Studio Superstar: Chapter 70

In the next three days, Shen Tingyan never received a reply from Fang Lei reporting that the task was completed.

On the fourth day, he finally couldn’t help taking the initiative to ask. However, Fang Lei was hesitant and vague.

Finally, he said, “In any case, you don’t have to worry too much for the time being about Xue Xiao’s crush on someone…”

Shen Tingyan: ?

Shen Tingyan wondered, “Why do you mean by ‘time being’ and ‘don’t have to worry too much’?”

“It is literal. I will tell you about this later. In any case, where are you today?”

Shen Tingyan replied, “The Nanhe Film and Television City to visit the set.”

“Oh, then have a good visit. I’ll stop talking now.”

Shen Tingyan: ?

On the other side, Fang Lei was once again studying the sentences sent to him by Xue Xiao three days ago. He held his head and roared silently.

Xue Xiao wasn’t straight at all. He liked men!

But what did it mean to confess after the show ended? What did it mean to wait until that time to tell him who that person was?

If it was a participant from the show, there would be no need to hide it from him, right?

Unless he also knew the person that Xue Xiao liked, and Xue Xiao was afraid that he would accidentally reveal it to the other party?

Wasn’t that—Wasn’t that?—

Fang Lei screamed and smashed his head on the desk!

But it was hard to say. Perhaps Xue Xiao was introverted…

Should he tell Shen Tingyan? However, if he misled that man and made him happy in vain, that man would kill him!

If he didn’t tell them, should he just let these two continue to struggle?

Fang Lei was almost killed in the fight between his left and right sides. He even forgot to tell Shen Tingyan that Xue Xiao had also returned to the Nanhe Film and Television City in the past two days…

—

Nanhe Film and Television City.

This week, the temperature of this small county dropped slightly.

For most people, this was a temperature that was very suitable for outdoor travel, but for Shen Tingyan, he still had to sit in the car and turn on the air conditioner to feel calm.

On the phone, Mother Shen’s urging WeChat messages were sent one after another. She was so busy that it didn’t seem like she was on set. It made people wonder if she was even filming.

Shen Tingyan replied, ‘I’m almost there.’ Then he put down the phone and looked out the window.

This small county town had become a well-known tourist attraction due to the major film and television blocks built year after year. No matter whether it was a holiday or a working day, they could always see many pedestrians who were obviously tourists on the street.

However, apart from the film and television district, this small county town really had no unique scenery.

There were no bustling shopping malls, no historical relics, and no natural landscapes worth seeing.

Of course, there were no local specialties.

This small county town was so ordinary that even though Shen Tingyan had been here several times for filming, he still couldn’t remember what it looked like.

Now when he came here again, everything seemed to be different from the past.

His gaze continued to sweep over the streets as the car passed by.

There were small stores lined up one after another, electric cars parked sparsely on the roadside, tourists in bright clothes and straw hats, and extras hurrying on the road while carrying backpacks and folding chairs.

Shen Tingyan bent his elbows and leaned against the car window, lazily supporting his cheeks with his palms.

He seemed to be able to see a slender figure dancing in the midst of such scenery.

The scenery, which had been so monotonous that he was too lazy to pay more attention to it, suddenly became colorful for no reason.

……

This ‘holiday’ lasted for half a month and most participants couldn’t stay in the camp all the time.

Dou Mingjian and Chang Yun planned to go home. Their hometown was very close to the camp. They could arrive in half an hour via the high-speed train. If the show temporarily asked them to go back to record materials, they could arrive quickly.

Gu Ling, Jing Xiaochen, and Zhao Dong planned to go around the small towns around Hu City for two days, while Jiang Lianlian went to the city center to play with her college classmates.

Xue Xiao’s hometown was still too far away from here. He couldn’t go back until the show was completely over.

He thought about it and planned to go back to Nanhe Film and Television City to see his brothers and sisters.

It was already late afternoon when he arrived.

Zhang Chengyu set the place of the meal at a small restaurant where they used to have dinner together.

The moment Xue Xiao arrived, he ushered in a huge welcome ceremony from these people who were very playful. They applauded and sang the award-winning music. There was just no physical performance of handing a trophy to him.

Xue Xiao couldn’t help laughing. He took off his mask and hat when he sat down.

In the summer heat, his ears were slightly sweaty. A few strands of black hair stuck to his milky white skin. He looked a bit embarrassed but also revealed a hint of silly cuteness.

Everyone teased him.

“Xiaoxiao is so popular. You are wearing this celebrity two-piece equipment.”

“That’s right. You don’t want to think about how many people who came to Nanhe to travel are star chasers. If Xiaoxiao goes to the street without wearing anything, he will definitely be recognized!”

“Xiao, will you sign an autograph for me? If I don’t get a signature now, I’m afraid I won’t be able to get it in the future!”

“Yes, there will be fewer opportunities to meet in the future.”

Zhang Chengyu saw that Xue Xiao’s face was flushed due to their words. He flew over instantly. “What are you talking about? Didn’t you come here to film? Come, come. I have a night scene tonight and won’t drink. You guys should hurry and fill up on alcohol—”

He remembered something and specially told Xue Xiao, “You can’t have more than two cups today.”

Xue Xiao said in an embarrassed manner, “I know, Master.”

After drinking, he started moving his chopsticks.

Everyone chatted while eating. They first asked Xue Xiao how it felt to record the show. They asked whether it was pleasant to work with Feng Wei, whether Guan Ruoying was more beautiful in real life than on TV, whether Su Shijin was fierce, and whether Shen Tingyan… was as perfect as he imagined.

