Chapter 124

Editor: Whiteflare

The first thing he realised was that he screwed up.

The second thing he realised was the fact that Yuan Zhenming still hadnt called cut on him, and that the timer was still counting down.

With things like this, I might as well make the best out of this mistake

Qi Jing closed his eyes, resigned to his fate, no longer trying to keep that tottering wall from falling. Instead, he just watched as it turned into sand, flowing down in an unending stream. His words were also scattered like so many grains of sand, With no name or status, yet You still desire to rob me of this land

With emotions out of control, he couldnt even make an entire coherent sentence, yet what it conveyed wasnt hate. It was more as if there was some kind of struggle inside him. Rather than hate, it was closer to grievancegrievance about how the feelings between brothers, between the monarch and his subject couldnt even compare to the mere position of an emperorit chilled his heart.

Cursing in a shaky voice to this point, he then laughed neurotically, his reason finally reaching its end as he spat out viciously, You should never be born To this world in the first place After he finished, he once again bursted into a fit of crazed laughter.

As it slowly began to die down, its tone also changed from frantic to cold, and in the end, the laughing part of it faded, eventually letting the sobbing buried deep under it to be heard.

At that time,

Longbow

called quietly, Your Highness.

This was supposed to be the part where Marquess Shunyang couldnt keep on listening to Emperor Changs humiliating him, and spoke up to stop him. But completely unlike the acting prompts described, there was not a single bit of that coldness in his tone.

More than that, there was even a trace of warmth to it. As if he could hear that his brother couldnt bear to deliver the blow in that last moment, so even when he cursed him, there was no real harm to it at all. With all of his feelings mixing into a single mess, he also started to choke up with sobs, laughing bitterly Your Highness Say no more.

Audience 1: QAQ Aaah

Audience 2: QAQ This somehow kinda makes my heart soft aah

Audience 3: I always felt it that the brotherhood between Emperor and Marquess (honestly, it would be great if it wasnt only brotherhoodeh?) was overflowing in between the words of this dialogue Sobs.

Audience 4: At first I thought that Dont ask for my return date made a mistake, but listening to this now, I feel like no matter if it is a mistake, or if he interpreted it this way in the first place At least I was moved. And for him to dare to play like this in a compet.i.tion, he really is brave.

Audience: Yup yup, even if its a mistake in acting, I can still experience the characters emotions (I actually cried a bit just now)

Audience 6: QAQ If it only werent a compet.i.tion I wish.

Thats right, if it only werent a compet.i.tion

Cut. Qi Jing wasnt at all surprised hearing that, and even took a long breath, his expression relieved.

If it werent a compet.i.tion, then maybe Yuan Zhengming also wouldnt call a cut on them.

But unfortunately, the compet.i.tion also had its own rules.

Ding

. When the timer stopped counting down, there were still fifteen seconds left on it. There was also another small part of the dialogue they didnt manage to perform, which would affect the final score. Still, since he already made a mistake, it didnt matter how much time he spent.

Im really sorry. Before the other man could comment, Qi Jing took the lead in apologising, chiefly to the fans that supported him, and only then to the judges.

You really are something Yuan Zhengming didnt say anything for a long while before he

hmph-

ed nasally and said out loud, You sure have guts, a crooked seedling getting even more crooked the more it grows.

Indeed, once my thoughts took a wrong turn, I instinctively went down the wrong path. Qi Jing replied composedly.

Tell me, what were you thinking of when you made such a half-turn midways? Yuan Zhengming asked suddenly, seemingly rather curious to know about Qi Jings train of thought. Qi Jing was surprised and didnt reply for a moment, stopping for a long while before sorting out how to explain himself.

At that time, I felt as if for a moment I could see Marquess Shunyangs expression. I felt that if I were Emperor Chang, I would surely become soft-heartedafter all, hes my only little brother, so seeing him hurt would make me feel sorry for him. Saying this, he realised that he was questioning the original novel, so he promptly smiled and made his stance clear, I know that the character in the novel doesnt think so, so I admit that I acted it out wrong. It was only right for Teacher Yuan to stop me at that point.

