Actresses

Chapter 12 Jiang Fan

Seeing He Yuran's incredibly determined expression, Shi Jiahe finally breathed a sigh of relief. "That's great, Sister Ran, I have a feeling this is already halfway done."

"Where there's a will, there's a way, but don't be too optimistic. But you're right, at least you have to have determination." He Yuran propped herself up on the recliner, her feet in slippers. "Actually, someone just came to mind."

Do I know him?

"You should know her, right? But she hasn't acted in years." He Yuran paused, "She retired from the entertainment industry."

Shi Jiahe nearly choked on her water. What's the point of talking about this now that she's retired from the entertainment industry?!

However, He Yuran looked on with longing, as if she had opened a floodgate of distant conversation and was about to start talking non-stop.

"Her acting is really good; I have to respect her a lot. So when she first announced her retirement from the industry, nobody believed it. Many people still offered her roles, but she turned them all down. No matter how good an actress's acting is, if she doesn't act, she'll quickly disappear from the industry. Although fans often pull out lists of actresses who haven't been on set for days and parade them around, ultimately, fans only care about those who are still popular and active, like me, haha. But I feel a bit sorry for her; she really should be acting more," He Yuran said wistfully. "Although I haven't been in touch with her for quite a while, based on what I knew of her from university, she definitely wouldn't be content to just be a housewife!"

"Sister Ran, who are you talking about?" This time, Shi Jiahe's curiosity was truly piqued.

"Search for Jiang Fan, Jiang as in Yangtze River, Fan as in ordinary."

Shi Jiahe exclaimed in surprise, "I know her! Isn't she your college classmate?"

"Yeah, she was the most popular girl with the boys in my acting class. Our teacher even said she was destined to be a big star, and I was so jealous of her. The teacher never praised me like that, and of course, the teacher never expected that I would become the most popular student in the class later." He Yuran fiddled with her hair and smiled smugly. "Life is unpredictable."

Shi Jiahe looked down and typed Jiang Fan's name into her phone, then clicked search.

"Her husband was quite famous. Oh, how come they got divorced?"

He Yuran nodded. "Yes, she retired from acting after getting married. Her ex-husband was also an actor. They were quite sweet at first, but then for some reason, they started talking about getting a divorce. They dragged it out for a long time without making it official, which led to Jiang Fan being cyberbullied by her ex-husband's fans. Although the divorce was finalized, she hasn't acted in any films or TV series since."

"Is it because she's afraid of being scolded?" Shi Jiahe muttered to herself.

"It can't be that bad, her ex-husband only has a few fans. Isn't it enough to have him cursed for a few years?" He Yuran replied casually.

At this moment, Shi Jiahe tapped on a video on her phone screen, and a clip of Jiang Fan being interviewed popped up. He Yuran heard the sound and came over to watch it together.

This interview was a snippet, and the exact time is unknown. Although Jiang Fan's face appeared calm and was concealed by makeup, there were obvious signs of aging. He looked a few years older than He Yuran.

Jiang Fan faced the camera somewhat hesitantly and said, "Uh... I feel that returning to family life is just a phase in my life. What I love most is still acting. But it's been a long time since I've actually been on a film set. Those days of living on set every day are so far removed from my life now, and I'm not sure if I can adapt to going back to acting. But I still want to say that I always consider myself an actor and I always hope to have the opportunity to act. I hope that the directors, producers, and colleagues who see this interview can give me a few more opportunities. I'm not picky about roles; I'll be very grateful if you just ask me to."

After reading it, He Yuran immediately started to tear up. "Old classmate, you almost made me cry... Jiahe, look, she doesn't pick and choose roles! Let's cast her! Although I don't know what kind of role she has in the script yet, she can definitely do it!"

"..." Shi Jiahe thought to herself, the emotions were stirred up too quickly, and she quickly pulled out a tissue and handed it to He Yuran.

He Yuran waved her hand, "I didn't cry. This is just an expression of emotion."

She picked up her phone and thought for a moment. "Besides, Jiang Fan has a good temper. I once spilled her fried rice in the cafeteria, and she didn't get angry."

Shi Jiahe was speechless: "That's too much, sis..."

He Yuran smiled to herself, "Anyway, she's definitely not difficult to deal with, and she hasn't acted in years, so she can't really make demands of me. To put it another way, if she really does criticize me, I'll just pull out this interview video and show it to her, asking her, 'Did you say this yourself?' That'll solve everything!"

"Ran-jie, don't rush." ​​Seeing He Yuran getting carried away again, Shi Jiahe quickly pressed her down. "I searched for Teacher Jiang Fan. She acted in some dramas before retiring from the entertainment industry and had some fame, but I need to find out if the platform recognizes her..."

He Yuran glared at her. "Didn't you say it yourself? You can't just look at traffic. All the S+ level products from the platform are garbage. Now why are you questioning me? Didn't you hear me say a word when I said Jiang Fan's acting is good?!"

