The Trending Topic Herself: The Villainess is the Superstar!-Chapter 223: Playing Ugly

Ryan Spencer stared intently, his expression complex, and said, "It’s Alisa Shelby."

"Alisa Shelby? What kind of role is she playing this time?"

Ryan remained silent for a few seconds, "It’s probably a significant part, considering her status."

Maya Monroe chuckled. "I didn’t expect we’d have such a connection."

"By the way..." she asked again, "How’s Kiki Monroe doing? What show is she preparing for recently?"

"Kiki Monroe is likely busy shooting ’Spring Flowers.’ I saw the official announcement a while ago; she’s the leading actress in it."

"’Spring Flowers’? Sounds a bit familiar."

Ryan gave her a sidelong glance, "I told you about it before. How could you forget so quickly? Also, you should pay more attention to the trends online, so you don’t stay ignorant about everything."

"Okay."

She agreed straightforwardly, no longer just paying lip service, which left Ryan slightly stunned.

"You’ve been so obedient lately, that’s, uh, good," Ryan said with a sigh of relief, at least feeling less worried.

Maya exchanged a distant glance with Alisa Shelby, who pursed her lips without speaking, but her eyes seemed to burn with fire.

Seeing this, Maya slowly curved her lips into a smile at her.

Alisa Shelby’s expression stiffened, and she turned away with a cold face.

Alisa already had a simmering fire inside her, and the moment she saw Maya, she couldn’t contain it any longer.

How dare she provoke me like that? What right does someone who trades favors for resources have to provoke me?

After the audition roles were announced, Alisa couldn’t believe the lead role was given to "Maya Monroe."

Maya Monroe...

Alisa clearly remembered what her friendly audition judge said about Maya’s extremely poor performance. Though he didn’t elaborate, how could someone who received such an evaluation from the judge possibly land the final role?!

After relentless pleading, the judge reluctantly revealed to Alisa that Maya has a powerful backing, someone she couldn’t afford to offend, and advised her to be more restrained.

Restrained...?

Even though Alisa knew that the entertainment industry operates on survival of the fittest, she still felt a strong sense of dissatisfaction.

Although director Yvonne Hall appreciated her performance and gave her the role of the third female lead in this major production, how could the third lead compare to the first female lead?

The assistant beside Alisa, sweet-talking, noticed Alisa’s foul mood and said, "Alisa, I’ve heard the lead role is based on various considerations. The character ’Jane Jennings’ is meant to be quite ordinary-looking, which isn’t exactly Alisa’s strength."

This was actually a compliment on Alisa’s good looks, as everyone knew Alisa took her appearance seriously.

Alisa shot her a glance with no trace of pleasure.

Her looks aside, mentioning this reminded Alisa of the recent "most beautiful faces" list.

Nothing has been going right lately!

The assistant, intimidated by Alisa’s glare, involuntarily stepped back, "Alisa, um, Alisa..."

The manager glanced at the assistant, "Alisa’s been in a bad mood, don’t take it too hard."

She then patted Alisa on the shoulder, "Nothing is absolute. Make the most of every hard-earned opportunity. Are you really going to let a mere resource hog outdo you?"

Alisa’s eyes brightened.

Right, how can Maya Monroe, with her simple resources, be a match for her?

*

Ryan Spencer sat beside Maya Monroe, watching her get styled. He slowly said:

"It seems this Kiki Monroe is not an ordinary figure. After leaving Charles Wright hanging, she still managed to land the role again—that’s truly no small feat."

Ryan rubbed his temple with a sigh, "It’s puzzling. Kiki Monroe’s handling of things isn’t exceptionally sophisticated. I’ve been pondering this: how does she always manage to secure such great opportunities, or is there a wise mentor guiding her? Her agent doesn’t seem that impressive either."

Ryan sighed once more, "It really is strange. Can someone’s luck really be this good?"

Maya remained silent for a few seconds and said, "From what I understand, Charles Wright is quite proud. Kiki rejecting him probably bruised his ego. Even if he did choose Kiki again, I’m sure he’d still harbor resentment."

"That’s true. It’s strange, though, that someone with Charles’ fame would overlook many other actors to choose someone who slighted him like Kiki."

Maya responded ambiguously, "Maybe she’s just lucky."

Ryan paused, "Maybe..."

Since this modern show was less complex than the last, ’Wandering Beyond the Horizon.’

Hearing the makeup artist, Maya slowly opened her eyes from her pretend slumber.

Looking at the reflection in the makeup mirror, she slowly chuckled.

"It’s not quite right..."

The makeup artist’s hand trembled, "Do you, uh, feel that the current styling doesn’t meet your expectations? Otherwise, we can change it. I think maybe we could remove the freckles on your face. And maybe add a diamond headband..."

With Maya’s soft laugh, the makeup artist became even more flustered.

She felt nothing she did could satisfy Maya. Could adding a diamond headband still not highlight Maya’s beauty and elegance enough?

But adding more glamorous accessories would veer too far from ’Jane Jennings’ image.

The makeup artist swallowed nervously, "Um... I remember the second female lead in this drama is portrayed as a wealthy woman. Maybe I can borrow a set of clothes for you? Of course, I’ll borrow the most extravagant one!"

Before filming began, Yvonne Hall had already had conversations with staff who would closely interact with Maya, emphasizing the importance of catering to Maya’s preferences and ensuring not to anger her.

Ryan frowned and stood up, "Maya, you can’t cause trouble."

Maya’s expression remained calm as she motioned for the makeup artist to look at the mirror in front of them, "Don’t you think something’s off? Don’t you think my styling is a bit wrong?"

The makeup artist’s heart pounded, "Is it... does it not suit your, uh, noble identity? It’s not lavish enough..."

Maya raised her eyebrows in surprise; she didn’t expect the original person left such a strong impression on them.

"No," Maya said, "In the drama, the character ’Jane Jennings’ has a rather plain image, right? But look now, merely a few freckles on the face are far from enough. It’s not enough."

The makeup artist understood Maya’s meaning yet still found it hard to believe, "So... so, are you saying you’re willing to appear less attractive?"

Appearing less attractive—something most popular celebrities in the entertainment circle often struggled with, as it equates to self-sabotaging their image, greatly impacting their popularity.