Chapter 36

Shortly after Wen Genying and her grandmother left, the lead male role was selected, and a handsome young man with regular features and a charming smile took the top spot. As soon as the selection of the young actor was completed, the selection for the second female lead began. After about an hour, a suitable actress was chosen, and then the selection for the second male lead began.

Eight people were competing for the role of the second male lead, Han Tae-sik. Among them were not only young actors under twenty who were relatively unknown, but also senior actors in their late twenties who had been in the industry for many years. The candidates entered the room for their auditions in pairs, in the order arranged by the staff, while those who hadn't been called yet waited outside. Perhaps due to the competitive nature of the situation, or perhaps because they were not in the mood to make friends, everyone kept to themselves and paid little attention to others.

The person paired with Zhang Chengyuan was also a handsome man with excellent looks and demeanor. Apart from Zhang Chengyuan, no one in the room could match or even compare to him. Zhang Chengyuan thought that this person was likely his biggest and perhaps only competitor in the audition.

It was no wonder the production team had arranged for this person and Zhang Chengyuan to be in the same group, clearly wanting the two most outstanding candidates to compete on the same stage and determine the final winner.

While thinking, Zhang Chengyuan couldn't help but size up the handsome man. The man, feeling uncomfortable under his gaze, composed himself and politely asked, "Hello, is there something you need?"

Realizing he had been rude, Zhang Chengyuan hurriedly apologized, "I was a bit out of line. Senior, hello, I just thought you looked familiar." To be honest, Zhang Chengyuan rarely watched TV or read newspapers, so he was quite ignorant and had never seen this handsome man before. He said this to find a way to excuse his rudeness, and his words also subtly flattered the other person's fame.

"You also look familiar, like the one who did the ramen commercial with Senior Jang Dong-gun," the handsome man replied, seemingly pleased, and returned the courtesy.

"That's right, my name is Zhang Chengyuan, and I just debuted last year."

"I'm Won Bin, my real name is Kim Do-joon, and I debuted in 1997. You look a few years younger than me, so call me Do-joon-ssi in the future."

...

Sometimes men can be quite strange; if they hit it off, a few words can turn into brotherhood, and they can even become close friends immediately. This was the case with Won Bin and Zhang Chengyuan. They talked happily, and before they knew it, a lot of time had passed, and it was almost their turn to audition.

At the staff's reminder, they stopped talking, smiled at each other, and began to adjust their emotions to prepare for the audition. At this moment, both of them had the desire to compete fairly with each other, but they weren't overly concerned about who would win or lose.

Inside the room, several middle-aged people, both men and women, were seated, presumably the key members of the production team, including the director, producer, and screenwriter. Won Bin and Zhang Chengyuan stood side by side, bowed in unison, and then stood still, waiting quietly for the director and others to speak. Both were handsome and had excellent demeanor, making it hard to distinguish between them, except that Zhang Chengyuan was taller, about half a head taller than Won Bin, making him stand out a bit more.

Seeing these two, the director and screenwriter were secretly impressed and immediately forgot about the other candidates who had auditioned earlier. They all thought that, in terms of appearance, either of the two could play the role of the second male lead, Han Tae-sik. The next step was to see who had better acting skills or who was more suitable for the role.

The director said, "Let's start with the first scene in the script. Won Bin, since you're older, you go first."

The first scene in the script described: After the lead male and female characters, Yoon Joon-hyuk and Choi Eun-hee, eloped, the second male lead, Han Tae-sik, who was Choi Eun-hee's nominal boyfriend, searched for them in vain, feeling heartbroken and hopeless. He drank alone in his room, unable to control his emotions, and called Choi Eun-hee, but couldn't get through, so he talked to himself, feeling deeply hurt.

Won Bin walked to a coffee table in the room, sat down, faced the audience, closed his eyes to build up his emotions, and then suddenly opened them, his gaze half-drunk. He raised his hand as if to make a phone call and said, "Eun-hee, come back quickly, I'm still waiting for you." His voice was intermittent and filled with sorrow, immediately affecting the emotions of those around him, making them feel sad without realizing it.

Then, Won Bin remained motionless for a while, his expression filled with pain, and the tears in his eyes almost fell, making his handsome face even more touching, enough to make most women shed tears.

