113 Queen, do not be nervous; this is my first time as well.

At the enthusiastic invitation of Lao Teng and his colleagues, Cheng Xuemin followed them out of the office and the office building.

They entered the playground below the recording studio building—the very same building where a long queue of hopefuls stood, waiting to sign in and fill out forms for their auditions. The facilities at the Yanjing Film Studio were actually quite new, as Lao Teng explained. The studio had relocated to Beitaipingzhuang from the Xiaoguan factory site near Andingmen in 1972. The area was formerly the site of the General Staff Surveying and Mapping Academy, so many of the original academic buildings had been preserved. However, the recording studio, the sound stage, and the special effects studio were newer additions, having been in use for only a short time.

"Xuemin!"

Amidst the long line, Cheng Xuemin spotted Zhu Lin at a glance. She saw him too, calling out to him from her place in the queue.

Near the entrance of the recording studio, tables were set up on both sides, laden with registration forms. As the line moved forward, two people at a time would step up to fill out their paperwork. Once finished, they would wait nearby to be called.

Cheng Xuemin followed the others into the recording studio. In the outer room, preliminary interviews were already underway, focusing on the basics: vocal skills, such as the ability to read lines with genuine emotion. Those with singing ability could hum a few bars for extra credit, but they hadn't reached the stage of actual performance yet. If a candidate struggled even with the basic delivery of lines, they were eliminated on the spot, never reaching the secondary auditions.

Cheng Xuemin was led by Lao Teng and his team straight into the secondary audition stage. The preliminary interviews were already partially complete, and after a brief preparation, they began calling in those who had passed the initial round.

"Xuemin, we are mainly testing for vocal mastery and acting talent," Lao Teng explained, adding a quick instruction, "Old Xie will be the lead examiner, and you can help us by grading them from the sidelines."

Cheng Xuemin offered a shy smile and took his seat at the examiners' table, next to his brother-in-law, Feng Jiazhao.

"Xie, Lao Teng, Jiazhao, you're here?" A woman in her thirties walked in just as they sat down. She greeted them, then looked at Cheng Xuemin with a puzzled expression. "This young man looks unfamiliar!"

Siqin Gaowa!

The moment she entered, Cheng Xuemin recognized her. It was definitely Ms. Siqin! However, he wasn't certain if she went by the name Siqin Gaowa at this time, or if it was her stage name, so he refrained from greeting her first.

"Siqin, this is Old Xu, the author of *The Herdsman* and the screenwriter for our film. His name is Cheng Xuemin," Lao Teng introduced him, then turned to Cheng Xuemin. "Xuemin, this is Comrade Siqin Gaowa. She will be responsible for coaching the male candidates during their screen tests."

"Nice to meet you, Ms. Siqin."

It was indeed Siqin Gaowa. Information about her quickly surfaced in his mind. She had likely been selected and brought to the Yanjing Film Studio early that summer when the studio went to Inner Mongolia to cast for the film *Anxious to Return*. That film had already wrapped production and was in post-production, slated for release the following April. The lead actress, Siqin Gaowa, would become an overnight sensation upon its release, marking her official debut.

Hearing Lao Teng’s plan, it was clear that Siqin Gaowa would be acting as the scene partner for the male candidates, meaning the role she was coaching for was almost certainly Li Xiuzhi.

Would this mean a departure from the original casting? Departures were to be expected; after all, this production of *The Herdsman* was starting three years ahead of the original timeline, which had only begun development in 1982. The original actress, Cong Shan, likely hadn't even been admitted to the Beijing Film Academy yet, so bringing in Siqin Gaowa made perfect sense. Her performance in *Anxious to Return* had already proven her talent.

As for the male lead, Zhu Shimao, he had been discovered three or four years prior by director Shui Hua for the film *Children of the Xisha Islands*, which launched his career. He was currently a well-known actor at the Yanjing Film Studio. If things went according to plan, the role of Xu Lingjun shouldn't change. However, it was strange that such a major open audition for *The Herdsman* was happening without Zhu Shimao present. Perhaps there was another reason.

"Oh! So you are Comrade Old Xu, the author of *The Herdsman*! Everyone said Old Xu should be an elderly scholar; I truly didn't expect you to be so young! 'Little Xu' would be a more fitting name!" Siqin Gaowa teased with a bright, sunny smile, showing the youthful spirit of the actress.

Cheng Xuemin laughed awkwardly. This wasn't the first time someone had remarked on how young he looked, questioning why he had chosen the elderly-sounding pen name "Old Xu."

"Ms. Siqin, you have a great sense of humor. Just call me Little Cheng or Xuemin," he replied.

"Alright, I'll call you Xuemin. And don't call me Ms. Siqin—just call me Sister or Sister Siqin!" Siqin Gaowa didn't stand on ceremony. After the introductions, she turned to Lao Teng. "Lao Teng, since Teacher Zhu isn't free to come today, why don't we have Xuemin try out the scenes with the female candidates?"

"He is the original author and the screenwriter; his grasp of the lines must be stronger than ours. Plus, it would be a good chance for him to coach me as well!"

"Little Zhu can't come?" Lao Teng was stunned, as he had notified him the day before. He checked his watch—it was nearly 9:30 AM. They couldn't delay the auditions, so he turned to Cheng Xuemin. "Xuemin, what do you think? Since our candidate for Xu Lingjun is unavailable, would you mind giving it a try?"

