Top Dupe CH 053 He's Not As Good-looking As Senior Brother Part 2

At this moment, Gu Xiaowei, dressed in a dark trench coat, walked through the corridor, drawing everyone’s attention. He nodded to a few actors he knew, acknowledging them.

Usually seen on TV or the big screen and never participating in variety shows, this was the first time countless eyes were able to closely observe him.

Everyone thought similarly—this man, from his face to his physique and demeanor, was flawless and annoyingly perfect.

Sister Cui had expected Gu Xiaowei to greet Luo Yu, but Gu Xiaowei merely glanced at Luo Yu from afar before entering the audition room.

Sister Cui mentally retracted her previous unrealistic guess about Gu Xiaowei posting Luo Yu’s photos to hype him up.

Most of the auditionees were in the waiting room. The hotel was not large, so the waiting room was a bit cramped.

Sister Cui sat with Luo Yu in the back row. Luo Yu wasn’t looking at the script but was chatting with Cheng Fei on his phone.

Cheng Fei had only a small part in today’s scenes and was currently sitting in an RV: [I’ve always envied you. I wanted to play the police captain in that movie! I thought I could audition for it! But no chance!]

Luo Yu: [Then strive for it. I also think you’re righteous and suited to play a police captain for life.]

Cheng Fei: [You’re just making fun of me? I can play not only a police captain but also Judge Bao!]

Luo Yu couldn’t help but chuckle softly and replied: [Then I can play the Eight Virtues King.]

After all, the official rank is higher than Cheng Fei’s role.

In front of Luo Yu was Liang Shengqiu, the rising star of Honghe Film and Television.

Hearing that low chuckle, unlike the tense atmosphere of everyone else, Liang Shengqiu was quite composed. He instinctively turned his head and caught a glimpse of Luo Yu’s lowered lashes, which made his heart skip a beat.

Isn’t this the person who appeared in Gu Xiaowei’s Weibo photos a few days ago? I think his name is Luo Yu, who has acted in TV dramas by two major directors, but they haven’t aired yet. Since the photos didn’t show his facial features, Liang Shengqiu thought Luo Yu was just another handsome face in the entertainment industry, considering he was known as He Mu’s dupe.

But in Liang Shengqiu’s eyes, He Mu was like a decorative vase—good-looking but lacking spirit.

Yet, when he glanced back, he saw a restrained grace in Luo Yu. If the glamorous men and women in the industry were vibrant colors, Luo Yu was the perfect blank space.

Liang Shengqiu, having dealt with many directors, understood that besides having a good reputation and resources, being diligent and willing to humble oneself for opportunities were crucial. He also realized that competing for a role sometimes meant that even if your lines were well delivered and expressions natural, you could still lose to someone’s natural aura.

And Luo Yu’s soft laughter increased Liang Shengqiu’s pressure exponentially.

A He Mu without acting skills was no match for him; instead, the calm and steady Luo Yu was.

Unconsciously, Liang Shengqiu had a bad thought. Each seat had a small folding table. Most had scripts or cups on them. Luo Yu’s thermos lid was only lightly placed on top. If he leaned back, he might knock it over.

The water in the thermos was still steaming. He hadn't put the lid on, presumably waiting for the water to cool down. If the water spilled at this moment, he might get burned...

Wait, Liang Shengqiu, what are you thinking!

Even if you want to get the role of Wen Yuchi, you shouldn't have such thoughts.

Just then, someone walked past Liang Shengqiu and accidentally bumped into his leg. As a result, coffee from the paper cup spilled out and splashed onto the front of his casual jacket.

"Oww..."

Fortunately, the jacket was thick, or Liang Shengqiu would have been burned by the coffee.

"I'm... I'm sorry, it was not intentional... I'll clean it up for you!"

Liang Shengqiu looked up and saw that the person was probably an assistant of some artist, holding other things besides the coffee, so it was indeed unintentional.

The assistant's companion lowered his voice and said impatiently, "Why aren’t you moving forward? Are you blocking the way for others to stare at us?"

That person was He Mu.

