QTMWSFC Chapter 28.2

The truth is, Deng Yuanli’s eyes actually lit up the moment she saw Xia Qingmeng the other day.

This girl was far too radiant!

Most importantly, it was those big eyes of hers. They could speak!

It was very important for an actor to have expressive eyes.

Too many young actors these days were restless and unfocused, and you could see it in their eyes.

She had also heard some of the black materials about Xia Qingmeng. About half a year ago, she was being dragged through the mud across the entire internet.

Now it seems that although those scandals made the girl a bit less confident, they didn’t crush her. The young lady had quite a strong ability to withstand pressure.

Deng Yuanli genuinely liked Xia Qingmeng. She took the initiative to offer an opportunity. “I have a student who’s preparing to shoot a web drama and is looking for actors. It’s a low-budget production, so the pay might not be high. I don’t know if you’d be interested in taking a look at the script?”

Xia Qingmeng was overjoyed just to have the chance to act in something, let alone a recommendation from a senior like Deng Yuanli. Nine out of ten times, it was a good script! So she happily agreed: “Of course I’m interested!”

Deng Yuanli knew she wouldn’t refuse and was also happy. “Great. I’ll give you the contact information later.”

Watching them chat happily, Shen Xichun’s expression faltered.

She was an actress too! Why didn’t she get a recommendation?

Shouldn’t old-timers like this who have been in the entertainment industry for so long know how to handle people? Was there really a need to treat them so differently on camera?

So she tentatively spoke up, “Teacher Deng, what about me?”

Deng Yuanli glanced at Shen Xichun. Her tone remained friendly as she replied, “Oh, your image doesn’t fit my student’s requirements.”

The live chat erupted again.

[High EQ: Your image doesn’t fit. Low EQ: In your dreams.]

[Help! My toes have already dug out a three-bedroom apartment in embarrassment!]

[Help! I’ve dug out Barbie’s Dream Castle!]

…

Shen Xichun felt both wronged and unconvinced.

In terms of age, she was similar to Xia Qingmeng. They had both come up through idol dramas. She thought she was no less attractive than Xia Qingmeng and was suitable for both modern and period costumes. So why didn’t she fit the requirements?

Shen Xichun probably let the fame go to her head. She had forgotten that the only noteworthy work she had to her name was that one popular drama from a while back.

In contrast, although Xia Qingmeng had rarely played the female lead, she had at least three or four respectable works to her name. The roles she had played so far didn’t overlap much, though she had been in quite a few bad movies. But luckily, she hadn’t played the leading role, and a bad movie didn’t necessarily conflict with her good acting. That was precisely why Deng Yuanli thought highly of her.

Qin Xuan didn’t have much to say about entertainment industry matters, so she just snacked on melon seeds and listened happily. As the oldest among them, Deng Yuanli couldn’t really ignore the others, so she changed the subject after briefly discussing acting.

After all, this was a dating show. In the end, the focus had to return to relationships, right?

But Shen Xichun perked up and directly asked Xia Qingmeng how she and Xu Xinghe met.

The other three couples clearly all came from the same circles. Xu Xinghe and Xia Qingmeng were the exception. Although it was not unusual in the entertainment industry for an actress to marry into a wealthy family.

“How did we meet…” Xia Qingmeng paused for a moment, lost in thought. “Let me think…”

Actually, their first meeting had been on set. Later, she noticed that Xu Xinghe started showing up at the film set more and more frequently. Occasionally, he would help her such as offering her audition opportunities or something. But Xu Xinghe never mentioned it. She only found out by accident.

A few of the projects where she played the leading role were somewhat because of Xu Xinghe’s help. But his help was limited to giving her an audition opportunity. Still, Xia Qingmeng liked that approach very much. It made her feel respected, and she didn’t have to feel guilty about getting in through the back door.

Then for some reason, the internet was suddenly flooded with people attacking her, saying she had an improper relationship with Xu Xinghe. To be honest, Xia Qingmeng really didn’t like Xu Xinghe at first. He seemed very cold and unapproachable. He was not her type at all.

