Looking at Joseph's disheveled state, Hugo laughed heartily, leaning back and forth in the passenger seat, unable to contain his amusement. This was the happiest moment he had felt since transmigrating.Hugo was, of course, joking. Although he wasn't a crusader for justice out to strike down all the unspoken rules, he knew this was just how the industry worked—willing victims taking the bait—so there was nothing to complain about. However, for Hugo himself, he never wanted to take shortcuts, and there were no shortcuts on the path of art.For the sake of his musical dreams, Hugo had resolutely run away from home and spent ten full years grinding in the underground Rock scene. If it hadn't been for his burning passion to chase his dreams, he never could have persisted this long. Therefore, compared to the shortcuts of unspoken rules, Hugo preferred to stand at the peak using his own strength.Just now, Hugo had made a spur-of-the-moment joke. He couldn't exactly say, "Joseph, do you know where there's a time machine that can send me back to 2014?", so he had to use self-deprecation to relax. He hadn't expected the effect to be so excellent.Joseph patted his chest to regulate his breath, which had gone awry. Fortunately, they were in traffic and the car wasn't moving fast; otherwise, that fright would have caused an accident. Turning his head to look at Hugo in the passenger seat, that brilliant smile shining in the golden Los Angeles sunlight, Joseph had always known Hugo had outstanding looks, but at this moment, Hugo was so vivid, dazzling like a ray of sunlight. Compared to Hugo's appearance, the temperament revealed in this smile was the most fascinating part; the current Hugo was more dazzling than at any moment in Joseph's memory.Turning his gaze back to the road ahead, Joseph said, "Hugo, actually, you aren't lacking in audition opportunities."Hugo rested his right hand on the window, opening his palm to feel the sunlight dancing lightly on his fingertips. A breeze blew past, and he could feel the subtle sensation of it sliding between his fingers. "Heh, looks like I'm still quite in demand." Hugo was gradually getting used to using the first person. Although he still had the thought "Who is this?" when he saw his face in the rearview mirror, at least he wasn't tongue-tied in his speech anymore. This was perhaps a change, meaning Hugo really couldn't go back.Listening to Hugo's self-deprecating words, Joseph twitched the corner of his mouth. "No, it's because my ability as an agent is good enough to win these opportunities for you.""Then your fees shouldn't be cheap." Hugo rested his head on his arm, feeling the comfort of the breeze drifting through his hair. This allowed his mood to settle slowly, and he wouldn't feel irritable or complain endlessly because of these heavy difficulties.Joseph replied, "I only accept cash," the subtext being not to compare him with Tracy. This made Hugo burst into laughter. "But your current situation isn't good. You must find a job as soon as possible and then find a new place to live."Hugo thought about it. So that was it. It seemed Hugo had been kicked out by Tracy, was homeless, and thus had to live with his agent. And judging by Joseph's living situation, Hugo had been doing very badly over the past year. An agent made a living by taking a cut of the artist's earnings, so the downturn in Hugo's career naturally affected Joseph.From this, one could infer that Joseph wasn't a veteran agent either; he likely only had Hugo as an artist under his management. Immediately after, Hugo remembered that he had been handed over to Joseph by Ron Meyer last year. It seemed Ron had foreseen Hugo's inevitable decline in advance and made a wise decision early on; that was the vision of a veteran agent.As soon as Joseph turned his head, he saw Hugo's relaxed posture. He could clearly see the aura of frustration and loss on Hugo's body slowly dissipating in the sunlight. Joseph knew that Hugo was probably still hit hard by the failure of the a river runs through it audition. Joseph wanted to say something to comfort Hugo. "Hugo, actually, you have always had opportunities. You need to know this.""Opportunities?" Hugo raised his head slightly, resting it on the window frame. The road had started to clear up, and the car's speed gradually picked up. The headwind grew stronger, causing Hugo to involuntarily close his eyes, feeling the comfort of the wind and sunlight caressing his cheeks."Yes. Before fatal moment, every work you appeared in was highly acclaimed. Perhaps they were all small productions, but the reputation of each one was very solid, and your performance received considerable praise. This was also the reason Ron thought highly of you initially. You have talent, outstanding talent." Joseph organized his words while driving. He didn't speak quickly, but it made Hugo listen very carefully. "And you have outstanding looks. This is something that will never go out of style in Hollywood."The corner of Hugo's mouth curled into a bitter smile. In fact, in Hollywood, there were countless Actors with looks and talent, but the number of Actors who could truly break through the encirclement and make a name for themselves in history was few and far between. Whenever professional newspapers and magazines selected the one hundred greatest people in film or music history, Hugo would think, even if they selected one thousand people, there were still tens of thousands of nobodies outside those one thousand. He also wanted to be in the top one thousand, but reality told him: he was just one of the tens of thousands on the periphery.What was the most critical factor in making it in the