After hearing him say so, Yuan Zhengming chuckled twice. To have a different interpretation and opinion about one work, even one character, isnt all that weird. But The organisers had already written out the voice prompts clearly, yet you still insisted on acting according to your own vision?

Qi Jing also smiled, No, I usually follow the original novel when voice acting, but This time was an exception.

As if he got possessed, Shen Yans Marquess Shunyang drew out a unique Emperor Chang out of him. But even if he lost points because of that, he still felt satisfied.

Especially when

Longbow

followed his suit and matched his course, the enmity and wounds between those two characters scattered like smoke, ashes to ashes, dust to dust.

This was the kind of conclusion he wished for.

Nevertheless, going against the original novel was ultimately still wrong.

Return Dates performance style kind of reminds me of another contestant. At that time,

Longbow

added with a soft chuckle.

I was also met with a similar situation during the semifinalscontestant overturning the source novel, acting completely according to his own idea, making even more drastic changes than Return Date yet still keeping it coherent and reasonableall of it with quite an unusual charisma. Teacher, does it ring a bell for you?

As Qi Jing heard it, he could only see the cursor on his screen tremble a bitit was his hand that shook uncontrollably. He held his breath, staring at the voice activity lights of the two judges. He didnt expect for him and this man to be mentioned by an outsider in one breath right now

Oh, I know who youre talking about.

Yuan Zhengmings avatar flickered lazily. As a voice director, aside from the finals, he naturally had to listen through the semifinals carefully as well.

Not only he remembered thatwhen

Longbow

said so, the listeners also started commenting spiritedly.

Audience 1: He means Kittys Papa!

Audience 2: k3012;k25KB;k3012; He must mean Kittys Papa!! Kittys Papas Marquess Shunyang forfeitk2026; The eternal source of pain in my heart!!

Audience 3: k3012;k25KB;k3012; The eternal source of pain!! +1

Audience 4: The eternal source of pain!! +2 (Hearing Teacher Longbow say so, they really are similar)

Audience 5: Aaah, they really arek2026; But Dont ask for my return date only changed the character midways, while Kittys Papa did that from the start, even adjusting the placement of the lines. The organisers wouldnt possibly tolerate a performance this willful, so in the end, he still forfeited out of his own volitionk2026; But theres no denying that it was captivating!

Audience 6: Although it was a huge mistake to not follow the original, I still need to thank Return Date-sama for bringing us this different version of Emperor Chang! The interpretation of his psychology later was also very reasonable, I can understand your train of thought. Good luck! Even if you lose points, it was still awesome! ><

They give me the impression that theyre voice acting, but not competing.

Longbow

said with a slight smile, sounding kind of regretful.

Hah, Yuan Zhengming showed neither obvious support nor reproach to that att.i.tude, only commenting objectively, Its obvious that a commercial compet.i.tion doesnt suit them, promising seedlings all grow more or less crooked.

Them

Being referred to as such suddenly made Qi Jing feel immensely satisfied, and immensely happy.

He stared unmovingly at the words rolling through the chat, then slowly moved the cursor of the mouse, clicking the QQ chat window with

Geese Fly North

open. There was no new message inside; it stopped at the last exchange they had before.

He looked as the cursor kept flickering, the light in his irises flas.h.i.+ng along with it as his expression slowly turned into a reminiscent of the ^_^ kaomoji Shen Yan sent him.

He was just about to write a few words to send him, but it was then when the score got announced.

Group Score: 4.0, 4.0, average score 4.0

Elapsed Time: 45 seconds = 0.45 points

Audience Votes: 88.5% voting ratio = 0.885 points

Overall group score: 4.00.450.885 = 5.335 points

Since

Longbow

couldnt give a score as a partic.i.p.ant, it was Yuan Zhengming who gave his score for these criteria instead.

For this group score to actually overtake the one for Time Limits group, it actually caught him by surprise. Qi Jing expected Yuan Zhengming to be harsh and deduct him two or three points for misguiding

Longbow

Not only that, but even Teacher Pu gave them a high score of 4.0 points. He didnt know why, but that made him feel somewhat guilty instead.

