Chapter 2 The Crazy Diet

"Jenny, today's treat is on me." Johnny winked at Jenny from behind the bar counter. "A cup of coffee, a dessert, it's on the house."

"Thanks, Johnny," Jenny's shift was over, and after standing for eight hours, her legs were aching. "A black Americano with no sugar or milk, and a seagull salad without the oil and vinegar dressing, please."

Johnny looked at her curiously, "Are you on a diet? Jen, forgive me, but I don't see why it's necessary."

Jenny smiled and didn't explain anything. She just took the packaged meal from Johnny and waved at him. "See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow." Johnny waved back good-naturedly. "Take care of yourself, Jen."

Jenny walked out of the restaurant, bent down to unlock her bicycle, and hopped on it to ride back to her place.

Her home wasn't very far from the restaurant, and luckily, there were no hills on the winding roads of Los Angeles. Chen Zhen had discovered this on her first day of work after waking up, and she immediately spent a day's worth of wages at the flea market to buy a bicycle.

After a twenty-minute ride, she arrived at her rented place - a small one-bedroom apartment in a middle-aged building without an elevator.

Due to the high cost of labor in the United States, there isn't much difference in income between white-collar and blue-collar workers. Jenny worked as a waitress at the restaurant, earning a base pay of eighty dollars a day.

The restaurant she worked at also sold fancy coffee and had good business. If she worked two shifts in a row, she could make over two hundred dollars a day, but it was quite tiring. If she only worked one shift a day, she could still make around a hundred and thirty dollars including tips. With a monthly income of about four thousand dollars, this fifty-square-meter apartment was a rent-controlled unit. Although it was located near Beverly Hills, the monthly rent was only six hundred dollars. It could be considered the legacy that Jenny left for Chen Zhen.

The restaurant provided one meal. If someone like Jenny, who was beautiful and had a sweet smile, could attract customers, the boss, Johnny, would be more generous and often provide two meals or give her extra takeout. When calculated, Jenny didn't actually need to spend much money on food, and she could even get free meals at popular American coffee and hot dog restaurants.

After deducting the rent from her monthly income, she didn't have many expenses for everyday things like buying fruit, clothes, and cosmetics. Saving two thousand dollars a month was an easy task for her. However, Jenny, like most Americans, clearly didn't have a savings mindset, especially as a Hollywood dreamer who wanted to enter the entertainment industry with her looks. She couldn't possibly save money for the future by being frugal. Chen Zhen was just glad that she didn't have credit card debt, which was rare for American girls her age.

Of course, Jenny Jane did leave behind some 'legacy'. She used most of her salary to buy clothes and shoes. In this small one-bedroom apartment, the living room is actually a closet (Jenny Jane has at least a hundred pairs of shoes). The remaining portion of her salary is used to purchase performing arts courses.

When Chen Zhen occupied the nest, she still had an unfinished performance course at the community college. As for other expenses, there are basically none. Although she likes to go to nightclubs with her friends, as a beauty, she has her own privileges, and everyone understands that.

It must be said that Jenny Jane is actually a rare and aspiring girl. Although she holds unrealistic dreams of fame, she is still living seriously and accumulating bit by bit to achieve her dreams. If she also has a certain talent and luck to win big prizes, maybe she will have a place in Hollywood in the future. But now, the original her has disappeared, and the only person who can fulfill her dream of fame is Chen Zhenji.

As soon as Chen Zhen returned home, she changed into sportswear. She walked back and forth in the house, quickly completing tasks such as cleaning the room. Due to her speed, she did a simple warm-up and her body started to heat up. She turned on the newly purchased computer, opened Winamp, and started dancing Latin dance to the hot music.

After an hour of Latin dance, she did fifteen minutes of stretching and relaxation. Her body was probably at its limit. Chen Zhenji collapsed on the ground and took a nap for about twenty minutes until she was awakened by the cool breeze. She got up, took a shower, washed her hair, and then started her busy evening skincare routine.

