Chapter 77: Why…
She trusted her so much, but had the other party ever responded to her expectations?
Perhaps in the past, yes, but that was also a long time ago.
Yu Linna stood at the entrance of the convenience store where she often worked, looking at the customers coming and going inside, and the part-time girl working at the cash register. She couldn’t help but look at the wallet in her hand and sighed deeply. Just now, she had been fired.
Before this, Yu Linna had always worked part-time to earn money, juggling several jobs. But since signing with Orange River and becoming an artist, her jobs were lost one after another. Now, besides the assistant teacher position at the tutoring center, all other jobs were gone.
Although she now earned several hundred yuan for each commercial she filmed, sometimes she still thought, life is unpredictable. She thought she could keep these jobs, but ultimately, for her ideals, she had to abandon them.
Just as she said, she believed Nangong Ying; she still chose to stay. Even though that incident happened, thinking that this job could bring her more opportunities, she still chose to stay. For no other reason than wanting to go to the pinnacle of the world with Nangong Ying.
She would become a star; she believed she could do it. Because when she was very young, the adults in the foster families often told children that you reap what you sow. She believed that all the effort she put in, everything she gave up, was for the future.
The girl walked to the tutoring institution opened by Zhou Xiaoqing. Today happened to be a workday. Children had already arrived here to play. And the other teachers also arrived one after another. When Yu Linna saw Zhou Xiaoqing, her steps felt slightly heavy, but she still stepped out eventually.
“Sister Qing, I want to ask for leave.”
“You’re asking for leave again? You’ve asked for too much this month, almost half the time you haven’t come to work.”
“Sorry, I have something to do and temporarily can’t work here.”
“If you continue like this, we can only hire a new assistant teacher.”
“I know, I’m sorry. I will resolve my matters as soon as possible.”
Although she said that, Yu Linna knew that she probably wouldn’t be able to keep this job for long either. Being fired was probably a matter of time. She just hoped that day would come a little later.
Standing at the entrance of the tutoring institution, looking at the group of children, she was also a part of this place. Although she wasn’t an official teacher, she had belonged here after all. Perhaps soon, she would no longer belong here.
She was Yu Linna, actress Yu Linna, a person destined to reach the peak.
Wanting to go higher and farther required effort. As for when she could reach that place, that wasn’t something she could control.
Sometimes, inadvertently, she would look at the advertising screens on the street, often seeing the figures of TV stars. She sometimes wondered, how wonderful it would be if she could also become a part of the TV screen. But she knew, currently, it was impossible.
Nangong Ying, the goal she strived to pursue. In the future, she would definitely go farther and farther, to places she could never reach. She knew she might never surpass her in her lifetime, but at least, she wanted to gain people’s attention, at least let her name be known.
Nangong said she wanted to go to higher and farther places, hoping she could go with her.
Nangong wouldn’t lie.
She always firmly believed this.
Returning to the gate of Orange River Company, she had to shoot commercials for this company again. This was already her daily work routine. Although she couldn’t get the opportunity to film movies, she would try to accumulate experience.
“Miss Yu, let’s talk about something.”
As soon as she entered the office building, Yu Tianchen walked over, still smiling, but it inexplicably made people feel afraid.
“What is it, Mr. Yu?”
“Let’s talk in the office.”
“No, no, no… let’s talk here.”
Hearing “office,” she immediately panicked. With the previous lesson, she would never follow a strange man into an office, no matter what. And Yu Tianchen also saw her vigilance, naturally wouldn’t force it. He asked Yu Linna to go to the hall on the second floor.
In the second-floor hall, Yu Tianchen asked her to sit down, then pushed his glasses, preparing his words. Yu Linna saw his manner, sensed something was wrong. She had a feeling of being targeted.
“Last time you met the leader, it seems you left the leader dissatisfied. This shouldn’t have happened.”
“!–”
She hadn’t expected it to turn out like this.
Yu Tianchen specifically came to talk to her about this matter.
Meaning, that incident last time was intentional? But Nangong said they wouldn’t do anything to her. Nangong wouldn’t lie to her.
“Sorry, I was too scared, so I…”
“It’s understandable that you would think this way. Who doesn’t have a first time? This is very normal.”
“…What, what did you say?”
She seemed to have heard some incredible words from his mouth.
What did he mean by this?
“Didn’t the leader tell you? Forget it, don’t mind it. The leader will call you again next time. Remember to be more sensible this time. If you work a little harder, maybe you can get a supporting role in a movie.”
