Goddess Strategy GL - Chapter 5
Ye Ruoqing said: “Alright… Teacher Guo, let’s hurry up and get the actor’s certificate. I still have to go perform later, or I won’t even have food to eat tomorrow.”
The bald man said: “My surname is not Guo, it’s… Hey, you have a whole bunch of things in your hand, where did they come from?”
Ye Ruoqing said: “I bought them at the Two-Yuan Shop.”
The bald man said: “Didn’t you just say you couldn’t afford food, and yet you bought all this clutter?”
Ye Ruoqing put down her bag and stuffed the wet wipes, toilet paper, detergent, mirror, facial mask, and toner inside: “It’s not easy for the owner to run his business; it’s right to support him.”
The bald man said seriously: “Little Ye girl, have you heard that advertisement, ‘Boss, you are not a human being, give me back my hard-earned money’?”
Ye Ruoqing nodded: “I’ve heard it.”
“He told you it was recorded by the extras here, and that they didn’t charge him?”
“Yes.”
“And Li Damou?”
“Yes, Li Damou.”
“And that where there are people, there is a jianghu?”
“It’s many jianghus.”
“Holy cow, how dare he scam Little Ye girl!”
The bald man was furious. He completely ignored the middle-aged woman beside him, grabbed Ye Ruoqing and walked towards the Two-Yuan Shop: “Come on, big brother will get your money back.”
“…”
Why is everyone in B City so overly familiar!
Ye Ruoqing pulled the bald man’s hand off her arm: “Teacher Guo, shouldn’t we hurry up and get the actor’s certificate first?”
The bald man turned back angrily: “How could that scoundrel even scam a young girl.”
“Forget it, they were just two-yuan items. How much can he scam, anyway?”
The bald man pointed to a car under the shed: “Exactly, they are just two-yuan items. He imports a bunch of cheap counterfeits from the small wholesale market, tells you a story, plays an advertisement, and you can’t even afford to eat, yet he drives a Jeep.”
“…”
“And what about Li Damou, recording an advertisement, Peh (spit)! When he bought the ad on Taobao, he didn’t know how to use Alipay, and I was the one who helped him! Now he’s turning around and slandering us group leaders, slandering our conscience to newcomers!”
Hearing the bald man’s account, Ye Ruoqing also became angry. She rolled up her sleeves and strode furiously towards the Two-Yuan Shop.
She was going to demand her money back!
The owner was a bully who feared the strong. Seeing the formerly quiet and gentle little girl instantly turn into an angry, dark-faced Guan Gong, he didn’t dare to make a sound. He paid the money and scurried behind the counter to play dead.
“Little Ye girl, you are too naive,” the bald man said heartbrokenly. “And this is just a Two-Yuan Shop owner. The girls in the industry now are all cunning. Today they’ll see you have some use, link arms with you, and act like close sisters, but tomorrow, if you lose your value, they’ll kick you out, and you won’t even be able to find them. You might even worry that something happened to them. Little Ye girl, if you want to enter the industry, you must be more vigilant. Not everyone treats you with genuine kindness like your Sister Xiaoli.”
Ye Ruoqing finished counting the pile of small change and put the money in her pocket: “Got it, Teacher Guo. I only have this small change left in my pocket. What use can anyone get out of me? I’m already thankful if I can fill my stomach now.”
“Enough talk. I’ll take you to get your certificate. If we’re lucky, I can sign you up for a few roles today.”
Ye Ruoqing had never thought she would be taken advantage of. Although her family was wealthy in the past, with her parents guarding her, others couldn’t easily plot against her. Now that she was penniless, the word ‘exploitation’ seemed even less relevant. Moreover, she had a few good friends; Bai Xiaoli was one, and the bald man who looked like Guo Donglin was another.
The roles the bald man signed her up for were mostly modern dramas, mainly as passers-by or students, requiring no special makeup or wigs. Since the union wouldn’t process payments until next month, the bald man didn’t even record Ye Ruoqing’s bank account number, giving her the cash directly on the same day.
“Isn’t it fifty a day? Why is it seventy?”
“The extra twenty was originally our cut, but since it’s you, I won’t deduct it.”
“How can I accept that?”
Ye Ruoqing tried to return the twenty kuai to the bald man, but he stopped her hand: “No, take it. If you really feel indebted… just put in a good word for me with Xiaoli, hehe.”
“Oh~ Teacher Guo is quite good, eh?”
Ye Ruoqing playfully bumped the bald man with her elbow. The bald man blushed: “Little Ye girl, please don’t tease me. And also, it’s fine if you call me Guo Donglin, just don’t do it in front of Xiaoli. By the way, you’re familiar with this place now. Do you want me to sign you up for an ‘Extra with Special Role’ tomorrow? I’ve told a few of the managers that your looks and physique are so good, comparable to actual actors, and it’s a shame to keep playing passers-by. I’ll sign you up for a ‘Special Extra’ role. If the director takes a liking to you, you’ll have more opportunities in the future. And it’s not uncommon for Special Extras to become famous. We all think you’ll be the second Wang Baoqiang!”
Ye Ruoqing: “…Can you please say I look like a woman?”
The bald man said: “Don’t worry, don’t worry, I’ll definitely sign you up for a female role. I won’t make you cross-dress.”
