Chapter 7 Facing with Composure

“What’s going on? Everyone, calm down.”

No matter how much he cursed the two troublemakers in his heart, Jin Kai maintained a harmonious expression, standing at the doorway trying to mediate.

“May I come in?”

It was always somewhat awkward for a male director to enter a female artist’s dressing room. Only when the young makeup artist emerged from inside and nodded to Jin Kai did the group step in.

Qiao Na stood with hands on her hips, the crow’s feet at the corners of her eyes deepening, making her appear rather fierce.

In contrast, Bai Tian’er sat calmly in her chair, exuding an innate elegance.

Several broken bottles and containers lay scattered on the floor, white lotion oozing out, creating a messy scene.

“You’re not even shooting the same commercial. How did you end up clashing like this?”

Entering the room and seeing Qiao Na’s stern expression, Jin Kai finally realized the situation was more serious than he thought. His reproachful gaze fell on Bai Tian’er, clearly assuming the newcomer was at fault again.

Bai Tian’er stood up, nodding politely to Jin Kai and Wang Yuan before turning to Qiao Na and speaking softly.

“Senior, I don’t know how I’ve offended you. If there’s any oversight on my part, I can apologize.”

Her peacemaking attitude immediately softened the expressions of several staff members present, their angry glances toward Bai Tian’er diminishing considerably.

Qiao Na merely snorted coldly. “Senior? If you truly respected me as your senior, you wouldn’t be monopolizing the makeup artist.”

The makeup artist standing nearby shrank back behind Jin Kai, intimidated by Qiao Na’s aggressive demeanor, until the director gently pulled her forward.

“What happened?”

The quite young makeup artist nearly burst into tears at the director’s question. “I don’t know either. I was doing Bai Tian’er’s makeup when Sister Qiao stood nearby for a while, then suddenly smashed the cosmetics on the table.”

She secretly hoped she wouldn’t have to pay for the damaged items…

“Smashed them?” Jin Kai looked displeased as he turned to Qiao Na. “Xiao Qiao, why would you destroy someone’s cosmetics?”

Qiao Na sneered. “Look at her taking forever with her makeup, making me wait around. What, trying to put me in my place? First you tried to cut my lines during the audition, and now you’re getting even more ambitious. You newcomers, thinking you can rely on your pretty faces where do you think that leaves us seniors? Acting like divas before you’ve even made it!As she spoke, Qiao Na shot a venomous glare at Chu Mei, making it clear their relationship during recent shoots hadn’t been harmonious either.

After all, both were female stars following sexy image routes, coming from the same agency. While they superficially addressed each other as sisters, behind the scenes they fought fiercely over resources.

The others exchanged glances, finally understanding.

Qiao Na was simply holding a grudge from the previous incident and deliberately picking a fight today.

But compared to Qiao Na, Bai Tian’er was a newly debuted star in such situations, she could only endure the injustice.

This was the difference fame made. Talk of fairness seemed almost laughable.

The entertainment industry followed the jungle law of winner-takes-all and survival of the fittest exactly why Qiao Na dared to make such scenes freely.

“Bai Tian’er, I’ll try to arrange another makeup artist for you.”

Jin Kai sighed. Though he knew Bai Tian’er wasn’t at fault, this was the only possible resolution. Qiao Na raised her eyebrows triumphantly, eyes full of provocation.

How would an ordinary newcomer typically react in such situations?

Argue back? Make a scene? Or perhaps refuse to film altogether?
But if one is too cowardly, they will be looked down upon by others and easily bullied in future activities.

Faced with such a dilemma, how would this newcomer named Bai Tian’er handle it?

Chu Mei stood aside with an indifferent attitude but couldn’t help cheering for Qiao Na inwardly.

There were no ordinary people in this circle. While Qiao Na appeared arrogant and domineering, every step followed her script, pushing Bai Tian’er into a difficult position where neither submission nor resistance would leave a good impression. It seemed Bai Tian’er had truly offended Qiao Na last time, making this second-tier actress willing to lower herself to bully a newcomer.

Wang Yuan could have intervened to calm the situation, but he remained silent, wanting to see how Bai Tian’er would respond.

“Sister Qiao.” Bai Tian’er looked at Qiao Na, suddenly breaking into a smile like spring ripples disturbed by a breeze, with peach blossoms blooming unexpectedly. Every feature of her face was exquisite, easily capturing everyone’s attention. In comparison, Qiao Na appeared rather plain.

Hmph, no wonder Qiao Na targeted her with such looks. Chu Mei, who had always been confident in her own appearance, felt a twinge of jealousy seeing how Bai Tian’er could create such an effect with just a slight smile.

“We’re shooting commercials for the same company. There’s no need to waste time on arguments. As a junior, I’m willing to yield my time to you.” Bai Tian’er spoke calmly, neither anxious nor timid. “If my previous actions caused any misunderstanding, I’m willing to apologize. But regardless, we all want to finish shooting the commercial quickly. I hope Sister Qiao can understand.”

With that, she bowed slightly and walked out of the dressing room, leaving Qiao Na staring blankly at the shattered glass on the floor.

Brilliant, brilliant!

Bai Tian’er’s words were both defensive and offensive. Not only did she point out Qiao Na’s bullying as a senior, but she also made it clear that her concession wasn’t out of fear of Qiao Na’s status, but for the sake of the commercial shoot. This instead highlighted Qiao Na’s unreasonable behavior. While appearing to apologize, Bai Tian’er demonstrated her magnanimity and subtly pinned the blame for delaying the shoot on Qiao Na.

A newcomer?

Jin Kai narrowed his eyes. Had he misjudged this newcomer before?

In terms of verbal skills, Bai Tian’er was far superior to Qiao Na.

“Alright, now that we have the makeup artist, let’s hurry with the makeup. We still need to shoot.”

Jin Kai glanced at Qiao Na with hidden disgust before turning to leave. Although Qiao Na appeared to have won, she had lost people’s respect, making it a pyrrhic victory.

Watching the recently crowded dressing room empty out again, Chu Mei licked her lips and sat down, observing the fuming Qiao Na.

Interesting. It seemed this newcomer who debuted around the same time as her wasn’t as naive and foolish as she appeared. However, being an artist ultimately came down to acting skills. For an artist like Bai Tian’er who debuted after minimal training, her acting was probably still unpolished.

We’ll see her true abilities during the shoot.

Wang Yuan followed Bai Tian’er out, feeling puzzled.

Why did the same person exhibit such different temperaments before and after?

“Teacher Wang.”

Bai Tian’er looked at Wang Yuan, who snapped out of his contemplation and returned her gaze, the admiration in his eyes growing more intense.

“This time, your performance was decent. Director Jin probably won’t replace you anymore.” As he spoke, he withdrew his smile and straightened his expression. “But ultimately, it still depends on your acting skills. If the performance is poor, even if you barely pass, the final product won’t have much impact.”

“I’ll work hard.”

Bai Tian’er nodded. Seeing the girl’s humble and composed demeanor, Wang Yuan felt a sense of satisfaction. He mentally scanned through the list of crews filming near the studio today.

“Later, I’ll contact a makeup artist I’m on good terms with and have her come over to do your makeup. According to the schedule, filming starts in two hours. You should go find the production assistant first and grab something to eat.”

“No need. I brought some small bread earlier it’ll tide me over. There’s no need for the crew to make special arrangements just for me.”

Hearing Bai Tian’er’s response, Wang Yuan grew even more pleased. He made up his mind: if Bai Tian’er’s acting skills were passable this time, he would genuinely commit to promoting this artist.

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Zephyr Yizelle

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