The companion thought for a moment and said, “Hmm, I’ll go talk to him.” Then suddenly added, “But then you’ll have to come down!”

“Hey! It’s only because you couldn’t find anyone that I was forced into this, I have no confidence at all, I’d be glad if someone took my place!” said the guy with glasses.

“That’s called shirking and being slippery, your work ethic is questionable!” his companion laughed.

“All right, all right, just go already, the guy’s about to leave,” said the guy with glasses.

Andrew Clark finished his cigarette, stubbed it out, flicked it with his fingers, and it landed perfectly in the trash can ahead.

He stood up to leave, when someone called out, “Hey man, wait up!”

Andrew Clark turned around and saw the guy with the droopy, miserable face from earlier running over, blurting out, “Hey man, do you want to be in a movie?”

Chapter Two Samuel Reed

“What?”

Andrew Clark thought he’d misheard.

“Do you want to be in a movie?” the guy repeated.

Andrew Clark asked suspiciously, “Who are you?”

“I’m from the film academy, graduating in a few months, and I want to make a movie as a keepsake. Oh, my name is Samuel Reed.” As he spoke, he pulled over the guy with glasses. “This is David Cooper, my classmate.”

“How much?” Andrew Clark asked.

“What?” This time Samuel Reed was stunned.

“How much will you pay? I’m not doing it for free, right?” said Andrew Clark.

“Oh, oh! Of course not.” Samuel Reed hurriedly replied. He’d never met anyone so direct, and asked a bit gloomily, “Aren’t you going to ask what kind of movie it is, or what role you’ll play?”

Andrew Clark said, “As long as it’s not porn, I can do it. So how much are you paying?”

Samuel Reed and David Cooper exchanged a glance, and the latter said, “It’s a low-budget film, not much investment, but the script is really good. You’d be the male lead…”

“Stop, just tell me how much!” Andrew Clark cut him off.

The two of them gave a wry smile. Samuel Reed thought for a moment and said, “One thousand.”

Andrew Clark asked, “How long will it take to shoot, and where?”

Samuel Reed said, “About two months, maybe a bit over a month if things go smoothly. The whole film will be shot in Fenyang.”

“Where’s Fenyang?” Andrew Clark was completely lost.

“In Shanxi.”

“Is food and lodging included?” That was what he cared about most.

The two across from him were speechless. David Cooper said, “Yes, but the conditions might not be great.”

“Oh, that’s fine.” Andrew Clark thought, a thousand yuan, two months, food and lodging covered—this job’s worth it!

But he still tried to bargain, “How about two thousand?”

Samuel Reed considered it. The film’s budget was only two hundred thousand, but paying the male lead two thousand was totally doable, so he tried to bargain back, “Fifteen hundred.”

“Two thousand!” Andrew Clark wanted to hold firm.

“Deal!” This time Samuel Reed agreed readily.

“Um, why don’t you introduce yourself?” Samuel Reed felt a bit bitter, like he was haggling over vegetables at a street stall for his own movie.

“Oh, my name is Andrew Clark, twenty-one, from the northeast, I won’t say exactly where, you probably haven’t heard of it anyway. I’ve been here four years, working as a junk collector.”

He said he was a junk collector very naturally, without a hint of embarrassment.

Samuel Reed was a bit surprised. With that messy hair and scruffy stubble, he looked at least twenty-seven or twenty-eight, didn’t expect him to be so young.

The three of them shook hands, now acquainted.

Andrew Clark said, “So what do we do next? Don’t directors usually hold auditions? Should I act out a scene? Just so you know, I can’t act.”

Samuel Reed was exasperated—why wait until after agreeing on the pay to remember the audition, you idiot!

He ignored these headache-inducing details and said, “No need, we’re only looking for non-professional actors. Anyway, we still need a few days to prepare. Leave your contact info, we’ll let you know.”

“Okay, I don’t have a pager, just come find me here.” Andrew Clark gave the address of his rental, and David Cooper wrote it down.

“That’s it then, I’ll be off.” Andrew Clark didn’t mention the money; in his mind, getting paid after the job was normal.

“Huh? All right, see you then.”

Samuel Reed was left speechless. He’d wanted the three of them to grab a meal at a small restaurant to bond a bit, but who knew this guy would be so straightforward.

“Bye then.”

Andrew Clark waved, showing none of the excitement of someone who’d just landed a movie role—more like someone who’d just fixed a pair of old shoes, calm as could be.

That calmness stuck with Samuel Reed for a lifetime. Many years later, he would still often say that Andrew Clark’s attitude back then really made you want to punch him.

It also made him realize that not everyone sees film as something great, not everyone is willing to throw everything into it like he is.

For some, it’s life; for others, it’s just a job.

……

Night.

In a run-down little courtyard, a few bungalows were stacked together like irregular building blocks, crooked and askew.

When Andrew Clark got back, he dug a few big chunks of coal from the cinders under the landlord’s window and stuffed them into the little stove in his room.

After a while, the fire was blazing, the stove glowing red, and the room was finally warm.