CHAPTER 481: CHAPTER 472: BEST ACTRESS 39 (6,000 WORDS CHAPTER)_4

After the situation was settled, Ding Xinxian had no choice but to expertly curry favor with the Emperor to improve her life. With her intelligence, after just one night of favor, she made the Emperor delighted and was directly promoted to Talented, surpassing the concubine, the Imperial Concubine, and Bao Lin, a rare privilege.

Although becoming Talented came with the Emperor’s favor, Ding Xinxian deeply hated the Empress. If she wanted to become a concubine, she could have done so by encountering the Emperor a few times based on her abilities. She simply didn’t want to waste her time in the harem, filled with schemes, living like a caged bird, so she thought about leaving the harem to find an easy-to-control man to marry.

Unexpectedly, after avoiding so much, she mistook a fool for a clever person, making all her efforts to leave the palace futile.

From then on, the transformed Ding Xinxian overthrew the concubines, caused the Empress’s downfall, manipulated the Emperor to make herself the Empress, and intervened in the previous dynasty. She ensured her child was made Crown Prince, and decisively ended the Emperor’s life when he discovered she caused the Empress’s death, enabling her young son to ascend the throne while she took control of the court as Regent.

She enacted a massacre against the royal family’s kinsmen, leading to the depopulation of the Royal Family. She used cruel officials to manage the arrogant and tyrannical noble families, gaining merits but going to extremes, resulting in the wrongful deaths of numerous aristocratic nobles.

She ordered the opening of numerous academies and established academy fields, replacing tuition with book copying and farming, enrolling poor students. She also ensured the poor students didn’t forget the hardships of agriculture, allowing them to study. She lightened labor duties, reduced taxes, and let the common people rest, aiming to ensure everyone could fill their bellies.

She held her son firmly in check, and even after his death, when passing the throne to her grandson, she never relinquished power, maintaining control until her death. Her life was a mixture of merits and demerits, but her merits outweighed her faults, establishing a prosperous era.

After the Regent Empress aired, it unsurprisingly became a hit! Initially, it was in the poor rankings of the teens, but by the middle and later stages, it consistently occupied the top spot. After the broadcast ended, the TV station started replaying it in a loop, and the online viewership exceeded 300 million, making all the participating actors famous!

Among them, the lone star Ning Shuangshuang became extraordinarily popular! She finally became an A-list star, with numerous loyal fans, unlike the ephemeral fame she received after her first portrayal of Qin Shuangshuang.

Having watched the Regent Empress, her loyal fan Meng Meiqi passionately tapped away at her keyboard, starting to write an extensive review.

"After watching the Regent Empress, my only impression is that this director is a breath of fresh air, standing out in a sea of naive female leads by bringing a unique narrative style that doesn’t hide the lead’s cunning."

"It’s not that no director has ever shot a series with Ding Xinxian as the lead, but without exception, this historically notorious, scheming Empress Dowager is always portrayed as a naive woman, lacking originality. Although after watching this series, I devoured history books and became a fan of Ding Xinxian, also recognizing her as a kind person who loved her people, it is undeniable that she is kind to the common people, but can be cruel to the royal family and noble families."

"Most importantly, whether in unofficial or official histories, Ding Xinxian’s cunning is famously profound. Such a deeply scheming character was brought to life by Ning Shuangshuang. More importantly, her ruthlessness, kindness, and cunning made this character more fleshed out and likable, making everything feel reasonable and convincing. I cannot believe a woman who rose from being a palace maid to the position of Regent Empress had no schemes or means."

"What surprised me the most is that Ning Shuangshuang portrayed Ding Xinxian so authentically, as if the historical Regent Empress had come back to life. Her youthful yearning to leave the palace, the cold transformation after being sent to the Emperor by the Empress, her strategic interference in politics when involved in the previous court, and her stern and ruthless demeanor as Regent Empress were all vividly captured."

"It’s really hard to imagine a sixteen-year-old girl like Ning Shuangshuang could portray Ding Xinxian’s life so legendary, and what shocked me the most was her performance as Ding Xinxian in her old age. We saw a deeply authentic elderly person, with no discordance. This is truly superb acting, and I am certain Ning Shuangshuang will surely ascend to become an award-winning actress in the future!"

"Looking back at the few dramas Ning Shuangshuang has acted in, I actually have the feeling that Ning Shuangshuang seems to be born to act. Her first role was as a fan of the male lead in a movie by Director Zheng Mingjing, depicting the restraint and hidden fanaticism of a fan towards their idol in a few lines, performed by Ning Shuangshuang with perfection."

"Her second drama was My Goddess Qin Shuangshuang, where Ning Shuangshuang brought the character of Qin Shuangshuang to life, then turned to portray a gloomy and frenzied girl, yet Ning Shuangshuang brought it to life all the same. Now she has portrayed another legendary woman in history, Ding Xinxian, and again Ning Shuangshuang has breathed life into this character."

After Meng Meiqi’s comment was completed, it sparked a wave of discussion about Ning Shuangshuang’s acting and admiration for the Regent Empress. Meanwhile, a variety show Ning Shuangshuang had previously been on aired another interview with the Regent Empress crew, this time the host was the familiar Leng Hua.

The interview revisited old stories, interesting anecdotes during filming, and some clips. Broadcasted afterward, Director Qin Xian praised Ning Shuangshuang on the show, saying she had no airs, didn’t complain after filming multiple takes due to others, and greatly respected him as a new director, with endless compliments.

Not just Qin Xian, all the actors in the crew were full of praise when mentioning Ning Shuangshuang, respectfully calling her Teacher Ning, saying a filming day wouldn’t be complete without her guidance, mentioning her patience and never being angry at their blunders, endless compliments came without hesitation, leaving Leng Hua surprised.

Leng Hua still remembered last time when Ning Shuangshuang came for the show, she was similarly praised by the director. This time, not only the director, but the whole crew praised Ning Shuangshuang for her good character. Such unanimous praise couldn’t be bought; all must sincerely think highly of her, leading to this situation.

Ning Shuangshuang blushed from head to toe with such praise, genuinely not feeling she did something extraordinary. Actually, she was just doing what someone had done for her before. In her past life, Ning Shuangshuang didn’t have the acting skills she has now and would secretly observe big stars’ performances during filming.

Amid this, many big names, seeing Ning Shuangshuang’s dedication, were generous with their guidance, learning a little from here and there, which contributed to her current acting skills. Ning Shuangshuang helped her co-actors just like she was once helped, without ulterior motives, not expecting her unintentional gesture would earn her sincere respect from others.

Ning Shuangshuang’s highly praised character gained her a large number of fans once again, intensifying her popularity. Her agent Jin An already began researching for Ning Shuangshuang to undertake an art film likely to win awards, aiming to clinch a Best Actress award!