Being a "Golden Finger" for my Movie Queen Love-Rival (GL) - Chapter 7

Not long after everyone was seated, the awards ceremony officially began.

When it came time for the night’s heavyweight awards, the first was the Golden Instrument for Best Actress. The guest presenter smiled and announced: “Let us congratulate—”

“Ming Xu!”

In the darkened venue, a single beam of light centered on Ming Xu. She curved her lips into a timely smile, stood up, and bowed to all sides. The light followed her footsteps as she moved from the dark seating area onto the star-studded stage.

She had a tall, elegant figure, and in this moment of intense public focus, she appeared even more noble and indifferent. Like everyone else present, Song Jianzhi did not hide the amazement and admiration in her eyes.

Her heart beat a little faster.

The bullet comments were now dominated by Ming Xu’s fans, the “Cotton Fluffs.” The excitement reached its peak as Ming Xu accepted the trophy from the presenter’s hands.

“Ming Xu, aaaaaahhh!!”

“Congratulations to Ming Xu for winning the Golden Instrument for Best Actress! Entirely well-deserved!”

“Screaming with the Cotton Fluff army! No one can tear us away from Ming Xu!!”

The guest handed the stage over to Ming Xu. She adjusted the microphone; because of her height, she leaned down slightly to get closer, her voice as clear and cold as ever:

“Thank you, everyone. This honor belongs to me, but it also belongs to every member of the Like a Dream crew. From now on, as an actor, I will continue to present excellent film and television works to you all.”

It was an incredibly brief and concise speech. There was no looking back at her past journey, no emotional appeals. The guests below were stunned—that’s it?

Song Jianzhi had a prime seat and could see the person on stage clearly. She saw the hand steadily holding the trophy, the opening and closing of Ming Xu’s red lips, and she saw Ming Xu stand up straight, wordlessly declaring her speech was over.

Song Jianzhi stared unblinkingly at the glowing Ming Xu and was the first to start clapping.

As the applause grew louder in the hall, Song Jianzhi was filled with pride, shouting to the system in her head: “Did you see that! My client is super amazing!”

A mood-killing voice drifted from beside her: “Song Jianzhi, did you see clearly?”

Song Jianzhi: “?”

Wei Xiao leaned closer, his voice full of disdain. “Ming Xu is so outstanding; there is no way I could ever fall for a woman who is all chest and no brains like you.”

Is this idiot having another episode?

Song Jianzhi tilted her head to look at him, her smile not reaching her eyes. “I saw clearly. Ming Xu is so outstanding that she must have had eight lifetimes of bad luck to be noticed by someone like you.”

Wei Xiao’s face darkened. Mindful of the cameras and the surrounding entrepreneurs, he suppressed his temper and didn’t explode, but a storm brewed in his eyes. “Woman, you have provoked me.”

Song Jianzhi suppressed the urge to roll her eyes on the spot. “I actually want to hit you.”

Wei Xiao stared at her fixedly, then suddenly smiled. “I understand now.”

Song Jianzhi: What do you ‘understand’ now?

She was too lazy to deal with this “love-brain” Wei Xiao. Having accidentally looked at the idiot for too long, she needed to quickly look at Sister Ming Xu to wash her eyes.

Song Jianzhi turned her head. Ming Xu was also looking at her.

In front of hundreds of guests, while the live-stream camera was pointed at her, under the lights that spilled across the stage like liquid silver—her eyes were fixed on Song Jianzhi.

She didn’t hide it.

The third time.

Song Jianzhi heard a voice in her heart whisper softly.

The host clapped and took back the stage. Ming Xu smiled at the camera once more and walked down, holding her crystalline trophy.

The subsequent segments passed quickly. After the gala, Song Jianzhi rose to leave and saw Ming Xu being ushered out, surrounded by her crew members.

Chen Yuanning circled around several celebrities who were taking photos and walked toward her. “Cousin, are you heading back?”

Song Jianzhi nodded. “The driver is waiting outside.”

“There’s a celebration banquet later. You aren’t participating, Cousin?”

Song Jianzhi hesitated. Thanks to Wei Xiao, her impression of banquets in this world was really poor. Thinking about how Ming Xu would inevitably be there, the time, place, and people felt like a strong case of deja vu from that night.

“I’m not going.” Song Jianzhi couldn’t get over the mental hurdle. “However, if anything happens with Ming Xu, keep an eye out for her for me.”

