Chapter 28

On the second day, Mu Xingyu drove with Xiao Wen to the audition location arranged by the “The Journey” production team.

On the way, Xiao Wen said, “Xingyu Ge, ‘Warm Moments’ has been scheduled to air next month on the 10th.”

“Xiao Wen, why are you so concerned about this drama?”

“I’m worried about Feng Zian’s popularity with the ‘The Journey’ production team…”

Mu Xingyu interrupted Xiao Wen, “Do you still not have confidence in me at this point?”

“Xingyu Ge, I didn’t mean that,” Xiao Wen quickly waved his hand. “I feel that you’ve suffered a lot with the ‘Warm Moments’ production team, and now that this drama is smoothly airing, I don’t want to see you disappointed.”

“There’s nothing to be disappointed about, Xiao Wen. We need to look forward,” Mu Xingyu said with a smile.

“Xingyu Ge, you’re right; ‘The Journey’ is much better than ‘Warm Moments.’

Upon arriving at the audition hotel, Mu Xingyu and Xiao Wen entered the meeting room with the guidance of the staff.

There were already seven people sitting in the meeting room. As Mu Xingyu entered, they all looked over. Some recognized Mu Xingyu and greeted him with a smile, while others who didn’t know him but saw his appearance and demeanor felt that Mu Xingyu was a strong competitor.

“Xiao Wen, you wait outside,” Mu Xingyu asked Xiao Wen to leave first. He casually found a chair and sat down, waiting for the audition to begin.

The handsome guy next to him initiated a conversation, “Aren’t you Mu Xingyu? Are you here for the audition?”

“Yeah, I like the character Shen Qian.”

After saying a few words, the door of the meeting room opened again, and Feng Zian, in a leisure suit, walked in.

He scanned the meeting room, and after seeing only two competitive rivals, he showed a satisfied smile. However, this smile disappeared instantly when he saw Mu Xingyu. Since that night when Andre left after receiving Mu Xingyu’s call, he hadn’t seen Andre again. When he called, Andre just said they were playing around and didn’t answer his calls anymore.

Feng Zian realized that he had come up empty-handed and hated Andre. At the same time, he also started to resent Mu Xingyu.

From the very beginning, he felt that Andre had a special connection with Mu Xingyu. Later, when Andre left, it was because of Mu Xingyu’s call. He felt that Mu Xingyu had lured Andre away.

However, Mu Xingyu was completely unaware of Feng Zian’s thoughts, and he didn’t even spare a glance for Feng Zian.

The other people in the meeting room greeted Feng Zian in a friendly manner, but Feng Zian was in a bad mood and, being quite self-absorbed, didn’t pay attention to anyone else.

Soon, the production team’s staff came in to have all the auditioning actors for the role of male lead number two draw lots. In the end, Mu Xingyu drew number seven, while Feng Zian drew number six.

Starting from number one, actors who were auditioning left the meeting room one by one, and as they finished their auditions, they would leave directly, so the room gradually emptied.

Soon, it was Feng Zian’s turn to audition, and not long after he left, Mu Xingyu was called out by the staff to prepare.

Unlike other actors, Mu Xingyu remained calm, which surprised the staff.

After a while, the door to the audition room opened, and Feng Zian confidently walked out.

“You won’t have a chance,” Feng Zian said as he passed by Mu Xingyu.

Mu Xingyu just smiled faintly, “Is that so? Until it’s over, who knows the result.” After saying that, Mu Xingyu followed the staff into the audition room.

In the room, there were three people. Mu Xingyu had met them in his previous life, so he naturally greeted them, “Director Zhang, Producer Xu, Mei Jie.”

Director Zhang was the director of the drama “The Journey,” Xu was the producer who assembled the whole team, and Mei Jie was a highly acclaimed screenwriter who had collaborated with Director Zhang on many occasions.

Mei Jie smiled and said, “You’re Mu Xingyu, right? Lan Ying is your agent now. Did she come today?”

Mei Jie and Lan Ying were of similar ages, one being a renowned screenwriter and the other a top agent, and they had a good relationship.

“Lan Jie had something come up and couldn’t make it,” Mu Xingyu replied.

“Oh, this is your first audition, and she didn’t even come to support you?” Mei Jie asked.

“Because Lan Jie believes in me.”

Mei Jie was about to say more, but Director Zhang cleared his throat and said, “It’s audition time now.” Mei Jie knew Director Zhang’s temper and smiled, allowing the staff to provide Mu Xingyu with the audition script.

“Shen Qian’s escape,” the staff pulled a script page out of the box and said.

Mu Xingyu was familiar with the script he received, so he immediately knew the scene he was going to audition for.

The TV drama “The Journey” tells the story of Emperor Song Qinghe, the founder of the Jing Dynasty, and Mu Xingyu’s audition is for the role of male lead number two, Shen Qian, who is Song Qinghe’s lifelong arch-nemesis.

Song Qinghe, born in a humble background, gradually accumulates his own power in the turbulent times of the world and eventually overthrows the corrupt Chen Dynasty.

Shen Qian, as Song Qinghe’s lifelong arch-enemy, is the prince of the Chen Dynasty. He becomes the Crown Prince due to his remarkable talent and abilities. However, no matter how capable a person is, it’s impossible to save the collapsing Chen Dynasty. Shen Qian’s efforts are like the struggles of a drowning man, ultimately overwhelmed by the fierce current.

Mu Xingyu admires Shen Qian’s melancholic yet strong character, which is why he participated in the audition in his previous life.

In his previous audition, he performed a scene where Shen Qian revealed his abilities and received recognition from his father, which was a different part of the story.

