Chapter 603 - 599: She’s So Pretty, But Not As Pretty As You

Beau was both surprised and delighted. He looked at Connie in disbelief.

Connie looked at Lily with a fond smile. "Our Lily is beautiful inside and out."

"Beau is a good person. I’m willing to help him," Lily reiterated.

"That’s wonderful! Thank you, Lily," Beau said, deeply moved. He’d been in the business for so many years and had begged countless people to get good jobs for the artists he represented.

He had drunk himself sick at dinner parties and groveled before others, but he never expected that one day he would be pitied by a young girl who had just entered the industry.

But he didn’t care if Lily was acting out of pity or for some other reason. All he knew was that Lily had willingly offered to help him at his lowest point, and he would never forget it.

"You’re welcome, Beau."

Connie urged him, "Well, you should go back and prepare your artist’s profile. We have to go."

Beau nodded excitedly. The way he looked at Lily had completely changed; it was a gaze filled with excitement and gratitude.

Once they were in the car, Connie spoke to Lily in a heartfelt tone. "You weren’t wrong to help Beau. He’s a loyal man who values relationships, and he’ll definitely remember this and repay you when he has the chance."

"I wasn’t thinking about him repaying me," Lily said sincerely. "I just think he’s a very..."

Lily thought for a moment, searching for the right word. Finally, she came out with one: "Driven."

Hearing the quality of "driven" attributed to a middle-aged man made Connie laugh out loud, but she had to agree with Lily’s assessment.

This was especially true for Beau at this stage of his career. He no longer had any popular stars under his management, only a roster of struggling artists.

The fact that Beau worked so hard for them made his situation all the more poignant—the harder he tried, the more heartbreaking it seemed.

"Connie, where are we going now?"

"To see Director Alan," Connie explained. "He’s auditioning a few male actors today, and it’s likely related to your role. He wants you to come by and see how well they match with you."

"Director Alan likes to cast newcomers. The young man acting opposite you this time probably won’t be very old either, which is why I told you to come without makeup and dress casually."

Hearing this, Lily glanced down at her hoodie. She had certainly followed directions, showing up completely bare-faced.

As she spoke, Connie glanced at the time and urged the driver, "Bowman, speed it up a little. We can’t be late."

At her words, the driver, Bowman, shifted gears, and the car noticeably picked up speed.

The meeting place was once again the executive lounge of a five-star hotel—a quiet and relatively private setting.

But this time, Director Alan hadn’t come alone. With him were the film’s producer and casting director.

At a table by the window, Producer Tom Miller had arrived early. Sitting across from him were another actress and her agent, who had also arrived ahead of time.

The actress’s name was Zora Warner. She was even newer to the scene than Lily Sterling, having only appeared in one film with very little screen time. However, thanks to her stunning looks, her short scene went viral online, sparking a great deal of discussion.

To be noticed by Director Alan for her second film was a testament to her incredible luck and the high starting point of her career.

"Producer Miller, please have some tea." Zora Warner’s agent proactively poured tea for Producer Tom Miller. His every word and action reeked of sycophancy, but he felt no shame. The entertainment industry was a place where people sucked up to the powerful and stepped on the weak; fawning over a superior was perfectly normal.

Tom Miller, however, wasn’t the arrogant type. He quickly thanked the agent and even began to praise Zora Warner’s excellent qualities.

"No wonder Director Alan chose her at first sight. She has even more presence in person than on camera. If she gets in front of Director Alan’s lens, he’ll definitely make her look even more beautiful," Tom Miller said honestly.

Given his status, he had no need to flatter a rookie actress, so his words were genuine.

The agent was grinning from ear to ear, and Zora Warner, too, felt a thrill of excitement.

"Producer Miller, I’ve seen the list of actors the director has confirmed so far." Seeing that Tom Miller held Zora Warner in high regard, the agent decided to strike while the iron was hot. He boldly continued, "You mentioned in our chat just now that this Lily Sterling isn’t too concerned about billing. I was thinking, could you give our Zora a little more exposure and list her name ahead of Lily Sterling’s?"

Beside him, Zora Warner couldn’t help but look at Tom Miller with an expectant gaze.

Tom Miller paused mid-sip, slowly lifting his eyes to look at the agent.

Seeing this, the agent grew nervous. Fighting over billing was an unseemly business in the entertainment world, but as an agent, he always wanted to fight for his artist’s interests.

He put on a shameless grin. "You said yourself that Zora has great potential. Just give her a bit more of a chance."

Tom Miller sighed softly and set down his cup. Looking at the agent, he asked, "Do you really think that by putting her name before Lily Sterling’s, her standing in the audience’s eyes will be higher than Lily’s?"

"That’s not what I mean. It’s just, you said Lily Sterling doesn’t care about billing, right? So moving her back a little shouldn’t be a problem, should it?"

"Our Lily may not care about billing, but that doesn’t mean just anyone can use it as an excuse to step on her." Connie’s displeased voice suddenly came from behind them, startling Zora Warner and her agent into looking up.

"Connie, you’re here!"

Tom Miller looked up and saw it was Connie, and he quickly rose with a welcoming smile.

"Connie," the agent said, also standing to greet her. He didn’t know Connie personally, but who in this industry didn’t know of her?

Connie smiled and greeted Tom Miller, then shot the male agent a cold glance and sneered mercilessly. "I really have the worst timing. What sort of nonsense did I just walk in on?"

The man offered a guilty and awkward smile, not daring to say another word.

Connie pulled Lily straight to an empty seat, sat down, and then looked at Tom Miller. "Didn’t you tell him that for Director Alan’s films, the billing on the cast list is always determined by the order of appearance?"

Tom Miller smiled. "I thought everyone knew."

Zora Warner and her agent grew even more embarrassed. They heard Connie say, looking at them, "Your name appears on the list based on when you appear on screen. For a newcomer, getting a role in one of Director Alan’s films is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and you’re already thinking about fighting for billing?"

As she spoke, Connie sized up Zora Warner, who was also completely bare-faced. She nodded to herself and sighed before continuing, "The girl has real potential. It’s you, her agent... you should do less of this sort of thing in the future. Don’t hold her back."

Her words made the agent’s face turn bright red.

Zora Warner, on the other hand, was overjoyed. First praised by a producer, and now by a top agent—both giants of the industry. How could she not be happy?

Even Lily couldn’t help but whisper in Connie’s ear, "She’s really beautiful."

Connie smiled slightly and replied, "But not as beautiful as you!"