Chapter 23: X-Man (3) Two Become One Chapter

  I didn't get a day off yesterday and sent it late, sorry!

  It's taking longer and longer to write a chapter now. I wrote these two chapters from 7 pm yesterday to 11 pm, then from 5 am this morning till now... sigh

  ====================

  The originally noisy main waiting room suddenly quieted down for a moment, and the gazes of everyone converged on him. The three MCs closest to the door, Liu Zhi, Jiang Huadong, and Kong Huanxu, were stunned for a moment, probably because they had just mentioned his name and felt a bit unexpected. Then, Liu Zhi, who reacted the fastest, burst out laughing: "Haha, Junhe, we were just talking about you! Come on over!"

  An Junhe raised his head, but his waist was still slightly arched, maintaining a respectful posture. He walked quickly towards Liu Zaishi, who was smiling warmly to welcome him, and bowed to shake hands: "Hello, Senior Liu Zaishi!"

  "Hey, since you're a friend of Zhongguo's, that makes you my friend too, no need to be so polite. I'm just a few years older than you, so just call me 'ge' like Zhongguo does!" Liu Zhaishi threw an arm around his shoulders and gave him a hearty slap on the back, his face creasing into a warm smile that was completely genuine and free of pretension, his ordinary features behind his thick black-framed glasses.

  But it was just an ordinary man, from the beginning of hosting children's programs "grasshopper" to start, after several years of silence and not giving up, until 03 X-MAN thick accumulation thin hair, step by step on the national title throne. Now, he has surpassed most singers and actors, becoming the most popular person in the entertainment circle. He is also the only artist in the entertainment industry who has no anti-fans and no negative reviews so far, with his witty brain, friendly and humorous speech, and flexible and varied hosting style without burden, winning almost everyone's love.

  Such praise, An Junhe had only heard of it before, but now he has personally experienced it.

  His passion, whether it's pretentious or genuine, he can tell at a glance, because nature also knows that Liu Zai Shi's proposal to call him brother is not polite, so he also goes with the flow, similarly putting his arm around Liu Zai Shi's shoulder and patting his back, saying: "Yes, Brother Zai Shi!"

  Liu Zhaishi's face suddenly lit up with a smile: "Ah! If people knew that An Junhe called me brother, how much face would I gain!"

  Although he is a newcomer, with Ahn Jun-hee's current fame, no one dares to truly treat him as a newcomer, not even the currently popular "Locust" can do so. With a smile, Liu Zai Shi led Ahn Jun-hee in front of Jiang Hu Dong and Kong Xiang Qu, introducing: "This is Jiang Hu Dong, this is Kong Xiang Qu, you're not unfamiliar with them, are you?"

  "Of course, not unfamiliar. Hello, Senior Jiang Hudu! Hello, Senior Kong Xiangzhu!" An Junhe bowed and shook hands one by one. "I've watched the 'Night Heart' and 'Love Letter' programs hosted by Senior Jiang Hudu, especially 'Love Letter', I've always hoped to participate in it once... As for Senior Kong Xiangzhu, I'm even more familiar with him, last year's 'Taiji Flag Fluttering' also contributed a few box office numbers!"

  Actually, I had learned about these things beforehand, and I was somewhat familiar with Jiang Hudu and An Junhe. As for Kong Xiangzhu, he wasn't very familiar to me, but when meeting someone for the first time, it's natural to try to find common ground and flatter them a bit to gain a good impression. Following An Junhe in, Jin Baojing, who was standing still with Quan Baogen and others, couldn't help but want to laugh when he heard him speaking humbly and telling lies in a serious tone. Fortunately, the expression management training I had received at the company over the years was effective, and I managed to hold it in.

  But everything in front of her made her once again deeply realize the warning given by the company during their crash training, that when speaking to people, three points are true and seven points are false.

  If it were true, Jiang Hudong and Kong Xiangyu would definitely not have such happy expressions.

  As she was lost in thought, a loud burst of laughter erupted from the other side. Ahn Jun-hee had said something that made several MCs laugh heartily, and Kang Tae-oh, who was known for his bold personality, laughed so hard that he doubled over, repeatedly patting Ahn Jun-hee's arm and giving him a thumbs up as he exclaimed: "Good kid, you're quite the talker! Maybe try to specialize in variety shows, who knows, maybe you'll become a big star in this small circle!"

