The Entertainment Industry in Turmoil: Young Actresses All Want to Rise to the Top

This is where dreams begin, and where dreams come true.

9 month 23 day.

In a secluded private room, an exquisite array of dishes and a small birthday cake were laid out on the table.

The candles have been blown out, and the lights have been turned back on.

Bai Lu's face was still flushed with joy, and her eyes sparkled as she looked at Shen Mo sitting opposite her.

"Where's the gift? Where's the gift?"

She stretched out her hand, palm up, and playfully shook it.

"Brother Mo, don't tell me you're just going to treat me to a meal and that's it! I've been curious about what your gift is for ages!"

Shen Mo looked at her undisguised anticipation and a smile appeared in his eyes.

He took a dark red hardcover notebook from his briefcase and gently pushed it in front of her.

"What is this?"

Bai Lu picked it up curiously, and it felt slightly heavy to the touch.

She opened the cover, her gaze falling on the title and stamp on the inner page, and the smile on her face instantly froze.

Property ownership certificate?

……

She looked up abruptly, her eyes wide with astonishment.

"This... Brother Mo, you...?"

"A birthday present."

Shen Mo smiled calmly, as if he were giving away a book or a record rather than a property in the capital.

"A high-rise apartment in Wangjing with a great view, excellent security and privacy, fully furnished, and ready to move in."

Bai Lu held the heavy certificate, her fingers unconsciously tracing the smooth cover, her feelings were complicated.

There were surprises, but the emotions were overwhelming.

But what followed closely was her unwavering stubbornness and obstinacy.

She didn't want her relationship with Shen Mo to become materialistic.

"It's...too precious."

She shook her head, her voice a little hoarse, and pushed the certificate back onto the table, wiping it with her fingers.

"Brother Mo, I know you mean well, and when you brought it up last year, I already said I wanted to buy it myself."

"I still can't afford it, but I'm saving up."

"I saved all the money I earned from TV dramas and Running Man, and now I'm getting more and more endorsements."

"I can't..."

"Yume-yan".

Shen Mo interrupted her, refusing to take the certificate she pushed back, and gazed deeply into her eyes.

"I know you want to rely on yourself, so I waited a year."

"But given the current situation, we can't wait for your backbone."

He paused, his tone becoming serious.

"Running Man Season 2 has started airing now, and your popularity is soaring. There are already crazy fans camping out near your place."

"The neighborhood where you live with Xiaotian, Ziyi, and Churan has average security and a complex flow of people."

"If you continue to live here, not only will your safety and life be increasingly disturbed."

"It might also affect the few of them."

Bai Lu pursed her lips.

She wasn't unaware of what Shen Mo was saying.

Lately, the unease of being watched when she goes home, and the unfamiliar faces with cameras she sees at the door when she leaves, all make her feel uneasy.

"This house."

Shen Mo pointed to the certificate in her hand.

"It's not that I'm denying your abilities, but rather that I'm giving you the assurance you need most at this stage."

"After all, I also hope you can live in a safer, more private place."

"Besides, this is a birthday gift from me to you; it's a token of my affection."

"If you don't accept it, I won't feel at ease or happy."

Bai Lu listened to the playful tone of his last sentence and looked into his deep eyes, then suddenly burst out laughing.

She looked down at the red notebook in her hand, her lips pursed slightly, and her nose suddenly felt a little sore.

She looked up with red eyes and muttered softly.

"Then, can I borrow it from you?"

"I'll pay you back when I make a lot of money..."

Seeing her conflicted yet adorable expression, Shen Mo couldn't help but grin.

"OK."

He gave her a way out.

"From now on, I'll be your creditor!"

Bai Lu looked at him and wrinkled her nose.

He then looked at the property certificate again, and finally seemed to have made up his mind. He hugged the certificate to his chest and nodded vigorously.

"Um!"

"Well... thank you, Brother Mo! I really like this gift!"

As she spoke, her eyes involuntarily reddened.

She knew that the so-called creditor was just Shen Mo's excuse, since only her name was on the little book.

Perhaps he'll forget about the creditor in a few days.

But I mustn't forget that.

Shen Mo then truly smiled and reached out across the table to ruffle her hair.

"Silly girl, happy birthday. The new house is waiting for you to slowly decorate it."

……

In the high-rise apartment in Wangjing, the air still carries the faint scent of new furniture and fragrance.

