Rebirth from the Ashes

Chapter 557: Worried but Gentle Eyes

With that, Shen Xi’s cameo came to an end.

Yu Yuanxi still had a few scenes coming up. He was able to immerse himself into the role after the first scene and played the best version of the character effectively from thereon out. All the scenes were done in one take.

Shen Xi and Yun Jinping watched Yu Yuanxi by the sidelines as they waited for Shen Zhangqing and the rest to arrive.

“My dear idol, try this. This is delicious.” Ruan Sisi ordered bubble tea, cakes, and local specialties to be delivered. She had it all. Ruan Sisi was offering some braised trotters to Shen Xi right now.

Shen Xi was stuffed from all the feeding. Any more, she would have to miss out on dinner. “I’ve had enough.”

Ruan Sisi let out a silly smile before offering the food to Yun Jinping instead. She was all smiles. “Madam, Madam. Try this.”

As a gentle soul, Yun Jinping was not one to refuse anyone’s kindness. Even if she did not have the appetite, she would take a bite out of politeness. Yun Jinping was about to accept the food when Shen Xi butted in.

“Tell me, what are you after?” Cutting all the bullsh*t and beating around the bush, Shen Xi went straight to the point.

“I’m not after anything. I admire you. I guess I don’t know what I’m trying to do.” Ruan Sisi’s eyes then lit up as if she thought of something. “Oh, my dear idol. How about you take me in as a student?”

She tended to be straight up with people, speaking her mind rather freely.

Shen Xi blurted, “No.”

Ruan Sisi made every effort to promote herself. “I have a knack for this. I can show you my makeup and tutorial videos if you don’t believe me.”

With that, she whipped out her phone to tap on her social account so Shen Xi could take a look.

Shen Xi’s aloofness was effective to those who could take a cue but futile to those who could not. Finding Ruan Sisi a bother, she merely took a glance at her phone. However, what she saw changed her mind.

Tsk tsk!

The silly girl was good at makeup and had a unique eye on beauty – both avant-garde and futuristic. The girl definitely had the talent.

“My dear idol, I know I can’t compare to your makeup skills. Can you show me the way?” Ruan Sisi was burning with passion, talking about something close to her heart.

This was especially true when she was sharing with her idol about what she loved. Ruan Sisi wanted to pull out all the stops to show that she knew a thing or two about makeup, and not at all without merits.

Yun Jinping’s eyes lit up as she watched the videos. The chatty girl was surprisingly cut out for creating a look. She did a good job with the makeup videos and even the clothes she designed had character albeit lacking sophistication. The girl was destined for great things.

Ruan Sisi went on explaining to them about her makeup videos and design concepts in high spirits. She was glowing.

Shen Xi could tell that the girl was gifted. She might as well make good use of her since Ruan Sisi was putting herself out there. “My company has a vacancy for a stylist.”

She had been part-timing as Cosmos Entertainment’s chief stylist, but there was only so much she could do. Hence, Shen Xi had been on the lookout for a chief stylist to manage the whole company. She did not mind letting Ruan Sisi have a go, providing the latter could stick out to the end.

“Teacher.” Ruan Sisi gleefully widened her eyes and got down on her knees. “I bow before you!”

Pulling Ruan Sisi up to stop her from kneeling, Shen Xi said in a serious tone, “I need to ask my teacher about accepting a student.”

Since she had a teacher, Shen Xi must first ask her teacher for her opinion with regard to accepting a student. Otherwise, her grumpy teacher would probably sulk for a year.

Ruan Sisi knew there was light at the end of the tunnel. She bobbed her head in agreement. “Please, teacher. Hurry up and ask my teacher’s teacher!”

Shen Xi noticed that the girl was not playing innocent. She was indeed a silly goose, but there was no doubt about her sincerity. “Don’t call me that just yet. I still have to ask my teacher first. Share with me your social handle.”

Ruan Sisi sent Shen Xi the link to her account. Although grinning from ear to ear, her vision was clouded by tears of excitement. She had stumbled on some great luck. Not only did she meet her idol, but her idol was also easy to talk to. Look, Shen Xi was about to accept her as a student.

Speaking of age, Ruan Sisi was older than Shen Xi by two years and younger than Yu Yuanxi by a few months. Nevertheless, this was the least of Ruan Sisi’s concerns since it was all about capability and not a matter of age when it came to finding a teacher.

Shen Xi sent the link to Jiang Yin to have a look-see if the girl of such talent was worth investing in. Shen Xi did find Ruan Sisi to be an asset and had a bright future ahead if steered in the right direction.

Jiang Yin had a discerning eye. After scrolling through Ruan Sisi’s Weibo account, she quickly replied with a simple yes.

Shen Xi was not one to waste time. [Shen Xi: Okay.]

[Jiang Yin: When do you intend to bring her to meet me?]

[Shen Xi: Tomorrow when I return to the capital.]

[Jiang Yin: I’ll be at your place.]

Shen Xi read the last message and thought to herself, ‘Her real intention is to swing by my place, not to meet my new student.’ She then turned to Ruan Sisi. “I can accept you as my student, but you have to take on the role as our company’s chief stylist until I’m able to find a suitable candidate.”

It did not matter to Shen Xi whether she accepted a student or not because, ultimately, the company was in need of a decent chief stylist who could shoulder all responsibilities that came with the role. Shen Xi would handhold her until she was good enough to take on the role on her own.

Ecstatic to receive a positive response, Ruan Sisi wanted to shout it from the rooftops so everyone knew she was now Ms. Cai Ni’s student. It was not easy to be a stylist, but she was more than willing to wait on hand and foot.

Yun Jinping was impressed by Ruan Sisi’s work. What was there not to like about a gifted youngster with a unique view on aesthetics. She had no objections about her daughter accepting a student.

The trio sat by themselves with no one else around. The people had no clue what happened there since nobody overheard their conversation. The only thing they took away was the enthusiasm and happiness on Ruan Sisi’s face.

This was an induction on the down-low. Keeping her emotions from running high, Ruan Sisi did not inform her best friend, Zhou Zhen, as her teacher was known to keep a low profile. She should take a lesson from her teacher about putting on an indifferent face. It was never too late to let Zhou Zhen know once tea was poured and drank in an official induction.

Shen Zhangqing and the rest of the group arrived on the set at seven o’clock, and Yu Yuanxi was just done with his last scene. Following the lead of the proactive Ruan Sisi, they went to a famous century-old restaurant and booked the biggest private room.

The restaurant was filled to the brim with no seats available on the ground floor. There was a long queue still waiting outside.

The stairs leading up to the private rooms upstairs were made of wood, exuding the rich and rustic sense of history. Two meters wide, this was a pretty spacious stairwell.

As the group was making their way up, Shen Xi walked behind while typing a text to Li Yuan to report her whereabouts.

She was walking along when suddenly, a sharp pain struck her toes. Losing her footing over the pain, her hand instinctively reached out to grab something.

Someone nearby was one step ahead of her to hold her down by her arm. A gentle voice bearing joy and worry ensued. “Are you okay, Xixi?”

She was startled by the voice before she had a chance to express her gratitude. Shen Xi lifted her face to meet the worried but gentle eyes of a familiar woman.