7 – “An old man in his eighties won’t live much longer”
With a body like that, it would be a shame not to have a proper feast!
At the thought, the corner of Song Yuan’s mouth curled up—
“What are you smiling about!”
“Did I say something about you?”
Huo Yuzhou put on an attitude of impartiality, his cold voice devoid of any warmth. To the others, he was a cold-faced king of hell with not a shred of tenderness for the fairer sex.
Song Yuan suppressed her smile and stared at him.
She’d never been yelled at in her entire life, and here he was, coming at her the moment they met. If she didn’t get him into bed and make him howl, she’d never be able to let this anger out!
“Here, no one has any special privileges. For those who don’t take discipline seriously, I have plenty of ways to make you remember!”
“For the next two months, I am the head instructor for your batch.”
“Remember, engrave these four words deep in your hearts: endurance and hard work!”
“Put away all your temper and attitude! No matter how many people used to revolve around you, from the moment you stand here, no one is going to coddle you!”
…
With that initial show of force, he silenced everyone on the spot!
But there was an exception—Song Yuan was only listening to his voice, deep and powerful, wrapped in magnetism and coldness. She couldn’t care less about what he was so sternly saying.
Huo Yuzhou caught Song Yuan zoning out in a single glance and barked, “Starting from the first row, introduce yourselves from right to left.”
Nian Yu, standing at the far right, immediately stepped up to take the lead, afraid that a moment’s delay would mean punishment. “My name is Nian Yu, a newly selected actor this year. My representative works include…”
Huo Yuzhou frowned slightly. “Step out of line first, then introduce yourself loudly!”
Nian Yu immediately shuffled a small step forward and raised his voice, “My name is Nian Yu…”
The moment he projected his voice, the others pursed their lips to hold back laughter.
“That’s enough.” Huo Yuzhou cut off his rambling without ceremony. “Step back.”
Song Yuan, standing right next to him, stepped forward, her eyes fixed solely on the head instructor. “Song Yuan.”
Huo Yuzhou swept a glance at her. “Next.”
“Xu Su.” She was the second female artist, a rising young flower with a pure look and a slender figure—exactly the type of fair, young, and delicate beauty that modern tastes favored.
The rest introduced themselves one by one.
“Peng You.” A male model, 185 cm tall, with a face that leaned toward mixed-race features. His agency had put him on this show simply to make him famous and scoop up a wave of fans for his looks.
“Qiu Bowen.” The youngest Best Actor, preparing for a military-themed film and using this as an opportunity to train in advance—it also meant he wouldn’t disappear from the public eye for too long.
“Jiang Zhi.” A male singer who’d just entered the industry, barely past twenty, at the peak of youthful arrogance. His company had signed him onto the show for Director Tang’s reputation—all for one word: fame.
The moment Song Yuan heard these names—
Catfish, friend, stiff…
Besides being easy to remember, they weren’t exactly pleasant to the ear.
Afterward, everyone had introduced themselves, taking over an hour, and they’d stood for just as long.
Huo Yuzhou memorized the names of the dozens of people in his head. Only when the last person finished speaking did he speak up. “Tonight’s assembly is just for everyone to get to know each other and become familiar with one another.”
“The rest of the time is yours to arrange freely.”
“But everyone must pay attention to the alarm. Once it sounds, everyone must be standing in this spot, fully dressed, within three minutes. Now, memorize the faces to your left, right, front, and back.”
“If anyone loses their spot next time, or stands in the wrong place, everyone will be punished!”
“Dismissed!”
Instantly, everyone let out a sigh of relief.
Song Yuan had barely gotten a moment to rest when Nian Yu sidled up to her and struck up a conversation. “You’re in the entertainment industry too? How come I’ve never seen you before?”
Song Yuan replied, “I’m so far off the radar it’s below the 180th tier. It’s normal you haven’t seen me.”
Nian Yu was taken aback. “You’re below the 180th tier? Some first- and second-tier actresses aren’t even as pretty as you!”
Song Yuan curled her lips, deliberately baiting him. “Oh? Like who? Tell me.”
Nian Yu instinctively answered, “Z—”
He’d barely gotten one syllable out when Qiu Bowen patted him on the shoulder. “Let’s go. Back to the dorm to unpack.”
Nian Yu realized he’d almost let something slip that would get him in trouble.
