Huayu96: My Thirty Years of a Prodigal Son

March 1996, Wuxi Film and Television Base.

Although the Water Margin TV series has officially announced the start of filming, many of the supporting actors have not yet arrived.

The film crew was in a state of chaos at this time.

On set, Qin Sheng was enthusiastically following his cousin, Zang Jinsheng, a national first-class actor, a well-known alumnus of the Beijing Film Academy, and the actor who played Lu Zhishen in the Water Margin series, on a tour of the film set.

As they walked, Zang Jinsheng gave Qin Sheng some instructions:

"You kid, even though you've passed the entrance exam for the Beijing Film Academy, you still can't relax when it comes to the college entrance exam."

If you get rejected because you didn't pass the academic portion of the exam, I can't help you.

Qin Sheng said with a grin, "I have to thank you for contacting the school, brother, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to pass the art exam so smoothly."

Zang Jinsheng smiled and waved his hand upon hearing this.

"You got first place in your major courses, I couldn't have gotten that by asking around. You're just exceptionally talented."

Qin Sheng grinned and didn't say anything more.

As a reborn person who had spent so many years in the entertainment industry in his previous life, he was naturally much better at taking the art exam than those greenhorns.

Getting good grades is not unusual.

However, saying that he was reborn is not entirely accurate.

Because the error was fifteen years.

In my previous life, I was born in 1993, got into the Beijing Film Academy in 2011, and then started working in the entertainment industry.

Along the way, he has worked as an actor, a singer, and even gritted his teeth to raise money to direct and star in a movie.

Unfortunately, the entertainment industry after 2010 has been controlled by capital.

A nobody with no background or connections has no chance of getting ahead.

Therefore, even though Qin Sheng felt that he was good in all aspects and had good abilities, he still didn't achieve much in the entertainment industry after a lifetime of working there.

When he was in his thirties, he finally had a stroke of luck and was reborn, but something went wrong and he was reborn in 1996, on the eve of the art college entrance exam.

Happy 1996!

In 1996, the entertainment industry was still in an era of unbridled growth.

That year, the Beijing Film Academy produced three outstanding talents: Huang Xiaoming, Chen Kun, and Zhao Wei.

The Central Academy of Drama produced six outstanding actresses: Zhang Ziyi, Mei Ting, Hu Jing, Qin Hailu, Yuan Quan, and Zeng Li.

The success rate is frighteningly high.

Do you really think they're that outstanding?

Not necessarily.

It's somewhat like how times create heroes.

Qin Sheng felt that his strength in his previous life was not bad.

He might not have been able to make a name for himself after 2010 due to the circumstances, but in 1996, he might not have been unable to make a name for himself.

Especially since I have all sorts of precognitive abilities, I have more and more opportunities than I could ever imagine.

Of course, I didn't come to the Water Margin film crew this time to try and get a role.

Although I passed the art exam, I still need to prepare for the college entrance exam.

Although the 96 college entrance examination questions were much simpler than those of 11, they still required some serious preparation.

I came here purely out of admiration for the legendary Water Margin TV series crew, just to see what the excitement was like.

Chatting casually, the two soon arrived at the film set where they were shooting that day.

The film crew is currently shooting the scene of Gao Qiu entering the Prince Duan's mansion.

Zang Jinsheng pulled Qin Sheng aside and waited for a while.

When director Zhang Zhaolin took a break, Zang Jinsheng gestured for Qin Sheng to follow and came to the director's side.

With a chuckle, Zang Jinsheng said to Zhang Zhaolin, "Director, this is the younger member of the family I told you about, Qin Sheng."

He had just been admitted to the Beijing Film Academy's acting program and had never been to a film set before, so I brought him here to broaden his horizons.

I'm sorry to have troubled you, please forgive me.

Zhang Zhaolin first exchanged a few warm greetings with Zang Jinsheng.

As a national first-class actor and captain of the Water Margin drama crew, Zang Jinsheng holds considerable weight within the production team.

Even director Zhang Zhaolin had to be more polite when speaking to him.

After exchanging pleasantries, Zhang Zhaolin turned to look at Qin Sheng.

After one glance, Zhang Zhaolin's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but praise:

"Wow! What a handsome young man! No wonder he got into the Beijing Film Academy!"

Qin Sheng smiled shyly beside him.

"Director, thank you for your help these past few days. I promise to behave myself on set and not cause you any trouble, so please don't worry."

