Chapter 35.2 (1/2)
Deep in the Act
Translator: Kotoni
Editor: Cien
Quality Check: Isalee
First Published on Chaleuria
Chapter 35.2
Chen Hsin got up early the next day, feeling much better after sleeping for a day and a night. He had just eaten some porridge when he heard the notification tone for an incoming text on his phone. It was a message from Zhang Zhun, containing only a single weblink. Baffled, he opened the link and entered a video-sharing website. A small cartoon TV popped up in the middle of his screen, shaking.1 ”What in the world…”
In an instant, the buffering ended without warning, and Chen Hsin saw his own face appear onscreen. It took him a while to find the play b.u.t.ton. Then, his gut aflutter with an inexplicable sense of expectancy, he started the video. The image of his face moved on the screen, and the young brigand from Galloping Steed came to life. As he darted a casual, dazzling glance over his shoulder into the camera, the music began playing; it was ”Love of a Lifetime” by Lowell Lo:2
The past - the present - what is gone will never return
Fallen red leaves, long buried in the dust
At the beginning - in the end - nothing ever changes
Lingering in the sky, you wander beyond the clouds…
Chen Hsin's entire career, spanning across the better half of his life, was distilled into the three-minute clip. Starting from his very first appearance as a greenhorn, the video tracked his growth over every single year. It recorded every award ceremony he had attended, and captured the backward glances of every single character he had ever played. One after the other, his onscreen personas cast their varied gazes at the viewer, at times frivolous and audacious, at others decadent, rugged, or breathtakingly beautiful.
Row upon row of red and yellow text darted across the screen without pause. Chen Hsin knew that the feature was called a ”bullet screen.” Amidst the chaotic onslaught of comments, such as ”Let me have your babies” and ”Master Chen is so handsome the heavens are shook,” Chen Hsin noticed a single row of text in white: ”Dafuq! OP must be in true love!”
Chen Hsin's heart skipped a beat. He rushed to check the heading of the video, but found little information in the bland t.i.tle: ”Montage of Chen Hsin's Onscreen Personas.” Even the uploader's username gave nothing away. The system indicated that the clip was uploaded at eleven the night before, and approved at three in the morning. All of a sudden, Chen Hsin recalled that night at the KTV lounge - that night when Zhang Zhun sang his heart out in a drunken daze and poured his soul into the most moving of lines:
The sea of suffering churns with love and hate
In this world, there is no escape from fate
We draw close, but the distance between us cannot be closed
Or perhaps I should believe this is how things are destined to be!
The notification tone sounded once more. Chen Hsin s.n.a.t.c.hed up his phone and opened Zhang Zhun's new message. There was only a single line: [Too tired. Sleeping now. I'll pop by to see you later.] Chen Hsin stared at the words for a very long time, so long that he found himself recalling the faded, forgotten memories of Galloping Steed and Northern Peak. He lost himself in deep thought, going through the mess in his head over and over again. Then, at long last, he raised his voice and called out to the young woman doing her hair in the bathroom, ”I don't want to do this anymore!”
The sound of clattering bottles stopped. Feng Yunting came out of the bathroom, combing her fingers through her long tresses. She looked somewhat surprised, but also a little pleased and triumphant. ”Me neither.”
Chen Hsin tossed her a withering look. ”Go on. How much do you want, and what are your terms?”
In a profession like theirs, there was always a price to pay for breakups. Feng Yunting had it all figured out a long time ago. Admiring her red, newly-painted nails, she replied, ”Twenty million in cash. One film and two TV dramas with stellar casting, and I have to be the second female lead at least.”
”Twenty million?” Chen Hsin did not expect her price to be this high. ”You sure you're worth that much?”
”I don't know about me, but he's definitely worth it.” Feng Yunting tossed her hair over her shoulder in a rather business-like manner. ”We're all in this line of work together. I have no intention to ruin you,” she said, her tone matter-of-fact. It was a tacit reminder of the damage that a h.o.m.os.e.xual scandal could do, highlighting just how reasonable her demands were. ”If not, I suppose you could try putting up with this for a little longer.”
Since Chen Hsin had decided to call it quits, he would never go back on his word. ”Deal. I'll make the transfer in installments.”
At this, Feng Yunting added, ”But we can't announce it yet. You'll have to wait a few more days.”