Slowly, Won Bin's expression changed, as if his sorrow was mixed with anger. Suddenly, he said angrily, "Ah! Choi Eun-hee, come back to me now, don't you want to live anymore? I really want to kill you!" His voice was louder, clearly saying something in anger, but from his voice and expression, it was clear that he couldn't bear to blame Choi Eun-hee for abandoning him.

"Eun-hee, Eun-hee..." He kept calling her name, his emotions growing stronger, filled with both sorrow and longing, longing for Choi Eun-hee to return to his side.

"Hello! Say something, I have something to tell you... I haven't finished what I wanted to say, I... I haven't finished. I love you, Eun-hee!" It seemed he was really drunk, his words becoming increasingly incoherent, but the last sentence was very clear and touching. As soon as he finished speaking, Won Bin's body slumped onto the coffee table.

The room was silent for a while before the director clapped and praised, "Good, good, really excellent! Surprisingly excellent, this role will be given to..." Before he could finish, the screenwriter gently nudged him and glanced at Zhang Chengyuan. The director then remembered that there was another actor to audition and quickly cleared his throat, changing the subject: "Um, Won Bin, you can rest now. Chengyuan, it's your turn to perform, you do the second scene."

The second scene described: When Choi Eun-hee was diagnosed with cancer, Han Tae-sik, to strengthen her will to live, told her five things that would make her unwilling to leave the world and insisted that she must live. When he heard Choi Eun-hee say that one more thing that would make her want to live was Han Tae-sik himself, Han Tae-sik was deeply moved and said he was now content.

After watching Won Bin's performance, Zhang Chengyuan knew he would definitely lose this time, because he had never been able to deeply understand the emotions of the second male lead, Han Tae-sik, in these two scenes. After seeing the deep emotions in Won Bin's performance, he realized that this was what true love between a man and a woman looked like. He had never experienced love and had not observed how lovers interacted in real life, making it very difficult for him to portray the deep inner world of the second male lead.

Understanding the reason, Zhang Chengyuan felt relieved but also a bit regretful: he was destined to fail this audition. However, he was a person who never gave up halfway, so even though he knew he would definitely lose, he still wanted to give it a try. Moreover, no matter what, this audition was also an opportunity to hone his acting skills.

Zhang Chengyuan sat on a chair, turned sideways, as if Choi Eun-hee were sitting next to him, and began to speak to her. He composed himself and started reciting the lines, "We have to think positively..." He remembered the lines well and recited them smoothly, occasionally pausing and varying his tone to match the emotional fluctuations in the lines. Up to this point, he performed very well, almost perfectly, showing excellent line delivery skills.

However, his subsequent performance was somewhat lacking, far less impressive than Won Bin's deeply emotional portrayal.

He recited, "...Now you have to listen to me... You must live... You can't lose, you have to live..." Tears welled up in his eyes, but his gaze was not quite right, seeming more like reluctance and confusion rather than deep love.

After a pause, as if waiting for Choi Eun-hee to speak, Zhang Chengyuan's face showed deep emotion. He leaned forward, embracing the imaginary Choi Eun-hee, and said, "Thank you... I'm content now, this is enough... I'm really content." As he spoke, tears streamed down his face.

At first glance, Zhang Chengyuan's performance was quite good, with rich imagination and emotion, and tears came easily. However, it didn't feel like he was comforting and encouraging the woman he deeply loved, but rather like he was saying goodbye to a family member. Because he portrayed this feeling too deeply and vividly, it made people feel even more uncomfortable.

The director, screenwriter, and others exchanged glances and shook their heads simultaneously.

After looking at Zhang Chengyuan's personal information, the director asked, "Zhang Chengyuan, you're only 19 years old, and you probably haven't been in love yet, right?"

Zhang Chengyuan nodded, "Yes."

The director said, "It might be because of this that you couldn't bring out your full potential. Actually, your acting skills are very good, and you would definitely be suitable for roles other than a deeply in love character like Han Tae-sik. As a senior, I have a suggestion for you. Love is almost the main theme of every drama, and to improve your acting skills for your future career, you should consider falling in love, the deeper the better. This will greatly help your acting."

Zhang Chengyuan bowed and said, "Thank you for your advice, Senior. I will do it." In fact, he had already realized his shortcomings, so he would have done it even without the director's reminder.

Next, the role of Han Tae-sik was confirmed to be played by Won Bin. As Zhang Chengyuan was about to leave the room, the director suddenly called him back and asked, "We have a small role that hasn't been cast yet. Are you interested?"

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