Chapter 14: First Time Taking the Stage, Astonishing Everyone! [4,500 Words]

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Li Xian!

A future top-tier male actor in China.

He would become famous nationwide after starring alongside Yang Zi in the phenomenal television series Go Go Squid!, successfully joining the ranks of the most popular stars. He would also appear with Liu Yifei in Meet Yourself and receive a Golden Eagle Award nomination for Best Actor.

This man had appeared several times in the future biographical film Chen Jin had watched.

It was not because he was famous, but because he had taken the same university arts entrance examination as Chen Jin—and was also a repeat-year student who had failed the first time.

That was why the future Chen Jin had paid him particular attention.

He was like a model to learn from. If someone else could repeat a year and pass, then surely Chen Jin could do the same.

And then... there was no then.

But unlike the impression Chen Jin had gotten from the videos, the present-day Li Xian was somewhat overweight and rather dark-skinned. It was not that Chen Jin was being narcissistic, but the man was not even as handsome or fair-skinned as he was. Perhaps he had undergone minor cosmetic procedures in the future—or perhaps fame simply improved a person's appearance.

Chen Jin could only attribute it to the latter.

Still, cosmetic surgery among celebrities was already perfectly routine in 2010, let alone in the future.

"Did you hear what your mother said?"

Su Wanyu could not help asking when she saw Chen Jin craning his neck and peering around.

"I heard you. Don't worry!"

"I'll definitely pass!"

Chen Jin said it with complete confidence. Su Wanyu could not bear to dampen his spirits. He was talking about definitely passing, yet she had just listened carefully to the people around them. Nearly every student taking the arts examination had attended a preparatory course.

Who knew how long they had been training for the poetry recitation in the preliminary round?

No matter how much Su Wanyu believed her son was a genius, she was not so arrogant as to think he could defeat all those students with the little ability he possessed.

The difference between those who had taken classes and those who had not was enormous.

Otherwise, why would students come to school to study?

As a teacher, Su Wanyu understood this better than anyone. She merely straightened Chen Jin's clothes and hair, then said nothing more.

Creak!

The examination-room door suddenly opened, and a stream of handsome and beautiful candidates emerged.

Unlike the spirited appearance they had maintained before entering, many now looked dejected, presumably because their performances had not gone well.

Chen Jin glanced at the time and realized that their group should be next.

Sure enough, a teacher at the door called out, "Candidates numbered 3180 through 3199, get ready!"

Chen Jin immediately stood up. His examination number was 3198.

Li Xian also came to himself. As expected, he was in the same examination room as Chen Jin. Each room admitted only twenty people, regardless of gender. The examination lasted one hour, and every candidate had to perform a poetry recitation onstage.

In other words, each candidate had no more than three minutes for the preliminary round.

That included introducing themselves, standing up, and walking to the stage, making the schedule extremely tight.

"Good luck, son!"

Su Wanyu encouraged Chen Jin once more, while the other parents also cheered on their children.

Chen Jin smiled, gave her an okay sign, exhaled deeply, and walked into the arts examination room.

"Ten on each side, facing one another. There is no requirement regarding where you sit by examination number."

One of the examiners already seated inside spoke up. Two teachers sat on either side of him. He was evidently the chief examiner, while the other four were likely responsible for scoring.

They represented acting, vocal music, speech, and physical performance.

The sum of the five examiners' scores would be the candidate's final preliminary-round result.

The chief examiner would give one overall score, while the other four teachers would each award a score for a single category, with ten points available from each.

The total, therefore, was fifty points.

They sat at the back of the examination room, in the center, leaving a large open space in front of them for the candidates to perform. Chen Jin took a seat by the window on the left.

By coincidence, Li Xian ended up sitting beside him.

Candidate 3180!

He would be the first to perform. Chen Jin was second to last.

Once the students had entered and taken their seats, Chen Jin began observing the five examiners.

The four teachers were strangers to him, but the chief examiner was very familiar.

In the future biographical film, Chen Jin had taken the preliminary arts examination several times, and the chief examiner had been different each time. During his first examination, it had been the vice dean of the Beijing Film Academy's Acting Department.

The second time, it had been Yang Mi—yes, the famous Da Mi Mi.

But this time, in the experience Chen Jin was personally living through, the chief examiner was actually Huang Lei!

He was the actor who had played the leading role of Lu Bu in renowned director Chen Kaige's film Lu Bu and Diaochan.

Chen Jin had never expected him to be a teacher at the Beijing Film Academy.

That role was what he remembered most clearly.

It seemed that in the future biographical film, this teacher had also become quite famous. He had appeared on a variety show and done something involving green beans, laughing so hard that the future Chen Jin had suffered stomach pains.

There had even been a viral catchphrase: "Where are these green beans old? These green beans are fantastic!"

As the number of arts-examination candidates increased with every passing year, more examiners were needed. Major institutions such as the Beijing Film Academy and the Central Academy of Drama would summon many teachers—even outstanding graduates—to serve temporarily as examiners.

Candidates had no idea who the chief examiner would be before entering the room, which greatly reduced the possibility of cheating.

