Chapter 197: Chapter 197

Chapter 197 – Best Actress Award (3)

“So…who will be crowned Movie Goddess this year?” asked the host excitedly.

With the exception of Lan Jinyao, every shortlisted actress held their breath and stared at the host, quietly waiting for him to announce the results. Her gaze was fixated ahead and slightly to the right, on Qingqing. However, soon after, she evidently smiled because she’d ascertained her suspicions.

Truth be told, which special guest would care that much about someone else’s affairs? It seemed that Qingqing was specifically concerned about the winner who’d be awarded the title ‘Movie Goddess’. Or, better said, even though she was a special guest, she looked much more concerned about the award compared to the actresses who had not been shortlisted. But, based on Chen Meimei’s personality, she wasn’t one to care about this kind of vain reputation.

Following this, Lan Jinyao extended her hand and removed the hand placed on Fu Bainian’s shoulder as she softly said, “Relax…no matter what, this prize won’t fall into your hands anyway.”

“Really? That may not necessarily be the case!”

Lan Jinyao smiled. “Are you sure about that? Don’t tell me that my eyes are deceiving me…you aren’t shortlisted, are you?”

At this moment, Qingqing shifted her gaze back to the stage and said no more. Seeing this, the corners of Lan Jinyao’s lips curled into a faint smile. She’d only said a few words, yet Qingqing was already feeling guilty? With such poor acting skills, how could she possibly be crowned Movie Goddess? She couldn’t disguise herself as Chen Meimei properly.

As of now, Lan Jinyao had basically ascertained that Qingqing was Shen Wei’an.

After being cornered, Shen Wei’an had concealed her true identity to craftily slip away, and then stage her comeback. However, Lan Jinyao felt quite confused as to how she’d managed to do it. There were surprisingly no traces of her former looks left. Had she undergone plastic surgery?

“Shen Wei’an!”

As soon as the host had announced that name, Lan Jinyao froze on the spot. Even Lan Xin, who was sitting beside her, was stupefied. “Shen Wei’an? Meimei, even if it’s not you, it should be me. How can it be Shen Wei’an?! Who in the world made that decision? What about public opinion?”

“Shen Wei’an…” Lan Jinyao doubtfully muttered this name under her breath before her gaze landed on Qingqing. Did this woman arrange this under the table? How could she possibly win an award with a mere commercial film?

But, not long after, she found out that this wasn’t the case. There was actually another possibility.

At this moment, Fu Bainian also turned around and stared at her with a surprised look in his eyes. Seeing his reaction, Lan Jinyao could only purse her lips at him to express her unhappiness towards the results.

“Tsk, it’s not like she was the one who won the award. Does Shen Wei’an winning the award have anything to do with her?!” Lan Xin sneered as she glared at Qingqing with disdain.

Lan Jinyao coldly humphed upon hearing this and thought: Of course it does! It mattered a lot to boot!

However, Qingqing’s happiness only lasted for three seconds. Because, right afterwards, someone walked up on stage and said something to the host, who in turn immediately corrected himself and said, “I’m really sorry, but there was unexpectedly a mix-up; the winner of the Best Actress Award isn’t Shen Wei’an but Chen Meimei!”

Lan Jinyao’s eyes widened at the mention of her name. To think that they’d actually made a mistake for such a distinguished award! Weren’t they too careless?

“Meimei, it’s you!” Lan Xin tugged at her arm excitedly and added, “Like I said, how could it be that woman?!”

Following this, Lan Jinyao glanced over at the row in front of her. Upon seeing Qingqing’s pale complexion, a smile blossomed on her face, and she replied in a particularly exaggerated tone, “Yeah, how could the winner possibly be that woman? After all, she only relies on her face to get work done; she doesn’t possess any genuine acting skills.”

Even while imitating Chen Meimei she couldn’t stay in character for long because, as soon as she lost control of her emotions, she’d instantly reveal her true colours. Based on these poor acting skills, how could she even dream of winning an award?

Surprisingly, this so-called ‘Qingqing’ was trying to play tricks on her and Fu Bainian. Now, she truly wondered how that woman was going to fool the astute Chen Meile and perceptive Old Chen with this level of acting. She was looking forward to ‘her performance’.

Soon after, Lan Jinyao slowly walked up on stage with a gracious smile on her face, her posture elegant and graceful.

Before this, Li Qi had prepared an acceptance speech for her; it was nothing more than standard statements. When Lan Jinyao’s gaze fell on the angry-looking Qingqing, her smile gradually brightened. In the end, the title ‘Movie Goddess’ still landed in her hands.

Back then, although Shen Wei’an had escaped punishment by law, Lan Jinyao had firmly believed that she’d come back one day because that woman’s evil roots ran too deep, and her heart was much too greedy. Now that Shen Wei’an had finally returned, this time, no matter what she was scheming, Lan Jinyao intended to be one step ahead of her.

Right after the Award Ceremony had ended, Li Qi and Lan Xin kept bugging Lan Jinyao to celebrate together. Meanwhile, Qingqing had also shamelessly walked over alongside Fu Bainian, and said, “Count me in! The more the merrier, right?!”

“Of course, but you can’t stand next to Fu Bainian, because this spot…” Lan Jinyao paused for a second as she walked over to Fu Bainian’s side and squeezed Qingqing away. “This spot belongs solely to me and not to…” someone who’s already died!

Lan Jinyao didn’t say the last few words out loud; she simply hooked her arm around Fu Bainian’s and pulled him along to the parking lot.

They went to a restaurant owned by the Chen family. As soon as Qingqing walked in, she told the manager that she wanted the most expensive private room. Her approach was very much like Chen Meimei’s, but her efforts were in vain as the manager only paid attention to Lan Jinyao.

Lan Jinyao then casually said, “Just follow her request! She knows this place better…” She purposefully lengthened the last part.

Since Qingqing was ignored, her complexion didn’t look very good. She imitated Chen Meimei’s manner of speech again and said, “How disappointing, are you blind or something?! The richest person here is me, not Chen Meimei!”

Upon hearing this, Lan Jinyao merely smiled and added, “That’s right, Qingqing’s our host, so you all must follow her wishes today. She’ll be the one paying the bill, so don’t offend this VIP! Hmmm, as for the food and drinks…just bring us the best of the best! In any case, Qingqing’s not short of money.”

Today’s meal was on Shen Wei’an, so no matter if she’d brought enough money or not, she wouldn’t be able to escape this time.

Qingqing snorted and then took the lead in walking inside. Meanwhile, Lan Jinyao followed behind her and, on the way, secretly observed Qingqing’s movements. It seems that she attentively did her homework. However, will she be able to fool the Chen family?

For some reason, Qingqing had insisted on following them today and then brought them to a restaurant owned by the Chen family. Lan Jinyao had a gut feeling that an influential person would make an appearance later. If she’d guessed correctly, then that person must be Chen Meile. She didn’t believe that Qingqing would be able to invite Old Chen all the way over here.

This evening was destined to be turbulent night as a war without fire had begun…