Translator: Vian
Editor: Shem
Qin Cheng's arrival caught the entire "Ambush" crew off guard.
"If he doesn't invest, then Huaxia Entertainment will invest."
This sentence made Han Yanghao's whole person freeze in place. His eyes widened till they were as round as a ball. He blankly stared at Qin Cheng in a daze, not daring to believe it. At this moment, Qin Cheng spared a quick one second glance towards him, causing his whole body to shake uncontrollably. Han Yanghao unconsciously took a step back and bumped into Zhong Yi.
But at this moment, only one person was breaking out into a cold sweat out of all the people present.
How come no one was letting him talk ah?!
This person was Assistant Director Wang.
Just now, when Director Zheng angrily decided to refuse to continue filming and seriously leave the project "Ambush" to rot, he didn't even have time to post the news when he suddenly saw a post——
["Ambush" crew: Pushing to release the trailer ahead of schedule! Shush, we are currently ambushing →[Video Link]]
This post was made an hour ago! It was just posted an hour ago but now it actually had more than 10,000 forwards and comments and over 50,000 likes!
How did this happen?!
One had to know that aside from Han Yanghao who was somewhat famous, everyone else in the crew from the actors to staff members, if they were not newcomers, they were passerby A. Although the official Weibo looked to have more than 100,000 fans, but Assistant Director Wang knew that for a greater half of this 100,000 plus fans were Internet Water Army accounts. Only about 50,000 were real fans.
Their drama was originally not famous, so how did it suddenly become so popular?
Assistant Director Wang didn't dare believe it and looked over it several more times. After he repeatedly confirmed that the post was really made an hour ago and had over 10,000 forwards and comments, he excitedly wanted to relay the news to Director Zheng. It was then he saw the highest liked comment at the top in the comment section.
[Old Li Zhengrong: "Ambush" does not have enough funds and is currently a big problem for the crew. We are considering to try crowdfunding.]
That's right, the reason why Assistant Director Li and Luo Zhentao disappeared for the whole afternoon was for this.
He secretly released the trailer which was originally scheduled for the day after tomorrow and used his own private account to disclose the problem of the crew's lack of fundings. This completely revealed the deeply-rooted problem for the netizens to see and at the same time, also proposed a new solution——
Crowdfunding!
In this world, crowdfundings were one of the most common forms of investments. There would always be a few hundreds low budget films made each year. There would be so much that thousands upon thousands of investors would joined up to invest for the filming. The total investment in "Ambush" was over ten million. If 10,000 people were willing to participate in the crowdfunding, then they would only need to spend a thousand dollars each and could also get their profit share in the later stages of the drama.
Qin Cheng's sudden appearance made it impossible for Assistant Director Wang to get a word in and he naturally didn't know that a storm was raging on the internet at that very moment.
[The hell! Isn't this too good-looking! This drama's aesthetics is so high!!!]
[So handsome ah! Han Yanghao is so handsome, that second male lead is also very handsome ah! The one wearing the military uniform is simply not human to be that handsome! I thought I would faint when he drew his gun! This person seems a bit familiar ah, who is it ah? Is there anyone who recognize this second male lead? The name also seems very familiar ah.]
[Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah my family's Rongrong! It's actually my family's Rongrong!]
[Look at what I found! My Rongrong's new drama! @Rong Xu Global Fan Club @Rong Xu's Wife Association @Rongrong's Life Resources Station]
Within that one hour, Han Yanghao's fans started to act in forwarding the trailer. Han Yanghao had always been a well-known first-tier young star, so for him to have so much supporters was very normal. But everyone never expected that aside from Han Yanghao, the most widely helped promotion actually came from Rong Xu's fans!
[Rong Xu Global Fan Club: Rongrong's new work! "Ambush" Huo Xi, beautiful beautiful beautiful! //"Ambush" crew: Pushing… ]
[Rongrong's Life Resources Station: Ao ao ao ao, Master Wanqi's side had just released a trailer and now comes out another Marshal Huo! //"Ambush" crew: Pushing… ]
[Rong Xu's Wife Association: Hubby's beautiful face, hubby's military uniform, hubby's long legs, my nosebleeds!!! //"Ambush" crew: Pushing… ]
The power of fans was terrifying. There weren't many Zhang Tongtong and Yi Lan fans, the entire official Weibo was mostly full of Han Yanghao's and Rong Xu's fans. Everyone couldn't believe it no matter what that this newcomer who didn't even have a single work under his name would actually have his own official fan club and it was even managed so well!
