Chapter 35: World 2 [5] Part 1

Three minutes later, Shao Qing finished the noodles in her bowl and casually unscrewed the mineral water bottle to take a sip of water.

As the time on her wrist jumped to 6:00 sharp, Jing Ke fell silent for a moment. It wasn’t until 6:03 that she spoke up again, telling Shao Qing the benefits of binding with her.

【If you sign a contract with me, I will provide you with assistance continuously until the end of your life.】

【I will not discard you after use, nor will I suddenly leave without a word, and I certainly won’t do anything detrimental to you.】

【I will do my utmost to help you. You can quickly escape your current predicament, wash away the stigma on your name, stand on the stage that rightfully belongs to you, and win the awards you’ve dreamed of.】

Hearing Jing Ke’s words, Shao Qing’s eyelids couldn’t help but twitch.

Binding to Jing Ke would tie them together until the end of her life? Wouldn’t she never be able to get rid of this ghost thing that claimed to be a high-dimensional being?

As for those words about not discarding her and doing her utmost to help, Shao Qing didn’t believe a single word.

Shao Qing hadn’t forgotten what Jing Ke had said herself—she had helped another person steal her fortune. Who’s to say she hadn’t used the same spiel when signing a contract with that person?

【You seem to distrust me. Was there some deficiency in my earlier performance?】 Receiving no response, Jing Ke showed a puzzled expression.

She had been very dutiful in the past three hours. Whichever guest the live stream camera was focused on, what the audience’s reaction was, and the movements of netizens and paid trolls—she’d told Shao Qing everything immediately, without any concealment.

Shao Qing still didn’t respond to the voice of Jing Ke in her mind. Instead, she started chatting with Yu Hongjun, who was sitting beside her, about some performance techniques.

Shao Qing was very talented in acting. In university, she had been praised more than once by her teachers for her talent and comprehension. It was the same once she entered film crews; directors and actors who worked with Shao Qing never hesitated to compliment her.

Yu Hongjun herself was a true powerhouse of acting and a veteran performer. She could tell if an actor had real skill after just a short observation.

So after her conversation with Shao Qing opened up, she naturally voiced the doubt in her heart. “I’ve seen basically all the movies you acted in previously. Your acting skill has no problems; you can hold your own no matter who you act opposite. Why have you shifted your focus to variety shows in the past two years?”

Shao Qing showed a wry, helpless smile at the right moment. “Sister Hong, my acting is indeed good, but I haven’t encountered a suitable role yet.”

“Aren’t you on good terms with Director Hu? When she filmed her new script, didn’t she invite you to join?” Yu Hongjun was somewhat puzzled.

If it were an actor with good acting but average looks, the suitable roles might be relatively fewer. But Shao Qing was someone whose looks and acting were both outstanding! As long as the script was solid, casting someone like her as the lead was a guaranteed box office hit.

“Director Hu does look after me, but there were some… force majeure factors that prevented her from working with me.” The smile on Shao Qing’s face gained a hint of bitterness.

Director Hu was the discerning talent scout who discovered the ‘thousand-mile horse’ that was Shao Qing. It was Director Hu’s favor and recognition that let Shao Qing take the lead as the female protagonist in her junior year, allowing her to win several major awards consecutively upon graduation and become an overnight sensation.

But sometimes, a director can’t control the entire production crew. Even though Director Hu was a renowned director, the same applied; she still had to consider the investors’ opinions.

Originally, seeing Shao Qing’s situation, Director Hu also wanted to extend a helping hand, to collaborate once more with this promising junior, to see if they could win awards again.

The character bio for the female lead was already sent to Shao Qing, the production’s promotion department was planning the official announcement, and she was supposed to join the set in ten days to begin filming.

But, just two days before the official announcement, the biggest investor suddenly expressed a desire to designate their own choice for the female lead, even adding an extra thirty percent of investment for it.

The subject Director Hu wanted to film carried certain risks. If the biggest investor pulled out, her filming plan would be postponed for several years.

So, unwilling to offend the investor, Director Hu had no choice but to ask Shao Qing to switch roles, giving up the female lead position.

But misfortune always comes in droves. Shao Qing, beautiful and brilliant at acting, merely auditioned for the third female lead role, and the crew members were full of praise. This made a certain female lead, backed by an investor, feel a sense of crisis.

That female lead had paid an unknown price for this role. She definitely wouldn’t give it up, nor was she willing to be completely outshone by the third female lead. As a result, the only one leaving the crew was Shao Qing, who had no powerful backer behind her.

Shao Qing felt very bitter inside, but didn’t show much of it in front of Yu Hongjun. The light phrase ‘force majeure’ glossed it over.

