Chapter 129: It Is Time for Me to Return the Slap

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“I haven’t really been keeping up with those shows lately. What kind of program is it?” Lin Ze asked.

Judging by the name alone, though, it did sound like the sort of show he wanted to appear on.

There was no harm in making a name for himself in both television and music.

If he could save up enough money early on, he could leave behind a few legends of his own and then retire.

“The contestants are divided into groups, and each group chooses scenes from several films or television dramas to perform. The interesting part is…”

“When each episode begins, the contestants are first split into two sides. One side gets to choose performers, while the other side waits to be chosen.”

“The choosing side can freely select one or two people for a performance. Naturally, some people will be left over, and those who remain have to perform a scene alone.”

Lin Ze nodded.

That did make things more difficult. Some scenes were hard for the audience to become immersed in when performed by only one person.

“So on this show, you really have to stand out as an individual performer. Otherwise, if you end up on the side waiting to be chosen and nobody picks you to perform with them, it can be rather awkward.”

“Sounds good. When does the show start?” Lin Ze asked, his interest piqued.

Wang Xue replied, “There was originally an opening this week, but one of the regular guests invited an actor to appear, so you’ll have to wait until the week after next.”

“How about this? Since the next episode airs next week, you can watch it and get familiar with the program.”

Lin Ze agreed, exchanged a few more pleasantries with her, and hung up.

“You’ve got another new show to appear on?” Su Zitan asked curiously. “Which one?”

“I Am an Actor.” Lin Ze picked up his phone and searched for the variety show.

Only then did he realize that although the program had aired just a few episodes, it was already extremely popular.

After all, bringing classic television dramas back from people’s memories naturally earned it a certain amount of nostalgic goodwill.

“Then let’s watch this one. It looks pretty interesting.”

Su Zitan put the show on the projector in the living room.

At noon, the two of them ordered takeout and ate while watching.

“That young man is pretty good. What’s his name?” Su Zitan asked, pointing at a young man on the screen who was holding a basketball.

His scene seemed to come from a youth romance drama.

Originally, several young men had been walking along while chatting and laughing over a game of basketball. Then, without warning, one of them suddenly reddened around the eyes. He gazed at something on the street corner, and all the emotions he had been concealing erupted in an instant.

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The young man in front of them had performed very well. Apart from the actress acting opposite him, no one else had managed to draw her attention.

He had portrayed the transition from casual laughter to sudden emotional collapse with remarkable perfection.

Lin Ze glanced at the young man and nodded approvingly.

“His name is Tang Chuan. He’s with Eastern Emperor Entertainment.”

“Eastern Emperor Entertainment? Zhang Yang’s company?” Su Zitan’s small mouth fell open in surprise.

“A company like that can actually produce an actor this decent?”

“Yes.” Lin Ze naturally knew some of the inside story. “That’s why he fell out with the company a long time ago.”

“Besides, his contract is almost up now. Our studio has already sent him an invitation.”

“Do you think he’ll come?”

“Not necessarily. The impression I’ve given outsiders is that our studio is focused on the music industry as well. Someone as young as him, with such a good reputation, will probably care more about his future prospects.”

Lin Ze shook his head gently. “If his contract still had two years left, then he would probably choose us without hesitation.”

Looking at Lin Ze’s serious profile, Su Zitan could not resist leaning over and kissing him on the cheek.

“Not bad. You’re quite confident.”

Once Lin Ze confirmed that he would be appearing on the show, the production team immediately welcomed him with great enthusiasm. They were extremely attentive toward such a major star.

What surprised Lin Ze was that the newcomer joining the episode turned out to be Zhang Ya.

After making a few discreet inquiries, Lin Ze learned that the regular guest who had brought Zhang Ya onto the show was Tang Chuan.

As for the tangled grievances between them, Lin Ze naturally could not make sense of them. Whether Zhang Ya actually had any acting ability would have to wait until she appeared on the program.

Sure enough, Zhang Ya’s addition did not cause much of a stir. Some people knew that she had served as a body double for certain actresses in revealing scenes, but their comments were drowned out beneath the attention surrounding Lin Ze.

“Lin Ze? Why is he everywhere?”

“He’s a singer. What’s he doing here? Is he really trying to change careers?”

“Can’t he just stay away? To be honest, I quite like Lin Ze, but he really shouldn’t come over here and make a fuss among actors. He should just stick to singing.”

“He’s simply gotten carried away. Everyone in the music industry flatters him, and whenever he appears in a variety show, people claim he has good acting skills. Now he’s actually come here.”

“What has Lin Ze even acted in? I searched him just now and found that he only played an old woman. Isn’t that the same trick people use on those short-video platforms? Put on a costume, bend your legs, and do a couple of backflips.”

Hardly anyone in the comments section had any faith in Lin Ze.

He was only a young man who had trained as a singer, and he was just twenty-three. Where would he have found the time to develop acting skills?

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The barrage of comments below completely buried those that had originally been directed at Zhang Ya.

Zhang Ya was utterly numb.

Why was it that nothing good ever happened wherever Lin Ze appeared?

Zhang Yang had merely gotten involved with him, and then Zhang Yang had disappeared, while his company had been left riddled with holes.

And yet…

Ever since signing her contract, Zhang Ya had finally managed to obtain some decent opportunities, and much of the credit probably belonged to Lin Ze.

Her feelings were complicated.

Forget it. She would just consider it repayment for the favor.

…

“Elder Shi, we absolutely must not be late this week.”

“Hmph.”

“And could we please write songs properly instead of filming those pointless, disjointed things?”

“…What do you mean? Do you think the songs I write aren’t good enough for you?” Elder Shi stopped and glared at Xu Shen with displeasure.

Although they had filmed that video in a single day, writing a song was certainly not something that could be accomplished in one simple afternoon.

The song was already a highly polished piece. Its only shortcoming was that it came after the panda and before Lin Ze.

Those two had suddenly performed at such an absurdly high level that, by comparison, the song seemed mediocre to everyone else.

To some extent, that was also because of Xu Shen’s singing.

At least, that was what Elder Shi believed.

“No, no, no, Elder Shi, that’s not what I meant. I just feel that… we should do things a little more normally.”

Xu Shen had arrived forty minutes late with Elder Shi that day. When they finally entered, his entire scalp had gone numb. So many people had been waiting for the two of them…

Elder Shi gave a cold snort, already calculating how much earlier they should arrive this time.

Lin Ze, this time I’ll be the one to return that slap!

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