At this moment, He Mu looked displeased. He had originally thought that a major production like "Beast and Rose" would have a high-end audition location, but it turned out to be in a small, hostel-like hotel.

Even the waiting area was so small. He had arrived late due to traffic and found no available spots, so he had to let his makeup artist and stylist wait outside while he and his assistant went in.

The assistant turned to He Mu and said softly, "Brother Yang instructed us to get along well with other auditionees and not be too... you know..."

Brother Yang's exact words were: "Get along well with other auditionees and don’t be too arrogant. Otherwise, if you don’t make the cut, someone might spread unflattering comments online."

He Mu immediately understood and forced a smile towards Liang Shengqiu, "You’re Liang Shengqiu, right? It’s a surprise to meet you here. I’m really sorry for getting your jacket dirty... I’ll have my assistant send you a new one later."

Liang Shengqiu looked at He Mu’s smile, which seemed stiff. Having acted for a while, he could tell that He Mu was trying hard to appear friendly.

Everyone in the industry understands one principle: popularity is the way to success.

Since he wasn’t as popular as He Mu, he should just go with the flow.

Liang Shengqiu smiled and said, "It’s okay. Your assistant didn’t do it on purpose."

He Mu felt he had fulfilled his task of appearing approachable, nodded, and walked away.

At this moment, Liang Shengqiu’s agent took a tissue out of the bag to try and remove the coffee from the jacket, but the stain was very noticeable on the linen fabric.

"This was the jacket you specifically chose to fit the role! It’s bad enough that he had to walk past you, but he had to spill coffee on you too... I don’t believe it wasn’t intentional."

Liang Shengqiu gave his agent a look, preferring to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Perhaps this was his retribution for having ill intentions towards Luo Yu.

Liang Shengqiu considered taking off the jacket and just wearing the inner sweater, but as soon as he lifted the collar, he noticed that some of the coffee had seeped through. Though only a few spots, they were particularly noticeable on the light-colored sweater.

Forget it, he was here for the audition, and winning over the director and other audition judges depended on his acting, not on a jacket.

Someone lightly tapped his shoulder from behind, and a warm voice said, "Where is it dirty?"

Liang Shengqiu turned around and found it was Luo Yu. "It’s okay. My jacket is checkered, so it’s not very noticeable."

"Not noticeable, but you must be a bit upset inside, right?" Luo Yu glanced at the stain. "If you don’t cover it up, you might subconsciously keep checking if the director or producer notices the stain during your performance, right?"

With that gentle poke from Luo Yu, Liang Shengqiu could only respond, "Even if I care, I have to force myself to act well."

Luo Yu asked Sister Cui next to him, "Sister Cui, do you have any sturdier tissues?"

"Yes," Sister Cui opened her bag and took out a pack of handkerchiefs.

She carried these for emergencies, such as if she needed to go to the restroom and there was no toilet paper, or if a small pack of tissues wasn’t enough; handkerchiefs were more durable.

Luo Yu took one, folded it using the crown method, and placed it into Liang Shengqiu’s chest pocket, gently smoothing it out.

"This should cover it perfectly. Luckily, your jacket has pockets; otherwise, there would be no place to cover it."

Liang Shengqiu looked down. A handkerchief was usually used in formal settings, and he was wearing a casual jacket, which seemed a bit...

But unexpectedly, the manager said, "Oh? I thought your jacket was missing something, but with the handkerchief, it looks even better."

"Really?"

"My sense of fashion has always been terrible. But I think a handkerchief could be a highlight. If the director asks why you have a handkerchief in your pocket, you can say it’s because Wen Yuchi is a forensic expert and might be prepared for unexpected situations, like using a handkerchief to avoid leaving fingerprints on items or to clean his hands."

After Luo Yu finished speaking, Liang Shengqiu’s agent immediately said, "Yes, that explanation is good. Thank you so much."

"You’re welcome." Luo Yu said, then lowered his head to play with his phone again.

Liang Shengqiu’s anxiety was eased by Luo Yu’s words.

But he couldn’t help himself and turned to Luo Yu, asking, "You and I are competitors for the same role. Don’t you... think it’s better if your competitor makes more mistakes?"