Yet, Yuan Zhengming dispelled his guilt with a cheeky smile, You were cooperating quite well at the start, and even though it got a bit off-track later on, you did splendidly in terms of naturality. Let me put it like thisa straight line is a line, and a diagonal line is a line as well, so as long as they link up well, it shows that there is some kind of compatibility between those two people. Those who arent compatible will only create a bunch of dots strewn around that even when trying to link them together would still result in a chaotic mess.

The last time Qi Jing heard a description like this was during the higher algebra cla.s.ses at college.

Teachers Teacher sure was profound

Next there was the individual score. Again,

Longbow

couldnt give himself a score, so only Qi Jings part was displayed.

Dont ask for my return date individual score:

Voice Quality: 3.5, 3,5, average score 3.5

Enunciation: 4.0, 4.0, average score 4.0

Foundation Points: 4.0, 3.0, average score 3.5

Charisma: 4.0, 4.5, average score 42.5

Overall average score: 3.54.03.54.25 = 15.25 points

Additional audience vote points: 76.6% voting ratio = 0.766 points

Overall score: 15.250.7665.335 = 21.351 points

He originally already made preparations to frankly accept a miserable score, yet he didnt think that the outcome would come out much better than he expected.

Longbow

was always the one to judge kindly, and this time wasnt an exception, and Pu Yuzhi, who was consistently pretty strict, actually gave him the highest 4.5 score for charisma. When he first saw it, Qi Jing thought that he saw it wrong, and so he stared at it for a long while before snapping out of it. But she also deducted two whole points for the foundation points score, probably as the price for his interpretation of the last few lines going against the canon plotbut it was a small price nevertheless.

It wouldnt count as an ideal score, and it wouldnt even stand up to the compet.i.tion. Despite that, for Qi Jing it was still the audition he was the most proud of because in this evaluation,

he

finally became

them

.

In the empty chat box, he typed in one word: Us

Just as he was about to press send, his phone rang suddenly. He took a look at the display and the corners of his lips curled up slightly. Turns out that man didnt message him on QQ because he was waiting for the scoring to be finished so that he could call him directly.

After answering the call, he didnt say h.e.l.lo as he would do with any stranger, opting for a gentle nasal hum instead. It was soft and indolent, like the lazy image of how every morning he would pretend to not hear his boyfriends alarm clock, more interested in snuggling into this mans embrace and loathing to part with the bed.

After taking off the headphones, the noisy clamour and hubbub of the 2D world stopped momentarily, as its power got cut off, leaving the surroundings quiet. At this time, the wind outside became clear to hear. That sound of sweeping gusts had quite an effect on his cooled yet slightly feverish auditory nerves.

Qi Jing stood up from his chair, walking over to the window. Even when he was done doing that, the man on the other side of the call still had yet to speak.

Qi Jing also didnt hurry him, offhandedly pulling the curtain a bit, watching the night scenery outside. The business hotel he was staying in was rather close to the centre and his apartment was facing away from the main road, so the sight from his window wasnt like that in most of the brightly-lit metropolises he had been seeing so often.

The main colour outside was still black. The light inside the apartment stayed easily within the window panes, reflecting his room as well as his own person.

As he waited, he suddenly got in a good mood, so he moved closer to blow hot air on the window, then drew a heart in the centre of its fogged white surface. Just as his finger connected the start and the end of the hearts shape, he finally heard that mans voice through the receiver.

You come back now, please? It was somewhat sheepish, a bit like a childish pleading. When said in that low and husky voice, it simply made his heart squeeze momentarily.

Mn. Even though he clearly knew that it was impossible, he still looked down and agreed with a soft chuckle, Okay.

Another spell of silence.

He stood quietly for a long time by that window, his finger continuing to write a Yan character inside the heart, his smile unchanging as he listened to that not so even breath of the man on the other side. As that rapid breath slowly calmed down, the struggle in his heart also seemed to have finally pa.s.sed, finally turning entirely into a dejected sigh.

Im sorry Im not really saying for you to

Come back

. This kind of an unreasonable request would only be troublesome.

I know.

Of course Qi Jing knew, because, For a person like you to actually say something that might trouble me Its even more difficult to do than my going immediately to buy a return ticket right now.

