Translator: Viv
Editor: thomas
ACT TWO LIANG-XIONG
Prelude
“What does ‘my fate is determined’ mean?”
Qiao He entered and didn’t expect there to be so many people in the theater. This was just the first day he came to the theater to meet with the crew after receiving the notice. Because of traffic jams on the road, he was late. At this moment, he nodded one by one to the staff crowded in the corridor watching the rehearsal as he moved through the crowds.
“Qiao Laoshi,” was how they addressed him.
“There are so many people coming to watch,” he said.
They pointed to the stage and said with excitement in their eyes, “It’s Tang Zhen, Tang Zhen has arrived.”
He turned to the stage but before seeing anyone, he heard a voice.
It was young and clear, resonating in the 800-seat theater, flowing like water striking stones, effortlessly falling on Qiao He’s ears. Every word and even the sighs at the end of sentences could be clearly distinguished.
For such a young age, this vocal foundation was still passable.
This was Qiao He’s first thought at the time.
Then he saw Director Lin Hanchen, his fat body and white curly hair, holding a script tightly as he slowly explained to the person on stage: “Decreed by fate, that means destiny.”
Afraid the young actor still might not understand fully, Director Lin continued to explain in his somewhat improper Mandarin: “Destiny refers to something that has been placed upon you, upon Yingtai’s shoulders – it’s just a few simple words, uncompromising, with everything on the line, recklessly risking one’s life, never looking back.”
Author’s Note:
I saw a girl say that our Xiao Zhou is so cute. I also want to write about our Xiao Zhou soon, but he doesn’t appear much in the second act. I want to write about the third act earlier.
The second act is mainly about what happened to Tang Zhen during the six months of rehearsals for “The Butterfly Lovers” when he was 18 years old in the theater. It will write about the status of various characters eight years ago, with not much plot, mainly describing the status. It’s about causes and effects I guess. It will be a bit shorter than the first act.
Tang Zhen Laoshi’s positioning is that he was hugely popular in his time, a former national idol. To me, this concept is like something that sounds like a legend. Like when we watch recap segments in variety shows nowadays, we often feel amazed at numbers from past eras with thoughts like “How is that possible across eras?”, Tang Zhen Laoshi is the type that can evoke such feelings. That’s his character setting. But in the second act, he is still a newcomer who just debuted and hasn’t matured for long…
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Also, because last time I wrote about Qi Lu, some girls asked if he would fall in love with Tang Zhen. No he wouldn’t. Qiao He Laoshi is a major character in the second act, so I’ll say in advance – also no, he wouldn’t. Although Tang Zhen Laoshi’s positioning is a legend, like many talented and shining people around us, or the stars we see on screen, he must have been surrounded by countless suitors (in an entertainment circle story like this one, objectively speaking, for many years almost all characters would be in a state of being pursued and admired by many, including Xiao Zhou, Xiao Yang, Yun Laoban, Luo Tiantian – I feel this is more realistic, after all that’s the kind of people they are), but this story won’t mention them much. Most people are just colleagues with each other.
Chapter 26
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No wonder he had never gained popularity. His girlfriend, Fan Xiao, said so.
Therefore, when Director Lin mentioned the name “Tang Zhen” over the phone, Qiao He had absolutely no idea who that was.
The theater industry wasn’t that big. There weren’t many big names or benefits involved, and not many people tried to enter that circle. Every year, a few new faces emerged who could make it to the stage, and most people in the industry had some knowledge of them. Qiao He had never heard of anyone named “Tang Zhen.” Director Lin mentioned that the person had been a former child star who debuted at the age of eight in Lin’s epic play, “The Death of Gong Gong.”
“Why haven’t I heard of him?”
“He stopped acting later.”
Qiao He simply thought of him as a child star who had disappeared from the spotlight and had now been brought back to acting by the eccentric old man, Lin Hanchen.
“The script, I had someone from our theater troupe deliver it to you, along with a book. Take some time to read it in advance,” Director Lin said. “Qiao He, I’m entrusting this role of Liang Shanbo to you. I don’t usually ask much of you, but this time, take it seriously.”
Qiao He smiled and said, “Do you really think I’m capable of acting in a love story?”
Director Lin replied, “I have faith in you.”
He continued, “There’s a lunch meeting the day after tomorrow. Come over.”
The theater troupe was a state-owned organization. Before leaving work, Qiao He made a trip to the office. A colleague informed him that a white file packet had been delivered for him, with instructions to hand it over personally.
Curiously, the colleague asked, “Is it true that someone mentioned you collaborating with Tang Zhen? Is it real or just a rumor?”
Qiao He heard the name “Tang Zhen” again, deepening his impression. “Is he famous?” he asked while unpacking the file bag and pulling out the script and a novel.
“The Butterfly Lovers,” written by a renowned novelist of the Republican era in the school of Mandarin Duck and Butterfly.1
“Are you asking if Tang Zhen is famous?” the colleague asked in return.
Along with the book, there was a photo fell out onto Qiao He’s immaculate desk, wiped clean and spotless.
It was a portrait of a young man.
“Isn’t your home subscribed to cable? He’s everywhere on TV,” a colleague remarked.
In the photo, the person wore a white shirt, looking directly into the camera. He appeared to be around seventeen or eighteen years old. His hair was tousled, his features were exquisite, and his facial structure was delicate and beautiful. His fair skin resembled that of a girl. His shoulders were not broad, and his collar was slightly open, revealing a soft neckline. He slightly raised his chin towards the camera. Young men always exuded a sense of pride and flamboyance that was not off-putting. However, this boy’s eyes were reserved, subtle, and even timid, with a hint of misty sentiment.
