The Cooper Family is the descendant of founding heroes, relying on the blessings of their ancestors. Though they appear glorious, in reality, they are strong on the outside but weak within. There isn’t a single capable man in the entire clan: George Cooper’s official position is unclear, his title is merely that of a first-rank general; Thomas Cooper is just a minor official in the Ministry of Works; as for Richard Cooper and James Cooper, there’s even less to say. That’s why The Cooper Family is in urgent need of a man who can achieve something in the imperial examinations and truly gain a foothold in the court.

Samuel Cooper was originally the best candidate, but unfortunately died young, so this responsibility naturally fell on Benjamin. But not only is he ignorant of the world, he often mocks those “nonsense books” and “nonsense talk,” showing no sense of responsibility, lacking foresight, and without any drive or ambition.

He hopes that the sisters in the Grand View Garden can live carefree all their lives, but never stops to think where he gets the confidence and privilege for such wishes.

The economic base determines the superstructure. Benjamin Cooper is a thorough idealist, and idealists are by definition unrealistic. I dislike unrealistic people.”

“……”

The scene fell silent for a moment; these words were rather heretical.

Current Redology research focuses on the original work and its hidden historical background—how romantic and beautiful, how profound and artistic, who is a metaphor for whom, which commentary edition says what… Few people connect the book to reality.

Brian Clark undoubtedly throws Benjamin Cooper nakedly into modern society, interpreting him with a modern mindset. And this mindset isn’t even that of the 1980s!

Peter Smith was quiet for a while, once again carefully sizing up this person.

Tall and upright, with refined features, fair and pleasant to look at—most importantly, he exuded something both unfamiliar and fresh, as if he didn’t quite belong to this era.

For a moment, he didn’t know what to say, so he just nodded, “Alright, let’s leave it here for now. You two go back and wait for further notice.”

“Goodbye, Director. Goodbye, teachers!”

The two stood up to take their leave. The girl’s movements were a bit slow, mixed with surprise, disappointment, and a touch of confusion.

Peter Smith escorted them out, all the way to the elevator. Just as the doors were about to close, he suddenly said, “Keep your train tickets safe—you might be able to get reimbursed.”

Andrew Brooks was stunned, watching the elevator doors slowly close, hiding that kind face, and suddenly realized.

“Did we pass?”

“We passed.”

“So I can play Daisy Wood?”

“What are you thinking? There are still several more rounds of selection. Go home and wait.”

“Huh?”

The girl was instantly dejected, leaning against the wall with her head down, silent. After a while, she suddenly twisted her neck, her single braid draped over her left shoulder, still damp and bouncing.

Brian Clark met those big, dark, bright eyes. “Why are you looking at me?”

“I’m looking at you…”

She tilted her head. “You’re kind of mysterious!”

Chapter 7: The Trust Store

Domestic television dramas didn’t start late; as early as 1958, the first TV drama, “A Bite of Vegetable Pancake,” was broadcast. But due to various factors, development was extremely slow and lagged far behind other countries.

At this time, there were no long series—just two-part or three-to-five-episode dramas. The longest was “Eighteen Years in Enemy Camp,” with a total of nine episodes, also directed by Peter Smith.

So producing a TV series destined to run for dozens of episodes was inherently difficult. Add to that the century-old IP of Dream of the Red Chamber, and everyone was under immense pressure, not daring to slack off in the slightest.

Peter Smith’s requirements for actors were extremely clear: first, they had to look the part, and second, they had to be young.

When Daisy Wood entered the The Cooper Estate, she was about six or seven years old; Benjamin was a year or two older, and Charlotte a year or two older still. It was impossible to cast elementary school students, so the age limit was set at around twenty. They could be mature in mind, but had to appear youthful.

For example, in the scene “Lingering thoughts on a quiet day, jade gives off fragrance”: Benjamin wanders into Xiaoxiang Pavilion and finds Daisy napping, then pesters her to let him lie down too. Daisy refuses, so the two playfully wrestle on the bed and tell the story of the rat spirit.

If you let famous actors like Liu Xiaoqing, Gong Xue, or Guo Kaimin play these roles, as Peter Smith put it, they’d be “grown men and women”—the chemistry would be off, lacking the feeling of childhood innocence.

Thus, casting was extremely difficult, and so far, there hadn’t been any particularly satisfactory choices, especially for the four core roles of Benjamin, Charlotte, Daisy, and Phoebe.

In fact, Peter Smith wasn’t entirely satisfied with Andrew Brooks either, thinking her nose was too high, but compared to others, she was the most outstanding so far.

“Did you write down her contact information?”

“Yes, she’s from the Ancheng Drama Troupe, used to be in the acrobatics troupe, can dance, and is easy to find.”

“Oh, no wonder she has a good figure and nice temperament. Put her on the shortlist for Daisy, and notify her when the time comes.”

“What about Brian Clark?” asked Teacher Bai.

“Brian Clark…”

Peter Smith paused, recalling the young man’s appearance, and said, “Put him on the list too, but don’t assign a role yet. We’ll see later.”

……

Because the audition went smoothly, they unexpectedly had some free time.

After meeting the director in the morning, the two wandered around a big department store in the afternoon, but everything was outrageously expensive, and they didn’t have any ration coupons, so they left in disappointment.

Then they headed to the Dongdan Trust Store, finally finding a more down-to-earth atmosphere.