The story of "Dance Of The Dragons" was set in a fictional Heavenly Empire in the Heavenly Realm.
The main couple of "Dance Of The Dragons" were the protagonist, Supreme General Zhang Fengxi, and the male lead, Crown Prince Xie Jianyu.
Zhang Fengxi blamed Xie Jianyu for the death of his white moonlight, Liu Wenyuan. In time, the grudge accumulated and prompted him to ambush Xie Jianyu's palace upon the Heavenly Emperor's death.
He avenged his beloved and killed Xie Jianyu.
And then, he found out that Xie Jianyu inexplicably gave birth to his child despite being known as an alpha Crown Prince.
And then the baby died.
And then his mother died.
And then he too committed suicide out of grief.
The first chapters of the novel were so devastatingly heartbreaking that Shen Jingwei had to put it away for the night.
Thus for the audition, he had to rely on Zhu Dongyi's summary to get a good grasp on Liu Wenyuan's character.
Gentle, lovely, and amicable, practically the persona he embodied during his part-time work in the Handsome Butler Coffee Shop. Maybe lose the playboy attitude and he should be good.
Yeah.
His confidence was practically over the roof.
Dispirited, Shen Jingwei went to the nearest vending machine to get himself something for breakfast.
In front of the vending machine stood a woman. Casually clothed in a white tee and a loose overall, she carried her long curly brown hair in a high ponytail. Shielding her eyes were a pair of round sunglasses.
She was rather short, probably a meter sixty-five.
Right now, the woman was staring at the content of the vending machine, her eyes filled with intense longing.
Shen Jingwei couldn't help but smile. She was probably there for an audition as well.
"Good morning, Miss," he called out. "Is there something you want from the vending machine?"
The woman turned to look at Shen Jingwei. For some reason, she looked the man up and down several times while humming intently.
Shen Jingwei felt like a criminal under a police inspector's scrutiny.
"I wanted to get the chocolate bun and a cup of chocolate milk," the woman finally answered. "Unfortunately, I didn't bring enough money."
She pursed her lips and tossed the several measly coins in her hand.
"You go ahead then, I will figure out something cheaper to buy."
Shen Jingwei laughed.
"Thank you."
He bought a cinnamon bun, a chocolate bun, and a cup of steaming hot chocolate milk.
After taking the first item for himself, he handed the rest to the woman. She accepted the bun and milk with a dumbfounded expression.
"Thanks? But why?"
"I am going to an audition soon," Shen Jingwei shrugged. "I am too nervous to eat. I buy this one bun to feed my growling stomach, that's all."
"Ooh, an audition?"
The woman ripped the chocolate bun wrapper open and bit into it. The sweet chocolate cream filled her mouth right away, making her moan in delight.
"Yeah."
"What role?"
"Eh?"
The woman blinked at him.
"I asked, what role?"
Shen Jingwei stared at her.
"Uh, Liu Wenyuan in 'Dance Of The Dragons'."
The woman pulled a grimace in response.
"What a terrible role."
"Yeah, well... Apparently, the payment is quite decent. Enough to kill my entire career for."
The woman gave him a strange look. She almost looked offended.
"Why would it kill your entire career? Is the story so bad?"
"Oh, no, no, that's not what I meant. The story is good enough to be turned into a serialized drama, but this Liu Wenyuan character is a career-killer. It can set an actor back significantly.
Of course, in my case, it is basically a merciful blow. So I am more than happy to do it."
Even if he did not at all look happy right now. He must look like someone who was about to have his dreams ground into dust.
"By the way, what's your name?" The woman suddenly asked, extending a hand in his direction.
"Uh... Shen Jingwei, nice to meet you."
Shen Jingwei took her hand and shook it.
"Lu Shui, also very nice to meet you. Good luck with your audition."
She bounced toward the second floor, but stopped in the middle to turn around and wave the half-eaten chocolate bun at him.
"Thanks again for buying me breakfast!"
Shen Jingwei smiled.
"No problem. Enjoy."
As he made his way to his destination, he could not help but wonder.
Lu Shui, Lu Shui...
Where did he hear that name again?
No, to be exact, he read it somewhere...
The second floor was packed with a lot of actors and actresses, all of them waiting to perform in front of a panel of judges.
For most of them, this was a regular routine they went through several times a week. First, you applied for or got a call for a preliminary audition.
And then you did your best to impress everyone and make them fall in love with you.
And then you got a callback, or you received a polite rejection call.
More often than not, it was the latter.
Without a thick skin, one could not survive in the film industry.
Before long, a nearby glass door slid open, prompting everyone to look up expectantly.
An assistant stepped out and looked around.
"Everyone auditioning for the role of Liu Wenyuan, please gather here," he announced.
At once, tens of people stirred and moved toward the glass door.
Shen Jingwei too, followed the crowd. And then, his eyes snagged on a piece of paper pasted against the glass door.
"Audition for side character role - Liu Wenyuan.
'Dance Of The Dragons'."
Underneath was the full cover of the original novel, complete with a mesmerizing image of the main couple, the title, and the author's name.
Lu_Shui.
...
Shen Jingwei wondered if it was too late to jump from a building's rooftop.
------------
Author's note :
(ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*.✧
Yes, yes, this author deliberately smuggled herself into the story.
It's not the first time and definitely also not the last time.
For all of you who has never read "Dance Of The Dragons", feel free to do so. But even if you don't, you will still be able to follow this story, no worries hehehe~