Huayu: Starting from retirement, sweeping across the domestic entertainment industry

The exciting chapter "Chapter 127: Jiang Ni's Selection" is now available online. Click to read it now!

The audition room door closed gently behind me.

Lu Yuxiao stood in the corridor, looking down at the script of Jiang Ni in her hand, still somewhat dazed.

She paused for a few seconds, then turned and walked back.

In the dressing room, most of the actresses who had finished their auditions had already left.

Only a few remained. Tian Xiwei and Wang Churan sat on one side, Zhou Ye and Hu Lianxin sat next to each other, and Zhang Jingyi and Zhang Ruonan chatted in a corner.

There is still one person who hasn't left.

Li Gengxi sat by the window, scrolling through his phone with his head down, occasionally glancing up at the doorway.

Lu Yuxiao walked straight back to the corner where she had been, sat down on the sofa, opened the script, and began to read it seriously.

She needs to hurry up and watch Jiang Ni's scenes.

Wang Churan noticed her.

She nudged Tian Xiwei with her elbow and whispered, "Hey, why hasn't Lu Yuxiao left yet? Wasn't the audition over?"

Tian Xiwei followed her gaze.

Lu Yuxiao was looking down, intently at the script in her hands, her brows slightly furrowed, and her lips moving gently, as if she were reciting her lines.

"Maybe they're waiting for someone," Tian Xiwei said casually.

Wang Churan's curiosity was piqued, so she stood up and walked towards Lu Yuxiao.

"Hey." She stopped in front of Lu Yuxiao.

Lu Yuxiao was engrossed in reading when the sudden sound startled her. She shuddered and almost dropped the script in her hand.

She looked up at Wang Churan, her eyes wide open like a startled fawn.

"Huh?" she responded blankly.

Wang Churan was amused by her reaction. She pointed to the script in her hand: "The audition is over, why are you still looking at the script? Even if you succeed, you can just go back and read it again, won't it?"

Lu Yuxiao came to her senses and explained, "Ah... oh, Teacher Li Ran asked me to try out the role of Jiang Ni."

Her voice wasn't loud, but in the quiet lounge, it was loud enough for everyone to hear.

Wang Churan was taken aback: "Li Ran asked you to try the ginger paste?"

Her voice unconsciously rose a little.

The lounge fell silent instantly.

Li Gengxi suddenly raised his head.

She put down her phone, stood up, and walked over quickly. Her gaze fell on Lu Yuxiao, and she looked her up and down, her brows furrowing tightly.

Ginger paste? Wasn't she already chosen?

Aunt Xu clearly informed both the director and President Sun.

Lu Yuxiao felt a little uncomfortable under her gaze. She tilted her head slightly, widened her eyes, and looked at Li Gengxi innocently, not understanding why she was staring at her like that.

Although she knew that only Li Gengxi had come to audition for the role of Jiang Ni today.

Tian Xiwei walked over with a smile and patted Wang Churan on the shoulder: "How about it? I told you so, didn't I?"

Wang Churan rolled her eyes.

Zhou Ye and Hu Lianxin also came over and stood to the side, looking on with expressions of anticipation.

The two men sized up Lu Yuxiao, then glanced at Li Gengxi, their eyes shifting back and forth between the two.

Zhang Jingyi and Zhang Ruonan also noticed the commotion and looked around curiously.

Li Gengxi glared at Lu Yuxiao, his voice somewhat sharp: "Li Ran made you play Jiang Ni?"

Lu Yuxiao shook her head, her tone calm: "Let me try out the scene."

She paused, looking at the people surrounding her, somewhat puzzled: "Is there anything else? I need to look at the script."

Tian Xiwei smiled and pulled Wang Churan back, saying, "Then take your time looking at it."

Wang Churan was being pulled along by her, and he kept looking back as they walked.

Zhou Ye and Hu Lianxin didn't move; they just stood to the side, watching Li Gengxi with expressions of schadenfreude.

