How can you ascend to heaven when you are a star?

Chapter 408 Teacher Zhang is the most handsome!
quiet!
The set fell silent immediately.

The whispering that had been going on just moments before had stopped, and even the sounds of chewing food had vanished. Time seemed to stand still, and everyone looked in Bai Lu's direction, their eyes filled with astonishment.

No one expected that Bai Lu would refuse so directly, so directly that it was like a slap in the face, without leaving any room for leniency.

We're colleagues from the same company, how can you be so disrespectful?
Song Haoran was stunned for a moment, then as if he had heard a joke, the corners of his mouth involuntarily turned up, and he let out a "hehe" laugh.

"Bai Lu, are you kidding me? I won't argue with you if you say my acting is bad, but are you sure you've actually watched me properly if you say I'm ugly?"

Song Haoran pointed to his own face, thinking that Bai Lu must be nearsighted and hadn't seen his face clearly.

This is the face that ranks 31st on the list of the most handsome male celebrities in the entertainment industry. A well-known magazine commented that he has a delicate and handsome appearance and a youthful vibe.

ugly?
He was the school heartthrob when he was in school, and he received countless love letters.

"You don't really think you're handsome, do you? Stop trying to disgust me, okay?" Bai Lu sneered.

"Am I not handsome? Even if I can't compare to Xiao Zhan or Daniel Wu, I'm at least more handsome than him, right?" Song Haoran said, pointing to Zhang Wen sitting in the car.

This action immediately made Zhang Wen laugh.

"Do you have a mirror at home? If not, you can always pee, right? Take a good look at yourself while you pee. Trying to compare your looks with me? You're really overestimating yourself." Zhang Wen curled his lip, looking utterly disdainful.

"You..." Song Haoran was so angry that his face turned red and his neck bulged. After a while, he said, "You are the one who is overestimating yourself. I am just stating the facts."

"The truth? Then I'll show you reality." Zhang Wen said, reaching out to pat his assistant Zhao Linlin, who was sitting in the passenger seat. "Little Zhao, who's more handsome, me or this sissy?"

"Teacher Zhang is handsome!" Zhao Linlin answered immediately without thinking.

"Did you hear that? I'm here, so get out of here right now!" Zhang Wen said.

Upon hearing this, Song Haoran immediately objected, pointing at Zhao Linlin and saying, "She's Bai Lu's assistant, so she doesn't count. If you ask my assistant, she'll say I'm handsome." He then looked at the assistant standing to the side.

The assistant quickly nodded, indicating that Haoran was right.

As Song Haoran's assistant, she had to stand on Song Haoran's side, otherwise she would lose her job.

"Alright, today I'll show everyone the difference." Zhang Wen got out of the car and waved to Chen Zhenghao, the male lead, who was standing not far away. "Chen Zhenghao, who's more handsome, me or this sissy?"

Chen Zhenghao was startled, and almost dropped the chopsticks in his hand.

He was just a bystander, never expecting that the splashed melon pulp would get all over his face.

One is an artist from Tianxi Media, a fellow apprentice; the other is a training teacher from Tianxi Media, and currently the screenwriter of this drama. How can he choose?
Chen Zhenghao swallowed hard, hesitated for a moment, and could only choose to tell the truth.

“Of course Teacher Zhang is more handsome!” Chen Zhenghao said.

Teacher Zhang is the investor in this drama, that is, his financial backer. Of course, the financial backer is the most handsome. Even if Daniel Wu came, he would still give the same answer.

Song Haoran's upturned lips froze instantly, then drooped down little by little, his eyes filled with disbelief.

Even Chen Zhenghao said that?

This, how is this possible?

If it were anyone else, he would definitely refute them, or even call them blind. But the person speaking was Chen Zhenghao, who debuted earlier than him, had a higher status, and was even ranked more than ten places higher than him in the list of male celebrities with good looks in the entertainment industry. This made it impossible for him to refute him.

Zhang Wen then looked at the second male lead and asked, "Wang Haoyu, who do you think is more handsome, me or this sissy?"

With Chen Zhenghao's answer already given, Wang Haoyu replied without hesitation, "Isn't it obvious? It's definitely you, Teacher Zhang. I'm not as handsome as you."

"..."

Song Haoran's lips twitched involuntarily. Wang Haoyu's status was similar to his, but he debuted earlier and was his senior, so he couldn't refute him.

“Sister Zhou, you’re a woman, what do you think?” Zhang Wen looked at Zhou Ziqi, the third female lead.

"You're handsome, no arguments allowed," Zhou Ziqi said seriously.

Zhang Wen nodded, then pointed at Song Haoran, looked in the direction of the extras, and asked loudly, "Who do you think is more handsome, me or this guy?"

