Chapter 40: Examinee

Yang Mi had come over to prepare for the exam.

Her home was far away, and since her parents also had to work and couldn't accompany her for the exam, she simply came over a day early.

The next morning, the two of them went out together. They were dressed much like the other examinees: wearing form-fitting clothes underneath and long down jackets over them, only Yang Mi’s was white and Chen Nuo’s was blue.

Yang Mi curled her lip, "You really like bright colors, huh? You wouldn't happen to actually be gay, would you?"

Yang Mi was the second person to ask him this question recently; the first person to ask had already verified it personally and knew the answer. Chen Nuo sighed, "I've already said, I was observing acting techniques. Can you please stop looking at film art through colored glasses?"

Yang Mi chuckled, "People who have acted in movies really are different, huh? Now you're even talking to me about art."

"Does it have anything to do with whether I've acted in a movie or not? Besides, couldn't you knock when you entered? What if I really had been watching something unsuitable for children?"

"Ha, then why didn't you knock when you opened the door back then?"

When it reached this point, Chen Nuo didn't quite know how to respond.

Chen Nuo quickly broke the awkwardness, rubbed his nose, and said, "It's early in the morning, why talk about this? Let's walk faster, it's almost 8:30."

When Yang Mi and Chen Nuo arrived at the entrance of the Film Academy, at a glance, it was all parents and students, a vast sea of people.

As the two were walking inside, they were suddenly stopped.

A woman wearing heavy makeup held a microphone, followed by a camera, blocking their path forward. She said with a beaming smile, "Hello, students. May I ask if you are here to take the Film Academy exam?"

Yang Mi said generously, "Yes, is there something you need?"

The woman smiled and said, "Could I take two minutes of your time? We are reporters from the Jingcheng Television Station. Seeing that you both have such excellent appearances and temperaments, we would like to do a brief interview. Is that okay? Thank you both."

Yang Mi checked the time and nodded, "Sure, go ahead and ask."

Chen Nuo didn't want to be interviewed, but seeing that Yang Mi had agreed, he felt embarrassed to just leave, so he stood to the side and listened.

"Then thank you both."

After the woman waited for the camera to get into position, she held the microphone out to Yang Mi: "May I ask if you are both here to take the preliminary exam for the Film Academy?"

Yang Mi answered truthfully, "Yes."

"May I ask what your names are?"

"My name is Yang Mi."

Then the female reporter passed the microphone to Chen Nuo's mouth and asked, "And this student? What is your name?"

At this moment, many thoughts flashed through Chen Nuo's mind.

To be honest, in his view, this kind of interview outside the exam hall had only downsides and no benefits.

Would the interviewers give you extra points because you were on TV?

No.

But if you said the wrong thing, it was very likely to get you blacklisted.

So he took a step back, shook his head, and said, "Forget it, you can interview her, I'll pass."

"Don't be like that, student, I'll just ask two simple questions."

Chen Nuo shook his head and smiled, "No, thank you. I'm not good at talking."

The female reporter felt a bit anxious. Because her main target was Chen Nuo. In the vast crowd, she had noticed him at a glance, and the reason she stopped the two of them was also because of him.

The female reporter didn't know that managing one's personal image was a basic skill for a short-video influencer in the future.

So she just felt that among the crowd, this boy's hairstyle, temperament, and looks were truly outstanding. He was quite different from those guys nearby with their center-parted Guo Fucheng styles or side-parted Liming and Liu Dehua styles.

She saw him at a glance.

Therefore, Chen Nuo's refusal did not make her give up. She still held the microphone to his mouth and asked, "Student, I am a reporter from the Jingcheng Television Station. Our program will also be broadcast on the Jingcheng Television Station today. It is very likely that the teacher interviewing you today will also watch this program. Don't you have anything you want to say to them?"

Chen Nuo shook his head and said, "No." Seeing his firm attitude, a surge of anger suddenly rose in the female reporter's heart.

Her expression cooled slightly, and she said with a forced smile, "Since that's the case, can you at least tell our audience your name? A name shouldn't be a problem, right?"

"……My name is Wang Xiang."