Assistant Director Li's comment had long been pinned to the top. No matter whether it was Han Yanghao's fans or Rong Xu's fans, they were all frantically commenting, asking them exactly what was it that happened. For this comment alone, there were more than one thousand responses and more than six hundred of them expressed that they were willing to support the crowdfunding.
The number of comments was still rising and its popularity on Weibo was also getting higher and higher.
Till finally, when more than one thousand people expressed their willingness to help, Assistant Director Li went on "Ambush" official Weibo and released a poll. The poll was limited to only fans. There were only five choices, the first choice was「$1-$100 RMB」, the second choice was「$101-$1000 RMB」, the third choice was「$1001-$10000 RMB」, the fourth choice was「$10001+ RMB」, and the fifth choice was「Not participating in the crowdfunding」.
Originally, there were also people who doubted whether this Weibo account "Old Li Zhengrong" was a lair. Even if he was certified as a Director, one still couldn't say for a certain if he wasn't just cheating their money. But now that even "Ambush" official Weibo has issued out the poll, how could it still be fake?
This shows that something did happen within the crew!
[This trailer is too beautiful, although there's only about 20 seconds, it's very clear what each role is. The male lead should be from an underground party and seems pretty smart. The female lead seems to be a well-bred young lady from a noble house, there should be a lot of emotional drama here. The second female lead also looks to be from the underground party and is very gorgeous. And the second male lead is just too handsome! He's absolutely this drama's main visual! I am deeply impressed by the military uniform play, currently prostrating in admiration!]
[Yeah! My heart was about to stop beating when the second male lead fired his gun!]
[Huo Xi is too handsome, you guys might call him Marshal but I say he's completely an overbearing President type! He's perfect ah ah ah!!!]
[I want to participate in the crowdfunding if the main drama has the same quality as the trailer!]
[I'll also participate in the crowdfunding! My family's Rongrong is really too beautiful!]
...…
In just half an hour, the number of people who voted had already reached five thousand! And the number was still increasing!
From the results, the most popular choice was「$101-$1000 RMB」which accounted for 40%.「$1-$100 RMB」and「$1001-$10000 RMB」each accounted for 10% respectively. There were little that chose「$10001+ RMB」. To be precise, only ten people selected that choice.
But in any case, the voting results was absolutely shocking!
When Qin Cheng heard this news from a helpless looking Assistant Director Wang, he stared blankly before turning over to glance at Director Zheng with a heavy gaze and his thin lips slightly pursed. Continuing, he looked at Rong Xu where his eyes noticeably softened and gently asked: "Since the crew has already found a solution, do you still need the company to help invest?"
Although the other party had already withdrawn his hand, Rong Xu still felt something warm over the corner of his eye, still feeling very uncomfortable.
Listening to Qin Cheng's words, Rong Xu more or less understood that the other misunderstood and thought this development was orchestrated by Director Zheng.
According to the current situation, the probability of Director Zheng organizing the whole thing was at large. Because Director Zheng had already stop giving Han Yanghao any face, so it was only natural that he had found a way out for himself. Not to mention the only one that can log onto the crew's official Weibo were those higher ups. Although Rong Xu was the second male lead, it was still impossible for him to have this much privilege.
Rong Xu thought for a moment, then smiled and answered: "I am only an actor."
Qin Cheng was slightly disappointed and his gaze slowly sank. He gently hummed "En," but said no more.
On the other hand, Director Zheng was scared silly by this incident and repeatedly asked Assistant Director Wang several times to confirm that it was true.
Old Li actually thought of crowdfunding?
And he even did it behind his back?!
"So it turns out that you already let Old Li do this, Old Zheng. Why didn't you say this earlier instead of making us all nervous like that before." The props group leader said ruefully.
"That's right ah, now since the voting results are this good and the trailer was released ahead of schedule. This could at least be considered giving the investors preparation ahead of time. Like this, the possibility to get more investment increases. How could you keep quiet and not tell us that you did this ah?"
"Right? I was actually also a bit nervous just now. How could you keep this from us and even pretended so well."
Many of the crew's seniors all vocalized their opinions and sighed in relief. Even if they all just agreed to suspend the filming, not needing to was naturally still the best.
Director Zheng had no choice but to suffer in silence and dryly laughed twice: "It's my fault, it's my fault…" While in his heart: Old Li you bastard! Going off to do this sort of thing by yourself without telling anyone, let me see to your punishment when you get back!
Now, since the decision to use crowdfunding had been set, all that was left was to leave it to those in charge of the crew's finances to deal with.
