Facing the cameras, Luo Ming put on her signature fake smile, and the flashbulbs started going off even more frequently.
But Luo Ming didn’t linger. She strode straight into the banquet hall.
“Why is Lin Shuwen walking so fast? I wasn’t done shooting yet!” a reporter grumbled quietly.
“I remember she also walked faster than the other stars on the red carpet at the Golden Melody Awards.”
“That’s true. The other stars strike all kinds of poses, even deliberately creating little mishaps to increase their time on the red carpet. But her? It’s like someone’s chasing her.”
“So you’re saying Lin Shuwen is quite the character.”
“Maybe she’s doing the opposite of what everyone expects! Look, aren’t we talking about her right now?”
Luo Ming didn’t know what the reporters were saying. All he knew was that if he walked any slower, he’d probably freeze to death.
When Luo Ming got out of the car, he’d actually wanted to stand in front of the cameras for a bit longer, but the moment that chilly wind hit him, he instantly abandoned the idea.
Style over warmth — that wasn’t something Luo Ming could bring himself to do.
Luo Ming walked fast because of the temperature today, but Lin Shuwen simply hated making expressions and posing coyly on the red carpet. To Lin Shuwen, it felt no different from being a monkey.
That’s why she always walked so fast.
When Luo Ming reached the entrance of the banquet hall, a staff member in a suit considerately opened the door for her.
Luo Ming politely thanked him and walked in.
Honestly, no matter how much the temperature dropped in Shanghai, it was never colder than Shanxi.
The temperature outside today was 5 degrees Celsius — it was just a bit windy. Once inside the banquet hall, shielded from the wind, Luo Ming instantly felt alive again.
“Sister Wen, how did you get in so fast?” The Chen sisters, who had just come around from the back door, saw “Lin Shuwen” arriving at the main entrance almost at the same time as them and asked with a hint of exasperation.
“It’s too cold outside. You guys know I have migraines. If I’d been out in that wind much longer, I’d definitely have a headache tonight.”
Hearing Luo Ming’s words, the Chen sisters exchanged a glance and didn’t dwell on the issue.
Compared to exposure, “Lin Shuwen’s” health was obviously more important.
Even though they knew this was most likely an excuse “Lin Shuwen” had come up with, they could only accept it.
“Sister Wen, we already scouted the place. The banquet hall on the first floor is for receiving the media and reporters later. Director Zhu and the others are in the banquet hall on the second floor. Let’s go straight up!” Chen Junmiao said.
Luo Ming nodded and went upstairs with the Chen sisters.
The moment Luo Ming reached the second floor, she ran into an acquaintance.
“Wenwen?”
“Director Liu, long time no see.”
“The directors your company brought are all people I don’t know. I thought you weren’t coming today!”
“Director Liu, forget you — I probably don’t know them either.”
“Looks like Huayue is trying to promote some new faces!”
Luo Ming smiled. That was the kind of comment she definitely wasn’t going to respond to.
Director Liu also knew what should and shouldn’t be said, so he didn’t pursue the topic. Instead, he changed direction: “Wenwen, my movie officially premiered on New Year’s Day. In just four days, the box office has already broken 100 million. We’ve basically recouped our investment — now it’s just a question of how much we’ll earn.
The movie’s done so well thanks in large part to your song ‘Light Years Away.’ Thank you for being willing to share it back then.”
“Director Liu, you’re too kind. I owe you a debt of gratitude for recognizing my potential. Without you, how could I have entered the entertainment industry?”
“Even without me, your future wouldn’t be bad! You’re a top student at Jiaotong University — the entertainment industry is just one of your options.”
“Regardless, I’m still very grateful to you, Director Liu.”
“You saying that actually makes me a bit embarrassed. Wenwen, don’t worry — next time I have a suitable role, I’ll definitely save it for you.”
“Thank you, Director Liu.” Luo Ming placed a hand over her chest and gave Director Liu a slight bow of gratitude.
Honestly, the evening gown Lin Shuwen was wearing wasn’t revealing — it didn’t even show any cleavage. But no matter what style of evening gown it is, bowing will definitely risk exposure, so covering up with a hand was essential.
After that, the two of them entered the banquet hall together.
There weren’t too many people in the banquet hall, but most of them were prominent figures in the industry.
Director Zhu, who was surrounded by a group of people toasting him, spotted “Lin Shuwen” and his eyes lit up.
He squeezed out of the crowd and came over to Luo Ming.
“Wenwen, you look absolutely beautiful today. Every star in this entire banquet hall — every single one — doesn’t hold a candle to you.” Director Zhu said without beating around the bush.
“Director Zhu, please don’t overpraise me. I’m just a plain jane.”
“Plain jane? Have you secretly taken Old Sa as your master? That humblebrag sounds exactly like that ‘Beijing University is okay, I guess’ line he’s been going on about lately.”
“Director Zhu, you’ve got Teacher Sa all wrong. I’ve been busy preparing my album recently and haven’t been in touch with Teacher Sa.”
“Is that so? Then it seems you’re self-taught.”
“Director Zhu, you flatter me.”
