Chapter 35

"Didn't I think I didn't have to attend this thing?" Shen Zhenghui was very uncomfortable with the tie around his neck, and he pulled it hard as if to adjust its position.

"After all, you are the lead actor and the screenwriter, you should attend," Shimizu Takashi whispered beside him.

"Turning this story into a Japanese version is entirely your achievement."

The two of them whispered on stage, but it didn't matter, as the audience and reporters were all focused on **ap. The **ap members collectively came to support the film, and the charm of the handsome men was irresistible. After their performance, the director and the lead actor became secondary.

It seemed that the reporters felt it was inappropriate to leave the director and the lead actor aside, so during the Q&A session, they finally remembered the lead actor and the director.

"Mr. Shen Yu, you are Chinese, how did you manage to play the lead role in a Japanese film?" a reporter asked arrogantly.

"Ha, this question..." The host tried to laugh it off.

"It's simple, money can do it," Shen Zhenghui replied, feeling a bit depressed that he had another name, "Of course, if I were American, it would be even better."

It was unclear whether this sarcastic remark was understood. The host quickly called on another reporter.

This reporter pressed the director, "You have only directed experimental TV series before, what difficulties did you encounter in making this film?"

Did someone forget to give these reporters red envelopes?

Shimizu Takashi smiled slightly, "No difficulties," and didn't elaborate further.

**ap's Nakajima Masahiro quickly stepped in to smooth things over, talking about the fun moments during filming.

Another reporter jumped up and called out to Aizawa Tomoaki, "I heard you've made that kind of film before, if this film fails at the box office, will you go back to making that kind of film?"

This was clearly a provocation.

Aizawa Tomoaki just smiled gently, her innocent expression left a deep impression on the men present, and Shen Zhenghui couldn't help but look at her more closely. Aizawa Tomoaki smiled at Shen Zhenghui, and he felt a surge of inexplicable anger in his abdomen.

"Damn, I'm definitely a normal man."

Someone started to laugh at the reporter.

Aizawa Tomoaki said softly, "I don't know what my future will be like, but I think it will be good. I hope everyone will like this film." She bowed, which triggered thunderous applause.

Shen Zhenghui almost felt that the audience was from 2014, and Aizawa-sensei was instantly possessed by Sora-sensei.

The premiere ended hastily, and the film began its official screening.

The main creative team sat in the front row. On Shen Zhenghui's right was director Shimizu Takashi, and on his left was Aizawa Tomoaki, with **ap sitting together. After sitting down, Shen Zhenghui was still distracted by his script. As the lights in the hall dimmed, he was lost in thought when Aizawa Tomoaki reached out her right hand and held his left hand.

This reminded Shen Zhenghui of his previous life, when he first went to the movies with his first girlfriend, and she naturally held his hand. The memories and feelings came flooding back. Shen Zhenghui turned his face, and in the darkness, Aizawa Tomoaki's eyes were shining, her expression filled with excitement and excitement. "Sorry," she said softly, but didn't let go.

The credits began to roll. Aizawa Tomoaki's hand was a bit cold, and Shen Zhenghui turned his wrist, holding her hand, "Let's enjoy the movie," he said softly. The two of them sat like shy lovers, holding hands, and Shimizu Takashi glanced over, seeing their hands together in the light of the screen. Shimizu Takashi immediately sat up straight and looked at the big screen.

"The Cruel History of North High School" is a youth film, from the beginning. The opening scene shows the protagonist Watanabe Kiri watching a Bruce Lee movie as a child, setting the tone for the entire film. In the protagonist's monologue, he mentions that his family moved, and he transferred to a rather terrible high school.

Unlike the Korean version of the story, North High School portrays a different kind of cruelty. Teachers treat teaching as a means of making a living, being perfunctory and indifferent to the students, and the students lack unity and friendship, each isolated and indulging in their adolescent desires. Bad students oppress good students, and bystanders are numb.