The bald man did indeed sign Ye Ruoqing up for a female role, but this female role did not match the “healthy and sunny” image that everyone around Ye Ruoqing agreed upon.
She was to play an assassin, or more precisely, a female assassin who kneels on the ground pretending to sell herself to pay for her father’s funeral, only to rip off her mourning clothes and instantly transform when the protagonist approaches to kindly give her money.
Of course, this assassin was just a random extra (an “Lùrén Jiǎ”), but because there was a chance for a one-second shot to be edited into the film, it instantly became high-class.
“This is too difficult…” Ye Ruoqing was depressed. “Guo Donglin, Teacher Guo, didn’t you say you’re short of actors like me who look righteous?”
The bald man said: “That’s right, but this director prefers performances with impact. I specially chose this one for you so you can have a better chance of attracting her attention.”
Ye Ruoqing imagined the scene and despaired: “I’ll definitely be kicked out of the crew by the director.”
The bald man comforted her: “No, Little Ye girl, you must have confidence in yourself. Plus, wearing mourning clothes comes with an extra cash bonus, at least fifty kuai from this crew, which has plenty of money.”
For the sake of money, Ye Ruoqing decided to stick it out. However, she still had questions about how to deliver that one-second shot.
The bald man was clearly more experienced. He held up two fingers and said to Ye Ruoqing: “Look here, Little Ye girl, make an angry expression.”
Ye Ruoqing looked at his fingers,酝酿了一会儿, trying to cultivate the emotion, and forced out an ugly expression that looked like she was constipated.
The bald man slapped his forehead.
“No, you have to think about something that makes you angry, like that Two-Yuan Shop owner! He scammed your money! A hundred kuai! Two days of your wages!”
Ye Ruoqing thought about it, and pulled down her drooping mouth corners by another two points.
“This really won’t work…” The bald man was also anxious. Filming was about to start, and Ye Ruoqing still couldn’t get into character.
“I told you I can’t act. And that was days ago; who can remember how I felt then?”
“Cai Guoqing!”
“Damn it, can’t you say something else!” Ye Ruoqing was already irritated, and hearing “Cai Guoqing” instantly made her unhappy again.
I’m a girl!
“That’s it, that’s the look!” The bald man was pleased with his moment of inspiration. “Your expression just now was great, but you need to deepen the level of anger a bit.”
“How do I deepen it?”
Another flash of inspiration struck the bald man’s mind: “I have an idea. Let’s simulate a scene. The one from a few days ago when we first met.”
“Fine,” Ye Ruoqing stood up helplessly and adjusted her wig.
The bald man walked a few steps away, then turned around, greeting Ye Ruoqing as he did the first time they met.
“You are Little Ye girl, right?”
“Yes, and you are Guo Donglin, Teacher Guo, right?”
“…That’s right. See? I told you our Little Ye girl looks especially like a star! Guo Jingming, does she look like him?”
“Holy cow!”
“That’s it! Keep that expression! Keep it, don’t move!” The bald man quickly pulled out a mirror for Ye Ruoqing to look into: “Be sure to remember this expression. That’s how you’ll do it then!”
Plans never keep up with changes. As the scene approached, Ye Ruoqing was notified that she had to add lines.
“…”
“It’s just a few simple lines; you must be familiar with them. Haven’t you heard the Two-Yuan Shop ad many times? ‘XXX, you are not a human being, you brute, take this!'”
“That many lines?”
“Other people complain about too few lines, and you complain about too many.”
“Fine, I’ll memorize them.”
Ye Ruoqing used the same intense focus she had in high school for memorizing ancient texts to internalize these few lines. She knelt on the ground, secretly peering out from beneath her mourning clothes. The bald man stood nearby, mouthing the words to her.
“Remember, Guo Jingming! You are Guo Jingming!”
“You are Guo Jingming!”
Ye Ruoqing made a subtle gesture of contempt. Seeing the carriage procession about to arrive, she quickly lowered her head, mentally reciting the lines several times.
“XXX, you are not a human being, you brute, take this! XXX, you are not a human being, you brute, take this…”
The other two actors gradually approached. Ye Ruoqing was so nervous that she was sweating all over. When she saw a pair of feet wearing embroidered shoes move in front of her, she grew even more anxious.
Ay-ma, please don’t be a beauty!
Hearing someone say “Look up,” she threw back her mourning clothes, snatched the fake sword from her waist, and leaped up to stab the two people in front of her.
“XXX you are not a human being…”
Ye Ruoqing froze. The person in front of her… that dream from a few days ago…
The lines she had so thoroughly memorized instantly flew to the ends of the earth. In her mind, only a woman wearing sunglasses was swaying back and forth, her brightly colored lips constantly spitting out cold, harsh words—
“XXX you are not a human being, give me back my hard-earned money, give me back my hard-earned money!”
The whole set was stunned.
Ye Ruoqing was so ashamed and exasperated that she wanted to shrink back into her mourning clothes. How could she have said what was only in her head!
What should she do? What should she do?
She crouched on the ground, completely at a loss.
At this moment, the person above her spoke.
Ye Ruoqing looked up. An ice-cold beauty coldly looked down at her. A silk scarf covered the lower half of her face, making her beautiful eyes appear sharp and captivating:
“You got it wrong, didn’t you? The one who owes money, isn’t it you?”