A band, or a battleground?

Shen Yihan: "Is it all done?"

Qi Yuan: "Yes, everything that needed to be recorded has been recorded. All that's left is post-production and album planning. Those are the tasks of the recording engineer and the company."

Shen Yihan: "Are you busy with your studies? I was also a senior in high school, and from what I remember, the academic pressure was quite high..."

Qi Yuan glanced at the practice papers spread out on the table and said, "It's not much pressure for me, it's alright."

At this point, Shen Yihan finally brought up the core question she really wanted to ask: "So, are you free recently? Would you like to come and do a cameo role in our production? We've already started filming. You promised me a role, haven't you forgotten?"

Qi Yuan joked, "Did you agree by pinky swearing?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Shen Yihan said with a smile, "I've already joined the crew and started filming. We're currently filming the second episode. Your character will appear in the fourth episode, but it doesn't have to be filmed in that order. The director just needs to get enough shots, so we can schedule it whenever you're available."

Qi Yuan hesitated for a moment before asking, "How long do I need to be on set?"

Shen Yihan: "The character's design is very outstanding, but she doesn't have many scenes. If all goes well, it will probably only take two or three days. Even if things don't go so smoothly, the director said it shouldn't take more than a week."

Since her words included phrases like "the director said," Qi Yuan understood that this big star must have already asked the director beforehand.

The other party has already shown such sincerity, what else can I say?

So Qi Yuan agreed, "I do have that much time."

Shen Yihan smiled and said, "Then I'll send you the character design and script excerpts right now. By the way, when would you like it scheduled? Next week, the week after?"

Qi Yuan thought for a moment and said, "How about this weekend? Today is Tuesday, I'll ask my teacher for leave and spend two days thinking about the characters and the script. We can start filming on Saturday and Sunday after Friday.

Then, there was silence on the other end of the phone.

Just as Qi Yuan was about to ask what was wrong, Shen Yihan whispered, "Oh right, I have to tell you, although it's a minor supporting role with few scenes, the director also said that he needs to audition."

Qi Yuan laughed and said, "I thought it was something else, but this is normal, isn't it?"

“Yes, that’s normal,” Shen Yihan quickly explained. “Besides, this drama doesn’t require particularly high acting skills. The character you’re playing is expressionless. So as long as you act like the vampire in ‘The Great Murder Detective,’ you’ll definitely be fine!”

Qi Yuan: "Then send me the character design and script, I'll take a look first."

Shen Yihan's voice was filled with undisguised joy: "Okay, I'll send it to you right away!"

Then Qi Yuan hung up the phone and looked at the three girls in front of him.

They were all staring at him.

Jiang Yi couldn't help but ask, "Didn't you say you wanted to focus on your music career and not consider anything else?"

Qi Yuan explained, "That's why I only accepted a cameo role, it'll only take a few days, it won't take up much of my time. Besides, the album is all done, so I have some free time."

Ning Qianyu narrowed her eyes and drawled, "And it was Sister Yihan who personally called to invite you. There aren't many people in the entertainment industry who get such a great opportunity, right?"

Jiang Yi and Qiu Mengxue gritted their teeth in secret.

Qi Yuan nodded: "It is indeed a good opportunity with a very high cost-performance ratio. Not only will it not hinder your music career, but it may even help it."

Qiu Mengxue raised an eyebrow slightly: "Helpful?"

"With Shen Yihan's popularity, this drama will definitely be seen by a lot of people. My cameo role might even bring some attention to our band..."

Qi Yuan's explanation was hard to refute, but the three girls still felt a heavy weight in their hearts.

Putting aside how much it would help the band, the key issue is that his teammates haven't even won yet, and now this guy is going to spend a few days with an S-class dangerous person... How can anyone be happy about that?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

201 What kind of deformed melons and cracked dates?

After receiving the character description and excerpt from the script, Qi Yuan realized that the role he was going to play was quite interesting.

The character is named Lu Chen. On the surface, he is an urban archaeologist who specializes in restoring ancient books. But in reality, he possesses a family secret martial art and has superhuman combat power. However, this combat power comes at a price: generations of his family have rarely lived past the age of thirty.

Moreover, this cultivation technique originated from something left behind by the female protagonist a thousand years ago. The reason for passing on the technique to the Lu family ancestors was to leave someone to guard a local formation. Of course, the female protagonist didn't intentionally want the Lu family to die young; it's just that a part of the technique was lost after she left, leading to this disastrous outcome.