The female reporter chuckled, "Alright Wang Xiang, you can be considered the most difficult student I've ever had to interview in my life."

Chen Nuo chuckled, "Sorry about that."

The female reporter suppressed her annoyance, nodded, and then turned the microphone to Yang Mi, "Then Student Yang, may I ask why you want to apply to the Film Academy?"

Yang Mi said, "Because I have loved acting since I was a child. I am passionate about performance. The profession of an actor is my ideal. I want to enter the Film Academy and become an excellent worker in the performing arts industry in the future…………"

After a while, Chen Nuo and Yang Mi left.

Watching the backs of the two, the more the female reporter thought about it, the more stifled she felt. There was a sense of humiliation, like having made a move on someone only to be rejected.

As a television reporter with an official position, a media mogul, she was respected wherever she went; when had she ever suffered such treatment!

Heh, you don't want to accept my interview, right? Then don't blame me. You insisted on the hard way instead of the easy way!

……

Chen Nuo and Yang Mi walked into the North Film Academy gate. Yang Mi asked in confusion, "Why didn't you accept the interview? I think what she said made sense. Maybe the teachers will watch our program? If we can leave a good impression on the teachers, wouldn't that be great?"

But the problem is, how do you know what kind of person the teacher likes, or what counts as a good impression?

Besides……………… the smooth path has already been paved, why would I go and take risks? I'd have to be sick to do that.

Chen Nuo chuckled, "If I had accepted the interview, wouldn't I have stolen your spotlight? So I thought about it and decided to forget it, I'll leave the opportunity to you!"

Yang Mi was stunned for a moment.

If someone else had said this, she definitely wouldn't have taken it seriously, because taking it seriously would mean believing the other person could actually do it.

But with Chen Nuo saying it like that…… she carefully examined the expression on Chen Nuo's face, and for a moment, she really didn't know what to think.

Chen Nuo glanced at her, "I'm teasing you."

Yang Mi felt relieved and laughed out loud, "You're so narcissistic! Who gave you that confidence? This young lady's spotlight isn't something you can steal! Hmph!"

……

The preliminary exam of the Film Academy was very simple. First, gather outside the venue, then according to the order of the exam numbers, be led by an exam proctor to wait outside the exam room, and enter the main exam room in groups of 20. Each person in the exam room would sequentially perform a self-introduction and a poetry recitation; each person would take no more than 2 minutes in total.

There would be five teachers in the exam room: the chief examiner, the physical form teacher, the lines teacher, the vocal music teacher, and the acting teacher, who would grade the examinees from various aspects.

While outside the venue, Yang Mi and Chen Nuo's exam numbers were quite far apart, so the two separated, and Chen Nuo began the long wait for the exam alone.

Chen Nuo didn't know exactly how many examinees there were this year, but this was definitely the longest line he had ever stood in in both his lifetimes. He waited until nearly 10:30 before it was finally his batch of examinees' turn to enter.

They followed a male proctor to the outside of the exam room, and then that rather young male proctor said, "I will reiterate the exam rules for you again. After entering, you are not allowed to whisper to each other, and you are not allowed to state your name or exam number during your self-introduction. You can only state the number tag you received. For example, you," he said to Chen Nuo, "you are Examinee Number 1, understand?"

Chen Nuo nodded.

At this time, a girl asked, "Teacher, may I ask why we cannot state our names?"

The male proctor said with a serious face, "There are always some people who want to find loopholes in the exam or use back-door connections. Therefore, for the sake of fairness and justice, no examinee is allowed to report their name or exam number. Every examinee is treated equally; no one has special treatment here."

"So that's how it is, that's great." The girl said happily, "Thank you, teacher."

The male proctor nodded and said, "Fairness is very important. At our Film Academy, opportunities are only reserved for those who are prepared, not for those who use back-door connections. Alright, enter the room. Examinee Number 1, after you go in, start your self-introduction directly."

So Chen Nuo walked into the exam room, stood in the very center, faced the five examiners, and introduced himself: "Hello, teachers. I am Examinee Number 1, height 180, weight 142."

The chief examiner Li Er nodded and said with a serious face, "Examinee Number 1, you may begin your poetry recitation."

(End of chapter)