"Ah?" Luo Yu looked up, surprised by the question.

Liang Shengqiu’s agent quickly diffused the situation, "Our Sheng Qiu just wanted to express his gratitude, but didn’t phrase it well. Please don’t take it to heart!"

After saying this, he discreetly kicked Liang Shengqiu under the chair.

Luo Yu hadn’t expected Liang Shengqiu to be so straightforward. This honesty actually made Luo Yu like him more.

"Well, how should I put this... You really value this role, and even when minor accidents occur, your determination hasn’t wavered. When I was your age, I gave up roles that others had worked hard to secure for me for some trivial reason or other, and I regret it deeply. Although my mindset has improved a lot now, seeing what just happened to you reminded me of my own past. So I instinctively offered you some advice."

Luo Yu spoke delicately, but Liang Shengqiu could faintly sense that Luo Yu’s “reason” involved some element of He Mu.

The fact that Luo Yu could openly express his thoughts made Liang Shengqiu develop a bit of goodwill for him.

"Let me also remind you, whether it’s for auditions or acting, be careful with the lid of your thermos. If it hadn’t been me who passed by just now, you... you’d probably have been in a worse situation."

After saying this, Liang Shengqiu suddenly felt a lot clearer and gained a deeper understanding of the character of Wen Yuchi.

—Wen Yuchi is a very genuine person; he is also straightforward when facing Lu Pingfeng. It is precisely this straightforwardness that attracts Lu Pingfeng’s attention.

Luo Yu glanced at his thermos. Thinking that if it had fallen over, the hot water could have burned him severely, he quickly screwed the lid back on.

"Th... thank you."

In the audition room, there were four people present: Director Sheng Yunlan, Assistant Director Qian Gang, Producer Huang Yun, and Screenwriter Xia Tan.

Xia Tan hadn’t originally planned to attend the audition. After all, both she and Director Sheng Yunlan were somewhat dissatisfied with the script—specifically, the reason why Wen Yuchi believes Lu Pingfeng could not be the murderer, which involves both technical and belief-related conclusions.

But in the current script, this belief is neither strong enough nor unique enough.

Although Sheng Yunlan invited Xia Tan to join the audition review, Xia Tan initially declined, wanting to continue refining the script.

It wasn’t until the morning a couple of days ago, when she had breakfast with Gu Xiaowei, and he explained why he wanted to personally interact with the actors auditioning for Wen Yuchi, that Xia Tan was moved.

—Because I want to interact with different versions of Wen Yuchi and find a Lu Pingfeng I haven't discovered yet.

Thus, Xia Tan decided to attend the audition review, wanting to find Wen Yuchi’s belief about Lu Pingfeng from different portrayals. If even Gu Xiaowei is willing to draw new inspiration from different actors, why should she remain insular?

Over ten actors auditioned one after another. Their images were closely aligned with Wen Yuchi, but none provided the inspiration Xia Tan was looking for, nor could they match Gu Xiaowei’s acting.

Lu Pingfeng is someone who appears humble and polite, but conversing with him reveals his inherent indifference to life.

In this particular audition scene, Wen Yuchi, after finishing his forensic work late at night and returning to his apartment, was exhausted and lay down on the sofa.

At that moment, the power went out, and outside the apartment, there was a storm with lightning and thunder. Suddenly, Lu Pingfeng appeared by Wen Yuchi’s sofa, grasped his neck, and wanted to test if Wen Yuchi, like others, feared him and thought he might kill at any moment.

Gu Xiaowei’s powerful presence made several auditioning actors fall silent, their lines stuttering, without needing any dark or storm effects.

This caused Xia Tan to lose patience and feel sorry for Gu Xiaowei, who had spent half a day rehearsing but had not found a suitable match.

Finally, they came to He Mu’s name.

"He Mu, I heard he’s interested in pursuing an acting career and has been working hard to hone his skills recently," said the Assistant Director.

Yesterday, Ou Juntao had called him and asked him to take care of He Mu, so the Assistant Director certainly had to give him this face.