I didn't have any acting experience, and honestly, I didn't want anything to do with playing some villain role. But Director Cao was literally hanging onto my leg, refusing to let me leave. That shameless, desperate expression—he was exactly like his good-for-nothing son.
"Don't go yet, Haruya! You've got to trust me! I've already analyzed the market!"
Director Cao switched windows on his laptop with a single hand, pulling up a forum page.
It looked like some kind of online forum for directors. One post was titled: "Americans Are Coming to Make Martial Arts Films Too." The post itself was ridiculously long, and I didn't have the patience to read it—but the picture attached caught my eye immediately.
A photo of a Western doll-like girl, standing on a round stage under blinding lights, singing into a microphone while dancing.
Wait a second… isn't that the girl who kicked me at the subway—Amy? But she looked nothing like the devil who attacked me. She was smiling like an angel here, completely gentle and radiant. No way this is the same person, right? She must have an identical twin—one sweet, one demonic. That has to be it. All the good personality traits went to the sister in the photo, leaving the one I met with nothing but bad attitude.
"Is this girl called… Amy?" I ventured.
"Huh? How did you know?"
Director Cao blinked at me, then instantly gave me an "Ah, I see—you're one of us" expression.
Don't misunderstand me! I'm not like you. I am not some shady old man with impure thoughts about every cute girl under the sun.
"Haruya, let me tell you—this girl is a rising child star in the States! Her mom manages her, and she's incredible. Her debut album hit number eleven on the Billboard charts! The kid's future is limitless!"
"Does she… have a twin sister?"
"Nope. According to my research, she's an only child."
Director Cao looked at my expression and his awe towards me grew even deeper.
"What imagination you've got, Haruya! If this sweet, delicious little star had a twin sister—hehehehe…"
No, don't laugh like that! I'm not thinking what you're thinking. I just refuse to believe someone with her rotten personality can release albums and charm the world.
"So what does this 'Americans making martial arts movies' thing have to do with her?" I asked.
"Listen carefully," he said excitedly. "Because of the influence of Kung Fu Panda, martial arts movies are getting popular again in the West. So a production team came to China to shoot a kung fu series—something like Avatar: The Last Airbender. Its working title is Legend of the Magic Cauldron, and filming is expected to take about two years. They'll be shooting around the Eastern Mountain palace area and the surrounding scenery."
He leaned closer, overflowing with insider gossip.
"Although Amy's album did great, she ran into trouble in the US. Some creepy stalkers and lolicons kept harassing her—some even tried to take photos while she was changing. The police had to intervene several times. Her mom decided she couldn't let her daughter stay in that environment, so she found her a role in this Chinese TV series. That woman is brilliant. To become a global superstar, you need movies, TV, and music."
As he spoke, he sounded genuinely envious. If he lived in the States, he would definitely be one of those lolicons following Amy around.
"Amy's playing an important role in Legend of the Magic Cauldron, so she'll be staying in China for two whole years. That shows how seriously her mom takes this kung fu wave. Speaking of her mom—she's a powerhouse. She grew her husband's finance company, sold it right before the mortgage crisis, then opened a talent agency and signed a ton of promising young performers. Not as big as UTA or CAA yet, but they're rising fast. I heard she wants to raise her daughter into a true international superstar. You… understand?"
"Understand what?"
"You idiot! If her mom is that sharp and sent her daughter to China for two years just for a kung fu show, it means she sees a giant opportunity here! And Americans are the best at making money, right?"
…Well, I guess that part made sense.
"That's why you should come help with filming. We'll start with Jinling Young Thug—"
"Ah! Class is starting!" I raised my arm and pretended to check a watch I wasn't even wearing. While Director Cao froze in confusion, I slipped out of the hot, stuffy room.
"Don't run! I'm not done talking yet!" his voice echoed through the door.
Like I'd ever cooperate with a weirdo like you.
Still… that was unexpected information about Amy. I thought I was done with her. But if she's staying in China for two years—is that why she's going to study at Qingzi Academy? Honestly, that school's even closer to my house than 28th Middle.
On the way back to school, I bought a meat pie.
A meat pie.
Maybe… a spoiled meat pie.
Because I had diarrhea in the afternoon.
During break, I stumbled out of the men's restroom holding my stomach, only to run into Class Monitor Shu Sha carrying a stack of teaching materials.
She saw me holding the zipper of my school jacket and gave me a cold look.
"What's wrong? Caught some skin?"
Are you picking a fight?! Just because I said something about "rubbing" this morning, you think you can accuse me of catching skin while peeing?! And besides—our male sports pants don't even have zippers! How am I supposed to catch anything with my jacket zipper?
Also, why are you carrying all those materials yourself? You could just call your number-one loyal dog, Glasses Bro, to help you! If you'd say something soft like, "My hands are sore, can you help me?"—I might have even helped!
But no. You have to cling to your "Fair, Just, Independent" persona. You Justice Demon—fine, tire yourself out then!
While I was half-dead from diarrhea, Xiao Qin happily fluttered around me like a butterfly.
"What are you so happy about?" I groaned.
"I'm happy because Haruya is eating lunch with me tomorrow!" she said, hiding her hands inside her big sleeves and acting even more butterfly-like.
"Oh right! Why are the boys' and girls' uniforms different colors?" she asked.
"They aren't?" I replied weakly. "They're both blue and white."
"Near the shoulder! Right here!" She pointed to where the armband would normally go.
There was a difference: boys had a blue stripe matching the uniform's base color, while girls had a bright red one. It wasn't for fashion—it was to catch dating couples. With different colors, it was easier to spot side-by-side "suspicious closeness." That's how the homeroom teacher caught that couple and made them cut their wrists—
I didn't bother explaining. Xiao Qin lost interest quickly anyway.
Seeing me collapsed on my desk, she mimicked me, lying on her desk and turning to smile at me.
"Haruya, I prefer the school uniform over yesterday's clothes!"
"…Why?"
"Because it feels like I'm wearing matching couple outfits with you!"
Matching couple outfits?! Do the couple outfits in your house look this ugly? And all 600 students are wearing the same thing—does that mean we're all couples?! Homeroom teacher! Hurry, we've got 300 pairs here! A massive harvest! You'll level up instantly from all the exp!
After school, I finally shook Xiao Qin off and got home—only to find the house empty.
A note lay on the dining table:
"I have something to do, so handle dinner yourself. If you need money, get it from the usual place.P.S.: If you go to the store, buy two onions."
My dad's handwriting was bold and powerful. It made me feel ashamed.
Dad… why did I inherit your short legs instead of your god-tier penmanship?
You must've picked the wrong talent tree when I was born.
Since he left a royal decree, I grumblingly went to buy dinner—and onions.
There's a Walmart two blocks from my house. Even though it's an American chain, locals prefer Wumei across the street, probably because they do raffles.
I didn't go to Wumei—it gets packed with loud uncles and aunties at this hour. I took the escalator down to Walmart's basement level and wandered toward the hot-food section, thinking about what to buy to appease my upset stomach.
"How about half a pig's head?" joked a butcher I knew.
"When I have ten people at home, sure," I replied.
Suddenly, a strange, familiar scent hit me.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a petite figure with golden twin ponytails I knew all too well.
She was struggling to push a shopping cart bigger than herself through the snack aisle.
Amy.