The Rebirth of a Top Star

Shen Nanqiao hadn't even had a chance to rest when she got back home when she received a notification from the director on her phone.

We're going to do some preview screenings and roadshows tomorrow.

Shen Nanqiao was a little nervous. In fact, this movie was her debut work, and it was very important to her, both in the past and now.

Shen Nanqiao was so excited that she couldn't sleep. She knew that as long as nothing unexpected happened, the movie would definitely be a huge hit, but she just couldn't fall asleep.

Lying in the large room, Shen Nanqiao stared blankly at the empty space above her, lost in thought.

The days after her return were carefree at first, but afterwards her schedule was always packed, leaving Shen Nanqiao no time to catch her breath or rest. So she didn't even realize how much time had passed.

It's already deep winter.

Shen Nanqiao nestled in the space blanket. The room was heated, so she could sleep comfortably without a thick blanket. However, Shen Nanqiao buried her head in the blanket as well.

Her mind was in turmoil. With everything laid out before her, Shen Nanqiao seemed to be bound and constrained by her incessant thoughts. She had too many things to hold onto, and she couldn't let go of them even if she wanted to.

Shen Nanqiao took her phone out from under her pillow and opened the page.

The chat history above is still from that day, a long time ago.

Shen Nanqiao didn't know what to say. What flashed through her mind was a bedroom in this community where Song Shiyuan and his girlfriend might be watching an old movie under the cover of night, or perhaps enjoying a glass of red wine.

Shen Nanqiao's rich imagination is now being put to use as she struggles with whether or not she should completely break things off with her sugar daddy.

Firstly, I haven't really helped him much recently, but he handled everything very cleanly before. Judging from the timeline, Song Shiyuan should have basically taken control of the company.

Secondly, Shen Nanqiao doesn't like being friends with sugar daddies who have girlfriends. This is something that hovers on the edge of morality. The benefits she brings to Song Shiyuan and the opportunities Song Shiyuan fights for her are basically equal.

Shen Nanqiao then considered whether to sever this nominal relationship and simply become an employee of his company, generating revenue for him in the future.

Moreover, Shen Nanqiao now has a new goal: to open her own studio and be her own boss.

That's what true freedom in life should be like.

As time ticked by, Shen Nanqiao hesitated, wondering whether she should message Song Shiyuan now to explain everything. The scene she had just imagined resurfaced in her mind.

What if he's with his girlfriend? Wouldn't that make him look like a bad guy and hard to explain?

Shen Nanqiao finally put away her phone. They had talked face-to-face when they started, and now that it was time to end, they wanted to make it clear face-to-face as well.

Before midnight, considering her overall condition the next day, Shen Nanqiao finally put away her phone and closed her eyes.

In her dream, Shen Nanqiao seemed to return to the period when she was controlled and molded by the company. She was like a glamorous vase, pushed into the public eye by the people behind her. After resisting, she was ultimately crushed by capital.

The nightmare woke Shen Nanqiao from her sleep. When she opened her eyes, it was already seven o'clock in the morning.

As dawn broke outside, Shen Nanqiao glanced at the time and realized that Song Shiyuan should have already finished his morning run.

Shen Nanqiao stared blankly at the scenery outside. She didn't like to close the curtains when she was resting alone because they blocked out too much light. In contrast, Shen Nanqiao preferred to open her eyes and see the sky as soon as possible, as she had a good sense of time.

Shen Nanqiao stopped sleeping. Although the preview screening was at 4 p.m., Shen Nanqiao should have had plenty of time to rest, do her makeup, and get ready, but she refused to sleep.

The experience in her dream made Shen Nanqiao's favorite lazy sleep lose its appeal.

Shen Nanqiao first approached Qi Qi. Their current relationship is hard to explain. Shen Nanqiao wants to come to his studio, while Qi Qi wants to enter the entertainment industry through a dating reality show.

The two have completed half of their collaboration, but Shen Nanqiao's current qualifications are not enough to start her own studio, and Qi Qi's experience is not enough for her to directly enter the entertainment industry. The two are still in the stage of cooperation and mutual benefit.

To outsiders, the two might be rivals in love, but they are having a friendly conversation on their phones.

Shen Nanqiao got up and did a set of aerobic exercises. She had changed her clothes and was about to go downstairs, but she hesitated before leaving.

What if Song Shiyuan didn't get up early to run today, but is exercising now? It would be embarrassing if I ran into him when I went out. What if Song Shiyuan started talking about running again later?

