The female characters in Chronicles of Eternal Autumn were all well-written, each with distinct personalities. More importantly, none of them were love-struck fools—they were all ruthless in their own ways.
“Quite honest, I see.” Director Hu suppressed the urge to twitch his lips as he looked at her sincere expression.
He glanced down at Su Yuqing’s profile.
Only eighteen years old.
A newborn calf unafraid of tigers—no wonder she dared to speak so frankly.
“Alright, you can go. The production team will notify your agent about the filming schedule.” Director Hu made the final decision.
The producer thought for a moment but didn’t say anything more.
Since both the screenwriter and the director had approved, his objection wouldn’t carry much weight.
Two against one.
Su Yuqing gave a slight bow. “I’m delighted to collaborate with Director Hu and the other teachers. Goodbye.”
She turned around, placed the sword back on the rack, and gracefully descended from the stage.
Watching her walk away, Director Hu chuckled again.
What an interesting young girl.
She was a talent brought in by the investors, and as long as her acting was passable, it would have been acceptable. But this drama was his passion project, two years in the making, and he naturally wanted to treat it with care. Su Yuqing had truly surprised him.
“How did it go, Su Su?”
As soon as Su Yuqing stepped out, Xiao Zhu anxiously asked.
The others also looked at her with complicated expressions.
Su Yuqing chuckled lightly. “Of course… I passed. My acting is that good.”
The others: “…”
Excuse me, are you referring to that cringe-worthy zombie-like performance?
Everyone gained a new appreciation for Su Yuqing’s thick skin. Watching her and her assistant chat and laugh as they walked away, they couldn’t help but curl their lips in disdain.
Lu Minglan, who had finished her audition, hadn’t left. She wanted to find out which role Su Yuqing had auditioned for, but unfortunately, she couldn’t get any information.
“Su Su, you’re trending again.” In the car, seeing Su Yuqing about to open a book, Xiao Zhu quickly spoke up.
“Did Reverse Talent Show post the test papers?” Su Yuqing didn’t even look up.
“How did you know, Su Su?” Xiao Zhu was surprised, but she quickly understood.
It was clear Su Yuqing had everything under control.
“Oh, right. Brother Fu said the next live stream will clash with your college entrance exams. He asked you to take a day off and attend the live stream after your exams.”
“Got it. What other schedules do I have next?”
“…None.”
“Then let’s go back and study.” Su Yuqing didn’t mind too much.
She was just starting to turn things around, so it was no surprise she had few schedules. This script had been handed to her by Fu Jin.
Besides, even though her reputation was improving, few were willing to take a risk on her. Reverse Talent Show was a ticking time bomb.
She had ranked first in the first episode.
For now, it seemed certain she would leave the entertainment industry.
As soon as Xiao Zhu left after returning to her residence, Su Yuqing received a call from He Suyan.
“What happened?”
He Suyan’s slightly deep voice came through. “The video has been handed over to the police and also posted online.”
“Hmm, so there’s a twist, right?”
“Watch the live stream.” He Suyan’s tone remained unchanged, but a cold glint flashed in his eyes.
Su Yuqing casually opened the laptop Xiao Zhu had brought her earlier.
“Tsk, what a perfect white lotus.” Watching Su Chengxi’s tearful performance at the press conference, Su Yuqing clicked her tongue without any anger.
“I’ve hired a lawyer to sue her for attempted murder.”
“No need. It won’t work against her.” Su Yuqing shook her head, her eyes narrowing slightly.
Not to mention the Su family’s influence, even the video couldn’t serve as direct evidence to prove Su Chengxi had acted intentionally.
Just as she had explained in the live stream, it was entirely accidental. She did push, but only because Su Yuqing was too agitated and aggressive at the time, causing her to react instinctively. She never intended to push anyone into the sea.
At most, it could be considered negligent injury, but since Su Yuqing was perfectly fine, the matter would eventually blow over.
Moreover, there was that meddlesome mother of hers, crying and complaining at the press conference.
Su Yuqing felt that even if she had actually died, that woman would have signed a letter of forgiveness, absolving Su Chengxi.
Still, Su Chengxi’s reputation was undoubtedly far worse than before.
Step by step, the young girl had lost her life, and no one involved would get off easy.
“If you’re willing—”
“Thank you, but I can handle my own revenge,” Su Yuqing interrupted He Suyan.
Matters of revenge were best left to oneself.
On the other end of the line, He Suyan raised an eyebrow but said nothing more.
After hanging up, Su Yuqing narrowed her eyes and watched Ou Yulan embracing Su Chengxi in the live stream, feeling it was a pity for the young girl.
She turned off the live stream and went back to solving practice questions.
Revenge could wait; the college entrance exam was the most urgent matter.
She paid no attention, but that day’s trending topics were all about her.
There was even a hashtag questioning just how terrible Su Yuqing must be to fail to earn her birth mother’s affection.
Though it lingered near the bottom of the trending list, it still caught the attention of those with ulterior motives.
Fu Jin immediately instructed the PR team to hire trolls to flood that particular hashtag.
They vaguely hinted at the possibility that Su Yuqing might have deliberately downplayed her abilities to please the Su family, under pressure from her mother.
Soon, the contrast between Su Yuqing’s “fake academic genius” and “real academic genius” personas resurfaced. The test papers released earlier that morning by the official microblog of the Reverse Talent Show were once again brought up for comparison.
As a result, more and more voices emerged suggesting that Su Yuqing had been hiding her true self.
Public opinion took a sharp turn, shifting direction entirely.
Fu Jin’s approach carried risks, but as long as Su Yuqing performed well in the college entrance exam, her “academic genius” persona would be solidified, allowing her to make a complete comeback.
The next day, Fu Jin informed Su Yuqing that Chronicles of Eternal Autumn would begin filming the following week and that she should prepare accordingly.
“Can I ask who was cast as the female lead number two?”
“Lu Minglan.”
As expected, Su Yuqing smiled. “I see. I’ll be ready.”
“By the way, Director Hu mentioned you haven’t studied the novel or the script and wants you to take a good look at them.” Speaking of this, Fu Jin felt a bit exasperated.
If you haven’t finished reading, just keep it to yourself. Why say it outright?
“…Understood,” Su Yuqing replied, slightly annoyed.
After hanging up, she called out to the System. “Can we discuss something?”
“No,” the System replied coldly and ruthlessly.
Su Yuqing rolled her eyes. “It’s impossible to go a lifetime without lying, right? Sometimes, white lies are necessary.”
She began her persuasive spiel.
“Look, if I can’t tell a single lie, how am I supposed to survive in this industry? What’s the difference between that and being dead?”
Utterly hopeless.
“…”
“I don’t ask for much—just one chance to lie per week.”
“Impossible!” The mechanical voice remained cold and ruthless.
“Once every two weeks?”
“No lying allowed!”
“Fine. Since I’m going to die anyway, I might as well just die now,” Su Yuqing said, giving up entirely.
The mechanical voice crackled for a moment, remaining silent for a long while.
After a while, it spoke stiffly, “You cannot lie, but if you go a month without lying, in addition to drawing a prize and extending your life, you can designate someone else to tell a lie.”
Ha, interesting.
Su Yuqing raised an eyebrow without a change in expression. “No, I also want the opportunity to lie once a month.”
“…Once every three months.”
“Deal!”
Su Yuqing felt completely at ease. Who would have thought there would be an unexpected delight?
Making someone else lie—now that sounded interesting.