Is This How the Entertainment Industry Works? (GL) - Chapter 1

High Noon.

The sun was scorching, hot enough to make a person feel like they were melting.

Yan Zhen held a palm-leaf fan to shield herself from the sun as she pedaled a small three-wheeled cart to deliver food.

This particular order was placed by a certain film crew. The set was in a remote location, and the road leading there was rugged and bumpy. Yan Zhen had rushed all the way, and she was now covered in sweat.

With her back soaked through and her appearance completely out of step with the image of a filming base, the security guard interrogated her for an hour before finally letting her inside.

The paths inside were narrow, and her little tricycle couldn’t fit. She hopped off to walk, but she had only taken two steps when she felt someone pounce toward her.

Yan Zhen hurriedly dodged.

The person missed but wasn’t discouraged; instead, they lunged forward and grabbed Yan Zhen’s sleeve.

Yan Zhen’s first instinct was to shake them off. Unexpectedly, the person suddenly burst into tears, wailing loudly, “Where is my child? Where is my child?!”

Yan Zhen was stunned for a moment, staring at the person.

Tears were streaming down the woman’s face. Seeing Yan Zhen looking at her, she wiped her eyes and quickly pulled a photograph from her pocket. The photo showed the innocent smile of a little girl.

Yan Zhen leaned in to take a look and asked, “Is this your daughter?”

The woman nodded, then suddenly fell to her knees. She grabbed Yan Zhen’s legs and cried out, “Master, please save my child! I beg of you!”

Yan Zhen froze.

She did indeed understand metaphysics—in fact, she was an expert. She had once been one of the State Preceptors of the Great Feng Empire. After falling in battle during a period of war, her body had been rolled in a straw mat and tossed into the woods. Her soul had wandered until it possessed a body in this era a year ago.

However, she had always kept a low profile. She never expected someone to recognize her ability to calculate positions and fortunes.

Yan Zhen scrutinized the woman’s facial features and asked, “What happened to your daughter?”

The woman choked back sobs. “Master, have you forgotten…? She… she was kidnapped. The police searched for a long time but couldn’t find her…” She looked at Yan Zhen, crying out heart-wrenchingly, “I only ask the Master to perform a divination for me, to help me see where my child is! As long as you help me find her, I’ll give you my life if that’s what it takes.”

Yan Zhen lowered her gaze, thought for a moment, and said, “Rest assured, your daughter has a destiny of wealth and health. Her life should be smooth sailing; logically speaking, she shouldn’t have encountered a kidnapping.”

The woman was stunned.

Yan Zhen continued, “Furthermore, this person shouldn’t be your biological daughter. You carry a heavy ‘evil qi’ that only began to stabilize after you turned thirty. You will raise a son with someone, and that son will be mischievous and naughty…” she paused, “In short, you are not destined to give birth to a daughter.”

Then who was the little girl in the photo?

Yan Zhen wanted to take a closer look, but the woman pulled at her.

The woman asked, “I can really have a son?”

Yan Zhen sat down on the ground with her and signaled for the woman to hold out her hand.

After observing her palm, Yan Zhen told her, “You come from a good family background but you are easily swayed, often believing the words of petty people. In school, you bullied your classmates and did many things that damaged your hidden merit. This situation improved in university, but by then, the bad luck had accumulated, leading to a rocky career after graduation and an inability to conceive.”

The woman gasped, “Who told you that?!”

“It’s written all over your face,” Yan Zhen replied. “Whether looking at your palms or your face, the connection between you and that little girl is far too thin. It’s difficult to calculate where she is—how about you try a ‘word divination’ instead?”

The woman gripped a pen, hesitated for a long time, and then wrote the word “Fate” (命).

After looking at it, Yan Zhen concluded firmly, “This is not your biological daughter. I’m afraid she was swapped at birth. You should go get a DNA test when you have the time.”

Suddenly, a burst of laughter came from behind a nearby blue curtain.

“Of course she’s not her biological daughter! Anyone can see these two aren’t related. Who recruited this person? These rural extras are too funny.”

As the voice fell, a man carrying a camera walked out from behind the curtain.

The woman who had been kneeling and crying walked over, calling out excitedly, “Director Wang!”

Director Wang tossed the camera onto the ground and asked Yan Zhen, “A fresh face? Are you new?”

Yan Zhen shook her head. “I’m a delivery driver.”

Director Wang’s eyes widened. “Delivery? What is a delivery driver doing in here causing a mess? Where’s security? Don’t let delivery drivers in from now on!”

Yan Zhen blinked and lifted the bag in her hand. “Aren’t you all going to eat?”

Director Wang snatched the bag. “None of your business!”

He was actually quite happy to see the large boxes of food. Staying in this mosquito-infested, broken place, he hadn’t seen meat for several days. He glanced casually at the name on the receipt. He vaguely saw the character “Zhao” (赵).

