Translator's Note:
Hello guys 👋, enjoy reading!!!
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Chapter 34: No Feeling
The consequence of the photo exposure was that every time Kong Yiyue walked around campus, she would receive inexplicably scrutinizing glances from everyone.
She naturally ignored them, but when the culprit appeared in front of her, smugly asking for credit and reward, Kong Yiyue rarely felt the urge to torture him to death.
On that day, Kong Yiyue was supposed to participate in a gala performance held by the school. While preparing backstage, a boy ran in with a camera, pressed the shutter a few times at Kong Yiyue, and Kong Yiyue immediately spoke out, “What are you doing!” Her tone was slightly annoyed.
The boy wore glasses and looked nerdy. He smiled and said, “Kong Yiyue, are you satisfied with my work? Hmph! Let those who look down on me shut up!”
Kong Yiyue subconsciously frowned. “You took the photos?”
The boy frankly admitted, “Yeah! Who said that me playing photography is not doing my job properly, hum, see if they dare to underestimate me now!”
“So you followed me privately without my permission and secretly took pictures of me.”
The boy answered with full confidence, “There's nothing wrong with it, I followed you during the day, and I didn't take any out-of-line photos, and I took them so beautifully, everyone is calling you a goddess now! You don't have to thank me too much, I had planned to shoot a series of portraits for a long time, but I couldn't find the right person, you...”
Kong Yiyue only said one word, “Get out!”
The boy was unhappy, “Hey, you're ungrateful!”
“Don't take pictures of me secretly again in the future! Also, don't follow me again!” Kong Yiyue coldly ordered.
The boy just “hmphed”, “You only say I'm not allowed to take pictures after you became famous! Kong Yiyue, even if you beg me to take pictures in the future, I won't take them!” After saying that, he left angrily.
Kong Yiyue supported her forehead, extremely speechless.
Jiang Manxin was also going to perform on stage today. She sat not far away applying makeup, and heard the conversation between Kong Yiyue and the boy clearly. She walked to Kong Yiyue and asked, “You don't know him?”
“I don't know him.”
“I have heard of him. He is said to be from the Department of Natural Sciences. His grades seem to be very poor, his interpersonal relationships are also terrible, and the only thing he holds all day is the camera. People who are familiar with him say it's best not to get too close to him because his emotions are very erratic.”
Kong Yiyue hesitated slightly and asked, “How did you hear so much?”
“I heard them discussing it once when I went out with everyone.”
Kong Yiyue was silent, only hoping that this matter could come to an end like this.
However, that was far from the case. As the first semester of her sophomore year drew to a close, the school, as usual, launched its “Campus Belle” competition for each department. Much to Kong Yiyue's surprise, her name was on the list.
After the final exams concluded, the online “Campus Belle” voting was nearing its end. Kong Yiyue didn't learn the results until the second semester of her sophomore year, and only then because Hou Guanglue invited her to dinner.
Seeing that he was asking her to dinner for no reason, Kong Yiyue asked vigilantly, “Why are you asking me to dinner?”
Hou Guanglue was glib: “Can't I treat you to dinner after you won the ‘Campus Belle’ title?”
“...What do you mean?” Kong Yiyue asked, “Where did this ‘Campus Belle’ thing come from?”
The expression on Hou Guanglue's face was exaggerated: “You don't know that you won the title of ‘Campus Belle’ by a single vote!”
Kong Yiyue blinked, really not knowing.
After eating, Hou Guanglue subtly mentioned the recently released movie, saying, “I really want to see it, but no one is free. Kong Yiyue, do you want to go with me this weekend?”
Kong Yiyue only said, “I'm not free either.”
Over the course of the semester, Hou Guanglue had been appearing in her vicinity with increasing frequency. Several times, he'd happened to run into her and Jiang Manxin together. Later, back in the dorm, Jiang Manxin commented on Hou Guanglue, “Does he want to chase you?”
Kong Yiyue denied, “It shouldn't be.”
Hou Guanglue was the kind of guy who got along well with girls and had a thick skin. Even if you treated him coldly, he could carry on a conversation single-handedly.
Jiang Manxin, an outsider, had a different idea from her: “No one will show courtesy to a member of the opposite sex for no reason. If they are not asking for something, they are plotting something.”
Kong Yiyue smiled: “I'll pay more attention in the future.”
That wasn't exactly what Jiang Manxin meant. She asked Kong Yiyue, “You don't have a boyfriend, do you? Why don't you consider him? I think after careful observation, I found that Hou Guanglue is actually very pleasing to the eye.”
Pleasing to the eye is pleasing to the eye, but the pity is that Kong Yiyue has no feeling for him.
“I never had this idea.” Kong Yiyue paused, “Besides, I'm waiting for someone to return.”
Having lived with her for so long, this was the first time Jiang Manxin had heard her mention this. The person she was waiting for clearly wasn't just anyone.
She tentatively asked, “Boyfriend?”
Kong Yiyue thought for a while, and smiled gently: “He will be my boyfriend in the future.”
"..." Jiang Manxin gazed at the rare, radiant smile gracing Kong Yiyue's face, and stared blankly, forgetting to reply.