Li Gengxi's expression was not good.

She stood there, staring at Lu Yuxiao for a few seconds, then suddenly spoke up: "No, why should I?"

Lu Yuxiao ignored her; she had already lowered her head and continued reading the script.

Hu Lianxin loves to stir up trouble.

She looked at Zhou Ye and deliberately raised her voice, saying, "Why? Maybe it's because I'm not good-looking enough."

Zhou Ye was amused by her silly antics, and covered his mouth, laughing so hard his shoulders shook.

Li Gengxi suddenly turned his head and glared at Hu Lianxin: "What do you mean?"

Hu Lianxin pouted, looking completely innocent: "It means exactly what it says."

Li Gengxi's temper flared up instantly.

She took two steps forward: "Are you asking for a beating?"

Hu Lianxin exaggeratedly shrank back, covered her face, and said in a affected tone, "Oh dear, I'm so scared. The resourceful star is going to beat me up."

Li Gengxi's face flushed red: "Who the hell are you calling a 'resource-backed' celebrity? Don't think you're so great just because you're an artist from Wajijiwa Entertainment."

Hu Lianxin said slowly, "I'm just a small-time entertainer, unlike you, who has a lot of powerful backers."

She looked Li Gengxi up and down: "Even a smoking delinquent can become a big star."

Li Gengxi was completely furious.

She rushed forward and slapped Hu Lianxin across the face.

Hu Lianxin had anticipated this move and nimbly jumped back, dodging the slap.

But the lingering force of that slap still lingered, landing squarely on Zhou Ye's arm.

A crisp "snap" sound.

Zhou Ye was stunned.

She looked down at her arm where she had been slapped, then looked up at Li Gengxi.

Then she exploded.

She cursed inwardly: You have Xu Jinglei behind you, but I have Li Shuangbing behind me!

Without saying a word, she slapped him across the face.

Seeing Zhou Ye initiate a group fight, Hu Lianxin immediately followed suit.

After some time of training, the two were much more agile than when they fought Liu Haocun.

In no time at all, they pinned Li Gengxi to the ground.

Li Gengxi struggled, cursing under his breath, but was pinned down by the two men and unable to move.

Tian Xiwei and Wang Churan reacted and rushed over to pull the two apart.

Wang Churan pulled Hu Lianxin back, and as she passed Li Gengxi, who was still on the ground, she "accidentally" stepped on her foot, and then walked away as if nothing had happened.

Li Gengxi lay on the ground, his hair disheveled, his left cheek flushed, and he was panting heavily.

The whole process took less than a minute.

Lu Yuxiao sat on the sofa, script in hand, completely stunned.

She looked at Li Gengxi on the ground, then at the people standing beside her, her mouth slightly agape, completely unsure how to react.

Female celebrities... is that how it is?

Zhang Jingyi was also stunned.

She had only heard Liu Haocun say that he had been beaten by Zhou Ye and Hu Lianxin before; this was the first time she had seen it with her own eyes.

Zhang Ruonan was even more dumbfounded.

She stood next to Zhang Jingyi, her eyes wide open, with only one thought in her mind: So they not only fight among themselves, but also team up to beat up outsiders!

Tian Xiwei glanced at Li Gengxi on the ground, then looked at Zhang Jingyi: "Go find Xiao Chen and have him call Li Ran over."

Zhang Jingyi nodded and quickly pulled Zhang Ruonan out of the lounge.

In the audition room, Li Ran was watching a male actor perform.

The door was pushed open a crack, and Xiao Chen poked half his head in, looking somewhat anxious.

Li Ran frowned, stood up, nodded to the judges, and walked to the door.

Xiao Chen whispered a few words in his ear.

Li Ran's expression changed.

He took a deep breath, turned around and walked back to his seat, looking at Sun Zhonghuai: "Uncle, you guys go ahead with the auditions, I have something to do and I'll be going out for a bit."

