Mr. Zhou Doesn’t Want to Work Hard Anymore!

Chapter 55

The power of fans was formidable. While they shipped couples (CP), they also voted enthusiastically. In the end, just before the voting deadline, Zhou Chenxi’s vote count narrowly surpassed Yuan Yike’s, securing the first place.

Actually, this was something no one had expected. Fans of talent show contestants have strong loyalty and organization skills. They are well-versed in concentrated voting and quick fundraising. In theory, they should not have lost to Zhou Chenxi.

But they did lose.

So Zhou Chenxi received a notification from the “Peak Battle” production team that he had passed the audition.

Having been pumped up by Lu Ji’s words, Zhou Chenxi had no negative mindset left. He was ready to accept either the role of the righteous young police officer or the role of the villainous “Zigou,” a member of the antagonist organization. He had mentally prepared himself for both roles, right up until he received the notice to join the production.

Before the shoot began, Zhou Chenxi attended a character discussion meeting organized by the “Peak Battle” production team. As soon as he entered the conference room, he saw Yuan Yike sitting there.

Zhou Chenxi was a bit surprised.

Yuan Yike was wearing a very punk-style studded jacket, his hair was styled with gel, and he was chewing bubble gum.

Zhou Chenxi took a seat beside him.

Yuan Yike initiated a conversation, “Want some?” He took a bubble gum box out of his pocket.

Zhou Chenxi glanced at it, and it had Yuan Yike’s face on it, with an orange flavor.

This bubble gum was endorsed by Yuan Yike.

Zhou Chenxi shook his head.

Yuan Yike winked at him playfully, touched his tongue to the roof of his mouth, making a slightly flirtatious sound, and said, “I’ve had your ‘Xixi Strawberry Jelly,’ it’s quite tasty. Thought we could exchange a bit.”

After speaking, he put the gum box back into his pocket.

His eyelashes were quite long, perhaps due to the curvature of his eyes. Even without makeup, his eyes seemed like they had eyeliner on. Paired with his punk style, he looked exceptionally unique and eye-catching in this quiet and serious meeting room.

Yuan Yike continued to chew his bubble gum and said, “If I had known both of us would make it into the production, I wouldn’t have bothered gathering fans to vote for me. It’s a hassle, notifying each fan group one by one. My manager kept an eye on the vote count all day. As soon as he saw you were about to surpass me, he went crazy and had me parachuting into the fan groups to sell smiles.”

He then asked Zhou Chenxi discreetly, “Have you given your fans any special benefits?”

Zhou Chenxi shook his head in confusion.

What benefits? Does buying a small air purifier for my car that I just got for my fans count?

Yuan Yike stared at him in disbelief, “You don’t have a fan group?”

Maybe he did, at least that’s what Zhiqi said. He knew his brother had a lot of fans now, and he was just a follower behind this massive fanbase. Did that count?

Zhou Chenxi nodded blankly.

Seeing his completely clueless expression, Yuan Yike’s expression became even more bewildered. “Didn’t you mobilize your fans to vote for you?”

“I did,” Zhou Chenxi honestly replied, “I posted one Weibo.”

Pfft—

Yuan Yike felt like a dagger had pierced his heart, and he was about to spit blood. “Just one?”

“Is that not enough?”

Yuan Yike’s inner demon collapsed, and he said weakly, “Quick, how did you do it? Teach me…”

For this voting, he had posted at least a dozen Weibo posts before and after the voting period. Sharing one voting link every day had become a routine. To avoid making his fans feel that he was spamming them, he even went the extra mile to shoot a Vlog, showcasing his latest fitness meal and several delicate selfies.

Just selecting these selfies almost made him vomit. Posting only one selfie was not enough; fans would find it perfunctory. He needed to mix and match them to create a grid of nine photos. He had always been a selfie disaster, thinking that the selfie software on his phone was the only one he needed, the one that came with the phone.

