Everyone Spends Money to Make Me Debut as Center (GL) - Chapter 1

[Congratulations, you’ve passed the final selection for the “Nation’s Girls” program! The production team is officially sending you an invitation…]

“Please arrive at the training camp at the designated time for group training. We look forward to your excellent performance.” Chi Ling’s soft voice replicated the overly official invitation, and a subtle smile spread across her lips.

“Looking forward to it? Yes, it’s definitely something to look forward to.”

After carefully reading the invitation, Chi Ling tucked it back into the envelope and placed it in a separate compartment of her already packed backpack.

A month ago, she never would have imagined being this close to her dream.

A month ago, Chi Ling was just one of many trainees waiting for their chance to debut. She practiced for over fourteen hours a day, and with a part-time job and occasional volunteer work at a welfare home, she averaged less than four hours of sleep a night.

The one thing Chi Ling didn’t fear was hard work; what she feared was disappointment.

She persisted day after day, making it onto the debut candidate list several times, only to be cut at the very last moment.

Thinking of this, a hint of mockery appeared on Chi Ling’s face. How could an ace trainee, ranked first in the company’s overall evaluations, have waited eight years without a chance to debut?

She raised a hand, pressing her warm palm to her cheek. Why else? It was that ordinary face, a face you couldn’t pick out in a crowd. How could she survive in an entertainment industry full of beauties?

Talent? Ha. There were plenty of talented people with both skills and good looks. Why would investors risk their valuable resources on her?

But now things were different.

Chi Ling stood up and walked to the mirror, wiping away the condensation. A breathtakingly beautiful face was reflected back. It bore a slight resemblance to her old face, but was infinitely more refined.

Her slender fingertips traced the features of the person in the mirror, from her eyebrows to her lips. The upturned corners of her eyes held a seductive charm, while her full lips and translucent skin made the girl in the mirror look like a fresh peach newly ripened on a summer branch. The vitality of a young girl and the allure of a woman were perfectly blended on this face.

Genetically, her face leaned towards a classical, Eastern beauty. With light makeup and her hair down, she’d have an excellent demeanor. However, the original owner had a lifelong “princess dream,” loved dolls and poofy skirts, and over time, her taste had followed suit. She always used soft pink colors to dress herself, trapping herself in a “sweet maiden” stereotype.

Chi Ling couldn’t understand why the original owner, with such great potential, would trample on her own opportunities and give up a perfectly smooth life for a scumbag.

“The chance you didn’t want, I will cherish.”

When she first entered this world, Chi Ling was in a panic, but she quickly realized that everything here was very similar to a novel she had read. She had paid close attention to the plot because the protagonist had the same name as her, but their lives couldn’t have been more different.

The Chi Ling in the book was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. As an only child, she grew up spoiled by her family, becoming a typical “princess” who was great in every way, except for her temper.

While she could be a bit willful, she wasn’t bad at heart. If not for the events that followed, she probably would have lived the carefree, happy life of a princess.

The initial change was triggered by a movie, starring the book’s protagonist, Bai Chang. The woman’s stunning acting and exquisitely sculpted face on screen captivated the original owner, who fell hopelessly in love.

There’s a kind of impulsive feeling called love at first sight. The original owner secretly decided to enter the acting world to stand by this person’s side.

Chi Ling’s father, Chi Chengzhang, doted on her. He invested a lot of resources, and even though she couldn’t sing or dance, he used aggressive marketing to make her a temporary sensation as a “sweet-singing little diva.” But that wasn’t enough. Wherever Bai Chang went to film, Chi Ling would miraculously appear the next day. Through relentless pursuit and Chi Chengzhang’s cleverly timed threats and incentives, Chi Ling finally got her wish and married Bai Chang.

Back then, Chi Chengzhang never would have guessed that this act, which he believed was for his daughter’s own good, would ultimately destroy her.

Having read the entire plot, Chi Ling knew that Bai Chang had a long-lost love, Wei Xike, in her heart. Therefore, no matter how much the original owner pestered her, she could never win a place in Bai Chang’s heart.

She remembered the end of the book: after divorcing Bai Chang, Chi Ling’s personality completely changed. Extreme anger drove her to seek revenge, and in a car accident she orchestrated for Wei Xike, she ended up losing her own life instead. Bai Chang, on the other hand, attended her funeral, sealed the memories of her away, and gracefully turned to embrace her beloved Wei Xike.

Happy Ending. This was the ending the readers wanted, but for the current Chi Ling, it was a very cruel way for things to conclude. She couldn’t very well look forward to her own death.

Luckily, she had transmigrated early enough that the tragedy hadn’t yet begun. It was currently a year and a half into Bai Chang and Chi Ling’s separation, with only six months left until the two-year period for a divorce ruling.

This was good. Only six months left.

But this time, Chi Ling wouldn’t be desperate to win her back, and there would be no crazy revenge schemes. To be honest, she couldn’t wait to get as far away from Bai Chang as possible.

While other girls were moved by the hard-won love between Bai Chang and her “first love,” Chi Ling wanted to avoid this plague like the plague itself. Bai Chang was the original owner’s Pandora’s box; once opened, her life plummeted into misfortune and she never recovered.

Speaking of this plague…

Today was July 1st, the day Bai Chang was supposed to come over for a family dinner. Counting back, this would be the first time they met since Chi Ling had transmigrated.

Bai Chang hadn’t told Chi Ling’s parents about the divorce, so she would never miss the monthly family dinner—after all, appearances had to be kept up.

Chi Ling looked at her watch. The dinner was in fifteen minutes. Based on that person’s punctilious habits, she should be arriving soon.

“Knock, knock,” the maid knocked on the door.

Chi Ling turned her head. “What is it?”

“Miss Bai’s car has arrived.”