entertainment industry?It wasn't looks. Not only because of differences in aesthetics, but because the endless stream of handsome men and beautiful women was actually the least valuable asset in Hollywood. Although the entertainment industry judged people by their appearance eighty percent of the time, looks were just a stepping stone; winning attention wasn't that simple.It wasn't talent or strength, because the probability of a fleeting genius in the vast sea of people was so small. In the past hundred years of music and film history, the Actors and singers who could truly be called "geniuses" were few and far between. Moreover, even with talent—for example, Broadway or London's West End had countless gifted performance geniuses—it couldn't bring them fame and fortune. Hugo actually had talent, both in music and acting. The accumulation from ten years of struggling outside gave him a depth that his peers didn't possess. But unfortunately, before he transmigrated, he still hadn't been able to win a place in the music or film industry.It also wasn't hard work. There were countless people in this world willing to sweat for their goals, but the law of "diligence can compensate for clumsiness" was actually the least influential factor in the field of art. "Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration," and in the world of art, that one percent of inspiration was often the deciding factor.So, could people who had looks, talent, strength, and were willing to work hard achieve success? Not necessarily. Because in the entertainment business, the deciding factor was opportunity, or rather, luck.Jack Lemmon, one of the greatest Actors in American film history, was the first Actor in history to win best actor awards at the Cannes, Berlin, and Venice film festivals, as well as the Oscar. In his third film, Mister Roberts, he delivered a brilliant performance and eventually won the Oscar Best Supporting Actor.After winning the award, Jack Lemmon excitedly shared this joy with his acting teacher. But his acting teacher pointed at the pedestrians passing by on the street and said, "Among the people who just walked by, there might be six who could play this role no worse than you. The most important difference between you and them is: you got the role, and they didn't."Or to use a more common example, the 2007 movie transformers. The real protagonists of this movie were those robots, not the humans. So, if the roles of Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox had been replaced by others, they could have achieved success just the same. But the reality was, they got the roles and succeeded.So, opportunity or luck was the most important link in the entertainment industry. People were more willing to say that luck was also a part of strength; that was the logic. Of course, after an opportunity arrived, without enough strength, conditions, and sweat to support it, sometimes a pie falling from the sky could crush you.Thinking of this, Hugo couldn't help but rethink his thoughts from last night. Was this transmigration his own opportunity and luck? The failure of a river runs through it was just a hurdle. His life after transmigrating had actually just begun. There were plenty of opportunities in the future, all of which he had never encountered before. If he could grasp this opportunity, perhaps he could open up his own world and realize his dreams. Then, what if he couldn't? At most, he would return to the starting point. There was nothing to be afraid of, right?Hugo opened his hands slightly, letting the breeze slide quickly past his fingertips. Sunbeams flickered brilliantly in his palms. Hugo slowly closed his hands. He hadn't grasped anything, but the heat in his palms was so clear. Perhaps this contained invisible sunlight, and a breeze, and opportunity!Victor Hugo once said, "I would rather open up my own future with my own strength than beg for the favor of the powerful." Hugo had always firmly believed in this. So, since he had already started, he shouldn't give up. Walking to the end of the road and seeing the scenery there would make a life worth living.The name "Hugo" easily reminded people of this great writer. However, the name itself had a deeper meaning. Hugo, originating from ancient Latin, meant heart, thought, and soul. Later, it extended into ancient English and German, with expanded meanings of wise spirit, famous for wisdom, and having an optimistic personality, often able to please those around him.When his father named Chen Hugo, there was his mother's reason involved. Additionally, he hoped he would have an optimistic and upward-looking heart, and be able to create his own miracles. Thinking of this, the bitterness, depression, and sadness on Hugo's body dissipated bit by bit under the shine of the sunlight, disappearing completely along with the warm smile on the corner of his mouth. "Come on and shock me. What other opportunities are waiting for me to work for?"Joseph looked at the smile on Hugo's face, which was even more brilliant than the sunlight, and couldn't help but reveal a faint smile, the corners of his mouth curling into a happy arc. Hugo, after the accident last night, was much cuter than before. Previously, Joseph had only been professional, fulfilling his duties, and otherwise didn't want to have too much communication with Hugo. But today, Joseph had taken the initiative to guide Hugo, and because of Hugo's vibrant smile, he also felt cheerful.Joseph realized that, perhaps, this would be a good start."Don't smile so lewdly. It's very easy for others to misunderstand." Hugo's words came from the side, causing the smile on Joseph's face to instantly freeze.
