003

Ceca really cried, very miserably. On one hand, she regretted misjudging and deceiving the wrong person, and on the other hand, she didn't expect Ben to be so heartless.

Jasmine just wanted to keep her supporting role. Originally, Ben could have resolved it with a few words, but he actually fired the assistant who sang angrily. This matter of reporting to the higher-ups, Ceca didn't even participate in it.

Who knew Ben would take the initiative to compensate Jasmine by giving her the role of the second female lead. Thinking about the possible ridicule and mockery she would face if this matter was exposed, how could Ceca bear it?

On impulse, she ran out. After running out, she realized she was just a student at the film academy, a newcomer in the industry. Ben not only came from a wealthy background but also held shares in Starlight Entertainment as a generous investor. While they were rumored to be having a scandal, the relationship was actually unequal; she had no right to show her face to Ben.

Ceca regretted her actions.

She shouldn't have impulsively run out.

She was afraid she had angered Ben, cutting off this shortcut in front of her. Quickly wiping away her tears, she took out a small mirror to touch up her makeup, grabbed a bottle of water, and waited for Ben to come out. As soon as he appeared, she went up to him.

While Ceca was tidying up herself, Jasmine watched Ben leave before changing out of her supporting role costume, removing the wig and makeup.

Today's scene couldn't continue filming, so the director announced a day off. He needed to revise a plan, as what Ceca had filmed couldn't be used. The upcoming scenes would likely involve filming the independent scenes of the male and female leads first, leaving time for Jasmine to study the script and lines before shooting the scenes related to the second female lead.

The director, who was said to have a relationship with Jasmine, personally sent her the script. The assistant director handed the script of the second female lead to Jasmine. Jasmine took it and found the middle-aged man with a beer belly still standing there.

"Do you have anything to instruct me?"

"..." The assistant director wiped his face and said helplessly, "Since you have a close relationship with the Ben's family, you should just let Ben directly assign you a role instead of coming to me! I will transfer the money to you via WeChat. Let's forget about what happened earlier. I was blind."

Jasmine was relatively familiar with the assistant director in the crew, mainly due to financial transactions between them. Jasmine was generous with money, and the assistant director would take care of her because of it.

As they were acquaintances, Jasmine said straightforwardly, "If I really had that kind of relationship, I wouldn't be looking for you. I'm just an ordinary person, as ordinary as can be."

These days, no one believes the truth.

The assistant director chuckled.

He thought to himself, would you dare to call Ben's elder directly if you didn't have a relationship with the Ben's family? When did Ben ever call someone 'grandma'? 

Just now, everyone in the crew saw the rich second-generation, who usually acted arrogantly, behave like a lapdog in front of Jasmine.

Jasmine also saw the huge 'keep lying' on the assistant director's face...

Forget it, forget it.

"You don't need to refund the money. It's my first time filming, and I still need you to take care of me in the future."

The assistant director nodded, "Don't worry, after the commotion today, you can walk sideways in our crew, and no one will dare to cause you trouble. In this circle, not being famous is the original sin, and having money and background is the way to go. They all see you as their benefactor."

...

This statement is not wrong at all. The director announced a break, and the crew members started packing up the set and equipment. The actors changed clothes and prepared to leave. The supporting actors left first, and the male and female leads came to Jasmine, asking her if she wanted to have a meal together.

"Joining the group for a few days and still not familiar, so let's get to know each other well today. It's better to get closer before taking photos later."

Jasmine followed them out of politeness, she was focused on eating, but it was tough for the male and female leads. The two didn't eat well throughout, they were observing and inquiring about Jasmine's background while trying to get closer, keeping themselves busy. 

Jasmine wasn't tight-lipped about her origins, they were indeed simple, not familiar with the Ben's family, although she knew the assistant director, it was just a casual acquaintance... When this situation was revealed, the male and female leads couldn't believe it, imagining them as the real-life versions of 'Mr. Ordinary Citizen Liu' and 'Ms. Ordinary Student Ben,' right? 