Upon hearing this, the extras immediately rushed to answer.

"Teacher Zhang is handsome, it has to be Teacher Zhang."

"Is that even a question? Anyone with eyes can tell that Teacher Zhang is definitely more handsome."

"If anyone says Teacher Zhang isn't handsome, I'll argue with them."

At that moment, shouts of "Teacher Zhang is so handsome!" echoed throughout the set.

"Thank you!"

Zhang Wen then turned to look at Song Haoran, whose face had turned ashen and who had lost his previous arrogant demeanor.

"Shouldn't you be facing reality now?" Zhang Wen asked.

"..." Song Haoran gritted his teeth, feeling like he was being publicly executed. He had never been so humiliated in his life.

Zhang Wen reached out and patted the other man on the shoulder, saying earnestly, "Young man, you need to know that there are always people better than you, and there are always people more handsome than you. The handsome one who thinks he is handsome is not really handsome. The handsome one is recognized by everyone is truly handsome. Now you know the difference between you and me, right?"

"Now that we've compared looks, shouldn't we compare talent?" a bystander asked with a laugh, perfectly demonstrating what it means to enjoy a good show.

"Comparing talent? Don't be ridiculous. Ten Song Haorans couldn't compare to Teacher Zhang," said a background actor nearby.

"Yes, Teacher Zhang can write scripts and songs, but what can Song Haoran do?"

"In terms of looks, Song Haoran is a loser; in terms of appearance, Song Haoran is absolutely defeated."

"Now that we've finished comparing looks and talent, shouldn't we move on to the swimsuit segment?" a female extra asked.

"Tch, that Song Haoran is as thin as a chick, what's there to see?"

"Right!"

"..."

Hearing the words of the extras around him, Song Haoran felt as if he had suffered an unprecedented blow to his spirit, as if a thousand arrows were piercing his heart.

It's too heartbreaking.

He couldn't help but look at Zhang Wen beside him, and began to doubt himself.

Am I really not as handsome as him?

If only one or two people said this, he certainly wouldn't care, but since everyone is saying it, he has no choice but to believe it.

"What are you looking at? Do you really want to compare your physique with mine?" Zhang Wen asked.

"Let's have a competition!" someone shouted.

"Song Haoran, stop taking your clothes off. There's nothing to see. We mainly want to see Teacher Zhang."

"Yes, I want to see Teacher Zhang's eight-pack abs again after he changed clothes last time." Many people chimed in.

Song Haoran's face grew increasingly grim. He was, after all, a well-known young idol, but here he was being trampled on like dirt.

What a bully!
It hurts your self-esteem so much!
"Back to the company!" Song Haoran said to his assistant, then lowered his head and hurried away from the set as if fleeing, afraid that if he slowed down he would hear some other unpleasant words.

What a terrible production crew, I'm never coming back.

The staff around him shook their heads as they watched Song Haoran flee in disarray.

I thought that with Teacher Zhang back, there would be a spectacular show like a clash of titans, but it turned out to be a one-sided crushing victory by Teacher Zhang. Song Haoran couldn't even muster a word to talk back, let alone fight back. He's really useless.

With that kind of attitude, you absolutely must never come here again.

Perhaps he was walking too fast, or perhaps he was thinking too much and couldn't concentrate, Song Haoran hadn't gone far when his left foot suddenly tripped over his right foot, and his body fell straight forward.

With a loud "thud," it felt like a piece of flesh had been slammed to the ground; it looked painful.

Everyone around was stunned, and the film set fell silent once again.

I thought the show was over, but Song Haoran suddenly added more drama for himself. What's he doing? Is he trying to gain sympathy?

But what sympathy do you expect from a third party and a loser like yourself?
"cough!"

Song Haoran groaned, feeling pain all over his body, as if his body had been broken apart. But with so many people watching, wouldn't it seem pretentious to cry out "Ouch, ouch"?
He'll really become a sissy then.

Thinking of this, he forced himself to get up from the ground despite the pain.

At that moment, a strange sense of grievance welled up in my heart.

"Brother Haoran, are you alright?" The assistant rushed forward, brushing the dust off Song Haoran's clothes as he asked with concern.

Song Haoran glared at his assistant, thinking: You try falling like that and see if it hurts!
However, to avoid being laughed at, he endured the pain and said calmly, "No."

After speaking, Song Haoran paused for a moment, wondering why his words seemed to have a slight lisp.
"Brother Haoran, your teeth!" The assistant stared at Brother Haoran's mouth in astonishment.

I saw blood on Song Haoran's mouth earlier and thought he had cut his lip, but now that I see him open his mouth to speak, I realize that he has lost two teeth.

tooth?
Song Haoran licked it with his tongue, and his expression immediately changed.

