Chapter 79 - 77: Newcomer Actress Ignites the Hot Search
God Jumps Over the Wall served with Pu’er tea was probably the highest standard of hospitality the family could offer a guest.
Randall Jennings nodded in praise as he ate. "Delicious. This is better than what many restaurants serve."
Jasmine Sterling sat across from him, watching him cautiously. With every bite he took, she was instinctively on edge.
"Mom, stop staring at Mr. Jennings," Cecilia Sterling said softly when she noticed. "He already said it’s delicious, but look at you, still so anxious."
Hearing this, Randall Jennings looked up just in time to catch Jasmine Sterling’s embarrassed glance away. She shot her daughter a look before explaining, "I’m just worried he might have an allergy."
"Haha..."
Randall Jennings burst out laughing and quickly clarified, "Don’t worry, I’m not allergic to seafood. My only allergy is to ’chia seeds’."
"Chia seeds?"
The others were taken aback for a moment, then couldn’t help but exchange glances. ’What a niche allergen,’ they thought.
Randall Jennings pulled out a napkin, elegantly wiped his mouth, and stood up. He said to Jasmine Sterling, "Thank you for your hospitality, Ms. Sterling. It was delicious."
"You’re very welcome."
It was getting late, so Randall Jennings once again said his goodbyes. Jasmine Sterling warmly saw him to the door and nodded farewell.
Only after Randall Jennings had left did the tension finally drain from Jasmine Sterling.
She turned back, looked at her two children with a helpless expression, and said, "You two are really something. Mr. Jennings is a big boss. How could you just casually invite him to stay for dinner?"
"What’s wrong with that?" Cecilia Sterling blinked, her expression nonchalant. "It’s not like he didn’t eat his fill."
Ethan Sterling chimed in, "Exactly. Good food is good food. It doesn’t suddenly taste bad just because he’s a big boss."
Jasmine Sterling shook her head, a little speechless. Still, when it came to today’s blind date situation, they really owed Mr. Jennings. Otherwise, who knows how long the arguing would have gone on.
As she started clearing the table to clean the kitchen, Cecilia Sterling quickly stopped her mother. "Mom, leave it. I’ll wash them in a bit. I have something to tell you."
Jasmine Sterling looked at her daughter, confused. "What is it?"
Ethan Sterling jumped in first. "My sister is leaving early the day after tomorrow."
"The day after tomorrow? But isn’t it the National Day holiday?"
Cecilia Sterling nodded and explained her younger sister’s current situation to their mother.
After hearing the explanation, Jasmine Sterling couldn’t help but nod gently. "That is indeed important. Lily has always had a soft personality and doesn’t have much experience. If you go, Mom can rest a little easier."
Cecilia Sterling knew her mother would be supportive, but she couldn’t help feeling a little guilty for going back on her word to leave after the holiday. "I was supposed to spend more time with you..."
"Oh, honestly..." As soon as her daughter started, Jasmine Sterling quickly cut her off with feigned impatience. "None of that. You’ve been back for a few days already, and Mom’s starting to get a little sick of you. Now is the perfect time to leave."
Just as she finished speaking, the phone rang.
"That must be your grandmother, calling to nag me again." Jasmine Sterling sighed impatiently. Before turning to go inside, she didn’t forget to remind Cecilia, "Do the dishes and wipe down the kitchen."
Cecilia Sterling smiled at her mother’s retreating back, then turned and ordered Ethan Sterling, "You do it!"
Ethan Sterling pouted. "I knew it."
*
「Heavenly Destiny as Phoenix」 production set.
Makeup Room 3.
"What is the marketing team thinking? Why haven’t they released my promotional photos yet? Why!"
Jessica Reynolds gripped her phone. The screen displayed today’s third wave of promotional stills from the production. Many fans of the original novel and the actors had been refreshing their feeds since nine in the morning, eagerly awaiting the first behind-the-scenes look at their favorites.
But Jessica Reynolds, the second female lead, flew into a rage when she discovered that the third wave of stills still didn’t include her.
She glared furiously at her assistant, Mia, and demanded, "The first wave was Yuna Sutton and Gideon Hale. The second was Sophie Grant and Aaron Sanders. The third wave should have been my turn, right?"
"What is this? Why is it Andrew Sutton and Lily Sterling? Why the third male lead and the fourth female lead? How did you communicate with the marketing team?!"
Everyone on Jessica Reynolds’s team knew about her temper. When she erupted, it was devastating, and her assistant Mia was always the first to bear the brunt of it, since these matters were usually her responsibility.
Mia kept her head down, her face filled with terror, and explained in a low voice, "I did mention to the marketing team that we hoped our photos would be in the second wave. They just said they’d consider it. I thought since the marketing team is from our own company, Goldman Golding, they would definitely favor us... I don’t know why this happened either."
"If you don’t know, then hurry up and ask!" Jessica Reynolds roared. "What the hell do I pay you people for!"
Mia flinched, shrinking back, and quickly nodded. "Okay, I’ll go ask right now."
Jessica Reynolds was fuming. She had been especially pleased with that set of photos, particularly the promotional shots with Faith White meant to be shipped as a couple. The team had even planned to use the opportunity to generate some buzz with them and attract fans of the ship. But now, she hadn’t even gotten a chance to appear.
She knew that for the better part of a year after joining the cast, there would be few opportunities for exposure. She was counting on these promotional stills to maintain her visibility with the audience. If other actors got them and she didn’t, her fans could easily be drawn away by someone else over time. They might even forget she was in the show at all.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got, and the angrier she got, the more panicked she became. This was especially true as she scrolled through the promotional post for Andrew Sutton and Lily Sterling, seeing the flood of positive comments. She was green with envy.
Especially Lily Sterling. In the photos, she was so lifelike, as if she were Flora brought to life.
The most-liked comment among the positive reviews read, "Oh my god, this is the Flora I always imagined! She’s exactly the same!"
Gentle, soft, and exuding a delicate charm that made one want to protect her.
Female fans saw her and exclaimed that Flora had come alive.
Male fans saw her and their protective instincts went into overdrive.
The official account even jumped into the comments with a hot reply: "Straight from the camera, no post-editing!"
The topic instantly blew up the trending charts: "Newcomer Actress Plays Flora, Stuns Fans with Unedited Stills!"
Right after, the topic "Lily Sterling, a.k.a. Flora’s Actress" also shot up the ranks, reaching number two on the trending list in just half an hour!
An official fan page for Lily Sterling was quickly established. Her personal accounts on all platforms were dug up, and in less than an hour, her follower count across all platforms had already surpassed two million.
"Lily, you’re famous! You’re famous!"
Yuna held her phone, excitedly scrolling through the trending topics. "Your first wave of promo stills has nothing but positive reviews online! This is amazing, Lily!" she said, her voice filled with excitement.
Lily Sterling was a bit dazed. Before this, she had never imagined her promotional photos would make such a splash. But looking at the trending topics all over the internet, she slowly began to realize that she might actually be famous.
WhatsApp messages were also popping up nonstop. Almost everyone she had known since childhood was messaging her, but she had no idea how to reply.
"What’s wrong, Lily? Aren’t you happy?"
Yuna asked with concern, seeing Lily staring blankly without a reaction.
Lily Sterling snapped back to reality and smiled. "I am happy. I’m very happy."