Yu Linna, a pure newcomer, wanting to act in movies was easier said than done. She had no acting skills, no strength, not even a decent background. Not even a professional certificate, just an ordinary high school student. To put it bluntly, why would a director use her to film a movie? What qualifications did she have to get a role?
This was the fact.
If she wanted to get a role, besides pleasing others, exchanging her own things, what other way was there? Relying solely on strength was already impossible.
Yu Linna was naive, but it didn’t mean she was stupid. How could she not guess the meaning behind Yu Tianchen’s words?
“Mr. Yu, tell me, if I want to get a role, do I have to… do that kind of thing?”
She wasn’t unaware of the news, wasn’t unaware of what happened in the entertainment industry. But she hadn’t thought deeply about it, thinking it was just one-sided talk.
But how deep the water in this circle was, one only knew after entering.
“Female stars are different from male stars. Female stars have the biggest advantage, which is being able to please others. I’ve already thought about it. Next, let you fight for a role. As long as you perform well after getting the role, you might gain fame. This is an opportunity, you know.”
These words he spoke sounded like the voice of hell to Yu Linna.
Wanting resources, wanting roles, actually required paying so much? What kind of logic was this… It shouldn’t be like this.
Weren’t they the leaders of the film industry? Why would they do this kind of thing?
She couldn’t believe this was real.
“Besides this path, do I have no other choice?”
“You have nothing, not even a university diploma. What do you have to compete with others? Besides begging others, what else can you do? We are responsible for making you famous, so you have to listen to us.”
“No… I don’t want to…”
“You can refuse, but this is your only chance to get a role.”
“No! I’d rather not have the role than debase myself like this!”
She clutched her head and shouted painfully.
This sentence wasn’t just said for others to hear, but also for herself.
She would never sell herself cheap, no matter what, because her dignity belonged to herself.
She didn’t belong to anyone.
Yu Tianchen smiled. He was still the gentle-looking Yu Tianchen, but his eyes had changed, becoming sharper, like an old fox.
This was his true face.
Nangong Ying was like this before too, thinking herself invincible, yet stumbled before Orange River. When about to be subjected to the unspoken rules, didn’t she choose to send her friend in to replace her? In the face of true power, all resistance is futile.
“Miss Yu, I am your agent. You must obey the contract’s arrangements.”
“I won’t!”
“It’s clearly written in the contract, you must work for our company, you must earn a net profit of three million for our company. Right now, you’ve only earned 50,000 for us, not even a fraction. Just shooting commercials won’t make money. Only by acting in movies, getting paid, earning box office, only then will you have value.”
The cruel entertainment industry, box office is everything. The highest value proving an actor is the box office. This is fact.
“Or perhaps, you want to breach the contract? If you terminate the contract, the penalty is eighty million.”
“No, no, no…!”
She finally knew what kind of place she had come to.
This wasn’t a place to chase dreams, nor a platform to realize dreams. This was a wolf’s den, filled with power and oppression, where even the law couldn’t reach. Here, they were everything.
Yu Linna was just a small newcomer. How could she possibly escape? From the moment she was signed, she already belonged here; she couldn’t leave.
She almost screamed like mad. She really couldn’t believe this place was so chaotic. She once thought this was heaven, but only after entering did she realize it was hell. The contrast was too great for her to accept immediately.
“How could you do this to me? It wasn’t like this when you first said it! You lied to me!”
“I didn’t lie to you. You were the one who signed the name, you were the one who made the decision. I never forced you. Isn’t that right, Miss Yu?”
He smiled, smiled so beautifully, but this smile looked so terrifying to Yu Linna.
Everything was firmly controlled by Orange River. She was just a pawn, unable to stir any waves at all.
So, everything Nangong Ying said, was it all fake?
She couldn’t help but start doubting.
“I want to find Nangong! Where is Nangong?!” Panicked, she grasped at straws.
“Nangong Ying is a member of our company. She has no right to interfere in your affairs. I am directly responsible for you.”
“No, no, Nangong said she wouldn’t lie to me! She said it wasn’t true, she said I was overthinking it, she clearly said it!”
She cried, unsure why she was crying. Perhaps it was sadness. But more likely, it was heartbreak.
“Nangong Ying should be back on set working now. She’s the number one female lead. As a friend, you should be proud of her.”
Since signing, Nangong Ying returned to her original crew to work. The matter of being kicked out before was written off. She reshot the scenes she hadn’t finished. She was still the female lead, still Nangong Ying, nothing changed. What changed was only her expression.
She would probably never know how Nangong Ying made this decision.
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