Chapter 19 – He’s So Arrogant!
Not long after dinner, Qi Jing announced a new game.
When they heard what the game was, both Zhong Jiarong and Wu Heze were momentarily stunned.
The two of them were regular guests on the show. Usually, any game segment would be mentioned to them in advance.
But this voice acting game had never been discussed by the director before—it was clearly a last-minute addition.
Everyone there was sharp enough to figure out what was going on. A little thought made it obvious that someone had asked the director to add this segment at the last minute.
And among the group, the only one who had anything to do with voice acting—and the power to influence the director—was likely the investor backing Lu Lecheng.
But nobody was particularly surprised by this kind of thing.
Every guest who comes on a variety show has an agenda. As the leader of a newly debuted boy group formed through a talent competition, Lu Lecheng was in urgent need of new fans and greater exposure to lay the groundwork for his future career.
They had also heard that yesterday, Lu Lecheng had been completely overshadowed by Shi Cha. It was understandable that the investors would step in and request a game segment today that highlighted Lu Lecheng.
There was no right or wrong in these matters.
Qi Jing brought out three voice acting clips that had been sent over last night.
The first clip was from a classic comedy sketch. It was clearly chosen for Zhong Jiarong and Wu Heze, the two comedians.
This not only avoided putting the two comedy veterans in a difficult spot but also helped liven up the atmosphere on set.
Both the director and the two actors were satisfied with the selection.
The second clip was from a patriotic film and was prepared for Zhou Caizhe and Lin Ran.
Zhou Caizhe, known for idol dramas, had never acted in patriotic films or shows. While he could probably manage the voice acting technically, he might struggle to fully convey the emotional depth.
Lin Ran, though currently a top-tier celebrity, had only guest-starred in a minor role since switching from the e-sports scene to the entertainment industry a year ago. He hadn’t taken on any major acting projects yet.
So, while the movie clip allowed the two to complete the task smoothly, it also ensured they wouldn’t steal too much of the spotlight.
The third clip, however, was more challenging—it was the English-dubbed version of a cartoon.
In just five minutes of footage, ten different characters appeared.
The director assigned this final clip to Lu Lecheng and Shi Cha.
Of course, they wouldn’t need to voice all ten characters.
On the task sheet, Lu Lecheng was assigned the protagonist and an elderly supporting character, while Shi Cha was given a small rabbit with only two lines of dialogue.
As soon as Lu Lecheng heard it was a voice acting game, he couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Shi Cha, who sat silently beside him with a cold expression.
Although he didn’t want to admit it, after being overshadowed by Shi Cha for four years, he knew deep down that he didn’t stand a chance against him.
He was worried that Shi Cha might suddenly interfere and ruin the opportunity the company had worked so hard to secure for him.
But when he heard that Shi Cha had only been assigned two lines, he finally let out a sigh of relief.
No matter how skilled Shi Cha was, with just two short lines, there was no way he could steal the spotlight.
The first two voice acting segments began quickly.
Zhong Jiarong and Wu Heze worked in perfect sync, their gestures and expressions almost identical to those in the original comedy sketch. The live stream viewers burst out laughing.
But since both were already professional comedians, the audience wasn’t particularly surprised by their performance.
Lin Ran and Zhou Caizhe performed a rousing patriotic speech from a film.
This segment allowed the audience to see a different side of both Zhou Caizhe and Lin Ran.
Many viewers commented that directors of patriotic films should invite the two into their productions immediately.
When it was Lü Lecheng and Shi Cha’s turn, they hadn’t even started yet before the live chat was flooded with comments—so much so that people began to suspect hired commenters were involved.
[“Chengcheng graduated from the Voice Acting Program at A University! He even won a gold medal in a voice acting competition during college! Can’t wait to see his performance!”]
[“Same here—super excited!”]
[…]
[“Wasn’t Shi Cha in the same class as Lu Lecheng? He can’t be that bad, right?”]
[“Not sure, but I’ve only ever seen Chengcheng win awards. That Shi Cha guy never showed up in any voice acting competitions. Probably not that skilled.”]
[…]
The new fans Shi Cha had just gained didn’t dare speak up in his defense. Some hadn’t had the chance to learn more about him yet, and others had stayed up all night trying to dig up information—only to find virtually nothing online.
That made it hard not to believe what people were saying about his lack of professional ability.