The Finances Dept.: "If we want to do crowdfunding, we need to clearly state the Director, screenwriter, actors, makeup artists, action instructors… I need a detailed roster of these people. Director Zheng, can you give me the list?" Saying this, the Finance Dept. glanced over at Han Yanghao who was standing not far away.
Han Yanghao currently had an uneasy and gloomy expression on as he gritted his teeth, glaring at Rong Xu and Director Zheng.
Director Zheng coldly sneered: "Actually, I really need to give you a new list, the previous one outdated. I know a few good first-tier young actors. While they might be as popular as a certain someone, but they have a good temper. Their relationship with me is also good, I'm sure there would be someone willing to come help us out."
The implication was: He's kicking Han Yanghao out!
Han Yanghao: "You!"
"Director Zheng." A low pleasant hearing male voice sounded, letting people unable to help but turn to him. They only saw Rong Xu give small smile with calm look and straight gaze. With a still tone, he continued: "We have already filmed three episodes. The previous character posters, trailer, and opening ceremony have already been disclosed to the media. It seems to be a bit inappropriate to replace people at this time."
The whole crew was shocked, and even Qin Cheng and Xu Jin looked at Rong Xu in surprised.
This short period was enough for Xu Jin to understand what was happening between the crew and reported the situation to Qin Cheng. As soon as he heard "Han Yanghao wanted to kick out Rong Xu," Qin Cheng narrowed his eyes and released a powerful dark overcasting aura that pressured down causing Xu Jin to freeze before his body started to tremble uncontrollably.
Qin Cheng quietly told Xu Jin in a low voice: "I seem to have seen this Han Yanghao before, you go destroy him."
Xu Jin helplessly spread out his hand: "Of course, you've seen him before. Wasn't he a guest actor in your "Musheng" five years ago? I remember that the waiter in the bar you saw near the end of the movie was played by him. Although he only had a few dozen seconds of screen time, his career still kicked off thanks to that."
Qin Cheng raised an eyebrow: "Forgot."
Xu Jin had long guessed that this man would respond like this, so he laughed: "It doesn't matter if you forgot, but there's no need for me to ruin him. It is already impossible for him to survive in this crew. Without the investment, he's nothing."
However, Xu Jin never expected that Rong Xu would personally open his mouth to let Han Yanghao stay!
Xu Jin looked at Rong Xu with astonishment. His eyes twinkled with a strange light as he carefully scrutinized this unfamiliar little newcomer.
To be able to keep his composure like this…he was definitely not someone ordinary ah.
Seeing Rong Xu so calmly and unhurriedly looking at Han Yanghao, in the surprised eyes of everyone(including Han Yanghao), his smile grew a bit more dazzling. He used a light and leisurely tone as he casually said: "Director Zheng, since the investment problem has been settled, there is no need for us to change the current structure of the crew for anyone. There is still more than a month left of filming. I think Han ge must be very happy to be able to continue working with the crew… to be able to continue working with one of the most commonly seen crews in the circle."
What are most common crews in the circle like?
In the most common crews, the investors were the sky and Director was the ground. If the sky fell then there were still people to hold it up, but if the ground crumbled then no one could stand safely.
Before, Han Yanghao was openly arrogant and haughty. As an actor, he tossed the Director around and unbridledly acted as a self-important poser. But from now on out, he would be but an ordinary actor. If the crew wanted to use his fame to get into the market, they will. His name was merely a tool for the crew. However they wanted to use him was exactly however they will use him!
Moreover, it was not uncommon for the Director to torment the actors and repeatedly make them retake! You are only an actor, on what basis do only you get special treatment? You want to eat a big pot of rice! As for what kind of meal the field service gave you was not for you to decide. You are an actor. You came to labor and work, not coming to live comfortably.
Compared to driving him out of the crew where the road was large and the sky boundless and each walking their way and you letting him stay where you could harass and embarrass him day and night, which one would be more satisfying in quelling your anger?
Director Zheng quickly understood the implication and hurriedly nodded: "En, that's true. There's no need to change the list, let's just go with that."
Han Yanghao immediately roared: "I'm not acting! I'm not acting in this third-rate dram—" His voice abruptly stopped. Han Yanghao's voice went hoarse and felt that he couldn't make out a single word.
In front of him, the beautiful youth focused on him, watching him with a smile yet not a smile on his lips while the handsome and apathetic man narrowed his eyes, only glancing at him with a cold indifferent gaze. These two people stood there, appearing as if they could steal away everyone else's line of sight. However, only Han Yanghao who was at the receiving end of their gaze felt a deep chill that comes from the soles of his feet.
