Living in the bubble economy of Tokyo, I became a literary giant through lotteries.

The next day, at Kichijoji, Studio Ghibli.

Guan Gufeng originally thought that the audition would be at a recording studio, the kind of place where there is a convenience store downstairs, a soundproof room upstairs, and voice actors lining up in the corridor to audition, each holding a script and reciting their lines.

That's how it's portrayed in documentaries.

As a result, Kitamura's car parked directly at Studio Ghibli.

"Mr. Guan Gu, would you like me to accompany you inside?"

"No need, no need. Uncle Kitamura, find a place to have a coffee. I'll end the call."

Guan Gu Feng got out of the car, straightened his shirt collar, and pushed open the door. Miyazaki Hayao was already waiting in the entryway.

"Good morning, Mr. Guan Gu."

Good morning, Miyazaki-sensei.

"Come with me." Miyazaki turned and walked away, his white apron swaying gently. "The recording studio is underground."

Guan Gufeng followed him down the stairs. The recording studio was not large; inside was the recording booth, and outside was the mixing console, separated by glass and a wall.

A young man wearing a baseball cap was adjusting the equipment. When he saw Miyazaki Hayao enter, he immediately stood up and bowed.

"This is the sound supervisor, Asari," Miyazaki introduced. "He's in charge of the equipment today."

Asari straightened up, her gaze falling on Guan Gufeng. Her eyes lit up for a moment, but she restrained herself from saying anything more and simply bowed again.

As Guan Gufeng was about to return the greeting, he caught a glimpse of a figure standing in the corner.

Short hair, no makeup, clutching a stack of scripts in her hand.

"This is Minami Takayama," Miyazaki stepped aside, "She voices Kiki in the film. I called her here today..."

He paused for a moment, then said, "In case you do a terrible job, at least there will be someone to demonstrate."

Takayama Minami visibly choked, her expression freezing between wanting to laugh and not daring to laugh.

Guan Gufeng laughed and stepped forward, bowing slightly: "Miss Gaoshan, it's a pleasure to meet you. I am Guan Gufeng, please take care of me today."

"No, no, no!" Takayama Minami quickly bowed ninety degrees. "Teacher Sekiya, you're too kind! I'm the one who should be here; please take care of me!"

She straightened up, hesitated for a moment, and added, "I read your 'The Twelve Kingdoms,' and Yoko's story really, really moved me, especially that part..."

She suddenly stopped talking, seemingly feeling that it was inappropriate to express the fans' feelings in this setting.

Guan Gu Feng looked at her slightly reddened ears and suddenly realized something.

It's 1989 now.

The young girl in front of me, her palms sweating with nervousness, has no idea that she will be providing voice-over for a bespectacled elementary school student a few years from now.

That role will make her famous worldwide and become a significant chapter in the history of Japanese voice acting.

But at this moment, she was just a junior voice actress who had only been in the industry for two years and was getting her first lead role in a movie.

She had worked hard for this opportunity for a long time.

Now, an outsider has suddenly appeared and is asked to do voice-over work in front of her. If he does a good job, that's only natural.

If the pairing isn't good, his status as "Teacher Guan Gu" will make her afraid to even offer suggestions.

Her pressure is probably no less than his.

Guan Gu Feng lowered his voice a little: "I'm glad you like it, Miss Gao Shan. I'm a complete novice today, so please give me your guidance on voice acting."

Takayama Minami blinked, her tense shoulders relaxing slightly.

"Alright." Miyazaki clapped his hands, interrupting their small talk. "Let's begin."

Guan Gufeng walked into the recording studio and looked through the glass at Asari behind the mixing console and Miyazaki Hayao with a half-smile on his face. He couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Although Miyazaki told him to relax and speak in a more youthful tone than usual, he had learned beforehand that the recording studio was filled with anger and resentment.

From big-name celebrities to newly debuted voice actors, anyone who doesn't do a good job will be harshly criticized by Hayao Miyazaki.

He felt that his status was much higher than that of a celebrity, and that Miyazaki Hayao would be reluctant to criticize him.

However, he suspects that if he doesn't do a good job, he might be "invited" by Miyazaki to work at his studio for a while, and might even be asked to treat him to meals every day.

No, I don't want that kind of thing!

"Are you ready?" Miyazaki's voice came through the microphone into the earphone.

Guan Gufeng made an OK sign, and then the images on the screen began to flow.

The voiceover they were going to provide was for the first encounter between Dragonfly and Qiqi.