Moreover, his phone had a front camera that was considered the beauty camera in the digital world. Although Yuan Yike believed he looked handsome no matter how he took selfies, his manager clearly didn’t share his confidence. Every time, his manager would scold him mercilessly.

Yuan Yike, with his peculiar straight male aesthetics, was forced to learn how to use photo-editing software to touch up his pictures. Under his manager’s pressure, he even installed a bunch of apps like “beauty camera,” “filter camera,” and “rosy selfies,” among others.

That wasn’t enough. He also had to drop into fan groups every day and share fan benefits. He didn’t know what to say, so his manager made him recite cheesy pickup lines. The online cheesy lines almost made him nauseous.

Yuan Yike was quite a paradox. He had a baby face, but his speech and actions carried a certain slickness. However, thanks to his face and those mesmerizing eyes, the slickness was somewhat diffused. His overall demeanor didn’t come off as unlikable; instead, it gave the impression of sincerity in this quiet and serious meeting room.

Yuan Yike, still not giving up, asked, “You didn’t give any benefits to your fans? Isn’t your manager worried?”

Maybe Zhiqi wasn’t worried yet?

Zhou Chenxi honestly replied, “I don’t know. In the past few days, my mood has been a bit up and down, and I haven’t talked to my manager about it. He should have called on fans to vote for me.”

Yuan Yike was truly about to spit blood. Clearly, the joys and sorrows of one person were not shared by another. His manager told him that his fans weren’t willing to buy into this, and Yuan Yike had to give benefits himself to get their support.

In reality, this was indeed the case, and every time he posted fan benefits, his vote count would subsequently surge.

“Do all you actor fans behave like such little angels?” Yuan Yike said enviously.

As they were chatting, Director Cabot arrived, holding a thick script in his hands, accompanied by his translator and assistant. The primary speaker for today’s discussion was still the Chinese producer. After taking a seat, the producer began, “Hello, everyone. First of all, congratulations on passing the audition. The main task for today is to confirm the roles you’ll be portraying.”

The producer opened the character profile script in his hands and continued, “All the major actors from the Chinese side are present here. The leading roles in this drama have been designated by Director Cabot: one is James Brown, and the other is our Chinese superstar, Li Peini. Li Peini couldn’t make it today, but her contract has already been signed, so we’ll just wait for the shooting to begin. Now, we are primarily left with a few supporting roles, and Director Cabot will decide on these roles based on your audition performances.”

Zhou Chenxi was taken aback and flipped through the character profile script in his hands. He blurted out without thinking, “Is the character Li Yunzhou… completely removed?”

The producer gave him a glance and explained, “Originally, Li Yunzhou and James Brown were intended to be dual male leads. However, Director Cabot felt that the dual male lead storyline wouldn’t work well, so we discussed it and had the scriptwriter modify Li Yunzhou’s role. Of course, at the same time, some other supporting characters’ roles will also be increased. This is beneficial for all of you. Since the roles haven’t been finalized yet, we made these changes in advance to prevent any confusion about changes in your roles later. Do any of you have any other questions?”

It was only then that Zhou Chenxi realized his question was somewhat untimely, and he quickly closed his mouth.

The producer nodded and said, “Now, let’s have Director Cabot speak.”

Everyone immediately sat up straight.

Director Cabot couldn’t speak Chinese, so he had brought along a temporary translator. However, Zhou Chenxi understood English; he had decent English scores during his schooling.

Director Cabot was still delivering some introductory remarks, and Yuan Yike whispered to Zhou Chenxi, “Did you do your homework?”

The character profile script didn’t contain any plot details, but Li Yunzhou’s character profile was on the second page, closely following the male lead, James Brown. It clearly indicated that they were dual male leads. However, the production team didn’t specifically explain this to them during the auditions, and none of the people present for the auditions were trying out for the lead roles, so they hadn’t seen the complete script. Therefore, no one had raised this question based on the producer’s earlier statement.

Zhou Chenxi had questions mainly because Luo Xinghe was playing the role of Li Yunzhou.

