Chapter 85 - Aspiration
It was late at night so Li Zhao didn’t let Yan Ting have a late night snack. He went to the kitchen and heated up a gla.s.s of milk. “Drink milk and go to bed early. I will report to the crew tomorrow.”
“A new job?”
“I’m one of seven male leads in a female-led movie.” Li Zhao laughed. “My recent schedule is relatively relaxed so I’m just mixing into the movie circle to become familiar with it.”
In the past two years, the public had a growing sense of rejection towards the traffic actors. If young actors wanted to develop in the entertainment industry for a long time, they needed more effort and opportunities or they would be firework sticks sold on the roadside for 10 yuan each. They burned their own interest and was then discarded as garbage.
Strawberry Entertainment gave him a development route that many young artists wanted but couldn’t get. He acted with the movie queen and received high-end brand endors.e.m.e.nts. He didn’t easily receive jobs that didn’t help his development.
“Will you leave tomorrow morning?” Yan Ting’s hand holding the milk slightly tensed.
“Yes.” Li Zhao nodded. “However, most of the movie is being filmed in Beijing.”
“Okay.” Yan Ting looked at Li Zhao’s mouth and then looked away. “You should go and rest early. I will watch TV.”
“It’s so late. Why are you watching TV?” LI Zhao laughed. “Go to bed.”
“The fifth episode of Sky Song was shown tonight. You are going to appear.” Yan Ting turned on the TV. “I can stay up late because I don’t have to go to the company tomorrow.”
Li Zhao, “……”
He couldn’t stay up late because there were make-up shots tomorrow.
Once Li Zhao returned to the room, Yan Ting turned on the TV’s playback function and called up the fifth episode of Sky Song. In the large-scale historical TV drama, the emperor played by Lu Hao was remarkable and no acting mistakes could be pointed out.
Li Zhao’s performance as the famous minister confirmed to the beautiful appearance described in history books. The director seemed to intend to highlight this feature and gave Li Zhao a slow beauty slot.
The elegant gentleman with red lips and white teeth raised the curtain of the carriage and smiled. It was enough to make everything in the world except for him colourless. Yan Ting pressed pause. He quietly watched the handsome young man on the screen. Then he took the medicine bottle from his coat pocket and ate it without any expression.
“Ting Ting.”
Yan Ting looked up. Li Zhao was lying on the railing of the second floor, his upper body sticking out. Yan Ting’s expression suddenly changed. He abruptly stood up, the pill bottle in his hand falling to the ground and the pills rolling all over the ground.
“Go back, don’t lie there.” Yan Ting’s voice was hoa.r.s.e as he stared at Li Zhao in a daze. His voice became smaller. “Zhao Zhao, step back.”
Li Zhao had never seen Yan Ting show such a frightened expression and obediently took a step back. “Ting Ting, what’s wrong with you?”
“I’m fine.” Yan Ting bent over to put the pills back in the bottle. Before Li Zhao went downstairs, he had placed the medicine bottle in his coat pocket. “The housekeeper said that the railing is slightly loose and it isn’t safe to lie there.”
The room was too quiet so he canceled the pause and allowed the TV series to continue playing.
“I forgot to take my phone.” Li Zhao walked to the sofa, picked up his phone and stared at himself on the TV with a smile. “At that time, I shot the scene of lifting the curtain from several angles. I didn’t expect them to use the very first one.”
“It’s very good.”
“Really?” Li Zhao touched his chin. “The director said I was the face value of the drama. I have as many costumes as the male lead.”
“Really.” Yan Ting nodded and reached out to help adjust his pyjamas. “Go to bed early.”
“Then I’ll go to sleep first. Don’t stay up too long.” Li Zhao went to the stairs, turned to look at Yan Ting’s coat pocket and silently returned to his room.
The housekeeper uncle had told him that every item in the house would be checked regularly to ensure the safety of every part of the house. He remembered what Song Yu had said again. Ting Ting saw his mother jump from a high height in the house. Later… he would try not to lean on the railing in front of Ting Ting.
Sky Song was broadcasted on national TV and during prime time, which guaranteed a minimum of ratings. As long as the drama wasn’t too rotten, the ratings wouldn’t be smashed. Presumably, the recent dramas were too bad and the young audience didn’t have anything to watch. After a few episodes of Sky Song, they started to spontaneously recommend it.
The costumes and props were very strictly accurate and the makeup of the actresses wasn’t the same as modern makeup. The actors’ acting skills were all online and even the extras were serious.
After watching the fifth and sixth episodes, some viewers expressed their feelings. The moment Xu daren played by Li Zhao appeared, it was enough to make women scream. This was in line with the ‘face like a jade crown, a beautiful appearance’ description in history books.
