Chapter 2: From Film Emperor to Disgraced Newcomer

The internet speed was fast, but the interface still didn’t display the Tang Qu he recognized.

Tang Qu’s hand hovered over the keyboard. Did he not even have the right to exist anymore?

The whitening of his knuckles revealed the turmoil within Tang Qu’s heart.

After a few seconds of stunned silence, Tang Qu suddenly felt a sharp pain in his head.

Numerous jumbled memories, none of which belonged to him, flooded his mind.

It was as if Tang Qu was watching a short film play out before his eyes.

A little boy lived in an orphanage, around four or five years old, sitting alone under a tree, playing.

“Xiao Qu!” A gentle female voice broke the stillness of the scene.

The woman had a gentle face, her beautiful long hair styled into a soft bun. She gracefully walked over to the boy.

Tang Qu saw the boy’s fingers twitch slightly, instinctively resisting. However, the boy didn’t act, instead, he submitted to the woman.

The woman looked at the man beside her. “Director, can I take him home with me today?”

The man, addressed as “Director,” nodded.

The scene shifted; the boy in the flashback appeared to be thirteen or fourteen years old. Another boy, around the same age, stood behind him.

It was the same woman. “Tang Qu, you need to be considerate of your younger brother. Don’t snatch things from him.” The woman was just as gentle, but the words were directed toward the young boy.

Tang Qu watched as the toy in the little boy’s hand was taken away.

Another scene change. Tang Qu had grown up and was entering university. As a freshman, he still received living expenses. But as a sophomore, the woman told him that he was an adult now and had to be responsible for his own life.

The memory seemed to end there.

So he really had been reborn into the body of a pitiful wretch.

It was a typical story: a couple adopts a child, then soon after, they have their own biological child, and the adopted one gets pushed aside. It was only human nature, but this couple was really going overboard.

However, Tang Qu was still puzzled. This body was currently a sophomore in college, so why would he attempt suicide?

A spark of realization ignited. Tang Qu looked down at the laptop screen. Although there was no trace of the Film Emperor Tang Qu, there was a Tang Qu with a reputation mired in scandal.

Tang Qu clicked on a news article with a large, bold headline: [Newcomer Leeching off Top-Tier Film Emperor’s Fame; Get Out of the Entertainment Industry!]

The entire article was filled with accusations that Tang Qu was imitating the Film Emperor’s acting style and shamelessly riding on his coattails for attention.

Tang Qu was all too familiar with this kind of marketing article. Could the original owner of this body also be an actor?

Tang Qu did some digging, piecing together information from various sources. Finally, he managed to gather some useful details.

The original body was a sophomore at the Film Academy. He had starred in a short film for his end-of-term project. It hadn’t initially generated much buzz, but after some promotion, the film had become somewhat popular, and he, as the male lead, had gained some attention. It should have been a happy occasion, but it was precisely this that had pushed Tang Qu into the depths of despair.

Tang Qu watched the short film. After viewing it, he frowned. The male lead’s performance in the film was commendable. For a sophomore, his level was already excellent. However, as a seasoned Film Emperor, Tang Qu immediately saw the problem. He was imitating someone else.

In the entertainment industry, the most taboo thing to do is to imitate others. It alienates people, and it’s bad for personal development. Similar performance habits are not surprising, but the Tang Qu’s performance in the short film was not merely similar, but outright imitation.

Tang Qu frowned. Although he also loathed such imitative behavior, he thought being overly critical of a student, who wasn’t a real actor, was unnecessary. So why had Tang Qu provoked so much animosity?

Soon, Tang Qu found the key figure amidst all the insults and accusations: Guan Yan!