Global Film Emperor

Chapter 523 Signing a Student
"Hello, is this Chen Dongsheng?"

"It's me. May I ask who you are...?"

"I am Lu Ze."

Suddenly there was silence on the other end of the phone. Not long after, Lu Ze heard a middle-aged man urging the phone's owner to give a quick reply and a woman's barely suppressed, excited laughter.

“Teacher Lu, I am Chen Dongsheng, I…I…”

Accompanied by sobs of joy, Lu Ze waited quietly in front of the camera for the student, whose emotions had already collapsed, to finish speaking. However, while Lu Ze could wait, the woman on the other end of the phone couldn't.

"Teacher Lu, what do you mean by calling...?"

"You're Dong Sheng's mother, right? I think Dong Sheng has excellent acting skills and fits the role in a script I have now, so I hope to sign an audition contract with him. In addition, I need to train him for a period of time. Dong Sheng, are you interested in accepting this contract?"

Following the program's instructions, Lu Ze asked Chen Dongsheng questions using formal scripts for film and television casting. Although it might seem a bit redundant, it did enhance the sense of formality. After all, this was the first time most of the selected trainees had received an audition invitation, a first in their lives, and it certainly needed a sense of ceremony.

"Teacher Lu...I have it."

"The address you gave me was a hotel near Daliushu, right? I'll be there in about thirty minutes. Please wait for me a moment, and I'll call you again when I arrive."

The woman on the other end of the phone repeatedly refused, hoping that the three of them would set off to meet Lu Ze. Her attitude was very good, but she was also somewhat stubborn, which made Lu Ze both amused and exasperated. He had no choice but to explain that it was the sponsor's request, which finally made Chen Dongsheng's mother give up and wait for Lu Ze's arrival with peace of mind.

After hanging up the phone, he readjusted the neck pillow, closed his eyes, and sighed deeply. There had been too many things going on, both domestically and internationally, and his already low spirits from losing weight had only made him more lethargic. Every morning when he woke up, he felt a sense of exhaustion, as if he hadn't slept enough. He even had to take a nap while traveling to regain his energy.

I had only intended to take a short nap, just close my eyes to rest, and had no intention of falling asleep at all. However, after only a few minutes of closing my eyes, my breathing became even and I started snoring softly. I slept until I reached my destination.

……

Is this the car?

At the hotel entrance, a family of three stood anxiously waiting. They had been standing there ever since Lu Ze hung up the phone, for at least half an hour. Just as the three of them were getting a little tired, a mid-sized SUV with a sticker that read "Actor's Diary" pulled up by the roadside. Instantly, the three of them, who had been relaxed, straightened up and, led by Chen Dongsheng's mother, quickly walked toward the vehicle.

Nowadays, recording equipment is no longer the heavy, bulky cameras of the past. A simple mirrorless camera with a stabilizer and an external microphone can handle most work needs. However, when this seemingly unprofessional equipment was used to film a family of three, the couple still broke out in a cold sweat, could only grin and exhale awkwardly, nodding to the photographer. Only Chen Dongsheng remained relatively calm in front of the camera, but even that was only limited.

Lu Ze had just woken up and still looked a little tired. He was somewhat casual when he got out of the car, but compared to the family of three, Lu Ze had a particularly strong presence, even though he was only wearing casual clothes and was not particularly formal or serious.

At first glance, Lu Ze noticed that the mother and father were standing in front of the child, while the child stood further back. Moreover, the mother's body language and expressions were more lively than the father's, leading Lu Ze to immediately conclude that this was a family where the mother was stronger than the father.

"Teacher Lu... This is my son Dongsheng. Dongsheng, why don't you greet Teacher Lu?"

The boy was not very tall and was rather thin, weighing only about 100 pounds. He had a buzz cut, but his eyes were large and his nose bridge was not low, so he looked quite energetic. His cheekbones were quite high, and his face was somewhat square. He stood behind his mother, with his hands behind his back, pursed his lips, and bowed to Lu Ze to greet him.

"Teacher Lu."