Shen Nanqiao had had enough of those days of getting up early to run and exercise.

Shen Nanqiao turned around, closed the door, and spread out her yoga mat, which she hadn't used in a long time. Since moving into this house, Shen Nanqiao hadn't exercised indoors even once.

It's uncertain how good the soundproofing is; more expensive houses aren't necessarily better, and besides, Shen Nanqiao has never heard any noise from upstairs.

Shen Nanqiao was unsure whether anyone lived upstairs or if the soundproofing was better.

This is the first time I've tried making noise.

Shen Nanqiao found a blogger she was familiar with and started exercising. After a short 30-minute aerobic session, the swelling on her face had subsided considerably.

Shen Nanqiao smiled with satisfaction after seeing the last message Qi Qi sent, and then began to tidy herself up.

Shen Nanqiao left home two hours early and arrived at the cinema ahead of schedule.

I met with director Jo In-ho, whom I hadn't seen in a long time, in the VIP room.

Zhao Yinhu greeted Shen Nanqiao warmly as soon as he saw her.

"Nan Qiao, you've been a huge help to us."

Shen Nanqiao didn't know what he meant by saying all this so suddenly.

Shen Nanqiao's puzzled expression made the main cast and crew members who came with her laugh. They were all acquaintances, so there was no need for formalities. Shen Nanqiao tried hard to recall what she had done.

When Shen Nanqiao looked genuinely confused and couldn't understand, Zhao Yinhu smiled and explained to her, "You're the one who introduced Zheng Yiyi to sing the theme song for our movie, haven't you forgotten?"

Hearing this, Shen Nanqiao remembered.

Zheng Yiyi promised her at the time, but she didn't ask about it afterward and didn't know that Zheng Yiyi had quietly taken care of it.

Shen Nanqiao herself hasn't heard of it yet.

I don’t know what the effect will be.

Shen Nanqiao was pleasantly surprised, but she didn't say she didn't know. Instead, she said, "It's been so long, I've forgotten."

Shen Nanqiao wanted to reach out and touch her hair, but then remembered that she had done her makeup and hair, so she forced herself to stop.

Zhao Yinhu then told Shen Nanqiao even better news: "Moreover, Zheng Yiyi recorded all the theme songs for the movie for us, but we only paid the price for the theme song."

Zhao Yinhu was genuinely happy when he thought about this, and he couldn't stop smiling in front of Shen Nanqiao.

Shen Nanqiao was deeply gratified to have Zheng Yiyi as a good friend. Indeed, a true friend is one who would go to great lengths for you.

They could hear the commotion outside, and Shen Nanqiao felt happy when she thought that it was all because of her friends who liked the movie.

There was a knock at the door. Shen Nanqiao, who was closest, opened the door and a boy wearing a hat and a mask, who was very well covered up, came in.

Shen Nanqiao recognized his figure as familiar, but only after Fang Zihe took off his mask did she realize that it was Fang Zihe.

It's not that I'm not familiar with him, it's just that Fang Zihe has changed quite a bit.

He's lost weight, even more than when the filming took place.

But she was indeed very refined, which left Shen Nanqiao somewhat amazed.

"Wow, you've become quite the handsome guy now," Shen Nanqiao teased.

When she first arrived, Shen Nanqiao was a little reserved, but after talking with everyone for a while, she regained her sense of being on set, so she felt very comfortable the moment she saw Fang Zihe.

Fang Zihe didn't expect that it would be Shen Nanqiao who opened the door for him. He wasn't ready to face Shen Nanqiao directly. Before he came, the director said that the two of them would be doing a roadshow with the crew.

Fang Zihe knew he would be partnering with Shen Nanqiao again, and he felt pressured.

Shen Nanqiao's teasing didn't make him relax instantly; instead, he clenched his fists and didn't know how to respond.

Shen Nanqiao was just joking casually, and afterwards she didn't pay attention to Fang Zihe's situation or state, so she naturally didn't see the way Fang Zihe looked at her.

Fang Zihe took off his hat. The stylist who came up later wanted to help him fix it, but Fang Zihe refused, saying, "We still need to sit down later, let's fix it before we go on stage."

The hat flattened Fang Zihe's neatly styled hair, but he only briefly took it off before putting it back on.

Shen Nanqiao and Zhao Yinhu chatted happily, mostly about things that happened during the film's post-production. Shen Nanqiao was involved in other filming and didn't pay much attention to this aspect.

I only just learned about these interesting things.

