Chapter Eleven: Turn of Events

Chapter Eleven: Turn of Events

Amidst the chaos, Yu Zaki clutched his face, screaming as he fell to the ground, his voice almost tearing, "Ahhhh! My face—!"

The force of the punch dislodged a lock of hair onto Yun Zi'an’s forehead. He blew it away, shaking his wrist casually, looking down at Yu Zaki like an ant, "Noisy."

"Yun Zi'an!" Yu Zaki clutched his cheek, screaming nonstop, being helped up by several hands, his anger almost bursting from every pore, "Call the police! I want to report this—!"

"Ying Xiaofeng," Yun Zi'an said nonchalantly, lighting a cigarette and calling out to Ying Xiaofeng behind him, "You call the police."

"Right away!" Ying Xiaofeng eagerly agreed, delighted to assist Yun Zi'an in bullying the weak, pulling out a voice recorder from his briefcase, "I've got the statement all prepared for the police."

Pressing the recorder's button, Yu Zaki's voice came through clearly amidst a faint electric buzz, "Ah, eighteenth tier should be mentally prepared, don’t think just because of a flirtatious face you can act in anything..."

Ying Xiaofeng watched their faces turn blue, barely containing his smirk, chiming in mischievously, "As a law-abiding citizen, I must report everything to the police, and not just to them, but also invite a few media journalists to listen, to clear our esteemed Yu Zaki's reputation."

.

Yu Zaki's cheekbones swelled with purple bruises, never expecting such immorality from someone he viewed as inferior, almost grinding his teeth in fury, pointing at Yun Zi'an, nearly suffering a heart attack, "You—!"

Yun Zi'an, with one hand in his pocket and the other holding a cigarette, approached nonchalantly, deliberately exhaling smoke onto Yu Zaki's face. Towering at 183 cm, he looked down at Yu Zaki's crumbling eyes, his usually half-closed eyes now fully open, a relentless cold glint within, "Hm? Dissatisfied?"

This was like stabbing a knife in Yu Zaki's heart, his most hated fact being - he wasn't as handsome or as tall as Yun Zi'an.

Even in seven or eight cm internal increase shoes, he couldn't match Yun Zi'an's height.

Yu Zaki stepped back, overwhelmed by Yun Zi'an's imposing aura, unable to vent his rage, slapping his female assistant in frustration, "Useless thing!"

"Get out!" He stormed off, like a potato mine about to explode, "Move it—!"

.

Yun Zi'an raised his hands, watching them leave en masse, his eyes lazily closing again, extinguishing the cigarette butt, yawning while rubbing his neck.

"Awesome!" Ying Xiaofeng gave a triumphant middle finger to Yu Zaki's retreating figure, then turned and patted Yun Zi'an's back gleefully, "That was so damn satisfying—!"

Yun Zi'an's frame almost collapsed under the force, frowning, "Easy there."

"My bad, my bad," Ying Xiaofeng apologized, rubbing his back, "You're the most badass, boss."

"Tired," Yun Zi'an yawned repeatedly, having not rested well the night before, "Let's go home."

"All right, all right." Ying Xiaofeng chuckled, ready to leave when he suddenly heard a hoarse voice loudly arguing on the phone in the corner of the lobby, "What? You're not coming? Zhou Jingli, we had a good talk over dinner, why are you backing out now?"

Ying Xiaofeng, the agent, perked up like a fly smelling something sweet, tugging Yun Zi'an, "Boss, wait a second..."

"Hmm?" Yun Zi'an turned to look at him, "What's up?"

Ying Xiaofeng grinned, mouthing to him, "Watch me secure a deal for you."

.

Hands in pockets, Yun Zi'an watched as Ying Xiaofeng sprinted over to the square-faced smoker, shaking hands and lighting cigarettes, chatting for a bit before gesturing towards him.

Just minutes later, Ying Xiaofeng returned with a wagging tail, "He's a casting director! They're holding auditions here! I recommended you!"