As for why the cultivation techniques are missing, what the formation suppresses, and which forces the Lu family has fought against over the centuries... those are the key turning points in the plot.

Sitting on the plane to Shanghai, Qi Yuan was still pondering the script.

He is actually far less innocent than his teammates thought.

The reason he initially chose music was because he had a large number of hit songs from his previous life stored in his memory, and the creators had the strongest control over them. But after achieving initial fame, he certainly didn't need to limit himself to one field.

For example, this time, I only made a guest appearance for a few days, and I received 500,000 yuan.

Even without talking about money, just filming in front of the camera is a novel and exciting experience that he can look forward to.

Therefore, Qi Yuan made preparations before arriving at the film set.

Upon arriving at the film set, the director was very respectful from the start, after all, Qi Yuan's current fame was far beyond that of the minor actors in the crew, and he was also brought in by Tianhua Entertainment.

"Hello, hello, Qi Yuan... classmate, uh, is it okay for me to call you classmate? I see a lot of people call you that."

"Of course, no problem. Shall we start the audition now?"

"Are you all ready? Great, of course, no problem. Let's go this way..."

The director led Qi Yuan into a room. This was a set the crew needed for filming, and it was during a break in filming.

Shen Yihan, who was sitting not far away drinking tea, also noticed Qi Yuan, but before she could figure out what attitude she should adopt or whether she should act familiar with him in front of the crew, Qi Yuan was taken away by the director.

Shen Yihan wanted to watch him audition, but she was too embarrassed, so she could only sit there and keep looking towards the direction of that room.

In that room, Qi Yuan had already begun.

The director pointed out a section from the script, handed it to him, and said, "Imagine me as the female lead, Shen Hong. Can you memorize this line?"

Qi Yuan wasn't quite sure: "Just this short passage, a few sentences?"

The director nodded.

Qi Yuan: "Of course!"

The director remained noncommittal. After all, let alone cameos from other fields, even many professional actors these days can't even memorize their lines properly. Those celebrities rely on their looks, on fans and companies supporting them, to recite "one, two, three, four, five" expressionlessly during filming, then have it dubbed in post-production, while fans still shout "Brother is so handsome!" "Sister is so beautiful and cool!"...

Compared to those idols, Shen Yihan is actually a fairly dedicated actress. As for Qi Yuan in front of her, although he is also under Tianhua Entertainment, the director really doesn't dare to bet on whether he has even the most basic sense of professionalism.

Qi Yuan had no idea how low the director's expectations were for him. He simply gathered his emotions and then got into character.

He sat cross-legged on the ground, assuming a meditation posture.

Then he took a deep breath, slowly raised his head, and said, "Grandmaster, what brings you here?"

The director, in a completely emotionless voice, read the female lead's lines: "The backlash has reached her heart. Lu Chen, who gave you the audacity to suppress it?"

Qi Yuan lowered his eyes: "If I don't suppress it, who can?"

Director: "And my sword."

Qi Yuan sighed and said softly, "The resentment in the earth's veins is too heavy, and your sword is too sharp. If you were to cut it, it would break along with it."

Director: "You underestimate me."

“Grandmaster, I have never dared to underestimate you, but I am a little worried. If this earth vein is not suppressed, many people in Jiangcheng will be in danger tonight… I am merely exchanging this crippled body for their peaceful night’s sleep.”

As he spoke the last few words, Qi Yuan looked up, as if Shen Yihan, the female lead, was right in front of him. He had a smile on his face, but it was a smile full of helplessness.

The director was stunned.

In the past, when competition in film and television was fierce, this kind of performance would have been considered just that of an ordinary supporting actor or extra, enough to keep the audience from being distracted.

But what era are we living in now?

In the era of internet traffic, fans manipulate data, companies have all sorts of marketing tricks, and even many main characters rely on beauty filters to fool people. What about the supporting characters?

Okay, there are many professional and dedicated actors playing supporting roles. After all, without connections or fans, they can only rely on their professional skills to secure a place. But who is Qi Yuan? He's the lead singer of this year's band talent show. Does he really need to be this dedicated?

The director slapped his thigh: "Great, excellent!"