Shen Yan didnt reply, only taking a slow, deep breathit seemed like he still hadnt calmed down entirely yet.

Qi Jing didnt hear him speak, so he just listened to the noise of the static in the background, which surprisingly let his mind relax a bit. Its only that, as the fog on the window started to disappear, he watched the Yan character framed inside the heart fade away, the expression on his reflection slowly turning melancholic as wellin the end, he still admitted to his loneliness.

At that time, Shen Yan suddenly spoke and asked, Qi Jing, did you because of me

Qi Jing understood what he was asking about immediately, but he didnt answer it directly, only smiling as he replied with another question, What is it? Did you feel moved by me, hm?

Shen Yan sighed again. You really dont have to worry about me, Im already fine.

If I shouldnt worry about you, then how about missing you? Qi Jing spoke in a low voice, supporting his head against the window gla.s.s. There was a certain rich quality and flavour to his laugh, like that of a melted chocolate, slowly seeping through the call between them. For a moment, Shen Yan wasnt able to say anything.

Qi Jing raised his head, gazing at the star-like lights outside as he continued his murmur.

You know, I Before, I would always have to run around outside, travelling for business trips; the time I spent in the hotels was probably more than my time at home. Sometimes, I would go gathering news for the whole day and only get back at midnight, with no appet.i.te to eat and unable to fall asleep, so I would sit alone, s.p.a.cing out by the window. At those times, I felt that staying at a hotel wasnt different from staying at home at all, it was all dark outside, maybe with few windows lit up, always the same no matter where I was But now it has changed.

He stopped for a moment, his voice getting lower. Right now, Im looking at the Beijing nightlights, but I feel like theyre not as warm as those I see back at home

Not as warm as those I see by your side.

Mn. After a while, Shen Yan replied in a low voice.

Does it prove that Im getting old? Qi Jing laughed. Shen Yan also laughed along softly, a faint yet rich emotion flowing in his breath, pouring out from between the sounds.

When the call ended, the phone in Qi Jings hand was warm, so warm that the warmth of the room became kind of redundant.

Qi Jing returned to his chair satisfied.

The good side of having a numbered line-up for the compet.i.tion beforehands was that he could estimate the time they had left, and so he estimated that it was about the time for their next auditions before he finished his call with Shen Yan. And unsurprisingly, by the time he got back to the computer, there were still two audition groups before it was his group No.66s turn.

This time it would be Fang Yisheng against Bai Ke.

He had to temporarily get out of that crazed Emperors mindset, once again changing into that cold and aloof Lord Fang, Inn-owner Fang.

For the next stage, we will ask the contestants of group No.66 to take the field!

The other two contestant groups didnt take that much time, and after a short while, it was finally his groups turn. As always, Yang Chunqu controlled the coming and going of the contestants in a neat and methodical manner. Although up to that point, a few mishaps happened during the finals, the overall tempo of the auditions was quite good, in great part thanks to her hard work.

Qi Jing took a slow breath in, trying to keep calm. Hed better try to rid himself of the influence left by his mistake during the last audition, only this way he would be good to go.

He wondered who he would stumble upon this time

Before he could even look at the contestants list, he abruptly heard a pinkish bubbly old uncle voice in his ears, Return~ Date~ Sa~ma~

Qi Jing was petrified and his skin crawled with gooseb.u.mps.

No, freaking, way?

Group No.66: Dont ask for my return datevs.How long away is forever

Qi Jing momentarily saw black before his eyes.

Again?

Just how many times do I have to Never Come Back with this guy?

Return Date-sama~

How long away is forever

didnt at all realise the speechless terror that washed over Qi Jing. He sounded even happier than previously, announcing the joyous news to everyone present, I got to meet Return Date-sama again! Im so happy!

Qi Jing silently turned his face away.

Ever since he did an impression of

Sleek horses run fast

that one time, this kid seemed to really believe that it was him who recorded him and started to treat him as his second idol. If he knew it would turn out this way, he wouldnt try to get that recording from the real deal Qi Jing regretted it deep in his heart.