"Sister Ran! Sister Ran! I didn't say the S+ platform is all garbage! I just said it's been flopping... never mind, that's not important." Shi Jiahe rubbed her forehead, then continued after a moment, "Okay, you said you'd like to find Teacher Jiang Fan, fine, I'm OK with that, but! There's a problem."

"What?" He Yuran asked warily.

Shi Jiahe rubbed her throbbing temples. "Let's put aside how much recognition she has left on the platform and among the audience for now. Let's go back to the most basic issue we were talking about earlier: the actor has to get along with you. You said you haven't been in contact with Teacher Jiang Fan for many years. Even if you're old classmates, there's not much of a bond left, right? Getting her on board isn't just about giving her a role. You have to think carefully about what role she can play and whether she'll fully cooperate with our needs."

"..." He Yuran didn't speak, but just blinked.

Shi Jiahe clearly saw that Sister Ran almost gritted her teeth when she said the next sentence.

"I'll figure it out."

"Okay, then I'll leave it to Sister Ran! I'll wait for Sister Ran's good news." Shi Jiahe gave a bright smile.

"Don't just stand around, hurry up and find me a script!"

"You don't need to tell me that. I started meeting with these producers one by one this afternoon."

After urging each other on through gritted teeth, the two began to act separately.

After He Yuran chased Shi Jiahe away, she immediately opened Jiang Fan's WeChat and stared blankly for a while.

You wouldn't believe it until you look. In all these years since they added each other on WeChat, there hasn't been a single chat history between them.

WeChat has been around for over ten years, hasn't it? He Yuran thought for a moment, searched online, and couldn't help but start clicking his tongue.

WeChat has been online for 15 years.

Shi Jiahe's concerns are valid. After 15 years without contact, even if they were close friends in college, they're practically strangers now. What kind of opening line would sound natural?

Even He Yuran, who had seen countless big scenes, was at a loss at this moment.

She searched for Jiang Fan's accounts on various social media platforms and found that Jiang Fan had updated very little in recent years, occasionally posting about his daughter. He was also rarely mentioned by strangers. Occasionally, there would be a montage of his works, which would include a few frames of Jiang Fan's old characters, but it was negligible.

As He Yuran aimlessly flipped through the pages, she began to replay her university days from nearly twenty years ago in her mind, wondering if she could ask a former classmate to inquire about Jiang Fan's current situation. But she quickly dismissed the idea.

There are many gossips in the industry, and even a normal inquiry might lead to rumors and unfounded speculations. It's better to ask the person directly.

As for how to greet someone, that's simple too.

Speak your mind directly; that's the most efficient way.

"Fan, it's been a long time since we last contacted each other. I wonder how you've been lately. I haven't been doing too well. I suddenly miss you a bit. I wonder if you're in Beijing? I'd like to chat with you." He Yuran sent a voice message without hesitation.

Although Jiang Fan's WeChat account seemed inactive based on the lack of activity on his Moments, he actually replied to messages quite quickly.

It's just words; you can't tell the emotions behind them.

"Ranran, you're such a busy person, why did you think of me today?"

He Yuran stared at the screen, frowning. She thought to herself, "This is so tedious. Why beat around the bush? Just tell me directly if you're in Beijing or not. Fine, I'll just send a WeChat voice call."

Jiang Fan didn't show any temper and answered the call quickly.

He Yuran immediately put on her signature business smile, as if there were an audience present. She spoke warmly into the microphone, "Fan! Am I bothering you?"

"Oh! No, no, what's wrong? Is there something you need?" Jiang Fan's tone was as calm as if he were talking to a food delivery driver.

Are you in Beijing?

"Uh, what's wrong?" Jiang Fan persisted, repeating himself like a broken record.

"It's important business, we need to meet and discuss it as soon as possible. Are you free these next couple of days?"

"Well—okay." Jiang Fan was still a little hesitant.

He Yuran was getting increasingly angry while waiting for a reply, and she was practically suppressing her frustration. She thought, "This is me, He Yuran! I'm asking you out, a washed-up Jiang Fan, and you're still being coy. You should know how many people are lining up to see me, but I can't be bothered to see them."

"I have some personal matters to attend to these few days and can't get away. Why don't you come to my place? I'll send you the address in a bit."

"Okay, then set a time!" He Yuran said anxiously.

"tomorrow?"

He Yuran was finally a little happier and immediately agreed.

After exchanging a few more perfunctory pleasantries, He Yuran hung up the phone and checked the address Jiang Fan had sent. She frowned slightly. Although the location was in the city center and barely acceptable, it was a very old neighborhood. If she remembered correctly, there wasn't even an elevator; stepping out of the building entrance led directly to a utility pole on the main street.

Jiang Fan was a famous actor before, surely he shouldn't be living like this, still living in this old house!

But that's their life. Calling her over is just to say hello, not to ask her to stay. Mind your own business first.

He Yuran went to bed early that night to avoid repeating her habit of being late, which Shi Jiahe had scolded her for countless times. Moreover, in order not to upset Jiang Fan, she deliberately didn't wear makeup, dressed simply and modestly, took a taxi, and went out.