Chapter 39

Chapter 39

After a long recollection and piecing together fragments of information from his agent's words, Song Nian finally figured out what was going on.

It turned out that the original owner was still a minor artist, a nobody in the scene.

In high school, due to his outstanding appearance, the original owner was scouted by a talent agent and signed a contract. He had wanted to take this opportunity to showcase his own value, but upon first stepping into the entertainment industry, he discovered that this glitzy, sleazy place was not a battleground for dreams but a grandiose vanity fair.

Given his standoffish, self-pitying personality, this was an environment he could neither drift along with nor accept.

He rejected all the low-level activities arranged by his agent, but with his own credentials, he couldn't land better resources. Gradually, he faded out of the circle, and his relationship with his agent grew tense, with them basically not contacting each other in daily life.

Since this setting played no role in the original story, there was no mention of it.

So it was only at this moment that Song Nian realized he actually still had a job.

"You seriously changed your number without telling me? Do you know how hard I had to work just to reach you?"

Having finally made contact, only to get mistaken for a scammer, the agent on the other end was nearly fuming with anger.

On this end, Song Nian shrank his neck, hunched up like a scared chicken, not daring to talk back, and secretly stuck out his tongue.

Once the agent was done ranting did the conversation finally circle back to business:

"Alright, let's set that aside for now. You're free at home these two days, right? Clear your schedule for the morning of the day after tomorrow. There's a magazine shoot that specifically requested you."

A shoot? Did that mean he had a gig?

Hearing this, Song Nian slowly blinked.

And the agent, not getting a response, mistakenly took his reaction as a polite refusal. He took a deep breath, fighting back his exasperation.

Actually, over these years, he had no expectation that this artist—too picky for small jobs but not good enough for big ones—would take any work. If it weren't for the contract, he'd have ghosted the agent long ago.

So for a long time, he had just left him to his own devices, barely contacting anyone.

But unexpectedly, the company recently got this amazing opportunity. He was planning to recommend one of his hot young actors for an audition, only to have the contact person flatly refuse and specifically name Song Nian for the shoot.

This demand almost made the agent faint. Under pressure from the boss, who said failure wasn't an option, he had to brace himself to talk to this difficult diva.

He was just about to start persuading, he heard the other person ask tentatively:

"Wait, are you sure? A gig? For me?"

"Yes, even though it's just a magazine cover shoot, even a fly's leg is meat—something's better than nothing. Just consider..."

Before he could finish, the person on the other end cut in first:

"I'm in!"

"Think it over carefully, don't refuse so quickly... Wait, what did you say?"

Almost thinking he had misheard, the agent froze on the spot.

"I said I'll take it. The day after tomorrow, right? I'm free."

Far from reluctant, Song Nian's tone was extremely eager, as if he wished he could go right now.

Instantly, the agent was silent for a moment, then asked uncertainly:

"Are you the real Song Nian?"

Did I get the right person? Dial the right number?

Or did someone possess Song Nian?

After getting a definite yes from him, he kept his bewildered expression in check, though his face was still complicated.

In the end, caught between curiosity and the urge to just get the job done and report to the boss, the agent decisively chose the latter and didn't dig into it.

After spelling out the time and place for the shoot and telling him to watch his diet, he hung up.

After the call ended, Song Nian slowly put down his phone, lay flat on his back, and stared at the ceiling in a daze, zoning out.

Then he excitedly rolled back and forth on the bed.

A free gig delivered to his doorstep—why the hell wouldn't he take it!

Hell yeah, he's doing it!

To be honest, this hidden identity of his original self really surprised and delighted him.

Because deep down, he'd always dreamed of making it in showbiz.

Back in his previous world, relying on his decent looks, Song Nian had tried to break into the entertainment industry right after graduation.

Unfortunately, talent alone wasn't enough in this business; you needed connections, whether you were born with them or had to suck up for them.

And with his ordinary family background, he had none of that.

So after a few years of trying, Song Nian was still a nobody, never making a name for himself. On top of that, his family opposed it, so he regretfully left and went back to a normal life.

Now he had a chance to try again, and even better, with Li Yanchuan as his big shot backer—talk about a bright future!

Even if he didn't make it, at least he didn't have to worry about money—he could just treat it as a hobby.

Itching to go, Song Nian couldn't wait—he wished he could just skip to the day after tomorrow.

————

Finally, the day of the shoot arrived.

Once he was ready, Song Nian noticed Li Yanchuan's questioning look and immediately cleared his throat eagerly, putting on a serious face, and said:

"I've got a gig today, so I'm heading out."

Instead of looking surprised, Li Yanchuan just curled his lips into a faint smile.

"Is that right? Hope it goes well. Want me to send a car?"

"No, no—my agent said he'd come get me."

But just as he was about to leave, he got a message from his agent saying he was stuck at another set and couldn't make it, so he had to grab a taxi to the studio.

He was a bit annoyed, but given his own status—which was nowhere near a priority—he let it slide.

