Chapter 151: Conveying Affection and Inspiration
After hearing the director's new requirements for the music video from the "money-powered couple," Li Sishi was somewhat amused and exasperated: "These are truly amazing CP fans who say, 'You two have a shallow fate, it's all thanks to my money.'"
However, the charitable donation of one million was too tempting. Even though she wouldn't get a single penny of it, Li Sishi was still genuinely happy about it.
On the one hand, doing good deeds does bring happiness; on the other hand, while charitable donations are encouraged to be within one's means, if the amount of money donated for a performance is substantial enough, it can certainly help boost Li Sishi's market value.
After all, this indirectly confirms her popularity and buzz during this period.
Whether this "price" will change in the future is still unknown, but in this circle, it is always more difficult to rise than to fall. Therefore, every new upper limit is a question that needs to be carefully considered.
Since Li Sishi, as a female artist, has no objection to this, then Ling Chen, as a male artist, is even less likely to have any objection—in fact, he might even be secretly pleased.
Thinking of this guy's straight ball when he was in the Million Line, Li Sishi couldn't help but sigh: This is really a sweet trouble.
If I weren't in this industry, and such a handsome guy showed interest in me and remained consistently enthusiastic, I probably would have already agreed to date him and see if we were compatible...
Unfortunately, both of them work in the entertainment industry. Putting aside the fact that their status and level in the industry are not equal, Li Sishi's contradictory identity as a beauty pageant contestant and a wealthy heiress is a very thorny problem.
It's common for beauty pageant contestants to use their connections with wealthy men and big shots to climb the social ladder, and it's also not uncommon for male celebrities to seek out rich heiresses to avoid decades of hard work. So, these two are both each other's opportunists and opportunists, and no matter which angle you take it from, it will be a good topic to keep gossip tabloids busy for a while.
In addition to traditional ideas that have not been covered by modern thought, when a couple announces their relationship and is accepted by the public, although it can achieve a binding effect of one plus one being greater than two, most people will start urging them to get married and have children, asking the woman how she will balance family and career in the future, and sometimes even advising her to focus on family... For Li Sishi, who is focused on her career, this is an unbearable point where the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.
Especially in these charity galas in the port city, there are many seniors and elders from various circles. Once a younger person has a confirmed romantic relationship, it's inevitable that they'll be brought up for friendly gossip.
They chatted for a while and even cheered each other on, urging each other to get married.
And those fans who were so worried about him in the early hours of the morning were already willing to spend money to buy him candy even before they had any definite news. If they do get a definite answer in the future, will they still be able to control themselves?
Although Li Sishi accepts interactive marketing to cooperate slightly for the sake of publicity, it doesn't mean she can accept the shift in focus where people concentrate on her love life instead of her career progress every time she goes on stage to perform.
As for Ling Chen, who was completely unaware that he had been "implicated" by his fans, he was actually quite happy at this moment: it was rare that most of his fans liked the girl he liked. If he could win her over and go public with their relationship, they wouldn't be like Yan Yingyi and Zhang Zhichen before, where the public would be pessimistic and look down on them, and everyone would be hoping for the day when they would break up.
Soon after, Li Sishi changed into her dress for the shoot and began to stand in the positions that had been arranged beforehand. The song they were shooting this time was a standard love song, and in the early hours of the morning, the music video for love songs usually featured him posing as a deeply affectionate and melancholic character, as if he had just been dumped by his girlfriend...
In addition, since the original female lead was not in the entertainment industry, apart from the added scenes of the "money power couple" later on, the male and female leads were really just in their own little worlds, wallowing in self-pity, with very little interaction.
This kind of solo, beautiful shooting is quick and doesn't require synchronized audio recording. Two teams working together quickly produced a lot of usable footage.
So the director then gestured for Li Sishi and Ling Chen to walk to the central set to film the extra scenes requested by the "money power couple".
I don't know if it's true that genuine emotions are more real than acting or pretense, but when he looked over at dawn to the music of "My One True Love Is You"—in a more popular way in later generations, his gaze was so tender it was almost palpable.
Meeting the expectant gazes of the rich woman and the wealthy man, Li Sishi professionally returned his gaze with the same tender look, then slightly tilted her head and leaned on his shoulder, striking a pose as if they were a young couple embracing affectionately.
The music video that would be shown at the charity gala was naturally not a trade secret, so no one stopped the rich woman from taking pictures. In fact, they encouraged her to take as many pictures as she wanted. So the rich woman snapped a bunch of photos that she would later show off at fan gatherings before finally letting the director call for the two of them to separate.
Li Sishi stretched her limbs, which were stiff from holding the position for too long, and inadvertently looked up towards the early morning.
