Chapter 14: Doesn't She Still Need To Save Face?
Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=5821232
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com
"Sister, do you think my acting skills have any hope of surpassing Lin Qingyi's?" Qin Shiyue asked in a very soft voice. When she said this, she herself felt unsure.
Qin Shilan thought her sister was talking about something as unrealistic as a fairy tale, but she would never dampen her sister's spirits. She knew her sister came to her seeking encouragement, not to face reality.
"No matter how bad it is, it cannot be worse than this. So give it a try. Sister will support you," Qin Shilan gently encouraged as always.
"Exactly, it cannot be worse than now. Even a lottery ticket has a chance of winning. Can my desire to turn things around really be harder than hitting the jackpot?" Hearing her sister's words, Qin Shiyue felt greatly inspired.
Qin Shilan thought to herself that Shiyue had always been quite lucky. It might even be possible that her chances of winning the lottery were higher than her chances of surpassing Lin Qingyi.
"Of course, I believe baby can definitely do it," Qin Shilan said, willing to say anything to cheer up her sister.
"Sister, I am already 28 years old. Stop calling me baby," Qin Shiyue corrected her. As a 28-year-old who considered herself a mature woman, Qin Shiyue did not want to be treated like her sister's little baby.
"Alright, I will not call you baby, I will call you Shiyue," Qin Shilan said, treating her sister like a living Bodhisattva, fulfilling every request without hesitation.
"Sister, let me tell you how fake Lin Qingyi is. Sister Fang and I tried to find an ugly photo of her, but we could not find a single one..." Qin Shiyue could not help but complain to her sister about Lin Qingyi.
Qin Shilan thought to herself that avoiding ugly photos was something she could manage too. She believed no one had ever taken an unflattering picture of her either. However, she knew her sister did not care about her opinion. Shiyue simply wanted to vent, so Shilan decided to just go along with her words.
However, the more Qin Shilan listened, the more she felt something was off. It was not unusual for Shiyue to complain about Lin Qingyi once or twice, but the frequency of Lin Qingyi’s name appearing was simply too high. Kong Huizhi seemed to have been completely forgotten by her sister, not even mentioned once. This meant that Shiyue's attention was no longer on Kong Huizhi; it had entirely shifted to Lin Qingyi. For Qin Shilan, this was truly good news. As long as Shiyue liked someone other than Kong Huizhi, she could like whoever she wanted.
"Is Lin Qingyi very beautiful?" Qin Shilan asked tentatively. Her sister was in the entertainment industry, and with Lin Qingyi's fame, it was impossible for her not to know what Lin Qingyi looked like. What she was curious about was whether Lin Qingyi's appearance matched her sister's aesthetic preferences.
Qin Shiyue, who had been studying Lin Qingyi for two or three days straight, was no stranger to Lin Qingyi's appearance. In her mind, Lin Qingyi's face, which could be pure yet alluring, cold yet serene, immediately surfaced. She truly could not bring herself to deny Lin Qingyi's looks. To be honest, Lin Qingyi was quite beautiful.
"She’s alright," Qin Shiyue said, deliberately sounding reluctant.
"And compared to Kong Huizhi?" Qin Shilan pressed further.
"How could they be compared? They look completely different." Qin Shiyue blurted out without even thinking. When it came to Lin Qingyi and Kong Huizhi, she could not really say who was more attractive. They were just different types.
Under normal circumstances, most people would unconsciously add a filter of admiration to the person they liked. For example, she herself felt that Kong Huizhi was more attractive than Lin Qingyi, and she admits that this is due to the "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" effect.
But Shiyue's answer was tantamount to admitting that Lin Qingyi's appearance was comparable to Kong Huizhi's. There are two possibilities behind this problem. One is that Shiyue did not put too many filters on Kong Huizhi, which means that Shiyue may not have liked Kong Huizhi as much as she knew. Another possibility is that Shiyue has already added a filter to Kong Huizhi, but Lin Qingyi's appearance is truly more in line with Shiyue's aesthetics.