As a senior veteran, Yu Hongjun knew very well all these twists and turns in the circle. She didn’t say much more in front of the camera, just patted Shao Qing on the shoulder.

“You have great strength and immense potential. A few simple carvings can turn you into a beautiful jade. Don’t give up because of temporary difficulties. Opportunities will always come.”

Yu Hongjun consoled her, “After this episode finishes recording, I’ll take you to meet some of my friends. They all greatly appreciate actors with real talent.”

“Mm, thank you, Sister Hong.” The smile reappeared on Shao Qing’s face.

While Shao Qing and Yu Hongjun were chatting happily, Jing Ke seriously reflected and self-examined, trying to discover where she had been negligent.

But even by the time Shao Qing crawled into her sleeping bag inside the tent, Jing Ke still hadn’t figured out what exactly she had missed.

【I can also provide the resources you need. If so, are you willing to sign a contract with me?】 Sensing that Shao Qing was preparing to rest, Jing Ke started another attempt.

“I will fight for my own resources. I don’t need you to provide them.” Shao Qing’s face no longer held the smile she habitually wore in front of the camera; she began to show her true emotions.

Shao Qing had carefully read the contract. During filming, besides certain parts involving privacy, the only place without cameras was inside the tents at night. This was an absolutely safe and private space.

【With my help, you can avoid many pitfalls and take far fewer detours.】

“Life is full of things that don’t go your way. I’m getting used to it by now.” Shao Qing seemed completely impervious; no matter what Jing Ke said, she stubbornly refused to bind.

【No matter what I do, are you unwilling to sign a contract with me?】 Jing Ke prepared to make one last attempt.

If Shao Qing was dead set on not cooperating with her, for the sake of fortune, she would have to change partners and hosts.

Jing Ke also needed fortune to maintain her operation and grow stronger. She couldn’t just keep deadlocked with Shao Qing.

“It’s not that I’m unwilling no matter what.” Since she wasn’t sleepy yet, Shao Qing didn’t mind spending a little time chatting with Jing Ke.

“You’re residing in my consciousness without any permission from me. That kind of action makes me feel very insecure, as if my life is in your hands.”

“I value security very much. If you’re willing to tell me your weakness, I think we could still cooperate.” Shao Qing paused, “I want to know the method to expel you from my body. That’s the most basic condition for our cooperation.”

【So that’s it… I understand now.】

【Currently, humanity has no method to expel us, unless the bound person physically dies, which can forcibly sever the connection between us.】

【However, after we establish cooperation, I don’t have to reside in your consciousness. Instead, I can give myself a body and appear by your side in another form.】

“Another form?” Shao Qing was intrigued.

This ghost-thing claiming to be a high-dimensional being, could it have other abilities? Usually, a ghost’s main body can’t be exposed to sunlight, right? Had she encountered a high-level one?

【Yes. After signing a contract with a human, I can mobilize more power, allowing myself to possess a human body as well.】

“So, you’re saying that after I sign a contract with you, you will use the fortune on me to create a body for yourself?” Shao Qing narrowed her eyes slightly.

Shao Qing was somewhat uncertain whether Jing Ke was simple-minded or deliberately acting this way.

【Unnecessary. My current strength is sufficient for me to have a physical form.】 Jing Ke spoke the truth, hoping that this honest method would allow Shao Qing to trust her faster.

But the reality seemed slightly different from what Jing Ke expected. The more honest and non-secretive she was, the heavier Shao Qing’s wariness towards her seemed to become.

“You can’t do many things without signing a contract with me? Then conversely, if I sign a contract, what things can you do? You keep saying you can help me, so may I ask what your plan is?” A little interest was piqued in Shao Qing.

If this ghost named Jing Ke really wasn’t very sharp-witted, perhaps she could be used as a decent tool. This could also prevent her from going off and harming other people.

【You can understand it like this: after signing a contract with you, using my power to interfere with reality will become much easier. As for the plan, I will provide you with useful information to help you perform better in this variety show, thereby gaining some public appeal.】

【Your looks and acting skills have no issues. The reason you can’t get sufficiently good roles is that directors worry your anti-fans are too powerful and the backlash will affect the production side and other actors.】

【Currently, my information gathering and processing capabilities are quite good. Just give me some time, and I can help you post corresponding clarification timelines online. I can also help you filter out paid trolls and trace them back to the mastermind behind the scenes.】

【To put it simply, you can see me, at the present stage, as a supercomputer capable of receiving, processing, and sending massive amounts of information. One of me can rival tens of thousands of paid trolls.】