You could immediately see the smile in his eyes, perfectly complementing his outfit.
A light pink suit can instantly evoke the image of a classic, handsome, and gentle dream lover from a young girl's dreams.
Unfortunately, she prefers being liked by everyone to being liked by handsome guys.
After politely saying goodbye to the wealthy couple, Li Sishi hurried to the studio near Factory No. 1 for rehearsal. She wouldn't need to worry about the music video after it was filmed, but she still had singing and playing games at the gala tonight. Since she still had some time, she could rehearse on the spot and preview her movements for the event.
Coincidentally, her upcoming new song "If I Were a Myth" perfectly embodies her consistent style of "philanthropy," so tonight she won't be singing anyone else's song but will be performing her own, which will also serve as a way to promote her own music.
However, the other side of singing new songs like this is that the amount of donations raised is less, only slightly higher than that of ordinary second-tier singers, around 200,000 yuan. In the face of the real commercial value assessment data, there has always been a difference in the value of male and female artists in Hong Kong. Female artists of the same level are often one or two levels lower than male artists.
Before she truly rises to the top tier of female artists, Li Sishi's personal appeal is only this much.
The previous support from a family friend of Madam Li doesn't count. For a female artist like Li Sishi who is still struggling, if she wants to raise more funds, she has to rely on the coattails of a top-tier partner to avoid making her fundraising figures look too bad.
After briefly estimating the amount of money she could raise tonight, Li Sishi was still somewhat dissatisfied with her current situation: the timing was really bad, as "Mermaid Romance" and "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" had not yet premiered. She had spent so much time and energy filming these two dramas, but she couldn't reap the benefits of their success yet.
Just as she was lamenting to herself that she was "born at the wrong time," someone suddenly patted her on the back: "Ah May, where did you go? Why did it take you so long to come back?"
Turning around, Li Sishi saw that the person filming her was Cheng Erjian, who looked concerned. She waved her hand and said, "It's nothing. The rich woman who paid to film the MV with me at dawn couldn't film it at the last minute, so she paid me extra to be her replacement. I just came back from filming the MV at the factory next door."
Cheng Erjian frowned slightly, but seeing Li Sishi's slightly tired appearance, he didn't say anything. He could only give her the unopened bottle of mineral water in his hand: "Then you should take a break. Your singing performance is scheduled for earlier in the evening."
"Thank you." Li Sishi took the bottle of mineral water, unscrewed it, and took a swig, then let out a long sigh of relief, looking like she was finally getting a much-needed rest after being exhausted to the extreme.
He looked quite content.
After resting with her eyes closed for two minutes, Li Sishi stood up energetically, grabbed the microphone, and went to line up to wait for her turn to rehearse on stage.
Rehearsal time always flies by, and Li Sishi only arrived close to sunset. After a quick two rehearsals, it was almost time to start. So she quickly went to the backstage dressing room, asked her assistant to help her change into a dress for her singing performance, and then came out to find a spot to do her makeup and hair.
To match the song's fresh and natural style, the look this time is still a white dress and girlish style, with long black hair styled into a slightly fluffy curl. Looking in the mirror, she looks exactly like a standard goddess, like a first love or a white moonlight.
After thanking the stylist and makeup artist for their skillful work, Li Sishi went to the waiting area under the stage and listened attentively as the host called her name.
Upon hearing this, she immediately and gracefully walked forward and upward, passing over the stage curtains, and emerged into the public eye under the spotlights.
Seeing the small pink flags held up on a row of seats in the audience, Li Sishi smiled sweetly, leaving another deep and beautiful impression on the viewers in front of the television in the close-up broadcast.
"Next, I'll be performing one of my new songs, 'If I Were a Myth'—"
"Prideinyoureyes, rewrote the second half of my life, found me in your eyes, and the confidence I had lost..."
Most of the charitable donations from people with a public spirit are used to help people with disabilities. During the daytime walk for a million people, Li Sishi even saw a boy on crutches pushing a girl in a wheelchair to support the event. So when she sang this song tonight, she tried to amplify the "inspirational flavor" of the song and use her voice to encourage those who have encountered setbacks and difficulties but still bravely stood up and continued to live.
"Believe me if I am, I am singing in the sky, for you make my life more joyful..."
The girl with black hair and a white dress stood against a colorful stage backdrop, like a flowing ink painting. Her catchy yet gentle voice, especially in the chorus, seemed to possess a calm yet passionate power, like a sun-drenched early summer breeze, conveying a sense of comfort that warms the heart.
This gentle, melodious yet powerful song not only resonated with the audience at the venue and those watching on television, but also, in the eyes of some industry insiders, heralded the rise of a new star who would forge a new path in Hong Kong's current music scene, dominated by love songs.
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