I am a historical film director in the entertainment industry.

Wei Lai kept refreshing the Weibo page, her voice filled with excitement and her eyes brimming with envy: "Qianqian, you've been hiding this so well! I never imagined you knew Director Cheng Sheng. I'm so envious!"

Wan Qian put down the script in her hand and gave a helpless bitter smile: "Lai Lai, would you believe me if I said I didn't know Director Cheng Sheng at all, and I've never even met him once?"

Wei Lai immediately rolled his eyes, not believing the argument at all: "How is that possible? We're not related in the entertainment industry, why would Cheng Sheng risk public opinion to publicly support an unknown actor? Nobody would do that for no reason."

"I really didn't say a single lie." Wan Qian's tone was sincere, her eyes filled with a mixture of amusement and exasperation; she herself was still completely baffled.

Looking into her best friend's clear eyes, without the slightest hint of evasion, Wei Lai's doubts gradually eased. Her eyes darted around, and she immediately conjured up a plausible story in her mind. She lowered her voice and said, "Then I understand. It's highly likely that Cheng Sheng has taken a liking to you. He saw some behind-the-scenes photos or stills of you on set and was attracted by your looks and temperament, which is why he stepped in to help you out of that predicament."

Wan Qian was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, and then instinctively shook her head: "Impossible. I've read entertainment reports before. Director Cheng Sheng has had a stable girlfriend for a long time, and his romantic relationships have always been clean."

"How much can you believe in entertainment industry reports?" Wei Lai scoffed, her tone certain. "Men are all the same by nature. Even if they have girlfriends, they might not be faithful. The fact that Cheng Sheng has no history of sexually harassing artists only means he hasn't met anyone he's attracted to before, not that he won't break the rules." At this point, Wei Lai suddenly leaned forward half a step and asked bluntly, "Then let me ask you, if Cheng Sheng were to ask you out later, or even make some inappropriate requests, would you agree?"

This question hit the nail on the head, instantly freezing Wan Qian in place.

Wei Lai knew her past: In the past, when faced with subtle invitations from industry bigwigs under the pretext of reading scripts or discussing roles privately, Wan Qian always refused on the spot with a firm stance, even hanging up the phone directly and tearing off the relationship in person, leaving no room for compromise. It was precisely because of this that she had completely offended people.

Back then, everyone in the industry distanced themselves from Wan Qian, but Wei Lai withstood the pressure and always maintained a good relationship with her, never drawing a line between them.

But Willie also had his own plans.

In the past, those big shots were just ordinary top-level capital in the industry, but Cheng Sheng's level is completely different. He is backed by China Film Group and the Central Academy of Drama, holds the power of life and death over film and television projects, and has connections covering the entire chain of publicity, distribution, theaters, and censorship.

As long as Wan Qian gets involved with Cheng Sheng, all future bans will be lifted, and mainstream resources will be readily available.

As Wan Qian's best friend, she was also able to get access to high-quality resources such as film and television scores and supporting roles, completely escaping the predicament of being a niche singer in the music scene.

Wan Qian's mind went blank, and for the first time, she felt a wavering in her heart.

Before this, she had zero tolerance for all unspoken rules and remained completely unmoved.

But Cheng Sheng is different. Ever since Cheng Sheng swept the film festival with his debut film, she has been his loyal audience. She has watched all of his films and highly recognizes his directorial talent and professional integrity. She has long regarded him as her spiritual idol.

Now, her idol has crossed mountains and seas to help her when she was in dire straits, without asking for anything in return.

If Cheng Sheng made an overstepping request, could she still refuse him without hesitation and with the same firmness as she did with those greasy big shots?

Unable to provide an answer, Wan Qian's once rock-solid bottom line began to show subtle cracks for the first time.

After a long silence, Wan Qian spoke hesitantly, "I was just thinking that when Director Cheng Sheng returned to China, I would ask someone to arrange a meal for him to thank him in person. I didn't think of anything else..."

"Stop beating around the bush." ​​Wei Lai interrupted her directly, his eyes sharp and direct. "I'll just ask you one question: if it were Cheng Sheng, would you still refuse the unspoken rules?" Wan Qian's cheeks flushed instantly, her lips trembled several times, but she swallowed back all the words that were on the tip of her tongue, unable to give a definite answer.

Wei Lai instantly understood, and waved his hand with a smile: "I understand, no need to say more. Anyone would find it hard not to waver when facing Cheng Sheng. Your mentality is fundamentally different from how you treat others."

Feeling a little embarrassed that her thoughts had been seen through, Wan Qian softly called out, "Lai Lai."

"Okay, okay, I won't mention it anymore." Seeing her shyness, Wei Lai quickly changed the subject. "By the way, are outsiders allowed to visit the set of 'Nine-Tailed Fox'?"

Wan Qian instantly became alert and sized her up: "Aren't you supposed to be recording the theme song for the drama 'Love' next week? Why are you visiting the set when you have nothing better to do? You must have another purpose."

Wei Lai didn't hide anything and laughed frankly, "It's still early for the recording. I just want to join the crew and get to know Zhang Meng. It's all over the industry that Zhang Meng just signed with Shengli Film and Television and was directly parachuted into the female lead role of 'Nine-Tailed Fox.' It was all personally decided by Cheng Sheng. The two are as close as siblings. As long as I get in touch with Zhang Meng, it's equivalent to indirectly getting in touch with Cheng Sheng."

Wan Qian understood perfectly.

She understood Willie's thoughts; everyone in the entertainment industry is striving for their future, and this kind of thinking is understandable.

If it weren't for Zhang Meng, she would still be stuck in the mire of being sidelined. After a moment's thought, she nodded and instructed, "It's no problem to take you to see her, but you must be careful with your words and not pry or try to establish a relationship with her."

"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Willie gave an OK sign, his face beaming with joy.

"I'm not going to chat with you anymore, I need to call Mengmeng to thank her." Wan Qian picked up her phone.

Wei Lai then stood up to say goodbye: "Okay, I'll go take a look around Hengdian first, and I'll come find you later."

Wan Qian was the only one left in the room. She immediately dialed Zhang Meng's number. As soon as the call connected, she spoke first, her voice full of gratitude: "Mengmeng, thank you so much this time."

Zhang Meng's tone on the other end of the phone was light and casual: "What kind of relationship do we have? Do I need to say thank you? I just casually mentioned your situation to Brother Sheng. I didn't actually help much. If you really want to thank me, just thank Brother Sheng later."

“That’s what I was thinking too,” Wan Qian said truthfully. “But I don’t know Director Cheng Sheng and I don’t have his contact information. When he comes back from Hollywood, could you help me make an appointment? I’d like to invite him to dinner to thank him in person.”

“It’s no big deal, leave it to me.” Zhang Meng agreed without hesitation.

Wan Qian then asked, "When are you going back to the Hengdian film crew?"

Previously, the entire cast and crew of "Nine-Tailed Fox" were unable to leave their posts. As the lead actress, Zhang Meng had more than 60% of the screen time, and even a day's absence would delay the entire crew's filming schedule.

However, the celebration banquet for "Crazy Racer" was hosted by the parent company, Shengli Film and Television. The company directly granted two days of leave to all members of "Nine-Tailed Fox". Not only Zhang Meng, but also the male lead Wang Chuanjun and the main creative team went to attend the celebration banquet, and the crew took the opportunity to stop work and rest.

Because she wasn't affiliated with Victory Film Company or a top-tier artist in the industry, she wasn't eligible to attend the "Crazy Racer" wrap party. (End of Chapter)