  An Junhe didn't commit to it, knowing that he was intentionally flattering him and didn't take it to heart. He just nodded and smiled: "You're overpraising me, if there's a chance, of course I'd like to try, but..." He helplessly shrugged his shoulders, "...I don't have much of a sense of humor, probably won't work out."

  He waved his hand indifferently, "Hey, who's humor cells are born with it? If you don't work hard, how do you know you're not good at it?"

  Next to them, Jiang Hudu and Kong Xuanzhu nodded in agreement. Both of them knew that the previous Liu Zhaishi was a person without humor cells, so he had been unknown for many years. It wasn't until later, after much effort and self-improvement, that he reached his current position.

  "Yes, in Seok-hyeong." Ahn Jun-hee, who knew that his personality was not humorous or funny, did not explain or refute Liu Zai-shi's words and nodded in agreement.

  Then Liu Zai smiled and put his arm around his shoulder, "Forget it, let's not talk about this, first go meet the other seniors." He said, leading him further in, those performing guests who had already cast curious glances here, carefully sizing them up.

  X-man's program has always been known for having many guests, from the initial two teams of four people each, to five, six and now seven (not counting the assistant MC), with an increasingly large scale. At this time, all the guests are gathered in this main waiting room, although the space is spacious, but with Ahn Jun-hee, there are 17 people standing together, it's almost crowded, the second half of the space looks dazzling and starry.

  Liu Zai Shi pulled An Jun He to introduce him one by one, Li Zhen, Shin Jung Hwan, Cai Yan, Liu Min, Yin Zhi Yuan, Kim Tae Hyun, Lee Byung Jin, TABLO, Liu Bin, Kim Mi Yeon...

  These are the performers for this episode. Ahn Jun-hee didn't know most of them, so after a brief greeting and some mutual flattery, they moved on to the next target. However, it wasn't that he didn't know anyone at all. Liu Zai Shi briefly introduced him by name, but then staff members called away Jiang Hu Dong and Kong Xiang Zhu together to discuss the program with PD, leaving Ahn Jun-hee alone among a group of seniors, bowing and greeting one by one. At one point, he came face-to-face with a woman, and just as Ahn Jun-hee was about to greet her out of habit, the woman bowed first: "Ahn Jun-hee senior, hello!"

  An Junhe stared blankly for a moment, took a closer look several times, and then burst out laughing: "It's really you!"

  "Yes, senior." The woman in front of him, who was called by name, smiled shyly. She wore a white suspenders shirt with a denim jacket and a pair of high-waisted jeans that accentuated her curves. It was Choi Yoo-jin, who played the role of Moon Ji-young, Cha Moo-hyuk's girlfriend in "Sorry, I Love You".

  He had already flipped through the list on the bus, but at that time he only casually flipped through a few pages and remembered that Quan Baogen deliberately arranged the most notable people in front, and unexpectedly didn't find out she was also there.

  But that didn't stop his enthusiasm, Zhang opened his arms and lightly hugged Cui Ruzhen, An Junhe smiled: "I haven't seen you since the crew disbanded, how have you been lately?"

  "It's okay." Cui Ruzhen pursed her lips, probably also feeling a little surprised and delighted at the sudden meeting. Her shy face was slightly flushed, with a hint of redness, and her eyes curved upwards, releasing an uncontrollable joy: "Thanks to your blessing, I've gained some popularity lately, and just received an audition invitation for a Chinese movie!"

  "Oh? Congratulations!" An Junhe was somewhat surprised, and immediately shook his head: "That has nothing to do with me, they invited you for a screen test because they liked you yourself, how can it be attributed to my luck. How was it, did the screen test go well?"

  This concern is not unfounded, although he and Cui Ru worked together for less than a month in Australia, they rarely chatted with each other due to their different identities during the collaboration period. After all, they debuted from the same TV series, so the feelings are naturally different when recalling now.

  It seemed that she heard the sincerity in his words, and Cui Ruzhen laughed even more happily, her eyes narrowing: "It's a success, it was already released in Hong Kong in February."

