Amateur talent show? Top mentors are my students.

After hanging up the phone, He Xu sat on the living room floor for a long time.

He held the phone in his hand, the screen already dark, but he didn't turn it back on.

The sunlight outside the window had changed from the glaring midday sun to the warm, golden glow of the afternoon, spreading a soft halo across the wooden floor.

He looked down at his fingers resting on his knees, his knuckles slightly white, and it took him a while to slowly loosen them.

"It's a deal."

When those three words came out of his mouth, even he felt a little unreal.

Seven years have passed.

From the time he left Yueyin at the age of seventeen until now, he never thought he would hear Ahn Min-soo's voice again.

That skinny little boy who always followed behind him has now grown up and debuted.

Even when she cries, it's still the same.

He Xu put his phone on the coffee table, sat on the sofa for a while, then stood up and went to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of water.

The sound of water flowing into the cup was exceptionally clear in the quiet living room, like some kind of background white noise, slowly pulling him back to reality from that daze.

He leaned against the edge of the counter, holding his water glass, gazing at the palm tree standing quietly in the California sunlight outside the window, and suddenly a very real question came to mind—

He didn't know when he would be able to keep the "promised" agreement.

The next surgery is scheduled for a month from now.

Dr. Chen clearly stated during the last follow-up examination that the recovery from the first surgery was better than expected, but the closure and tension of the vocal cords still needed fine-tuning.

The second surgery was the final one, after which at least two months of postoperative recovery and vocal cord training would be required.

In other words, he will stay in Los Angeles for at least another three months.

Ahn Min-soo has tours, schedules, and team activities in South Korea, so it's impossible for him to just fly over.

He couldn't fly there either—long-distance flights are not allowed during the post-operative recovery period, as the doctor explained that changes in air pressure can affect the vocal cords after surgery.

He Xu stood in the kitchen, finished the glass of water, put the glass in the sink, and then picked up his phone to take a look—Ahn Min-soo's number was already saved in his contacts.

He stared at the words for a while, then put down his phone and stopped thinking about it.

Thinking about it is useless.

When the time comes, we will meet.

And even worse things kept popping up to distract him.

In the evening, when Jiang Yanbai came downstairs, he was wearing a dark blue shirt that he rarely wore—the collar was buttoned up to the top, and the cuffs were also neatly buttoned up, clearly not an outfit for casual outings.

He Xu was sitting on the living room floor watching a clip of a new arrangement sent by Emiko when he caught a glimpse of Jiang Yanbai's outfit. He paused for a moment, then looked at his phone and asked, "...Are you going on a date?"

"It's worse than a date." Jiang Yanbai walked to the entryway to change his shoes, his tone carrying a calm "I've resigned myself to my fate" tone. "A dinner party. A dinner party I've been turning down for a year, but I really can't turn it down tonight."

He Xu put down her phone, turned her head to look at him, and said, "You've been turning down dinner invitations all year? Who has that much influence?"

"My mentor." Jiang Yanbai tied his shoelaces, stood up, turned to look at He Xu, his expression carrying a hint of subtle guilt, "—a Hollywood director named John Carter."

"When I was still playing minor supporting roles, he pulled me out of the crowd of extras and gave me my first important role in 'Deep Blue.' Without him, I might still be playing those three-second extras now."

He Xu leaned back on the sofa armrest and thought for a moment: "...So he is your benefactor."

"Not only that." Jiang Yanbai walked over and sat down on the sofa opposite He Xu, leaning forward slightly. "He's been asking me all year if I know any Asian faces who are 'camera-ready, have a story to tell, and are physically attractive.'"

"He said he had a script with a character—an Asian, young, with a complicated background, and an action scene—who he had been looking for for a long time but couldn't find the right person for.

He Xu paused for a moment, then slowly said, "...Don't tell me."

He said you need to be physically fit to do stunts.

Jiang Yanbai.

"That character doesn't need to say too many lines."

Jiang Yanbai.

"And he said that I could wear a mask and not show my face—"

"Jiang Yanbai!!"

He Xu's voice finally rose, carrying a sense of threat.

Jiang Yanbai immediately raised his hands in surrender: "I haven't agreed to him yet! I just—he said he wanted to see you."

He Xu stared at him for three seconds, then took a deep breath and exhaled: "...You go to your dinner party, I'm not going."

"He Xu—"

"I'm not going." He Xu's voice returned to its usual flat tone. "I'm not an actor, I've never acted before. I'm even afraid of the camera, you want me to act in a movie?"

Jiang Yanbai sat opposite him, his hands still raised in mid-air as if surrendering.

His expression changed from guilty to aggrieved, and then from aggrieved to his characteristic shameless and persistent pleading.

"He Xu—"

"Calling me grandpa won't help."

"Brother He Xu—"

You are older than me.

"Teacher He—"

He Xu finally looked up from his phone, stared at him for two seconds, and said, "...Aren't you disgusting?"

"I'm not disgusted, I'm serious." Jiang Yanbai lowered his hand, leaned forward slightly, and spoke with a rare earnestness in his voice.

"Just go see him once, just once. Have a meal, chat, he'll look at you, you'll look at him. If you don't like it, you can leave anytime, I won't stop you."

He Xu leaned back on the sofa armrest, arms crossed, looking at him expressionlessly: "Why did you bring me along when you were having dinner with him?"

"Because he asked me to take you there," Jiang Yanbai said matter-of-factly. "He said, 'River, bring your dancer friend here so I can see him, or you don't need to come to this meal.'"

He Xu paused for a moment, then said, "...So you sold me out for this meal?"

"I didn't sell you! I just—I just wanted to introduce you to him. Do you know what John Carter's status is in Hollywood? So many people beg to see him but can't, and he's actively seeking to meet you—"

"I don't care what his status is," He Xu said flatly. "I'm not in Hollywood."

"...Just come with me, okay?"

He looked aggrieved and stared at him longingly.

He Xu looked at him, paused for a moment, then stood up and picked up his coat from the back of the chair: "...Let's go. But I've already told you, it's just for dinner."

Jiang Yanbai's expression instantly switched from pain to radiance, and he stood up with lightning speed: "Okay, okay, it's just food! Let's go!"