Korean entertainment: I can steal the luck of celebrities with bad records.

Three days later, at the SBS Tanhyeon Production Center.

Lin Puzhi stood at the doorway, looking up at the gray building. It was bigger than he had imagined, and colder than he had imagined. The winter wind swept in from the open fields, making the collar of his down jacket flutter.

He pushed the door open and went in.

People came and went in the corridor, and staff members hurried by pushing prop carts, but no one gave him a second glance. He asked around and finally found the filming location of "Will It Snow for Christmas?"

A security guard saw Lin Puzhi coming and stepped forward to stop him.

"Hello, filming is underway here, you cannot enter."

"I'm a new actor, playing Han Zhiyong," Lin Puzhi explained.

The security guard took out his walkie-talkie to inquire, and after confirming that it was true, he carefully looked Lin Puzhi over for a while before letting him pass.

Director Choi Moon-seok, in his early forties, sat behind the monitor, wearing black-rimmed glasses and expressionless. Next to him sat the assistant director, director of photography, and assistant screenwriter, all sitting neatly in a row.

Over at the actors' side, he saw Kim Soo-hyun—thinner than on TV, with a pointed chin, looking down at his script, occasionally glancing up to exchange a few words with Han Ye-seul beside him. Han Ye-seul smiled, a very polite smile.

Go Soo, who plays the adult Cha Kang-jin, is not present.

"You're Lin Puzhi?" Assistant director Shen Jingxiu walked over and looked him up and down. "Han Zhiyong?"

"Yes."

"Have you memorized your lines?"

"I've memorized it."

"Sit over there, we'll do a rehearsal scene later."

Lin Puzhi walked to a corner and sat down, placing the script on his lap. He could sense someone watching him—not maliciously, just out of curiosity.

When a newcomer gets in through connections, most people will treat them with respect and dare not harbor any ill will.

But director Choi Moon-seok is an exception; he is a fanatical perfectionist.

He harbored resentment towards the investors for bringing in people.

Perhaps from the investors' perspective, a minor role lasting only ten minutes or so won't affect the overall quality of the show.

However, Han Zhiyong is a very important character. It is his death that makes it impossible for the male and female protagonists to be together despite their love.

Once they get together, the female lead will feel guilty towards her brother.

If the character is not played well, the audience will not be able to connect with the role, and the "cause" of the subsequent story will not hold true.

The audience will just think, "So what if he died? It wasn't the male lead who killed him. These two crazy people should just get together already."

"Alright, everyone's here." Choi Moon-seok spoke, his voice not loud, but the whole room instantly fell silent. "No reading today, let's go through the play first, starting with scene three."

The third scene, the one where Han Zhiyong and his sister are by the river, is also Han Zhiyong's most important scene.

Lin Puzhi stood up and walked in front of the camera. Opposite him was Nam Ji-hyun, the actress who played Han Ji-wan in her high school years. Like Kim Soo-hyun, Nam Ji-hyun was a child star, but his acting skills were far, far, far better than Kim Soo-hyun's.

"Let's begin," Choi Moon-seok said.

"Who made my silly little sister cry again?" Lin Puzhi squatted down and put his arm around Nan Zhixuan's shoulder.

The tone was soft and doting, but not in a deliberately sweet way.

The actress opposite him paused for a moment, then continued, "Brother, I..."

"Alright, stop crying." He stood up, took off his coat, kicked off his shoes, and gave a peace sign to the camera. "You know your brother learned to scuba dive, right? If I can't find the necklace today, I'm not coming out of the water."

"Stop." Choi Moon-seok's voice came from behind the monitor.

Lin Puzhi looks up to the director.

Choi Moon-seok stared at the monitor screen, remaining silent for three seconds. Then he looked up at Lim Pak-ji, his expression unchanged.

"Let's do it one more time. This time, make your smile even more heartbreaking. I want to portray a national older brother figure."

"it is good."

Lin Puzhi returned to his original position and started afresh.

This time, the lines were the same, but his tone changed—not indulgent, but heartbroken. He knew his sister was crying, knew she liked someone but didn't dare to say it, knew she had lost that person's belongings. He wasn't trying to cheer her up; he was telling her: It's okay, I'll help you.

"You know your brother learned to scuba dive, right? If I can't find the necklace today, I won't come out of the water."

When he said this, he looked straight ahead, not at his sister, as if he were talking to himself.

"Stop," Choi Moon-seok called out again.

Lin Puzhi looked at him.

Choi Moon-seok took off his glasses, wiped the lenses, and put them back on. Then he looked at the assistant director and said something that surprised everyone:

"His eye acting is good, better than his delivery of lines."

The room was silent for a second.

The assistant director paused for a moment, then nodded: "Indeed."

Kim Soo-hyun looked up at Lim Pak-ji, his expression blank.

"Let's continue," Choi Moon-seok said. "Next scene."

For the next hour, Lin Puzhi went through all of Han Zhiyong's scenes.

Choi Moon-seok would call a stop every time, and he would always find fault with things—"Wrong tone," "Wrong positioning," "Too fast rhythm"—but after finding fault, he would always add, "Let's do it again."