Director Zheng laughed: "Han Yanghao, if you don't act then you'll have to pay the fine for breaking the contract. And we also have to give the audience an explanation for why you're not acting. We can't have them saying our crew abused you, right?"
Han Yanghao was stupefied.
"Or it might be better if we just tell them the truth. Han Yanghao got into the crew thanks to the investor. He wanted to force Rong Xu out, but the crew disagreed so he wanted to threaten the crew by withdrawing his investment. In the end, the crew could only go to crowdfunding. Now that the crowdfunding is successful, Han Yanghao wants to leave again. The crew has no way to persuade him to stay and express their deep regret?"
As soon as these words came out, the studio bursted out laughing, treating Han Yanghao who was standing in middle as a clown.
Rong Xu also smiled as he looked at Director Zheng: He didn't expect that Director Zheng also had a talent in infuriating people.
As soon as this explanation goes out, Han Yanghao's reputation would be utterly destroyed! But this was a choice of killing ten thousand enemies while losing three thousand soldiers. If this sort of thing goes out, not only was it unfavorable for Rong Xu but it was also disadvantageous for the "Ambush" crew.
When it gets down to it, the development was something within Rong Xu's expectations. Han Yanghao was forced to have no choice but to want to keep things secret and could only continue to film. It was just that there was still a number of his scenes remaining. Whether this male lead was not just an empty title but actual in reality, no one knows.
This day could be considered as squandered away, so the crew would restart the filming tomorrow. The crew began to pack up and prepare the props. Assistant Director Li and Luo Zhentao had also arrived later. When Assistant Director Li arrived, he was taken to the side by Director Zheng to be chided. One says it was chiding, but when the two people came out, they were joking around and laughing. Assistant Director Li winked at Rong Xu as he passed by.
Rong Xu slightly smiled and nodded towards him: En, it looks like he(ADL) didn't give himself(RX) away.
Yes, the "releasing the trailer ahead of schedule", and "crowdfunding plan", were all naturally devised by Rong Xu.
If it was in his last life, Rong Xu simply didn't need to do this much trouble at all. Without even mentioning that his own finances were enough to invest in a low-budget drama, as long as his name appears in the cast, there would be countless investors eagerly fighting at the door to invest in the drama.
However, in this life, he was still just a small newcomer. He fell out with the Rong Family and even his rent money had to be hard-earned.
Therefore, he could only turn to crowdfunding.
Depriving Han Yanghao of his power and return the authority over the crew back to the Director's hand.
In order to do this, he first needed to let the netizens be interested in "Ambush" and think that it was worth investing into this drama—— thus, they needed to release the trailer. Next, there also needed to be a suitable opportunity to let Han Yanghao suffer in silence and could only obediently accept reality—— so, it was necessary to seize Han Yanghao's weakness.
In front of the whole crew and even in front of two outsiders (Qin Cheng and Xu Jin), Han Yanghao had already been caught in this scandal. If he were to continue to do anything despicable, many would take his scandal outside. When that time comes, he wouldn't even be able to catch who did it since the number of people who knew was too many.
Even as early as his first day of filming with Han Yanghao, Rong Xu had already thought of the "worst case" scenario.
This time's opportunity went beyond his expectations and could be said to have come in perfect timing. The development went extremely smooth aside from the unexpected Qin Cheng surprise… Oh yes, and Zhong Yi's as well.
Now that everything had been dealt with, the crew was lively and bustling again like the whole cold war earlier had never happened. Han Yanghao had already long angrily returned to the hotel and one reckoned that he probably would go complain to that President Li. And back to this side, Zhong Yi still haven't left but instead stood there secretly peeking at Rong Xu.
The crew acted as if he didn't exist. His fame was far worse than Han Yanghao's, was shameless enough to do something like "steal a friend's role", and may have even done the unspoken rules. Who would want to associate with this type of person? Them not giving him disdainful looks could already be considered magnanimous.
However, there were some people in the world whose thick skin exceeds everyone's imagination.
Zhong Yi slowly moved in front of Rong Xu with a cautious appearance but his gaze was squarely concentrated to the side on Qin Cheng. His little actions all fell onto Rong Xu's eyes. Rong Xu quietly and indifferently watched him, with no trace of fluctuation in his heart.
This young man truly did look very lovely. He had a face that was inherently deceiving. Therefore, even though the original owner clearly heard his slag friends talked about Zhong Yi's dirty matters, he pretended to not know and trusted him, loved him, and believed in that phrase he said, "Young Master Rong, I think that you are very good."
Whether or not Zhong Yi's acting skills are good, Rong Xu did not know. But his ability to catch men, was first class.