There's a huge hole in my upper teeth, and I've lost at least two teeth, including my front teeth. My lower teeth are also a bit loose.

He immediately looked down and searched the ground for his teeth, and soon found two teeth where there was blood.

Test!
Song Haoran was so angry he wanted to curse.

Today I truly lost both my dignity and my pride.

"Brother Haoran, let's go to the hospital first," the assistant said worriedly, then took a mask out of his bag and handed it to him.

"Okay." Song Haoran responded, then put on his mask and left.

However, this time he walked very carefully, keeping his legs apart, afraid of tripping again.

Everyone stared at Song Haoran's strange walking posture, unsure of what to say. Perhaps this was the retribution for poaching someone else's talent.

Zhang Wen got back into the car and, after closing the door, looked at Bai Lu beside him and asked, "What's the deal with this kid?"

"I don't know either," Bai Lu said with a wry smile, then took the man's hand and continued, "The day you left, he showed up on set and invited me to act in an urban workplace drama written by Teacher Xiaoman. Do you know Teacher Xiaoman?"

"I don't know." Zhang Wen shook his head. He didn't even recognize all the actors, let alone screenwriters.

"Xiaoman is a very famous screenwriter. Her urban workplace dramas always get high ratings when they air, so I wanted to ask for your opinion after you come back."

Bai Lu showed a look of disgust as he said this.

"But who would have thought he'd be like a leech, not only coming here every day but also constantly trying to chat me up. I was so annoyed that I clearly rejected the script this morning, but he acted like he couldn't understand me. Instead of leaving, he became even more persistent, always trying to talk to me about Teacher Xiaoman's script whenever he had a spare moment. It was driving me crazy. Luckily, you came back."

Zhang Wen did not doubt Bai Lu's words. He could tell from Bai Lu's attitude towards Song Haoran that he was indeed extremely annoyed.

He raised his arm and put it around Bai Lu's shoulder, asking curiously, "Who is this kid? He knows I'm your boyfriend, yet he still dares to harass you. Is he a rich second-generation?"

"I don't know. Before this, I had no interaction with him and had never worked with him. I had only met him a few times at the company's annual meeting, and we were at most nodding acquaintances," Bai Lu said.

Zhang Wen felt something was amiss.

As soon as he left, Song Haoran appeared, clearly arriving at the perfect time.

Zhang Wen thought for a moment, then took out his phone from his pocket and dialed Gao Yue's number.

Soon, the call was connected.

"Hello, are you back in Beijing?" Gao Yue's gentle voice came through the receiver.

"Yeah, I'm back. I just got to the set. I'm asking you, do you know Song Haoran?" Zhang Wen asked.

"Song Haoran? Isn't he an artist in our company? Did he offend you?" Gao Yue sensed that the man's tone was a bit unfriendly when he mentioned Song Haoran's name, so she made this guess.

“He’s trying to poach my girlfriend,” Zhang Wen said.

"What? He's going to pursue Bai Lu?" Gao Yue was stunned. She and Bai Lu were each other's girlfriends. Since Song Haoran hadn't pursued her, he must be pursuing Bai Lu.

As Bai Lu's agent, how come she had never heard of him before?
"Well, tell me his specific situation, such as his family background, connections, and powerful backers," Zhang Wen said.

“I do know a little about his situation. He comes from an ordinary middle-class family. They run a small business, but they don’t have any special background or connections,” Gao Yue said after thinking for a moment.

"Really? He dares to be so arrogant without any background or backing? Is he usually like this?" Zhang Wen asked.

"Well, how should I put it? Nowadays, many young artists are keen to pursue artists who are more famous than themselves. Firstly, they can get help in their careers, and secondly, they can increase their popularity. Song Haoran might be one of those people," Gao Yue said.

“I understand. Could you also find out if Song Haoran has returned to the company recently, and who he met with there?” Zhang Wen said.

"No problem," Gao Yue readily agreed.

The two chatted for a few more minutes before hanging up.

Zhang Wen stared at his phone, remaining silent for a long time.

He could understand if male artists from other companies wanted to pursue Bai Lu, but the fact that a male artist from Tianxi Media wanted to pursue Bai Lu, especially knowing about his relationship with Bai Lu, made him wonder.

It's not that he's overthinking things; it's just that the entertainment industry is too complicated and treacherous.

Last night, I was tricked into drinking by a bunch of people just because I talked to Zhou Meng for a few minutes. Now, another guy has come along and tried to steal my things. As the old saying goes, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark.

If it was Song Haoran's personal action, that would be even better. But if someone is behind it, he needs to know who that person is.

……

(End of this chapter)