Chapter 2.1

án“1, 2, 3! Look to the Stars” was a classy domestic celebrity panel broadcast. The host, Song Yiming, was an industry veteran. He was held in considerably high regard within entertainment circles and boasted a wide network of connections. Once on the set, no matter the popularity of the actor or performer, he or she would greet him with a respectful “Song-laoshi.”

Although on the program he retained a basic bottom line and principles, he always expressed his views as he saw fit. If he thought it, he said it. He would usually arrive right on the dot and never do any special preparation, let alone memorize any lines or dialogue like a newbie. Yet this time was completely unprecedented—he arrived two hours beforehand. He went over the script that was passed over by the director again and again, flipping through the pages even more serious than a student cramming for a test.

Tan Ling was one of the dancers in the show opening dance. She herself was a Z-list bit actress, having hung around for a good few years without any serious parts, but she never gave up and instead persevered, bravely advancing on the path to stardom.This time, a girl had fallen and temporarily injured her leg, so Tan Ling’s agent called her in as a substitute.

Who would have thought that she would immediately see a big star such as Song Yiming. She was thrilled and whispered to the girl next to her, “For this kind of popular and successful host to arrive early and prepare so seriously, Song-laoshi is indeed dedicated to his work!”

That girl gave her a slightly disgusted look and pouted: “Are you just playing stupid or are you really this dumb? Can’t you see that the whole crew is so busy that their heads are spinning? The guest coming on the show today isn’t the same as those B- and C-list stars who have come on in the past. Unlike with them, we can’t afford for anything to go wrong. When he comes on, you’d better be careful. If anything does go wrong, I’m afraid you won’t last long in these circles.”

Tan Ling asked questioningly, “Who is today’s guest? I thought Song-laoshi was already super big. Who could be more impressive than him?”

That girl snorted a laugh. “You really don’t even know who the guest is. You’re really something else. Okay, I’ll tell you. The Great God Fang is coming today.”

As soon as she finished, she turned around and continued to rehearse.

In contrast, Tan Ling was shocked senseless. Could it be that “Great God Fang” was the “Emperor of the Silver Screen” Fang Xu?! The youngest ever Oscar winner, Emperor of the Silver Screen Fang Xu! The 27-year old winner of awards international and domestic alike, that genius actor! The Fang Xu who headed Forbes China’s Celebrity Rankings seven years running!

My god! For her to encounter such a god during her first time filling in, heaven really must be smiling upon her. After the program ends, she must find this Adonis for an autograph.

Because she was still intoxicated by the information, she missed the frown that girl gave her, her delicate face eventually slipping into a hidden, treacherous smile.

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Ten minutes before the program was set to begin its live broadcast, a low-key black sports car unhurriedly parked outside of the broadcast set. The driver’s side door opened and out walked a man wearing frameless glasses. He wore a neat black suit paired with a tidily knotted blue and dark grey striped tie. From head to toe, he was orderly and well-turned out without a single wrinkle.

At first glance, he exuded an aura of severity and inflexibility.

He shut the car door expressionlessly and walked around to the other side of the car. Bending his body, he opened the door. A man so handsome he caused involuntary gasps emerged from within the car, a light smile fixed on his face. He quietly thanked the man in black. Even his voice was pleasing to the ear, like the sounds of the natural world. He softly inclined his head to the workers gathered around his car and then, under everyone’s gaze, ventured ahead and walked onto the broadcast set.

The man with him remained behind and silently shut the car door. He adjusted his glasses, his calm and unruffled expression finally revealing a trace of a smile.

“Xiao Wu, the male lead this time looks really reliable. I feel absolutely full of enthusiasm.”

“Ding. Master, please don’t carelessly plant flags. The lessons of last time are still vivid in our mind. Master must use the previous world’s mistakes as a warning.”

“……Okay.”

Fan Yuan followed after onto the broadcast set. The male lead-daren Fang Xu was in the middle of apologizing to the director of the program.

“I apologize, we ran into a traffic jam on the way. I hope this hasn’t created any trouble for you.”

He only slightly knitted his brow, his eyes looking slightly downcast, but these actions instead made people want to clutch their heart. They couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. The heart of the quickly-approaching-50 40-year-old director, normally so strict and harsh, was practically overflowing with maternal love. Far from blaming or rebuking him, instead she wanted only to comfort him.

Furthermore, for artists at a level akin to Fang Xu’s, being late really didn’t amount to anything. Besides, he wasn’t even late anyway!

She smiled from ear to ear. “No problem whatsoever. No one could have predicted that there would be traffic congestion. The traffic in Didu is a huge problem, Emperor Fang being able to be here at all already brings me much honor. We still have a few minutes until broadcast, so if you please, go on over to the set. Have a cup of tea and relax a bit first.”

Fan Yuan listened from behind Fang Xu. He resisted the urge to facepalm. This kind of black-belly-attributed male lead really made one feel helpless. He obviously just dawdled in bed not wanting to get up, yet he pushed the fiction of traffic congestion. He did so in such a deadly earnest manner no one would even think to doubt him. He was truly worthy of the moniker “Emperor of the Silver Screen,” mhm……

Fang Xu and the director chatted for a minute longer. He had finally begun moving towards the set when he suddenly turned his head and said, “Tang Yuan, help bring over a glass of warm water for me.”