Overall, although Shimizu Takashi would later become a master of horror, he did not make this film terrifying. Instead, the beginning of the film has a touch of black humor. Shen Zhenghui's performance is just right, vividly portraying the psychological superiority and physical fear of a top student facing delinquents, with a touch of humor like Ah Q. Watanabe Kiri is beaten to the ground by seniors, curling up in a ball, and only crawling up when they leave, his face covered in blood. Despite the tragic scene, he adds a self-deprecating comment: "Japan is doomed, the son hit the father."

The audience in the cinema burst into laughter, even Aizawa Tomoaki couldn't help but cover her mouth.

To relieve his frustration, Watanabe Kiri boldly skips school to watch a Bruce Lee movie, where he meets a classmate, Murakami Ryu (played by Nakajima Masahiro), who also skipped school to watch Bruce Lee. Ryu is a rebellious youth, extremely admiring Bruce Lee. Watanabe Kiri and Murakami Ryu become good friends due to Ryu's martial arts skills, which protect Watanabe Kiri from being bullied at school.

At this point, Shimizu Takashi presents a series of scenes of high school life, including extracurricular activities and daily details. Drawing from his own experiences, he vividly portrays the fun of high school rebellious students, how to skip school, where to play, students betting, playing, watching movies, and even silly games like who can pee the farthest. Nakajima Masahiro, a well-behaved child, had no such experiences, but Shen Zhenghui, having lived two lives, understood. These scenes in the film often elicited knowing laughter from the audience.

Then, Aizawa Tomoaki, playing Fujimura Tomoko, appears. Her appearance is stunning, a completely pure and innocent student image, requiring no makeup, just standing in front of the camera to create the best picture and language.

The entrance of the female lead also elicited a round of applause from the audience. Many men decided to search for the female lead's previous adult films after the movie. The story enters a gentle rhythm, with two hormone-driven youths both attracted to this pure female classmate.

This is a challenging scene for acting. When filming, Shimizu Takashi was not worried about Nakajima Masahiro, as playing a cool young man pursuing a girl was a natural role for him, with no difficulty. He just needed to remember his character's identity and personality. This scene was a significant challenge for Shen Zhenghui, as he needed to portray the feeling of liking someone but suppressing it, conveying this through facial expressions and subtle actions. This was difficult even for Japanese young actors known for their exaggerated performances, let alone for Shen Zhenghui, who was a newcomer.

However, to everyone's surprise, Shen Zhenghui performed very well. His eyes darting around, avoiding Aizawa Tomoaki's gaze, his stiff body movements when with her, and his suppressed release when alone, vividly portrayed the inner world of a suppressed top student. This made Shimizu Takashi suspect that he might have graduated from a mainland acting school. His performance was restrained and powerful, different from the typical exaggerated and dramatic Japanese style, complementing Nakajima Masahiro's slightly exaggerated performance, making the film feel more realistic. Every viewer subconsciously believed that the school delinquents were like Murakami Ryu, and the top students were like Watanabe Kiri.

When Murakami Ryu and Fujimura Tomoko embrace and kiss, Watanabe Kiri, seeing this from a distance, tightens his lips, bites his lower lip, and his hands clench tightly, his whole body trembling. This powerful performance caught everyone's attention, and Aizawa Tomoaki even turned to look at Shen Zhenghui's face.

His face was calm and focused at that moment.

When Murakami Ryu and Fujimura Tomoko come out of the woods and see Watanabe Kiri again, his face is still calm.

The audience in the cinema let out a gasp of surprise.

If it had stopped there, it would have been just a typical youth love story.

But the plot quickly takes a sharp turn. Murakami Ryu loses a duel and leaves the school, and Fujimura Tomoko also leaves.

Watanabe Kiri falls back into loneliness and isolation.