“I’m not flattering you.”
Luo Ming smiled faintly and didn’t get tangled up in that topic. Once again, she covered her chest, gave Director Zhu a slight bow, and said: “Director Zhu, thank you for inviting me to this banquet.”
“What’s there to thank me for? You helped me sort out next year’s program planning and script — that’s what really helped me out.”
“Director Zhu, I’m actually quite curious. With your status in the industry, why would you shoot a variety show for CCTV?” Luo Ming probed.
“This is something of a trade between me and the higher-ups. I want to make a film that can compete for an Oscar.
A film like that — I definitely can’t do it on my own. I need the higher-ups’ help. Coincidentally, the higher-ups want to promote our traditional culture and need to produce a variety show on that theme.
So we hit it off immediately. I’ll shoot two seasons of that variety show for the higher-ups, and they’ll give me maximum support to make this film.”
“Director Zhu, a film this important — are you really okay with letting a newcomer like me play the female lead?”
“Wenwen, apart from anything else, your face alone is absolutely enough. Besides, I specifically looked up your previous work. Your acting isn’t bad — you’ve got real talent. You just lack some systematic guidance. Spending some time on my set should sort that out.”
“Then could Director Zhu give me a tiny hint about what the film is about? I’d like to start working on that area in advance.”
“The Oscars are an American film festival. To win at their festival, you either cater to their stereotypes about us, or you make something completely unconventional.
If I deliberately catered to them, I’d probably lose what little reputation I have left, and the higher-ups wouldn’t agree to me shooting it that way either. So I chose the latter.
The theme of my film this time is related to human nature. The setting is Hong Kong, present day.
I’m still making final revisions to the script. Once it’s done, I’ll invite all of you actors over to discuss the script details together.”
“Then I’ll wait for your good news, Director Zhu.”
“Don’t worry, it won’t be long. Alright, let’s stop here for now. Let me introduce you to some friends!”
“Sorry to trouble you, Director Zhu.”
“We’re all family here — no need for formalities.” Director Zhu said as he led Luo Ming into the crowd.
In the entertainment industry, there’s a hierarchy of contempt even among directors.
Generally speaking, theatrical film directors look down on TV drama directors.
And the people Director Zhu introduced Lin Shuwen to were naturally all theatrical film directors.
Huayue Entertainment started out making TV dramas. They’re a giant in the TV drama industry, but when it comes to theatrical films, Huayue Entertainment falls far behind.
So the directors Huayue Entertainment sent to attend were all from the TV drama side. There was only one theatrical film director among them, and not a particularly well-known one at that — not even as accomplished as Director Liu, who had just successfully made the transition.
And the scene of “Lin Shuwen” chatting with these theatrical film directors under Director Zhu’s introduction naturally caught the eyes of Huayue Entertainment’s directors.
These veteran directors at Huayue were all old-timers from Mr. Tong’s era and had deep feelings for the company.
So when the directors saw one of their own company’s artists getting to know so many major directors in the industry, they were quite happy to see it.
However, among the precious trainees that Mr. Zhu had brought along, someone was feeling jealous.
In the crowd, a woman wearing a sky-blue gown, dressed in a pure and lovely style, was staring fixedly at “Lin Shuwen” with a look of both envy and jealousy. She thought to herself: “Is this Lin Shuwen’s influence? Even without a company director bringing her, she can still attend events like this and navigate effortlessly among all these major directors. With someone like her around, can we really make it in this company? Is there a way to knock her down a peg — preferably make her embarrass herself?”
Being stared at like that, Luo Ming noticed. He instinctively turned around and just happened to see a somewhat familiar figure suddenly pop out.
“Jessie, what are you looking at!” A girl in a pink gown blocked the woman’s line of sight.
“Jenny, what are you doing? You popping out like that scared me.” The woman said with some displeasure.
“Sorry, sorry, Jessie. I want to go to the bathroom — let’s go together!” Wen Wan said with a smile.
Mr. Zhu had specifically instructed them to put on a show of sisterly love when out in public.
So Jessie couldn’t refuse and could only grit her teeth and agree.
The two walked out of the banquet hall hand in hand. On the way, Wen Wan quietly glanced back and just happened to meet Luo Ming’s gaze.
Luo Ming smiled at her, and Wen Wan turned her head away, a little embarrassed.
Watching the two figures retreat, Luo Ming fell into thought. He was certain someone had just been watching him with ill intent — that feeling of being pricked by needles was too obvious.
And when he turned around, Wen Wan had suddenly blocked his line of sight.
No, that wasn’t right. She should have been blocking the line of sight of the woman who was staring at him. That much was clear from the fact that Wen Wan had led the person away from the banquet hall.
So was Wen Wan blocking others’ prying eyes for his sake? Or did she not want him to know who was hostile toward him, to prevent him from doing something, in order to protect their little group?
Luo Ming couldn’t figure out the answer. If it were just him, Luo Ming would probably follow the principle of “innocent until proven guilty.” But when it came to Lin Shuwen, Luo Ming simply decided to keep his distance from these people in the future — avoid contact unless absolutely necessary.
