Chapter 352 - 350: What Gives Her the Right?

Locke Entertainment’s reception area.

A staffer knocked gently on the door and poked their head in. "Lily, Connie’s out of her meeting. She asked for you in her office."

"Alright."

Lily Sterling got to her feet and looked over at Hannah Warner. "Hannah, you can wait for me here. I’ll be back in a bit."

Hannah Warner nodded excitedly. The reception area had glass walls, giving her a clear view of the work area outside. If any celebrities walked by, she would be able to see them perfectly.

Lily Sterling went straight to Connie’s office. Connie was at her desk, head bowed as she flipped through a thick pile of documents. When she looked up and saw it was Lily, a smile broke out on her face. "Congratulations on wrapping the shoot, Lily."

"Thanks, Connie."

Connie set the documents on her desk, then casually pulled open a drawer. She took out a small red box and handed it to Lily. "Here, I got a little something for you."

Lily was taken aback for a moment, but she quickly reached out to accept it. Opening the box, she saw a small, golden gourd pendant.

Connie’s voice was soft and gentle as she explained, "I went to the Temple of Serene Light last week and had this blessed by a master. All the artists I sign get a little gift like this. I originally wanted to get you a Golden Pear, but they’re really hard to find, so I picked this little gourd instead. It’s shaped like a pear, and the symbolism is good, too!"

Hearing Connie’s explanation, the golden gourd in Lily’s hand suddenly felt much heavier.

Everyone knew Connie was a devout Buddhist, so an object blessed by her was sure to be auspicious. Lily was incredibly moved and deeply grateful.

"Thank you, Connie. I’ll be sure to keep it with me always."

Connie smiled warmly, picked up her thermos from the desk, and motioned for Lily to sit in the office’s sofa area. Only then did she ask with concern, "This film must have been mentally draining, right?"

Lily nodded gently. Although the shooting schedule wasn’t long, the subject matter had made it an excruciating experience for her. Director Titus Ashton had even told her that what they portrayed was a toned-down version of the hardship the real people had endured.

Even though she had fully immersed herself in the character, she still couldn’t fathom the true extent of suffering the real-life person had gone through.

"That’s normal. You’re just starting out, so you’re still gaining experience. Veterans who have been acting for decades can get into character easily and snap out of it just as fast. You might still need to work on that. Since this role took such a mental toll, you should take some time off to slowly pull yourself out of it. There’s no rush to take on a new film."

"Thanks, Connie. That’s what I was thinking, too. I wanted to go back to school for a while."

But Connie still pulled out a new script.

"Take this home and look it over when you have a chance. It’s a realistic youth drama series. There’s a character in it named Joanna, one of the main roles. See if you’re interested. I have a feeling you’ll be willing to give it a try!"

Lily took the script and noticed the cover was completely blank, without even a project title.

Connie explained right on cue, "The title is still being decided. I know you turned down that ’Campus Life’ script before, but you rejected it because of the role, not the genre."

"But this character, Joanna, is very distinctive. She’s a rebellious, eccentric teenage girl who goes against the grain—a stark contrast to your own personality. That’s why I thought you might be interested."

"Just take a look first. Immersing yourself in a new role will help you detach from the previous one. If you read it and decide you don’t want to do it, that’s fine too. No pressure."

Lily stared at the script in a daze for a moment before looking up at Connie. She asked hesitantly, "Connie, if I want to play this role... it’ll be mine, just like that?"

Connie nodded instinctively.

Lily lowered her gaze. "Why?" she asked. "Is it because I’m your artist, so you can just...?"

Lily didn’t know how to finish the question, but the doubt had suddenly surfaced in her mind.

’Maybe she hadn’t noticed anything after one or two films, but by the third, she should have caught on!’

’What had she done to deserve this?’

’This doubt wasn’t born from a lack of confidence in herself, nor in Connie. She was just keenly aware of how fierce the competition in this industry was. She was just a rookie. Even if signing with Connie meant opportunities kept landing in her lap, to be allowed to casually pick roles, and even reject scripts offered by the company...’

’What gave her that right?’

’Because your sister is investing in this show!’ Connie thought.

But she certainly couldn’t say that to Lily’s face. If Lily were ever to find out, it had to be from her sister’s own mouth.

"You don’t understand now, but you will in the future," Connie said, her tone deliberately profound.

Her delivery was so masterful that it completely stumped Lily for a moment.

Lily assumed it was just another one of those complex industry rules she didn’t understand. She figured it really must be because of Connie that she was getting such amazing resources.

Just as she was processing this, there was a sudden knock at the door.

It was Heather Keaton!

Lily quickly stood up to greet her. "Heather!"

"Lily!" Heather Keaton was as gorgeous as ever, her sparkling eyes landing on Lily. "You wrapped the shoot! Did it go smoothly?"

Lily nodded. "It went very smoothly."

Sensing that Heather had something to discuss with Connie, Lily turned to her agent. "Connie, I’ll head out then. Oh, right, I’d like to request two weeks of paid leave for Yuna and Finn. They were with me filming in the mountains for two months, and it was really tough on them..."

"Sure. Have them send their personal information to the finance department and fill out a form."

"Thanks, Connie."

After saying goodbye to Heather, Lily left.

The moment the door closed, the cheerful expression on Heather Keaton’s beautiful face vanished. She walked straight to the chair opposite Connie and sat down.

Connie watched her reaction and frowned. "What is it now?"

"I’m not doing it!"

The four words were spoken decisively, her attitude firm.

Connie couldn’t help but chuckle at her words. Seeing this, Heather pouted. "Connie!"

"Oh, come on. Have you even read the script before saying you won’t do it?"

"No!" Heather pursed her lips. "But I really don’t want to play another one of these modern youth drama roles. Connie, don’t you think my roles are getting too repetitive? The audience might not be tired of it, but I’m sick and tired of playing them. I want to act in different genres, something with a real breakthrough!"

This wasn’t the first time Heather had asked Connie about changing her career track and breaking out of her typecast, but Connie had never once agreed.

Connie had personally approved all of Heather’s scripts and roles. In other words, every single decision on Heather’s step-by-step climb to the top of the acting world had been made for her by Connie.

This time, as expected, Connie shook her head. "Wanting a breakthrough is a good thing, but not right now. The timing isn’t right."

Heather was so sick of hearing that line she could scream. She shook her head, exasperated, and looked at Connie. "Then why does Lily get to play whatever she wants? She’s just a rookie. Don’t tell me the timing is ’right’ for her?"