Cheng Xuemin was caught off guard by the suggestion. When Lao Teng asked for his opinion, he quickly waved his hands. "No, no, that won't work! I rarely even watch movies; how could I possibly act?"

"Absolutely not! Teacher Teng, Sister Siqin, please don't make me make a fool of myself. I really can't do this!"

Ask him to do a screen test? He was only here to collect his royalties. He’d already been "conscripted" by accident; now they wanted him to actually act? If he had known this would happen, he never would have accepted the invitation.

"Xuemin, just give it a try! I personally feel that the Xu Lingjun you wrote was based on your own image and temperament," Director Xie Jin said, squinting as he revealed the plan they had secretly discussed.

As Xie Jin said, they had intended to have Cheng Xuemin audition all along. He truly wanted to see how the author would interpret his own character. The boy wrote excellent prose, an excellent script, and—even more impressively—his storyboards were brilliant. It felt as if he were simply transcribing himself. Why not have him try it out?

"No! Director Xie, don't joke like that. I really can't do it, I really can't!" Cheng Xuemin continued to wave his hands. He would rather die than do it; it would be too embarrassing!

"Don't be so modest!"

"It's understandable to be nervous. Why don't you take the script and go to the side to familiarize yourself with it for a bit?"

"Jiazhao, you go first and fill in for now!"

Lao Teng made the final call. He instructed Cheng Xuemin to study the script on the side—though since he had written it, he didn't need to study it so much as get into the right mindset. He then turned to his brother-in-law, Feng Jiazhao, and ordered him to start.

"Huh? Lao Teng, I'm just a screenwriter—I haven't done much acting!" Feng Jiazhao, who had been watching the drama unfold as a bystander, never expected the burden to fall on him.

"What? We only have a few people here. Siqin is handling Li Xiuzhi’s lines, and I have to play two roles—Xu’s father and Guo Zi!" Lao Teng glared at him impatiently. "And for the rest, if you don't play Xu Lingjun, who will? Unless you can convince your brother-in-law to do it?"

"Xuemin..." Feng Jiazhao immediately wilted and looked at Cheng Xuemin for help.

"Big brother, I'm going to the side to look over the lines. You hold the fort for now!" Cheng Xuemin slipped away, ignoring his brother-in-law's aggrieved look.

Of course, he knew he couldn't escape forever. He was likely being led to the slaughter. He began to read the script, and then, a magical thing happened: memories of the film's scenes began to surface in his mind. Immersed, he naturally began to project himself into the role of Xu Lingjun.

In that moment, he was galloping across the grasslands, transformed into Xu Lingjun.

"Old Xu, do you want a wife? If you just say the word..."

Following the matchmaker Guo Zi, the heroine Li Xiuzhi appeared, shy and blushing. Cheng Xuemin was so deeply immersed that he lost all track of time.

"Xuemin, Xuemin, I really can't do this—I've already made a fool of myself a few times. You should do it!"

Time passed, and Cheng Xuemin was eventually shaken from his trance by his brother-in-law. He stepped out of character, looked at the embarrassed man, and said, "Alright, I'll give it a try. But don't laugh at me if I'm bad!"

"No one will laugh, no one will laugh. A female candidate is up now—Xuemin, come on!" Xie Jin beckoned him, telling him not to feel pressured.

"Alright, Director Xie, I'll give it a shot!"

Cheng Xuemin processed what he had gained from his immersion and felt a surge of eagerness. To his surprise, the female candidate entering the room was none other than Zhu Lin—the actress who played the Queen of Western Liang and was his sister-in-law's childhood best friend.

She had passed the preliminary round? Well, that was no surprise; Zhu Lin had natural acting talent, was sharp, and had a strong foundation in vocal performance, as she came from a family of veteran artists.

So, was Zhu Lin playing the heroine, Li Xiuzhi? Indeed, Feng Jiazhao had already shifted into his role as stage manager, arranging for Zhu Lin to get into costume.

This trial was the classic opening: "Old Xu, do you want a wife?" It featured Cheng Xuemin as Xu Lingjun, Lao Teng as Guo Zi, and Zhu Lin as Li Xiuzhi. It was clear that upon realizing she was auditioning for the lead role, Zhu Lin was incredibly nervous. Even though she had read *The Herdsman* a dozen times and knew the script by heart, the reality of performing it made her panic.

"Don't be nervous. Your scene partner is Xuemin—he's playing Xu Lingjun!" Feng Jiazhao comforted her from the side.

"What?! Xuemin is playing Xu Lingjun? Didn't he say earlier that he wasn't here to audition?" Zhu Lin was stunned. She hadn't expected that not only would she have the chance to audition for Li Xiuzhi—a role she had fantasized about playing ever since she was an educated youth in the countryside—but that her Xu Lingjun would be someone she knew: Cheng Xuemin, the husband of her good friend Feng Jiayou.

"Xuemin is the author of the script," Feng Jiazhao explained. "Director Xie felt that Xu Lingjun was written in his own image, so he wanted to see how he would perform it! So don't be nervous, Zhu Lin—it's Xuemin’s first time acting, too!"