  "Hmm..." An Junhe's expression paused for a moment, the other party had acted in a movie, he temporarily didn't know what to say, but the movie was already released and he still wasn't aware of it, which made him feel like a failure as a person. Sighing, he self-mocked: "Huh, look at me, I've got some achievements and my head's gotten dizzy, I haven't even paid attention to your movie's filming and release..."

  Choi Yoo-jin didn't mind at all, and instead comforted him saying: "Don't blame yourself, senior. At the time of filming, your schedule was busy and there wasn't much media coverage, so it's normal that you didn't notice." She then jokingly added: "If senior really feels apologetic, next time when a movie comes to Korea for promotion, come and support me instead."

  Seeing that she didn't seem to mind, An Junhe also didn't dwell on it and said after some thought: "Alright, whenever you come for promotion, notify me in advance so I can adjust my schedule."

  "Really... really?" Choi Yoo-jin's expression was one of surprise, the sentence itself just a joke, even though she had acted in movies, Ahn Jun-hee was still someone she looked up to, and she had never dared to hope that he would come especially to support her.

  She didn't expect him to agree without hesitation, leaving her momentarily stunned and stuttering.

  "Of course it's true." Ahn Jun-hee smiled and glanced at Yoon Eun-hye and Cho Sung-mo, who hadn't greeted him yet, and said in a low voice, "I'll go pay my respects to the two seniors first, let's talk later!"

  Zhèng jīdòng de cuī rú zhēn nǎ huì bù tóngyì, lián máng diǎn tóu: "ǎ!"

  Translation:

  Excited Chui Ruthe nodded hastily: "Yes!"

  Just now, when the two were talking, Yoon Eun-hye and Cho Seung-mo smiled over here. Cho Seung-mo, of course, had already eaten with Ahn Jun-hee and recently talked on the phone. This time, when they met, although he didn't warmly hug him like Liu Zai-shi did before, he patted his shoulder and said: "I see you have a good relationship with MC, so take care of me a bit during the show later, no matter what, let me do more."

  An Junhe's heart skipped a beat, he had specifically asked So Ji-sub about Cao Chengmo's personality and knew that he was a relatively quiet and casual person, not too emotional, but straightforward enough. Now that he could pat him on the shoulder and ask him to "take care" with a smile, it meant that the other party indeed didn't take the media's hype about their contrast to heart, just like during their phone call a few days ago.

  Her slightly raised heart was put down, and An Junhe pretended to be helpless and sighed: "I still want Cheng Mo Ge to take care of me for a bit, let me come, after all, you've let me win several times..."

  “Y...” Cao Chengmo was speechless and gave him a punch, while An Junhe turned around with a smile and bowed to Yoon Eun-hye who was watching the two of them with a smile: "Senior Yoon Eun-hye, hello!"

  "An Jun-he, hello!" He didn't calmly accept the courtesy, this senior who debuted at 16 years old in '99 as a substitute member of Baby V.O.X, which was considered Korea's first girl group to advance into the music scene, also bowed back to him with an unexpectedly humble and low-key attitude.

  To her, An Junhe didn't know much about it, only saw some information on Quan Baogen's collected materials today.

  She is a regular guest of X-man, but apart from that, she has not achieved much. The group Baby-V.O.X, which has not disbanded until now, did not bring her much honor, and instead caused her harm in the early days (because she joined in the third album, and was resisted by some fans/ANTI). Now she is the first member of the group to develop solo, sacrificing her image to gain popularity. After years of struggling in the entertainment industry, all her edges have been worn off, making her a kind and gentle person.

  However, An Junhe would not underestimate her because of this. This person had an impression in his dream memory, which was not very clear, but vaguely remembered that about a year later, she would star in a youth idol drama and become popular all over the country with one move.

  Even now, her popularity is not small, many viewers of X-man like the "young warrior" nicknamed, cheerful and lively, without any regard for image.

  Needless to say, she and Kim Jong Kook are still friends!

  Thinking of this, An Junhe continued to say respectfully: "Before coming, Zhong Guo told me about you and asked me to ask for your advice. I also hope that the program will be taken care of later."