He has very high standards. Every line, every glance, every movement must be perfectly timed to his liking.

Lin Puzhi revised it again and again.

On the fifth take, Choi Moon-seok finally stopped calling for a stop.

He stared at the monitor, remained silent for a long time, and then said, "Okay, we'll start filming your scenes in a few days, and everything will be based on your performance today."

Lin Puzhi was taken aback and asked, "Weren't you filming just now?"

Choi Moon-seok replied, "Of course, if you acted particularly badly, wouldn't I be wasting film? I'll definitely have you try out first."

Lin Puzhi nodded, surprised that all his flirtatious glances had been wasted on the blind man, who hadn't even turned on the camera and was just using it like a telescope.

He went back to the corner, sat down, and picked up a water bottle to moisten his throat.

He glanced at the system panel.

Current good deeds score: 35 points

I earned this at the orphanage that day, and I haven't used it much in the past three days, but maybe I can use it today.

He looked up and glanced at Kim Soo-hyun.

Kim Soo-hyun was talking to his manager in a low voice, but Lin Puzhi, who was close by, could hear a few words: "that newcomer," "whose relationship," "check it out."

Lin Puzhi withdrew his gaze.

Kim Soo-hyun, he remembered him from his past life, the professor who was popular all over Asia. Of course, that was three years later. Now, he was just a child star in the process of transitioning to adulthood.

Before he traveled through time, Kim Soo-hyun was labeled a disgraced celebrity due to the Kim Sae-ron scandal, and 16 brands sought to terminate their contracts with him.

But now, even before he has done that kind of thing, will the system identify him as a villain?

"System, identify Kim Soo-hyun."

[Would you like to spend 5 points of good deeds to get more details?]

"yes."

A line of text appeared above Kim Soo-hyun's head.

Kim Soo-hyun | Villain, Manipulator of Fame and Fortune | Misfortune Value: 8%

Kim Soo-hyun is currently experiencing bad luck. It seems that he can't use "Seize Luck" and can only use "Transform Misfortune".

"System, use [Transfer Misfortune] to transfer my misfortune to him."

[Transfer Misfortune: Transfers the host's own misfortune to the target. Cost depends on the severity of the misfortune. Current host's misfortune value: 13%. Transferring 13% of misfortune requires 13 points of good deeds.]

[Effect: The target will encounter a minor misfortune in the short term. It will not cause serious damage, but it will be enough to disrupt their plans.]

13 PM is enough.

Lin Puzhi did not hesitate.

"Execute it, transfer my misfortune to him."

[Ding! Consuming 13 points of good deeds, initiating the Misfortune Transfer.]

[Target: Kim Soo-hyun]

[Effect: Host's misfortune value is reduced to zero. Target's misfortune value increases to 21%. A minor misfortune event is expected to trigger within 24 hours.]

Current good deeds score: 17 points.

Lin Puzhi glanced at the panel, then put down the water bottle and picked up the script again.

---

In the afternoon, the crew officially started filming, and they didn't lie to us like they did in the morning.

But Lin Puzhi is not in any of the shows.

Today, Choi Moon-seok watched Kim Soo-hyun's performance on camera and felt dissatisfied.

It's not that there's anything wrong with his performance, but rather that something seems to be missing.

He called over assistant director Shin Kyung-soo to watch the footage together and asked, "How is it?"

Shin Kyung-soo stroked his chin and thought for a moment, then said, "His eyes are too empty, completely different from the grown-up Cha Kang-jin. And his posture is too stiff, like an idol, not a student."

Yes. Choi Moon-seok finally realized why Kim Soo-hyun seemed off today. He had just watched Lim Pak-ji's performance that morning, and now, watching Kim Soo-hyun, he felt that he wasn't suitable.

It's worth noting that Go Soo, who plays the adult Cha Kang-jin, is a master of expressive eyes. Go Soo and Kim Soo-hyun may not look alike, but they can't be different in this most obvious feature.

Choi Moon-seok sighed and called out, "Let's rest."

Lin Puzhi went to the corridor to get water. When he passed the prop room, he heard people talking inside.

"...Have you found that newcomer's information? Whose?"

It's Kim Soo-hyun's voice.

"Found him, his surname is Lin, his father is..." Another voice, probably the agent, said.

"Who?"

"Lim Jung-soo, owner of a medical device company."

"Is it that impressive?"

"His momentum is strong, but his wife is even stronger!"

Who is his wife?

"I can't find specific information, all I can find is the surname Lee, the Lee of Lee Kun-hee, the head of the Samsung Group!"

"Wait—then this kid must be...?"

"Don't worry, he's just the son of Lim Jung-soo and his ex-wife. Otherwise, why would he be in this kind of production crew? When a rich kid like him wants to act, even Ahn Sung-ki and Lee Min-ho have to play supporting roles for him."

"That's true. But even a small dragon is still a dragon. It can cause a ruckus in our little pond with just a turn of its head. We must find a way to get in touch with it."

Lin Puzhi never expected that he would learn about his father's new family from other people.

