Peninsula: From a supporting actor to the best actor in Chungmuro

Chapter 24: Rules for Survival in the Audition Area

The morning mist has not yet dissipated.

When Jiang Jae-hoon pushed open the door of the unit with his backpack on his back, he almost bumped into the black nanny car that was blocking the entrance of the corridor.

He leaned in to take a closer look at the black Mercedes-Benz Viano - the new nanny car that Hwang Jung-min had purchased.

Jin Dayuan tapped the steering wheel with a toothpick in his mouth:

"What are you standing there for? Get in the car!"

"Oh"

The car's walnut trim exudes the unique resin smell of a new car.

When Jiang Jae-hoon got into the back seat, his fingertips accidentally touched the raised button on the side of the armrest.

"Buzz——"

The sudden vibration of the mechanical massage on his lumbar spine frightened him so much that he hunched his back like a shrimp.
"H-this chair has become a spirit?!"

"Bumpkin!"

Jin Dayuan slapped the steering wheel and laughed wildly: "Your teacher specially upgraded the spinal therapy function so that you can experience the occupational hazard of the movie star in advance."

"..."

The nanny car slowly drove away from the unit door.

Jiang Zaixun was adjusting the air conditioning button like a curious baby, when suddenly a flash of fluorescent green appeared in the morning mist.

Lee Sung-kyung was jogging on the community trail in the morning wearing bone conduction headphones.

Tight yoga pants wrapped around her slender legs, and her waist and hip curves rose and fell like waves with the rhythm of her running.

There are only 33 days left until Seoul Fashion Week.

Lee Sung-kyung's training schedule became increasingly rigorous, and she even set her alarm clock forty minutes earlier.

——Of course, this has nothing to do with the time difference between him and Kang Jae-hoon to use the bathroom in the morning.

"You're almost glued to me? Do you want to stop and say hello?"

"Don't! She'll say I'm disrupting the morning exercise order."

"Really?" Jin Dayuan deliberately slowed down to 15 mph. "I'll show you a drift parking show."

"Brother, do you have enough points on your driver's license?"

"..."

When the nanny car drove out of Shengshui Cave, the morning mist of the Han River was being evaporated into wisps of golden gauze by the early sun.

Jiang Zaixun slumped in his seat and counted the whistles of the cargo ships on the river. The three long and two short whistles reminded him of the lighthouse signals in the drama "The Seagull".

The glass forest of Apgujeong gradually emerges.

Stuck in traffic at the Rodeo Drive intersection, the cedar scent of the car's incense mingled with the caramel aroma wafting from the corner bakery. Jiang Zaixun rolled down the window for some fresh air when he heard the crisp sound of metal colliding.

Outside the shop diagonally opposite, a crane was hanging a neon sign to the door lintel, and the chrome letters of "Tint" reflected a cold light in the morning sun.

"That is."

Jiang Zaixun leaned half of his body out of the car window, but his neck was pulled back into the seat by the suddenly loose seat belt.

"what happened?"

Jin Dayuan asked while honking the horn.

"nothing."

The shop he handled during his internship as an agent is already being renovated, and it seems the lease transaction has been successfully completed.

South Korea has a small land area.

But no matter where you go, the time is measured in hours - because there are so many cars.

It was almost nine o'clock when the nanny car slid into the underground garage of SBS TV station.

The traffic was stuck for forty-five minutes.

The mirrored surface of the elevator door reflected the huge crowd of people——

More than a dozen young men in white shirts were adjusting their bow ties, looking like a group of penguins molting collectively.

The audition waiting area smelled of air conditioning and cheap perfume.

Jin Dayuan slapped the audition card on his chest:

"33, a lucky number!"

Jiang Zaixun carried his backpack and moved along the wall to the folding chair in the corner.

On the left sat Kang Ha-neul, who was practicing the line "He who wears the crown must bear its weight," and on the right was Park Hyung-sik, whose knees were shaking wildly.

Jiang Jae-hoon suddenly recalled what Han Hye-jin told her on the set yesterday: "Anxiety is contagious."

His knees also shook unconsciously along with Park Hyung-sik.

Park Hyung-sik suddenly stopped shaking his legs and tilted his head to look at him:

"You have Parkinson's?"

Jiang Zaixun's knee suddenly stopped:

"what?"

"I'm trying to figure out Choi Young-do."

Park Hyung-sik lifted his trouser legs and tied a 5kg sandbag to his calf: "I heard that the second generation of chaebols should walk with the relaxed feeling of a cheetah."

"..."

Jiang Zaixun silently put his legs together and sat in a military training posture.

"Which role are you trying out for?"

Jiang Hena came over and handed a mint to the two of them.

"Of course Choi Young-do."

Park Hyung-sik thanked him and mumbled while chewing candy.