But if they got put together by a random draw, then there was nothing he could do about that.

So you actually also signed up for Bai Ke.

Thats right, thats right! I signed up for three roles, that is Yan Buliu, Bai Ke and also Emperor Chang! But I didnt get into the top ten for the last one, so I couldnt proceed into the finals. Even mere listening to his tone made one imagine a QAQ-like expression he was probably making right now. Qi Jing turned his face even further away.

Just how much do you like to play villains?

Eh, how did Return Date-sama know? Is it because we have a telepathic connection? The pink bubbles only intensified.

Its because its so plain to see, kiddo!

Under these circ.u.mstances, the audience made its way happily to cause some trouble.

Audience 1: o(*) Pffhhahahaha, its Not Coming Back group, its Not Coming Back group again!!

Audience 2: o(*) Pfft So clingy, you simply just cant shake him off!! Datey, what will you do about that??

Audience 3: o(*) Our fellow How long away is forever really is smitten devoted~

Audience 4: Waah, do you treat my Time Limit s.h.i.+p as dead! Little Noodles, quick, come here, your familys little topalthough only in 2Dstumbled across a stalker!

Audience 5: A stalker Hahahaha, this description fits quite well. Saying that, during todays auditions, its the first repet.i.tion in groups, so could it be that contestant Forever really has some stalker tendencies? (rubs chin)

Audience 6: () Dont be like that, you need to have some sympathy for Dont ask for my return date-sama

This fellow at the end, your comment and emoji dont quite match up

Qi Jing felt as if he already used up his months worth of snark.

At that time, the host lady who didnt cut in all the way up till then finally interrupted

How long away is forever

with a cough, saying with a weak apologetic smile, No, Im sorry, I actually wanted to say, this kind of arrangement according to our rules, its not allowed.

Qi Jing was dumbstruck.

How long away is forever

was dumbstruck as well, and so asked foolishly, Ah? What not allowed? Why is it not allowed?

Its because contestant How long away is forever has already auditioned in a group with contestant Dont ask for my return date, Yang Chunqu explained patiently, If it was an audition for a different character, then there would be no issue. But in the current repeated line-up, contestant Dont ask for my return date is again playing Fang Yisheng With the same partner and the same role to play, its about the same as if the two of you already had a run-through. Your tacit understanding of each other is surely higher than that of other peoples, so it would be unfair for the rest of the contestants.

Thats true

Still in a daze, Qi Jing considered Yang Chunqus wordsthe organisers had a point by making such a rule.

How long away is forever

had already heard his Fang Yisheng twice, so he was already familiar with his voice acting style, so he was probably more confident than if he met another Fang Yisheng which could cause other contestants to object.

Hearing this,

How long away is forever

wailed in complaint with that big uncle voice of his. What tacit understanding! I have just cooperated with Return Date-sama once, just once! I want my second chance to cooperate~ I beg you, miss host~

I Im sorry. Yang Chunqu nervously wiped off a handful of sweat.

Return Date-sama, quick, help me beg miss host!

How long away is forever

turned to the tactic of roping him into his shenanigans.

I have no say about this. Its all about how the organisers want to handle it. Qi Jing was still turning his face away.

How long away is forever

once again whined miserably while the chat laughed their heads off, the atmosphere incredibly merry.

Ugh In a case like this, Yang Chunqu seemed to leaf through to something by the mic, as only a sound of turning the pages could be heard. Then, her activity light shone once again, I just looked through the rules to confirmif theres a repeated group with at least one character overlap, the contestant for the repeated character will be moved to the next group with the same line-up of characters.

Hearing this, Qi Jing opened his eyes wide, instinctively holding his breath.

The next group with the same Fang Yisheng and Bai Ke line-up Ah. Yang Chunqu paused a little, her voice brightening up, happy with finding the answer she was looking for so swiftly, 67.

TN:

Lucilla: Merry late Christmas everyone! Sorry for the late update, this chapter is a chonky one and I got caught up with the preparations for Christmas But I hope youre spending the end of this year all warm and comfy ^^

Whiteflare: dundundun! 67 :O?

Haha, hope everyone had a great holiday~