Literary Master: Starting with Refusing to Be a Child Star

Three months after the broadcast of "Tales of Wonder", the children gathered in Beijing with the help of Director Qin.

Luo Jinnian flew over from Langya City, Gu Yanxi arrived early, Tao Xiaopang and his father took an overnight train from Guangxi, Zhou Mingyuan came with his mother from Zhengzhou, and Sun Lei was the closest, his home was in the suburbs of Beijing, and he arrived early in the morning.

Director Qin arranged the gathering on the floor of his studio. The place wasn't big, but it was enough for the kids to have some fun.

When Luo Jinnian walked in, the first person he saw was Tao Xiaopang. He was probably a little taller than when he was filming, but he still had that look where his eyes would disappear when he smiled.

He stood by the window holding a bottle of yogurt. When he turned around and saw Luo Jinnian, his first words were enthusiastic, "You're here! Did you see that? The Douban rating for our show has gone up again!"

Gu Yanxi sat on the sofa, her hair had grown to her ears, much longer than when she was filming. She no longer wore a hat, but tied it into a small ponytail. The ears and neck that were exposed no longer showed any trace of Eleven.

She saw Luo Jinnian come in, but didn't say anything. She just moved aside, making room for him on the sofa.

Zhou Mingyuan and Sun Lei peeked out from another room, each holding a slice of pizza. Zhou Mingyuan, still chewing something, mumbled "Lin Yuan," then realized it wasn't right and changed his name to "Luo Jinnian."

Luo Jinnian waved his hand and said, "Call me whatever you want," then walked over and sat down next to them. Tao Xiaopang put down his yogurt and joined in, and the five of them sat around a coffee table, just like they used to do when they rested on set.

Director Qin came out of the kitchen carrying two plates of fruit and placed them on the table. "You guys chat, I'm going next door to make a phone call."

He finished speaking and left, leaving the entire space to the five children.

The five people were silent for a few seconds, then Sun Lei spoke first. His voice wasn't loud, but his pronunciation was clear: "I recently took on a short drama role, a supporting one, not much screen time. The pay is a little higher than before, but not by much."

Zhou Mingyuan chimed in, "I went back to school and missed a lot of classes. My math teacher said in class, 'I watched one episode of the show you filmed, but you have to catch up on your homework this week.'"

Tao Xiaopang laughed so hard his eyes disappeared. "When I went back to school, my classmates asked me to sign my autograph. I asked where I should sign it, and they said on my homework. I said, 'Aren't you afraid the teacher will confiscate it if you sign it on your homework?' They said, 'Then sign it on the book,' so I signed it. Then the next day, the homeroom teacher took the book away."

He finished speaking and laughed first, and the others laughed too.

Gu Yanxi remained silent, leaning back on the sofa, twirling a pen in her hand.

She didn't speak until the laughter stopped, her voice soft but clear: "Do you still plan to act in the future?"

This question slightly changed the atmosphere on the coffee table.

Zhou Mingyuan thought for a moment and said, "I don't know. Let's see if there's a suitable script. I don't want to shoot something just for the sake of shooting."

Sun Lei nodded: "Me too, I won't take any roles unless there's a suitable one. I'll wait." Tao Xiaopang said, "I want to film, but I'm afraid I won't get any good ones." After he finished speaking, he turned to look at Luo Jinnian, "What about you?"

Luo Jinnian leaned back in the chair opposite him, holding nothing in his hands. His gaze swept over their faces one by one, finally settling on Gu Yanxi. "Early Spring Culture wants to sign a few people recently," he said. Tao Xiaopang asked, "Who?" Luo Jinnian replied, "You guys." The living room was silent for a few seconds.

Sun Lei was the first to react, asking, "You mean you want to sign a few of us? Sign us to your company?"

Luo Jinnian nodded. "Early Spring Culture has an artist management division, but it's currently quite limited. I don't want to sign too many people; I only want to sign those I'm willing to spend time providing scripts for. You guys are all people I'm willing to sign."

Zhou Mingyuan put down his pizza, wiped his hands, and his expression turned serious: "Are you going to write scripts for us? Or are we going to take them ourselves?" Luo Jinnian said, "I'll write them. But not all of them. Your career paths may not be exactly the same. Some people are suited to continue playing these kinds of roles, while others can go in different directions. What I mean is, if you don't want to sign with another company, you can sign with me. We can discuss the terms first."

