Acting Out of Character (GL) - Chapter 1

Chen Ge took a shower in the gym locker room. When she came out and retrieved her phone from the locker, she saw that her manager had sent her several WeChat messages.

There were several voice messages in a row, each ten to twenty seconds long, and Chen Ge’s heart stirred.

Could it be work? Had she finally landed an acting job?

She immediately tapped on the voice messages and set her phone on top of her backpack, listening as she buttoned her shirt.

Sister Si, her manager, had never been one to waste words. She did not even bother with a greeting before getting straight to the point:

“I managed to get you a spot on a web variety show. Filming starts in two weeks in a scenic little village down south. It’ll take a month at most, and the pay is decent.”

So it was a web variety show…

She had gotten her hopes up for nothing. It was neither a film nor a television drama.

Chen Ge continued listening, her fingers slowing as she fastened her buttons.

“I know you’re bound to be disappointed, but you also understand that investors have become much more cautious lately. Forget an unknown actress like you—even Best Actresses and Best Actors have trouble finding films they truly like. So let’s not be picky, all right? When there’s work, we take it. When there’s an opportunity to appear onscreen, we show our faces. Who knows? Maybe the show will unexpectedly become a hit.”

Chen Ge fastened the last button of her shirt, covering the faint outline of her abdominal muscles.

As she pulled her long, wet hair out from beneath her collar, her brows drew together slightly above her narrow, clear eyes.

Unexpectedly become a hit? Could this web variety show be some major production?

As though Sister Si could read her thoughts from a distance, she continued:

“But don’t get your hopes too high. After all, it’s a small production by a small team, and all the participants are newcomers or ordinary amateurs…”

Chen Ge: “…”

Right. A tiny production with no recognizable faces attached to it. Just how unexpected would things have to be for it to become a hit?

“…But what’s wrong with earning money? Not only can you make some cash, you don’t even have to think of it as tedious work. Just treat it as a vacation in a picturesque mountain village. Get away for a while and clear your head.”

Sister Si patiently coaxed her through WeChat:

“Besides, Xiao Song from our company will be going with you. You know Xiao Song, right? Song Ruyu. She just came back from a talent show and already has a fan support club and a Weibo super topic.

“The two of you can form a sisterly duo and direct some traffic toward each other. What’s the point of a young woman spending all day alone in the gym? Aren’t you lonely? Doesn’t your fan club complain every day that the company refuses to give you decent resources? This is the perfect chance to show them that you’re still alive and prove the company hasn’t kidnapped you.”

Puzzled, Chen Ge replied to Sister Si, “I still have a fan club?”

Sister Si answered almost instantly, “Of course you do! Have you forgotten already? Didn’t they send you a cake for your birthday last year?”

“Oh, the one that arrived a month late. I thought they’d already disbanded.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. There might only be a dozen or so of them, but they still care about you. Getting your birthday wrong isn’t a big deal. You ate the cake, didn’t you? This is what happens when you never even do livestreams. How are they supposed to remember? Who handles their career as little as you do these days? Be careful, or even your dozen die-hard fans will leave the fandom.”

Chen Ge pulled out her bag and carried it in one hand, replying to Sister Si as she walked outside:

“I’m an actress, not an idol.”

Sister Si replied, “Actress, idol—who cares? First make enough money to support yourself.”

Chen Ge should have been happy to finally have a new job, but after this conversation with Sister Si, she could not help feeling melancholy.

This was her first job in an entire year. Based on what she knew of the company, the web variety show had probably approached them first, hoping to negotiate with one of their other artists. When that fell through, Sister Si had seized the opening and pushed Chen Ge forward instead.

Chen Ge was an obscure eighteenth-tier actress. She had appeared in one film, and she had even played the lead.

That film had earned her a small group of fans and some praise. It had also given her the powerful illusion that she truly had what it took to succeed in the industry. So she signed with an agency, stayed in Beijing after graduation, rented an apartment, and began fighting to build a career.

Reality, however, had quickly slapped her face swollen.

During her first year in Beijing, she was once again fortunate enough to become the female lead in a low-budget film. Unfortunately, its release kept being delayed because of problems with the approval process, and it still had not premiered.

After that film, her career seemed to have been cursed. It stagnated as though she were trapped in a loop, and she never received another decent opportunity.

She did not want to ask her family for money, and her family was not wealthy to begin with. To make ends meet, she frequently appeared in insignificant corners of all kinds of films, television dramas, advertisements, and variety shows.

She had struggled in the industry for several years, yet her career still showed no signs of improving.

Eventually, even those scraps of work disappeared, leaving her to survive on her pitiful savings.