Either conclusion was something Qin Shilan was happy to see.
"Is Lin Qingyi’s acting very good?" Qin Shilan asked again.
"Mm, it is ridiculously good. There is not a single performance where her acting falters. I even feel like running to ask her how she does it..." After watching several of Lin Qingyi’s films over the past two days, Qin Shiyue had to admit that Lin Qingyi was truly a natural-born actor.
"Then just go ask her," Qin Shilan said, going along with the flow.
"I will never learn from or consult a love rival, and she would definitely mock me." Qin Shiyue rejected the idea outright. To humbly seek advice from a love rival? Doesn't she still need to save face? Even if one day she had to set aside her pride to improve her acting skills, Lin Qingyi would never be the person she asked. She still felt annoyed recalling Lin Qingyi’s mockery and humiliation from the other day.
"Isn’t there a saying? 'Use the enemy’s spear to attack their shield.' Using the acting skills learned from her to defeat her should bring an unexpectedly satisfying feeling," Qin Shilan said, noticing that when Shiyue talked about Lin Qingyi, she seemed to be in a heightened state of excitement. This kind of excitement was something Qin Shilan had seen before. When Shiyue first started mentioning Kong Huizhi, she had it too. However, after too many setbacks with Kong Huizhi, that excitement was replaced with dejection whenever Shiyue brought her up again.
Qin Shilan thought that perhaps Shiyue initially truly liked Kong Huizhi, but over time, that affection had transformed into an obsession born of frustration and unwillingness, maybe even just a habit. It might no longer be the same as the original feeling of liking.
The idea of defeating Lin Qingyi with acting skills learned from her did give Shiyue a sense of satisfaction. However, she quickly dismissed it. She would never present herself in front of Lin Qingyi only to be humiliated. Just the thought of it was unbearable for her.
"No. I will not learn from her. Lin Qingyi is not the only Best Actress in the industry," Qin Shiyue said coldly.
"Qiu Ming, check Lin Qingyi’s background for me," Qin Shilan said after Shiyue left. Online, Lin Qingyi seemed too clean. Few actresses in the industry were clean. Shiyue’s image was protected, but Lin Qingyi started higher and stayed spotless. Qin Shilan doubted this was possible without strong support.
She guessed two things: Lin Qingyi either had a powerful sponsor or a strong background herself.
Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=5821232
This translation was originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com
Qin Shilan carefully looked at Lin Qingyi's photo. This woman had an air of arrogance. Shiyue's ridicule was spot on—she indeed looked like both a white lotus and a narcissus. It was rare for her baby Qin'er to judge someone accurately. This was not a simple woman, and it was evident she was not someone Baby Qin'er could handle.
But speaking of it, was there any woman Baby Qin'er could handle? Qin Shilan thought for a moment and decided to let it go. Such a challenging task was too difficult for Baby Qin'er.
Qin Shilan was not sure if her earlier actions of adding fuel to the fire were the right choice. She hoped her judgment was correct; otherwise, she would have set up her own little sister for trouble.
However, looking at the photo of Lin Qingyi intimately hugging Shiyue, along with the intrigued look in Lin Qingyi's eyes when she gazed at Shiyue, her intuition told her that Lin Qingyi probably had a certain level of interest in Shiyue.
But no matter what, being able to divert Shiyue's attention away from Kong Huizhi at this moment did not seem like a bad thing. Qin Shilan admitted that she had a strong personal motive in this matter.
After being appeased by her sister, Qin Shiyue was re-energized and returned home full of fighting spirit. At home, she earnestly studied her script, occasionally jotting down small notes, appearing completely focused on her work.
Next week, she would be joining the production crew to start filming. Qin Shiyue envisioned scenes of herself impressing everyone and making them see her in a new light.
Author's Note:
By filming, they would be able to meet the higher-ups.
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