“Understood,” Chi Ling replied calmly.

The maid hesitated at the door, wondering if she’d heard wrong. Had their young lady’s personality flipped? Usually, upon hearing that Miss Bai had arrived, she would excitedly rush downstairs to greet her, practically rolling out the red carpet.

Today?

After dismissing the maid, Chi Ling slowly squatted down to finish packing. The invitation included a list of rules for the training camp, and a whole basket of things were forbidden. Luckily, she didn’t need much. She packed a makeup bag, a few changes of clothes, and a light suitcase—more than enough to get her out the door.

Fifteen minutes later, she appeared at the dinner table on time. Her father, Chi Chengzhang, was at the head of the table. A person was in the empty seat to his left, sitting with perfect posture. Her straight, smooth long hair was tucked behind her ears, and a delicately crafted gemstone earring hung from her porcelain-white earlobe.

Bai Chang’s grandfather was European, so she had a hint of mixed heritage. Her prominent nose and brow bones allowed her to maintain her striking appearance even under the harshest lighting.

Chi Ling had checked her profile before. In a group photo of A-list actresses at a TV station gala, under terrible, dark yellow lighting, she was the only one who stood out as especially beautiful.

Hearing Chi Ling come downstairs, Bai Chang looked up and met her gaze, giving a slight nod as a greeting.

Chi Ling raised her eyelids to meet her eyes. Bai Chang’s amber eyes were set under gentle, light eyebrows, making her look deep, mysterious, and almost otherworldly. No wonder the well-traveled Princess Chi had fallen for her at first sight.

Next to a beauty of this caliber, even Chi Ling’s exquisitely beautiful face seemed a little less striking.

Bai Chang was beautiful, but whenever Chi Ling thought of the book’s description of how Bai Chang cruelly tormented the little Princess Chi in the end, she couldn’t muster any affection for her.

Tang Haimei glanced at her daughter’s stern face. She was a little worried. Since having a high fever and getting seriously ill a month ago, Chi Ling seemed like a different person. She had become mature and composed, and even her tone with the maids was much more polite.

While she was happy to see her daughter maturing, she also worried that this sudden change might be due to a problem in their marriage.

From the beginning, she hadn’t been happy about her daughter marrying this actress. But her daughter had been stubborn, and her husband had also persuaded her, so she’d eventually given in.

“Bai Chang, are you still very busy? Now that you have your own studio, you can pass on a lot of resources to your new artists. That way you’ll have more time to spend with Ling Ling. Look at her, she’s an adult, and she’s still running back to her parents’ house all the time. It’s not a good look,” Tang Haimei said.

Bai Chang paused her chopsticks. She guessed Chi Ling had been complaining to her elders again. It seemed Chi Ling hadn’t listened to her suggestion of a divorce at all.

But the Chi family had been kind to her. Even with her growing frustration, Bai Chang didn’t show it, and gave a vague answer: “I haven’t taken on any new dramas recently, just a variety show.”

“What kind of variety show?” Tang Haimei frowned. “Aren’t those online variety shows just for showing off and playing to the crowd? Why would you go and get involved in that?”

Bai Chang patiently replied, “It’s a talent show. A friend asked me to be a mentor, and I really couldn’t refuse.”

Chi Ling lowered her eyelashes, hiding the expression in her eyes.

“Friend?” In front of your quasi-mother-in-law, you can only refer to the person you hold dear to your heart as a “friend.” It must feel quite stifling.

Others might not know, but Chi Ling, who had read the plot, knew better. The director of the show had initially invited Bai Chang, but she had refused, citing a busy schedule. The production team then turned to Ruan Yuequan, a young starlet who was popular for her cold image, to replace her.

Unlike the friendly Bai Chang, Ruan Yuequan was more outspoken in interviews. While she offended a lot of people, her personal achievements were something no one could replicate.

The two sides had almost finalized the deal and were about to sign the contract when a sudden change was made? The book didn’t mention Bai Chang’s motivation for the change, but Chi Ling could pretty much guess.

Coincidentally, the official announcement for this season’s “Nation’s Girls” had just revealed that the vocal mentor was Wei Xike. Putting the pieces together, the reason for Bai Chang’s sudden change of heart was almost certainly related to Wei Xike.

Thinking about it, Chi Ling almost wanted to reach up and check if she had a whole field of grass growing on her head.

“Then you won’t be too busy with this variety show, will you? It shouldn’t be too hard to make more time for Ling Ling.”

Bai Chang lowered her eyelids, her voice flat. “The variety show is a residency. All the contestants will live in the main camp for closed training. As a mentor, I have to be responsible for them. For the next three or four months, I’ll be staying at the hotel the production team arranged. I won’t be able to come home often.”

“What are you talking about!” Chi Chengzhang, who had been silent for a long time, slapped the table. “What kind of ‘bullshit show’ is this! ‘Always busy, always busy’—don’t think I don’t know the tricks in those talent shows. ‘Training,’ ‘dreams’… in the end, it’s just pushing out a few people who have been pre-selected by investors and big companies. A pointless show like that will devalue you. Reject it!”

“Uncle…” Bai Chang was grateful but not without a temper. It was impossible for her to smile and talk after being so belittled.

She put down her chopsticks and took a deep breath, about to straightforwardly announce her divorce from Chi Ling, when the girl next to her, who had been quietly eating, suddenly spoke up.

“Dad, I also signed up for that ‘bullshit show’ you mentioned.” The girl’s gaze was clear, and her tone was unhurried. If her words weren’t so explosive, you’d think she was politely trying to mediate the argument.

Chi Ling wasn’t trying to help Bai Chang. She just knew that with Chi Chengzhang’s personality, if he found out about the divorce, he would definitely blow things up and force Bai Chang to change her mind.

She had no intention of being tied to this plague for the rest of her life.