In the first semester of her junior year, Kong Yiyue was swamped with coursework. As it happened, a film was casting for the role of the female lead in her college years, and Jiang Manxin had signed up to audition, asking Kong Yiyue if she wanted to join her.
Kong Yiyue glanced at the movie poster. The film revolved around themes of love and ambition, focusing on the male and female leads' struggles after graduation.
The film's leading actors had already been cast, and they were relatively well-known. Because they were having trouble finding the right actress to play the female lead in her college years, the students of Lian University had been presented with this rare opportunity.
The chance to appear on screen before graduation was, of course, a valuable one.
On the day of Kong Yiyue's audition, she grabbed the script while waiting and carefully considered the female lead's inner life and personality, imagining the expressions and nuances she would use to convey them.
When her name was called, she had barely stepped into the room when the director waved his hand impatiently. “Next, next!”
Kong Yiyue, who hadn't even made it to the center of the room, froze at the director's brusque tone. What was going on? She hadn't even begun to act!
The assistant standing nearby echoed the director's words. “Out! Out! Next, quickly!”
Kong Yiyue protested, “Why? I haven't even started!”
The assistant said, “Being told to leave means you've already failed. Why are you arguing?”
Kong Yiyue refused to back down. “Your earlier promotional materials emphasized fairness and impartiality. What kind of fairness is this? Perhaps you feel my appearance or demeanor doesn't fit the character, but you should at least give me an explanation, rather than dismissing me without a word.”
The director, who had been leaning back in his chair, studied her with sudden intensity. After she finished speaking, and as the assistant was about to open his mouth, the director gestured for him to be quiet. He then spoke. “I didn't realize you had so much spirit. What's your name?”
“Kong Yiyue.” While waiting in the neighboring classroom, she'd felt a twinge of nervousness, but after entering the room and being unfairly dismissed, she'd been too preoccupied with arguing to feel anxious. When the director asked for her name, she simply responded out of instinct.
“Alright. Give her a chance to audition.” The director's words were clearly directed at the assistant.
Before Kong Yiyue could fully process what was happening, she heard the assistant shout, “Prepare!”
(⊙o⊙)! What was going on?!
The audition ended, and the assistant simply said, with a knowing look, “We'll let you know.”
Kong Yiyue knew that was just a brush-off, but they'd already made an exception by letting her audition. She couldn't press the issue further. After she came out, Jiang Manxin asked, “Are you alright?”
Kong Yiyue replied honestly, “I'm not very optimistic.”
A month passed after the audition before Kong Yiyue suddenly received a call congratulating her on winning the part of the female lead during her college years.
Kong Yiyue had always thought that if she had the opportunity to train and improve herself, it would be fantastic. If she missed out, that was okay too, and she would just work harder. She never expected such good fortune to fall her way.
Mixed with her joy was a sense of apprehension. In the days to come, the difficulties she would face were likely to be far more challenging and thorny than she imagined.
At the end of December, Kong Yiyue was picked up to discuss the details with the director and the lead actors. The college scenes would be filmed in a neighboring city, but since the director and the male and female leads were near Lian City, they decided to hold the meeting there.
She had seen both the television shows and films of the male and female leads. Their acting was exceptional, and their emotional range was impressive. As a newcomer, Kong Yiyue was naturally humble and respectful.
Since the meeting was primarily to allow everyone to become acquainted, the atmosphere in the room wasn't stiff.
After meeting Kong Yiyue, the female lead seemed satisfied. She commented to the director, “We've finally found a younger version of myself. It's been a long search!”
The director, who had also invested considerable time in the casting, replied, “Indeed. It took quite a bit of effort.”
“Yes,” the female lead agreed. Then, turning to Kong Yiyue, she said, “Give it your best shot!”
Kong Yiyue smiled and said, “Thank you all for your guidance. I'll work very hard!” As she finished speaking, the three of them smiled again.
Filming was scheduled to begin during the New Year holiday. Since Kong Yiyue had final exams to take in the days immediately following the holiday, the schedule was extremely tight. Eventually, she managed to persuade the director to accommodate her exam schedule, flying back and forth between the two cities to make her exams. Kong Yiyue was utterly exhausted.
Once the issue of her final exams had been resolved, Kong Yiyue was finally able to focus on being on set.
Because the film would begin by shooting the scenes of the two characters during their college years, Kong Yiyue was busy every day memorizing lines, analyzing the heroine's emotions and facial expressions, and then constantly facing “N.G.s” (no good takes), being criticized for not hitting the mark, or not meeting the director's vision. After a full day, Kong Yiyue would return to the hotel and practically collapse into bed.
The young male lead acting alongside Kong Yiyue was named Lu Bai, a fairly popular movie star. Having debuted early, he not only possessed a strong sense of how to work the camera but also portrayed his characters vividly and with effortless skill.
While Kong Yiyue had her makeup touched up between scenes, she made sure to use the time to review the script and memorize her lines. This filming didn't seem as difficult for Lu Bai, unlike Kong Yiyue, who was a newcomer. After each scene wrapped, he leisurely waited for the next one while chatting on his phone.
Kong Yiyue looked at his smiling face and sighed: Sure enough, this is the gap!
…
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