---

Rehearsals continued at 5 p.m.

The last scene of the day was Cha Kang-jin's monologue. The lights shone on his face; Kim Soo-hyun was soaked to the bone. His expression didn't change much as he delivered his lines; he could only vent his emotions by shouting and yelling.

"Give it back! Give me back my pendant!"

Lin Puzhi sat in the corner watching, thinking to himself: He really can only play this kind of expressionless handsome guy.

After Kim Soo-hyun finished his last line, Choi Moon-seok was about to shout "One more time!" when suddenly—

"Bang!"

A muffled thud.

Everyone was stunned.

Kim Soo-hyun clutched his wrist, his face deathly pale. The light fixture overhead—the one that looked very secure—had fallen and hit his wrist.

"Soo-hyun!" The manager was the first to rush up.

"It's okay..." Kim Soo-hyun gritted his teeth, but his wrist was already swollen and visibly bulging.

"Call a doctor! Call a doctor right now!"

The room was in complete chaos. Staff members were running around, the assistant director was calling an ambulance, and Choi Moon-seok stood up, walked to the light fixture, and squatted down to inspect it.

"Who fixed this lamp stand?" His voice wasn't loud, but the whole room fell silent.

No one answered.

I asked, "Who's the designated person?"

A young prop master raised his hand, his voice trembling: "Director Cui... it's me. I checked this morning, all the screws were tightened..."

Choi Moon-seok didn't speak. He stared at the lamp stand for a few seconds, then stood up and dusted off his knees.

"Take him to the hospital," he said. "That's it for today's rehearsal."

---

Twenty minutes later, the news came back: Kim Soo-hyun had fractured his right wrist and would need to rest for at least three weeks.

Three weeks.

The production team's shooting schedule is to start filming in mid-November and broadcast the series on television in early December, filming and broadcasting simultaneously.

The TV station airs two episodes a week, and their production team also films two episodes a week.

This is a basic practice in Korean dramas; the plot can be changed at any time based on ratings and word-of-mouth.

Kim Soo-hyun's scenes are all in the first two episodes; if he can't film them, the drama can't be released.

Choi Moon-seok sat behind the monitor, saying nothing. Everyone watched him, waiting for him to speak.

The assistant director cautiously suggested, "Director Choi, should we contact the other actors? Park Yoochun? Yoo Seung-ho? Let's see if we can..."

"No need," Choi Moon-seok interrupted him.

He raised his head, his gaze sweeping over everyone in the room. Finally, it settled on Lin Puzhi in the corner.

"Come here."

Lin Puzhi stood up and walked over.

Choi Moon-seok looked him up and down, as if he were examining a product and assessing its value.

"How old are you?"

"eighteen."

What roles have you played?

No, this is the first time.

A moment of silence fell over the room. Someone muttered quietly, "Never acted before? Then what about that acting...?"

Choi Moon-seok ignored the voices and stared into Lin Pu-zhi's eyes for a full five seconds.

"Your eyes are very expressive," he said.

Lin Puzhi did not speak.

"The high school version of Cha Kang-jin has a small role, but it's very important," Choi Moon-seok said. "Originally, Go Soo was to play the adult version, but Kim Soo-hyun was to play the high school version..."

He paused.

"You'll play Cha Kang-jin."

The room erupted in chaos.

"Director Cui, he's a newcomer, he's never acted before..."

"How are we going to explain this to KeyEast Entertainment, the company behind Kim Soo-hyun...?"

Choi Moon-seok clapped his hands, and everyone shut up.

"I'll talk to KeyEast Entertainment." He looked at Lin Puzhi. "You have three days to memorize all of Che Kang-jin's scenes. The audition is in three days. If you pass, it's yours."

Lin Puzhi looked into Cui Wenxi's eyes.

He didn't say "okay," nor "thank you," nor did he say, "I've already memorized all the lines."

He said, "In three days, I will make you forget Kim Soo-hyun."

Choi Moon-seok's lips twitched slightly; he liked the young man's confidence.

"Fine," he said, "then let me see if you're just bragging."

---

Lin Puzhi walked out of the production center; it was already dark.

A cold wind blew into his collar, so he wrapped his down jacket tighter and headed towards the subway station.

My phone vibrated.

It's a message from the Cyworld boss:

"Mr. Ultraman, how was your day? Did the director yell at you?"

Lin Puzhi thought for a moment and replied:

"I wasn't scolded. The director asked me to play the male lead in his high school years three days later."

A few seconds later, the proprietress replied with a single word:

"?"

A few more seconds passed:

"Didn't you say you were playing a minor role for about ten minutes?"

Lin Puzhi smiled and replied:

"The actor who played the male lead in his high school years got injured, so I took his place."

"You hurt him?"

"I am Ultraman, I only bully monsters, not good people."

"So how did you take her place?"

"Because of his good acting skills."

The landlady sent an eye-rolling emoticon, followed by another message:

Pinocchio.

Lin Puzhi put his phone in his pocket and walked into the subway station.

Once a monster, always a monster.

Little monster, I'll still beat you.

Unless it's Erii.