When Zang Jinsheng heard Zhang Zhaolin praise Qin Sheng, a slightly smug smile appeared on his face.

My younger brother is indeed handsome.

With rosy lips, white teeth, and exceptionally beautiful features!

It's just a pity that it lacks a bit of masculinity and doesn't quite fit the current mainstream aesthetic.

Zang Jinsheng was unaware that Qin Sheng's appearance was the typical idol face of later generations, and would be extremely popular in those times.

However, in this era where the mainstream aesthetic is dominated by the upright and handsome looks of actors like Tang Guoqiang and Zhu Shimao, they do fall short of expectations.

After staring at Qin Sheng's handsome face for a moment, Zhang Zhaolin suddenly turned to Zang Jinsheng and said:

"Old Zang, would you be interested in casting your underling in a role?"

Zang Jinsheng was taken aback upon hearing this, and then waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "Director, I really didn't mean that."

Besides, he's just a greenhorn who hasn't even started formally learning acting yet, how could he possibly act now?

"No, no, director, really not."

Zhang Zhaolin laughed and said, "Old Zang, what are you thinking? Even if you really want to stuff people in, I might not agree for the sake of the film's quality!"

I genuinely think there's a role that would be perfect for him.

Zang Jinsheng finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He genuinely thought the director had misunderstood him.

Looking at Qin Sheng's handsome yet youthful face with suspicion, Zang Jinsheng was somewhat skeptical.

"Him? What kind of role could he possibly play?"

Zhang Zhaolin chuckled.

"Don't you think the role of the prodigal son Yan Qing is particularly suitable for him?"

"The Prodigal Son Yan Qing?"

Zang Jinsheng was taken aback again.

He then turned his head and began to scrutinize his younger brother.

Hey! You know what?!

According to the original novel, the playboy Yan Qing is a dashing, handsome young man with fair skin.

The images of him and his younger brother are a match made in heaven!

but!

Knowing that the role of Yan Qing had already been decided in advance, Zang Jinsheng quickly shook his head.

"Director, although Brother Guanghui hasn't joined the crew yet, we've already decided that he'll play Yan Qing."

I think his portrayal of Yan Qing is perfect; there's no need to change him.

Zang Jinsheng really didn't want to take this role from his younger brother.

Putting aside the fact that he is a highly respected senior, just considering that he is the captain of the actors' team, he is in charge of hundreds of actors in the entire crew.

If you treat people unfairly, how can you lead a team in the future?

After already agreeing on the actor for Yan Qing, they suddenly changed the actor to their own younger brother.

This is something that's easy to say but hard to hear!

Who knows what the other actors in the crew will say!

Therefore, Zang Jinsheng firmly opposed director Zhang Zhaolin's suggestion.

Zhang Zhaolin clicked his tongue, somewhat conflicted, and said, "You mean Wang Guanghui? He's definitely an old acquaintance. He even played Cao Rui in the Three Kingdoms series!"

Tsk, if I hadn't seen your little brother, I wouldn't have thought much of him.

After seeing you, my handsome little brother, I now really feel that Guanghui is lacking.

He's too old, and not handsome enough; he lacks Yan Qing's dashing and extraordinary good looks!

Seeing that Zhang Zhaolin was still trying to persuade him, Zang Jinsheng just shook his head and resolutely refused to agree.

Qin Sheng was a little confused as he watched from the side.

No, how come you suddenly want to assign me a role while we're touring?

Yan Qing is good, but I don't have time!

I still need to go home and prepare for the college entrance exam!

Even if the 96 college entrance exam was easy, it wasn't something I could pass without any preparation!

Although Zang Jinsheng declined, Zhang Zhaolin was still somewhat unwilling and continued to persuade him:

"Old Zang, think about it again. This is Water Margin! Water Margin that's going to be on CCTV! This is a rare opportunity!"

Upon hearing this, Zang Jinsheng glanced at Qin Sheng with some hesitation.

Putting aside his own stance, being able to participate in the Water Margin is indeed a very good opportunity for his younger brother.

But my younger brother still needs to prepare for the college entrance examination!

Although I know that his mock exam score in academic subjects is more than 100 points above the passing score, even if he takes a month off, it shouldn't be a big problem.

But after all, it's the college entrance exam. What if it really causes a delay?

After hesitating for a long time, Zang Jinsheng decided to respect Qin Sheng's opinion.

"Young man, you've heard what happened. What's your opinion?"