Chapter 44: A Perfect Role

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Under the Hawthorn Tree, Beijing Film Academy open auditions, main conference room.

"Director Zhang, Chen Jin said he'll come over in the afternoon!"

Fu Lulu looked at the message on her screen and whispered into Zhang Yimou's ear.

Zhang Yimou gave a slight nod. "Mm, sounds good!"

"What about Dou Xiao?"

"Together. Once Chen Jin arrives, we'll have them both change into the costumes and compare them!"

"Got it!"

With that, Fu Lulu whispered a few instructions to an assistant standing nearby.

During this latest round of auditions at the Beijing Film Academy, Director Zhang had indeed found quite a few promising prospects suitable for Under the Hawthorn Tree, particularly a sophomore student named Dou Xiao. His temperament bore a striking resemblance to Chen Jin's, especially when he smiled.

That had brought Chen Jin back to mind; he needed to have the two young men stand side by side, dressed in Lao San's costume from the film, to make a direct comparison.

"Hello, Director Zhang wants you to come over this afternoon. Wait for the notice!"

An assistant spoke to a student waiting in the cubicle.

It was Dou Xiao, whom his classmates had coaxed into coming along to try his luck outside the school gate earlier.

"Alright, sounds good!"

Dou Xiao nodded repeatedly. The classmate sitting beside him wore an expression of sheer envy. Who could have imagined that the one who just came along for the ride would actually make it to the audition callback?!

Several other male and female students from the Beijing Film Academy waiting in the room cast looks of intense jealousy as well.

Apart from registering, those kept behind were periodically called up onto the stage for further comparisons.

There was a chance, but the wait was agonizing.

Compared to them, someone like Dou Xiao, who could leave and return in the afternoon, was in a much better position.

"Old Wang, should I... head out first, then?"

Dou Xiao, wearing long hair, asked his classmate, who simply waved a hand at him. "Get out of here!"

"Haha!"

Dou Xiao chuckled and walked out of the conference room.

...

Meanwhile, Chen Jin used an excuse to return to the hotel.

His mother, Su Wanyu, had gone out.

Mainly because Chen Jin had claimed he needed to go back to the Beijing Film Academy for another audition in the afternoon, and couldn't be disturbed while practicing and getting into character—sounding completely convincing.

Of course Su Wanyu chose to believe him, even leaving behind a bank card containing the twenty-odd thousand yuan Chen Xianqi had just transferred over.

Since Chen Jin was planning to pull strings later anyway, sending Su Wanyu off to drop off cosmetics was far less effective than him going himself.

After all, he had a way with words.

Well, that was the nonsense Chen Jin had fed Su Wanyu.

And remarkably, Su Wanyu had bought it entirely. After all, Chen Jin's performance over the past few days had been nothing short of stellar.

Even a veteran like Su Wanyu had let down her guard.

His social graces and artistic exam scores had completely reversed his image in Su Wanyu's mind by 180 degrees.

"Two to three hours, I wonder if that's enough?"

Chen Jin set an alarm on his phone, lay down on the bed to calm his slightly excited pulse, and fixed his gaze on the virtual system interface floating before him.

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"Use Specific Character Experience Card, Yes or No?"

"Yes!"

"Please select the film and the character the host wishes to experience!"

Swish!

Countless movies flashed past, and Chen Jin chose Under the Hawthorn Tree without a moment's hesitation.

"Lao San!"

Chen Jin silently murmured the name. Over the past few days, he had actually taken the time to download the e-book of Under the Hawthorn Tree onto his phone, but he had only read the opening chapter, just enough to learn the names of the male and female protagonists.

The female lead was Jingqiu; the male lead was Lao San.

The reason he chose to experience Lao San was simple: Chen Jin figured that since Director Zhang had gone to such great lengths for open auditions, he must be casting the lead roles, right?

He had truly stumbled into this by pure coincidence.

In truth, Zhang Yimou's open auditions encompassed all the roles, though the public announcement naturally framed it as casting for the male and female leads.

"Lao San, Lao San!"

"Wake up!"

A voice echoed by his ear, prompting Chen Jin to open his eyes.

With the experience of his previous trial run under his belt, Chen Jin appeared quite calm this time. He rubbed his eyes and surveyed his surroundings.

He was staying in a military-green tent. Within his field of vision, the most conspicuous sights were the corners piled high with all sorts of odd-looking tools, along with scattered, peculiar rocks on the ground... core drills, iron shovels, pickaxes, mattocks... and a fairly new accordion.

