Chapter One: Unfulfilled Ambition

  "CUT! OK!" Chen Jialin let out a satisfied sigh. Standing up, he announced "The filming of Shanxi Yangcheng County Huang City Xiangfu has come to an end. Rest for one day, on the 17th, we'll move to Wulanbutong!"

  "Whoa!" Everyone on the ground lay down immediately, of course, most of them were newcomers. The old actors under the canopy drank tea and fanned themselves comfortably.

  "It's finally done." Lin Xiao hastily pulled down the headset, this thing was like a suffocating pot when worn on the head, extremely unbearable.

  "Lin Ge, want to grab a drink today? Oh right, you don't drink. Alright, I'll make an exception and let you have juice." A newcomer said as he walked up to him. After some time had passed, he received encouragement from the director several times, plus he didn't put on airs, so it turned out that quite a few newcomers got close to him.

  "Tomorrow then, rest well today. I'm exhausted." Lin Xiao said helplessly, his clothes were almost soaked through.

  "Alright, then let's settle it tomorrow." The other party didn't say anything else, and there will definitely be a small celebratory dinner tonight.

  As expected, Chen Jialin soon settled on the victory banquet at Yangcheng Hotel and specifically instructed that no one could be absent.

  Lin Xiao took a rest in the afternoon, he was really too tired. In his previous life, he had been mixed up in small drama groups, and the requirements were not so high that he didn't feel it. But in this big drama group, with repeated NGs and more stringent requirements, not only his body but also his mind felt exhausted.

  However, I also learned more.

  At 5:40, he was woken up by his mobile phone alarm clock. After washing and dressing in suitable clothes, he took a taxi to the Yangcheng Hotel. After all, being picked up by a special car was a privilege reserved for important roles.

  "Brother Xiao." "Young Master Lin." "You're here." As soon as he got off the car, he saw several new people in charge of welcoming at the entrance, smiling and greeting him.

  Lin Xiao nodded and went in.

  Inside, the crew had already been arranged to sit down, after all, there were many people. However, seating was also a matter of etiquette, with the director, executive director, general manager, and other high-ranking officials sitting at one table. The second-tier managers and first-line stars sat at another table. Further out were unknown newcomers and paparazzi. No matter how highly regarded Lin Xiao was, he didn't have the qualifications to sit in the front now.

  After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Lin Xiao hadn't even taken a sip. Although he was bored, he didn't leave and chatted with Sun Lei and others at the same table in a desultory manner. Liu Songde unfortunately sat at the same table as him, his face looking unpleasant all along, gloomily drinking wine.

  This dinner party, the meal time is usually very long, more than an hour has passed, everyone is drunk. The men are all flushed and red-eared, the women are all half-hidden with a blush, laughter fills the air.

  "Ah, well... actually... I don't like this kind of dinner gathering either." Sun Lei's eyes were red, his drinking capacity was not good, and he had been forced to drink several cups. Now he spoke hesitantly, looking like he was about to pass out.

  "I don't like it, but I have to come anyway." Lin Xiao said with a smile, "This is okay, at least we can eat our fill. If we go to the Golden Rooster dinner or the Golden Horse dinner, there's no chance of eating enough. Everyone will be holding their wine glasses and walking around, networking is really tiring."

  "Cut, you're talking as if you've been there before!" Sun Lei let out a belch. "That kind of place is our ultimate goal... No! Not that! Our ultimate goal is the Oscars! Gold... Golden Rooster is just the first step!"

  "Yes, the two of you think the Golden Rooster is nothing. But to us, the Golden Rooster is the ultimate glory." Liu Congde said with a sour tone, letting out a cold snort, and said to the person next to Lin Xiao, "Brother, switch places."

  That person didn't drink much wine, he gave him a white eye "If you're not from the same family, you won't enter the same door, Brother Liu wouldn't be so ignorant of this principle, would he?"

  Liu Songde's face suddenly sank, he picked up the wine glass from the table, smiled and turned around, came to Lin Xiao's front, bent down and whispered "You're having a good time here, don't you see your little palace maid? She's even more carefree than you."

  He emphasized the three words "live a little faster" with a raised tone, accompanied by a slight lift of his chin. Lin Xiao followed his gaze and furrowed her brow.

  Qin Xin's appearance can be said to be the most outstanding in this crew. Many men have been eyeing this beauty, and at this moment, she is sitting with a red face at a table with very few people. On the table there are several cold dishes, surrounded by five men. One of them is Manager Qian, whom Lin Xiao met on the day of the interview.

  The reason he frowned was that Manager Qian's hand was placed on Qin Xin's hand, although it was under the table, but from his angle, it was crystal clear.

  "I remember, Qin Dabao is your 'good friend', right?" Liu Songde's voice rose, intentionally letting everyone at the table hear. "Unfortunately, I'm not familiar with Qin Dabao, can't reach that high branch, Brother Lin doesn't go take a look?"

  There are people on the table who are drunk and awake. At a glance, they immediately know that they have seen something they shouldn't have seen.

  "Lin Xiao." Sun Lei pretended to be drunk, leaned his head close to him and whispered "Don't go, that's the investor's person, Qian Manager, in charge of props. Not worth it for a woman."

