Top-tier Auntie in the Entertainment Industry

Chapter 133

After Song Linchuan returned to S City, he underwent a comprehensive medical examination at the hospital again. The doctor confirmed that the surgery was very successful and there were basically no major issues. However, it takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone, so he still needed to stay in the hospital for half a month. During this time, all his work had also been completely stopped.

That day, Jiang Han came to the hospital and handed him a contract. It was a TV and film cooperation that had been previously confirmed and required his signature.

"Is it that ancient costume drama by Director Chen?" Song Linchuan casually asked.

Jiang Han replied, "Yes, preparation is almost done and filming can definitely start in the second half of the year."

Song Linchuan nodded and started looking over the contract in general. When he was about to sign after making sure there were no issues, Jiang Han seemed to suddenly remember something and said, "Oh right, I didn't know before that you and Zhou Wei were high school classmates. If I hadn't heard the program team members mention it a couple days ago, I wouldn't have known."

Song Linchuan's hand holding the pen paused. "You never asked."

Jiang Han let out a "Heh" sound. Wasn't that obvious? For something so innocuous with no hints, if Song Linchuan didn't say anything, how could he ask?

Song Linchuan glanced at him and calmly asked, "What, did something get out?"

Jiang Han waved his hand and automatically replied, "No, nothing like that."

After he finished speaking, he suddenly realized something. Looking at Song Linchuan in astonishment, he said, "Wait, what do you mean? What do you mean something got out? You guys were just classmates. Could there have been some relationship beyond normal classmates?"

No wonder the program team members spoke so strangely earlier. Thinking back now, their tone and phrasing were clearly trying to subtly dig up gossip.

Song Linchuan's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Jiang Han still wasn't reassured. "Really just classmates?"

"You have to let me know if there was anything more, like ex-girlfriends. If something like that got exposed later and I didn't know beforehand, I wouldn't know how to handle the PR."

Ex-girlfriend?

Song Linchuan took a deep breath and said through gritted teeth, "Let me say this one last time—it was just a normal classmate relationship, believe it or not."

Seeing his reaction, Jiang Han was finally completely relieved.

Just normal classmates is good.

He understood Song Linchuan. This wealthy young master had always disdained lying. If he said it wasn't, then it definitely wasn't.

But just as Jiang Han was about to say something, his phone suddenly rang. Looking at the caller ID, it was the producer of the drama Song Linchuan had just signed a contract for.

"It's Sister Zhang. She's probably calling to ask about the contract progress. Let me take this call first."

After speaking, he immediately answered.

"Hello, Sister Zhang. Yes, yes, we're in the final stages, the contract will be sent over very soon... Huh? The second female lead? Okay, no problem. I'll ask Linchuan and get back to you later."

Hearing that it involved himself, Song Linchuan subconsciously looked over.

Jiang Han just happened to hang up the phone. "The producer said something came up with the second female lead they previously confirmed. She asked if we have any recommended candidates."

Song Linchuan paused. The second female lead?

He was asked to give a recommendation?

Jiang Han had just casually mentioned it, and didn't really expect Song Linchuan to answer.

In fact, this kind of situation was very common. With Song Linchuan's current popularity, when he went to film, he would often help the company bring in some newbies.

Of course, the premise was that it could not damage Song Linchuan's interests, otherwise Jiang Han as his agent would be the first to object.

In this regard, Song Linchuan had always trusted Jiang Han very much, so these things were usually left for him to handle.

Jiang Han thought for a moment. There were a few suitable candidates in the company whose acting and reputation were pretty good. Let him think about who to recommend.

After all, this ancient costume drama was an S+ level production. Opportunities at this level were rare, especially for the second female lead, a role with a lot of screen time. If it succeeded, it could potentially make the actress popular.

"Then Zhou Wei." Song Linchuan suddenly said.

Jiang Han was startled. "What?"

What about Zhou Wei?

Song Linchuan glanced at him, looking nonchalant. "Didn't you say to recommend someone? I think Zhou Wei is quite suitable."

Jiang Han paused. "Are you sure there's no past relationship between you and Zhou Wei?"

Song Linchuan glared at him impatiently.

Jiang Han still didn't understand. "Then why recommend her so generously when there's no close relationship?"

And such a good opportunity too! What's going on with you!

Song Linchuan's eyebrows furrowed. "Who said there's no relationship? Didn't I say we were old classmates? What's the problem with an old classmate giving a recommendation?"

Jiang Han: "......"

No problem for classmates who were close, but there was a problem for those who hadn't had contact for many years!

Song Linchuan lightly coughed. His gaze inevitably became somewhat evasive. "We just happened to meet and chat while recording the show recently. Felt she was pretty good. The friendship from our high school days is quite precious."

Jiang Han looked at him suspiciously.

However, it had to be said, the friendship from high school days really was precious.

