Chapter 0731: Meeting Again, Not Necessarily a Smile

What is the essence of performance?

The answer is simple: it's acting for others to see.

Although Zhao Fusheng wasn't in the entertainment industry, the people he dealt with were basically future powerhouse actors, so his understanding of acting was somewhat deeper than others'.

As an outsider, that was understandable, but as an actress, Fan Baobao was in trouble.

When she first started acting, Zhao Fusheng forced her to be an extra on set, and later she ran into unreliable directors like Jiang Wen. All of this made Fan Baobao feel that performance was about expressing one's true emotions.

Of course, she wasn't foolish enough to think that the form of performance was real; what she understood was the emotional truth of the actor.

So here was the problem: Fan Baobao's acting was heading down the path of experiential acting, which for an actor was undoubtedly the most painful thing.

Because experiential actors emphasize a sense of immersion; simply put, if you're heartbroken, you have to truly feel heartbroken, and even if you're not, you have to figure out what emotions a heartbroken person would have.

Method actors, on the other hand, have it relatively easier. At the very least, heartbreak represents a bad mood, which can be replaced by the emotion of losing a job or losing money. Such performances might even seem more compelling to the audience.

But Fan Baobao's problem now was that she felt method acting was deceptive; if she did that, it would be like cheating the audience.

So, whether in class or in daily life, she had been acting very conflicted lately.

Others couldn't tell, but Zhao Fusheng could clearly sense Fan Baobao's difference. That she had hit a bottleneck in her acting surprised him greatly.

For this, Zhao Fusheng specifically called Yu Feihong to ask about it. According to Yu Feihong, it was a good thing, indicating that Fan Baobao had talent for acting.

In industry terms, it's called 'the ancestor bestowing a meal.'

So Zhao Fusheng could only watch Fan Baobao ponder on her own, hoping that one day she would figure it out herself.

In the past few days, he had accompanied his girlfriend to class every day, but surprisingly, Fan Baobao's suitor Chen Sicheng hadn't shown up, which frustrated Zhao Fusheng.

Weren't rivals supposed to meet with burning eyes? Why wasn't he playing by the rules?

The campus of the Central Academy of Drama (CAD) really left Zhao Fusheng speechless. Compared to the vast campus of the Beijing Film Academy, CAD's little patch of land was pitifully small, almost like a paradise.

For instance, once when Zhao Fusheng was passing by the playground, he saw a few students playing basketball; a three-point shot actually landed on the track.

They say poverty limits imagination. Zhao Fusheng thought that the reason CAD built a large new campus in the suburbs many years later was probably because the students couldn't stand the school's stinginess and did something about it.

Of course, that was a long time later. For now, what met Zhao Fusheng's eyes was a group of spirited young men, like middle school delinquents, yelling around a shabby basketball court.

Many of them would become stars on TV and movie screens years later, but now they were just ordinary students at CAD.

Since it was lunch break, there were many people on the playground. Fan Baobao and Zhou Yun had gone back to the dormitory. Zhao Fusheng had planned to go home, but he couldn't be bothered to make the trip, so he stayed.

The weather was nice anyway, so he might as well watch the excitement.

“Hmm, isn't that Zhu Yuchen?” Zhao Fusheng's gaze fixed on a familiar figure among the basketball players.

He had an excellent memory; generally, he remembered anyone he had met before.

Zhu Yuchen had once been one of Fan Baobao's many suitors. After being fooled by Zhao Fusheng, he seemed to have backed off. Unexpectedly, they met again.

“He probably doesn't remember me, right?” Zhao Fusheng muttered to himself. Back then, he had pretended to be Fan Baobao's brother, and Zhu Yuchen had happily treated him to a meal.

It must be said, Murphy's Law is a strange thing: the more you don't want something to happen, the more it does.

As Zhao Fusheng sat there, the moment he saw Zhu Yuchen, Zhu Yuchen also saw him.

They confirmed eye contact—they had met before.

Both were a bit awkward. Zhao Fusheng, with his thick skin, smiled and stood up to leave.

But Zhu Yuchen jogged over.

“Hey, wait a minute.” Zhu Yuchen's voice came from behind, forcing Zhao Fusheng to stop.

After all, he had eaten the guy's meal, so Zhao Fusheng couldn't just walk away. Besides, the other was Fan Baobao's classmate; word getting out wouldn't be good for her.

Turning around, Zhao Fusheng faced the slightly out-of-breath Zhu Yuchen and forced a smile: “Ah, Zhu Yuchen, right? Hello.”

He had to; he felt guilty.

Not because he had advised the guy not to pursue Fan Baobao, but because he had pretended to be her brother and mooched a meal, and now he had become her boyfriend. That was awkward.

“Hello.” Zhu Yuchen looked at Zhao Fusheng and shook his head helplessly: “You really fooled me.”

Zhao Fusheng was taken aback, then laughed. It seemed Zhu Yuchen already knew who he was.

To be precise, even if Zhu Yuchen didn't know exactly who Zhao Fusheng was, he must have known that Zhao Fusheng was definitely not Fan Baobao's brother, but her boyfriend.

“Haha, well, at that time, Baobao and I hadn't confirmed our relationship yet…” Zhao Fusheng blinked and could only say this, while stepping back in case Zhu Yuchen tried something.

Zhu Yuchen rolled his eyes and looked at Zhao Fusheng helplessly: “Dude, you don't need to explain. I won't believe anything you say.”

“Ah?” This time it was Zhao Fusheng's turn to be dumbfounded.

It seemed that his previous act had caused this kid considerable pain.

Come to think of it, the so-called future brother-in-law he had tried so hard to please turned out to be his “rival in love.” Zhao Fusheng figured that if it were him, he probably wouldn't be as calm as Zhu Yuchen.

Thinking this way, the guy did have some redeeming qualities.

With that in mind, Zhao Fusheng smiled and said to Zhu Yuchen: “I think we're actually quite fated.”

Zhu Yuchen's expression instantly turned strange, because he clearly remembered that when he first met Zhao Fusheng, that was exactly what he had said.