Lao San worked in a geological survey team; Chen Jin had happened to catch that detail while flipping through the book.

"Lao San?"

A face suddenly poked into the tent, startling Chen Jin.

"What are you spacing out for? We're heading into the mountains immediately!"

"Oh, oh!"

Chen Jin hurriedly picked up the clothes nearby—they seemed to be Dacron shirts, though he wasn't entirely certain, the fabric felt decent enough.

There was also a beige woolen vest... and on the floor sat leather shoes and rubber knee-high boots.

Naturally, Chen Jin put on the latter.

"Isn't Under the Hawthorn Tree a story set in China in the 1970s? Can this guy actually afford leather shoes?"

"Were survey teams really that well-off back then?"

"And there's candy and pastries too? Eating pretty well, huh!"

Chen Jin muttered inwardly, rubbing the fabric of his clothes and feeling that the workmanship surpassed even modern standards.

Once dressed, Chen Jin pushed open the tent flap, and the breathtaking scenery of the mountain village instantly caused a momentary freeze in his brain.

What did primitive ecology really look like?

A small river flowed like a green jade ribbon, winding past the foot of the mountains and encircling the entire village.

Bathed in the early spring sunlight, the village was a picturesque place of green hills and clear waters. The farmland formed neat little squares of green and brown, blanketing the entire settlement.

"Poor as the seventies might be, this scenery is genuinely stunning!"

Chen Jin marveled to himself, spotting the members of the survey team outside already gathering their tools and getting ready.

In an instant, just like last time, his limbs stopped obeying his commands.

The direct experience phase was over; from here on, his true self would take over the body, and Chen Jin could only follow along through the perspective of the character's actions.

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"Thank goodness I didn't experience something like Peaches to Peach... How is this any different from watching a movie?"

* * *

"Oh, you can experience sensations—sensations are definitely there, plus the experience itself!"

"It's infinitely more thrilling than simply watching..."

Indeed, the greatest utility of this character experience card was twofold: first, gaining an understanding of the story and background; and second, imperceptibly absorbing some of the character's practical experience and skills.

For instance, geological surveying.

As Lao San accompanied the survey team up the mountain, Chen Jin felt a flood of knowledge regarding mineral prospecting pouring into his mind.

Moreover, he absorbed Lao San's gait, subtle mannerisms, and ways of interacting with people.

During his first random character experience card, because it was his first time and he lacked experience, Chen Jin had simply drifted along with the protagonist's flow.

Even so, he had learned a great deal, gaining substantial maturity in his worldly perspective and psychological resilience.

This time, Chen Jin's harvest was clearly even richer.

Having gained insight into the film and its characters, Chen Jin felt as though he were truly living another person's life.

Surveying skills: acquired!
Accordion skills: acquired!
Identity: acquired!

...

This guy actually turned out to be the son of some high-ranking military commander.

A military brat of the highest order!

In this era, there couldn't be more than a handful of people with a higher-ranking father than his.

Holy crap, the moment Chen Jin learned of this identity, his whole body went slightly numb.

What kind of Lao San—oh, Lao San's real name was Sun Jianxin. Did Sun Jianxin really get portrayed like some generic jerk in the promotional clips?!

In Chen Jin's view, given such an identity and a persona defined by deep, devoted love, if adapted into a film, he would undoubtedly be the type of character young girls would go crazy for.

Played right, this was a bona fide classic role!

"This role must be mine!"

After experiencing it for just a little while, Chen Jin realized... Lao San was a genuinely flawless young man!

Upright and kind, honest and reliable, handsome in appearance, with a warm and friendly smile. Despite his father holding a high-ranking official position, he possessed a gentle, optimistic character devoid of any spoiled brat vices.

He deeply loved Jingqiu—who suffered from an inferiority complex due to her "bad family background"—yet destiny denied them a lifelong union.

While working with the survey team, he tragically contracted leukemia and passed away.

The reason he fell ill was his desire to resolve the shadow of leukemia that constantly haunted the survey team; he used himself as a test subject and ultimately tracked down the radioactive ore.

He was entirely free of flaws, practically the embodiment of the ultimate "prince" in young girls' hearts.

Characters from Korean dramas who constantly fell ill weren't even in the same league as Lao San.

"Awesome, Lao San!"

"I am definitely going to bring you to life and let all of China know your story!"

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