Still, Sister Si had always thought highly of her. Whenever she came across any resources, she would try to scrape together something for Chen Ge.

Sister Si believed Chen Ge had great potential, and she said the same thing to the company’s boss.

She said Chen Ge had received proper professional training and graduated from the acting department of one of the country’s finest art universities. Her acting skills could crush those of countless currently popular stars, and her appearance was distinctive—one of the key factors needed to become a good actress.

Most importantly, she was dedicated and willing to keep improving herself and take acting seriously.

Sister Si loved telling her stories about how successful people had risen to the top, desperately feeding her motivational speeches to keep her going:

“Don’t let yourself slack off. Opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared. As long as you’re ready when the right opportunity comes, you’ll definitely become famous overnight!”

Apart from Chen Ge, an eighteenth-tier actress, Sister Si also managed an equally obscure girl group.

The girl group had just participated in a large-scale talent show. Although all four members had been eliminated within the first two rounds, they had at least become somewhat familiar to the public, allowing them to advance from the eighteenth tier to the seventeenth.

Sister Si had probably been brainwashed by all the idol-related work she had been handling lately and had begun treating Chen Ge like an idol too.

Chen Ge did not care about becoming famous. All she wanted was a good script and a good role.

To remain in the best possible condition, no matter how poor she became, she still came to the gym on a fixed schedule to exercise and keep herself in shape.

Chen Ge was twenty-six this year and would turn twenty-seven the next.

She felt somewhat lost. She did not know whether she should give up on her unrealistic dream and change careers or continue holding on.

She did not even know whether she was truly suited to being an actress. After all, she could barely support herself now.

After leaving the gym, she considered taking a taxi home. But then she thought of the fare and noticed the bus stop nearby…

Forget it. She would take the bus. At this hour, it was probably the last bus of the night. There would not be many passengers, and it would save her money.

She boarded the bus and endured the bumpy journey home. Above her mask, her beautiful, melancholy eyes gazed out the window. Neon lights swept past her one after another, illuminating her eyes with brilliant, vivid colors.

They were like the opportunities she had once held in her hands.

They came to her again and again, giving her extraordinary dreams, only to leave her just as mercilessly each time.

Hugging her backpack, Chen Ge sighed and decided to join the web variety show.

In truth, what reason did she have to refuse? She was almost unable to pay her rent.

Supporting herself came first. Only after filling her stomach would she have the energy to continue fighting for her dream.

Chen Ge sent Sister Si a WeChat message, agreeing to take the job.

At that moment, Sister Si was sitting inside the company van. When she saw Chen Ge’s message, she smiled and said:

“She agreed.”

Song Ruyu, who was sitting beside Sister Si and playing with her phone, said, “Really? That’s great! I happen to need an assistant!”

Sister Si slapped her hard on the thigh. “What assistant? She’s your proper colleague! Watch what you say outside! Especially while filming the show. Keep talking nonsense and just wait until people start attacking you online. Do you hear me?!”

Song Ruyu was a member of the four-person girl group managed by Sister Si. She was also the seventeenth-tier celebrity who had only recently shown her face to the public.

After the talent show, the company believed Song Ruyu had accumulated a few fans and had begun brushing against the edges of online popularity. They wanted her to film a drama as soon as possible and convert that attention into profit.

They had originally planned to have her play the second female lead in a self-produced historical idol drama by one of their partner platforms. Sister Si had already attended negotiations and taken her to the audition, but Song Ruyu’s acting had been so catastrophically awful that the production team hesitated. In the end, another female idol snatched the role, and the whole thing fell through.

Coincidentally, around that time, the web variety show’s production team posted information about the project in a WeChat group, inviting managers with suitable candidates to contact them. Sister Si immediately reached out.

It was obvious that the web variety show was hopelessly obscure. Sister Si was the first person to approach them, and the other party responded with great enthusiasm and remarkable speed.

After Sister Si mentioned Song Ruyu, they still felt that one person was not enough and asked whether her company had any other artists who could join as well.

Sister Si had wondered just how desperately short of people they were.

Still, it worked out nicely. Chen Ge had not worked in a long time. Even a mosquito’s leg was still meat—when there was something to eat, they might as well take a bite.

Song Ruyu sucked in a breath through her teeth. “You really hit me… We’re surrounded by our own people here. I’m not stupid. How could I possibly say something like that in front of the cameras? Hey, Chen Ge agreed pretty quickly. I thought a talented, serious actress like her would look down on web variety shows.”

Sister Si said, “Everyone needs to eat, so stop saying useless things. When you’re with Chen Ge, get along with her properly. Don’t start acting stupid.”