  "Hehe, I just participated in a few more periods than you, who has the qualifications to take care of what." Although she said it humbly, since there was a relationship with Kim Jong-kook inside, she didn't need to be too polite or distant. After exchanging a few pleasantries, she began to impart her experience in doing the show to Ahn Jun-hee. Jo Hye-ryung also came over to listen in, and Choi Yoo-jin, who also had experience with shows, came over to guide them as well. The familiar group of people formed a small circle.

  "Has Cao Chengmo and An Junhe seen the script?"

  "They nodded."

  "Actually, for a program like this, the script doesn't hold much significance. The three segments are already set in stone, and the lines on the script can only serve as a reference. The real decision-making power lies with the MC during recording, so the most important thing is to think on your feet." As she spoke, Yoon Eun-hye glanced at the two of them, seeing that they were listening intently, her usual composed smile relaxing slightly. "For you two, who are participating for the first time, this might be a bit difficult, but neither of you are newcomers. Jo Sung-mo sunbae is a big shot in the music industry, and Ahn Jun-hee's popularity has been soaring lately, plus you have Jo Sung-mo sunbae helping out. As long as you two just liven up the atmosphere, the production team and Jo Sung-mo sunbae will take care of your screen time. Even if you occasionally steal the spotlight, no one will say anything to you."

  "Hmm!" Next to him, Choi Yu-jin agreed: "The key is still to let go. When the MC and guests are speaking, if you feel like there's something funny, just say it out loud. Even if you don't have a funny idea, when others are being humorous, you should actively cooperate, with exaggerated actions and loud laughter. Especially Jun-hyuk hyung, don't worry about your idol singer image, I heard that all of you have expression management, so in the program, just forget about it. If you need to laugh loudly, then laugh loudly, if you need to throw a tantrum, then throw a tantrum. Make sure to do enough for the program's effect, and even if you're not funny enough, the production team won't edit out your entire part..."

  The four people who were crouching in a corner, imparting their experience and learning on the spot, looked somewhat suspicious and inevitably attracted the attention of others.

  On the other side of the waiting room, Cai Yeon, who had been secretly paying attention to this place, lightly bumped her shoulder against Lee Jin's, "Sister, didn't everyone outside say that Ahn Jun-hee and Cho Cheong-mo don't get along? Looking at them, it doesn't seem like it!"

  Yumi Min, who was also sitting next to them and listening to their conversation, nodded repeatedly: "Uh-huh, looks like they have a good relationship." Her Japanese husband's Korean wasn't very proficient yet, but daily conversations were no problem.

  Lee Jin, who debuted with Lee Hyori, is also a senior figure. Upon hearing the news, she glanced over and shrugged her shoulders: "You guys believe what the media says? Those two people have good personalities. Cho Sung-mo may have debuted early, but he's never been arrogant, has a gentle and calm temperament. As for Ahn Joon-young..." She rubbed her nose, seemingly thinking of something, and let out a sigh: "A very promising newcomer... You guys saw it too, his connections are quite extensive. Even though he hasn't been in the industry for half a year, he's already had people like Kim Jong-kook helping him on stage. That shows you what kind of person he is."

  She glanced at the two who were listening intently and smiled, "If you don't mind, get a bit closer to them during the show later, it'll be good for your development."

  She is a senior, and to be honest, saying these things is not stressful at all. Cai Yan and Liu Min listened without any pressure either. Cai Yan's early days in the entertainment industry were bumpy, she had gone hungry, slept on the streets, fallen into a ditch, and was even cheated by people when she went to Japan alone. After struggling to debut as a group, their management company went bankrupt, forcing them to return home and start over, but that wasn't smooth sailing either. The production of their debut album was fraught with difficulties, and even after debuting, things weren't easy. At the time, she had a sexy image, but because of her revealing outfits, she was attacked by many people.

  She persisted all the way, biting her teeth, and she understood better than many people how to seize opportunities, and naturally did not shy away from her somewhat utilitarian mentality.

  As for Yoo Min, this actress named Yuzuki Yuko, has a similar experience to Chae Yeon. She is a Japanese actress who came to Korea alone and has been struggling with the language barrier for years, never getting any major roles and wandering around the second and third tier, so if there's an opportunity to help her career, she wouldn't mind being a bit shameless.