Some people praised Director Yang’s choice for the roles. Even Song Yu abandoned his domineering style in the drama and his acting skills were elevated. The Yu fans were really moved. For the first time, their Xiao Yu was praised for his performance. This was progress across the ages.
Of course, the one with the highest number of forwards was the gif of Xu daren lifting the carriage curtain and smiling. In front of this gif, countless people realized the feeling of their heart being attacked.
After the fifth episode aired, the ratings of the sixth episode increased significantly and the network index started to rise.
On some entertainment gossip forums, someone created a special plot topic for Sky Song and Li Zhao’s gif from the drama caused hundreds of responses.
1531L: When the actors of Sky Song were first announced, I scolded Strawberry Entertainment for daring to do anything to support newcomers. Now I want to confess. I shouldn’t have doubted my boyfriend’s acting skills and face value.
1542L：The above person should be reserved. You can’t only look at a man’s face but also his inner qualities. I can see Li Zhao’s inner qualities.
1653L: A good director can really improve an actor. Compared with Overbearing Female President, Li Zhao’s acting skills and sense of the camera are much stronger.
1710L: Song Yu is a lot more pleasing to the eyes in this drama. This is the charm of a good crew.
After the broadcast of Sky Song, the ratings steadily rose. In the current situation of poor TV ratings, Sky Song’s ratings broke 2 points after only six episodes.
Such ratings weren’t worth mentioning 10 years ago. However, in the current age where online dramas occupied half the country, Sky Song achieving such high ratings just a few days after launch meant it was almost certain to be the top drama of the year.
Moreover, this brought bonuses to the entire staff, not just the main characters. The supporting actors received great attention, especially Li Zhao who was almost as popular as the main character.
However, Lu Hao’s fans knew that Lu Hao had a good relationship with Li Zhao and they were also artists from the same company. After Lu Hao signed to Strawberry Entertainment, he won two first-tier endors.e.m.e.nts, a famous movie and many fashion resources.
Lu Hao’s fans didn’t resent Li Zhao but instead had a harmonious relationship with the Li fans. They sometimes even helped with Li Zhao’s data.
***
Li Zhao entered the crew of Seven Boyfriends and the entire crew was very friendly to him. Although the atmosphere wasn’t as comfortable as Shadow of the Sky, the filming was very smooth.
In order to meet Li Zhao’s character in the movie, all his clothes were provided by big brands. His car was also a limited edition famous brand car that the crew spent a lot of money on renting.
The people in the crew called him President Li every day to give him a sense of wealth.
There was a gossip reporter mixed in with the crew. He was very surprised after hearing the crew, including the female lead, calling him President Li. Once he went back, he wrote an article called ‘The orphan was originally the lost son of a giant.’
In the article, the reporter wrote the scene from the viewpoint of an insider and then described how a poor child became a popular star and was found by his rich family. In the end, the father and son recognized each other and the son reached the peak of life.
Once the article came out, it was found by some marketing accounts and forwarded. The reason for forwarding it was to enjoy the wonderful work together.
No one believed in the authenticity of this article. They just laughed at the gossip reporter’s magical brain hole. Everyone urged the reporter to change his career. His talent for storytelling was too wasteful as a gossip reporter.
For example, the famous Green River Literature City contained various stories. It was a pity to not go there to develop.
The crew of Seven Boyfriends hadn’t expected to rely on this random article to go on the hot search.
Liu Fen joked with Li Zhao, “Zhao Zhao, you allowed the crew to save on the publicity fees. You should ask the producer to give you a red envelope.”
Li Zhao didn’t know if he should laugh or cry. This story was really greatly composed. If he wasn’t the one involved then he would’ve almost believed it.
After filming Overbearing Female President, he became popular for more than half a year. His TV series that was playing on the national channel had good ratings but no one even came forward to say he might be their child.
Probably…
He was destined to come to this world alone. Just then, his phone vibrated. It was a message from Yan Ting.
[Yan Ting: When are you coming back tonight? Some fresh ingredients were airlifted home. I’ll wait for you to come back before they are cooked.]
The feeling of loss in his heart instantly disappeared without a trace. It didn’t matter. He had Ting Ting now.
“President Li.” A staff member came over with a smile. “Get ready. It’s your scene.”
‘President Li’ was now the crew’s joke. As long as someone called it, there would be a burst of laughter. Even the director couldn’t help laughing.
Liu Fen was very kind to Li Zhao in private but when filming, she was very demanding.
Li Zhao acted against her for a few days and learned many useful things. After finishing all the shots for today, the sunset glow stained the entire sky and Li Zhao said goodbye to the crew.
“Zhao Zhao, I heard you are on leave tomorrow?” Liu Fen still had to shoot two night scenes and she looked a bit haggard.
“Yes.” Li Zhao nodded. “I need to fill in the university aspiration form tomorrow.”
Liu Fen was in a trance for a moment before smiling. “You’re so good.”