At that time, everyone was no longer ignorant children, yet still very pure. They had hopes and dreams for the future. It was a unique youth for that group of people.

If Song Linchuan said that suddenly seeing Zhou Wei reminded him of that nostalgic time, arousing the thought to give his old classmate a hand, this was also somewhat plausible.

Come to think of it, Jiang Han's impression of Zhou Wei wasn't bad either.

They were in the same circle. He understood that if the other party really wanted to make trouble, just using the gimmick of "Song Linchuan's classmate" could create a lot of ambiguous news.

But over so many years, she hadn't said a single word, showing pretty good character.

Moreover, Zhou Wei's acting was indeed quite good. Recommending her over, she definitely wouldn't drag down filming later.

"Okay, I'll give them a call back later." Jiang Han said.

Song Linchuan lightly agreed. Then he added, "Also let them know Zhou Wei is my classmate and ask them to take care of her a bit."

Hearing this, Jiang Han was stunned for a few seconds, suddenly feeling somewhat unsettled. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

The program team asked them to recommend a candidate for second female lead. Actually, it was just doing them a small favor. As for whether the person they recommended would be selected, the final choice was still in the hands of the production team.

Everyone understood this.

But if they did as Song Linchuan said, the meaning would be completely different.

To put it this way—previously, Zhou Wei had a chance of being selected, but now, there was an 80 to 90 percent probability the role would go to Zhou Wei.

But for Song Linchuan, it meant truly owing someone a favor.

Song Linchuan lightly agreed. "I'm sure."

After Song Linchuan was injured, the second season of Challenge Yourself was indeed re-filmed.

Aside from Zhou Wei, the other guests only found out later that their flight guest for this season turned out to be Song Linchuan.

Without a doubt, everyone felt it was very unfortunate. If the accident hadn't happened, their season would definitely have exploded.

There was no helping it. Song Linchuan was too popular now. The reality show he was filming with his young aunt was still under production, and had always ranked at the top in topics and discussions across the internet. If their season aired, they would definitely ride that wave.

However, upon further thought, the rest of them were actually quite fortunate. The most unfortunate was definitely Zhou Wei—after all, she was the one who encountered Song Linchuan first on the show.

If the season had been filmed all the way, the scenes with the two of them together definitely wouldn't have been few. Even if Zhou Wei didn't want to gain popularity from it, it would have been hard.

But now it had all gone down the drain. One could only imagine how regretful she must feel.

Soon, the second season of Challenge Yourself was re-filmed and completed. Due to safety concerns during filming, the program team directly moved up the content originally planned for the third season to the second season slot.

This was an unavoidable decision. The second season's theme was horror, so they had selected an abandoned factory as the location. But that abandoned factory was too big, and they were still worried, not daring to take the risk again. They could only give up on it.

The production team members looked at the footage shot this season, and glanced again at Zhou Wei, who hadn't gone far yet, shaking their heads regretfully.

What a waste.

There was no denying Zhou Wei had been truly outstanding last season. But outside of that particular environment, she became that actress with no variety appeal again.

Not to mention her encounter with Song Linchuan and Song Linchuan's "Long time no see, old classmate"—that was deadly.

To exaggerate a bit, this was probably the closest Zhou Wei had gotten to "hot" in many lukewarm years.

Just when everyone was feeling bad for her, Zhou Wei acted as if nothing had happened, smiling at whoever she met and continuing to record shows as scheduled. It didn't seem to bother her one bit.

That day, after finishing filming for the day, Zhou Wei went back to her hotel.

She had just laid down on the couch when Jiang Qiong hurriedly pushed the door open and rushed in, grabbing Zhou Wei's arm in excitement. "Weiwei, do you know who contacted me?"

Zhou Wei looked confused for a moment before hazarding a serious guess: "Your ex-boyfriend?"

Jiang Qiong glared at her impatiently. "I'm trying to talk business with you here, can you be serious?"

Zhou Wei felt very wronged - she was being serious!

Seeing her artist being so hopeless, Jiang Qiong said in frustration, "All you think about is ex-boyfriends and romance. Don't you have any ambition?"

Zhou Wei: "..."

She made it sound like Zhou Wei was the one obsessed with ex-boyfriends.

And who was it that got back together with her ex six times in three years? Jiang Qiong had some nerve criticizing her!

Zhou Wei hadn't even had a boyfriend, let alone an ex.

Of course, she didn't have a current boyfriend either.

Jiang Qiong didn't feel like letting Zhou Wei guess anymore and cut right to the chase. "Have you heard of the period drama 'Easterly Winds'?"

Zhou Wei nodded, replying indifferently, "I know, isn't it XX Studio's S+ project? I saw in the news it's about to start filming."

There weren't many big-budget productions like this every year. She had no chance at a plum role in a drama like this.

She heard they already confirmed Song Linchuan as the male lead.