Jiang Hena looked around and suddenly lowered his voice:
"I heard that Choi Young-do has been chosen by Kim Woo-bin." Park Hyung-sik snapped his fingers and said with a smile:
"So I prepared Plan B—Yun Chanyoung."

"What about you, Jiang Zaixunxi."

Kang Ha-neul turned to look at Kang Jae-hoon.

"Ok?"

Jiang Jae-hoon was stunned: "How do you know my name?"

"I'm a drama major at Central University. I was in the audience watching your drama club perform at our school last month."

Jiang Hena smiled and said, "We analyzed your curtain call in acting class last week."

"No, wait a minute—"

Park Hyung-sik suddenly interrupted: "What's going on? I thought everyone was unemployed young people——"

He counted on his fingers: "Academicians, drama stars, so I'm the only one who's a pure crossover newcomer?"

"No, you should think that Jiang Zaixunxi's teacher is Huang Zhengmin and he can appear with you in the SBS audition area. Isn't that a balance in your heart?"

"Balance what the hell! Wait."

Park Hyung-sik suddenly realized: "Your teacher is Hwang Jung-min?"

Jiang Zaixun touched his nose and said: "I am just learning from the teacher"

"Hurry, hurry! Commemorate this historic moment—"

Park Hyung-sik pulled out his phone and held it up at a 45-degree angle: "When I make a documentary in the future, this segment will be called 'Debut at the Peak - Idol Actors Who Auditioned and Eliminated Childhood Award Winners.'"

Beside him, Jiang Hena also silently took out his phone and said, "Can you please give Jaehoonxi a V sign?"

"."

Jiang Jae-hoon made a stiff gesture with his scissors hands like a kidnapped hostage.

"Crack!"

Before the shutter sounded, a sneer suddenly came from behind:
"Newcomers these days are really good at using connections. Hwang Jung-min's students are actually competing with us for extra roles? Could they be defective products that were returned?"

Park Hyung-sik slowly turned the camera of his phone towards the source of the sound:

"Isn't this the documentary material—'Hyenas in the Audition Area'?"

"Hey, who am I thinking——"

The slicked-back man put his hands in front of his eyes like binoculars and looked at Park Hyung-sik:

"Isn't this the same group that even had to rely on fan crowdfunding for their stage costumes?"

Park Hyung-sik's phone locked with a click, and his knuckles turned white. "Say it again?"

"Well? I suggest you change your name to Imperial Beggars."

Park Hyung-sik suddenly stood up and grabbed the other person's collar, and the sandbag bandage on his calf broke open with a "snap".

"Don't!"

Jiang Zaixun hurriedly inserted himself between the two of them.

"Hurry up! The surveillance camera just caught Hu Dou beating someone up, it's headline news!"

The greasy-haired man yelled at the top of his lungs: "The title is 'Bullying at the Audition of an Obscure Idol'—"

As soon as he finished speaking, Park Hyung-sik's arm, which was holding the slicked-back man's collar, began to tremble violently.

This shaking is not fear, but the pre-action shake of adrenaline rushing and preparation for action.

At this critical moment.

Jiang Zaixun suddenly covered his chest and stumbled back, a roar like a broken bellows coming out of his throat:
"Ah Xi. Medicine."

He rolled his eyes and rushed towards Jiang Hena, kicking the trash can accurately with his twitching knee.

The can rolled to the feet of the greasy-haired man, and Park Hyung-sik's raised fist suddenly turned and hit his own thigh.

Jiang Hena hugged Jiang Zaixun, who was lying on the ground and twitching, and pinched his Renzhong madly:
"Ambulance! Call an ambulance!"

The greasy-haired man was so frightened that he took three steps back and bumped into the fire hydrant:
"No, it's none of my business! It's him."

When the stagehands pushed through the crowd and rushed in, Jiang Zaixun, who was lying on the ground, was foaming at the mouth.

"The patient needs artificial respiration!"

"Axi!"

Park Hyung-sik rushed to Kang Jae-hoon and knelt down: "I'll do it!"

Jiang Zaixun was so frightened that he quickly put his hands up to cover his face and sat up straight: "It suddenly got better."

"..."

The whole audience was silent for three seconds.

The intercom in the hands of the stagehand was buzzing with noise: "No. 33. Is No. 33 still auditioning in this physical condition?"

“You can try!”

Jiang Zaixun wiped the foam from the corner of his mouth and stood up straight with a somersault: "Just now, that was preparation for the role!"

When Kang Jae-hoon entered the audition room, order was restored in the waiting area.

Park Hyung-sik quietly tied the sandbag back to his calf.

Kang Ha-neul sat in a chair, lost in thought.

".Was he performing just now?"

A moment later, Park Hyung-sik broke the silence.

"Yes."

Jiang Hena's voice was extremely low:
"To be able to act out this near-death state, one must have either truly experienced it, or be a natural talent."

"Where does his white foam come from?"

"Maybe a mint?"

(End of this chapter)