The scene where Zhao Hede personally strangled the prince in front of the emperor showed countless viewers Jiang Ling's ruthless side.
Although this side was acted, not real.
But because the performance was too realistic, the ruthlessness almost penetrated the screen, making people's scalps tingle and their hairs stand on end.
As a result, Jiang Ling's 'ruthlessness' once again exploded on the hot search.
Seeing this, the major actresses in the industry felt as if they had poured five flavors into a bottle, experiencing all sorts of emotions.
Bewilderment, envy, confusion, but more than anything, jealousy.
They usually had to try their best just to get on the hot search once, and even then, it wasn't guaranteed.
Yet Jiang Ling, merely a supporting character, had already appeared on the hot search twice before the show had even finished airing. It was truly a case of comparing oneself to others leading to one's own demise.
In today's era of ubiquitous ancient romantic dramas, where female leads, second female leads, and villains are all cast from the same mold, characters like Zhao Hede, a manipulative femme fatale, are exceedingly rare.
Her wickedness was displayed openly.
Her beauty was like a blazing fire, approaching inch by inch, leaving no room for retreat.
This fatal allure of being both wicked and beautiful was undeniably captivating and thrilling.
Many viewers, despite knowing how wicked the character was, adored her immensely, wishing for more such roles.
At the same time, netizens unanimously praised Jiang Ling's acting skills.
When "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" was broadcast, everyone had watched her portrayal of the Child-Goddess, which perfectly recreated the original work.
However, due to the limited screen time and the fact that "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils" had been remade several times, with numerous actresses playing the role of the Child-Goddess, many haters and trolls pitted against each other, claiming the Hong Kong version was the best and all others were trash. Therefore, the reception wasn't particularly strong.
Now, seeing her portrayal of Zhao Hede, they realized belatedly that the former fading traffic star had, unknowingly, transformed into a world-astonishingly skilled actress.
Sister Sa, watching the show intently on her television, was also startled by the scene where Zhao Hede strangled the prince.
She turned to Jiang Ling, who was calmly watching the drama beside her on the sofa, her face filled with disbelief. "Lingzi, how can your acting be..."
As Jiang Ling's agent, no one knew better than she did how terrible Jiang Ling's acting used to be.
To describe it in one sentence, it was like a rotten mother opening the door for a rotten daughter, completely rotten to the core.
Even the most brainless fans wouldn't dare to praise Jiang Ling's acting.
During this period, although Jiang Ling had displayed a very high level of skill in her performance.
Sister Sa had only assumed that she had been forced to break up with Shen Mingjue, suffering a severe blow to her mind and body, which had then opened her mind and awakened her acting talent.
But even with good acting talent, could it have improved so outrageously in such a short time?
Jiang Ling held a bag of chips, eating them casually. "Many people in the industry hide their true abilities. The me you knew before was not my entirety, merely the side I was willing to show."
"The side you were willing to show?"
Sister Sa was astonished. "Before, with your performances at Spark Media, all that terrible acting and diva behavior... that was all an act..."
Jiang Ling nodded. "That's right, it was all an act."
Sister Sa asked, utterly bewildered, "If it was all an act before, why did you repeatedly court disaster, forcing Spark Media to terminate your contract?"
Jiang Ling calmly replied, "There's no particular reason. I just didn't want to be a pawn of capital anymore. If I didn't let myself lose my commercial value, how could those bloodsucking vampires at Spark Media easily let go of me, their cash cow?"