Of course, there was still room for manipulation. It was simply more difficult.

The Beijing Film Academy was admitting 120 students that year. Aside from those already guaranteed admission, quite a few places would go to the children of influential figures and others connected to various interests. In the end, barely more than half the places would remain for ordinary students.

That was why ordinary arts candidates had to be outstanding enough to enter one of the country's three premier academies. No wonder people said that the odds of being admitted to the Central Academy of Drama, the Beijing Film Academy, or the Shanghai Theatre Academy were comparable to the odds of getting into a top university through the national college entrance examination—more difficult, even, than entering a prestigious Project 985 university.

In the arts, these three academies truly stood on a level comparable to China's foremost universities.

"Starting with candidate 3180, proceed in order. Each person has a maximum of three minutes!"

"You all understand the test, correct? Poetry recitation!"

"There are no restrictions on subject or type!"

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Chief Examiner Huang Lei looked at the twenty candidates seated on either side.

"Let's begin. Candidate 3180, come to the stage. State only your height and weight. Do not give your name or examination number!"

Swish!

Li Xian, seated beside Chen Jin, immediately stood up, his back perfectly straight.

He did not appear particularly nervous. Perhaps because he had taken the examination once before, he instead seemed somewhat confident, walking lightly to the center of the stage.

"Good morning, teachers and examiners. I am candidate 3180. I am 185 centimeters tall and weigh 75 kilograms!"

"The poem I will recite is William Butler Yeats's When You Are Old!"

It was a classic foreign poem. In later years, its Chinese version would be adapted into a fairly famous pop song, performed on the Spring Festival Gala by Karen Mok.

"When... you are old..."

"Your hair... turns gray..."

Li Xian recited with deep feeling, his voice rising and falling with deliberate rhythm.

It was clear that he possessed some foundation in vocal performance and speech, so many of the candidates listened attentively, comparing themselves with him.

The pressure was immense.

The very first person to take the stage was already this impressive. Many of those waiting farther back began to grow nervous.

People often said that the first candidate was the unluckiest. In truth, when the first person happened to be strong, it did not matter whether one performed before or after him. Those waiting behind often felt even more pressure, causing their own performances to suffer.

That was more or less what was happening now.

Li Xian was indeed worthy of becoming a top star in Chen Jin's future biographical film. He did have some ability.

But... Chen Jin felt a little puzzled.

As far as he was concerned, Li Xian's poetry recitation was merely adequate. If Chen Jin took the stage and read the poem himself, he might actually do better.

The feeling was truly strange.

He simply felt that Li Xian could have done more—his breath control, intonation, and emotional delivery could all have been better. After all, reciting poetry was not something one could do casually.

It encompassed the four basic disciplines of an actor: voice, speech, physicality, and acting. That was why candidates could gain an advantage through their choice of poem.

In other words, some poems were unsuitable for an arts examination.

Others, by contrast, were extremely appropriate.

Li Xian had certainly attended acting classes, and this poem had probably been selected for him by a teacher specifically because it allowed an arts candidate to display his strengths in voice, speech, physicality, and acting.

It was easy to understand.

Only if a candidate understood what the poem meant could he perform it well.

When You Are Old was a poem about emotion.

As long as one imagined the atmosphere of the poem while reciting it, expressed its passionate and sincere feelings, and moved the examiners, the preliminary examination would be a success.

But in Chen Jin's eyes, Li Xian's rendition could only be described as conventional.

Some ability, but not much.

"Next!"

Chen Jin heard Huang Lei speak, but he noticed that the examiner seemed rather satisfied with Li Xian's performance.

"Strange. It really wasn't that good..."

Chen Jin muttered under his breath as Li Xian sat down beside him, followed by a long exhalation.

Although Li Xian had appeared relaxed and completely untroubled onstage, that had all been an act.

How could he not have been nervous?

This was his second attempt. The pressure he carried was actually greater than that felt by the first-time candidates in the room.

"Good morning, examiners and teachers. I am candidate 3181..."

The second person to take the stage was a young woman. She recited Alexander Pushkin's If Life Deceives You, but Chen Jin could only frown as he listened.

It was terrible.

Her breath control and rhythm were poor, and her voice trembled. Anyone could tell she was nervous.

"Seriously? This is what an arts class produces?"

"Surely not..."

Chen Jin was genuinely stunned. He had always imagined preparatory arts classes to be formidable places, and assumed that after training, their students would probably be close to his own level.

He had not expected the gap to be so vast.

The value of the reward from his old system had just risen immeasurably!

Chen Jin began to feel a little carried away. He had been somewhat bothered by the fact that he had not attended an arts preparatory class, but after listening to the second candidate—and then the third—he found himself wondering whether these people had put in any effort at all.

How could someone read the same poem repeatedly for six months and still perform like this?

But in fact, that was not how it worked.

Reciting poetry required talent as well. That talent lay in voice, speech, physicality, and acting.

The voice was innate.

Speech had to be practiced.

Physicality and acting required even more practice.