Fan Yuan immediately made a sound of acknowledgment. He was a manager, but he shouldered the work of an assistant as well. There was no way around it. The male lead-daren was too fussy and quickly drove away every one of the assistants that had been selected by his company. The only one kept on was the ever-meticulous-in-his-conduct, severe and inflexible gay male side character.

He quickly retrieved Emperor Fang’s dedicated tea mug from his bag, poured him a glass of suitably warm water, and brought it over.

After a minute or two, the broadcast began with a sudden dimming of the lights. The gaudy, garish lights shone so brightly they made one dizzy. He stood to the side, completely focused on the action on stage. Although the female lead was in the middle of the group of ten or fifteen other girls in the opening dance, she could be picked out at a glance. After all, in the middle of this many dancers, she was the most eye-catching. With her large, lustrous, and spirited eyes, she made one incapable of overlooking her presence.

This was as it should be. If not for the support of this outstanding hardware, no matter how thick the thigh of the male lead, the female lead would be incapable of gaining a foothold in showbiz and ultimately become the goddess of a generation.

That’s later on, but as for now…… Fan Yuan stroked his chin. If all went according to plan, there would be an accident happening any minute now.

The opening dance number had scarcely reached the halfway point when there was a sudden uproar from the audience off stage. Fan Yuan stared knowingly. As expected, someone messed with the female lead’s dress. One of the shoulder straps broke. Her reaction was extremely quick as she grabbed the ground to steady herself, but there was no way she could continue dancing or else she would completely expose herself.

This was her first time encountering such a situation. This was a live show—who knows how many viewers were watching her at this very minute. There were several hundred people in the live studio audience and her god was sitting in the guest’s chair. He was the idol she had always longed for. What could she do in this situation? Helpless, she nearly broke out in tears.

Fan Yuan’s eyes were shining as he watched Fang Xu. In his heart, he repeatedly urged: Hurry up, male lead-daren! This is your future wife. You must not disappoint me!

About half a minute had passed, but to Tan Ling, it seemed like a century. Alarmed, she stood helplessly on stage. The other girls all ignored her as if she didn’t exist and continued to perform the rehearsed dance.

Just as she was considering whether or not to bolt offstage, a black jacket suddenly covered her shoulders. Tan Ling raised incredulous eyes to look up. Under the multi-colored stage lights, all she saw was a face that seemed to have been meticulously carved by God Himself: her god, Fang Xu. He was directing a warm smile in her direction. She was dazzled in the moment, as her vision was overwhelmed with blinding, shining lights from all directions. She nearly wept at the brilliance.

Her head dropped. She dared not look again. In a low voice, she said, “Thank you.”

After that, she turned and fled offstage. Fang Xu didn’t pay any attention to that and directly returned to his spot in the guest chair as if nothing had happened.

Fan Yuan looked on impassively. His deep gaze streaked across the male lead’s stunning countenance as he used his index finger to push up his glasses. A concealed darkness lurked behind his eyes.

In contrast to his outer appearance, his heart was currently rejoicing. He spoke animatedly to Xiao Wu, saying, “Finally, I can relax! Ever since experiencing the previous world, I’ve been afraid of the plot running amok. If that were to happen again, my lil’ heart couldn’t handle it! Thank goodness the male lead this time is really conscientious, you know? Give him another drumstick as a reward!”

“Ding. This time, Master is the type to suppress his desires. His character design is the kind where he’s outwardly cold but deep and passionate on the inside. As long as Master doesn’t act out and seduce the male lead, the plot should continue to progress along a normal path.

“Oi, Xiao Wu, what’s that supposed to mean? When did I ever seduce the male lead? Was that by my own choice?? It was all a huge mistake! Let me just reiterate: let the past be the past. We’ve opened up a new chapter. Isn’t dreaming about our beautiful future just grand?”

“Ding. It was Master who first brought up the previous world. Xiao Wu was only following along with what Master said.”

“…………”

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At that very moment, a crowd of countless fans gathered like an impenetrable knot inside and outside of Didu International Airport. The international superstar model Gao Menghan was set to arrive back from France that day.

As the first Chinese model unanimously and unceasingly praised and reported on by foreign media, Gao Menghan not only set the fashion trends for the world and cameoed in many Hollywood movies, but she also managed to nab the international award for Best Supporting Actress. She had huge amounts of domestic fans.

A woman wearing a dark blue newsboy cap and black sunglasses sat in the airport. She was sitting there minding her own business, but she put out a distinctive aura. Even if she were to dress more conservatively, it still wouldn’t be of any use to cover up her impressive figure. She casually fanned through the fashion magazine in her hand.

Then, she suddenly heard astonished cries coming from her surroundings, so she raised her head to look at the source of the commotion. All she saw was the airport display screen broadcasting “1, 2, 3! Look to the Stars.”

Her eyes locked on him, that godlike man. He was more mature and earnest-looking than before, his looks even more outstanding. A refined smile was affixed on his face as he took off his jacket and laid it on a girl’s shoulders in a gentlemanly manner. The expression in his eyes was more gentle and tender than she had ever seen before. Although it was only one motion and one expression, it was enough to make her lose all rationality.

“Fang Xu……”

The cover of that brand new fashion magazine was gradually twisted in her grip until it was creased beyond recognition.