Actually, Johnny is right. Her figure can be described as very symmetrical and fit. As a woman with a height of five feet seven inches and a D-cup, Jenny usually wears size 4 (S) clothes, which is already quite rare among white people. She doesn't need to exercise and lose weight so urgently as long as she doesn't overeat and follows the eight hours of standing every day, it is enough to maintain her figure.

But this is for ordinary people. Regardless of whether they are actresses, singers, or models, as long as they are involved in the entertainment industry and in front of the camera, ordinary fitness is never enough.

Due to the aspect ratio used in modern film and television, as well as the conversion between 3D and 2D, 'gaining ten pounds on camera' is not just a phrase used by overweight people to comfort themselves, but a real phenomenon. It is very likely that the visual effect after being filmed is more than just ten pounds overweight, because human eyes perceive in 3D, shadows and depth contours are processed. However, film and television images are 2D, which means that a person is flattened. Of course, the face and body will appear bigger than before. So, to achieve the effect of looking normal on camera, the face must be smaller than that of a normal person, which is common knowledge in acting schools.

Therefore, the more naturally round-faced or less distinct facial features an entertainer has, the more they have to force themselves to lose weight. On the other hand, lucky ones with deep and distinct facial features have to put in less effort, but it doesn't mean they can eat and drink as they please. Anyone who still has ambitions in the entertainment industry and doesn't want to play fat characters will almost never have a day of being full, the only difference is how to starve oneself.

Of course, there is a price to pay for this. Actors who look normal on camera or actors who are portrayed as thin on camera not only have terrifyingly small faces in reality, but they are basically just hangers without flesh. Not to mention the health risks, even dating becomes a challenge. After all, most normal people still want to be with normal people, at least in terms of appearance...

Chen Zhen is lucky. In her previous life, she lost four years of fat in order to fit in with the crowd because she had a boyfriend who liked his girlfriend to have a little bit of meat on her bones, so she didn't starve herself. After graduating, it was only natural for her to get married and become a wealthy housewife. Although she still wanted to maintain her figure, she knew that she couldn't compare to those in the entertainment industry.

As for this life, Jenny Jane should have pure German blood. This bloodline gives her deep facial features and distinct contours, but the disadvantage is that she looks older in middle age. However, the advantage is that she looks great on camera with a natural shadow effect, making her look very slim.

Getting older can be compensated for with makeup, but being overweight cannot. In terms of being on camera, it must be admitted that white people have a racial advantage. In addition, Western aesthetics does not excessively pursue thinness. Therefore, Chen Zhen doesn't need to go to extremes like her Chinese colleagues who strive to become extremely thin. She just needs to exercise a lot and get rid of excess fat to maintain a figure that is one size smaller than the average person.

--In another words, her short-term goal is to wear a size 2.

She doesn't have the energy to go to the gym multiple times or the money to hire a personal trainer, but luckily when she was a wealthy housewife in her previous life, she had the habit of exercising regularly to maintain her figure. As a personal hobby, she also danced Latin for many years, so she can exercise at home. As for not eating dinner, giving up sugary drinks, and saying no to oily dressings, these are all part of the weight loss process and have become almost instinctual for Chen Zhen. Even in her previous life, she rarely ate these things.

With an eight-hour shift and a 40-minute bike ride to and from work, Chen Zhen's body is almost at its limit. After taking a shower and briefly reading the news, she falls into a deep sleep. The next morning at 6 o'clock, when the alarm clock rings, she promptly wakes up, drinks water, goes for a morning run for an hour, and then takes a shower before sitting down to eat her most important meal of the day.

She takes out the salad she packed from yesterday, boils two eggs, adds a slice of poached chicken breast, and a large glass of milk. After devouring this hearty meal, she finally feels satisfied in her stomach. Chen Zhen feels that white people's bodies are resistant. After such high-intensity exercise, she feels energetic again after eating.

After breakfast, with an hour and a half before work, she doesn't waste time and sits in the living room, doing a yoga pose. She sets the alarm, takes a deep breath, and activates her "golden finger."

When her "golden finger" is activated, Chen Zhen suddenly falls into darkness.