Chapter 320 - 318: I Won’t Be Using Her Again

"Alright, you two, enough with the mutual flattery."

Titus Ashton walked up, a helpless look on his face. He glanced at Lily Sterling, then at Jean Donovan, before saying to Jean, "Frank Fletcher is looking for you. Why haven’t you gone to him yet?"

Hearing this, Jean Donovan’s face flushed. "What does he want with me?"

Titus Ashton frowned, looking at her with an amused expression. "You just confessed to him in front of everyone. Don’t you think he’d want to talk to you about it? Shouldn’t you give him some kind of explanation?"

Lily Sterling, watching from the side, saw how things were shaping up. ’Jean Donovan’s brave move might have won over the assistant director. They probably have a shot.’

Jean Donovan, who had just been fearlessly bold, was now acting shy and hesitant. Lily Sterling gave her a gentle push. "Go on, or you’ll miss your chance. We only have a few days left before we wrap."

With that, Jean Donovan nodded, looking a bit embarrassed, and turned to head in Frank Fletcher’s direction.

Lily Sterling turned her gaze back to the director, her expression apologetic. "Director, I’m sorry for the trouble just now. But I felt it had to be said. I was really happy to be in this film, and I didn’t want a few individuals to ruin my fond memories of this special experience."

Titus Ashton stood with his hands in his pockets, his posture slightly slumped. He gave a slight nod. "It wasn’t any trouble. I share some of the responsibility for this."

"You’ve worked with Jade Smithson a few times, haven’t you?"

Titus Ashton nodded. "There have been all sorts of rumors floating around the set on other films before. I’m the kind of person who doesn’t dwell on things. For me, it’s all about the film. Making a good film is the only thing I care about, so I never got involved."

"I won’t comment on Jade’s character, but the reason I’ve worked with her multiple times is that she’s a good actress and very cooperative during filming. You’ve seen that for yourself, so you should understand."

Lily Sterling understood what Titus Ashton meant. As a director, his only requirement for an actor was good acting, and Jade Smithson was, indeed, a good actress.

Titus Ashton paused, then added, "But today’s incident has made me realize something. If you ignore hidden dangers for too long, they’re bound to explode. I probably won’t be working with her again."

Before Lily Sterling could respond, Titus Ashton waved his hand dismissively. "Alright, let’s leave it at that for now. Go get some rest. I’m going to get a bite to eat myself."

Seeing this, Lily Sterling nodded and watched Titus Ashton walk away.

"Lily!"

Yuri Tucker, who had been waiting quietly in the distance, walked over with a grave expression once the director had left.

Lily Sterling couldn’t help but smile when she saw his expression. "Why the long face?"

"I’m sorry." Yuri Tucker felt incredibly guilty. If it weren’t for him, Lily wouldn’t have been burdened with such a ridiculous rumor.

Lily Sterling looked baffled. "What do you have to be sorry for? It’s not your fault. At the end of the day, you’re a victim in this too. The rumor wasn’t just about me."

"But nobody cares what happens to me. You’re the woman, and these kinds of topics always center on the woman," Yuri Tucker said in a low voice.

Hearing him say that, Lily Sterling was a little shocked and surprised. It seemed she hadn’t expected Yuri Tucker to be able to see the pros and cons of the situation entirely from her perspective.

And just as he said, it wasn’t limited to just her. Whenever there were rumors on set involving a man and a woman, the woman was always the one who got talked about. The man always managed to slip away unscathed, sometimes even becoming an object of envy for others.

’It really is ridiculous when you think about it.’

"The fact that you can think about it that way already makes you a hundred times better than most guys. You don’t need to blame yourself. I’m not going to take my anger out on anyone but Jade Smithson for this. It’s her fault, and hers alone. You and I are both innocent in this, aren’t we?"

At this point, Lily Sterling suddenly asked him, "We’re about to wrap up. What are your plans after this film is finished? Are you going back to Starwood?"

Yuri Tucker seemed to have a plan already, blurting out without a second thought, "I’m not going back for now. After this filming experience, I feel like I need to take my acting to the next level. I’m not satisfied with just being an extra anymore, so I want to sign up for Phoebe Perry’s acting class and really study the craft systematically."

Lily Sterling’s eyes lit up when she heard this. She supported Yuri Tucker’s ambition and desire to learn from the bottom of her heart.

"That’s great. But Phoebe Perry’s classes are very expensive. Are you willing to spend the money?"

"This film was my first big score. I’m going to use the money for the class!"

"I thought you’d be reluctant to spend it."

Because Yuri Tucker was normally a very frugal and simple person, Lily Sterling had assumed he would save the money or send it home after earning so much for the first time. She never expected him to use it to improve his acting.

"What about you, Lily? Are you joining another production after this one wraps?"

Lily Sterling smiled and shook her head. "Not for a while. This role took a lot out of me. I think I need some time to slowly disconnect, rest up, and go back to school to recharge. I don’t have any definite plans after that."

Yuri Tucker nodded in understanding. "Well, you’re definitely going to be a huge star when *Heavenly Destiny as Phoenix* airs. You won’t be short on offers."

Lily Sterling just smiled without saying anything. In the entertainment industry, becoming famous, whether one could become famous, and how famous one could become were all a matter of metaphysics. Connie once told her, "Minor fame can be engineered, but major stardom is destined by fate." Most of the top celebrities in the industry right now just had good fortune on their side.

As for how much real talent they had, very few had anything impressive to show for it.

Fortunately, whether she became famous or not wasn’t that important to her, so she wasn’t troubled by it.

Back at the lot where the RVs were parked, the lights in Jade Smithson’s RV were off. She was probably hiding inside, too ashamed to face anyone.

Lily Sterling walked over to her own RV and found Yuna and Finn packing things for a little girl.

The little girl was none other than the one who had taught her how to wash clothes on a stone slab by the river.

"Sheila!"

Lily Sterling called out happily and walked over. Sheila turned her head at the sound, and when she saw Lily, she called out sweetly, "Lily!"

Lily Sterling went up to her and put a hand on Sheila’s shoulder, looking curiously at the several plastic bags that Finn and Yuna had packed. They were filled with food: bread, milk, luncheon meat, and other things.

"What are you guys doing?" Lily Sterling asked.

Finn spoke up and explained, "We’re wrapping up soon, and all this stuff is leftover. Yuna and I decided to give it to Sheila. She has younger siblings at home."

Yuna added, "Andrew Sutton and Connie brought a ton of stuff last time they came, and there’s a lot left. We just happened to run into Sheila on our way back and thought we’d give it to her. Otherwise, it would go to waste."

Lily Sterling nodded. The packages were all unopened. Several full bags like that would last a long time.

"How come you’re back from school so early today?" Lily Sterling asked Sheila, a casual note of concern in her voice.