Shu Han took longer to get in than everyone else before him.
Nearly twenty minutes later, he finally came out and sat down in another area to wait for the final result.
The other actors glanced down at their watches, mentally estimating when Shu Han had gone in, and their expressions were somewhat complicated.
The fact that Shu Han could stay inside for so long shows that Director Ning is very satisfied with him...
While the others were preoccupied with their own thoughts, Xiao He stood up and followed the staff into the audition room.
The audition room wasn't very big, about the size of a regular classroom. On one side was a row of neatly arranged tables, and on the other side was a somewhat spacious rehearsal area with a full-length mirror. Behind the tables sat director Ning Jiaqi, producer Zhuang Hongyi, and several other key members of the production team.
Upon seeing Xiao He enter, none of the people showed any change in expression. Only the slightly unfamiliar assistant director raised his hand to signal, "Xiao He, number 13, please come up and collect your audition clip."
Xiao He walked up, respectfully accepted the small note handed to him by the assistant director, then stood in the center of the open space, looking down at the contents of the note—
【Your brother died in a car accident. You received the news, rushed to the hospital, and met your brother's parents.】
It was this scene!
A subtle light flickered in Xiao He's eyes.
When Shu Yuxiu was working at a car repair shop, he unexpectedly met Zhu Penglin, a rich second-generation who came to have his car repaired.
Zhu Penglin's father was a nouveau riche. His family had just moved here from another city and were not very familiar with the wealthy circles in the area.
Zhu Penglin became fascinated with racing after his family suddenly became rich. He wanted to make friends with other wealthy second-generation racing enthusiasts in this circle, but he was actually terrified of dying and his racing skills were mediocre. Before moving to this city, Zhu Penglin had been ridiculed by his former "friends" in the industry, so he hesitated to get involved in the racing circle of wealthy second-generation people here.
However, Zhu Penglin learned by chance that Shu Yuxiu was a very good race car driver.
So he had an idea: to ask Shu Yuxiu to take his place in a private competition within the rich ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) second-generation circle and help him win first place.
Shu Yuxiu looks quite ordinary and works in a car repair shop year-round, but his driving skills are truly exceptional. He actually helped Zhu Penglin win the championship in the industry, earning Zhu Penglin immense popularity and the admiring gaze of other rich second-generation individuals.
And so, the two became very good friends.
Unfortunately, Zhu Penglin died in a car accident during a later competition. When Shu Yuxiu learned of this news, he rushed to the hospital, but only managed to see Zhu Penglin's body.
At that time, Zhu Penglin's parents were both out of town and couldn't come back for a while. The group of friends Zhu Penglin had recently made were all cowards. After they learned that Zhu Penglin had died in a car accident while racing with them, none of them dared to come to the hospital. In the end, it was Shu Yuxiu who took care of everything and helped Zhu Penglin with his funeral arrangements.
Therefore, after Zhu Penglin's parents returned from out of town and learned about the situation, they were very grateful to Shu Yuxiu and even took the initiative to recognize Shu Yuxiu as their godson.
The current scene depicts Shu Yuxiu meeting Zhu Penglin's parents at the hospital after Zhu Penglin's death.
Xiao He only had five minutes to adjust. He stood there with his eyes closed, carefully preparing his emotions. When the time was up, the assistant director next to him reminded Xiao He that he could start performing. Xiao He immediately showed his regret and pain on his face.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have let him go alone! I never expected this to happen—I'm so sorry!"
The young man knelt on the ground, pounding his thighs heavily with his hands, his whole body trembling slightly from the grief in his heart.
He raised his eyes, his gaze filled with sorrow as he looked at the "person" before him. It seemed he had heard the accusations and curses of Zhu Penglin's parents. His fingers, resting on his lap, tightened around his pants, his voice choked with emotion: "I know, I know, I know this happened so unexpectedly. If I could, I would also hope that Brother Penglin could stay healthy! But, but..."
His voice grew increasingly choked with emotion, until he could no longer utter a complete sentence. He hung his head in despair, his body swaying as if he were being beaten and cursed by Zhu's mother, who had lost her son.
The doctor, who was standing nearby, finally couldn't take it anymore and loudly berated Zhu Penglin's parents: "This child was the only one who came all the way from Dongcheng District after your child's car accident! What did he do wrong? By the time he arrived, everything had already happened! He was busy helping with the paperwork, and even took out all his savings to beg the doctor to save him a little longer. Where were you then? How dare you criticize him?"
Clearly, Zhu's parents had misunderstood. They thought Shu Yuxiu was one of the culprits behind Zhu Penglin's car accident, but now, after hearing the nurse's words, they realized that they had misunderstood the young man in front of them.
The young man turned his head slightly, and was helped to his feet. Listening to Mr. and Mrs. Zhu's apology, he shook his head somewhat frantically, then his face showed sorrow: "I know, although I'm not the main culprit this time, I've always accompanied Brother Penglin when he drives out. Only this time... I'm sorry to Brother Penglin, and I'm sorry to you all. If I had been in the car then... maybe all of this—"
Before the young man could finish speaking, he suddenly opened his arms and gently supported Zhu's mother, whose body had slumped in grief. He then looked anxiously at Zhu's father on the other side: "Uncle Zhu, this, this is—"
"Heart attack?"
He immediately looked regretful. "Brother Penglin mentioned it to me before, how could I forget! I'll go call the doctor right away!"
However, before he could leave, his hand was grabbed.
He turned his head, somewhat puzzled.
"Huh? No need? Is this really okay?"
The young man sniffed, barely suppressing the sadness in his heart. Only a few tears welled up in his deep eyes. He tried to soften his voice and said gently, "I hope you can take good care of yourselves. Brother Penglin probably wouldn't want to see you like this!"
Then he bent down slightly, carefully helped Mrs. Zhu up, and asked in a trembling, hoarse voice, "Aunt Zhu, shall I take you to rest for a bit?"
Seemingly having received confirmation from Zhu's mother, the young man's expression finally relaxed considerably, but his movements became even gentler as he slowly led the middle-aged woman, who was overwhelmed with grief over her son's death, out of the house. He even softened his breathing, as if handling a fragile object...
Only after they had walked more than halfway through the audition venue did Xiao He slowly stop supporting Xu Kong.
He took a deep breath, walked back to the center, and bowed slightly to the group of people sitting opposite him: "My performance is over."
