Chapter 43: No Brother

"Dean Zhang, you are too kind. It is only thanks to the correct decisions made by the school leadership that we have been able to achieve some minor results in our specific work. Speaking of which, the Performance Academy now dominates the school, so our Admissions Office should be credited with a small contribution, right? When will Dean Zhang treat us to a meal? Hahaha."

Zhang Tianyou turned a deaf ear to the thorns in Liu Zhaohong's words and laughed, "Of course, of course, it is only right. Why not kill two birds with one stone? It just so happens that Principal Zheng is coming to our Performance Academy today to oversee our work. Why don't I play host this noon, and we can go outside the school for a casual meal?"

Zheng Zhongjian shook his head and said, "Let's skip it today. Everyone, hold on a little longer and stand your final guard. Throughout the year, the work of admissions is what I value most. Back then, when the old Dean asked at a meeting who was willing to go to the Admissions Office to preside over the work, I volunteered. Why? Because the reason our Film Academy has reached where it is today is that our predecessors had the keen eye to identify talent and found the 'thousand-li horses.' As these students have gained honors both domestically and internationally, our school has earned its current reputation and status. Now, the work of the 'Bo Le' has fallen upon our shoulders. If we want to find new 'thousand-li horses,' and if we don't want future generations to point at our spines and curse us for being blind, we must keep our eyes sharp and resolutely prevent any 'pearls lost in the sea' from happening at our Film Academy!"

When the leader speaks, everyone from top to bottom must naturally take it seriously. Thus, the original plan for the examiners to dine out was canceled and replaced with cafeteria boxed lunches. The original two-hour lunch break was reduced to one hour. Led by the chief examiner, they arrived at the examination hall early to review the pre-set test questions once more, striving to balance the difficulty of each question to ensure fair treatment for everyone. Amidst such busyness, the first day of the third round of exams passed just like that.

The entire third round lasts for four days. Numerous examiners assess the candidates in various aspects such as dance, singing, character simulation, and improvisation. On the first day, a female student named Yuan Shanshan caught Liu Zhaohong's eye. The girl was very bright and lively, standing out even among the many handsome men and beautiful women. He determined right then that this girl would surely achieve great things in the future.

On the second day, Liu Zhaohong did not see any outstanding candidates. There was a tall, thin girl with the surname Zhang whom he felt was just average, but Li Er, who was in charge of the acting assessment, took a liking to her for some reason. At the summary meeting after the exam that day, he insisted on ensuring that the girl named Zhang Xiaofei made it onto the final list.

Liu Zhaohong had some objections to this.

This person, Li Er, did have some ability, and he had seniority and quite a bit of fame in the Performance Department, but he was simply arrogant and unruly.

If Li Er had made any special contributions to the Film Academy, that would be one thing, but among the most famous young actors and actresses today, is there even one from Li Er's class?

No!

Then by what right do you, Li Er, not treat cadres as leaders? I, old Liu, expressed a little opinion, and even the chief examiner didn't say anything, yet you said I don't understand acting. Heh, if I don't understand acting, then who recruited Huang Xiaoming, Chen Kun, and Zhao Wei? As the head of the admissions examination group at the time, even if I didn't have merit, I certainly had the toil!

Forget it, a good man doesn't fight with a woman. It's just one spot, not a big deal. I'll endure you this once.

On the third day, Liu Zhaohong saw a girl among the candidates who looked quite familiar. As soon as he saw her, he remembered—isn't she the one from that interview the other day! Hmm, she actually made it to the third round, not bad.

At the post-exam meeting, seeing that the girl's scores in all areas were quite good, Liu Zhaohong took the opportunity to express his opinion, insisting that this candidate number thirteen successfully enter the final list, and she was provisionally ranked first in the major.

The fourth day, which was also the last day—by this stage, Liu Zhaohong was already a bit weary.

Although he didn't need to come to the Performance Academy every day—after all, this was just one academy—Liu Zhaohong believed he had to come. Because he couldn't afford to offend those people in the Directing Department, and if he didn't come to the Performance Department, were there any other majors at the Beijing Film Academy? Were there?

He not only had to come, but he also had to work earnestly to let those who thought he should retire see that he, old Liu, still had residual heat!

"...Thank you, teacher." A youthful and beautiful girl bowed and said, then stepped down.

It was 10:00 AM on February 19th, the first session of the final day of the Film Academy's third-round admissions exam.

Liu Zhaohong was taking notes diligently. Each session had 30 candidates in the hall at the same time, taking turns to go on stage to introduce themselves and perform. After each one left, he would record their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. This was a habit of his. And this year, his notebook was almost full. This meant that his work for this year had indeed entered the final stage.

"Hello, examiners. I am candidate number four. Height 180, weight..." A rather pleasant male voice came from the front of the stage. The voice glided past Liu Zhaohong's ears like water. He didn't pay attention and was still writing furiously: "...limbs stiff, basic skills lacking..."

"Did you prepare a dance yourself?"

"No."

"Good, Teacher You will demonstrate five movements for you, and you follow along and do them once. No problem, right?"

"No."

When the first "no" came, Liu Zhaohong was writing: "Should not be accepted."

When the second "no" came, Liu Zhaohong was writing: "Consider..."

There should have been the words "pass" following that.

Upon hearing the second "no," Liu Zhaohong stopped his pen.

These two "no's" overlapped with a certain "no" in his memory, perfectly aligned. The tone and inflection might have been slightly different, but the feeling had not changed.

He placed his pen on the table, picked up the reading glasses hanging in front of his chest, and put them on steadily.

He tucked his chin slightly, raised his eyes, and looked forward through the lenses.

A young man, wearing tight-fitting black clothes and pants, with a hairstyle that was unforgettable—neither long nor short, possessing a natural, messy beauty, while his facial features were highly recognizable.

Precisely because of this, Liu Zhaohong recognized him at a glance.

It was him, no mistake.

He actually made it to the third round!?

(End of chapter)