something was wrong, he hesitated for a while.

Because the chef was also very kind to him.

I would buy him a bottle of water whenever I had a spare moment, or give him ten yuan and ask him to buy me a pack of cigarettes that cost three yuan. I would then give him the remaining seven yuan.

Looking back now, I was so naive back then...

They didn't even notice such an obvious bribery tactic.

After realizing this, he was incredibly naive and, without much thought, told Liu Qiangdong about it.

Liu Qiangdong then realized why his restaurant business was getting worse and worse...

But that's what's strange about this guy. Other bosses in this situation wouldn't even need to think; they'd just fire the cook and cashier. But he didn't. An Xin remembers that he called everyone together for a meeting, basically saying, "You all know what you did, so I won't say more. The lease expires at the end of the year, and I'm not going to take care of this shop anymore. Do whatever you want with it."

He just abandoned the restaurant.

But when he left, he still had a debt of one or two hundred thousand yuan to the merchants who supplied him with vegetables and meat.

Looking back now, it really seems absurd.

Then... when he graduated, it just so happened that Liu Qiangdong opened the JD Multimedia CD Burner store in Zhongguancun.

He had long forgotten about his kind boss, but Liu Qiangdong still remembered him and asked him if he wanted to work in his store.

Of course, Anxin refused.

Otherwise, if he, who had already become a shareholder of JD.com, were to suddenly be reborn, he would definitely be cursing and swearing.

But... anyway.

After finishing the buns in the plastic bag, he looked at the Sichuan restaurant and noticed that it didn't have a sign advertising for dishwashers like it did in his previous life, so he turned his car around.

See you when school starts!

Just then, the pager at my waist beeped.

Anxin took it out and looked at it:
"After waking up, I came to the entrance of the Beijing Film Studio. The script was there, Miss Fan."

He put the pager back in his belt and walked east along the North Third Ring Road.

When he arrived at the entrance of the Beijing Film Studio, he spotted Fan Bing at a glance.

Fan Bing also saw him, a hint of surprise in her eyes, but she still waved to him and gave him a pure and innocent smile:

"Hello~"

(End of this chapter)