The Martial Arts Stunt Double of the Entertainment Circle – Chapter 11
by Little PandaEver since then, Tuoba Yan had been following entertainment industry news, watching all manner of boring soap operas and entertainment news with Qiao Chunyi, frantically searching online for materials every day, and downloading professional books to read.
She even observed her own facial expressions in the mirror, just as the original Tuoba Yan had once done. Of course, she did this secretly behind Qiao Chunyi’s back—her intuition told her that if Qiao Chunyi caught her at it, the consequences would absolutely not be good.
By the time the wound on her wrist had fully healed, there was no accumulated scar tissue to speak of, thanks to the blood-invigorating medicine Tuoba Yan had been taking consistently. On her snow-white wrist, the marks where the knife had once cut deep were nearly invisible. Another thing that put her at ease was that, perhaps by heaven’s blessing, the injury had not affected the nerves in her hand. Her fingers moved freely and with strength—a stroke of great fortune.
By this time, it was roughly mid-October.
After careful deliberation, Tuoba Yan waited until her mother Qiao Chunyi was out of the house and dialed Nian Huixian’s number. After a few rings, Nian Huixian’s puzzled voice came through: “Hello?”
“Is this Nian-jiejie?”
Nian Huixian recognized Tuoba Yan’s voice almost immediately. “Xiao Yan?”
“Yes, Nian-jiejie still remembers me.” Tuoba Yan smiled.
After some small talk, Tuoba Yan revealed the reason for her call. “…Yes, I want to find work as a martial arts stunt double. But since I do not have any work experience, I have not been able to find anything suitable. I had no choice but to presumptuously bother you.”
“Martial arts stunt double?” Nian Huixian was surprised. “Why would you want to do martial arts stunt double work?”
Tuoba Yan’s voice was confident and steady. “Yes. When it comes to the professional side of things, I am absolutely certain of myself. What I lack now is opportunity and timing. Nian-jiejie, are you willing to help me?”
Nian Huixian was silent for a moment, then said, “Let us have dinner together tonight.”
“Okay.”
Tuoba Yan hung up, the corners of her lips curving upward.
Nian Huixian soon sent a text message: Old city district, No. 86 Anding Street, 6th floor, sf Restaurant, 11 o’clock.
Tuoba Yan did not change into anything special. With her hair in a ponytail, wearing her everyday clothes and an unfashionable little blue bag slung across her shoulder, she arrived at exactly the appointed time, unhurried and at ease. sf was a Western restaurant—minimalist in decor yet elegant. She spotted Nian Huixian sitting by the window at a glance.
Tuoba Yan walked over to the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down. “Nian-jiejie.”
Nian Huixian was dressed in her usual stylish, capable professional attire, her face lightly made up. She waved over a waiter to order, then glanced up at Tuoba Yan. Tuoba Yan caught her meaning and smiled. “Nian-jiejie, order for me. It is my first time at a place like this.”
The appetizer was a salad. Tuoba Yan looked at the knife and fork on either side of her plate and asked the waiter, “Do you have chopsticks?”
The waiter blinked, then quickly brought her a pair. Tuoba Yan ate delicately with her chopsticks. A couple two tables over pointed and whispered in their direction, but Tuoba Yan paid them no mind whatsoever, merely remarking, “I have never had this before. The taste is a bit strange, but it is quite good.”
After the salad came the main course: a sizzling ribeye steak, its juices still crackling. This kind of thick, chunky meat was not suited for chopsticks.
Tuoba Yan watched Nian Huixian cut the crisp-outside, tender-inside steak into small pieces and spear them with a fork before bringing them to her mouth. She followed along with convincing form, quickly mastering the use of knife and fork. The two chatted happily.
Nian Huixian dabbed her lips and finally steered the conversation to the heart of the matter. “On the phone earlier, you said you wanted to find work as a stunt double?”
Tuoba Yan corrected her. “Martial arts stunt double.”
“Right, martial stunt double.” Nian Huixian looked earnestly into Tuoba Yan’s eyes. “But you should know that this profession demands a very high level of martial arts proficiency from the performer. And the investment and returns are completely disproportionate. You do the most grueling, dangerous work, but you earn only a fraction of what the actual stars make.”
“I know that,” Tuoba Yan said.
Nian Huixian gathered her thoughts and shared her perspective with the pretty, tall young girl before her. “Whether as someone familiar with the entertainment industry or simply as a friend you get along with, I would not recommend you become a martial arts stunt double. Back then, Chen Anxiang’s martial stunt double died from injuries sustained during filming—and the compensation was less than 200,000 yuan. Do you think that is worth it?”
Tuoba Yan was speechless.
