Balancing on a tightrope

Hugo's expression was very gentle, with a humble and respectful attitude, but this modesty made the irony of the words even more apparent. Unfortunately, the two people in front of him didn't know how to reply, and their words were stuck in their throats. Hugo raised his eyebrows slightly and showed a sudden realization, "Forget it, we'll know after "A River Runs Through It" is released."

The golden-haired man was instantly angered and one could even see his hair fluttering because of his anger. This was a vivid image of "exploded hair", making people wonder if his hair would flare up as if he were a lion or a peacock.

"Listen, my name is George Wood!" The golden-haired man was almost furious, and if it weren't for the black-haired man next to him pulling him, he would have charged forward like a toro bravo bull. "Remember this name because I will be the nightmare of your acting career!"

"You mean the Scottish goalkeeper? Don't worry, I don't play soccer, so there won't be a direct conflict." Hugo's light and airy reply was like a bucket of cold water poured directly on George's head, and the exploded hair dropped and returned to its original state. Hugo almost burst out laughing at the sight.

Many people around were watching this lively scene, but in fact, not many people knew about the small conflict during the audition process of "A River Runs Through It" because such competition and comparison were almost ubiquitous in Hollywood. However, among the young people who came to participate in the "Scent of a Woman" interview today, there were also those who witnessed the ins and outs of that day on the scene, so everyone's eyes were brimming with curiosity at this moment.

The problem was that almost no one understood Hugo's sentence just now. Why did he suddenly brought up soccer? In fact, Hugo was mocking the name "George Wood" which was one of the most common name combinations among Westerners, just like the name "Xiao Ming" in Chinese. In the 1970s, a relatively unknown Scottish goalkeeper named George Wood played for teams such as Blackpool, Arsenal, and Everton.

After about three seconds, someone finally reacted and burst into laughter, and it was the kind that couldn't be stopped. Someone immediately asked, and the news spread quickly, making the onlookers' expressions very subtle. As for George, he didn't understand the joke at all. It seemed that Hugo was mocking his low intelligence, and the laughter around him was even more unbearable. This was absolutely intolerable, so he forcefully broke free from the black curly-haired man beside him, took a quick step, and rushed out. He stood up in front of Hugo in an instant.

But George immediately noticed something was off. Hugo was six feet tall and not skinny, while George was only five feet nine inches, and the height difference made George look significantly shorter. However, George was more muscular than Hugo, resembling a muscle man like Arnold Schwarzenegger. So when George realized he was lacking in stature, he couldn't help but wave his bowl-sized fist, which was almost two-thirds the size of Hugo's face.

"F*ck. You d*ckhead, f*ck you, you damn fool, go back to your f*cking shithole..." George stared with round eyes filled with countless blood vessels threatening to burst at any moment. He exuded a menacing aura all over his body as if he could swallow Hugo in the next second. In fact, as long as Hugo showed a little weakness, George would probably crush him directly.

But Hugo didn't give him the chance. "Shut your damn trap!" The warm smile on Hugo's face froze at the corners of his mouth, and his gentle eyes burst out with a menacing aura that was no less than George's. He even took half a step forward, closing the distance between them. They were originally a little apart, but with Hugo's step, they collided instantly. The situation on the scene was on the verge of erupting into chaos at any moment.

George was forced back by the intimidating presence of Hugo, his footsteps swaying for a moment, but he gritted his teeth and held his ground. Then he heard Hugo's crisp voice saying, "If you want to fight, come at me directly. Don't be a coward who only knows how to talk." Hugo had already clenched his fists, and he wasn't one to back down from a direct challenge. His face betrayed no nervousness, but instead, he smiled and said, "Or maybe you are..." As he spoke, Hugo's gaze lowered to George's lower body.

That glance was more effective than any words, and it made the onlookers burst out laughing. George's last shreds of sanity vanished, and all he knew was that he had been insulted, so he raised his fist and swung it at Hugo's face.

Hugo had been in the underground rock scene for ten years, and he faced low-level provocations like this almost every day. Although he was not the type to seek trouble, he wasn't afraid of standing up for himself when someone challenged him. Almost as soon as he saw the veins bulging in George's neck, he lifted his right hand and successfully blocked George's left hook, which indeed packed some punch.