Seeing his somewhat anxious expression, Sun Zhonghuai asked, "Do you need any help?"

Li Ran shook his head: "Uncle, let's talk about it later. I'll go check on the situation first."

He strode out of the audition room.

……

Pushing open the door to the lounge, Li Ran immediately saw Li Gengxi sitting on the floor.

Her left cheek was swollen and red, her hair was messy, and her clothes were wrinkled.

Standing beside them were Zhou Ye and Hu Lianxin, both of them still carrying a hint of anger on their faces.

Lu Yuxiao sat on the sofa in the corner, still clutching the script in her hand, as if she were frozen in place.

Li Ran glanced at it and got a sense of what was going on.

"Xiao Chen, take Lu Yuxiao to another room to prepare for the audition..."

He walked up to Li Gengxi, squatted down, and looked her straight in the eye.

Li Gengxi looked up at him; her eyes were a little red, but she didn't cry.

"Can we talk?" Li Ran's voice was calm.

Li Gengxi paused for a second, then nodded.

Zhou Ye, growing impatient from behind, shouted, "Why go outside? Let's talk here!"

Li Ran turned his head and looked at her.

That gaze was calm, so calm that it sent chills down Zhou Ye's spine.

"Shut up."

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was clear.

Zhou Ye was stunned.

She opened her mouth as if to say something, but when she met Li Ran's gaze, she swallowed her words.

Li Ran withdrew his gaze, helped Li Gengxi to her feet, and led her out of the lounge.

The door closed behind me.

Zhou Ye stood there, stunned for a few seconds.

Then she sighed softly and looked at Hu Lianxin: "Little Hu, have we gotten ourselves into trouble?"

Hu Lianxin shrugged indifferently: "What's there to be afraid of? She struck first."

Tian Xiwei sneered from the side: "Li Ran can suppress the matter between you two and Liu Haocun. But will Li Gengxi give Li Ran the same face as Liu Haocun?"

She paused, then said, "Last time it was the three of you fighting each other. This time it's one-sided."

Wang Churan clicked his tongue twice: "He'll really cause Li Ran trouble."

Hu Lianxin immediately retorted, "Eye roll. Don't think I didn't see it; you secretly kicked me too."

Wang Churan rolled her eyes: "So what? You two were the ones who started the fight."

Tian Xiwei interrupted them: "Alright, stop arguing. You two should think about how to explain this to Li Ran."

Zhou Ye muttered under his breath, "It wasn't me who started it..."

……

In the small conference room, there were only Li Ran and Li Gengxi.

Li Ran sat down opposite her, remained silent for a few seconds, and then said, "I want to apologize to you first. No matter what, it was wrong of the two of them to hit someone."

He paused for a moment, then said, "As for the reason, I won't ask. I just hope you won't make a big deal out of it."

Li Gengxi kept his head down and did not speak.

After a long silence, she looked up at him and asked, "Can't I play Jiang Ni?"

Li Ran shook his head: "I'm sorry, you're really not suitable. I can give you other resources of the same level as compensation."

Li Gengxi gently shook his head: "I don't lack resources. You don't need to make up for anything."

She looked at his face and suddenly asked, "Are they all your girlfriends?"

Li Ran frowned.

Li Gengxi smiled and said, "Don't worry, I was just asking out of curiosity. Aunt Xu told me about your background."

She paused for a moment, then explained, "So even if you don't say anything today, I won't cause them any trouble."

Li Ran paused for a second, then nodded.

He seemed to remember something and added, "Zhang Ruonan isn't. She's Jingyi's friend."

Li Gengxi nodded: "Okay, I understand."

She pursed her lips and asked again, "Li Ran, why do you hate me?"

Li Ran was taken aback for a moment: "Why do you ask that?"

Li Gengxi looked at him and said, "I noticed your eyes when I auditioned. I could see impatience and a hint of aloofness in them."