  "Let it go, Lin Ge. With our status, we can't get involved in this kind of thing. There are so many paparazzi here, who knows if someone has already taken a photo." Another newcomer also advised.

  Liu Songde snorted, "Yes, who made her not my friend?"

  After finishing speaking, he took his wine glass back to his seat, but two gazes were staring at Lin Xiao like knives.

  "Liu Ge, will he go?" The people gathered around Liu De naturally couldn't stand Lin Xiao. Since joining the crew, Lin Xiao's dominance had made them grit their teeth in hatred. Who wouldn't want to be the one standing out? When they themselves didn't have enough acting skills and envied others' achievements, admiration would naturally turn into jealousy.

  At this moment, these people all felt like they had never been so relieved!

  "It doesn't matter whether you go or not!" Liu Songde gritted his teeth and said, "I've been waiting for the day when this arrogant thing lets its guard down! I just don't understand, why did Director Chen say he acted better than me?! Without him, could I have gotten a role in front of everyone and then lost it?! Without him, could I have been carded twice?!"

  "I coincidentally live in the same room as him, and to avoid seeing that disgusting face of his, I always wait until he's asleep before going back! I just know he must have designs on Qin Xin! And it's no wonder, she's so beautiful, with a great figure, which man wouldn't have thoughts about her?! Take a look at the other newbies the other investors want to promote, which one of them can compare to her?!"

  "This time, he's definitely going to ruin Manager Qian's good fortune. If he doesn't go, everyone at this table will look down on him!" Liu Congde's resentment burst out completely "I've endured for so long just to see how far this kind of petty person can get!"

  The person next to him burst out laughing "Great, Liu Ge, he offended the investor here, in a few days when he goes to Ulan Bator, will he have good days ahead?"

  "Moreover." Another person's eyes also lit up "I heard... Ulanbutong doesn't just dislike us few people."

  "Just wait and see!" Liu Songde stared at Lin Xiao with a venomous gaze, not hiding the resentment that had been hidden in his heart for several months, and downed his glass of wine in one gulp.

  Several people stared at each other with eyes wide open like they had been injected with chicken blood.

  Lin Xiao furrowed her brow deeply, picked up the cup and turned it in her hand. She didn't even glance at Liu Tongde, her eyes fell on Manager Qian and Qin Xin instead.

  In the entertainment industry, beautiful women can have an easy time, but also a hard time, it depends on how they think about themselves.

  He thought that if Qin Xin pushed away the other person's hand, he would definitely go over. Not to mention anything else, just seeing each other a few times, he couldn't be unmoved. But if Qin Xin himself leaned in, then he probably wouldn't speak to the other person like that again in the future.

  However, he noticed Qin Xin's expression, as if she had really drunk a lot. Does she know what she is doing now?

  Everyone at the table was silent, someone started pouring wine again to ease the atmosphere, but everyone's eyes were intentionally or unintentionally scanning towards Manager Qian's table.

  Suddenly, Lin Xiao's eyes narrowed and he clearly saw that Manager Qian's hand had slipped onto Qin Xin's thigh.

  It's summer now, and most women wear skirts. Manager Qian's thick palm landed on Qin Xin's smooth thigh and was about to slide in further.

  However, Qin Xin's body just swayed slightly, and her head was buried entirely in her own arm pit.

  "Lin Ge, don't be impulsive." Sun Lei broke out in a cold sweat. When Manager Qian's hand touched his just now, he clearly felt Lin Xiao move slightly, scaring him sober.

  "You know, so-called unwritten rules have the word 'rules' for a reason. It's not because it's forced, but voluntary. One side gives something, and the other side gives something in return. The reason it blows up is 100% because one side's requirements aren't met, in other words, it's fair now. Since Qin Xin chose to accept, she naturally knows what she has to pay for. You don't need to ruin someone else's mutually beneficial deal."

  Lin Xiao didn't answer, but instead said lightly "What if she wasn't willing?"

  "That's not necessary!" Sun Lei said affirmatively. "With your talent, do you still want to mix in the circle? With so many paparazzi, this matter will be blown up and Chen Jialin won't tolerate you!"

  At this moment, everyone at the table saw that Qin Xin's leg shrank back and subconsciously dodged to the side, her hand unconsciously scratched, just scratching Manager Qian's fat face, leaving a few red finger marks.

  At the same time, Lin Xiao also immediately stood up.

  "Think it over!" Sun Lei was really anxious now, and he didn't have a bit of intoxication left. He suddenly grabbed Lin Xiao's clothes "You're going to regret this if you go!"

  "Lin Ge! No need! It's really not worth sacrificing a few years of your life for a woman!"

  "Yes, your talent, following Director Chen, will definitely achieve great things! Don't be impulsive for a moment!"

  "This thing has blown up, Director Chen is the first to not tolerate you! You must think carefully! The world is full of beautiful grass, why focus on just one flower?"

  Several other actors also stood up and persuaded him.

  "It's nothing, just take a look. So I'm saying you're all newcomers, this kind of thing, after coming in for a few years, you'll see a lot." Liu Songde drank a cup of wine with satisfaction.

  Lin Xiao took a deep breath and said seriously to the people at the table, "If you go, you'll regret it for a while. If you don't go, your conscience will regret it for a lifetime!"