According to the observations of the two, the outfit Jasmine was wearing wasn't cheap, even the T-shirt could sell for 3000￥, who from an ordinary background would spend money to buy this? Just this bit of fabric, costing over 3000￥!

 Jasmine was unaware of the psychological activities of the two dining companions, if she knew, it would be '...' 

This outfit was the cheapest in her wardrobe. 

Due to long-term cooperation with a client who was a luxury goods magnate, whenever the new season started, they would contact her for the address at that time and send a bunch of miscellaneous things over. 

In the large flat where Jasmine lived permanently, there was a huge walk-in closet that seemed more extravagant than many female celebrities' homes. 

However, she still felt like an ordinary and unremarkable person. 

She was just fortunate to have received Heaven's favor when she lost her mother ten years ago. 

She didn't have an impressive background like Ben. 

Later, after leaving the scene, Jasmine went online with her tablet and saw on Facebook that #Ceca's drama crew bullying failed# was trending at number five, and number six was #The All-Round Girlfriend's new second female lead's beautiful photos#. 

Jasmine clicked on the latter and exclaimed, 'Oh my goodness, this is too "beautiful"!!! Q_Q

The photos posted were actually of her previous extra role appearance, with exaggerated makeup and attire that masked her true appearance, along with that comical expression... 

Jasmine couldn't bring herself to criticize the netizens who said her looks were blinding because, well, the picture were... (っ◞‸◟c)

She casually scrolled through the comments, seeing people saying that God is fair, giving you a cool background but taking something back, and some regretful individuals who clicked in saying that they should have used Ceca instead of her, at least Ceca's face was decent. 

At a critical moment, the male and female leads of the drama stood up and spoke out in support of her. 

Vila v: I have to speak up for Jasmine, that was the appearance she had for the role, there was an element of ugliness, she doesn't look like that at all. 

Huang Leran v: Standing up for little Jasmine, she's very good looking! 

On Vila's side, things were more normal, but the fans of Huang Leran, who played the male lead, started to complain. 

—No! Way! How can you casually praise the young lady's beauty??? 

—You're still a baby, your mom won't allow you to date so early! 

—Is there a plot in the script where the second female lead seduces the male lead? Lele, you stay firm, don't run after her! 

—If you have the ability to praise her, then post a photo, I want to see what the rival looks like! 

Everyone knew they were just playing around, but thanks to the support from Vila-Huang CP, there was a lot of curiosity about the appearance of the new second female lead. Some cleverly pieced together the actors' names, Vila calling her Jasmine and Huang Leran calling her Little Jasmine, and 'Lee' was in her name... Could it be Jasmine Lee? 

Seeing the name they pieced together, Jasmine almost burst out laughing. 

She wanted to step out to clear her name, but at that moment, the assistant director sent a WeChat message. The directorial team thought Jasmine had a good appearance and wasn't afraid of criticism, so they suggested letting the netizens stir things up for a couple of days, then releasing the makeup photos to counter, which wouldn't harm the actors, just giving the production some hype for free. 

Since the assistant director had approached her, it must have been discussed beforehand. Jasmine replied with an OK and didn't check Facebook again, she took a shower, put on a face mask, and focused on reading the script. 

After two days of reading the script, during which Ben showed his attentiveness by arranging a new set of outfits and accessories for the second female lead, the assistant director finally informed Jasmine to come over, try on the outfits, and took some professional head-shots!

At this point, the incident had been brewing for three days. Not only on Facebook, but also in some online forums where a group of fangirls gathered, they were all talking about it. 

The Vila-Huang CP came out and said that the second female lead is actually very pretty, but didn't provide any photos as evidence. Many people thought it was just commercial hype. Knowing the second female lead has a strong background, they spoke up for her to gain some favor. 