It was a black and white photo, reminiscent of the stars of old movies from the last century. Qiao He stared at the photo for a while, then flipped it over. On the back, the words “Yingtai” were handwritten with a pen.
“Isn’t this Tang Zhen?” the colleague, seeing the photo, asked Qiao He in shock. “Are you really going to act with Tang Zhen?”
“Yeah,” Qiao He shrugged it off. He glanced at the photo once again, put it back, looked up at the clock on the wall, gathered his script and novel, took his water bottle, and said to the colleague who was still curious, “It’s time to leave. We can talk later if you have time.”
During the rush hour after work, the streets were crowded, and cars were stuck in the usual traffic. Qiao He turned on the radio and heard the shampoo commercial jingle playing once again on the broadcast program.
“Cherish you like a dream, love you like a dream. Just as there are shadows in the water, I have dreams within my dreams, like you, as if it were you.”
Qiao He rarely listened to radio programs, only tuning in during his commute to kill time. He usually listened to the traffic channel, which occasionally played advertisements and popular songs on rotation. He had heard this song called “Just Like a Dream” so many times that he could almost sing along.
Carrying his bag and feeling exhausted, Qiao He returned home. As soon as he entered, he heard Fan Xiao calling him from the living room while talking on the phone. “Qiao He! Are you going to act in ‘The Butterfly Lovers’?”
Qiao He took off his shoes in the hallway, wondering how everyone seemed to know about it when he had only received the notice today.
He hung up his coat, placed his bag down, loosened his collar, and glanced over at the dining table where a hot meal was steaming.
Fan Xiao sat on the sofa, covering the mouthpiece of the phone with his hand and whispered, “Is it ‘The Butterfly Lovers’? You and Tang Zhen?”
On this day, for the third time in a row, someone mentioned the name “Tang Zhen” to Qiao He.
Qiao He replied, “Yes.” Then he added, “Get off the phone, let’s eat first.”
“You go ahead and eat,” Fan Xiao said.
Qiao He finished washing his own dishes and poured a cup of tea before sitting next to Fan Xiao. The TV was muted, and Fan Xiao was still on the phone.
On the coffee table, there stood a vase, several porcelain plates, and various cut flower branches. Qiao He didn’t know what Fan Xiao was busy with. He found a place to put his tea cup, sat for a while, but Fan Xiao didn’t hang up the phone.
A pile of newspapers and magazines was stacked on the sofa, mostly film magazines published by Fan Xiao’s company. Qiao He randomly picked one up and glanced at the cover.
He casually flipped open a page.
Qiao He couldn’t believe it, so he grabbed another one.
All of them had photos of a young man named Tang Zhen.
Until that day, Qiao He had never doubted the extent of his disconnection from society. He was unashamed of being “outdated” and felt quite content about it. He simply started to wonder why he had no intention of chasing after trends, yet trends were everywhere. Usually, he had a fleeting glance at people, treating them like leaves in a forest, unable to remember faces or names. But now that he had to come into contact with it, he realized that trends truly followed people in the society like a shadow.
A shampoo commercial was playing on the TV. Without sound, Qiao He could easily recognize the lyrics from the spokesperson’s lip movements:
“Cherish you like a dream, love you like a dream.”
Fan Xiao hung up the phone, feeling parched. She took a sip from Qiao He’s tea cup and hastily went to have her meal. Qiao He lowered his head and continued flipping through the magazine. He saw that several consecutive pages in the film section were dedicated to the popular star Tang Zhen. Alongside large stills, movie introductions, there were several stacked film reviews, and even a brief personal biography of Tang Zhen.
At the end of last year, Tang Zhen had received numerous awards at various award ceremonies, filling up half a page with the long list. Qiao He scanned through the highlights and felt overwhelmed by the abundance of “best” and “champion” titles.
So much exaggerated and high praise, equating a living person to the gods.
“A complex and nearly perfect performance. Tang Zhen is destined to live in front of the camera.”
“A young man surrounded by emotions. He is not the god of flowers, but rather Eve, coming to the mortal world, adorned with the innocent attire of an angel.”
“The tremor of sensuality expressed in just one shot is unimaginable. At such a young age, without using a stunt double, he truly has courage.”
“He is like a blank sheet of paper, where you can see everything you desire. What’s even more important is that he is only seventeen years old, with limitless potential.”
…
Qiao He thought to himself that this era was truly relentless in destroying people. “Exuding a trembling sensuality,” such words could even make it into newspapers and magazines headlines, describing a child star who is still underage. What on earth were the editors doing?
From behind him, the editor herself, Fan Xiao Laoshi, called out to him, “Lao Qiao, Lin Hanchen wanted to talk to you about the rehearsal?”
“Uh-huh.” Qiao He threw the magazine aside and turned around.
“Why is he suddenly thinking of you now?” Fan Xiao said while eating peanuts. “He looked for so many people in your theater troupe, but never approached you. I thought he didn’t think highly of you.”
“I thought so too,” Qiao He replied honestly.
Fan Xiao laughed. She put down her chopsticks, wiped her mouth, and looked at him seriously.
“While it’s better to have a play to rehearse than sitting idle in the office,” Fan Xiao said with a serious expression, “I’m warning you, Qiao He, stay away from Tang Zhen. Everyone in this circle knows all the nasty things that he’s gotten up to while filming his past few movies. He’s just a little kid, and he’s already wallowing in debauchery. I don’t even know who he hasn’t fooled around with on the set. You can work together during rehearsals, but keep your distance from him in your daily life, understand?”
Translator’s Note:
1 The Mandarin Duck and Butterfly School was a literary trend during the Republican era in China that was based primarily on romantic fiction. Its tones and styles tended towards being worldly and pandering to popular tastes in a sensationalized manner.
