Brian Foster had his mouth full of cake and couldn’t speak, so he just smiled awkwardly. But then a voice came from behind: “Him? He just can’t gain weight.”

As soon as the words fell, Emily Thompson, dressed in a black suit, plopped down right next to Brian Foster. Brian Foster chewed his cake slowly and looked at her.

Emily Thompson sighed. “Aren’t you even a little worried about your audition?”

Brian Foster finally swallowed the last bite. “Worrying won’t help.”

“Did you check Weibo?” Emily Thompson took out her phone.

Brian Foster shook his head. Ever since he got back to the company, he’d been rehearsing nonstop—he barely had time to sleep, let alone scroll through Weibo.

Emily Thompson handed her phone to Brian Foster. “I was just thinking yesterday that we should get the word out first, link your image to the movie, but someone beat us to it.”

Brian Foster looked at the phone. Several familiar marketing accounts had all posted on Weibo during the audition yesterday, with almost identical content: things like “Alan Brooks’s new work, focusing on LGBTQ themes!” “Director Brooks’s new film supports the LGBT community!” “Alan Brooks, Mark King, and Adam Bennett team up again, aiming for the XX award,” and so on. Most of the attention was on the film’s theme and cast.

Brian Foster clicked to read the full Weibo post and saw that it very subtly, almost in passing, mentioned the names of certain artists.

He reached out, opened the comments, and pointed.

“You mean, him?”

Chapter 5: The Ultimate Showdown of Beauty and Acting (Part Five)

Emily Thompson was a bit surprised too. When did this kid get so sharp? He figured it out right away.

The comment he pointed to was exactly what Emily Thompson wanted to mention.

[@winordie]: I’ll say it right here, it’s SC. In a while, there’ll be an official announcement. If it’s not him, I’ll livestream myself eating shit.

This comment was the top one, with nearly seven hundred replies below. There were fans wanting to “take my Chengcheng home,” all sorts of gossipers dropping “hammers,” and clueless onlookers just watching the drama.

Emily Thompson didn’t hold back anymore. “On the surface, these marketing accounts are just promoting Alan Brooks’s new movie, but there are plenty of people stirring things up and making promises in the comments. It’s obvious David Parker’s team has joined forces with paid shills to hype things up. I tried to get some info about his audition yesterday, but the Sean Blake crew is tight-lipped—no news at all.”

Brian Foster thought of David Parker’s sighing and those two sweet dimples: “Maybe his team feels pretty confident, so they’ve started promoting on Weibo?”

He only asked to avoid giving himself away in front of Emily Thompson; Brian Foster had his own calculations.

Yesterday, David Parker had acted completely hopeless in front of him. If that was fake, was it for Ethan Carter to see? To put on pressure? Or to make Ethan Carter let his guard down? If it was real, then David Parker couldn’t possibly get the part just based on the audition. The only possibility was that someone was backing him.

According to Brian Foster’s setup, there were three main investors in “南柯”: Shengda Guanghua, Xinyao, and Dingming Century.

Ironically, in the original story, the reason David Parker couldn’t join the “南柯” cast was because Ethan Carter had investor support.

Now, the only thing certain is that David Parker’s backer is definitely not the same as Ethan Carter’s.

Emily Thompson quickly dismissed Brian Foster’s “guess.” “Impossible. With resources like this, nothing is certain until the contract is signed. Besides, he wasn’t the only one who did well. If he’s in such a rush, it must mean the capital is in place and they’re testing the waters.”

After saying this, Emily Thompson looked at Brian Foster, her expression hesitant. Brian Foster knew the plot, so he naturally knew what she was thinking. Strangely, having this script knowledge made him feel a bit inappropriately happy.

“Yun-jie, what do you want to say?”

Seeing that he gave her an opening, Emily Thompson didn’t wait another second. “To be blunt, opportunities like this don’t come around often. Since they’re already playing the capital card, we can’t just let it go.” Seeing Brian Foster stay silent, she continued, “I’ve arranged a dinner with Ryan Cooper—President Cooper of Dingming Century. After we finish up, let’s go together.”

“I’m not going.” These three words from Brian Foster were said calmly, without a hint of petulance.

Emily Thompson was annoyed, but kept her voice down. “What’s with you? It’s not like I’m pimping you out. President Cooper’s daughter has been your die-hard fan since your debut. They were the ones who suggested this dinner. You don’t have to do anything—just have a meal alone with his daughter. Dingming Century’s investment is said to be significant, so they should have enough say.”

Brian Foster still shook his head. “Yun-jie, I’m not being difficult. I have my own reasons. Please trust me this once.”

There are all kinds of agents: some are master strategists who keep their artists in the dark, some treat their artists like cash cows to be squeezed dry, and some fuss over them like a mother hen. Outsiders see Emily Thompson as the first type, but only insiders know she’s the last. If Brian Foster didn’t want to do something, no matter how much Emily Thompson sighed, she couldn’t force him.

Brian Foster added, “Do you have President Cooper’s number? I’ll call him myself to apologize.”