Taylor Swift wasn't entirely giving Medjani a way out with her words.

She was genuinely curious about Chen Hero as a person.

Her agent had arranged for her to appear in this film. The saying goes, "Excel in singing, then act." Taylor was already a superstar in the pop music scene, mainly because she was still young, earning her the title of "Little Queen of Pop." After solidifying her status in the music world, Taylor's agency felt she should broaden her acting career. Many pop singers have experience in movies, and Taylor had some before.

But those were just dabbling.

This time was different. Taylor's agency wanted her to hone her acting skills, aiming for her to become a triple-threat star in film, television, and music.

*Liverpool Love* was a low-budget movie, and the director was also a newcomer. The agency felt the movie's impact wouldn't be significant, reducing pressure and making it suitable for Taylor to practice. Even if it failed, it wouldn't have a devastating impact on her acting career. Big-budget films would certainly increase her fame, but also attract more criticism.

They felt a star of Taylor's caliber didn't need to appear in blockbusters to gain fame. That was something second and third-tier actresses did, like playing a vase-like female lead in some blockbuster, showing off their figure and face with no acting skills involved.

Taylor didn't need that.

Taylor needed to take it one step at a time, building a solid foundation.

In fact, Taylor had already been taking acting classes.

So the agency decided to take on this film.

After confirming her role in *Liverpool Love*, Taylor Swift naturally had to learn about the male lead. This was a movie based on a true story, and interestingly, the male lead Chen Hero was the "real person." It was based on his experiences!

That alone was enough to make Taylor interested.

Then she learned about Chen Hero through various channels.

But the more she learned, the more she felt she couldn't understand him, as if he was shrouded in a layer of mist.

Initially, she mostly heard negative news. Many people said Chen Hero was rude and uncultured, with a violent temper, like a thug. He publicly beat opponents on the field, cursed at the media who criticized him, and was a playboy who frequented nightclubs. He even slept with his female bodyguard.

Some even called him a "villain."

Quite a few people disliked him; in fact, it could be said that they were the majority.

Many cursed him, wishing he would die soon.

These materials made Taylor Swift frown deeply—she was going to work with a guy like this?

She heard he was also one of the investors? Was he playing the male lead just to hook up with actresses? Taylor knew many sports stars were fond of celebrities. Since he could sleep with his female bodyguard, he definitely wasn't the type to avoid hitting on people close to him. What if he had designs on her?

For a moment, the poor little queen of pop wanted to back out. She even asked her agent what to do if she wanted to quit, but the agent told her that quitting now would require paying a substantial penalty... So she immediately changed her tune and said she was just joking.

Who changed her mind?

By chance, she met her friend Ivanka ***. This most popular heiress in the United States had once been engaged to the son of a real estate tycoon, but after calling it off, she had remained single.

The two had a good relationship and were considered close friends.

One day, Ivanka asked about Taylor's movie, and Taylor mentioned her worries.

When Ivanka heard the name Chen Hero, she paused.

The name stirred up long-dormant memories in her heart.

Hearing that her good friend was considering backing out because the male lead was Chen Hero, she laughed.

She didn't try to persuade Taylor, but simply said, "From what I know, your co-star is a true gentleman. I mean… he's not the 'gentleman' that people usually talk about; he's the real thing."

She didn't say much more.

But those words clearly carried weight. Taylor Swift admired her good friend. Ivanka had her own ideas, and they were always right. When she announced the cancellation of her engagement, many believed it would be a blow to her father's business. But they were wrong. Ivanka *** took over her father's business at the most critical moment. The *** business empire not only didn't collapse, but thrived against the backdrop of the global economic crisis. One couldn't deny Ivanka ***'s abilities. That's why Taylor Swift, the little queen of pop, admired and respected her so much. She would ask Ivanka for advice whenever she could, and she was willing to believe Ivanka's words.

Since she said Chen Hero was a true gentleman, was she mistaken about him?

So she went looking for more information about Chen Hero again. This time, she deliberately ignored Chen Hero's negative reviews and news, focusing on positive news.

From these fragments, she gradually pieced together another image of Chen Hero. This Chen Hero was loyal, straightforward, generous, and had good relationships. When Liverpool fans were injured in Turkey and falsely accused by Turkish media of being football hooligans, not a single English media outlet spoke out in support of their compatriots, because English football hooligans were indeed notorious. But Chen Hero was the first to stand up. He stood up for the fans without knowing the truth, simply because they had helped him before, so he believed they were not football hooligans.