However, before Hugo could make his next move, he saw someone darting towards them from the side. The person put both hands on George's chest and pushed hard, causing George to fly out. Hugo finally saw that it was Joseph!

Joseph didn't give George any time to react and immediately protected Hugo behind him. He harshly warned George, "If you still want to keep your chance of a successful interview, then be quiet. If you cause trouble here, you'll be disqualified from the audition in the next second!" Joseph's decisive words not only made George's angry expression freeze on his face but also caused the people around them to discreetly move away and avert their gaze.

Joseph's words reminded everyone that this was a public audition venue set up by Universal Pictures for "Scent of a Woman". If they caused trouble here, they would be destroying their own future. No one wanted to accept such a result.

Looking at George sitting on the ground with changing expressions, even William, the black-haired man, didn't want to approach him for fear of being implicated. Joseph then turned his sharp ice-blue eyes to Hugo and said, "You better behave and not cause any more trouble!"

Hugo had originally wanted to thank Joseph for his help, but he was immediately scolded by Joseph before he could say anything. He somewhat wanted to explain the situation, but then decided to swallow his words. Although today's incident was not his fault, Joseph, as his agent, was warning him for his own good. Therefore, Hugo had no reason to argue. Moreover, Hugo realized that Joseph was probably worried that he, Hugo Lancaster, would revert to his old ways and cause trouble again, which was why Joseph was so anxious. So, Hugo had no need to defend himself.

"I got it." Hugo's response left Joseph completely stumped. He was planning to continue his rant, but he suddenly realized that Hugo had admitted his mistake. This made Joseph feel somewhat uncomfortable. Hugo looked at Joseph's stunned expression and gave a shallow smile. "Joseph, I said I got it."

However, it didn't end there. After a pause, Hugo added, "But I have to declare that it was the other side who provoked the fight. Everyone else was throwing punches at my face, and I don't have a tendency for masochism." This sentence immediately left Joseph at a loss for words.

"Hugo Lancaster!" The angry growl behind him made Joseph turn around to see George standing up again. Actually, Joseph had just pushed George away to create some distance between them, so George was not in a bad state. However, George felt that he had suffered a great insult, and his face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot.

George took two steps forward, but when he saw Joseph's huge figure move forward, he had to halt his footsteps in place. "Do you dare to bet with me who will win in this audition, you or me?"

Hugo truly doesn't understand George's way of thinking. What kind of suggestion was this? Were there only two people at the interview today? Were the others just air?

"Who are you?" Hugo asked directly. This made George clench his fist again. "And who do you think your competitor, Stone, is? Oh, sorry, he's just a stone." Hugo's casual remark made William Stone, who was standing next to them, a victim, but Hugo didn't give them any more chance to react. "So let me ask you this, do you pretend that the other competitors behind you don't exist?"

George didn't care about any of that and continued, "I don't care. I just want to ask you, are you willing to bet with me?" At this point, the few onlookers around them couldn't help but show a look of disdain. Anyone who came to the interview today must be hoping to stand out, so how could they possibly agree with George's bet, which was completely baseless?

"I refuse," Hugo's answer made George gasp and almost choked on his own saliva. According to reason, if someone like George openly issued a challenge, any man would accept it. But Hugo's direct refusal was just too strange.

However, Hugo's next words immediately changed the situation: "If a dog were to bite me and I bite back. All I'd get is a mouthful of dog hair, but what's the point of winning?" This sentence contained two meanings: one was the surface meaning, which was a sarcastic comment on George's worthlessness; the other was that Hugo was confident in winning today's interview.

As soon as this sentence was spoken, Joseph's gaze towards Hugo changed. Hugo became much more interesting to him. However, for George, it was like a bomb exploding right next to his ear. He couldn't refute it because Hugo didn't name anyone specifically. If he answered, it would mean he was admitting that he was the dog. George still had some intelligence, so he stood frozen in place like a stump watching Hugo and Joseph turn around and leave.