Chapter 15

"Hello, my name is Song Huiqiao, I am nineteen years old...!"

In the interview room, Song Huiqiao, wearing a beige sweater and a dark blue patterned skirt, stepped in slowly on high heels, deliberately slowing her pace. She then politely greeted Lee Jung-hee and the other two.

With a very calm and elegant demeanor, Yoon Seok-ho, who had frowned when he saw that Song Huiqiao's last work was the sitcom "Sunflower Obstetrics and Gynecology," now nodded, finding her interesting.

Song Huiqiao's resume was also impressive; she had debuted four years ago and had over ten TV drama experiences, though she rarely played leading roles, which wasn't too important.

Because his first impression was good, Yoon Seok-ho personally went in front of the camera, watching Song Huiqiao turn around, examining her from the front, side, and back. She still looked great, very beautiful, with good skin and a good sense of the camera.

With this affirmation, Yoon Seok-ho didn't return to his seat but directly said to her in front of the camera, "Please give me the emotion of liking someone but not being able to be with them..."

Song Huiqiao had been to many interviews, and she understood the meaning of Yoon Seok-ho not returning to his seat; it meant she had a chance.

This was KBS's major project for the year, not some minor one. If she got this role, she would truly become a big star. With this excitement, she took a deep breath, calmed herself, and quietly thought about her not-so-good past.

She was very beautiful, with a good figure and skin, and she believed her acting was not inferior to others. However, after four years and over ten works, she had remained relatively unknown.

Soon, the feeling came. Her eyebrows slightly furrowed, her eyelashes fluttered as if she was about to cry, and her hands clasped together at her chest...

Oh no! Lee Jung-hee knew it was going to be bad. Outsiders were often clearer than insiders. Just like how he once thought his acting was good, Song Huiqiao probably thought she was doing well, fully immersed in the emotion.

However, not only Lee Jung-hee and Yoon Seok-ho, but even Park Dong-jean frowned, because Song Huiqiao's expression was too stiff and fake.

"Enough!" Yoon Seok-ho couldn't bear it anymore and called a stop. At this moment, Song Huiqiao came back to her senses from the performance, and seeing the three people who held her fate in their hands with unhappy expressions, she panicked, knowing she had messed up.

Hmm, Yoon Seok-ho was already disappointed with her, but her panic and the subconscious display of sadness, despair, and self-pity were excellent. Yoon Seok-ho's eyes lit up, thinking she still had potential, and he had the assistant give her the lines.

And then, Song Huiqiao, who had relaxed after the mistake, did not disappoint him. Her "I'm sorry" was good, though it was only good, not as stunning as Ha Ji-won's.

Therefore, after she left, Park Dong-jean muttered, "If we're talking about looks, she's good enough, but her acting is too poor!"

Yoon Seok-ho nodded in agreement, "Indeed, that's true!"

But Lee Jung-hee couldn't let this view spread. After all, Song Huiqiao was the female lead of "Blue生死恋" (Blue生死恋 is a placeholder for the actual title, which is "Blue生死恋" in Chinese, and "Blue生死恋" in Korean, which translates to "Blue生死恋" in English). If she had problems, the drama would be in trouble.

So, he had to say, "Well, I think she might have been too nervous, and her calm and elegant demeanor is very good, making it easier to express sadness..."

"True!" Yoon Seok-ho agreed, "I had high hopes for her!" He then laughed self-deprecatingly, "Nothing is perfect, it seems."

Lee Jung-hee smiled and continued, "Indeed, there's nothing perfect in the world, but let's see the next one, maybe there will be a miracle!" He said this casually, but if he knew what was coming, he would have slapped himself.

The next female lead candidates were numerous, including some well-known ones like Kim Nam-ju, and some who had just debuted, like Yoo In-na. However, most of them were unfamiliar to Lee Jung-hee, who had lived two lives.

The only one he remembered and who would become a big star in the future was Jun Ji-hyun. She was nineteen this year, with only three works on her resume, but she had won the Best New Actress award at the Baeksang Arts Awards last year for her third work, "White Valentine," which was a remarkable achievement.

Jun Ji-hyun walked into the room with a loud sound of her high heels, and her steps were light and brisk, or rather, somewhat bold.

She wore black jeans, a black leather jacket, and a white blouse underneath, with a pink ribbon around her neck. She had a beautiful face, a tall and slender figure, especially long legs, and thick, smooth hair.

No matter how you looked at her, she was a very beautiful woman. Park Dong-jean thought her image was good, but Yoon Seok-ho frowned immediately because she was completely different from Song Huiqiao, one dynamic and one static, and he wanted the static.