Tao Xiaopang said, "I don't need to negotiate," his voice much more serious than before. "I'm willing to film the script you wrote." After saying that, he felt it was too serious, so he quickly added, "And your company probably doesn't owe me lunch boxes." The others laughed, but the laughter was different from before, carrying a different weight.

Sun Lei remained silent for a moment. As was his nature, he didn't talk much, but every word he uttered reflected his true feelings. "I'll discuss it with my parents, but I want to sign it myself."

Zhou Mingyuan responded quickly: "I don't need to discuss it. After my parents watched 'Tales of Wonder,' they said, 'Work hard with Early Spring Culture.' I just need to tell them when I get back."

Luo Jinnian nodded.

"But you'd better discuss it with your parents to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings," Gu Yanxi said, as if she were the head of the household.

Director Qin walked in with two glasses of water. Seeing that the atmosphere on the sofa was different from before, he asked, "Are you done talking?" Luo Jinnian stood up and said, "Yes, we're done talking."

Director Qin didn't press the matter. He only noticed the expressions on the children's faces in the few steps he took in. Then he put down his water glass, patted Luo Jinnian's shoulder, and said nothing.

In fact, it was a difficult decision for Luo Jinnian to make. He rarely had any friends his own age, and the change in his company identity would make things very different between his children.

As evening fell, the group gradually left. Tao Xiaopang and his father took the night train back home. Before leaving, Tao Xiaopang glanced back at Luo Jinnian at the door, waved, and said, "Just send the contract to my email. I'm entrusting my son to you from now on."

Zhou Mingyuan and Sun Lei left together, chatting about something at the elevator entrance, but it was hard to hear. Luo Jinnian stood at the door watching their backs disappear one by one at the end of the corridor, and after a while, she turned around and went back into the house.

Gu Yanxi didn't leave. She sat on the sofa, flipping through a copy of "Duku" magazine that she'd somehow acquired. "You signed them because you think they can become famous?" Luo Jinnian sat down opposite her. "Whether they can become famous or not isn't the key—they deserve to be seen. There are many people who can become famous, but few who deserve to be seen."

Gu Yanxi closed the magazine. "So you think I deserve to be seen?" Luo Jinnian didn't answer the question, but instead changed the subject, saying, "You've already been seen. What I'm going to do now is let people see what you look like under different lights."

Gu Yanxi did not answer, but she placed the magazine on the table and did not take it with her.

After returning to Zhanjiang, Luo Jinnian had his legal team draft five agency contracts, which were sent to the guardians of his four children. The profit-sharing percentages in these contracts were relatively low for the industry, but in addition to these percentages, there was a clause—the contract holder had the right of first refusal to participate in works produced by Zaochun Culture. If Zaochun Culture launched a new project with a suitable role, they would notify the contract holder in advance, and the contract holder would have priority under the same conditions. This clause was rarely seen in the industry; it meant that Zaochun Culture's projects were not just "opportunities to act," but "you would be the first to be informed if someone wanted to act." The value of this clause was far greater than the figures in the profit-sharing percentages, because it secured not money, but time.

Good roles wait for someone, and Luo Jinnian wanted them to know that he was willing to wait.

The contracts were gradually returned with receipts. Tao Xiaopang's contract was signed the fastest; his father said on the phone, "He signed it without even looking at it; I couldn't stop him." Zhou Mingyuan's parents asked a few questions, mainly about the schedule for school and filming. Sun Lei's mother called and talked for almost an hour, saying afterwards, "We trust you." Gu Yanxi's contract didn't have a guardian's signature; she signed it herself because her mother had already signed the authorization form beforehand.

Luo Jinnian put the signed contracts into a brown paper bag and placed it on the second shelf of the bookshelf. On the corner of that shelf were a sample copy of "Charlie IX" and the clapperboard of "Tales of Wonder". He wrote a few words on the brown paper bag: "Early Spring Culture, Actor Reserves". Then he closed the cabinet door, leaving them in that silent darkness that already held something.