That friend used to like to tease Xue Xiao, but he hadn’t seen Xue Xiao for two months. Therefore, he intensified his teasing and deliberately used English words that were ridiculous and vulgar.

Xue Xiao felt ashamed at first. Later, he felt amused when he heard it. He nodded and said seriously, “Yes, he is perfect.”

The group of people burst out laughing.

As for Nanhe Film and Television City, the most interesting thing for this group of people in the past two months was the changes in the group leader, Brother Liu, and the guild manager, Sister Wang.

A friend cracked open melon seeds and said, “You don’t know, but Brother Liu couldn’t sit still after you won the battle with Fan Xue. He started asking us if we still keep in touch with you.”

Another sister sneered. “Sister Wang as well. However, she knows in her heart that it will be difficult to ease the relationship with you. Therefore, she didn’t ask again after asking once.”

Xue Xiao was stunned.

Brother Liu, the group leader, and Sister Wang, the agent of the Actors Guild.

He actually had no resentment toward these two people. After all, it was the leader of the Actors Guild who ordered him to be ‘banned’ in the first place. Sister Wang couldn’t go against the leader’s wishes and assign works to him privately. Brother Liu also had to worry about his own future.

It was just that he and those two people had always been in a cooperative relationship. Once the cooperative relationship was broken, they naturally no longer needed to communicate.

Zhang Chengyu specially reminded Xue Xiao. “If Brother Liu comes to find you on WeChat, just ignore him.”

Unlike Sister Wang, who was an agent, Brother Liu was the leader of the group. He made some money by connecting extras with the crew, but he was also a small player himself. He occasionally asked for some roles from the directors he had a good relationship with.

This guy still dreamed of becoming a big star. It might be a good thing to have dreams, but he had no standards as a person and also picked on the weak. This was very troublesome.

Once Xue Xiao gave him a response, he was bound to pester Xue Xiao tightly.

In this regard, Xue Xiao knew it in his heart. “I know, Master.”

Xue Xiao considered another aspect.

Brother Liu’s acting actually wasn’t that good.

Xue Xiao always felt that rather than saying that Brother Liu liked acting, what he actually liked was the ‘feeling of being a big star.’

He stayed at Nanhe Film and Television City for nearly 20 years. Most of the time was spent managing crews and directors, but he never delved into his own acting or made progress.

Therefore, forget the fact that Xue Xiao currently had no ability to influence the casting of any crew. Even if he did have the ability one day, he definitely wouldn’t recommend Brother Liu.

But these people in front of him—

It had been half an hour since they had eaten. No one mentioned whether he could help them.

Maybe they knew that even if Xue Xiao became popular, he didn’t have that type of energy for the time being. Perhaps they never thought of making things difficult for him.

These guys, who were still struggling at the bottom of the entertainment industry, were just drinking wine and eating food at the moment. They told Xue Xiao to tell them if they were bullied in the industry in the future and not to be arrogant by the fawning he would receive after becoming popular.

Xue Xiao’s throat became sore.

He suddenly remembered Shen Tingyan’s words.

As long as one had the intention, the feast could continue.

However, if he really wanted to reach that point, he must continue to work hard to climb to a height where he could make some decisions and influence some people.

He didn’t want the people in front of him, who were very good at acting but didn’t get any opportunities, to be completely buried.

It was at this moment that he suddenly realized more deeply why Shen Tingyan wanted to move behind the scenes.

The wine bottle was opened with a pop. Laughter echoed in the private box.

In the midst of the noise, Zhang Chengyu suddenly heard Xue Xiao say, “Master, I have a new goal.”

He was stunned and turned his head.

Xue Xiao stared straight at the people around the round table. There was a type of bright and firm light shining in his eyes.

“I want to learn more about filmmaking, not just act well. I want to know how to arrange shots, how to edit, how to score music…”

“I also want to start writing novels again, practice my writing skills, and learn how to construct stories more completely.”

“I want to climb to the heights of this road, and I also want to take root in the depths of this road.” Xue Xiao said while looking around. “I hope that in the future, I can create the stories I want and let people I admire bring these stories to life, directly making them available to all audience members.”

Zhang Chengyu didn’t know how to describe the enthusiasm that surged in his heart for a while.

He was dumbfounded for a moment before smiling. “You can do it. Xiao, you can definitely do it.”

The corners of Xue Xiao’s lips curled up. He nodded and replied, “Yes!”

Zhang Chengyu looked at Xue Xiao’s excited and joyful appearance after finding a new goal and was a bit relieved.

It was true that this little guy used to be a person who loved to think and use his brain. He wouldn’t stay in the same place for too long. He would constantly explore and leap forward.

However, Zhang Chengyu hadn’t expected him to find a grand goal so quickly. Zhang Chengyu didn’t believe that Xue Xiao wasn’t influenced by someone.

The role that a good idol could play was huge.

This could be seen before Xue Xiao went to Studio Superstar.

After thinking of a certain man, Zhang Chengyu suddenly remembered another thing. It was something he just heard about today.

He hesitated for a moment before lowering his voice. “Xiao, have you heard about that Wangyu entertainment company?”

Xue Xiao was happily sipping his beer when he heard this and was stunned. “What’s the matter?”

“Their boss and agent have been engaging in dirty deeds in private. It seems that the day before yesterday, both of them were arrested. It is estimated that they will be sentenced. All the artists involved have entered prison, and the incident is quite big.”

Xue Xiao’s eyes widened instantly. His expression was shocked.

“Among the artists who entered, there was the one who bullied you before, named Jiang Ye.” Zhang Chengyu paused before saying, “It is said that Jiang Ye was beaten up by Shen Tingyan before. The current collapse of their company is also related to Shen Tingyan.”

Xue Xiao was completely stunned.