“If you want to enter the entertainment industry, I can recommend another path for you.” Nian Huixian took a color-printed flyer from her bag and handed it to Tuoba Yan. “This is a recruitment ad for the girl idol group Idols K. Take a look. I have some connections with their internal staff, so I can get you a spot in the second round of selections. You would go directly to sign up for training—they have professional courses in physique, vocals, dance, and acting, and they will create a specialized development plan for every member who passes the second round. That is much easier and more direct than being a faceless martial stunt double.”
Tuoba Yan took the flyer. The front showed promotional photos of dozens of pretty girls in matching uniforms. The back was an admission form with the name left blank, already stamped.
The very group from which the original Tuoba Yan had been eliminated was this Idols K.
She sighed. “Nian-jiejie, thank you for going to such trouble for me. But my goal is not to become an idol star. I am only interested in acting.”
Tuoba Yan returned the form to Nian Huixian, glanced out the window, and fixed her gaze on a building of over twenty stories. She said to the astonished Nian Huixian, “Nian-jiejie, after we finish eating, come with me somewhere.”
Each absorbed in her own thoughts, they finished their meal. Stepping out of the restaurant, Tuoba Yan took Nian Huixian by the hand, crossed the street, and arrived at the base of the building. She smiled.
“Shall we go up to the rooftop?”
Nian Huixian looked up at the office building, which was open to the public, and assumed Tuoba Yan meant taking the elevator. So she agreed. Who would have thought that once inside, just as they were heading toward the elevators, Tuoba Yan led Nian Huixian to the stairwell instead.
“Let us take the stairs up. Nian-jiejie, can you handle it?”
The beautiful girl raised her eyebrows challengingly. Nian Huixian felt a flash of irritation at being underestimated and blurted out, “Stairs it is, then.”
She figured she was wearing flat shoes today and agreed readily—but vastly overestimated her own stamina.
Tuoba Yan walked ahead at a brisk, unhurried pace. By the third floor, Nian Huixian was already struggling to keep up. She gritted her teeth and pushed through two more floors before finally reaching her physical limit.
“You… slow down…”
Tuoba Yan stopped. Nian Huixian leaned on her knees, drenched in sweat, panting heavily. Her legs felt like they were filled with lead—completely unresponsive, unable to take another step.
Tuoba Yan chuckled softly from the steps above, then came down to Nian Huixian’s side and suddenly scooped her up in her arms. Nian Huixian shrieked in fright, her arms instinctively wrapping around Tuoba Yan’s neck. Tuoba Yan easily bounced Nian Huixian in her arms to adjust her hold. The latter, still shaken, looked at Tuoba Yan with a mix of shock and anger.
“Nian-jiejie, forgive my presumption!”
With that, Tuoba Yan charged up the stairs with pounding steps, taking three at a stride, covering an entire floor in just seven or eight seconds.
The wind roared past Nian Huixian’s ears. Terrified that Tuoba Yan might slip and drop her, she squeezed her eyes shut and clung tightly to Tuoba Yan’s neck, curling up entirely in her arms. Tuoba Yan reassuringly adjusted her grip, securing the woman who was many years her senior firmly against herself. Her feet never slowed, and she reached the rooftop at what felt like lightning speed.
Tuoba Yan planted her feet and let out a long breath.
This intense exertion that would have left anyone else collapsed and drained was, in General Tuoba’s eyes, nothing more than an appetizer-level warm-up.
She walked steadily to the concrete platform in the center of the rooftop—a little spot where the office workers probably gathered for lunch breaks, littered with bread wrappers, sushi containers, and similar trash.
Tuoba Yan bent down and released her hold, letting the stiff-bodied Nian Huixian’s feet touch the ground. She supported her gently until she found her footing, then took off her jacket and laid it on the concrete platform.
“Nian-jiejie, sit down and rest for a bit.”
Nian Huixian stood dumbfounded, staring at Tuoba Yan as though she were looking at Superman.
Was this truly the strength an eighteen-year-old city girl should possess?
Tuoba Yan was satisfied. Nian Huixian was finally no longer looking at her as a junior. But she needed to turn up the heat a little more—make the fire in those eyes burn even brighter. Only then would she be assured.
She walked to the edge of the rooftop and stepped onto the outermost protective ledge. The fierce wind howled at that height, battering against Tuoba Yan. Her body swayed, looking as though she might plummet from the rooftop at any moment.
Nian Huixian jolted. “Tuoba Yan! Are you trying to get yourself killed?!”
“Nian-jiejie, watch closely!”
The author has something to say:
Nian Huixian: Oh my god, this brat scared me to death!
Li Yanrao: Nian, do not play innocent when you got lucky—I haven’t even gotten to be carried by Yan-mei yet =皿=
Tang: Fixing a couple bugs—first, it should be dinner; second, the group’s name was wrong. I actually noticed it during the day, but held off on fixing it to avoid suspicion of a fake update. Sorry >3
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