"Hey, Dong Sheng, it's so hot. Shall we find a place to sit down and chat?" It was a simple suggestion. Indeed, the sun was so hot that his skin felt burning. There was no other meaning behind it, and Lu Ze didn't think much of it. However, Chen's mother "understood" and was ready to find a "good-class" restaurant to sit down and talk in detail. Lu Ze was following behind them, but when he saw them heading towards a huge restaurant, he hurriedly grabbed them and, after much persuasion, they changed to a small restaurant that looked quite clean and found a private room to sit down.

In the small private room, at the square table, Lu Ze had Chen Dongsheng sit next to him, with his parents sitting opposite him. After the waiter left, Lu Ze took out the signed contract from his bag and gently placed it on the clean table. He intended to pass it to Chen Dongsheng, but before he could give it to him, Chen's mother stretched out her hands, looking at Lu Ze with a radiant face.

Seeing this, Lu Ze was helpless, but he still had to maintain appearances. He gently handed the contract to Chen's mother, glanced at Chen's father, who neither moved nor spoke, but still had an awkward smile on his face, and his eyes would occasionally glance at his child.

Neither of the two men in the family were very talkative, so it was difficult for Lu Ze to even talk to Chen Dongsheng about professional matters. He could only find out what his parents did for a living. He learned that they were self-employed and ran a breakfast business in Tianfu. The business was doing well, but with a child studying art, they couldn't save much money. From their clothes, it was easy to tell that the family lived a relatively frugal life. When this topic came up, Chen's mother would always raise her head and agree.

They couldn't really talk about the children, but luckily Lu Ze knew a lot and could chat about making breakfast. While Chen's mother was looking at the contract, he managed to talk to Chen's father for more than ten minutes about how to make steamed bun fillings.

"Teacher Lu, this says that the film crew will provide food and lodging. Does that mean we don't need to worry about the children's food and accommodation?"

After a while, Chen's mother looked up and asked this question as her first question. Lu Ze had a headache, but he could only answer: "Yes, this is managed by the production team. You don't need to pay for this."

"That's good. We can rest assured about the food provided by the production team. Dong Sheng has always had a sensitive stomach, and I'm quite worried he might get an upset stomach from eating out. Dong Sheng, please sign this, and remember not to cause any trouble for Teacher Lu..."

"Wait a minute, I think it would be better if the child could see the contract. What do you think, Sister Li?"

Chen's mother was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously glanced at her son who was also looking at her. His face, which inherited at least 30% of her features, did not avoid looking at her, but his slightly red skin showed shame and a little anger.

This didn't seem to be the first time she'd seen her son with this expression. He was ashamed, just like always, but he didn't refute her, just like always.

She had become accustomed to it and still tried to expose the hardships of her life to gain sympathy from those stronger than her. Showing weakness could avoid unnecessary disputes and protect herself, but she did not realize that after being ravaged by life for decades, she was old and faded. She could turn over and show her soft belly, but her child was not yet old enough to show weakness.

Most importantly, in her thoughtless words, she mostly attributed her misfortune to her child's path to art. Even though she was proud of her child's artistic talent, the two... were not actually in conflict.

His father was a sensible man, as Lu Ze could see, but being sensible doesn't necessarily mean daring to speak out, and such people are actually more tormented.

Chen's mother didn't understand or see the reason, but she had met someone who was probably the strongest person she would ever meet in her life, so she habitually showed weakness, obeyed his orders, and handed the contract to Chen Dongsheng.

Chen Dongsheng didn't even glance at it. He flipped directly to the last page of the contract, quickly signed his name, and handed it back to his mother. Then, with his head down, he quickly ate his rice with his chopsticks, silently confronting his mother.

Actually, no one wanted to make the scene so ugly, especially in front of Lu Ze and the cameras. The atmosphere turned cold. Chen's mother wanted to ease the tension, so she picked up a piece of meat for her child, who silently accepted it, but still didn't say a word.

Seeing this, Lu Ze didn't want to linger. He had finished his work, left his work number with Chen's parents, and persuaded Chen Dongsheng's parents not to see him off. He then got up and left, but before leaving, he patted the boy on the shoulder.

Unsurprisingly, not long after he left the private room, he heard a woman's roar coming from inside, but no man's rebuttal.

"..."

(End of this chapter)