Director Cabot looked down at his script and said, “Yuan Yike, your role is Cheng Wei, Liang Huai is ‘Zigou,’ and Zhou Chenxi, would you be willing to try the role of ‘Jiaozi’?”

Director Cabot raised his head and looked at Zhou Chenxi.

Zhou Chenxi was shocked.

The character ‘Jiaozi’ was a significant role in “Peak Battle.” He was an orphan who had been supported by Li Yunzhou. When Li Yunzhou found him, he was not yet an adult and was a street-smart troublemaker often involved in fights and scavenging in the alleys.

Li Yunzhou is a detective, and he’s too busy with work to spend time with him. He was going through a rebellious phase and didn’t want to be adopted by Li Yunzhou. So, he just took the 800 yuan monthly allowance that Li Yunzhou gave him and maintained a relationship that was both like a father and a friend with Li Yunzhou.

“Jiaozi” didn’t have a name. People who fought with him in the alley called him “Hey!” or “Dog!” When Li Yunzhou found him, on the first day, Li Yunzhou treated him to a meal of dumplings. While eating, he asked him for his name, and Jiaozi said his name was “Jiaozi.”

Jiaozi didn’t know his last name or where he came from. He had been wandering in the slums of the city since he could remember. There was a homeless man named Li Gui who would always help kids like him who had nothing to eat. Later, Li Gui died, reportedly killed by a gang of drug dealers in the city. From the moment Jiaozi learned about this, he wanted to avenge Li Gui.

To investigate the truth behind Li Gui’s death, he intentionally got close to Li Yunzhou and later became involved in an international case, only to discover that Li Gui’s death was not as simple as it seemed.

The character of Jiaozi had a significant role in the story. Although he was a supporting character, he was undoubtedly a standout one, and his role was just as important as Li Yunzhou’s.

He even later went undercover in the international organization, voluntarily passing on information to Li Yunzhou, becoming his key informant.

After the seminar ended, everyone left, leaving only Zhou Chenxi sitting in his place.

Before leaving, Yuan Yike patted his shoulder and said, “I’ll go first?”

Zhou Chenxi nodded and replied, “Yeah.”

Director Cabot stood up and said to Zhou Chenxi, “Zhou Chenxi, come with me to the next room.”

He asked Zhou Chenxi if he needed any help with translation, but Zhou Chenxi politely declined and went into the adjacent room with Director Cabot.

The room was where Zhou Chenxi had auditioned a few days ago.

Director Cabot had a serious expression and looked into Zhou Chenxi’s deep green eyes. He said, “Your audition was good.”

Zhou Chenxi was quite surprised.

“The producer told me that you have a good fan base in your home country, and I checked, and it seems to be true.”

“But, we gave the role of Cheng Wei to Yuan Yike,” Director Cabot shrugged, “I’m very sorry for wasting your time and energy. Your fan votes didn’t count.”

Zhou Chenxi said, “No…”

“In fact, the role of Cheng Wei is quite good,” Director Cabot explained, “In the words of your producer… it can greatly improve the audience’s favorability, but honestly, he’s an amateur.”

“‘Beard Dog’ was your voluntary audition, and the actual challenge level of that role is not high. It’s not a glamorous role; it even requires some degree of self-degradation. I noticed that there aren’t many actors of your type willing to audition for it, at least fewer than those who auditioned for Cheng Wei the previous day. So, I thought, since you’re willing to accept a challenge, maybe you could try auditioning for Li Jiaozi.”

Zhou Chenxi hurriedly said, “Director, I’m very willing to accept the challenge.”

Cabot nodded appreciatively and smiled, “I didn’t make a mistake; you’re a good actor. Honestly, I find it difficult to understand the thoughts of those investors and producers. I’ll be honest with you; initially, your Chinese investors were the Luxing Group. Later, they heard about some issues, and the project was delayed for a while. Recently, new investors came in, and I insisted strongly on having the casting choice, or else I told them to find someone else.”

