Chapter 24

Once Xia Xi calmed down, she began to regret her decision, feeling she had acted impulsively. She had no idea where Da He’s confidence in her came from, nor did she understand what had come over her in that moment to make her agree so rashly.
Who was Fang Zichen? He was an insurmountable peak in the music industry. Many dreamed of collaborating with him, yet they also feared it.
No matter who shared the stage with him, they would inevitably be overshadowed by his brilliance. To make matters worse, his vocal tone was so unique and versatile that he could master almost any genre. His voice had been praised by numerous nationally recognized music experts as "kissed by God." With such a musical god as her partner, Xia Xi was certain she would be completely eclipsed by his radiance.
At this thought, Xia Xi couldn't help but sigh silently to herself. Though she knew that collaborating with Fang Zichen might bring her significant benefits, it could also come with potential dangers. Given her cautious nature, she would have preferred to stick to what she was sure of, advancing steadily step by step.
But things had already reached this point, she had impulsively agreed, and there was no room for regret now. Xia Xi felt that overthinking it was useless; it was better to accept reality.
Xia Xi calculated that there was still nearly a month until the recording of Cross-Border Singing Joy, and her scenes in Fate of Immortals were almost finished, likely wrapping up in about a week. Although she only had a raw, instinctual ability for singing and knew nothing about technique, she considered herself fortunate that there was still plenty of time to learn singing and dancing, a small silver lining in an otherwise unfortunate situation.
She tried to comfort herself by finding the bright side.
By the time Xia Xi returned alone to the hotel, it was already very late. She had originally planned to question the system thoroughly upon returning, hoping it would clear up her doubts. But to her frustration, the system remained unresponsive, ignoring all her calls as if it were deliberately slacking off.
After such a draining day, Xia Xi was both physically and mentally exhausted, with no energy left to dwell on her perplexing questions. So, she decided to call it a night, she would wash up, sleep, and leave the tangled issues for tomorrow.
After changing into her pajamas and lying in bed, Xia Xi gazed at the bright streetlights outside her window, and much of her gloom dissipated. Silently, she prayed that tomorrow her life would return to calm and that she could smoothly finish filming Fate of Immortals.
The next day, when Xia Xi arrived at the Fate of Immortals set, she noticed that everyone was looking at her strangely, with a mix of envy, schadenfreude, and pity.
Frowning slightly, she pretended not to care and quietly took a seat on a bench in the corner of the set. Casually observing how others were treating her, she realized that people were subtly ignoring her. Those who used to greet her warmly had all vanished.
What on earth had happened?
Xia Xi pressed her lips together. Though puzzled by the situation, she wasn’t in a hurry to ask others for an explanation. She felt that even if she did inquire, she would likely be given vague answers, their avoidance was proof enough.
Her fingers unconsciously tapped lightly on the table, producing a soft "tap, tap, tap" sound. Xia Xi quietly made a plan in her mind: she would wait for Song Yuan to arrive and have her discreetly find out what was going on. Song Yuan was adept at extracting information smoothly.
With a plan in place, Xia Xi felt more settled. Her initial panic had mostly faded, replaced by a growing calm. Still, she thought it best to keep herself busy to distract from the unease.
At that moment, Xia Xi happened to notice the script lying at the edge of the table and instinctively reached for it. But just as her fingers brushed against its edge, someone else swiftly snatched it away.
What was going on?
Xia Xi froze for a moment, a flicker of irritation flashing through her mind. Frowning, she lifted her head and looked in the direction of the hand that had taken the script. She saw Ye Xin holding the script she had just snatched away, staring at Xia Xi with ill intentions, a faint, mocking smile playing on her lips.
What nonsense was she up to today?
"Xia Xi, you must have some powerful connections, even a superstar like Fang Zichen is performing as your guest. Someone like you, who’s always scheming to get ahead through backdoors, doesn’t need to pretend to be hardworking and diligent." As Ye Xin spoke, her eyes were full of schadenfreude, and her tone carried a subtle, biting sarcasm. "Honestly, a third-rate artist like you doesn’t deserve to act alongside me. You’ve obtained resources that many people can only dream of without putting in any effort. It might seem like you’ve gotten a good deal, but I wonder if you’ll even have the luck to enjoy it. Even if you get top-tier resources, it’s nothing but a waste on someone like you."
Although Xia Xi was puzzled about what had happened to make Ye Xin so bold and fearless, she maintained her composure on the surface. She knew that in an argument, the more indifferent one appeared, the more infuriating it was to the other party. So, Xia Xi looked at Ye Xin and let out a light, unconcerned chuckle. "Well, there’s no need for you to worry about that."
"Stubborn till the very end." Xia Xi’s attitude indeed provoked Ye Xin into a fit of rage. A flash of jealousy and resentment quickly crossed her eyes as she glared down at Xia Xi condescendingly. "Let’s see if all your efforts end up being in vain this time!"
As she spoke, she gave Xia Xi a thorough once-over, her eyes filled with a sense of "serves you right." Just thinking about the predicament Xia Xi was about to face, Ye Xin felt as if she had finally vented all her pent-up frustrations, and all her previous grievances vanished.
Heh, let’s see how much longer you can keep this up!
Watching Ye Xin’s retreating figure after that mocking laugh, Xia Xi frowned slightly. Sitting in her chair, she thoughtfully gazed at the script Ye Xin had crumpled into a ball, sensing that something uncontrollable might have happened. After all, even if Ye Xin lacked brains, she wouldn’t openly mock Xia Xi so blatantly, especially since she wasn’t foolish. In the entertainment industry, people rarely tore into each other face-to-face; most resorted to underhanded tactics behind the scenes.
Something must have really gone wrong.
Just as this thought crossed her mind, Xia Xi saw Song Yuan rushing onto the set with a panicked expression, scanning the area anxiously. The moment Song Yuan spotted Xia Xi, she hurried over in her direction. Even from a distance, Xia Xi could sense her urgency.
The sense of foreboding in Xia Xi’s heart grew stronger. She felt that whatever was happening this time was likely serious, otherwise, Ye Xin wouldn’t have been so brazen, and Song Yuan wouldn’t be so frantic.
"Sister Xia Xi, it’s bad, really bad! Something huge has happened!" Song Yuan gasped as she reached Xia Xi’s side, her eyes filled with anxiety. Sweat dripped down her forehead, her bangs were damp and clung limply to her skin, and her entire appearance was disheveled and distressed.
Song Yuan gave Xia Xi a rough account of what had happened, but because she was too agitated, she failed to clearly explain the entire sequence of events.
"Don't rush, take your time," Xia Xi said, pursing her lips as she handed the water glass beside her to Song Yuan, urging her to take a sip and calm down. "After all, what's done is done. There's no need to hurry now."
Perhaps it was Xia Xi's composed demeanor that gradually soothed the initially frantic Song Yuan. After taking a sip of water, she collected her thoughts and relayed the key points of the incident to Xia Xi.
So, this was how it happened.