Shen Zhenghui's performance gives Watanabe Kiri a philosophical existential state. After Murakami Ryu and Fujimura Tomoko leave, he feels like an outsider, as if all the people and events at the school are disconnected from him. Although he is not actually, he mentally separates himself from school life, feeling especially lonely and bored, buried in his studies, living a dull life. One day, Watanabe Kiri, who was previously protected by Murakami Ryu, is caught and beaten by a group of people who had driven Murakami Ryu out of the school, just because they were unhappy with his attitude.

This is an exceptionally oppressive scene. Watanabe Kiri does not struggle when beaten, as if he were a dead man, but his body has an instinctive reaction to the punches. As Watanabe Kiri is about to give up, a fat man who had some connection with Murakami Ryu comes over and stops the group.

The next scene is a long shot of Watanabe Kiri struggling to get up, slowly moving to the sink, washing the blood off his face, and then starting to cry, tears streaming down his face, signaling his return from an observer to a participant. Shen Zhenghui vividly portrays the deep pain of a young man.

The following scenes, after the oppressive parts of the film, are a reversal. The reappearance of the Bruce Lee movie becomes a symbol, and Shen Zhenghui's expression is abnormally serious and focused, synchronizing with the Bruce Lee in the film. His room's VCR plays the movie, and he lies on the ground, doing push-ups, creating anticipation for the next scene.

The plot does not disappoint, and the performance with the nunchucks and Shen Zhenghui's muscular body satisfy the audience's taste. The school bullies continue their usual behavior, and finally, it's time for Watanabe Kiri to have his big showdown.

When Watanabe Kiri secretly takes out the nunchucks from his backpack and hides them in his clothes, not only the audience but even Shen Zhenghui himself is filled with anticipation. He has seen the master tape, but it was not dubbed, and by the time the dubbed version was ready, he was busy with other work, so he hasn't seen the complete film.

When Watanabe Kiri calls out to the bullies, "Come to the rooftop," Shen Zhenghui hears the suppressed breathing of the audience in the cinema. The students follow a certain order, with two people walking in front, and the onlookers following closely, making Shen Zhenghui think—people indeed need leadership.

On the stairs leading to the rooftop, Watanabe Kiri secretly takes out the nunchucks and, taking advantage of walking behind the leader, strikes his head.

The breathing in the cinema becomes heavier, with a few gasps.

This is the longest shot, with Shen Zhenghui facing six people. It's not a flashy performance but a realistic fight. High school students use various weapons, including nunchucks, chairs, and old window frames. Shen Zhenghui's sneak attack on the leader doesn't mean he can easily defeat the others. The realistic fighting, with every punch landing, leaves the audience stunned and empathetic.

Until Watanabe Kiri, with a bloody head, beats all six to the ground and stands up, kicking the leader twice in a fit of rage, the audience breathes heavily again.

Shen Zhenghui walks unsteadily, the few minutes of fighting having drained his energy. He holds the nunchucks, and the onlookers make way for him, whether out of admiration or fear, acting like submissive NPCs, serving as a backdrop.

Watanabe Kiri walks down from the rooftop, through the classroom corridor, the blood on his head showing what he has done. The teachers and security guards, who were slow to react, run over like startled rabbits, questioning Watanabe Kiri about what happened.

Watanabe Kiri suddenly raises the nunchucks, shattering the glass in the corridor, and shouts out the window, "I f*** all the high schools in Japan!"

Shen Zhenghui feels a warm current flowing through his body, a sense of excitement reappearing. This is something he hasn't felt for a long time, not just since his rebirth, but even in his previous life for a long time. This feeling, like the first time he saw a Jin Yong martial arts drama, read a Jin Yong novel, watched the "Saint Seiya" anime, or read a Wang Xiaobo novel, expands his horizons, showing him the most interesting things in the world, as if entering a new world.

Shen Zhenghui turns to look at Aizawa Tomoaki. It's hard to define his feelings for her as like/dislike or love/hate. To Shen Zhenghui, she seems to be a projection of his feelings for all the women he was once attracted to in his previous life, coincidentally projected onto this girl. It's unclear whether this is fortunate or unfortunate for the future.

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