She paused. "Even now, if this hadn't happened, you wouldn't be talking to me, would you?"

Li Ran fell silent.

She's right. Because of the negative news from his past life, he really didn't have a good impression of Li Gengxi.

Seeing that he didn't speak, Li Gengxi continued, "Is it because I'm a 'resource-backed' star? But aren't you a 'resource-backed' star too?"

She looked at him: "Is it still because of those videos of me smoking that were leaked?"

Li Ran shook his head: "You're overthinking it. I..."

"Li Ran, don't underestimate a girl's intuition," Li Gengxi interrupted him, smiling at him.

That smile held a hint of cunning, and a touch of resentment.

"I don't care whether I play Jiang Ni or not. But you have to promise me one thing."

Li Ran was silent for a few seconds, then nodded: "Tell me your requirements first."

Li Gengxi slowly began, "Let's work together sometime, as the male and female leads."

Li Ran nodded: "Okay, but I need to read the script first."

Li Gengxi smiled and said, "No problem."

She stood up and straightened her clothes. "You've already apologized, so I have nothing more to say. Let's leave it at that!"

Li Ran also stood up: "I'll have my assistant take you to the hospital to get checked out."

"No need, I'm fine."

Li Gengxi took out his phone: "Can we add each other on WeChat?"

Li Ran nodded and took out his phone to scan her QR code.

After seeing Li Gengxi off, Li Ran did not return to the lounge, but went directly to the audition room.

Sun Zhonghuai had already heard about what had just happened from the staff.

When he saw Li Ran return, he didn't ask any questions, he just glanced at him.

Li Ran sat down next to him: "Uncle, let's talk after we're done."

Sun Zhonghuai nodded.

The auditions continued.

Lu Yuxiao was the last to come in.

She was still shaken by what had just happened and was even more nervous than before.

Standing in the center of the room, clutching the script that hadn't even warmed up yet, I didn't know where to look.

Her performance was neither good nor bad; her lines were somewhat stiff, and her emotions weren't quite there.

But considering she had only received the script less than an hour ago, it's understandable.

Li Ran stood up and walked to her side.

"I'll act in a scene with you," he said, "the scene after the two princesses confront each other."

Lu Yuxiao nodded and took a deep breath.

Li Ran looked at her and slowly asked, "Feeling better now?"

Lu Yuxiao was stunned for a moment, then her expression darkened.

She lowered her head and said softly, "I didn't provoke her; she stepped on my vegetables first."

"I know..." Li Ran's voice softened.

Lu Yuxiao looked up at him.

Her eyes gradually filled with tears, and her voice began to choke: "That's it! This is my fate, I shouldn't have anything..."

"What kind of fate is this...?"

"My father is gone! My mother is gone! My home is gone! My country is gone!"

Her voice trembled, but every word pierced the air like nails: "So there's no need to restore it. I was born to owe this world something, so it's better if it's all destroyed..."

After she finished speaking, she lowered her head, her shoulders trembling slightly.

The room was silent for a few seconds.

Director Zhang Li nodded and wrote a few strokes on the paper in front of him.

After Lu Yuxiao left, the group began their final discussion.

Wang Juan spoke first: "Lu Yuxiao's acting is still a bit immature, but that's not a big problem. She can be trained gradually once she joins the crew."

Zhang Li nodded: "Acting skills can be honed. The key is that when she stands next to Li Ran, the feeling is right."

He looked at Li Ran and smiled: "Li Ran and she were acting together just now, and they seemed like a good match. The compatibility between the male and female leads is the most important thing."

Li Ran chuckled awkwardly, "I have no objection."

Sun Zhonghuai nodded: "Then it's settled."

The person chosen for the ginger paste has been decided.

Li Ran looked down at the cast list in his hand.

My gaze swept across the row of names and finally landed on the column for "Xu Longxiang".

He frowned.

"This one," he said, pointing to the name.

"Let's find someone else!"