Qi Yuan stood up and asked, "Does this mean I passed the audition?"

The director, beaming, said, "Of course it has to be approved! None of the other unattractive actors originally cast can compare to you!"

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

At 2 PM, Bai Xingye was woken up by his cell phone ringing.

Two girls were asleep on either side of him, with their underwear and stockings scattered on the carpet around them. The ringing of the telephone didn't wake them; they just mumbled incoherently in their sleep.

Bai Xingye picked up his phone, glanced at the caller ID, and immediately perked up. He quickly shook off the arms and legs wrapped around him, went to the bathroom, and answered the call.

It was the agent's voice on the phone: "Why did it take you so long to answer? Did you stay up all night again?"

Bai Xingye laughed and said, "I didn't stay up all night, no, I just went to bed a little late... uh, I was playing games last night."

The agent sighed: "I won't ask you what game it is. Just one sentence: that show is over."

"That's it?" Bai Xingye was stunned. "What do you mean by 'gone'?!"

Agent: "It means exactly what it says. The director said that there is a more suitable candidate for the role of Lu Chen, and he will not consider you anymore. Of course, there were some polite words, such as 'there will definitely be opportunities to work together in the next film,' but don't take it seriously."

Shirahoshino, holding onto the bathtub, felt a little dizzy. If she didn't hold onto something, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to stand up.

Since being cut off from the collaboration with "The Great Murder Mystery Detective," he hasn't been able to find a suitable variety show. After all, many shows have so many contestants that there are far more contestants than available spots... Finally, he managed to get in touch with a production team that supposedly has a promising future. Although he only auditioned for a minor supporting role, it was a role that would allow him to act opposite Shen Yihan!

How did it all go wrong?

He turned his head and looked at the frosted glass. The two girls on the bed were his fans.

If this continues, will it become increasingly difficult to even stir-fry noodles in the future?

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

202 The Self-Cultivation of Actors

Because of the limited time available for guest appearances, the crew is focusing on filming scenes related to Qi Yuan this weekend.

Nearly half of these scenes are with Shen Yihan.

When they weren't working together, during breaks between filming, or while having lunch, the two often sat together chatting and laughing.

Someone on the set couldn't help but ask, "We've never seen Shen Yihan before. Who is she so close to?"

Then someone explained: "Because that guy and Shen Yihan have known each other for a long time. He plays in a band and collaborated with a crossover guest on a talent show, which was Shen Yihan!"

"What? Her singing isn't..."

"Someone wrote a rap for Shen Yihan to perform, and the feedback was very good."

"That's called catering to someone's preferences..."

Meanwhile, Qi Yuan and Shen Yihan were happily eating their boxed lunches, oblivious to the distant chatter.

Shen Yihan suddenly asked, "Do you eat green peppers?"

Qi Yuan: "It's edible, why?"

Without saying a word, Shen Yihan picked up a piece of green pepper from her lunchbox and gave it to him.

Qi Yuan, however, picked up the chopsticks with a look of disgust and said, "Don't use your chopsticks to serve me."

Shen Yihan was stunned: "You..."

Then Qi Yuan picked up another piece of green pepper himself.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Shen Yihan laughed and asked, "Do you have mysophobia?"

Qi Yuan said seriously, "This is normal, it's not a cleanliness obsession."

Since he had no intention of pursuing this big star, he certainly couldn't possibly give in to her in every way.

However, for Shen Yihan, this attitude—neither overly enthusiastic nor overly reserved—was quite refreshing. Because of her family's circumstances as a child, and later because of her fame, she hadn't had many normal friendships, especially with men.

So she couldn't help but look Qi Yuan up and down.

Hmm, she ate quickly and seemed to have a good appetite, but she wasn't wolfing it down. Her table manners were quite good... Shen Yihan thought to herself.

As Qi Yuan was eating, he noticed the lingering gaze out of the corner of his eye, turned his head and asked, "Why are you staring at me?"

Shen Yihan: "Seeing you eat so deliciously makes me hungry too."

Qi Yuan smiled and said, "Then you can eat yours. You haven't touched a single piece of meat all day. Do you want some beef? If not, I'll take it away."

Shen Yihan proactively handed the lunchbox towards him, saying, "Then you can take some."

Qi Yuan was slightly taken aback: "You really don't eat beef?"

"Go ahead and eat, but I want to watch you eat."