That was why the Beijing Film Academy had continued to use poetry recitation as the preliminary examination every year.

To a professional, reciting poetry was truly not as easy as it seemed.

One candidate after another took the stage. Apart from Li Xian, Chen Jin did not feel that any of them were better than he was. Even so, he did not look around. He sat upright and listened with complete concentration.

His back remained straight, his neck neither raised too high nor drooping, and a faint smile stayed on his face throughout.

There was no helping it. Directly in front of him stood a camera.

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The entire examination was being recorded.

From the moment one entered the examination room, one had to pay attention to one's appearance and bearing.

One could not make strange faces, much less laugh at anyone else. Any minor gesture could cost points.

Chen Jin had looked up information about the arts examination. The instant candidates entered the waiting area, people were watching them from every direction, so they had to maintain a positive and energetic state at all times.

He did not know whether that was true, but following the advice could never hurt.

Before long, more than half an hour had passed. Most of the candidates in the room had finished their examinations. Chen Jin had maintained the same posture the entire time, though his whole body was actually relaxed.

He had been confident to begin with, and after listening to the earlier recitations, he already had a fairly clear idea of the examination.

It was like a professional actor taking an arts entrance examination—a feeling of overwhelming superiority.

Chen Jin's earlier premonition had not been wrong. His current ability was already comparable to that of many young actors. He could even pick out flaws and shortcomings in the candidates' recitations.

At last, candidate 3197 finished reading, and it was Chen Jin's turn to take the stage.

When he heard Huang Lei call for the next candidate, Chen Jin stood up swiftly. Huang Lei's eyes swept toward him, and the examiner gave him a faint smile.

A true expert needed only one move to reveal his ability.

With a single glance, Huang Lei could tell that Chen Jin had genuine talent.

He had interviewed more than a hundred candidates that day, and Chen Jin's manner of rising was the most pleasing he had seen.

Natural. Relaxed. Not the slightest trace of nervousness.

That was the state an actor needed most. Moreover, Chen Jin was good-looking.

One of the physical-performance teachers beside Huang Lei also lifted his head slightly. From the moment Chen Jin stood up to the moment he reached the center of the stage, his walk radiated confidence. Neither too fast nor too slow, his steps were measured and his rhythm excellent.

It was the bearing of someone with a solid physical foundation—clearly a person who had trained before.

"Good morning, teachers. I am candidate 3198. I am 180 centimeters tall and weigh 70 kilograms!"

The candidates who had been looking down all raised their heads almost in unison the instant Chen Jin began his introduction.

That voice... was beautiful.

It immediately seized one's attention.

Clear, bright, crisp, and perfectly articulated.

It possessed the sunny quality unique to a young man of Chen Jin's age. Combined with the flash of white teeth in his smile as he introduced himself, it made not only the teachers facing him but also the female candidates who could see his face look at him several times more than once.

That smile was devastatingly effective.

"The poem I will recite is Ai Qing's I Love This Land!"

Another small detail.

Very few candidates added the poet's honorific title.

Huang Lei suddenly leaned back against his chair, folded his arms across his chest, and made a gesture indicating that Chen Jin should begin. His expression showed that he was ready to listen.

The other teachers appeared to be doing much the same.

That treatment astonished many of the candidates.

This was blatant preferential treatment.

The examiners had never made such expressive gestures for the other candidates.

Yet they all understood why Chen Jin was receiving different treatment: because of his voice and his introduction.

If they had possessed a voice like his, the examiners would have reacted the same way.

Besides, the poem Chen Jin had chosen shocked the candidates even more.

I Love This Land?

That was a poem arts-examination teachers expressly forbade candidates from choosing!

Had this fellow never attended an arts preparatory course?

An eighteen-year-old high-school student could not possibly understand a poem with such profound meaning.

Foreign poems about romantic love, friendship, and similar subjects were the preferred choices. Although Ai Qing's poem was extremely famous, that was precisely why so many people chose it. Those who could recite it well were generally older.

Therefore, choosing this poem for an arts examination meant that it would be almost impossible to earn a good acting score. Points would likely be deducted for physical performance and speech as well.

"Why hasn't he started yet?"

After Chen Jin introduced the poem he had chosen, many people watched him fall silent, clearly unable to understand what he was doing.

Huang Lei and the other examiners, however, seemed perfectly patient. The poem was indeed difficult to recite, and Chen Jin was right to take this approach.

He was gathering his emotions, rather than launching directly into the poem the moment he opened his mouth.

Poetry required preparation.

The candidates did not understand, but the examiners and teachers could see it clearly.

Chen Jin's expression, his hands, and the rest of his body had all begun to change in response to the poem he was about to recite.

This candidate... was rather impressive.

Huang Lei glanced at the registration form for candidate 3198. It contained Chen Jin's name—and an entirely blank résumé.

"No hobbies listed at all?"

"Or did he simply leave it blank?"

Huang Lei narrowed his eyes. At that moment, he heard Chen Jin begin to recite.

The instant he opened his mouth, the expressions of the many candidates seated in the room changed once again.