Even though both of them said there was nothing going on and that she was genuinely good-looking, netizens didn't really believe it. 

Post after post of criticism kept coming, without a break. Finally, the official Weibo account of the drama crew made a move. They released the newly taken makeup photo of the second female lead. 

The official Facebook of The All-Round Girlfriend Drama Crew: "Let us introduce our second female lead. 

The young lady asked us to clarify that she only has one dimple. 

Surprisingly, the hottest comment beneath this post was not praise or criticism, but "Only one dimple? I've sullied myself..." 

Jasmine didn't see this comment right away. Unable to resist the gossip in the crew, someone took a screenshot and shared it in a WeChat group, mentioning the second female lead @Jasmine. 

Jasmine: ... 

It's clear to see, the hearts of those in the entertainment industry are tricky, even a simple Facebook post needs some gimmick. 

Because of the "only one dimple," that makeup photo started trending. Although it didn't rank particularly high, it still caused a stir. Fangirls also diligently shared it, posting on forums to ask how to evaluate the appearance of the new second female lead in My Multi-Talented Girlfriend. Is she better looking than Ceca or not? 

Truth be told, Jasmine is indeed prettier than Ceca, otherwise, she wouldn't have encountered the bullying incident. So, the evaluation is mostly one-sided, but some people questioned if the photos were edited, suggesting that she might not look as good in the actual show. 

For example, Ben was stunned when he saw Jasmine's makeup photo trending. 

Is this the same person he saw a few days ago? ??

Ben shared the photo in their wealthy second-generation WeChat group, @ Liu Yiyang, asking him to take a look. 

It's known that Liu's family had invited Jasmine to help resolve an inheritance dispute. According to Ben's reasoning, Liu Yiyang must have met her before. Let's see if Liu Yiyang can recognize the person in the photo to understand how exaggerated the editing is. 

Who knows, when this photo was shared, not only Liu Yiyang responded, but several others followed. 

--"Looks familiar, like Master Jasmine." 

--"Look at the text beside, is it written that Jasmine Lee is playing the role?" 

--...

"... "It really is." 

--"What's going on? How did such a decent person end up in the entertainment industry? Where she's not a guest of honor anywhere else?" 

--"@Ben, bro, don't keep quiet, you know what's going on, right?" 

Ben only realized that it wasn't a fake photo, but as for why Jasmine came to act, he was also puzzled. He only knew that she was originally an extra in the drama funded by him. As for why she became an extra? Certainly not for the money, maybe she had a dream of becoming a star... 

--"Well, that's easy! I have some spare money, I'll set up a project for her soon!" 

--"Believe it or not, if my mom finds out that Little Master Jasmine has entered the entertainment industry, she'll definitely ask her to endorse our brand for some good luck." 

--"I Believe u, to be honest, my dad is right beside me, I mentioned this, and he's already thinking of changing the spokesperson for our 'Beautiful' Milk Tea." 

--"Changing spokesperson? First, change the name of your milk tea, how about changing it to 'Thinking Truly Beautiful'?" 

--"Sure, first change your license plate to 'you're dreaming', you lead by example."

... 

Their banter heated up, leaving those in the group who hadn't encountered Jasmine before bewildered. They continuously popped up, asking who this woman was. A wealthy daughter? What special talents does she have? 

The brothers arguing were too busy to explain, they dug out old WeChat contacts, lining up to congratulate her. 

Jasmine's phone kept vibrating repeatedly, picking it up, she saw a string of new messages. 

"Did Sister Jasmine go to film a drama??? I have a TV project here too, interested in taking a look?" 

"Saw the makeup photo, wishing Teacher Jasmine a sudden rise to fame." 

"Ben is too stingy, I suggest not to work with him after this, I'll pull a project for you, allowing you to be the female lead. I'll pair you with a popular actor to boost your exposure!"

"It's been half a year since I last saw you, you look even more beautiful in the makeup photos ^_^"...