The university entrance examination reminded her of her teenage years. At that time, she secretly fell in love with the thin and tall cla.s.s leader. Later, she was admitted to an acting school. In the past few years, she had forgotten what that boy looked like.
It didn’t matter who she liked at that time. It was just that the heart of that ignorant girl was worth missing.
“Have you figured out what school you will fill in?” Liu Fen gave a fascinating and charming smile. “You are still young and shouldn’t fall in love at school. It will affect the development of your career.”
“Sister Fenfen, don’t joke.” Li Zhao laughed in an embarra.s.sed manner. “I haven’t thought about falling in love. As for the school… I will probably choose Beijing City University. They have several majors and I don’t need to report to the school every day. It is linked to movies and television and is more suitable for my current situation.”
“Well, with your grades, if you didn’t enter the entertainment industry then you could be a high-intelligence elite.” Leaving aside Li Zhao’s friendship with the high-level members of Strawberry Entertainment and Canghuan, Liu Fen had a good impression of Li Zhao. She nodded at him. “Fill it in and don’t disclose it to the media. Otherwise, there will be a lot of trouble.”
“I know, Sister Fenfen.”
Once the online applications were opened, Li Zhao and Yan Ting sat in front of the computer and carefully compared the numbers of the schools and majors several times before submitting the information.
Li Zhao was a bit dazed when he saw the prompt about the successful submission. He glanced at the computer desktop and then Yan Ting. “Ting Ting, am I really going to university?”
The dream he was forced to give up on was achieved today. After being dazed, he was filled with joy.
Yan Ting reached out a hand and gently pinched his earlobe. “How does it feel?”
“A bit… itchy?” Li Zhao stared at Yan Ting blankly.
“It is real.” Yan Ting’s hand moved past Li Zhao’s shoulder and patted Li Zhao’s arm. “In the past two days while you’ve been filming, Beijing University and Tsinghua University have called me several times. Both schools are fighting for you to join.”
The information file of the university entrance examination candidates contained not only the candidate’s contact information but also their guardian’s phone number.
Li Zhao didn’t have a guardian and was usually busy with filming. All the guardian information was filled in with Yan Ting’s number.
Every year, the top 10 famous schools competed for the top-ranked candidates from all over the country. Sometimes, the behaviour of Tsinghua and Beijing University became a hot spot for the netizens eating melons.
In the eyes of most people, the students who could be actively sought after by both schools were already the winners of life.
“Once the admission letter is received, I’ll hold a university admission party for you.” Yan Ting was seriously considering this issue. “Please invite all your good friends.”
“This… there’s no need.”
“There is.” Yan Ting explained. “For all university entrance examination students who get good grades, their family will hold a party for them. Therefore, I will give you a party.”
Li Zhao felt that his heart was a bit disobedient and jumped quickly a few times. “Okay.”
The things he once didn’t dare to have, Ting Ting was making them up little by little.
***
The day after filling in the application form, the official Weibo of the variety show that Li Zhao partic.i.p.ated in released some promotional videos.
The Li fans and viewers saw Li Zhao suddenly being attacked and his entire body fell heavily to the ground. Then the staff of the program ran to Li Zhao in a panic.
The diehard viewers of this show all knew that a regular guest was sick and there was a temporary guest to fill in the spot. However, neither they nor the pa.s.sersby thought that the temporary guest would be Li Zhao and it seemed he was injured on the show.
“I slowed down the video and found that it was a leg that injured Li Zhao. Someone kicked him heavily.”
“Emmm, it might be a game but do they have to kick so hard?”
“Li Zhao is just a temporary guest to rescue the show. He isn’t stealing other people’s resources. What guest has started to act in such a black manner?”
“Combined with the pants and shoes worn by the guest, I’ve locked onto the suspicious target.”
Xu Bei saw the promotional video released by the program and had his agent contact them, asking what they wanted to do.
The program just said, “We just used the camera to faithfully record what happened when filming. We didn’t target any guests.”
Xu Bei was furious. “I think they want me to die. They are using my sacrifice to earn ratings.”
He clearly didn’t hurt Li Zhao at all. Why should he bear this infamy?
“Go and tell the program that I’m part of the Xu family. Let them think about what they should do.”
At this time, he could only use this trick, even though he was extremely afraid of Xu Yanting. However, apart from the ident.i.ty of being the cousin of Canghuan’s boss, he had no other method to make the program group retreat.
The author has something to say:
Zhao Zhao took first place in the cla.s.s.
The next day, Baby Ting Ting’s small school bag was full of snacks as he distributed them to all the children in the cla.s.s with a blank expression.
The teacher asked: Baby Ting Ting, why are you sharing snacks with everyone?
Baby Ting Ting looked seriously: To celebrate Zhao Zhao getting first place in the test. Everyone celebrates together.
Teacher: …….