Even the longest nightmare will eventually be shattered by the morning light.
...
"What a long dream," Jiang Hua thought to himself as he lay in bed, his eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling.
He had experienced a lengthy dream that spanned twenty years, as if he had lived through a new life.
Was it Zhuang Zhou who dreamed of being a butterfly, or was it the butterfly that became Zhuang Zhou?
"Ding ding!" A WeChat message chimed from his phone. It was probably from his parents, as they were the only ones who regularly sent him messages these days.
Upon opening WeChat, an unfamiliar name appeared: "Baby Xue Xue."
"Sorry, Jiang Hua, something came up at the company. You'll have to make dinner for yourself."
Who was Xue Xue?
He slapped his face and then recalled the long dream he had just experienced.
The memories of two lifetimes had inexplicably merged, and everything was so vivid.
He looked around the familiar yet strange room and opened the window to gaze at the city outside.
The only thing Jiang Hua could be certain of was that he had transmigrated.
The dream he had experienced was the life of this body.
Because his previous self on Earth had already died from late-stage cancer with no hope of recovery.
Fortunately, this body was also named Jiang Hua.
After accepting this fact, he picked up his phone and frantically searched for information.
This world was almost identical to Earth, but with subtle differences.
Many familiar songs, movies, TV shows, and novels no longer existed and were replaced by other works.
Damn, in his previous life, he had been a behind-the-scenes player in the entertainment and opera circles for decades, proficient in singing, dancing, and playing various instruments. This was like starting the game with a royal flush!
Jiang Hua rubbed his temples, quietly put down his phone, and looked out at the brightly lit city.
He felt like an outsider.
According to his predecessor's memories, he knew that Xue Xue, the person who had sent him the message, was Su Mengxue, his fiancée.
She was one of the fringe players in the entertainment industry.
Her so-called busyness was actually flying to another city to attend her class reunion.
Because at the reunion, her secret crush would be present.
She had already seen him several times this month, and his predecessor knew but never confronted her about it.
Jiang Hua shook his head. He understood his predecessor. If it wasn't for genuine love, who would willingly be a doormat?
But shouldn't love be a two-way street? Constantly giving without reciprocation would only lead to heartbreak.
He shook his head again and tossed his phone aside.
It was a headache. His predecessor was also a fringe player in the entertainment industry, relying on his good looks to break into the circle.
He had joined a boy band with four other members.
They had gained some popularity, but after offending the higher-ups, they were banned, and the ban was still in effect.
He was only eighteen at the time. Due to his young age and poverty, he had directly signed a ten-year contract with a monthly base salary of 5,000 yuan and a penalty of 50 million yuan for breach of contract.
The contract stipulated that during this period, all entertainment creations required company approval, and any works could not be licensed to third parties for use in the same manner as the company without permission. The revenue would be split 90-10, with the company taking 90%, although the copyright still belonged to the individual.
This effectively closed off the last path.
It should be noted that the Huayi Entertainment Company he was signed with was a leading giant in the entertainment industry. Banning someone was a simple matter for them.
He was now 23 years old. They say that fame should be achieved early. With five years left on his contract, how many five-year periods does one have in life?
His predecessor had also become dispirited because of this.
Jiang Hua suddenly recalled an incident from his previous life where a fringe player in the entertainment industry was stuck in a contract.
After successfully passing the civil service exam and joining the establishment, the contract was unconditionally terminated.
Thinking of this, Jiang Hua immediately felt motivated. If she could do it, why couldn't he?
50 million yuan was no small sum. He couldn't even come up with 100,000 yuan, coming from an ordinary family.
Paying the penalty was out of the question, so the only option was to become a civil servant.
But Jiang Hua began to worry again. His predecessor had entered the entertainment industry at the age of eighteen and had barely obtained a junior college degree.
He himself hadn't studied seriously in many years. How could he pass the exam?
Many positions required a bachelor's degree or higher. He couldn't even get his foot in the door.
Jiang Hua opened the civil service recruitment websites for various regions this year.
There were indeed very few positions that accepted junior college graduates, and those that did had high professional requirements.
Suddenly, a recruitment notice caught his eye.
The Zhejiang Provincial Xiaobaihua Art Troupe was hiring, with the notice posted on the tourism bureau's website.
This was a perfect match for his expertise. The recruitment positions included pipa, erhu, stage design, and opera scriptwriting.
He could do all of these! In his previous life, he had also graduated from a drama academy, and his favorite instrument was the erhu.
Not only could he play the erhu, but he was also proficient in the suona, pipa, and guzheng.
"Among a hundred instruments, the suona reigns supreme. It either ascends to the heavens or bows at the altar. The pipa endures a thousand years, the guzheng ten thousand, but a single erhu can be played for a lifetime."
This was also an institutional work unit directly under the tourism bureau. It should be able to secure his release from Huayi.
With a goal in mind, Jiang Hua felt much more at ease. The 50 million yuan penalty was like a mountain weighing on him, preventing him from doing anything until it was removed.
Besides, there was nothing wrong with working within the system. In both lives, he had been a fringe player in the entertainment industry.
He was already tired of the entertainment circle.
With this in mind, Jiang Hua immediately applied online, his resume looking quite impressive.
Proficient in erhu, guzheng, suona, and scriptwriting, with five years of stage performance experience and extensive live performance experience.
What a joke. He was a man who had held his own concerts.
This body was also skilled in drums, guitar, electronic keyboard, piano...
Damn, his skill points were maxed out.
Feeling hungry, Jiang Hua got out of bed and made himself a bowl of instant noodles with two sausages.
After eating, he lay on the bed and scrolled through WeChat Moments on his phone, wanting to get a glimpse of this Jiang Hua's private life.
A particular post caught his eye.
Xu Lin.
She was a mutual friend of his and Su Mengxue, as well as Su Mengxue's classmate.
Back when he was still popular, this girl had gone to great lengths to set them up.
But times had changed.
The post was a nine-grid image, with photos from a class reunion. One photo stood out glaringly.
Su Mengxue and her secret crush sat together like a golden couple, even making an intimate gesture of drinking from interlocked cups.
Jiang Hua chuckled. His predecessor wasn't entirely at a disadvantage. In the nearly two years they had been together, most of the expenses for food and drink had been provided by her.
Otherwise, with his meager salary of 5,000 yuan, how could he afford to live in an apartment in the magic capital?
He held no hatred or love for Su Mengxue.
Moreover, he wasn't his predecessor. In his view, love should be a reciprocal pursuit.
Su Mengxue and he were more like roommates. She was merely making a casual investment, as Jiang Hua could potentially be reinstated at any time.
Only his foolish predecessor couldn't see this clearly and had become depressed, leading to his demise.
He put down his phone, ready to get a good night's sleep. He would leave for Zhejiang Province tomorrow and probably wouldn't see her again.
After an unknown length of sleep, around 3 a.m., Su Mengxue called. He groggily answered the phone.
"Hello, Jiang Hua? Tomorrow at noon, come pick me up at the airport. I'm still out of town."
They were about to get engaged, yet this woman was so brazen, all because his predecessor loved her.
Jiang Hua had no intention of indulging her. He calmly said, "I have to go on a long trip tomorrow. I don't have time."
Before the other end could respond, Jiang Hua directly hung up, blocked her number, and deleted all traces of her.
He couldn't turn off his phone as he had set an alarm for his 10 a.m. flight tomorrow.
Putting down his phone, he lay on the bed.
Soon, he fell into a deep sleep, untroubled by illness and pain. He slept soundly.
...