So, in Jun Ji-hyun's surprise, Yoon Seok-ho made a strange request, "Miss Jun Ji-hyun, can you take off your high heels and walk a few steps for me?"

Although surprised, Jun Ji-hyun nodded, but she had a bad feeling.

Perhaps because of her long legs, Jun Ji-hyun, though not as bold as before, still had a lively and fast pace, which was not suitable for the female lead in "Blue生死恋," who was very calm and walked gracefully and slowly.

Therefore, even though Jun Ji-hyun's performance was good, Lee Jung-hee still saw Yoon Seok-ho give her a 50 out of 100 for her image and demeanor, which was a terrible score compared to her 80 for acting.

Of course, Yoon Seok-ho didn't give the 50 casually. Besides her walking style, Jun Ji-hyun's beautiful face had a touch of wild beauty, lacking the softness he required, which was very poor.

After Jun Ji-hyun's interview, it was almost noon, and after about three hours of interviews, everyone was tired. They were somewhat lax about the last interviewee.

With a very gentle step, Sun Ye-jin, wearing a white top and a beige pleated skirt, walked in and bowed slightly, "Hello, my name is Sun Ye-jin...!"

Like Song Huiqiao, she had a calm and elegant demeanor, but her slightly nervous appearance made her look a bit timid, which added a touch of vulnerability.

This made Yoon Seok-ho's eyes light up, as if all his fatigue disappeared instantly. He quickly flipped through her resume and was stunned, because Sun Ye-jin had never officially appeared in any TV drama or movie.

She only had stage play experience, and perhaps a recent commercial with Kim Hye-soo. She was still a high school student and would start university in the second half of the year.

Yoon Seok-ho was almost driven crazy. After a while, he hesitantly asked Sun Ye-jin, "Well, I saw your resume, and it seems you don't have any experience...!" He had a bigger question: how did Sun Ye-jin pass their first round of screening and make it to today's interview? This seemed impossible, and he had no memory of it.

At this moment, Sun Ye-jin, not knowing what he was thinking, spoke, her voice gentle and soft, "Yes, but Kim Hye-soo said I have talent in acting, so I wanted to try..."

Her voice was excellent, and Yoon Seok-ho praised it in his heart, thinking it was perfect. With this in mind, he temporarily put aside his other thoughts and walked to the camera, waving at Sun Ye-jin, "Alright, let's see your camera presence..."

Seeing Sun Ye-jin accurately stand at the center of the camera, he praised her again, then said, "Turn left, good, turn right, good, turn back, good, very nice!"

Yoon Seok-ho was extremely satisfied. Sun Ye-jin's image in the camera was very good, and her camera presence was excellent.

Next, it was time to see her acting. Yoon Seok-ho, who suddenly saw a treasure, was a bit nervous, as if afraid it would break, and said, "Uh, give me the reaction of reluctantly parting with a lover..."

On the other side, Sun Ye-jin nodded. After a few seconds, she faced the camera, her head slightly lowered, her eyebrows furrowed, her eyes reddened, her lips trembled, and her white teeth bit down. Then, her hands clenched and raised slightly to her waist, trembling. Finally, a soft sob was heard, and a tear rolled down...

Clap, clap, clap, Yoon Seok-ho clapped, "Very good, excellent!" It was really too good, especially the layered expression, which was the best way to create an atmosphere and move the audience.

Park Dong-jean and Lee Jung-hee also clapped. The former was as puzzled as Yoon Seok-ho about Sun Ye-jin's first-time performance, while Lee Jung-hee knew that this seemingly timid and nervous woman would become a formidable figure, not far behind Ha Ji-won.

However, he was also puzzled. He was sure that Sun Ye-jin was not on his original list of female lead candidates.

But this puzzle was quickly solved. After Sun Ye-jin's almost perfect performance of the line "I'm sorry" and two impromptu performances added by Yoon Seok-ho, as soon as she left and the interview room door closed, Yoon Seok-ho excitedly said, "She's the one!"

"What?" This result was too surprising. As Lee Jung-hee exclaimed, a notification popped up in his mind, "Respected player, one of the unpredictable events of 'Blue生死恋' (Blue生死恋 is a placeholder for the actual title, which is "Blue生死恋" in Chinese, and "Blue生死恋" in Korean, which translates to "Blue生死恋" in English), the change in the female lead candidate..."

F**k, Lee Jung-hee cursed in his heart. Now everything made sense. The sudden change in the female lead, even Sun Ji-hyun's excellent first performance, and Yoon Seok-ho's enthusiasm, might all be due to the game. Thinking of this, Lee Jung-hee felt even more depressed...

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