Song Yuan watched his reaction and smiled, filing away a first impression of him: he didn’t look smart, and he indeed wasn’t smart—in short, no scheming bones in his body.
The other male artists were still thinking of greeting Song Yuan and getting to know her, but they were all called away by Qiu Bowen to unpack their luggage in the dorms.
Xu Su had been hesitating in place the whole time, fighting through her social anxiety to take the initiative and greet Song Yuan. “Hello, I’m Xu Su. I’m twenty-three this year, graduated from the Beijing Film Academy…”
Song Yuan looked at her—the girl’s face was already red. “I’m not running a background check on you. No need to report everything.”
Xu Su was a bit embarrassed. “I rarely talk to people. I don’t really know how to get along with others.”
She’d been a model student her whole life—a straight line between three points. Even with all the handsome guys around during college, she’d never dated. Her world was almost entirely classroom, cafeteria, and dorm, with only the occasional trip out.
She never confided in anyone, and never let anyone in.
She’d always been a loner.
Coming to this show, she and Song Yuan were the only two female artists in the entire base.
The first time she saw Song Yuan, she was stunned. Song Yuan carried herself with the air of a noble heiress, and she didn’t dare get too close.
Song Yuan looked at her, noticing the rare clarity in those doe-like eyes, and smiled. “Don’t be too nervous. We’re all people—no different from one another.”
Xu Su said, “But that head instructor’s presence just now was pretty intimidating.”
“I’ve never met anyone so fierce in my entire life.”
“Feels like one wrong move and he could knock me out with a single punch.”
Hearing her description, Song Yuan couldn’t help but recall his demeanor from earlier. He certainly didn’t seem like someone easy to take down.
The two chatted for a while and got acquainted.
Xu Su headed to the dormitory.
Song Yuan looked at the cafeteria not far away, where people were still coming and going. After training for an hour or two, she wanted to refuel as well, so she went inside to get a cup of soy milk.
The moment she walked in, the trainees who had come for an extra meal let out a collective gasp, nearly dropping their trays.
This place had no women to begin with, and now a stunning beauty had shown up—who wouldn’t be shocked?
“What’s all this noise?!”
A commanding, authoritative voice cut through the commotion. “Still have energy to spare? Everyone out. Extra training!”
Instantly, a wave of silent lament swept through the crowd!
Not a single person dared to make a sound.
Song Yuan fixed her eyes on the head instructor. The entire cafeteria held just two people—him and her. He didn’t spare her even a single glance, simply grabbing a bottle of mineral water from the fridge.
As if she didn’t exist at all.
Song Yuan was the type to get hooked on exactly that. The more someone ignored her, the more she wanted to provoke them.
Besides, she could tell without even testing that this man’s physique was pure strength. One arm alone could probably shield two of her.
“Head instructor, this soy milk isn’t even hot. My body runs cold, so I can only drink hot soy milk. What should I do?”
Huo Yuzhou narrowed his eyes slightly. “I’ll have the chef make you a fresh cup.”
Song Yuan lowered her hand, brushing it against his thick, solid forearm, her gaze teasing. “With arms as strong and powerful as yours, Head Instructor, a cup freshly squeezed by your own hands should taste even better.”
Huo Yuzhou stared at her actions, his voice cold. “I recall your file says you’re married.”
Song Yuan hadn’t expected that little detail to come back and bite her. Wasn’t this ruining her fun? She knew there was no benefit to dealing with Huo Yuzhou—he just kept blocking her romantic prospects!
“It’s just an old man in his eighties. He won’t live much longer.”
“Coughing at home every day—he’ll probably cough himself right out of this world.”
Regarding Song Yuan’s lack of familiarity with Huo Yuzhou:
In their three years of marriage, they had almost never sat down face-to-face for a proper meeting. Song Yuan had never even seen their marriage certificate.
If they did meet, it was always in bed. Huo Yuzhou never liked turning on the lights, so even if she wanted to see him, she couldn’t.
Huo Yuzhou didn’t exactly wear a mask, but his face was half-covered, making it impossible for Song Yuan to recognize him from his eyes and brows (this is my setting).
Huo Yuzhou’s voice was altered. As mentioned in Chapter Six: “Huo Yuzhou was toying with a miniature voice changer in his hand.”