Chapter 326 - 281: Rising Phase: 117

Words : 1389 Updated : Oct 5th, 2025

Chapter 326: Chapter 281: Rising Phase: 117 Jealousy twisted Wei Ru Xue’s expression into something ugly. Sui Yu noticed her complexion and whispered, "Ruxue, there are so many people here. Don’t let your emotions show on your face." Wei Ru Xue then restrained herself a little. "She should never have been given the chance to debut," Wei Ru Xue ground out through clenched teeth. Sui Yu knew it was pointless to reason with Wei Ru Xue at that moment. "There will always be new talents emerging; we just need to stay on our own path," said Sui Yu, "You are the hottest female celebrity in the country right now." These weren’t just words of comfort from Sui Yu to Wei Ru Xue. Since the broadcast of "Spring Cold" in July, its popularity hasn’t waned. Wei Ru Xue’s popularity reached a new peak, with endorsements and collaborations actively seeking her out, and the offers they were making had even doubled. Angrily, Wei Ru Xue said, "But no matter how popular I am, in these people’s eyes, I’m still not as good as Ning Yao, am I? In a few years, will I even be lesser than Zhou Yun in their eyes?" Sui Yu sighed inwardly. At the end of the day, it was because Wei Ru Xue’s acting skills weren’t as good as Ning Yao’s, nor was her reputation. Ning Yao was an acting genius; there was no need to compare with her, nor was it possible. That’s what Sui Yu truly thought, but obviously, she couldn’t say it to Wei Ru Xue. If Sui Yu told Wei Ru Xue the truth directly, Wei Ru Xue wouldn’t accept it. Instead, she would become angrier and more frustrated, developing an unnecessary sense of competitiveness. The truth is, Wei Ru Xue wasn’t suited for films. Wei Ru Xue’s acting in TV dramas might offer plenty of classic moments, but she lacked those flashes of brilliance in her performances. Even as Wei Ru Xue’s agent, Sui Yu had to admit that when Wei Ru Xue was shaping a character, the form outweighed the spirit. ... "It seems that Zhou Yun is going to make a strong entry into the film industry in the next few years," Luo Peiyao laughed and remarked to Ning Yao. Ning Yao held a wine glass, her lips curled in a smile. "That’s great, I really like her." Luo Peiyao glanced over at Wei Ru Xue and chuckled, "You may like her, but others may not." Ning Yao said, "That’s their business. It’s not important whether others like her or not. It’s enough that I like her." Her tone was a bit willful, like a little girl, not at all like a Movie Queen respected by everyone. ... When Zhou Yun left the stage, her palms were trembling. She was nervous. On stage, she had been afraid of misspeaking, making herself a laughingstock. Who knew that once off the stage, she would be surrounded by so many people, all eager to introduce themselves and get to know her. Zhou Yun finally broke through the crowd and saw Ning Yao. Today, Ning Yao was actually wearing a glittering, silver, body-hugging mini skirt, her smile especially radiant. "You look absolutely stunning today!" Ning Yao took the initiative to cup Zhou Yun’s chin with both hands, "Come on, let’s take a photo together." Zhou Yun hadn’t expected Ning Yao to express her fondness for her so openly again. Feeling flattered, Zhou Yun stood beside her. Many people took photos of their pairing. A picture with two popular female stars naturally drew a lot of attention. "Xiao Yun, congratulations!" At that moment, Wei Ru Xue approached with a warm smile on her face and hugged Zhou Yun in full view of everyone, "You’re getting to act in such a good movie, that’s wonderful." Zhou Yun could only smile back and say thank you. Wei Ru Xue turned to Ning Yao with a helpless smile and said, "Ah, these new talents are so impressive. Maybe we should consider retiring early, huh?" Ning Yao laughed twice and said, "So you’re thinking about retiring already?" Completely ignoring Wei Ru Xue’s prompt. Ning Yao’s knack for going off-topic was actually quite infamous. Wei Ru Xue grabbed Ning Yao’s hand and said, "Let’s take a photo together, the three of us." She held Zhou Yun with her left hand, and embraced Ning Yao with her right, smiling so perfectly as everyone took their time snapping photos. After dispersing, Zhou Yun heard Zhou Lan whispering a complaint: "She’s just too scheming. She wasn’t even called to take the photos, yet she came over on her own and not only that, she even maneuvered herself into the center position with her arms around both ends." Zhou Yun, realizing belatedly, smiled back at Zhou Lan and said, "Sister Lan, if she wants to be at the center, just let her. It’s not like I should be there." "Of course Ning Yao should be there," Zhou Lan replied indignantly, "It’s not that I care where she usually stands, but I hate that she used you as a prop to secure that center position." Without Zhou Yun, there wouldn’t even be a ’center position’ discussion for Wei Ru Xue and Ning Yao. Zhou Yun sighed and said, "So that’s what it was, really gives one a headache." "Thankfully, Ning Yao isn’t the type to fuss over these things." "Right." Just as they were speaking, He Yong popped up again and brought Zhou Yun to socialize and make small talk with others at the event. That night, Zhou Yun didn’t return to her hotel until eleven. She let out a long, comfortable sigh as she took off her high heels. Having stood in high heels all evening, Zhou Yun felt like her legs were about to give out. She lay on the couch browsing on her phone. Zhou Lan sent her a message, reminding her to post on Weibo. Zhou Yun posted a Weibo with the photo Zhou Lan sent – a grid of nine photos with the caption: A wonderful evening. After posting, she found her name trending on Weibo. To her surprise, the trending topic was "Zhou Yun can be more stunning." Zhou Yun felt a surge of heat and an unexpected anxiety. She couldn’t remember when it started, but she particularly disliked seeing her name in the trending searches. Even though it meant she was popular, had quite a following, and many people were interested in her, it was also like an invisible shackle, tightly gripping her throat. Zhou Yun clicked to see the trending posts, and they were all praising how beautifully dressed she was at the Chinese Film Night, how stunning she was. Of course, amidst the praise, there were also the usual snide remarks, mocking her for trying too hard to get exposure. Zhou Yun simply ignored them. She actually wanted to know what people thought about the announcement of "Falling Leaves" that evening. However, not many were talking about it, and it hadn’t even made it to the trending searches. She searched for the movie by name and finally saw a few film bloggers post about it. But it seemed everyone was surprised, all expressing how unexpected it was for Zhou Yun to collaborate with Shi Luoqi on a new film. From their tone, it was apparent that at this stage, people still didn’t consider Zhou Yun a serious actor. Being shortlisted for the Horizons Unit of the Venice International Film Festival was attributed more to good luck and a talented director, rather than her own merit. Zhou Yun finally felt that things were as they should be. She was actually afraid of seeing a flood of comments praising her acting skills online. After all, so far she had only starred in one released film, and that was widely accepted as a flop, "Eighth Heartbeat". At this time, the last thing she needed was people overly praising her talent or acting ability. Yesterday, she saw fans saying that the reason the chairman of the film festival chatted warmly with her was because he had watched "Life" and was so impressed by Zhou Yun’s performance that he personally welcomed her. When she read that tweet, she was so embarrassed she wanted to dig a three-bedroom apartment with her toes.

Chapter 326 - 281: Rising Phase: 117

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