Fang Zihe stood behind Shen Nanqiao, listening to their conversation.

Only after the lights inside dimmed did Shen Nanqiao and the others disperse and slowly move inside.

Shen Nanqiao and Fang Zihe sat together in the fifth row, on the far right, near the emergency exit.

Shen Nanqiao sat inside, while Fang Zihe sat in the aisle. Just as they moved in, a girl next to Shen Nanqiao, who was holding something in her hand, asked, "Why are you so late? It's about to start."

She probably mistook Shen Nanqiao for a fan. Luckily, Shen Nanqiao was wearing a mask, so she didn't look directly at the girl and just said, "I was slow on the way," to brush it off.

They won't be questioned further.

Fang Zihe sat on the far side without saying a word. Shen Nanqiao and the others didn't wait more than a few minutes before they started.

The opening sequence was very well-made; the movie started with the last shot that Shen Nanqiao and Zhou Wei filmed, with the lively and adorable Zhou Wei waving at the camera.

In an instant, the film drew everyone's attention in the cinema.

Including Shen Nanqiao.

Shen Nanqiao was unaware that she was so captivating in the film, and Fang Zihe, who was beside her, was also drawn to Zhou Wei in the drama.

He was the protagonist who had the most contact with Zhou Wei. Fang Gu looked at Zhou Wei in the movie, while Fang Zihe looked at Shen Nanqiao.

He subtly shifted his shoulder toward Shen Nanqiao's position. Shen Nanqiao was engrossed in the movie's plot, while Fang Zihe was now closer to the city center.

When Shen Nanqiao was moved to tears by their love, Fang Zihe's fingers appeared before her eyes, holding a tissue covered with cute anime heads. Fang Zihe didn't say anything, but simply handed the tissue he had prepared for so long to Shen Nanqiao.

Tony had put this in his bag before he left home.

This isn't the first time Fang Zihe has realized how important Tony is.

Immersed in the experience, the movie progresses exceptionally quickly.

By the time Shen Nanqiao realized she was still watching in the movie theater, it was already the end of the film.

The little fan who initially asked her questions revealed her own name on the light stick she was holding.

Shen Nanqiao realized that it was her little fan who was crying her eyes out, just like her, and her makeup was washed away by her tears.

Seeing how pitifully she was crying, Shen Nanqiao took the tissue from Fang Zihe's hand, pulled out one, and handed it to her.

It was almost over, and Shen Nanqiao and the others were going to the back to clean up and prepare. They just handed out tissues, and the little girl had just said thank you.

Before Shen Nanqiao could offer any comfort, she grabbed her phone and followed Fang Zihe out through the emergency exit.

A few people left, and no one noticed.

As soon as Shen Nanqiao went out, she and Fang Zihe quickly returned to the room where they had started, where the makeup artist and stylist were already waiting.

Shen Nanqiao only needed to fix her makeup, which had been smudged by her mask and her eye makeup, which had been washed away by tears. Fang Zihe went to fix his unruly hair first.

Shen Nanqiao realized that the little girl from earlier was actually one of her fans.

The fans who watched Shen Nanqiao leave felt a strong sense of familiarity when they thought of the person whose face was covered by a mask, where only her eyes were visible.

After thinking for a long time and still not being sure if it was someone I knew in real life, the lights in the venue came on.

Two hours in the dim light, then suddenly the lights came on, creating a feeling of being in another world. Shen Nanqiao's little fans also turned their attention to the screen below.

It is said that all the main creators attended this advance roadshow.

She held up the light board with Shen Nanqiao's name on it, which she had been holding all along, and raised it high so that Qiaoqiao could see the love her fans had for her.

It was only after noticing the two people standing in the middle that she realized that the older sister who had handed her the tissue was actually her idol.

No wonder those eyes felt familiar; it turned out that Shen Nanqiao had been sitting next to me watching the entire movie.

She was going crazy.

The whole audience was screaming hysterically, but she was the one who was truly about to go hysterical.

The tissue she was holding hadn't even been used yet. Because of Shen Nanqiao's touch, it had already been imbued with Shen Nanqiao's scent in her heart. Even if she cried until snot bubbles fell from her nose, she wouldn't be willing to use this tissue.

Shen Nanqiao had already taken off her mask and looked at the spot where she had just been sitting. She consciously greeted the little girl, and their eyes met. The little girl burst into tears even more than when she was watching the movie.

I was practically weeping uncontrollably.

She thought she might like Shen Nanqiao for the rest of her life.