The house is quite spacious with a bright and airy layout. It features a modern and minimalist style of decoration, and huge floor-to-ceiling windows offer views of the bustling city skyline at night.

Bai Lu spent a month adding many small items to her new home.

Soft blankets, green plants, a photo wall, and a bunch of cute dolls filled this new home with her personal touch.

The doorbell rang.

Bai Lu practically skipped over to open the door, because she had only invited one person to her housewarming party today.

Shen Mo was standing outside the door, carrying a supermarket shopping bag. Bai Lu immediately noticed the vegetables and steak inside.

Bai Lu smiled brightly, stepped aside to let him in, bent down to get a pair of slippers, and helped Shen Mo change into them. They were a matching pair with the ones she was wearing.

After putting down the bag, she started showing it off to Shen Mo like she was presenting a treasure.

"Look, I bought that super soft sofa!"

"I'm planning to grow some flowers on the balcony..."

"The bedroom is here. I just changed the curtains; they block out the light very well!"

"And also, I'm planning to buy a bunch of pink things for this study; I'll be reading scripts here from now on..."

Like a little princess who had her own castle for the first time, she excitedly dragged Shen Mo to visit every corner.

Shen Mo's gaze followed her pointing, a smile always playing on his lips.

"The decor is quite nice; it feels a bit like home."

"Of course!"

Bai Lu proudly raised her chin, then looked a little embarrassed.

"Well... there's still some space left, so we'll have to add more later."

"By the way, what are we going to eat later?"

"Did Chef Bai prepare this carefully?"

Upon hearing this, Bai Lu's eyes lit up, her lips curled into a proud smile, and she straightened her back.

She walked briskly towards the kitchen, her ponytail swaying behind her head.

"I bought ingredients for four dishes, Mo-ge, just look forward to it!"

Shen Mo smiled and shook his head, walked to the center of the living room, picked up the shopping bag he had casually placed on the floor, and followed her into the kitchen.

"Oh? Really? Which four dishes?"

He placed the bag on the table and asked with great interest.

"A fried rice, a tomato beef soup, a cola chicken wing, and a..."

When she counted to the fourth number, she suddenly stopped, paused, looked up at the ceiling with a blank stare, and unconsciously scratched her cheek with her fingers.

"Huh? What was the other one again?"

A few seconds later, she came to her senses and met Shen Mo's smiling eyes. She immediately felt embarrassed and raised her hand to cover most of her face.

"Sigh~ What was I planning to do again?"

Shen Mo took out the ingredients he had brought one by one and put them away. He turned around, leaned against the island counter, crossed his arms, and looked at her leisurely.

Are you sure you can do it?

"certainly!"

Bai Lu suddenly lowered her hand, clapped her hands, and almost jumped up.

"And there's also an egg and cucumber!"

"Of course I can do it! Don't underestimate me."

She straightened her chest, put her hands on her hips, stood in front of Shen Mo, tilted her head slightly, pouted her lips, and wrinkled her nose, trying her best to look imposing.

"I watched the tutorials online many times."

"Doesn't that mean you don't know how to do it?"

Shen Mo's smile deepened, and his teasing tone was undisguised.

Bai Lu's face flushed bright red, even the tips of her ears turned crimson.

She let out a shy and annoyed "Ah!" and threw herself into Shen Mo's arms without a care, pressing her forehead against his chest and pounding him with her two small fists.

"Brother Mo! Can't you keep your hopes up a little?!"

After tapping it a few times, she suddenly turned around, her ponytail drawing a neat arc behind her head, the ends of her hair gently brushing against Shen Mo's chin, leaving a faint fragrance.

"Hmph! Even if it tastes awful, I'll still eat it all."

She took two steps, then turned back angrily to glare at him, her eyes wide and round.

"I've cooked before, and I'm actually pretty good at it!"

As if to prove herself, her tone became urgent.

"I even took notes beforehand. Brother Mo, wait a moment, I'll go get the notebook."

After saying that, she ran out without waiting for Shen Mo's response.

This energetic and lively manner made Shen Mo burst out laughing.

Watching her hurried figure disappear into the distance, Shen Mo finally couldn't help but chuckle softly.

He knew Bai Lu too well; he was fully aware of her cooking skills and had no expectation of actually getting anything delicious.

So before I came, I thought about cooking these ingredients myself, since I couldn't really have to order takeout for the first meal at my new home.