The current audition scene is “Shen Qian’s escape,” and it’s a continuation of that storyline. Because he had shown his abilities, it led to the Crown Prince’s dissatisfaction, and the Crown Prince falsely accused him of conspiring with the regional lords. When his foolish father, the Emperor, found out, he sent soldiers to capture Shen Qian. If Shen Qian resisted, it would confirm his guilt, but if he didn’t resist, the Crown Prince’s soldiers would kill him. In the end, to save his life, Shen Qian had no choice but to escape during the night.

In the script, Shen Qian’s escape spans five pages and showcases his determination to clear his name, his disappointment when surrounded by soldiers, and his helplessness when making his final escape.

The emotional transitions are quite complex, making it one of the most challenging parts of the given script.

Mu Xingyu immediately got into character. He stood with his hands behind his back, looking up as if observing the moon. Without interacting with anyone, he followed the script, turning to the side as if listening to someone speak, then showing a shocked expression.

“No, I don’t believe my father would arrest me. I need to see him. I must prove my innocence,” Mu Xingyu acts as if pushing someone away and then as if being held back, his steps heavy and unmovable.

Following the script, he attempted to talk to the general sent to capture him, but the general didn’t listen and had him captured. “What’s going on? Does my father have no trust in me at all?” he said in disappointment.

Although Mu Xingyu was dressed casually, he infused his emotions into the character. Finally, he turned around, portraying the act of leaving, and the audition came to an end.

Director Zhang, who had a serious expression throughout, nodded in approval, “Go home and wait for the notification,” signaling the staff to escort Mu Xingyu out.

Before the door closed, Mu Xingyu heard Director Zhang’s voice, “What do you think of his performance?”

In the lobby, Xiao Wen immediately ran over and asked, “Xingyu Ge, how did the audition go?”

“I don’t know, we have to wait for the notification.”

“How did Director Zhang look?”

“Don’t worry, let’s go back.” Mu Xingyu believed in his own abilities and smiled faintly, then left the hotel with Xiao Wen.

On the other side of the lobby, Feng Zian’s assistant reported what they had seen to Feng Zian, “Feng Ge, I saw Mu Xingyu coming out, looking calm, and he even smiled.”

Feng Zian frowned. He had prepared for this audition for half a month, believing that he would surely pass based on his popularity. However, seeing Mu Xingyu, he had a sense of unease, which is why he sent his assistant to check the situation.

Compared to Feng Zian’s unease, Mu Xingyu was quite relaxed.

Unfortunately, his joy was short-lived when Lan Jie demanded him to join a workout and even planned to enroll him in a fitness class.

When Gu Yunzhou found out, he said, “From now on, accompany me to the gym every morning.”

“Let me accompany you. Are you sure?” Mu Xingyu wasn’t initially interested in working out, but the idea of exercising with Gu Yunzhou changed his mind. He vividly remembered how Gu Yunzhou initially didn’t want him to go to the gym.

“Yes, work out with me,” Gu Yunzhou confirmed.

So, at 10 o’clock the next morning, Mu Xingyu arrived at the top floor of Gu’s building, where Gu Yunzhou’s private gym was located.

” Young Master Mu, long time no see,” Charles said when he saw him.

“Charles, how is Yunzhou’s rehabilitation going lately?”

“Very well. His leg nerves are gradually recovering, and he’s starting to regain sensation in his ankles.”

Mu Xingyu was delighted. He had always remembered feeding Gu Yunzhou the spiritual water, and now it seemed that Gu Yunzhou’s recovery was going very well.

After handling his affairs, Gu Yunzhou came to the gym and even brought a dedicated fitness trainer for Mu Xingyu.

Mu Xingyu had never been fond of sports since he was young, so at the beginning, performing various exercises was quite challenging. However, the spiritual water had improved his physique, and he quickly adapted.

At this moment, he looked at Gu Yunzhou and noticed him doing incline dumbbell presses, with a stable form that gave no indication of any issues with his legs.

Mu Xingyu felt that he couldn’t lose face and worked even harder, motivated by Gu Yunzhou’s example.

The next day, during their workout, Mu Xingyu received a call from Lan Ying, “Young Master Mu, you didn’t disappoint me.  ‘The Journey ‘production team just called and said you passed the audition for male lead number two.”

“Really?” Even though he had been prepared, Mu Xingyu couldn’t help but feel happy when he heard the news.

“Yes, I plan to go to Mei Yu’s place later to get the full script.”

“Thank you, Lan Jie.”

“No trouble at all. Now, you should intensify your training. In this play, you have a lot of action scenes,” Lan Ying suddenly remembered something. “Oh, I also need to contact a martial arts instructor for you to practice the fight scenes. There’s still more than half a month before the shoot, so there should be enough time.”

“Alright.”

Lan Ying suddenly became concerned, “Are you brave enough to do wire stunts?”

“No problem,” Mu Xingyu replied. In his previous life, he was indeed quite scared the first time he did wire stunts, but in order to make a living, he eventually overcame the psychological pressure. After that, he didn’t find wire stunts frightening anymore.

Gu Yunzhou finished his workout, wiped his sweat with a towel, and pushed his wheelchair over.

“Seeing you so happy, did you pass the audition?”

“Yes,” Mu Xingyu smiled, “To celebrate my audition success, I’d like to invite you to dinner tonight. What do you say, Mr. Gu?”

Gu Yunzhou readily nodded, “Of course, that sounds good.”

“I’ll let grandpa know that I won’t be coming home for dinner tonight,” Mu Xingyu quickly called Grandpa Gu to inform him.

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