1RomanceEB Chapter 19 Who Will Play Jin Daoqi?
Chapter 19 Who Will Play Jin Daoqi?
When Su Yu pushed open the door, the pair of crooked Batman slippers were lying across the stairwell, as if someone had impatiently kicked them with their heels.
He didn't rush upstairs. He bent down and picked up the fluffy shoes, his fingertips touching the lingering warmth inside, indicating they had probably just been taken off. He straightened the shoes, toes facing inwards, like a dutiful guard, before finally stepping upstairs.
Cai Xiubin wasn't typing. The borrowed, beat-up laptop, closed, looked like a black tombstone. She was curled up in a secondhand chair, her legs tucked into the seat, her chin resting on her knees, staring blankly at her phone screen.
Sunlight shone on her profile, making even the finest downy hairs clearly visible. As if sensing something, she suddenly looked up, her gaze meeting Su Yu's.
"What are you looking at so intently?" Su Yu leaned against the door frame, his hands in his pockets, his gaze sweeping over her bare legs.
"Forum. Someone asked who directed this show, and the comments are full of question marks." She tossed her phone onto the table; the screen lit up briefly, then went dark again. "Su Yu, when are you going to release the casting news? Who's going to play Jin Daoqi?"
"It's not decided yet."
"When are you going to place your order?" she pressed, her tone a little impatient, like a kitten waiting for its can of food.
Su Yu didn't reply. He was thinking that the role of Jin Daoqi was too difficult to find. A retired soldier, taciturn, with eyes that could kill, and action scenes that were crisp and clean. It wasn't something you could just find any popular young actor to put on some smoky makeup for. He hadn't released the information, not because he forgot, but because he was penniless.
The company was newly established, with no connections, no resources, and couldn't even afford a decent casting director. He sent the script to two casting companies he knew, and when they asked about the budget, he gave them a number. They remained silent as if in mourning, and finally replied, "Contact me again."
He didn't intend to tell Cai Xiubin about his predicament. She thought starting a company was just a matter of registering a name, and then the drama would automatically fall from the sky. Looking into her bright, sparkling eyes, Su Yu felt that was enough.
In the afternoon, Su Yu arranged to meet Yin Shiyun at a coffee shop near the company.
Yoon Shi-yoon is an oddball. A regular at convenience stores, he's always dressed in black, with long hair that covers his eyes. He acted in "King of Papa, Kim Takgu" and was popular for a while, but Su Yu approached him not because he was famous, but because he was good at action scenes.
When Su Yu arrived, Yin Shiyun was already sitting in the corner. In front of her was an iced Americano, and the water droplets on the glass formed a thin stream that slid onto the table.
"What is it?" Yoon Shi-yoon asked, his voice deep and resonant, like the strings of a cello.
Without a word, Su Yu pushed the script synopsis over. Yin Shiyun caught it, his slender fingers turning to the first page without saying a word. Turning to the second and third pages, his gaze stopped on the three words "Kim Do-ki".
"Jin Daoqi?"
"Um."
"You want me to act?"
"You don't want to act?"
Yoon Shi-yoon closed the script and tapped the cover lightly with his fingertips. "I've never acted in anything like this before."
"Which type? Tough guy? Or action movie?"
"I'm afraid I'll mess up the performance."
Su Yu looked at him. This was the first time he had heard Yoon Shi-yoon say "afraid." Before, this man was like a heartless killer, accepting roles only based on his mood. Now, the word "afraid" coming from his mouth actually carried a strange kind of sexiness.
"Have you tried it?" Su Yu asked, leaning forward to close the distance between them.
"no."
"How do you know you can't do it? Jin Daoqi isn't just a pretty face; he's a wild dog who wallows in the mud. Have you ever played a wild dog?"
Yoon Shi-yoon didn't reply, and reopened the script. When he got to episode eight, his fingers paused on the edge of the paper, his knuckles turning slightly white.
"Are there many action scenes?"
"Many. Every punch lands hard."
