The screening room held the crème of the entertainment industry, critics, investors, celebrity elites, and top-tier media houses. Rows of glossy seats were filled with the best-known names in the country.
Even members of the Bai family sat in the VIP section, including Old Madam Bai, Bai Meilin, and at Meilin's invitation, Chen Yuxuan.
Bai Meilin sat unnaturally still in her couture gown, smiling at the cameras and clenching her fists under her sequined clutch. Her "cameo" had been added to the film's credits as "Unnamed Agent #7," with no mention of her real name.
Her chest burned.
Chen Yuxuan, beside her, said nothing. He was watching the entrance, his fingers brushing over the program leaflet, but his eyes were searching for someone.
He didn't admit to himself who.
The opening scene unfolded in stunning detail: Lin Yuyan—played by Bai Zhi—walking through a burning laboratory, the edges of her coat singed, her eyes hollow.
As the scenes played out, the audience was drawn into her performance, helpless against her gravity.
She wasn't acting.
She was bleeding, Laughing, Screaming, Becoming.
By the halfway mark, the audience was dead silent. Every twist hit like a drumbeat. Every look Bai Zhi gave to the camera carried a weight that crushed the air out of the room.
Even Old Madam Bai, who had once dismissed Zhi'er as "useless," found herself unable to blink. Meilin sat stiffer by the minute, face pale under the lights.
Chen Yuxuan had leaned forward slightly. His eyes never left the screen.
Then came the now-famous rooftop scene.
Lin Yuyan standing over the body of her final enemy. Blood glistening. Silence reigning.
"I burned the world to the ground," Bai Zhi's voice echoed. "But why does it still feel so cold?"
Someone in the audience audibly exhaled. A few gasps. Then a hushed silence.
And then, applause.
Spontaneous. Raw. Thunderous.
By the time the end credits rolled, the crowd rose to their feet. Everyone, except Meilin, who sat frozen in her seat.
Her name hadn't appeared.
Not once.
And yet, Bai Zhi's name lingered on every pair of lips.
The after-party sparkled with high energy. Bai Zhi, now surrounded by agents, directors, and producers, held a flute of champagne and answered questions calmly.
"Are you planning to take on more roles this year?"
"Will you be open to doing international work?"
"Where did you train for your performance?"
She smiled politely, but her eyes were elsewhere.
She saw him before he reached her.
Chen Yuxuan, tall and clean-cut in his classic tuxedo, cutting through the crowd like he still had rights to her time.
He didn't.
"Zhi'er," he said when he finally reached her.
She turned to him with the calm smile of a stranger. "Chen Yuxuan."
His expression faltered.
"You were…" he cleared his throat. "You were incredible."
"I know," she replied lightly, sipping her champagne. "Everyone here agrees."
He hesitated. "I… I didn't know you were this talented."
"You never asked," she said, voice quiet but firm.
His face twitched slightly. "I admit I underestimated you. This… it's a side of you I didn't see before."
"No," she said. "It was a side you didn't want to see."
A beat of silence passed. Chen Yuxuan's fingers curled slightly, but before he could say anything more, a shadow stepped beside Bai Zhi.
Li Jiannan.
Dressed in a sharply tailored black suit, eyes unreadable, aura unmistakable.
He nodded briefly at Chen Yuxuan. "Is this man bothering you?"
Bai Zhi gave a half-smile. "Not anymore."
Li Jiannan's gaze flicked to Chen Yuxuan again, a warning unspoken.
Then he turned back to her. "Come. Director Yan wants to toast with you."
She followed Jiannan without a second glance at Chen Yuxuan, her champagne glass still balanced in one hand.
Behind them, Chen Yuxuan stood stiffly. Regret filled his chest like stone.
Later that night, Old Madam Bai sat alone in her study, the premiere brochure open on her desk.
She had spent years doting on Bai Meilin after she was found. She had tried to forget the girl she had raised for twenty years, the one she now knew wasn't her blood.
But tonight, something shifted.
That girl, the one they cast aside, had stolen the show.
Not with tricks. Not with manipulation.
But with sheer talent.
And when she had looked at Bai Zhi on that screen, she didn't see a fake heiress.
She saw the real thing.
Meilin ripped the Glass Wings promotional card in half and tossed it into the fireplace.
Her cheeks were damp. Her fists shook.
Bai Zhi was winning.
And Chen Yuxuan… he was slipping through her fingers.
She picked up her phone and called him.
He didn't answer.
She tried again.
Still nothing.
When the voicemail beeped, she whispered, "She doesn't love you the way I do. She'll never love you like I will."
But she didn't press send.
Because deep down, she wasn't sure he even loved her at all.