Yun Zi'an almost choked on Ying Xiaofeng's eagerness, stepping back, "Spare me, haven't I done enough bad films..."

"This one is legit!" Ying Xiaofeng, not pleased with his lack of ambition, pushed him towards the audition, "You're trying this no matter what!"

Their days were always a struggle. Once, Yun Zi'an had no roles, idling to the point of boredom, it was Ying Xiaofeng who helped him gain a sliver of fame, leading to the candid photo incident.

Yun Zi'an, with his casual attitude, probably filled a gap, as he was immediately taken to the head director without any preliminary rounds.

The head director, desperate for serious actors, with two large blisters on his lips from anxiety, shook hands and patted Yun Zi'an's back warmly, sweating profusely as he stammered about the project, "This... our film... might be a bit challenging, with some tough shooting conditions, but! But the script is brilliant! And our team is top-notch in the country! We..."

After beating around the bush, once they actually got to see the script, it all made sense.

It was a war film about international rescue.

The shooting locations were all in desert countries, in places without even an airport...

No wonder there were no actors for auditions...

Ying Xiaofeng was taken aback, anxious and wanting to back out, sending signals to Yun Zi'an to leave with him.

However, Yun Zi'an was engrossed in the script, completely immersed, not even glancing at Ying Xiaofeng.

The black ink on white paper before him already conjured images of broken walls and ruins in his mind. Amid the whistling bullets, a group of soldiers with “CYO” patches battled fiercely, smeared in blood and dust, roaring as they charged forward. The smell of gunpowder mixed with the harsh dryness of the desert felt almost tangible, causing his fingers to suddenly grip the script tightly.

The smell of gunpowder…

The smell of Rong Shao…

.

The director had been observing Yun Zi'an's expressions keenly. Seeing potential, he eagerly approached, “Our audition process is quite simple…”

Yun Zi'an glanced at the table where a disassembled Browning handgun model was laid out.

The director pointed at the model, “Just learn to assemble it and that's enough…”

To their surprise, Yun Zi'an chuckled, slapping the script onto the director’s chest, “Time me.”

Under everyone's watchful eyes, he stood before the table, caressing the cold steel parts like a lover, then picked up a piece and held it in his hand.

Then Yun Zi'an closed his eyes and said, “Start.”

This scene left the director and the casting director exchanging astonished glances, disbelief written in their eyes. They had only expected the actors to be familiar with firearms, even if it was just like a child playing with building blocks. But Yun Zi'an was performing a blind assembly of a firearm, a feat of exceptional skill.

Before they could even recover, a fully assembled handgun appeared in Yun Zi'an's hand. The next second, he opened his eyes fully, pointing the dark muzzle at the director—

The director, terrified, felt his soul leap out of his body, his heartbeat stalling as he raised his hands in surrender. The stopwatch in his hand clattered to the ground, hitting the stop button.

With a 'ding', the timer stopped.

Ying Xiaofeng rushed over and pressed down the gun in his hand, his face changing color, “Boss! Have you lost your mind!”

“Snap.” Yun Zi'an laughed mischievously, blowing on the gun muzzle as if dispelling non-existent smoke, “Phew—”

The casting director, still shaken, picked up the stopwatch from the ground, stuttering upon seeing the time, “...less than a minute.”

The director looked as if he had found his muse, completely entranced by Yun Zi'an, as if Yun Zi'an couldn’t refuse to act in his film. He grabbed Yun Zi'an’s hand, ecstatically asking, “How do you know how to assemble a gun?”

He had heard of Yun Zi'an, with the industry's focus primarily on his appearance – labeling him arrogant or despicable, a mere vase of an actor.

Yun Zi'an tilted his head, smiling, "About that..."

He would never tell anyone that ever since he was a child, he had kept a Browning used by Rong Shao during his younger training days in his bedside drawer. He had disassembled and reassembled it countless times, to the point where even the handle had worn out.