I became a movie star at the age of three; Dilraba and I are childhood sweethearts.

The van came to a smooth stop at the entrance of Hengdian World Studios.

Xiao Chen opened his eyes, and the casualness he had shown in the valley instantly vanished.

He opened the car door.

The blinding sunlight shone on his exquisitely handsome face, which seemed almost unreal.

At that moment, the extras and staff passing by the film crew's entrance all slowed down their pace.

"That's... Xiao Chen?"

"Xiao Chen is back!"

Several young girls, their palms sweaty, were clutching scripts and staring intently at him.

Xiao Chen noticed their gazes, tilted his head, and gave them a bright, slightly mischievous smile.

"Good morning, beautiful ladies! Have you had breakfast yet?"

The girls blushed instantly, unable to speak coherently, and could only nod blankly.

Xiao Chen had already strode into the dressing room with ease.

Even at nineteen, her face is still the ultimate example of a face blessed by God.

A straight nose, deep-set eyes like a bottomless pool, and skin with pores almost invisible under the light.

The makeup artist hesitated for a long time, unable to bring herself to use too much makeup on his face.

"Brother Chen, with your natural features, even if you just draw your eyebrows, you'll exude an aura of royalty just by sitting there."

Xiao Chen looked at himself in the mirror and reached out to squeeze the heavy dragon robe that the makeup artist handed him.

"Thank you for your hard work. Please give me more powder later."

"The emperor has to look a bit older, otherwise I'm afraid Sister Sun Li might start to want to date me while she's acting."

His lighthearted tone amused those around him.

He personally crafted the script for "Empresses in the Palace".

In that world, this drama was the pinnacle of palace intrigue; in this life, he wants to make it another golden brand for Shiba Culture.

……

set.

The air was filled with a cool fragrance, and a bright yellow canopy obscured most of the sky.

This scene is a famous scene from the previous life called "Wanwan is like Qing".

Zhen Huan had just been promoted to the rank of Consort, and should have been enjoying great favor, but she was severely reprimanded by the Emperor for mistakenly wearing the old clothes of the late Empress Chun Yuan.

Xiao Chen sat in the chair, closing his eyes to rest, holding two exercise balls in his hand.

At this moment, he had completely lost the playful smile he had shown in the dressing room.

That cold and oppressive aura, belonging to an emperor, began to spread from the moment he sat down.

"Empresses in the Palace, Scene 293, First Scene, Action!"

Sun Li knelt on the ground, her eyes filled with disbelief and sorrow.

"Your Majesty... all these years, have I been nothing more than a substitute in your heart?"

Her delivery of lines was excellent, but at this moment, facing Xiao Chen, she inexplicably felt an unprecedented pressure.

Xiao Chen slightly raised his eyes, and those once affectionate eyes were now as cold as ice.

"I have never said you were a substitute."

He stood up, the hem of his dragon robe brushing against his face with a dull thud.

Xiao Chen walked up to Sun Li and gently lifted her chin with his fingers.

His movements were very light, but his tone was as venomous as a snake's.

"But if you didn't have this face, I wouldn't even give you a second glance."

Xiao Chen's eyes held a condescending indifference.

It's the kind of coldness that comes from a superior getting tired of their playthings.

Sun Li was stunned.

The tears in her eyes should have fallen at that moment, but she was so stunned by Xiao Chen's gaze that she forgot to say her words.

That was a true "scumbag" emperor, who mixed exploitation with deep affection, chilling people to the bone.

"Card!"

Director Zheng Xiaolong frowned.

"Sun Li, the emotion has stopped. Let's start over."

After filming three times in a row, Sun Li's explosive power was still just a little lacking.

The more she tried to act well, the more deliberate she seemed, and her whole body became extremely tense.

Xiao Chen glanced at the playback on the monitor and casually put down his teacup.

He walked over to Sun Li and casually patted her on the shoulder.

"Sister, don't be afraid of me."

His eyes crinkled with laughter, and he instantly transformed back into the lovable boy next door.

"You shouldn't be thinking about how the Emperor doesn't love you. You should be thinking about how that bastard Xiao Chen dared to use me as a substitute. What gives him the right?"

Xiao Chen lowered his voice, his tone slightly suggestive.

"You've sacrificed so much for him, and he's got a dead man inside him, yet he still makes you kneel here."

"You have more hatred than love right now."

Sun Li looked up at Xiao Chen's incredibly handsome face.

Even though it's hard to hate her face, the sense of detachment she felt when Xiao Chen was directing made her heart race.

"Come, let me show you around. Just keep your eyes on me."

Xiao Chen re-entered the scene.

This time, instead of speaking directly as scripted, he first let out a contemptuous sneer.

The laughter was brief, yet full of irony.

He whispered in Sun Li's ear, in a voice only the two of them could hear, the Emperor's harsh words.

Sun Li's emotions were instantly ignited.

When the phrase "莞莞类卿" (Wanwan is like you) rang out again, tears welled up in Sun Li's eyes, a mixture of resentment, anger, and despair.

"Cut! Good! Perfect!"

Zheng Xiaolong slapped his thigh excitedly.

After filming this major scene, Sun Li was still squatting there for half a day, unable to recover.

Xiao Chen took the wet wipes from his assistant and handed them to Sun Li himself, even giving her a playful bow.

"Your Majesty has been wronged. I, Xiao Chen, apologize to you."

Sun Li took the tissue and glared at him, both amused and exasperated.

"Xiao Chen, I really have mixed feelings of love and hate for you right now."

"Look at your face, I feel like I could love you for another five hundred years."

"But when I think of the look in the Emperor's eyes just now, I wish I could poison you right now and kill you on this dragon throne."

Jiang Xin, who plays Consort Hua, and Tao Xinran, who plays An Lingrong, also came over.

"Yeah, Brother Chen, your acting is so infuriating."

"I was watching from the sidelines, and I really wanted to rush up and slap you."

"How can someone who looks so lovable portrayal be so convincingly evil when acting?"

The actresses were all clamoring against him, but Xiao Chen just smiled and touched his nose.

"There's nothing I can do. I'm the boss, after all. If the boss isn't bad, the company won't thrive."

Everyone burst into laughter and jokes, instantly dispelling the tense filming atmosphere.

In this grand production, Xiao Chen is not only the lead actor, but also the soul of the story.

His ability to instantly switch between personas sent chills down the spines of these talented actors.

……

The night in Hengdian is cool and still.

Xiao Chen had just finished removing her makeup and hadn't even had a chance to go back to the hotel to rest when Wang Jinhua called her to the car.

Wang Jinhua was sitting in the back seat of the car, holding a thick stack of newspapers and clippings in her hands.

Her expression was somewhat serious, completely unlike her usual approachable and friendly demeanor.

"Ah Chen, look at this."

She tossed several foreign media reports to Xiao Chen.

Xiao Chen glanced at the title.

Has that Chinese actor gone mad? He's trying to push the boundaries of Hollywood science fiction.

Xiao Chen's exorbitant tuition fees: A self-indulgent scheme doomed to failure.

Avatar? Is he planning to make an animated film about monkeys?