A boy who dreams of flying covered for the witch Kiki in front of the police, and then chased after her to talk to her.

Guan Gufeng stared at the screen, not looking down at the script; he had already memorized the lines when he arrived.

"It was I who shouted 'Stop thief!' that distracted the police."

Guan Gufeng spoke, and his own voice came through the earphones.

His tone was a little higher than usual, carrying a youthful awkwardness and an irrepressible curiosity.

"I think you're a witch, aren't you? I just saw you flying in the sky. Did you really fly using this broom?"

"Can I take a look at this broom?"

Miyazaki raised an eyebrow, saying, "It's a great match, very evocative."

Takayama Minami stood next to Sekiya Kaze, almost dropping the script in her hand.

She had been worried about how to save face if he wasn't a good match for her.

But now, this sound is so perfectly suited to a dragonfly.

This is not her fault. Guan Gufeng is a bit lazy and usually speaks in a low tone, which made her think that writers who write novels with profound meaning all have deep voices.

Before I could think any further, it was time for her lines.

"If you saved me, thank you." Her voice became clear and bright, with a hint of pride.

"But I didn't ask you to save me, and it's incredibly rude of me to approach a girl without a proper introduction! Humph!"

"Cut." Miyazaki's voice came through the earpiece. "No problem, that's it. Let's move on to the next scene."

"Huh?" Guan Gufeng was a little stunned. Many of the scenarios he had imagined hadn't even happened yet, and it was already over?

What repeated practice, constantly being spurred on by Miyazaki, and then he produced an amazing voice; the two had a love-hate relationship, and finally he did a drum solo...

Oops, wrong channel.

"Miyazaki-sensei," Asari's voice also sounded somewhat surprised, "Don't you need to record a few more takes? The last one was actually..."

"There's no need," Miyazaki said with a smile. "As long as the feeling is right, that's enough. Dragonfly is just an ordinary boy."

"The voice of a young person is inherently rough; if it is polished too much, it is no longer that of a young person."

Guan Gufeng put on his headphones and left the recording studio with Gao Shannan. He then asked Miyazaki Hayao a question.

"Are you sure you don't need another one? I can wear an even bigger one."

Hayao Miyazaki waved his hand, "No need, this is fine. Your voice is young enough as it is now. If it were any younger, you'd be dubbing for babies."

"But what I'm more curious about is, did you memorize all the lines?"

"Yeah, it's uncomfortable to pronounce words while looking down at the script, and it's also hard to control the rhythm."

Minami Takayama, who was standing nearby, finally found an opportunity to interject: "Mr. Sekiya, did you study voice acting before?"

Guan Gu Feng touched his nose somewhat guiltily; he knew nothing about voice acting.

He was lounging on the sofa at home reading comics when he told Xiaohua not to bully Xiaobai, his chin shoved against his chest.

When you make a double chin, your voice sounds muffled.

"I know a little bit, I know a little bit..."

Next, Guan Gufeng began composing the second part, the scene where Dragonfly invites Qiqi to the flying club party.

Although the dragonfly didn't have many scenes, the voice acting for it took from morning until afternoon.

"Thank you for your hard work." Asari stood up and handed over a bottle of water.

Takayama Minami was also saying goodbye. Before leaving, she asked Sekiya Kaze for his autograph.

Hayao Miyazaki leans against the wall in the corridor, holding a cup of freshly brewed black coffee, while a gray cat sits on the windowsill basking in the sun.

It's not a cat kept in the studio; it's a stray cat from the neighborhood that occasionally climbs in through the window to sleep.

When Guan Gufeng came out of the basement, he was surrounded by a group of young artists who had been waiting outside.

"Mr. Guan Gu, you're amazing! Your voice acting was fantastic!"

"You've worked hard. Have some tea and rest. I have a question about storyboarding that I'd like to ask you."

"I was here first! Mr. Guan Gu, please look at mine first!"

Amidst the compliments of the crowd, the desire to show off one's abilities in front of others, as a young person, resurfaced.

So Guan Gufeng was surrounded and pulled into a familiar spot, once again becoming free labor for Studio Ghibli.

"You guys," a person who looked like an animation supervisor came out of the break room carrying a cup of coffee, "you're all so busy looking at it, take some notes."

He had barely finished speaking when he pulled his chair next to Guan Gufeng at lightning speed.

"Mr. Guan Gu, I have a perspective problem with a character design here; I can't seem to get the angle right..."

"Hey! Hashimoto! I was here first!"