Tonight, at the Magnolia Awards, the biggest winner was undoubtedly Lin Muci.
She took home two individual awards by herself.
Meanwhile, "Fangfei Juedai" won Best Film and Best Cinematography.
Zhao Lan couldn't stop smiling.
Huo Ziyao's face was ashen.
Her expression had soured halfway through the awards ceremony, and she didn't even attend the after-party, leaving in a hurry.
"Her dress caused controversy."
Zhao Lan was quite speechless.
"After being in the industry for so many years, how could she still harbor any wishful thinking? She's experienced ups and downs and weathered big storms, yet she could stumble over such a minor issue..."
The topic #HuoZiyaoFakeGown dominated trending searches. Many fashion editors and bloggers began to take sides.
Although they were afraid of offending Huo Ziyao and didn't dare to name names, they alluded to her dress being fake.
Lin Muci's was the genuine one.
Since Lin Muci had already fallen out with Huo Ziyao, she wasn't afraid of Huo Ziyao's tantrums.
Zhao Lan touched the embroidery on her dress with curiosity.
"Is this really the Nine Heavens Phoenix Palace? I thought it was lost to legend... This dress, dubbed the ultimate red carpet battle gown, truly suits you, complementing your aura, Xiao Ci."
A nineteen-year-old girl.
To be able to carry such a magnificent gown.
Zhao Lan looked at Lin Muci with newfound admiration.
Compared to the domestic controversy over Huo Ziyao's counterfeit dress,
The overseas reception of the live photos from the event, especially those of Lin Muci, was overwhelmingly positive.
The New York Times: "A Legendary Gown from the East! A dress every girl would go crazy for. I have never seen such a radiant girl. I believe her future is limitless."
North American Film Express: "When Hanks joined a new film with an emerging Eastern talent, I think the same thought surged through the minds of us reporters. We all thought Hanks must have gone mad to have such a terrifying idea!"
"As it turns out, it wasn't Hanks who was mad. It was that he foresaw the girl's potential."
"A few photos leave us marveling at how partial God can be, bestowing upon her such flawless beauty."
"This beauty is like an angel on earth."
The Times: "Very Eastern, very classic. Humanity's perception of beauty is always unified."
"This dress is the pinnacle creation of Zi Mu. Wearing it, I seem to see her extraordinary soul."
This media outlet provided a rather bold comment:
"I can already see her ambition."
"She will become a goddess on the red carpet, and even gods and demons will be unable to block her dazzling radiance."
"Soaring high, the globally acclaimed girl is about to become immensely popular!"
When these comments were translated and reposted domestically, the fan circles erupted in further excitement.
The topic #LinMuciMakesCountryProud climbed the trending charts.
Looking at the trending topic, Lin Muci mused that Huo Ziyao's face must be contorted with rage.
People in the fashion industry couldn't ignore these trends.
Initially, everyone was being discreet and not mentioning her counterfeit dress.
Then Huo Ziyao herself stepped forward.
She logged into her social media account.
@HuoZiyao: My gown is the genuine Nine Heavens Phoenix Palace designed by Zi Mu. Some people are buying trolls to slander me. You better be careful!!!!!
She posted several exclamation marks in a row.
Her multiple exclamation marks caused quite a stir.
"Trolls? Slander you?"
"Don't you know yourself if your dress is fake?"
"You're grown, can't you be more mature?"
Everyone found Huo Ziyao utterly laughable.
"Everyone was giving you face, but you insisted on jumping out. Isn't this confessing your guilt?"
"Where did Xiao Ci buy trolls from? Our comments are from genuine people. If you click on them, you'll see accounts that have been active for years."
"Exactly, whoever is guilty knows it best!"
Everyone felt she lacked grace.
Lin Muci did not reply.
That same evening, people suddenly discovered that several fashion brands had issued statements announcing they had terminated their contracts with Huo Ziyao early.
@StormEyewear: The contract with Huo Ziyao expired in the first half of this year and will not be renewed. @HuoZiyao.
@LymeiApparel: The contract with Huo Ziyao ended its one-year term last year. @HuoZiyao.
Everyone began to distance themselves from her.
Furthermore, the cover she was supposed to have was also gone.
"Weren't they saying she had a cover with a major magazine coming up? What happened, was she blacklisted by the magazine? This month's cover clearly belongs to Ling Qianhe!"
"Tsk tsk, the fashion industry rarely takes sides so collectively. If Huo Ziyao hadn't gone too far, why would they cancel their collaborations?"
"If this isn't the hammer of Thor..."
"Then I really don't know what constitutes solid proof."
"Save some dignity, stop struggling. If you don't admit it soon, you'll be disgraced internationally."
"For a prominent actress to wear a counterfeit gown and then blame a rookie female idol... that's something to hide, isn't it?"
"Xiao Ci is such a tragic girl. She said nothing out of respect for you, but we viewers have eyes!"
"Exactly!"
Everyone chimed in, creating quite a lively scene.
Huo Ziyao, scrolling through comments at home, was so angry she felt like spitting blood.
She had intended to make a comeback and suppress the arrogance of Lin Muci and Zhao Lan.
That's why she took the risky move of wearing the "Nine Heavens Phoenix Palace" gown.
However, since she hadn't seen the genuine article, she could only ask a designer to create it based on leaked sketches.
She thought she wouldn't be discovered.
But unexpectedly, Lin Muci arrived wearing the "Nine Heavens Phoenix Palace"...
And utterly outshone her, leaving nothing but dust.
It resulted in her losing so many resources.
Yet Huo Ziyao remained unconvinced.
Even if hers was fake, how could she prove that Lin Muci's gown was real?
Wasn't this something that couldn't be proven at all?
Huo Ziyao's eyes were filled with indignation.
She called her friends in the fashion circle.
"I want to ruin Lin Muci. If I'm disgraced, she won't have it easy either!"
Facing the ferocious Huo Ziyao, her friends hesitated before responding.
"Lin Muci's gown... is indeed real."
"The design director of Chanel saw the genuine article. He said that Lin Muci is wearing the real one, and he has specially flown from Paris to find Lin Muci..."
"He knew Lin Muci's red carpet photos were real just by taking one look!"
"You've gone too far this time, and we can't help you."
"The overseas fashion circle is planning to blacklist you."
"You won't be able to borrow haute couture gowns anymore. Sigh... Ziyao, you've really fallen this time!"
Huo Ziyao's face turned pale.
How could this be?
Lin Muci's dress was actually real?
How could that be?
No matter how she thought about it, it seemed unbelievable.