Seeing this, Taylor Swift thought Chen Hero was too stupid—what if he was deceived? Football hooligans looked like normal people too, and that reason was too far-fetched…

But then she thought, maybe Chen Hero himself didn't take the reason to heart and just made one up to express his support for the fan?

One Chen Hero was rude and uncultured, disliked by many. The other was loyal and willing to stand up for an ordinary fan.

Taylor Swift was confused by these two completely different Chen Heroes.

So what kind of person was Chen Hero?

Seeing is believing…

Unfortunately, for some reason, she didn't see the legendary Chen Hero on her first day in Frankfurt.

※※※

Was Chen Hero really sleeping?

Of course not. He didn't have the habit of going to bed so early.

But he really couldn't be disturbed. He was diligently practicing his left-foot ball control technique in the dungeon.

He felt that he would be busy in the future and might be disturbed by all sorts of people at any time, so he wouldn't be able to train in the dungeon for a while. So he simply seized the time to grind the dungeon.

At this moment, beautiful women were obviously not as important as football.

※※※

But the two would always meet.

If not tonight, then tomorrow.

Chen Hero wasn't deliberately avoiding Taylor Swift, nor did he need to. He was just annoyed by Swift's diva attitude and wanted to give her a taste of her own medicine.

The next day, Chen Hero got up early and went straight to the gym for strength and conditioning training. Although the movie he was filming had nothing to do with it, he was still a player, and playing football was his main job. To prevent his physical fitness from declining during this vacation, Chen Hero had to insist on self-training.

After finishing his strength and conditioning training, Chen Hero planned to go back to his room for a shower. As he stepped out of the elevator, he ran into Taylor Swift, accompanied by her assistant.

Taylor Swift was also surprised—she didn't expect her first meeting with Chen Hero to be at this time, in this situation.

Chen Hero was covered in sweat, his t-shirt and shorts soaked, clinging tightly to his body, revealing his figure. If Chen Hero were a beautiful woman, he would probably be completely exposed…

But at this moment, Chen Hero was completely unpresentable. His black hair was soaked with sweat, sticking tightly to his scalp, and sweat dripped down his hair and cheeks, onto the carpet in the hotel hallway. He looked like he had just been pulled out of a river.

And Taylor Swift was clearly carefully dressed. Compared to her, he was like a princess and a construction worker.

Chen Hero saw Swift, paused, and remembered that this person was his female lead, Taylor Swift.

He snorted inwardly—she really liked to act like a diva, needing an assistant to follow her even when she went downstairs for breakfast!

Actually, he was wrong about Swift. The assistant had come up to call Taylor…

But Chen Hero wouldn't bother investigating the matter. Once a deeply ingrained first impression was formed, it was really hard to change.

Chen Hero was now convinced that Taylor Swift liked to act like a diva.

Many people would think that Chen Hero was annoyed by Swift, so, given his temper, he would definitely walk past her without acknowledging her—he wasn't afraid of anyone, so why would he show weakness in front of a female star?

But they were wrong. After seeing Swift, Chen Hero suddenly took the initiative to extend his hand and greet her. "Miss Taylor Swift? Hello, it's nice to meet you. I'm sorry I was too tired to pick you up yesterday…"

Since the other party had extended her hand, could Taylor Swift refuse to take it? Of course not.

So Taylor Swift's fragrant hand grasped Chen Hero's sweaty, greasy, and slippery hand.

She almost couldn't hold on…

"Hello, Chen… Hero…"

Taylor was a bit of a neat freak and couldn't quite tolerate the smell of Chen Hero's sweat. But she behaved impeccably. She stood in front of Chen Hero, holding his hand, and didn't show the slightest displeasure.

Chen Hero didn't feel like chatting with her. He pointed ahead and said, "Sorry, I just finished training and need to go back for a shower. Excuse me!"

With that, he pulled his hand away and swaggered off.

Taylor Swift turned sideways to let him pass, turned her head to look at his back, and after he disappeared around the corner of the corridor, she looked down at the hand that had shaken Chen Hero's, deep in thought.