After all, if he really was talented, it should’ve been easy for him to enter a competition and win something. The fact that he hadn’t suggested he wasn’t very good.
Shi Cha’s fans could only comfort themselves: It’s fine, we’re here for the looks!
As for Shi Cha himself, he had no complaints about the segment assigned by the show.
Two lines? Then two lines it is.
He even wondered if Director Qi Jing knew he didn’t like to talk and had deliberately favored him by giving him fewer lines.
After all, everyone else had long chunks of dialogue, while his part was easy and effortless.
If Lu Lecheng knew what he was thinking, he’d probably be furious.
As the music began, Lu Lecheng glanced at the script and then began voice acting directly over the scene on screen—without even reading from the page.
His pronunciation was clear, his emotions on point, and his voice matched the original dub in the movie perfectly. If you didn’t listen closely, you couldn’t even tell the difference.
Once he finished his lines, it was Shi Cha’s turn.
Shi Cha didn’t look at the script either—after all, with only two lines, there was no need.
Unlike the others, who all performed with animated facial expressions, Shi Cha delivered his two soft, adorably cute lines with an almost completely blank face.
It was the voice of a little girl—sweet, innocent, and endearingly playful.
As soon as he finished his lines, the clip ended.
Aside from Lu Lecheng and Lin Ran, everyone else was visibly surprised.
Wu Heze covered his eyes, laughing and crying at the same time.
“Listening to Shi Cha’s voice, I imagined an adorable little girl, but his face looked like a cold-blooded assassin.”
Zhong Jiarong couldn’t help but add,
“The contrast is way too jarring.”
The live chat exploded with laughter as well:
[“If you just listen to those two lines, it’s an insanely cute bunny waifu—instant heart-melter. But once you match it with that face… sorry, I can’t unsee it.”]
Even though Shi Cha’s performance had strong gap moe (adorable contrast), the live comments were still mostly flooded with praise for Lü Lecheng, showering him with compliments.
Just as everyone was applauding, Lin Ran suddenly asked,
“Director Qi, if I remember correctly, wasn’t the original audio of this animated film in French? The English dub was added later when it was released in the Americas.”
Qi Jing, standing behind the live camera, glanced at Lin Ran and nodded.
“Yes, the original audio is indeed in French.”
Lin Ran, hearing the confirmation, turned back to the guests and asked Shi Cha,
“Xiao Shi, you speak French, right? Want to try dubbing it in French?”
His voice wasn’t quiet—every guest present heard it clearly, and so did all the viewers in the livestream.
[“Is Brother Ran trying to make things harder for Shi Cha?”]
[“Wow… is Lin Ran trying to sabotage him? And you guys still ship these two? Prepare for that ship to sink fast.”]
[“Ship all you want, none of your business.”]
[…]
Shi Cha nodded.
“I do speak a little, but I haven’t seen the French version before.”
Lin Ran immediately turned to the director.
“Director Qi, do you have the French version?”
At this point, Qi Jing understood what Lin Ran was trying to do. But from her perspective, it didn’t really matter—she had already followed the investor’s requests. The final outcome wasn’t something she, as the director, could control.
“Yes, I do. Let me show it to you.”
Soon, the French version of the same clip was played.
It only lasted a few minutes and passed by quickly.
Lin Ran asked Shi Cha, “Can you dub it?”
Shi Cha nodded.
“I can.”
Then he walked over to the microphone that hadn’t yet been removed and made a hand gesture to Director Qi Jing, indicating that he was ready to begin.
Wu Heze, standing right next to Lin Ran, said, “He only listened to it once, didn’t even look at the script—and he’s just going to dub it like that?”
Lin Ran replied with full confidence and pride, “Xiao Shi isn’t like regular people. He’s had a photographic memory since he was a kid.”
Wu Heze: “…”
Apparently, being a normal person just isn’t good enough.
Before playing the clip, Qi Jing still asked, “Which character do you want to dub? I’ll have the team mute the others live.”
Shi Cha leaned toward the microphone and said, “No need to go through the trouble. Just mute all the voices—leave only the background sounds.”
“…”
[“That’s ten characters! Male and female, young and old—there’s even an opera segment! How does he even dare?!”]
[“Wuwu, he’s so wild!”]
[“Wuwu, I’m so in love!”]
I’ve got to say the suspension of disbelief is strong with that last challenge. Still can’t wait to see it ☺️