Chapter 392 - Winner In Life
Rebirth of a Fashionista: This Life Is Soo Last Season
The red carpet for the film festival awards ceremony was like a battleground. Everyone was trying to compete for attention.
Every single attendee dressed up glamorously, and careful considerations were given to every part of their appearance, from their hair down to their shoes. They put in double the effort than they usually would, considering that this was an international film festival.
With the help of their styling team, Sheng Jiaoyang and Lina had already undergone a major makeover.
Lina was a natural beauty. Her beauty would surpass the skies, even if she were to dress casually. Meanwhile, Sheng Jiaoyang's features had also gotten more distinctive over the past two years as she shed her baby fat from before. Though her beauty was more subtle, the makeover, coupled with her intrinsic disposition, made it so that she wouldn’t be outshined by Lina even when they stood side by side.
Initially, both of them were supposed to walk the red carpet with the main producer of their respective movies. However, this was the first time that they graced a film festival together. Hence, they turned down their arranged male partners and walked the red carpet together with their arms interlinked.
Sheng Jiaoyang was considered a new face on the red carpet of the Berlin Film Festival. However, to those from the fashion circle, she might not be as well known as those international superstars, but she certainly wasn't any nameless fry either. After all, she had walked two big fashion shows before, and was also the only bridesmaid of Princess Wight. About three months ago, she and Lina had even won the legal dispute against Director Miller. The dispute caused quite a stir in the fashion industry as RICHARD was a well-established brand.
Both of them were originally supermodels, and they definitely had a strong presence. The photographers clicked their cameras away, and some even stood behind them and called out for them to turn back.
There was another Chinese actress just two meters behind them. She was relatively popular in China and had also dressed up extravagantly today. Unfortunately, she was arranged to walk the red carpet after Lina and Sheng Jiaoyang. The photographers still had their cameras aimed at them. Helpless, she could only wait till the duo walked off the red carpet. Finally, when the Chinese actress reached the same spot where the duo had stopped previously to pose for photos, a foreign actress that was walking behind her swiftly caught the attention of these foreign media outlets, and she was ignored by the media again.
The yearly live stream of various international red carpet events would always raise a stir. This was also the reason why many people tried to grab an opportunity to grace the red carpet. A chance to walk the red carpet meant that they would have secured a spot on the headlines, regardless of whether one was dressed lavishly or not. Of course, it would be even better if one were to be dressed strikingly, as they would most definitely become a trending topic on Weibo.
With the current advancement in technology, the situation at the red carpet could be live-streamed to China.
Every artiste came with their own management team. The moment they got off the red carpet, their press release would be sent out instantly. Of course, the press release was accompanied by photoshopped photos of their artiste.
However, Jiaojiao's official Weibo account was different from the rest. The photos that plastered her Weibo profile were the photos of her street photoshoot, and every photo had a watermark of their newest brand. There were solo shots of her, and also shots with Lina. Although the fans lamented the lack of red carpet photos, they silently saved the street photos onto their computers.
Every photo felt like a still from a blockbuster, and every fashion piece they wore tugged at the viewers and made them feel the urge to purchase them.
When a Jiao Fan wondrously found Jiaojiao's silhouette in the press release photos of another celebrity, countless fans flocked to the celebrity's account. That celebrity was the Chinese actress who walked the red carpet after Jiaojiao and Lina.
The starlet's manager was startled to see the number of comments skyrocketing out of the blue. But as soon as she read through the comments that sprang up out of nowhere, she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
TsunJiaoIsMyGodness: I actually have to look for my goddess in someone else's photos (helpless).
CrazilyInLoveWithJiao: Hahaha, many of the foreign photographers are still taking photos of our Jiao, even when she’s standing so far forward at the front. Don't ask why my attention was on the background of the photo, and don't ask why I can recognize our Jiao just from her back view. It’s because I'm CrazilyInLoveWithJiao!
CrazyOverFoodie: I heard that our Jiao had sprung up here, so I came to take a look.
Among the sudden flurry of comments was the occasional comment from one of the actress’ own fans asking what was going on.
Just then, a die-hard Jiao Fan's complaint against Jiaojiao went viral.
The fan wrote this on her own Weibo: I've been a Jiao fan for a very long time. I have liked Jiaojiao ever since she joined the supermodel competition. But now, on behalf of the vast majority of fans, I want to make a complaint against Jiaojiao! Can't you be like other idols and take the initiative to share photos from your schedule? Why do we always have to look into the background of other people’s photos to find traces of you? (attachment) (attachment) (attachment)…
The attached photos were all photos tagged with the caption: ‘Let's try to find Jiao’. They were all photos of different people, but all of them shared a common similarity - Jiaojiao could be found in all of them.
The post went viral after it was widely shared and liked.
Sheng Jiaoyang didn't see the Weibo post that complained about her. In actuality, ever since she lost her memories, she had never been on Weibo, as she couldn't recall that she had one. Of course, even if she knew about it, she wouldn't be able to look at it now, for she was currently seated next to Lina and listening to the emcee of the night host the award ceremony.
As they watched other celebrities go on stage to receive their awards and make their thank you speeches, Sheng Jiaoyang suddenly leaned into Lina's ear and whispered, "Mei Niu, have you prepared your thank you speech?"
