Chapter Eighty-Eight: Gu Yuhan

Chapter Eighty-Eight: Gu Yuhan

A single, casual sentence instantly changed the expression on Sister Fen’s arrogant face. She hurriedly stepped aside, revealing the person who had spoken behind her.

"An immortal descended to earth!" That line flashed through the minds of everyone who had unconsciously risen to their feet. Even Zhao Wanting, who had always thought highly of herself, lowered her head and watched as the fairy-like girl walked through the center of the room. The girl calmly took a book from the shelf, found a seat, and sat down before everyone finally let out a breath.

"Wow, even she came? We’re ridiculously lucky tonight." Lu Zhixuan had already forgotten Sister Fen’s earlier rudeness, his eyes shining.

But Lin Qihua understood him, because in that instant he too had been completely stunned. He had never imagined there could be a girl like this in the world, and he could not find any adjective sufficient to describe her beauty. Only a line of poetry echoed in his heart: There is a beauty in the north, solitary and peerless. One glance can bring down a city; a second glance can bring down a nation.

Coming back to himself, he saw Sister Fen glaring at him ferociously, and he could not help but smile. In a low voice, he said, "First, I don’t know where you got the idea that I used tricks to obtain the information and then found a way to record the show together, but I can tell you this: if you have a complaint, you can take it up with the production team. I don’t think I need to answer your question."

"Second, this is our artists’ waiting area, not a market. It’s not suitable for someone like you to be making such a racket here. Can’t you see everyone hates your presence? If I were you, I’d already have burrowed into the ground and be too ashamed to come out."

Sister Fen’s face paled in panic. She looked around, and sure enough, everyone else was looking at her with undisguised displeasure and contempt. Then she looked again at the middle-aged man she had just been angrily berating, and only then did she realize she had actually been shouting at a top-tier star. Her legs went weak, and she nearly collapsed.

"Third," Lin Qihua went on, "you’re not even Zhao Wanting’s own choice of manager, are you? You’ve really done your artist a great disservice. Or maybe you think you’re being loyal to the company, loyal to Young Master Guo. But you’ve never once been loyal to your artist. If it were me, I’d have fired you long ago."

"Exactly," Lu Zhixuan said with a wicked grin as he looked at Sister Fen. "If I were you, I’d be scrambling to your master for help right about now. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to you. I’m not low enough to bother with a little manager like you, haha."

Sister Fen’s lips trembled. She glanced at Zhao Wanting one last time, then turned and walked out of the room without looking back.

Zhao Wanting looked at Lin Qihua with a complicated expression. She had expected him to be impulsive, to flare up in rage. She had not expected him to show even the slightest trace of anger. Instead, he had spoken to Sister Fen with such calm that the woman had grown more and more terrified; before the conversation was even over, she had fled like a beaten dog with its tail between its legs. And the man beside him, Lu Zhixuan, was no one to provoke either—a veteran first-tier star with wide connections. Even the Azure Splendor Company would have to think twice before offending him.

She seemed about to say something, but in the end only sighed and turned to sit at another table.

Lin Qihua watched her leave, his gaze calm, impossible to read.

"Sigh, stop standing there in a daze," Lu Zhixuan said, pulling him down to sit. "Do you know? Tonight we’ve hit the jackpot. So many people never even get to see a goddess like her, and yet she’s actually here at the recording. If this gets out, the fans will explode. The production team is incredible—they actually managed to invite her."

"Probably for the promotion of a TV drama?" Lin Qihua noticed that two other handsome young men had come in and taken seats nearby. He smiled. "For publicity, they always have to make an appearance."

"You don’t know this, but she rarely takes part in shows like this," Lu Zhixuan said in a low voice. "Luck, pure luck."

Seeing Lu Zhixuan’s fanlike excitement, Lin Qihua could not help laughing. "You’re already forty, almost married, and you still chase celebrities? Does your wife know?"

"Chasing stars has no age limit," Lu Zhixuan declared with righteous confidence. "Besides, my girlfriend is her fan too."

Lin Qihua could not help glancing to the other side. The fairy-like girl was holding a book and reading quietly. Around her seemed to gather an invisible force field that kept everyone outside the circle, leaving them only able to gaze at her fervently, without daring to step forward and speak.

He knew who she was: Gu Yuhan. She was only twenty-two, a senior at Yanjing Film Academy, yet already a first-tier star, hailed as a sure future empress of film and television. Even internationally, she enjoyed a certain degree of recognition, and at home she was nothing less than a goddess, with more than a hundred million fans.

She carried a multitude of labels: fairy, banished immortal, top student, aloof and cool, and more, each one testifying to how different she was. Gu Yuhan’s father was a celebrated performing artist, her mother a renowned singer from the army’s song-and-dance troupe. From childhood she had taken part in the filming of all kinds of dramas and movies, appearing frequently on screen. Later, she became a disciple of Xiao Ruoxi, the reigning queen of the silver screen, and that was like wings added to a tiger.

At eighteen, she officially starred in her first leading role in a film, which became one of that year’s biggest hits. Her otherworldly beauty and superb acting conquered every audience member, and she won the Best Newcomer award that year, instantly rising to first-tier stardom. The following year, with a score far ahead of second place, she was admitted to Yanjing Film Academy. Praised as a girl with both beauty and intelligence, she was affectionately dubbed the "National Goddess" by her fans. Wherever she went, the streets were emptied. Even within the industry, she was the idol of countless artists: girls saw her as a model to follow, boys saw her as a goddess and a goal to strive toward. She was practically a cheat code.

He had heard that she rarely appeared on variety shows, preferring instead to focus on her studies and only gradually taking on roles again in her senior year. He had never expected to have the chance to work with her on this stage.

"Life is truly mysterious," Lin Qihua said, shaking his head. Encountering Zhao Wanting had been an accident, one that made people wonder whether the production team had tampered with things. But meeting Gu Yuhan told him it was probably just coincidence. To invite Gu Yuhan onto the show, the production team had likely expended a great deal of effort. They could not possibly rearrange things because of him. At most, they might have learned some inside information. This could only count as an unexpected delight.

"If you ask me, Huazi," Lu Zhixuan whispered, "that girl from before was nothing. Gu Yuhan is the real goal for people like us. I’m too old already, but you’re just right. Tonight is your chance. When the groups are assigned, you should try to get close. If you interact enough, maybe something will come of it."

"Do you really think we have a chance?" Lin Qihua asked.

"A man without dreams is no different from a salted fish," Lu Zhixuan said with the air of a life mentor.

"Then I’d rather be a salted fish," Lin Qihua replied helplessly. "At least I can still make a meal out of it."