Chapter 15: Suggestion

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Lu Baobao turned to look at Jiang Se. “What about you?”

Jiang Se could not free herself from Lu Baobao’s grip. She could only stuff her backpack under her desk. The student on duty had written the day’s schedule on the blackboard.

While she took out the books required for the first period, she did not reply to Lu Baobao.

After she returned home during the weekend, Zhou Hui had a talk with her in her room. Then, the Du family had given her the cold shoulder. Du Changqun treated her as an invisible person when he returned, refusing to speak to her. Nobody even called her when it was time to eat.

Lu Baobao wanted to say something when their classmate in front turned around excitedly. She had heard them mention Shen Villa, so she asked, “Lu Baobao, did the two of you go to Shen Villa?”

Lu Baobao was instantly invigorated. She looked up and affirmed, “Yes, we went. Why?”

When Jiang Se saw that she was distracted, she extracted her arm from her palm. Lu Baobao no longer pulled on her arm because the classmate in front of them had spoken again, “I heard that ‘Rescue Mission’, which is directed by Zhang Jingan, will be filmed in Shen Villa. Many celebrities will be there as well. When did the two of you go?”

Seeming smug, Lu Baobao straightened up and instinctively reached for her cellphone, but her fingers found nothing. Regret filled her face, but it was quickly replaced by her animated expression.

“Oh, do you want to talk about that?” Although she covered her mouth, she could not hide her intention to show off in her chuckle. “Sese and I heard about that long ago. We went to Shen Villa on Saturday and even took part in the filming. That’s not all. We even saw the best actor, Liu Ye!”

Those words of hers earned her an envious look from the classmate. Several of their other classmates were also attracted by her story. While they gathered around their desks, some of them even exclaimed in surprise, “Wow? For real?”

“Of course!” Lu Baobao lifted her chin. “I had some photos on my phone, but my dad said that he’ll only return my phone after the National College Entrance Examination, so I’m sorry, but I can’t show you right now.”

She was having the time of her life talking while being surrounded by her classmates, “You can also choose to wait until it comes to the cinemas and watch it for yourselves.”

Some of their classmates wanted to get the inside scoop about “Rescue Mission” from Jiang Se as well. However, she merely gave them noncommittal replies, hence they pestered Lu Baobao instead.

After having her vanity satisfied, Lu Baobao no longer whined about the absence of her phone.

The group’s discussion shifted from the “Rescue Mission” crew to the celebrities in the cast. Then, from the topic of celebrities, they somehow ended up discussing Zhao Ruoyun, a celebrity Lu Baobao had mentioned before.

“Recently, Zhao Ruoyun has gotten famous. I saw the news lately. Other than starring in ‘Rescue Mission’, Gu Jiaer had nothing but praise for her during the interview with Entertainment News two days ago. He said that Zhao Ruoyun has got the looks and is a professional actress. He might be hinting at his intention of giving her a helping hand.”

Jiang Se was not very interested in the gossip, but then she heard someone say, “I think Gu Jiaer will be filming ‘Pretense to Reality’ soon. I was scrolling through Weibo the other day and there’s a source claiming that he’s planning on naming Zhao Ruoyun the female lead.”

When this came up, more of their classmates gathered around. Everyone contributed their opinions. Just as some of them admired Zhao Ruoyun, there naturally would be haters. A small group of girls had a heated argument with pink faces, and Jiang Se was having a slight headache from all the bickering.

“In any case, there’s must be a reason if Zhao Ruoyun does manage to end up as the female lead.” Zhao Ruoyun’s fans stood firmly on her side.

“You’re right. Perhaps it’s an unspoken rule,” someone on the other side said.

This statement made the little fan’s face flush. She shouted with contempt, “Even if it is, it just goes to show that she’s pretty enough to get all the attention.”

historical

“How beautiful is she? I think Jiang Se’s much prettier.”

Just like that, the line of fire shifted to Jiang Se.

Her female classmates shifted their gaze onto Jiang Se. Although there were some who were still unwilling to give up, nobody made any retorts.

Jiang Se was beautiful indeed. She was even prettier than the popular female actresses of the era.

“It’s useless even if she’s beautiful. At least, Zhao Ruoyun is the female lead now. Jiang Se isn’t,” someone muttered.

Lu Baobao was not happy to hear this, and she forgot that she had been praising Zhao Ruoyun highly before this. She said with contempt, “It’s just that Sese doesn’t have the opportunity to join a cast. If she could, there’s no telling who’ll end up as the female lead.”

Her voice had barely faded when the classmate before them seemed to have remembered something. “By the way, I heard that the production team is intending to recruit actors from the Imperial Capital Film Academy.”

Jiang Se was having a slight headache from all the arguing. She was about to tell them to stop their bickering when she heard this revelation. “I came across the news last night. It said that Gu Jiaer is intending to head to the Imperial Capital Film Academy to recruit some members for the cast.”

“Gu Jiaer is known for his pure romance films. I absolutely love his style! I enjoy some of his previous works like ‘Love in the Eastern Capital’, ‘Unrequited Love’...” The person gushing was familiar with the subject matter as many of Gu Jiaer’s films were mentioned. “He’s known for featuring new actors and actresses. His works are also aesthetic.”

“We’re not that far from the Imperial Capital Film Academy. Why don’t we head over and have a look?” Lu Baobao suggested after thinking for a while. “Who knows? We might just get noticed by a famous director.”

It was clear that she could not get enough of the glam after how smoothly things went in Shen Villa.

The dazzling entertainment industry and the various celebrities attracted her. The experience of being an extra had inspired an interest in her. She sounded slightly excited when she asked, “Ma Jingjing, did the news say when Gu Jiaer’s heading to the Imperial Capital Film Academy to recruit the cast?”

When Ma Jingjing heard the question directed at her, she hesitated. “The news didn’t say.”

Lu Baobao seemed slightly disappointed. Jiang Se, however, seemed to be considering something.

Based on their trip to Shen Villa last Saturday, she could tell that ordinary people looked forward to meeting celebrities. Not even the smallest of leaks could escape the eyes of the media and the fans.

If the whereabouts of the cast or crew were leaked, many people would flock toward the location. There had been a huge gathering outside the “Rescue Mission” filming site the other day as everyone was trying their best to get onto the set.

It remained to be ascertained if Gu Jiaer’s crew of “Pretense to Reality”, the one Ma Jingjing mentioned, would go to the Imperial Capital Film Academy for the casting as the news had said. Even if it was true, the actual time would not be announced.

However, Lu Baobao would not be herself if she gave up this easily. “We should go there together. We might be able to pick something up,” she said loudly.

Although some of their classmates felt excited at her suggestion, the writings on the upper-left corner of the blackboard seemed to be screaming in protest. “Countdown to the National College Entrance Examination: 4 days left!”

“Forget it. The exams are around the corner. If I flunk this, I’ll be dead.”