Chapter 414 - 410: Introduction

But even though Heather Keaton had vouched for her so adamantly, Jett Hughes was still skeptical about Lily Sterling’s acting skills.

"Fine. I guess I’ll have to see for myself if she’s as ’gifted’ as you say."

Just as he said that, Lily Sterling finished talking with her fans and was finally escorted inside by bodyguards.

The younger actors all kept up with the latest happenings in the entertainment industry. Thanks to the broadcast of *Heavenly Destiny as Phoenix*, Lily Sterling had suddenly made a name for herself, so all of them knew who she was.

The moment she appeared, some of the more outgoing actors stood up to greet her.

Having worked on two productions already, Lily, despite her quiet and introverted nature, had long since learned how to interact with new colleagues on set.

"I watched *Heavenly Destiny as Phoenix*! I think you were amazing in it."

"You’re so pretty in person! And your face is so small."

"I love making friends with beautiful women. Let’s exchange WhatsApps!"

Faced with everyone’s enthusiasm, Lily Sterling responded to each person in a calm and measured way. In just a few moments, she had added several new WhatsApp contacts.

"Lily!"

Just then, Heather Keaton smiled and waved at her.

"Heather!"

Finally, a familiar face. Lily instantly felt more at ease and hurried over. "Connie told me you might not make it today. Didn’t you have a promotional event for a brand?"

"The event was postponed. The other international brand ambassador’s flight was delayed, so they had to reschedule. That freed up my day," Heather explained softly. Then she pulled Lily aside and whispered, "First thing on set is to greet the senior actors. I’ll take you around for introductions."

Lily nodded obediently and let Heather lead her over to Jett Hughes.

Jett Hughes was a widely recognized and respected actor. In his thirty-plus years in the business, he had created countless classic on-screen characters. Although he was now middle-aged and past his peak, his status and influence in the industry remained.

"Lily, this is Mr. Jett Hughes. I’m sure you’re familiar with his work," Heather said, making the introduction.

At her core, Lily had a deep admiration for the strong; the more talented someone was, the more she respected them from the bottom of her heart.

Seeing Jett Hughes in person for the first time, Lily couldn’t hide her excitement as she nodded. "Of course! Mr. Hughes, hello. My name is Lily Sterling. I’m a rising sophomore at the Lorcain Film Academy. I’m a huge fan of your work. It’s an incredible honor and I’m so excited to have the chance to work with you."

She finished with a respectful bow.

Jett Hughes had been sitting, but he slowly rose to his feet. Up close, he could see that this young woman, Lily Sterling, certainly had the looks and the right air about her, but she was too... well-behaved.

The character in the show was a rebellious teenage girl, a complete mismatch for Lily’s entire persona. This made Jett even more doubtful about whether she could portray the role well.

As for what Lily had just said, Jett had heard it all a hundred times before. Every junior actor who met him gave the same speech, usually knowing nothing about his classic roles from his early years. It was all just empty pleasantries.

But he didn’t show any displeasure, nor did he put her on the spot by asking, "So which of my movies have you actually seen?" Instead, his tone was loaded with meaning as he said, "A young girl your age has seen my work? Those films are decades old. How old could you have been..."

His unspoken meaning was clear: he didn’t believe her.

But in response, Lily replied with a completely serious expression, "Mr. Hughes, I really have been watching your films since I was very little. I was probably too young back then to understand the deeper core of many of the complex characters, but as I got older, I gradually came to appreciate them. Especially your 1998 film, *South Sea Old Story*. I’ve seen it several times. Your portrayal of Spike was so brilliant and immersive that when I was a kid, I actually thought your name was Spike and couldn’t remember your real name."

For an actor, being remembered by their character’s name instead of their own is the highest form of praise.

Most importantly, *South Sea Old Story* was a film that was rarely rebroadcast on television. Very few young people today even knew it existed.

So when Lily said this, Jett Hughes’s expression visibly changed. "You’ve seen *South Sea Old Story*? You weren’t even born when that movie came out, were you?"

Lily nodded. "That’s right. But later on, didn’t the movie channel release a list of the top 100 Cathayan films from the nineties to the present? Whenever I have free time, I pick one from the list to watch. I remember it very clearly: *South Sea Old Story* was ranked number twenty-four!"

"Well, I’ll be. You even remember that?" A pleased look spread across Jett’s face, and his smile became genuine.

Seeing Lily change Mr. Hughes’s attitude in just a few sentences, Heather, who was standing to the side, couldn’t help but suppress a smile.

A person’s most effective weapon is sincerity, and that was precisely the impression Lily gave.

She hadn’t specifically done her homework because she knew she would be meeting Jett Hughes; she had genuinely seen his work and was expressing her true admiration and respect.

Jett had been in the industry for so many years that he’d seen more phantoms than Lily had seen people. If she had tried to play games and feign sincerity with him, how could he not see right through it?

Therefore, Jett’s attitude toward Lily changed in that moment, but it wasn’t enough to completely erase his doubts about her acting abilities.

All he could say was that she’d made a very good first impression. At the very least, she was far more down-to-earth and sincere than most young actors.

After greeting Jett Hughes, Heather took Lily to say hello to a few other senior actors she was familiar with, mostly veteran character actors who had spent their careers in supporting roles.

Many of them had created numerous roles, but their own name recognition wasn’t very high. Audiences recognized their faces but couldn’t recall their real names.

But Lily could. As long as she had seen their work and they had performed well, she could call them by name.

"Lily, this is Mr. George Lowe."

Finally, Heather led Lily to the most senior veteran actor on set, Mr. George Lowe, to introduce her.

George Lowe held a pivotal position in the industry; even someone like Jett Hughes had to show him respect.

"Mr. Lowe, hello. I’m Lily Sterling," Lily greeted him as she had the others.

"Hello, hello." Mr. Lowe beamed with a kind, benevolent smile, taking Lily’s hand with both of his. "Lily Sterling, is it? What a lovely name. And you’re just as beautiful as Heather."

He was nearly sixty, almost the same age as Lily’s grandfather, so she simply smiled humbly at his compliment about her looks.

"Look at you young actors nowadays, all so strikingly beautiful. No wonder you’re all so popular."

Before Lily could respond, two more people suddenly walked over. A male agent with a young actress in tow came to greet George Lowe. "Mr. Lowe, this is a new actress from our company, Hope. It’s her first time on such a big production, so she’s a bit green. We’d be so grateful if you could offer her some guidance and keep her in line."

"Mr. Lowe, hello! My name is Hope Miller. You can just call me Hope."

As Hope Miller spoke, she reached out and snatched Mr. Lowe’s hands—which were still holding Lily’s—and clasped them firmly in her own!