The studio staff were really nice and led him to hair and makeup.

Before the shoot started, the agent finally arrived. He hurried in, constantly looking down at his watch, as if he was in a rush.

When he saw Song Nian, all styled up, he froze, looking him up and down in disbelief.

"Hey, Brother Wang."

Meeting his agent for the first time, Song Nian politely raised his hand and greeted him.

This only made Brother Wang even more astonished.

What's going on? He felt that Song Nian's vibe had changed, and his personality too?

In the past when it came to styling, he would reject this and refuse that, having his own unique opinions. But today he had gone along with it so obediently?

And the result was great, very beautiful.

Most importantly, he even greeted him so nicely.

It was as if the once aloof and cold cat had turned into a docile little dog.

But he had to admit, these were all good changes. He hoped the shoot today would go smoothly and wrap up early.

The agent silently prayed.

Originally, Brother Wang wasn't planning to accompany Song Nian today, but thinking about this little tyrant's behavior and skill level, afraid he'd offend the crew on set, he had to squeeze in time from another set to come and keep an eye on him.

Once filming started, he planned to watch for a bit and then leave, but the more he watched, the more his frown relaxed, eventually turning into a surprised raise of his eyebrows.

He even forgot to leave.

Wait, is this person really Song Nian?

His presence in front of the camera was amazing; he even nailed it in one take. Even the photographer's expression showed approval.

Only when Song Nian bounced over after finishing the shoot did he come back to his senses.

"Brother Wang, did I do okay today?"

Seeing he was spacing out, Song Nian waved a hand in front of his face.

"Great job."

The agent didn't hold back his praise.

Upon hearing this, Song Nian gave a couple of satisfied hums, proudly putting his hands on his hips, making him look like a little dog wagging its tail.

Not to brag, but he always thought his skills were pretty solid.

Back when he was a trainee, he worked harder than anyone else his age, plus he had a bit of talent, so his foundation in singing, dancing, and acting was pretty solid.

If he'd had more exposure, he'd probably already have some status in the industry.

At the very least, he could have been a D-lister, right?

"I'll head off then. Thanks for your hard work today, Brother Wang."

After thanking the crew, Song Nian waved to his agent too.

Since no one had given him a ride there, he figured no one would give him a ride back either.

But surprisingly, Brother Wang went against character, grabbed his keys, and said:

"Come on, I'll drive you home."

Since the guy had a positive attitude today and had improved so much, he didn't mind giving him a ride.

————

While Song Nian was at the studio, Li Yanchuan was working in his study.

Just as he finished his online work reports and was about to tell his secretary to get back to work, his phone suddenly went ding-ding-ding.

He didn't need to guess who that sound belonged to.

The secretary on the other end of the screen saw the boss, who had been scowling just a second ago, instantly soften his expression when he looked at his phone, and all his sternness vanished.

It was as if he had received a message from someone important.

"Song Nian: Final look photo.jpg"

"Song Nian: Looks good, right! I finished the shoot! One take, and my agent praised me! Pretty awesome, huh?"

The photo was a close-up selfie. In the picture, Song Nian grinned at the camera, his smile extremely bright.

Perhaps because of the makeup, today he had an extra bit of boldness and glow compared to usual.

Especially his glossed lips, clear as jelly, instantly stirring up some mischievous thoughts—wanting to smudge it with fingers or something.

"Li Yanchuan: Nice. Very impressive."

"Li Yanchuan: When are you coming back?"

"Song Nian: Home soon!"

Seeing that, Li Yanchuan's lips curled into a slight smile.

Then he looked up and signaled to the secretary that they'd wrap up for today, leaving all work for tomorrow.

The usually meticulous CEO was actually leaving early? Then the person who just messaged him was definitely Mr. Song.

Those two were really close.

The secretary, who had of course seen that kind of couple photo on the intranet, gave a knowing smirk and followed the order.

————

When Song Nian got home, Li Yanchuan met his big, sparkling eyes.

And he also got a clingy little shadow, chattering nonstop about today's experiences:

"Husband, husband~ Today's shoot went super smoothly. I was worried I'd mess up since I had no experience."

"Filming is really fun! When the camera was on me, I suddenly wasn't nervous at all!"

"I wonder if I'll get more gigs from now on?"

Tweeting nonstop, Song Nian shared funny stories from the studio, totally hyped, like a little bird that just flew on its own for the first time.

"Definitely."

Li Yanchuan didn't find the chatter annoying; he kept a gentle smile on his face and listened patiently.

Once he was done, he reached over and patted Song Nian on the head: "Nice work, you've been working hard. Don't forget to tell the housekeeper what you'd like for dinner tonight and treat yourself."

At that, Song Nian got the hint, grinned wide, and sped off to the kitchen to ask the housekeeper for a special treat.

Once he was out of sight, Li Yanchuan took out his phone and called his assistant: "Yeah, keep sending him resources... Make his job easier... Don't tell him I'm behind it."