“Huh?” Chen Yuanning rubbed his head, not understanding the reasoning behind this request. But Song Jianzhi left immediately without explaining, leaving him puzzled even after he moved to the banquet hall with Peng Zhou.

The banquet hall was filled with harmony. Tonight was destined to have winners and losers, but no one was stupid enough to show it, creating a scene of universal joy.

With her outstanding looks and new “Best Actress” title, Ming Xu was undoubtedly the focus of the night; the circle of people around her never broke.

Wei Xiao’s date for the night was He Xilan. She was incredibly attentive, using an excuse to leave for a while to give Wei Xiao a chance to mingle with “other flowers” before returning to the hall.

When He Xilan returned, a “little vixen” was already flirting with Wei Xiao. Seeing He Xilan stand by his side, the girl said sweetly, “Did Sister Xilan go to congratulate Sister Ming Xu on her award?”

He Xilan smiled gently. “No, Ming Xu is talking with the directors; it wouldn’t be right to disturb her.”

The starlet twisted her waist and said, “I went as soon as I arrived. Sister Ming Xu even said my eyes look very much like hers.”

He Xilan looked at the girl’s eyes. She was wearing a pair of light-brown, “bling-bling” colored contacts. That’s what makes them similar? Not to mention the heavy smoky makeup used to make her small eyes look larger.

And would Ming Xu ever say something like that? Only an idiot would believe it.

Coincidentally, Wei Xiao was a living idiot. He stared at the starlet for a long time and said, “They really are quite similar.”

The starlet beamed, knowing she had made an impression, and left satisfied after throwing a flirtatious wink.

Wei Xiao’s “hunting harvest” increased by one, but he didn’t look particularly happy. He sipped his wine and glanced at the figure in the distance.

He Xilan smiled slightly and said to Wei Xiao—the “God of Wealth” incarnate: “Young Master Wei, since you like Ming Xu the most, why don’t you give her a push? If she had your help, Ming Xu might have already won Movie Queen status by now.”

Wei Xiao turned to look at her, seemingly trying to see through her thoughts. After a long moment, he said, “Ming Xu is very career-oriented; she wants to rely on herself for everything.”

“But Young Master Wei keeps promoting others and doesn’t give resources to Ming Xu. Ming Xu sees this… she might question your sincerity.”

Wei Xiao lifted her chin and asked in a deep voice, “You’ve mentioned Ming Xu several times now. What are you trying to do?”

He Xilan’s eyes flickered, and she gave a bitter smile. “What could I be thinking? My whole heart is on you; I just want you to be happy.”

“As for my selfish motives… I have them. Perhaps—and I say perhaps—after you get her, you won’t like her as much anymore…” He Xilan drew on her acting skills, summoning a few tears. “And then you might look at the person beside you more.”

Wei Xiao stared into the woman’s tearful eyes. He let her go, half-convinced, and tilted his jaw. “Ming Xu is different from people like you.”

He Xilan lowered her head, feigning sorrow.

“But what you said makes sense,” Wei Xiao said calmly. “The freedom I gave her went too far; instead, it made her stop taking me seriously.”

He Xilan looked up. “Young Master Wei…”

But Wei Xiao didn’t look at her. He cast his gaze toward Ming Xu, who was speaking with Director Bei.

“It’s time she realized that the person who treats her best is me.”

After the celebration banquet, Li Man drove while Ming Xu and Pei Zishu sat in the back. Ming Xu leaned against the car window, propping up her head, as she slowly drank the sobering soup Pei Zishu had the hotel prepare.

“Drive slower; let Ming Xu rest a bit,” Pei Zishu instructed Li Man.

Li Man, usually easygoing, let out a rare complaint: “I’ve never seen someone have to rush to a gig in the early hours right after an awards gala. Sister Ming Xu is the Best Actress now; the company should treasure her a bit more.”

“I asked President Sun to postpone it, but he refused. The schedule is too tight. You can sleep a bit on the plane; you’ll have to get up at 6:30 for styling,” Pei Zishu said softly to Ming Xu.

Ming Xu nodded. In private, the exhaustion between her brows was hard to hide. Her eyes were clouded with weariness. She took another sip of the soup, set it down, and said in a cool voice, “I’m going to rest. Wake me when we get to the airport.”

The car fell silent. Outside, the festive lights were like stars, thrown behind by the speeding vehicle like streaks of light. Before closing her eyes, Ming Xu looked out the window and thought of Song Jianzhi’s beautiful dress.