"substitute?"
"Use a stand-in where possible, otherwise you'll have to do it yourself." Su Yu looked at him. "Do you dare?"
Yoon Shi-yoon looked up, his eyes as deep as still water, yet a flame flickered within. "You have that much faith in me?"
Su Yu laughed, leaning back in his chair, his gaze sweeping over him without restraint. "It's not that I'm confident. It's that there's no one else. That's how this industry is. The handsome ones are brainless, and the smart ones are too tough to fight. Someone like you, handsome and good at fighting, is a rare resource."
"Are you praising me or insulting me?" Yoon Shi-yoon's lips curled into a very faint smile, like a crack in the ice.
"I'm praising you. I'm praising you as a rough gem." Su Yu picked up the water on the table and took a sip. "Moreover, only you can portray that... brokenness in the character of Jin Daoqi."
Yoon Shi-yoon's fingers hovered over the script for a few seconds before he closed it and stuffed it into his bag. "I'll take the script. I'll give you an answer tomorrow."
"Don't keep me waiting too long."
When Su Yu returned to the company, it was already dark.
Cai Xiubin wasn't on the second floor; she was sitting by the window on the first floor, her bare feet on the peeling linoleum. Another corner of the tape had peeled up, but she didn't press it down. Instead, she used her toes to pick at the corner, picking it up, pressing it down, picking it up again, as if playing some kind of pointless game with the floor.
"Has Dingyin Shiyun arrived?" Hearing the door open, she didn't turn her head, but her toes stopped moving.
"Not yet. He went back to look at the script." Su Yu threw his bag on the table, walked over, and stood behind her.
"Didn't you say he was your friend? Friends need to watch this?" She turned her head, looked up at him, her eyes filled with a hint of grievance. "Are you deliberately making excuses to delay because you don't want me to play An Go-eun?"
"He's a friend, but he's also an actor. If he doesn't act well, you can't be friends anymore." Su Yu squatted down, his gaze level with hers. "Besides, not just anyone can play the role of Jin Daoqi. He has to be able to withstand a gun, and he also has to be able to withstand you."
"You can handle me?" Cai Xiubin was taken aback for a moment, then realized what she meant, her cheeks flushing slightly. "Su Yu, are you calling me fierce?"
"I meant you're a good actress." Su Yu reached out and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, his fingertips brushing against her earlobe. Her earlobe was soft and slightly cool; it trembled slightly when he touched it.
"And what about you? How was your performance?" She didn't look away, but stared into his eyes, as if searching for an answer.
"You watched three episodes, and you didn't know?" Su Yu's voice lowered, and the two were so close that they could feel each other's breath.
She opened her mouth, but no words came out. Her gaze lingered on his lips for two seconds before she hurriedly looked away. She stood up, walked to the piece of tape that had sticking up, and stomped on it hard. The tape made a "rip" sound, like a wound being torn open.
"I'll skip it again tomorrow," she said defiantly.
"We'll talk about it tomorrow." Su Yu also stood up, looking at her. "At worst, I'll nail it shut."
She went to the door to put on her shoes, then squatted down to tie them. She tied a bow, then thought it didn't look good, so she took it off and tied another one. This time she tied it very slowly, her fingers wrapping around the shoelaces several times, as if she was struggling with something.
"Su Yu".
"Um?"
"After Yoon Shi-yoon came, am I no longer the company's only artist?" Her voice was very soft, mixed in with the evening breeze, and could not be heard clearly.
Looking at her downcast eyes, Su Yu's heart melted. He walked over, squatted down beside her, and reached out to hold her hand as she tied her shoelaces.
"You're the first," he said, his tone so earnest it was like a vow. "As long as you don't leave, you'll always be the first."
Her hand stiffened for a moment, then remained still. Her fingertips trembled slightly in his palm, as if in response. Several seconds later, she slowly pulled her hand away, tied a knot haphazardly, and stood up.
"Smooth-talking," she muttered, opened the door, and went out.