The Rebirth of a Top Star

Shen Nanqiao never fakes her dedication to her work.

An Luochen occasionally offered a few pointers on the actors' lines, and Shen Nanqiao, sitting next to the director, also felt that she had benefited greatly.

Finally, it was time for Shen Nanqiao and Gu Ning's first scene together. Shen Nanqiao looked at Gu Ning, with the director between them, and they stared at each other across the distance.

"Are you the soldier stationed here?" Shen Nanqiao asked in a calm tone, full of the commanding tone of a superior to his subordinates.

Gu Ning, neither humble nor arrogant, finished delivering her lines.

This was the first time An Luochen hadn't offered any guidance, only saying that there were no mistakes and to continue.

The ordeal continued until noon, during which Shen Nanqiao only drank some water and did not eat any food.

An Luochen had already arranged lunch and told everyone to go eat, and they could continue in the afternoon after lunch.

Shen Nanqiao stood up and rubbed her stiff back. Xiao Ju came up from behind at the right time.

She handed over the water glass. "Sis, would you like some more water?" Shen Nanqiao waved her hand. She just wanted to finish her meal quickly and then find a secluded place to lie down for a while.

Seriously, even sitting in a chair is so tiring.

Following the direction of the main group, Shen Nanqiao saw the meals that Director An had ordered for all the actors.

This contrasts sharply with the same items placed next to it for the staff.

Bland, and fresh. These were the only words that could come to mind when Shen Nanqiao looked at the green vegetable leaves.

Shen Nanqiao looked at the person serving the food and the sign next to it, somewhat incredulous. She couldn't help but take two steps forward and pat Gu Ning on the shoulder, "Teacher Gu, is our director really this stingy?"

In her previous life, Shen Nanqiao had never acted in any of An Luochen's dramas. At first, it was because she wasn't good enough, but later, An Luochen had already entered Hollywood, and she gradually became unqualified.

Gu Ning looked at Shen Nanqiao with a complicated expression, "Don't you know Director An's habits?" Even several actors around her who heard Shen Nanqiao's question looked over.

Judging from everyone's expressions, it seems they all know.

"What should I know?"

Shen Nanqiao was genuinely puzzled. "During filming, all the actors in the show had to eat a weight-loss diet," Xiaoju explained to Nanqiao at the opportune moment.

She genuinely didn't know this "common sense." Hearing Xiaoju say that, she felt a little embarrassed and lost her appetite even more when looking at the food in front of her.

Shen Nanqiao was already exhausted from filming every day, so she didn't understand why she had to control her appetite.

She has never been obese since she was a child.

A weight-loss diet was simply too far out of reach for her.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone around her, Shen Nanqiao took a portion of the food and found a seat some distance away.

Xiao Ju sat down next to Shen Nanqiao with her own portion of chicken. "Xiao Ju, give me a bite of your chicken cutlet," Shen Nanqiao said, seeing Xiao Ju's hesitant hand.

Without hesitation, Xiaoju picked up the crispy-on-the-outside, tender-on-the-inside fried chicken cutlet and placed it on Shen Nanqiao's plate.

Having already heard about the conversation, An Luochen walked over at the opportune moment. Xiaoju's hand was still in mid-air when he spoke up to stop her.

"Hey, what are you doing!" Shen Nanqiao stared longingly at the chicken cutlet, her eyes frozen in mid-air.

Xiao Ju's face flushed red because of what An Luochen said, and she withdrew her hand.

Shen Nanqiao looked at the chicken cutlet that hadn't gone to her, and then looked at the director with some displeasure.

"You just eat your food properly and don't bully your little assistant." An Luochen walked past Shen Nanqiao and warned her.

Seeing the expression on Shen Nanqiao's face, An Luochen felt a sense of triumph.

It's normal to make others suffer, isn't it?

Shen Nanqiao slowly chewed on the tasteless vegetable leaves in her mouth, so bored that she took out her phone and started browsing online news.

Upon refreshing the page, content about oneself pops up.

Shen Nanqiao, backed by powerful figures, stole our sister's lead role. She's shameless! We must expose her online and ruin her reputation. This isn't an era where money can buy anything. Who knows how she got this role?

Filled with righteous indignation, Shen Nanqiao clicked on that person's profile picture to look at their homepage. Before she could even think, she saw the photo behind the person's profile picture, which was none other than Ye Meng, who was sitting not far from her.

Ye Meng sat behind her eating, scrolling through her phone screen. She saw that the person had been spreading rumors and cursing her relentlessly for the past few days, from right after the audition until noon today.