“I know, I know.” Song Ruyu rubbed her thigh. “When have I ever acted stupid? Of course I’ll treat Sister Chen Ge well. Aren’t I supposed to form a promotional CP with her?”

Sister Si said seriously, “You’ll have to guide Chen Ge when it comes to promoting the CP. She’s never done anything like this before, so she’ll probably feel awkward. Once she gets awkward, it’ll look fake, and the audience won’t buy it. Come to the company tomorrow so the two of you can meet. We’ll decide on your promotional strategy, public personas, and everything else.”

Song Ruyu was scrolling through her Weibo super topic and casually murmured a couple of halfhearted acknowledgments.

Another WeChat message from Chen Ge arrived.

“Sister Si, send me the script for the web variety show. I’d like to read it and familiarize myself with it before filming begins.”

Sister Si replied, “It’s just a web variety show about going to the countryside, planting crops, and doing farmwork. What script is there to familiarize yourself with? Don’t overthink it. Just go. When the time comes, perform however the director tells you to. With your acting skills, you’re more than qualified for a web variety show.”

Chen Ge: “…Farmwork. It seems spending all my time at the gym has counted as preparation for this web variety show after all. That’s good.”

“By the way, remember to come to the company early tomorrow morning. Meet with Xiao Song, and we’ll have a meeting.”

“A script read-through?”

“…What read-through? We’re deciding your public personas and promotional strategy!”

Chen Ge replied with a reaction image of someone whose face was covered in question marks. Song Ruyu leaned over to glance at Sister Si’s phone and laughed.

“I’ll be the gong and she’ll be the shou. I’ll be the handsome, dominant top, and she’ll be the idiot bottom.”

Chen Ge was quite happy when she returned to her rented apartment. She finally had work, and a rare smile appeared on her usually cool and distant face—

Even though the colleague she shared the apartment with was once again arguing with her family over the phone, endlessly debating whether she should return to her hometown.

Chen Ge quietly returned to her room. She wanted to sleep, but the noise outside remained loud.

She took out her earphones, put them on, opened her tablet, and played a film she had already watched countless times: The Final Year.

It was written five years ago by her favorite screenwriter, Luo Jingyi. It was also the film that had earned Teacher Luo more awards than she could count.

The Final Year told the story of the last year in the life of a woman over eighty years old.

During that year, she lost both her lifelong partner and her daughter, euthanized the dog that had accompanied her for more than a decade, and attended the funeral of her closest friend.

She walked alone along the edge of life, only to encounter a fifteen-year-old girl who wanted to commit suicide.

Chen Ge had downloaded the film’s script from the official website of The Final Year. Holding her phone and comparing the script with the film, she carefully studied the actors’ performances bit by bit.

Chen Ge had watched this film countless times and had nearly memorized every line, yet each time she watched it, she still discovered details she had never noticed before.

This time was no exception.

Full of enthusiasm, Chen Ge opened a webpage and logged in to her account on a film-review website, “Muge0411.”

She posted a new review in the discussion section for The Final Year.

【…No wonder Xiao Ling chose to stay alive because of a cat. She must have remembered the sick cat her father abandoned all those years ago. That cat had been her only friend during childhood. The old woman helped fill the enormous void in her heart. Teacher Luo handled this part so brilliantly. The director’s technique was also masterful. Instead of directly showing the cat being abandoned, they placed the cat’s corpse among the broken bricks and rubble from the demolished buildings, creating an even greater emotional impact.

It is difficult to imagine Teacher Luo’s true age and what she has experienced, given how private she is. She must have gone through many things to write such a delicate and nuanced script. Every single detail is worth reflecting on.】

Not long after Chen Ge posted her latest short review, people began replying.

【Muge, are you here to shower Teacher Luo with praise again?】

【Today’s Muge is still the same Muge who loves Teacher Luo.】

【“It’s difficult to imagine Teacher Luo’s true age”? What do you mean by that? Are you complaining that Teacher Luo is old? [doge]】

Chen Ge replied: 【How could that be? I have nothing but respect for her. Teacher Luo should only be in her forties, right? That’s the prime age for a screenwriter. But judging by the depth of the themes in her scripts, she sometimes feels older than forty.】

【I heard she’s a difficult old lady.】

The corners of Chen Ge’s lips rose. 【Why are you suddenly speaking badly about Teacher Luo? Even if Teacher Luo is an old lady, she must be an exceptionally cultured and charming old lady.】

Author’s Note:

Luo Jingyi: Just wait until I make my entrance and unleash my charm.