Could it be that the production team suddenly ramped up their publicity efforts, causing the film’s popularity to soar? But that poor and tiny production crew—where would they get so much money for promotion?

Then, she received another message: the 96th trending topic on Weibo—“Ethan Brooks’s stunning performance in ‘The King of Gambling: The Prequel’.”

Seeing this trending topic, Linda Harris almost spat out a mouthful of blood.

Seriously, of all the trending topics you could buy, why pick one saying Ethan Brooks gave a stunning performance? That’s just too much~ With his poker face acting, aside from being handsome, he’s got nothing going for him!

Buying this trending topic will only backfire, right? Isn’t this just a pure waste of money?

Then, Linda Harris followed the trending topic and found a short video.

The background of the short video seemed to be a study.

Ethan Brooks was wearing a clean T-shirt, shuffling and handling a deck of playing cards, his long fingers moving nimbly and deftly.

The movements didn’t seem big, but the whole deck of cards looked as if it had come alive in his hands—clean, crisp, and yet dazzling as they leapt, rolled, spun, and overlapped.

“Swish!”

Ethan Brooks swept his palm lightly across the desk, and the cards traced a perfect semi-arc on the table. With a gentle hook of his pinky on the first card, he stood it upright, then pressed his index fingertip along the edge, tracing the arc of the cards.

“Clatter!”

The cards stood up smoothly like dominoes, then toppled one after another in a dazzling cascade, with most of the deck flipping over on the table.

He flicked his fingers again, and the fallen cards stood up one by one, flipping to the other side.

“Clatter~ clatter~”

Ethan Brooks’s long fingers moved left and right, just like a conductor at a grand ball, while the deck of cards danced gracefully like a troupe, following the changes of his fingers and producing a pleasant rustling sound.

Linda Harris’s eyes widened, completely captivated by this dazzling scene.

Handsome—he was just too handsome!

How did he do that?

Was it a prop or special effects?

“Swish!”

Ethan Brooks reached out and scooped up the entire deck into his palm. With a flick and a pull of his fingers, the cards formed a flying dragon in his hand.

“Snap!”

The cards closed together again, then with another swish, spread out into a dragon once more.

Every card seemed to have come alive, fluttering back and forth in the air like joyful sprites. They also resembled an army, displaying astonishing unity and discipline under Ethan Brooks’s command.

Linda Harris was completely stunned.

This incredibly brilliant, dazzling visual effect brought a rush of excitement that wildly stimulated her brain, flooding her with dopamine and setting her whole being ablaze.

“How did he do that?”

“How on earth did Ethan Brooks do that?”

“So handsome!”

“So dazzling.”

After so many years in the entertainment industry, Linda Harris’s instincts were well-honed. After watching this short video—just over a minute long—she could almost immediately tell that it had the potential to go viral. If handled well, its spread would take off in no time.

No wonder the numbers for “The King of Gambling: The Prequel” suddenly improved.

She took a moment to glance at her own company’s popular B-list actress Emily Foster, then looked back at the radiant Ethan Brooks in the video.

A ridiculous thought suddenly popped into her mind.

……

Chapter 7: Card Control Technique Upgrade

……

At the same time.

A senior girls’ dormitory at Jinling University.

Julia Reed finished her evening self-study, took a shower, changed into pajamas, and lay down on her bed.

A few of her roommates were either out interning or no longer living in the dorm, making it feel rather empty and quiet.

She habitually opened Weibo to check on the people she followed.

She wasn’t in the habit of using Weibo, but when the top student from her high school, Ethan Brooks, suddenly entered the entertainment industry, she registered an account just to follow him and check his updates every day.

Even though Ethan Brooks hadn’t posted on Weibo for a long time, she still checked in from time to time.

“Huh?”

She sat up straight, staring at her phone screen in disbelief.

Ethan Brooks had actually posted twice on Weibo today, one of which was a repost about the web movie he starred in, “The King of Gambling: The Prequel.”

What’s going on? Is he acting in the entertainment industry again?

The second Weibo post was a video. She clicked on it, and… after a few dozen seconds, her face was blank with shock. Even after a few minutes, she was still dazed!

How could he be this handsome?

After finally snapping out of it, she couldn’t help but want to share the video in her high school classmates’ group chat.

But to her surprise, when she opened the group, she found someone had already shared it, and there were already hundreds of messages.

It had been three or four years since graduation, and the group hadn’t been this lively in ages.

Their class was an advanced class at a top high school, with several students admitted to Tsinghua and Peking University. Someone like Julia Reed, who could only get into Jinling University, was considered a poor student in the class.

Everyone was focused on their studies, so they didn’t really care about celebrities or the entertainment industry.

But they still paid attention to Ethan Brooks.

First, because Ethan Brooks was one of the top students in the class; second, because he was handsome enough, had a sunny and cheerful personality, and got along well with everyone.