  Upon hearing Li Zhen's words, the two of them quietly started calculating in their minds. Of course, it wasn't an excessive idea, as every episode of X-man has a pink storyline (creating a ambiguous program effect) for the guests. Regular guests would have the program team help design it, while non-regular ones would need to improvise on the spot. The program team was also happy to see this and helped hype up the topic to attract attention.

  The two of them were considering it, and their main purpose was still to get to know Cao Chengmo or An Junhe.

  MC is not here, more than a dozen guests, those who know each other gather together to chat, those who don't know each other are naturally isolated unintentionally, after an unknown period of time, Liu Zaishi and the PD and writers return after discussion, pushing the door and shouting: "Everyone get ready, we're going to start shooting soon."

  The whole room suddenly became busy, either checking their makeup or adjusting their clothes. Only Ahn Jun-hee arrived relatively late and didn't need to do anything else. Liu Zai-shi called out to him as he was seen idling about.

  "The show is about to start filming, this is your first time on a variety show, you must remember to let loose..."

  As soon as they left the door, Liu Zishi hastily began to instruct Ahn Jun-hee, who had already received education from Yoon Eun-hye, and laughed: "I know, don't manage your expression, laugh when you should laugh and get angry when you should get angry, pay attention to grasping the timing and snatching the camera, if you feel like there's a joke, don't be afraid to say it, and when others are being funny, react exaggeratedly... right?"

  Liu Zhaishi and Jiang Hudu, who was following closely behind him, were both taken aback for a moment. The two of them exchanged a glance, then looked at An Junhe with a strange expression.

  Liu Zai Shi was the first to react, nodding his head: "Hehe, it's about right! It's this competitive mindset that you have, although you're a newcomer, but your popularity is high enough, don't be afraid of stealing the spotlight from others, you can let loose and not hold back. This isn't a live broadcast, during post-production if we find any mistakes, we can just cut them out."

  "Yes, thank you Shi Ge! Thank you Hu Dong Ge."

  He has always maintained a humble and polite attitude, which makes Liu Zishi and Jiang Hudu feel very satisfied. Jiang Hudu waved his hand, "No need to thank me, just now when I came back from the operating room, Zishi and I talked about it, at the opening ceremony later, we will try our best to give you some shots, let you adapt, seize the opportunity, can't give you too many shots, otherwise other guests will complain."

  "Yes!"

  By this time, the people inside had almost all come out, and Liu Zhi Shi and Jiang Hu Dong didn't say much more. They just waited until everyone was gathered in the corridor outside the door, roughly lined up, then the three MCs led them to the backstage passageway of the broadcasting hall.

  The scene of the program list is also with audience and reporters, now they should all be seated in the auditorium. The three MCs waited at the exit for a while, until the staff on the side gave a hand signal, and then entered the stage one after another. Soon, their passionate opening declaration was heard:

  "Really!" Jiang Hudu's angry roar!

  "Situation!" Liu Zai shouted triumphantly.

  "Sunny!" Kong Xuan's sharp cry.

  “Good.Sunday，X－man——！”

  With the simultaneous announcement of the three, the recording of the 32nd X-man began.

  The dimly lit backstage of the recording studio was as usual, and An Junhe didn't feel much pressure for the first episode of the show. Although he had never been good at variety shows since his trainee days, lacking a sense of humor, these things couldn't be forced, and he wouldn't get anxious about it. As for facing the camera... no matter how great the pressure of recording a show was, it wasn't greater than singing live without delay.

  It was Cao Chengmo who stood behind him, muttering to himself, repeating the experience that Yoon Eun-hye and Choi Yu-jin had just imparted.

  An Junhe patted his arm and said, "Xingmo brother, relax, don't be nervous!"

  "Ah..." Cao Chengmo took a few deep breaths, his tense heartbeat seeming to calm down slightly. He let out a sigh and gave a bitter smile: "It's been two years since I left the stage, now even this kind of scene is a bit unbearable for me..."

  An Junhe chuckled and was about to respond when Liu Zaishi's voice came from outside, "And now, let me introduce the 32nd generation of performers who are with us today!"

  He patted Cao Chengmo's arm again and followed An Junhe through the partition into the broadcasting hall.