Bai Lu rushed back to the kitchen and immediately saw that Shen Mo had already tied on his apron and was facing away from her, intently rinsing the tomatoes.

Her heart softened suddenly, and a soft moan escaped her throat involuntarily.

She took a few steps forward, wrapped her arms around Shen Mo's waist from behind, pressed her cheek tightly against his back, and rubbed against him forcefully.

"Brother Mo, you're so good to me!" The voice was muffled, but full of dependence.

Shen Mo paused, a smile curving his lips, but he didn't turn around, only slightly turning his face to speak.

"Praising me won't help; I'm going to give you a very serious critique of your cooking later."

"snort--"

She buried her face deeper, rubbed it against herself a few more times, and made a dissatisfied humming sound.

After a while, he let go and walked to the other side of the island platform.

Fortunately, the kitchen is big enough that two people can work inside comfortably.

As soon as Shen Mo turned around, his gaze was immediately drawn to the scene on the wall in front of her.

On the smooth tile, four A4 sheets of paper were pasted side by side.

Each sheet of paper was covered with dense writing, and key points were highlighted with different colored pens.

Shen Mo couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"So this is your notebook! And... it's stuck on the wall?"

Bai Lu suddenly turned her head sixty degrees, her eyes narrowed into two dangerous slits, and she glared at him fiercely.

Then she turned back abruptly, leaving him with only a puffed-up back of her head and reddened ears, muttering to herself.

"Hmph, no matter how bad it tastes, Brother Mo, you have to eat it all, not a single bite!"

Shen Mo laughed even louder.

"How about our Chef Bai takes a break and makes one or two fewer dishes?"

"Give me a chance to prove myself?"

Bai Lu snorted heavily, ignored him, stood on tiptoe to open the cabinet above her head, fumbled for another light yellow apron, shook it out, and put it around her neck.

"That's outrageous!"

Shen Mo's voice, tinged with laughter, rang out just in time.

"what?"

Bai Lu was taken aback. Looking down, she realized that she had indeed mixed up the front and back of the apron.

The blush that had just faded from her face returned, and she hurriedly took it off and put it back on.

After dressing, she immediately lowered her head, pretending to be very serious about studying the ingredients in front of her. However, the occasional glances she secretly made towards Shen Mo betrayed her embarrassment and unease.

"I think you should marinate the chicken wings and beef first?"

Shen Mo watched as she opened her bag of ingredients and rummaged through it for a long time, looking completely lost and confused. His smile deepened.

"Oh, oh, oh."

Bai Lu's eyes lit up instantly, and she nodded repeatedly as if she had just realized something. She quickly found the chicken wings and beef and took them to the sink to rinse them.

But soon, new problems arose.

"Ah! Brother Mo, why did you buy me frozen chicken wings?"

She held the hard, stiff chicken wing, her face contorted in a grimace.

"Just thaw it with some hot water."

Shen Mo patiently answered questions while slicing ginger.

"Why is the corn on the cob whole? I want the kernels! Do I have to peel it?"

She held up a bright yellow ear of corn, her voice breaking slightly.

"It's okay, you can cut the corn on the cob into sections and add it to tomato beef soup."

Shen Mo didn't even look up, his rhythm of slicing ginger remained unchanged.

"Does the beef need to be blanched, Brother Mo?"

She looked at the red and white striped beef and asked uncertainly.

"Yes, put it in cold water, add cooking wine and ginger slices, and boil to remove the scum."

After listening to Shen Mo's detailed explanation, Bai Lu's shoulders slumped.

"Ugh...this is so troublesome!"

She suddenly raised her head, squinted, grinned at Shen Mo, and gave a bitter laugh that was full of helplessness and resignation.

"What should I do, Brother Mo? I don't want to do it anymore."

Seeing her adorably dejected appearance, Shen Mo smiled indulgently.

He put down the knife, washed his hands, dried them, and calmly walked behind Bai Lu.

He reached out, gently wrapped his arm around her body, and took her hand in his. He was holding the knife and the hand pressing the beef.

"Watch," his voice rang in her ear.

"The beef should be cut against the grain so it won't be dry. Like this..."

Bai Lu trembled slightly, and the chaotic anxiety and hesitation in her heart vanished in an instant.

His chest pressed against her back, his warm body temperature and steady breathing enveloping her.

She lowered her eyelashes, feeling the warmth and strength of his palm on the back of her hand, and felt an immense sense of security.