Global Movie Emperor - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Back To Normal

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation

Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

‘I drank a bit too much yesterday.’ After logging out of the system, Lu Ze immediately felt unwell. His throat was parched, and although his head was not hurting, he was still feeling quite dizzy.

He got up and washed his face. At present, he was not with any crew. Thus, it didn’t matter if he went away for a little bit, except that he would make equally less money.

However, seeing the big bundle of stashed clothes made Lu Ze’s head somewhat hurt. Males didn’t wash clothes every few days; they would let it pile up until they had no more left, and then wash it all in one go, even getting a little kick out of the process.

He had a twin-tub washing machine — an old washing machine with one tub for washing clothes while the other for spin-drying. He had bought it from a second-hand market for three hundred yuan. The former was still alright, but when it came to spin-drying, the entire machine shook as if break-dancing. If not held by a hand, it might even bounce about in the courtyard.

He held the washing machine with his right hand. At this moment, he would always suddenly recall Yang Dan. She used to say that washing machines do not thoroughly clean the clothes and were inferior to hand washing. Thinking about her for a bit, he opened the cooker in which he cooked rice in the past and dumped the water out of the stove. Not having been opened in two days, the cooker’s smell made him close his nose.

Scooping out the rice, he cleaned the cooker. Then, dragging Yang Dan’s small pulling cart like old fellows, he headed to the vegetable stand while pondering what to eat.

“How much for half a kilo of garlic chives?”

“Eight Jiao, aunty! How much?”

“These garlic chives for eight jiaos? Look at the leaves, they’ve already turned yellow. Is it from yesterday? No, even yesterday’s won’t be like this. I want to buy fresh early in the morning. If you want me to buy it, five jiaos at most, and put some extra.” 

The old lady clashed with the stall owner for a long time. In the end, the owner was simply left speechless and sold the garlic chives for five jiaos. As he did, Lu Ze immediately saw the gap and stuck his needle in.

“One yuan for me too.”

Throwing the one-kilogram garlic chives in the cart, he strolled back home. There was nothing to speak out loud. If one wished to buy, one surely could have a discount. 

Although he experienced a lot in the system — going through both poor and rich times — he understood one thing clearly, which was living in the moment. He could only be magnanimous if he had money. Else, acting generous would only be a pretense. Without money, one would be a bit of a cheapskate and have to control your spending. There was nothing like losing face in such a matter.

Upon returning home, he washed the garlic chives, eggs, and one kilo of pork. He put the pan on the flame and made stir-fried garlic chive, eggs, and chili pork shreds. His skills had undergone some improvement, and the food tasted pretty good. He suddenly heard a coughing sound from his neighboring old man’s room. Hearing his strenuous coughing, it seemed like his lungs had some issues.

The old fellow’s lungs were not good, and his stir-frying was causing soot to fly over. Lu Ze hurriedly closed the windows and opened the door, allowing the smoke to go out and prevent the old man from getting sick due to inhaling soot. He ate quickly and cleaned the bowls before hanging the clothes to dry in the courtyard. Drinking a jar of cold tea — that eight yuan, big packet of tea customarily used to treat hangovers — he locked the door and mounted the mobike before leisurely pedaling to the film city.

He had set aside the role in Gu Mingde’s adaptation, for now, not practicing anymore. After all, his family was still waiting for his money. Lu Nan was admitted to college, and the folks in the village emphasized social customs more heavily than in cities. Although sending out gifts once didn’t cost that much, it was still a heavy weight to bear for his family.

Just last month, Lu Ze’s mother and father had sent out gifts worth more than two thousand yuan in social exchanges. And this was when his family’s condition had only somewhat improved. In the future, if he surmounted this pit, it would only increase much more.

As for Lu Nan, she had said that she would work part-time but was harshly stopped by Lu Ze. After all, he had done part-time jobs in Luhua. From a waiter in a five-star restaurant to pasting stickers on doors, he’d done it all.

A woman could earn more in part-time jobs than a boy, given that she looked alright. Lu Nan seemed to look more than okay. If she were to welcome guests in Cheongsam at some business place, she could easily earn one-two hundred yuan without a problem. However, Lu Ze didn’t want her to reveal her thighs in the already cold weather of the capital. And if she were to be taken advantage of by any chance, he would genuinely fall into the other side of the law.

It would be much better to let out warm breaths in the library and read books. As for money and all that, the current Lu Ze could still support it.

Lu Ze now never forgot to lock the mobike. The last time he had taken a trip to the supermarket in a hurry, his unlocked mobike was taken away by somebody else, costing him twenty yuan for that fellow’s ride, making him wonder if that chap had gone to Tibet on that bike.

The gates of the film city always had a huge crowd gathered before it. From five or six in the morning to one or two at night, one could always find people here. It never seemed cold and empty.

Parking the mobike, Lu Ze walked for a bit and saw a group of teenagers that wasn’t sure if they could still be called teenagers. Going by age, they were all young adults. But from their smiling, giggling, and overall noisy demeanor, they seemed more like teenagers.

“Big Brother Lu, late for work today?”

“Big Brother Lu, good morning! Where were you for the past two days?”

The circle of extras was a circle formed off bitter struggles. Compared to the sphere of laborers and employees, their dreams were a bit higher, and their hierarchy was much stricter. Specials were a bit higher than extras, and troupe leaders were a bit more senior than specials. The difference of one grade meant that if one wished to snuff out the lesser grade, it was not too difficult.

And Lu Ze, who was a great bargain in the eyes of the directors, had already become this bunch of extras’ target of admiration. Those younger than Lu Ze, those who were of the same age as him, and even those who were several years older, all shamelessly tried to act friendly and get close to him.

He had long since become accustomed to hearing others address him as ‘big brother,’ and it made no difference to his ego. After all, when they said ‘big brother,’ it sounded more or less the same as college students addressing their seniors. They would call him big brother on the surface, but in their mind, they would be calling him son. Thus, was there even any point in feeling any pride?

“Er Mao, bring a water bottle and a packet of cigarettes.”

Er Mao, this kid, was originally a special — assuming the role of a kid who had faced suffering a lot. Just a look at him, and one would feel that his life had been tough. Later, he did not see good prospects in his acting career, so he quit playing a special. However, he did not leave Hengdian either. Instead, he began cooking and selling quick-bite snacks like pancakes, grilled noodles, as well as operating a part-time mobile vendor stall.

However, one had to admit that even though his job was even more tiring than being an extra, his revenue was also quite high. Going by the number of pancakes Lu Ze usually ate here, the former’s income ought to be even higher than his own.

“Hey, Big Brother Lu, you were completely absent for the past two days. Where were you busy making money?”

“Me? Robbing a grave.”

Sitting in Er Mao’s tri-wheeler, Lu Ze uttered some nonsense for the other. Suddenly his phone rang from inside his bag. Squinting his eyes, he saw that it was Liu Le.

He already informed Liu Le via phone to let him know if there were any work at noon, more or less, like booking an appointment.

“Hello, Big Brother Le!”

“Lu-er, there’s a job right now, you want it? Leading in the trenches again… Three hundred yuan, you want it, or nah?”

“I do. Am I not currently at the entrance of the film city? Where are you? When does it begin?”

“Then come to the eastern section. I’m sitting under a tree. Hurry up! There’s still time, but I want to talk to you a bit.”

“Alright, I’m coming! See you, Mao!”

His cell phone’s battery had gone bad and would lose twenty percent battery every hour in idle state. Completing the call, he connected the phone to his portable charger and headed toward the eastern section.