Director Wang froze, rubbed his eyes, and looked closer. Seeing the full name of the customer, he was instantly terrified.

“This wasn’t ordered by our crew! You’re at the wrong place! This belongs to the shed next door. Hurry up and take it over before it gets cold.”

He waved his hand and called to the woman from before, “Lu Ming, get ready. We start filming in half an hour.”

Lu Ming stuffed the photo of the little girl into her pocket and said, “Got it.”

Director Wang pulled the curtain aside and went in; a cloud of white smoke and cold air drifted out from the room.

Yan Zhen shielded her eyes from the sun and started walking toward the next shed.

Taking advantage of the thirty-minute break, Lu Ming followed beside Yan Zhen, prying for information. “Are you really a delivery driver?”

Yan Zhen nodded.

Lu Ming asked, “How did you know about my past?”

Yan Zhen replied, “I saw it in your face.”

“And that the girl in the photo isn’t my daughter, you saw that too?” Lu Ming was genuinely curious.

She was only an 18th-tier actress. Though she had entered the industry early, after all these years, she was still just playing bit parts. This time, she had lucked out and secured a supporting role. To make a name for herself, she studied the script day and night, often practicing scenes with the extras near the set.

The “scene” today had been an accident. When Yan Zhen ran in front of her, Lu Ming happened to have the photo out. Caught up in the moment, she jumped straight into acting out a climax scene—the moment the protagonist’s mother loses her daughter and falls into despair.

Lu Ming didn’t know how well she had acted, but while playing against this girl, everything felt incredibly real. No one would believe it, but she had been drawn into the performance by this delivery girl.

Lu Ming was lost in thought, even ready to accept an explanation like “I’m actually a top student from the Beijing Film Academy,” but instead, Yan Zhen said:

“Yeah. Your fates don’t match, and your looks are even further apart.”

Lu Ming was silent for a moment, then laughed loudly. “You’re just talking nonsense. You must be a die-hard fan of mine.”

Yan Zhen asked, “What is a ‘die-hard fan’?”

“A loyal fan! You’re a country girl, how do you not know this?” Lu Ming replied. “Because you’re my fan, you know my history so well. Yes, that must be it.”

Yan Zhen glanced at her. “If thinking that makes you happy, then let’s pretend that’s the case.”

Lu Ming huffed, “What do you mean ‘pretend’? It’s the 21st century; there’s no future for charlatans.”

The two reached a crossroads. Yan Zhen didn’t know the way. She looked at the food in her hand and asked Lu Ming, “Do you know where Zhao Baoshang is?”

“Aren’t you a ‘Master’? Why don’t you calculate it yourself—” Lu Ming suddenly cut herself off. “Wait, who did you say?”

Yan Zhen gave Lu Ming a look of mild annoyance and repeated, “Ms. Zhao Baoshang.”

“She ordered delivery?!” Lu Ming clearly didn’t believe it.

Yan Zhen confirmed the name on the slip. “It has her name on it.”

It took Lu Ming a long time to process this information. Finally, she pointed to the southwest. “Go all the way to the end.”

“Thanks,” Yan Zhen said. She took two steps, then stopped.

“What now? Hurry up and deliver it,” Lu Ming urged from behind.

Yan Zhen turned back and said to Lu Ming, “If you have a scene involving jumping off a cliff today, remember to check if the equipment is working properly.”

Lu Ming laughed. “And you still say you aren’t my fan? You really care about me. Don’t worry, I don’t have any cliff-jumping scenes.”

Yan Zhen: “Heh.”

The two parted ways. Yan Zhen walked slowly to deliver the food.

Lu Ming returned to her set, preparing to film. Unexpectedly, Director Wang shouted at her from a distance: “Lu Ming, get ready. In a bit, we’re filming a shot of a suicide jump off a cliff.”

Lu Ming was dumbfounded. “A cliff jump?”

Director Wang walked over, his flip-flops slapping against the ground, and tossed her a costume. “Yeah, I borrowed a costume from the neighboring set; we can only use it today.”

Lu Ming instantly thought of Yan Zhen’s words, her mind racing. This was a last-minute addition. Aside from Director Wang, who had acted on a whim, no one knew they would be filming a cliff jump today.

How did that delivery girl know? Could it be that an accident really was going to happen?!

Damn, I’m not going to die, am I?

Lu Ming became extra cautious. When filming began, she was incredibly careful, testing the ground with every step to make sure she didn’t trip. Finally, as she was about to “jump” off the slope, she felt uneasy and demanded to check the wire harness the crew was using.

Director Wang was impatient. But since Lu Ming insisted, he had no choice but to check.

As it turned out, the check revealed a serious problem.

The set went awkwardly silent. No one dared to speak. They stared at the harness, which had several snapped strands. Some people turned pale; others were sweating with anxiety.

Lu Ming was the same, though her shock outweighed her fear. Right now, her mind was filled with nothing but disbelief:

That rustic delivery girl… could she be a real Master?