But perhaps the scariest thing was that Xu Xinghe always appeared when she needed help the most. After it happened enough times, her heart inevitably began to fall. The more the scandals insisted on it, the more Xia Qingmeng felt like she really had developed feelings for him.

Later, because of the overwhelming wave of negative trending searches, the two of them got together for real in order to clarify things. They held hands, hugged, kissed, and even crossed the line into the most intimate of relationships. They became even more entangled with each other and developed into what they were now.

“We met on set, I guess. He would come by for inspections sometimes. After seeing each other a lot… we got together…” Xia Qingmeng naturally couldn’t go into that much detail, but what she said was roughly accurate.

The glow of the evening sun fell on her cheeks, making her already shy face look even rosier. She looked liked a girl deeply in love.

Even Qin Xuan’s speed of eating melon seeds increased a few times.

“That’s not entirely accurate. I was going to the set all the time specifically to see you.” Xu Xinghe’s voice suddenly came from above Xia Qingmeng’s head. Then several skewers of barbecue appeared before her eyes.

“Here, try these and see what you think.” Xu Xinghe took a piece of napkin, wrapped it around the bottom of the skewers, and handed them to her.

“Thanks!” Xia Qingmeng happily took the barbecue, took a bite, and her bright watery eyes lit up. “This is so good!”

“You move fast, kid! Only thinking about your girlfriend, huh? Hahaha!” Fang Chengle walked over at this moment, carrying a large tray in each hand.

The trays were piled high with freshly grilled skewers.

Qin Xuan smiled as she helped clear the table and arrange the plates, then teased Xu Xinghe: “So you were deliberately going to the set just to see Qingmeng. You already liked her back then, didn’t you?”

Xu Xinghe’s lips curved slightly as he looked at Xia Qingmeng. “Yes. It was my first time chasing a girl, so I had no experience. I had to find an excuse to show up on set.”

Xia Qingmeng looked at him blankly.

So it hadn’t been a coincidence at all?

Xu Xinghe wiped a smudge of sauce from the corner of her mouth and shrugged. “I’m actually very busy. There was nothing worth seeing on that set except you.”

Xia Qingmeng’s face suddenly turned bright red.

There were so many people watching! And cameras! Saying something so cheesy!

On the other hand, Xu Xinghe looked completely at ease.

In fact, after accepting all the memories and emotions of the original owner, he could clearly recognize that he had liked Xia Qingmeng from very early on. Otherwise, he never would have become intimate with her.

As for Yin Xinya, that was more like an obsessive fixation, so much so that he hurt himself and others in the end, including the person who truly loved him. But he wouldn’t repeat the mistakes of the original plot. He could let go of that obsession and choose to love the person he truly loved.

The live chat was packed at this hour.

First, it was dinnertime. Second, after several trending searches over the past couple of days, both popularity and viewership had surged.

[Wow, so that’s how it was!]

[So this clears it up! She was never a mistress or a stand-in¹substitute! She’s the real girlfriend!]

[So who was trying so hard to smear Xia Qingmeng back then? The more I think about it, the creepier it gets!]

[She must have stepped on someone’s interest, right? They even forced the person involved to come down and explain things herself.]

[I’m sorry! I’m guilty! I shouldn’t have jumped on the hate trend back then!]

[What do I do? I find this couple more and more ship-worthy the more I watch (crying and laughing)]

[Then ship them. That’s what this show is for!]

…

Shen Xichun took a bite of barbecue, a faint look of disdain in her eyes.

Keep acting, just keep acting!

Talking about true feelings in the entertainment industry?

Who are you kidding? That was way too disgusting!

Why not just say you slept your way into it?

What on set? It’s all just transactional sex anyway.

But why did Xia Qingmeng get to sleep with high-quality men, while she only got greasy and fat ones?

She refused to believe she couldn’t hook Xu Xinghe!

Xiang Ran saw the look on her face, pretended he didn’t notice anything, and continued eating his own meal.

After these two days of filming, he had given up. So what if he stopped being a celebrity? It wasn’t like he didn’t have other skills. He had made peace with it. He couldn’t keep up this disgusting CP act any longer!