"I have nothing to do with the awards today, so there's no need for me to make any preparations," Lina said with a nonchalant look on her face.
"Since you have been nominated, it means that you have a chance to get the award. Who knows, you might be the next person to get on the stage."
"What about you? Weren't you nominated too? In fact, we are competitors!"
Sheng Jiaoyang looked as though she was even more indifferent than Lina, and she said, "You aren't even hopeful that you would win. Do you think I would stand a chance? I already find it miraculous that I got a nomination." In her memories, being an artist was her main job. Even though she ventured into movie acting eventually, it was only because the script was her parents' story. Hence, she was bewildered when she received the news that she had been nominated for the Best Actress award.
"It's different for you."
"Indeed, my ambition has always been to be a famous artist."
The smile was wiped off Lina's face. "I don't mean that. What I meant was, you have resources and connections that I could only dream of having. Don't forget, your Mr. Shen has a well-established foundation here."
Sheng Jiaoyang raised an eyebrow, "Mhmm, and so?"
"… Miss Xu Jiaojiao. Can Miss Xu Jiaojiao please come on stage," Sheng Jiaoyang only caught the host calling her name. She didn't pay attention to what the host said prior to that, as she happened to be talking to Lina.
Lina shoved Sheng Jiaoyang lightly as she said with a smile, "See, I'm right. Go and receive your award."
Sheng Jiaoyang turned to see that it was indeed her photo being plastered on the big screen, or rather the photo of her award-winning character in the movie.
She walked towards the stage with a composed expression, but in her heart, she was actually very puzzled. It felt as though she woke up one day and struck the lottery even though she didn't know when she had bought a lottery ticket.
But Lina mentioned Shen Zhining just now. Could he have secretly intervened? Is Shen Zhining that powerful?
Gu Zhou and Cen Jin, who were seated on the other side, were pretty surprised as well. Initially, Jiaojiao's nomination was already a remarkable feat to them. Of course, it didn't mean that they thought that Jiaojiao didn't have the capability to be nominated. It was mainly because she was still very young and had only been in showbiz for a short period of time. Her nomination caught them by surprise, but it had never crossed their mind that she would stand out amongst so many strong competitors and be awarded such a prestigious international award.
Jiaojiao's fans probably had the same sentiments and felt that she wouldn't win. After all, competition for this award was fierce. And with so many international celebrities in the run, it was already an extraordinary feat to be nominated. The judges were mostly foreigners, so their tastes and judging criteria would be based on the western palette.
However, some fans still stayed up to watch the live broadcast on their mobile phones as their beloved idol attended the ceremony.
When Jiaojiao went on stage to receive the award, many people felt like they were dreaming. They hadn't expected her to easily clinch the award and became an internationally acclaimed Best Actress at such a young age.
When the first wave of people posted about this, those who hadn't watched the live broadcast thought they were joking.
As luck would have it, the time in Beijing was almost seven hours earlier than the time in Berlin due to time zone differences. It was already April 1st in China when the awards ceremony commenced. Many thought that Jiaojiao winning the "Best Actress" award was an April Fool's joke. Some even attempted to find photoshopped traces in the so-called screencaps.
It was only when the full video was released that all of a sudden, every headline was reporting on Jiaojiao clinching the title of ‘Best Actress’ at the film festival.
Yesterday, the Jiao Fan who made a complaint against Jiaojiao updated her Weibo again. She uploaded a photo of Jiaojiao standing in front of the microphone, trophy in hand, with a sweet smile on her face. She attached the following caption: Forget it. Jiao, just continue to be beautiful. We are willing to throw ourselves into various ‘battlefields’ for you.
The following were comments from Jiao Fans.
[Beautiful Jiao must be the idol that has the most proud fans, as she is able to always make them proud. She's such a winner in life that it feels like she is shrouded by the light of Mary Sue.]
[My Jiaojiao is so pretty! Licks screen~]
[Suddenly, I have this feeling that my daughter has grown up. My feelings are so complex now.]
[All of us can see Er Jiao's efforts. She could clearly be a lady boss who simply sits somewhere and counts her money. But yet, she strives so hard. Though it's surprising that she has achieved such great accolades so soon, I can't say I'm really that surprised.]
[I feel that Earth can't take Jiaojiao anymore. She's a supermodel turned boss. She's also a painter, and now, she has even become ‘Best Actress’. What more can she strive for?]
[To the commenter above, what an incisive summary above!]
[I only want to ask Boss @ShenZhiNing, when are you proposing to Jiaojiao?]
At the shooting set of ‘Goodbye, Forever’, the crew and cast didn't commence filming as early as they usually would. Everyone huddled together in their own groups and swiped away at their phone screens. Occasionally, sprouts of exclamations could be heard.
The golden duo - the director and the screenwriter, was also seated in a corner and watching the short clip of Jiaojiao's award-winning moment.
"I was surprised to find out that she was nominated, but who would’ve thought that an even bigger surprise would await us," Qin Anliang remarked.
"When I saw her how calm she was, I assumed she was just going to sit through the festival. I didn't expect her to bring home such a huge award as a first timer to such festivals," Ma Tingting concurred.
"Looks like we don't need to worry about the box office sales for our movie. Her presence alone is enough."
The domestic entertainment industry had been enveloped by Jiaojiao's news. Meanwhile, the subject of hot discussion was enjoying high tea with two beauties.