“Fortunately, the new investors weren’t as persistent as Luxing, but of course, the A-country investors are just as stubborn. James Brown is my old partner, and they even demanded that I replace you forcefully. The argument about whether or not to add people to the cast and how to do it, these trivial matters from both countries, dragged on for several months. At one point, it even escalated to a patriotic angle, which gave me a headache.”

Cabot was an artist who had always pursued art without borders. However, for the sake of balance, he compromised, saying, “In the end, I took a step back. To show fairness, I reduced Li Yunzhou’s role and left only James and your leading lady, Li Peini, as the main characters. In return, I secured a condition that allows me to decide on the other important supporting roles.”

Cabot smiled and said, “Come on, Zhou Chenxi, I’ll give you a new script, and today, I’ll audition you again. But I must remind you, if I feel that you are not suitable for the role of Li Jiaozi, I will still consider casting someone else.”

The impact of this seminar on Zhou Chenxi was immense, and Zhi Qi was very concerned about the outcome. After it ended, he came over specifically to pick him up. As soon as Zhou Chenxi got in the car, Zhi Qi asked him with concern, “How did it go? Did you get the role?”

Zhou Chenxi nodded and said, “Yes.”

“That’s great,” Zhi Qi let out a sigh of relief, “Yesterday, Yuan Yike’s manager even contacted me through someone, asking where I bought the vote-boosting software from that X Bao store. I retorted right away, saying we never engage in such practices. Thankfully, that little guy Yuan Yike didn’t pass the audition…”

“He did pass the audition,” Zhou Chenxi said.

Zhi Qi was taken aback.

“And my fan votes didn’t count,” Zhou Chenxi continued, “I also auditioned for a new role, and the role is just slightly less important than the second male lead.”

Zhi Qi exclaimed, “??”

With such an outcome, Zhou Chenxi was thrilled. When he got home, he contacted Lu Ji and shared the good news with him.

Lu Ji smiled and said, “I told you not to give up. Congratulations!”

Zhou Chenxi felt guilty and said, “I just feel bad for my fans. I heard that Yuan Yike gives his fans benefits. What do you think I should do for my fans?”

Lu Ji had no experience in this regard and couldn’t offer any suggestions, so Zhou Chenxi had to think of something on his own.

He called Zhi Qi, and Zhi Qi said, “Then just take a selfie. If your photography skills aren’t up to par, I’ll find someone to edit it for you.”

Zhou Chenxi thought it was a good idea. In the afternoon, he had just added Yuan Yike on WeChat, so he took the opportunity to ask Yuan Yike for advice by sending him a message with Yuan Yike’s profile picture attached: “How should I take a selfie to give my fans some benefits?”

Yuan Yike quickly replied, “Are you sure about this?”

Zhou Chenxi found it strange that he was being so hesitant and replied, “Of course!”

So, Yuan Yike sent a long voice message to Zhou Chenxi, full of advice and suggestions, and even asked him where he was at the moment so he could use the surroundings for the photo.

Zhou Chenxi innocently replied, “I’m at home.”

A few minutes later, Zhou Chenxi took a fresh selfie and sent it to Zhi Qi. Zhi Qi responded with three exclamation marks in quick succession: “!!!”

As if afraid that Zhou Chenxi would change his mind, he didn’t even edit the photo. He quickly opened Zhou Chenxi’s Weibo account and posted the picture without waiting for approval.

Not long after the photo was posted, Zhou Chenxi received an urgent call from his brother.

“Delete the photo,” his brother commanded in a commanding tone over the phone, “Next time, make sure you’re dressed properly before taking pictures.”

Zhou Chenxi: “…”

He hadn’t even taken a provocative photo! QAQ

Author’s note: Brother: Kids, remember to button up your morals.

Thanks to “某琥” for the landmine!

Thanks to “半夜沒事看看文” and “鯨落” for the nutrition!

1TL: YSIAD “You can support me if you like my translations by leaving a comment below, or by sending me a Ko-fi. Thank you ️”