"That's right, that project," Jiang Qiong said animatedly. "The crew just contacted me saying they want you to play the second female lead!"

Zhou Wei was taken aback, looking skeptical. "Are you sure? What if you met some scammer?"

Jiang Qiong was nearly laughing in anger. "Do you think this is my first day as a manager?"

If she wasn't sure about this, what was she even doing in this industry?

"Don't worry, the producer called me personally. It's 100% confirmed they want you as the second female lead, there's definitely no mistake."

Hearing this, Zhou Wei's brows furrowed slightly. "Why?"

With a production at this level, who knows how many actresses in the industry were vying for the role of second female lead. How did it end up falling on her head?

Not only that, but they had confirmed her for the role without even asking her to audition. This was simply too irregular.

As someone who had been in the industry for some time now, Zhou Wei did not believe in manna from heaven.

In situations like this, it was either a trap or there was some ulterior motive.

Jiang Qiong naturally understood Zhou Wei's misgivings, but she also had to admit her artist was very level-headed.

When faced with such a windfall, she was able to analyze it so coolly instead of being swept away in excitement. That was really rare.

"I asked about it. They didn't hide anything. They said Song Linchuan had recommended you to the crew, and of course they also feel you're very suitable for the role." Jiang Qiong told her truthfully.

Hearing it was Song Linchuan's recommendation, Zhou Wei paused.

That made sense.

With Song Linchuan's popularity now, he could make it happen if he wanted to. But why would he recommend her?

That was something Zhou Wei just couldn't understand.

Jiang Qiong didn't notice Zhou Wei's reaction and went on enthusiastically, "Song Linchuan probably met you on that show recently and remembered he had such an old classmate in the industry. He happened to have this opportunity to give you a boost. You have to admit, he's pretty sentimental about old times, huh?"

Sentimental about old times?

Zhou Wei looked up at Jiang Qiong.

Jiang Qiong asked puzzledly, "Did I say something wrong?"

Could it be Song Linchuan wasn't that kind of person?

Zhou Wei shook her head. Maybe Song Linchuan was the sentimental type, but the question was, what old times did they have worth reminiscing about?

After all...

Zhou Wei hesitated for a moment before saying, "Find an excuse to turn it down."

Hearing this, Jiang Qiong's eyes instantly widened in disbelief. "Turn it down?!"

Zhou Wei nodded. "Song Linchuan and I aren't that close."

Jiang Qiong took a deep breath and said, "I think you're overthinking this. For him this is probably just a trivial favor among friends. It's normal for friends in this industry to owe each other little favors. Even if you aren't friends, when seniors see potential in a junior, they'll lend a hand. We'll remember it in our hearts and there will surely be a chance to repay it in the future."

Of course Zhou Wei understood this reasoning. It was normal for seniors to show goodwill toward juniors, but they could hardly be considered senior and junior since she entered the industry before Song Linchuan.

As for owing favors among friends, that was fine, but were she and Song Linchuan even friends?

In the end, Zhou Wei still rejected the opportunity.

She was very clear in her heart, it wasn't because of pride, but simply because she felt undeserving.

She had accepted Song Linchuan's good intentions seven years ago, but how did she repay him in the end? By hurting him just like that.

Perhaps Song Linchuan no longer cared about that incident long ago, but Zhou Wei couldn't pretend like nothing had happened and accept everything with a clear conscience. She didn't have that kind of thick skin.

Jiang Qiong was at a loss with her and could only reluctantly make an excuse to turn down the role on her behalf, feeling extremely pained.

Zhou Wei thought that was the end of it, until she received a call from an unfamiliar number that day. "Hello, may I ask who's calling?"

The other end was silent for a few seconds before a man's voice came through. "It's me, Song Linchuan."

Zhou Wei's hand holding the phone paused briefly and her face betrayed a hint of fluster. "Oh, um...how is your injury?"

She really hadn't expected him to call her.

Song Linchuan lightly hmmed and said plainly, "Not bad."

Zhou Wei oh-ed and then didn't know how to continue the conversation.

The two fell silent at the same time.

Logically, they had already met on that show last time, so it shouldn't be this awkward.

But that was because they were recording the show, and the terrifying atmosphere at the time meant they didn't have the capacity to think about anything else even though they were alone together.

Now, with just a telephone line between them, all the awkwardness came bursting out.

After who knows how long, Zhou Wei spoke up, "Did you need me for something?"

Song Linchuan paused before replying. Instead he asked, "Are you back in S City?"

Zhou Wei didn't know why he suddenly asked this, but still answered truthfully, "Not yet, but I'll be going back in a couple days."

Song Linchuan lightly hmmed and said, "I see. Then come over when you're back."

Zhou Wei ah-ed, clearly not understanding his meaning.

"Go where?" she asked.

Song Linchuan said lightly, "Didn't you say last time you would come visit me in the hospital? I'm recuperating at home now, so just come to my house directly."