CHAPTER 678: CHAPTER 60: THE CELEBRITY EFFECT

"Is this some kind of mistake? It was clearly agreed that I would shoot the Nai Xiang advertisement, so how come in the blink of an eye, that little seductress Wang Keke snatched it away? What’s the matter with the manager," fumed the famous actress Chen Sha, surrounded by her assistants as she entered the Beijing Hotel. Today, she was using the venue to film a new idol drama called "Chinese Youth."

Chen Sha has been famous in the entertainment circle for almost seven or eight years now, this year turning twenty-six. By rights, her age isn’t considered old, but in the entertainment industry, where new generations are emerging endlessly, her lovely face has begun to wear on ad agencies. She and the currently popular actress Wang Keke are under the same management agency, inevitably running into each other often. To hear that her own advertisement was replaced by someone else, her heart was boiling with rage.

"Sasha, don’t be angry. It’s all because that Wang Keke has a capable sugar daddy." The assistant didn’t dare to speak the truth – Wang Keke’s last big-brand makeup advertisement had a very good effect, and recently she did a ’black hair witch’ ad, with everyone praising her for being young and beautiful. When Chen Sha first made her name, she also had such glorious days. At twenty, she didn’t need to take any beauty treatments, pulling several all-nighters, a bit of sleep would refresh her completely the next day.

Unlike Chen Sha, who, after passing twenty-five, still pursued the pure and innocent image, even if she flew continuously to South Korea, Thailand, and the United States for various skin whitening treatments, as she gradually aged and had to stay up all night filming, dining out for social engagements, even makeup could barely cover the freckles and the forming lines on her face.

Chen Sha knew the assistant was trying to comfort her, but what could be done? She hadn’t had it easy getting to where she was today. They had just passed through the revolving doors of the Beijing Hotel when they saw Wang Keke arm in arm with a chubby middle-aged man striding arrogantly over.

"Sister Sha, long time no see. Thank you for accepting the ’Audience’s Favorite Actress Award’ at the White Flower Awards on my behalf last time," Wang Keke’s delicate face came a bit closer. She was young enough and had hired a good makeup artist, making her makeup look very fresh and youthful. The current trend in the entertainment industry favored this type of ’fresh and natural’ look, and supposedly, Nai Xiang had taken a shine to Wang Keke’s pure aura.

Chen Sha was seething with fury. What could she do? To the company and the audience, this type of red-hot new face was the real cash cow. After all, Chen Sha had been in the industry for quite a while and knew when to advance or retreat. Although she was upset inside, she managed a symbolic smile on her face and shook hands with the middle-aged man.

"Oh my, Sister Sha, you’ve got laugh lines when you smile now; that’s not good. I’ve got this collagen product, recommended by an advertiser who approached me. It’s just that I’m still too young to endorse such products, as I worry it might mislead my fans. How about I give you this box?" Wang Keke, while speaking, signaled to her assistant to hand over a brand of oral collagen supplement to the other assistant.

Chen Sha, swallowing her anger, sat down in the lounge bar of the Beijing Hotel. She took out a mirror and carefully examined the emerging laugh lines at the corner of her mouth – was she really getting old?

"Sasha?" The assistant tossed the box of collagen into a trash bin.

"Order two drinks, the crew hasn’t arrived yet," Chen Sha sighed and signaled to the waiter.

A waitress dressed in a dark red cheongsam approached, recognized Chen Sha, and asked respectfully, "Miss Chen, what would you like to order?"

"The weather’s cold, and my stomach isn’t feeling great. Give me something warm to drink, no coffee or tea." Chen Sha was indeed in a bad mood and seemed much more finicky when ordering than usual.

The assistant, standing by and listening, cautiously glanced at the waitress’s expression. The waiters and waitresses in such grand hotels were also opportunistic, and seeing Sasha making such a difficult order, they might start gossiping the next day, alleging Sasha was acting like a diva.

The friendly waitress suggested, "Miss Chen, we’ve got a new cherry juice in our hotel recently, with a warm ginger-flavored hot cherry juice. It can whiten the skin and warm the stomach. Would you like two cups?"

"Hot ginger cherry? Is there such a strange flavor? Sasha, why not have something else, like soy milk or something?"

"A new flavor isn’t better? Everyone likes new things. I’m going to see what’s so good about these new products." Chen Sha responded noncommittally and directly asked the waitress to bring two cups of hot cherry juice.