Shen Nanqiao frowned, feeling somewhat uncomfortable. She noticed that many people were agreeing with the latest post, and some uninformed passersby had come in to gossip, only to be given a lecture by them.

Shen Nanqiao almost laughed.

If I weren't really Shen Nanqiao, these fabricated stories would sound so real.

After Ye Meng finished her meal, she walked by with her assistant. Upon seeing this, Shen Nanqiao immediately called out to Ye Meng, "Ye Meng, wait a moment."

Shen Nanqiao stood up, and Xiao Ju followed behind, looking bewildered.

"What's wrong?" Ye Meng asked. She was still a little uncomfortable around Shen Nanqiao.

"Do you know what's happening online?" Upon hearing this question, all four people present fell silent.

Shen Nanqiao remained silent to observe Ye Meng's reaction, while Xiao Ju and Ye Meng's assistant remained silent because they genuinely had no idea what Shen Nanqiao was talking about.

When Shen Nanqiao brought up this topic, Ye Meng's eyes involuntarily narrowed.

The next second she realized what she had said, "What did you say?"

A perfect expression.

Shen Nanqiao almost laughed; of course, her micro-expressions did not escape her notice.

Shen Nanqiao looked into Ye Meng's eyes. Ye Meng had already composed herself and believed that Shen Nanqiao wouldn't be able to see through her disguise.

Of course she knew what Shen Nanqiao was talking about.

A few days ago, after my audition, I contacted one of my biggest fans on my phone.

Before she went, she assured everyone that she would definitely be able to land the lead role.

Unexpectedly, she became a supporting female character after returning.

At that time, the data team had already prepared the poster of themselves successfully landing the new female lead role and were ready to release it online to generate hype.

Unexpectedly, their rhetoric changed after they came back.

The big fan was still furious, so she used her connections to inquire about the new female lead for the Legend of Luo Yu.

I learned Shen Nanqiao's name.

He assured Ye Meng, "Don't worry, we're experts at manipulating public opinion. Ye Meng, you're definitely the most suitable candidate for the female lead."

Ye Mengben wanted to explain that it wasn't Shen Nanqiao's fault.

However, her fans were so supportive, even going to great lengths for her, and most importantly, Ye Meng didn't want to directly admit that she lost to Shen Nanqiao because her acting skills were inferior.

She remained silent, only replying with a thank you after the fans had finished venting.

A simple thank you from their idol can send those fans into a frenzy, fueling their imaginations and leading them to fabricate elaborate stories.

Ye Meng simply didn't want Shen Nanqiao to take away her leading role so easily.

What's more, she used to be the one being praised, but now all the praise is going to Shen Nanqiao.

Ye Meng was indignant.

Shen Nanqiao felt it was pointless to talk to her when she wasn't telling the truth.

Looking into Ye Meng's clear eyes, he left with a compliment, "Your acting skills are really good." The pause in between was intriguing.

During the afternoon reading session, An Luochen had a vague feeling that Shen Nanqiao seemed to be suppressing Ye Meng's performance.

Reading aloud isn't just about reciting a script without acting; it requires acting skills, and the presence of a screenwriter helps revise any unsuitable parts.

Shen Nanqiao exuded a strong aura, especially when facing Ye Meng.

Normally, Shen Nanqiao wouldn't take the fans' actions personally and apply them to the actor.

Because a person's fan base is uncontrollable, everyone may view a person through their own lens.

But Ye Meng clearly knew the ins and outs of the matter, Shen Nanqiao thought of her expression at noon.

Shen Nanqiao even squinted at Ye Meng, noticing a few beads of sweat slowly sliding down her forehead, suggesting that Ye Meng might have been involved in the incident.

Shen Nanqiao couldn't stand it anymore.

She did it on purpose this afternoon. Didn't Ye Meng think that her acting skills were good enough to be the female lead? Well, it's a good opportunity to test her acting skills.

Before Shen Nanqiao met Ye Meng, he felt somewhat guilty towards her.

In her previous life, she did not participate in the creation of this drama. The role of the female lead was originally meant for Ye Meng. She knew about it in advance and got the role thanks to Song Shiyuan's abilities.

Ye Meng's initial performance was also competent.

Now that he prefers to engage in underhanded tactics, Shen Nanqiao finally withdrew her slightest bit of pity.

Moreover, no one pities me.

Shen Nanqiao thought to herself, and made up her mind.