He really knew how to take the appropriate steps and disguise himself as a little white lotus when dealing with the original owner, someone who recklessly acts without thinking. Soft, weak, pure, and innocent; using a "I don't want to bother you, you don't need to find a role for me" appearance when in reality, when he learned that the original owner had got a role in "Vie for Supremacy" for him, one's afraid his heart had long been bursting with exhilaration.
Just like right now, he guilty looked at Rong Xu and softly whispered: "Young Master Rong, I really did not know that Han Yanghao was actually this kind of person. He told me that it was you who did not want to play this role and there was a possibility of the crew halting production. That's why I decided to take up the role. I truly didn't know… you have to believe me."
Rong Xu didn't speak but instead only raised an eyebrow as he looked at him.
The more Zhong Yi talked, the more he felt wronged. As he continued to speak, his tone actually turned a bit genuine. Don't know if it was because he ended up convincing himself, feeling that what he said was true: "When I first entered the lounge, I really was planning on pleading for you to Han Yanghao but he immediately yelled at me. Although he yelled at me, I still wanted to plead for you. But he said that it was you that thought acting was too harsh and decided not to act. I originally didn't believe it but he kept on saying…"
Gently releasing a sigh, Rong Xu helplessly said: "If your words fell into Han Yanghao's ears, what do you think would happen?"
Zhong Yi's whole body went stiff.
This little white lotus probably had never thought of what would happen if his lies were exposed.
But he was still reluctant to admit it: "I… I'm telling the truth."
Rong Xu didn't respond, but his gaze looking at him(ZY) grew colder.
Rong Xu's cold expression fell into Qin Cheng's eyes. He looked up towards Xu Jin with a meaningful glance. The latter tacitly understood and moved to cut in.
But this time, Xu Jin had just gotten up when he was beaten to it by someone else first: "Mister, isn't it inconvenient for you to stay so long in your crew? You're not someone from our crew, it would be a disaster if you were to leak what just happened within the crew or secretly took pictures. May I ask you to please leave now." Assistant Director Wang came over and coldly stated.
Zhong Yi was stunned and subconsciously voiced out: "I'm Young Master Rong's friend and I am also a star. How could I do something like that?"
Assistant Director Wang pretended to be surprised and let out a "Yi!" and mocked: "How is it impossible for you to do something like that? And how could it be possible for you to be Rong Xu's friend? If you were his friend and only came to visit him, how could you steal his role? Kid, you're still young, don't lie. If you're still not leaving, I'll have to call security."
Zhong Yi's face immediately paled.
The surrounding crew members also laughed: "That's right! If he was Rong Xu's friend, how could he steal Rong Xu's role?"
There was someone who recognized Zhong Yi, but pretended he didn't: "Don't know where this person came from, he's probably gone crazy fancying himself as a star."
"That's right ah! His skin looks soft and tender, I'm afraid he wouldn't be able to bear any suffering."
"Oh yeah, Old Zhao. do you know where Hao Sheng Club is located in B-City? I also want to look around there the next time I go to B-City. I wonder what kind of place that is ah haha!"
Zhong Yi's face turned white then blue from anger. After experiencing this incident together, the crew had became even closer and familiar, much so that one was hard pressed to pry them apart. He was humiliated by the crew to the point where he couldn't even utter a word. These people ruthlessly exposed his hypocritical mask. To the last comment, Zhong Yi fiercely glared at Rong Xu when he suddenly saw Qin Cheng and Xu Jin standing on the side.
He clearly had the idea of "approaching Qin Cheng by using Rong Xu", but now Zhong Yi had already been angered into not caring regardless of it. He yelled: "I'm not part of the crew, but they're also not! Why do I have to leave and they don't?!"
Rong Xu looked at Zhong Yi in amazement. He appeared to have never thought that he(ZY) would be so stupid enough to offend Qin Cheng and Xu Jin.
As soon as Zhong Yi's words came out, he didn't expect that the entire crew would immediately roar with laughter.
"Hahahaha! I didn't hear it wrong, right?! There's actually someone who wants to make Qin Shen leave!"
"You didn't hear wrong! There's actually someone that said Qin Shen would leak the crew's information…"
"I finally understood why some people are able to become famous celebrity while other people could only stay a small eighteen-tier star."
Assistant Director Wang also laughed till he ran out of breath. But this time, he didn't continue talking nonsense with Zhong Yi and directly waved to call over several security guards. When a tall and sturdy man stood in front of Zhong Yi, even though he was angry enough to explode, he could only obediently turn to leave.
When he was about to reach the door, a young girl suddenly ran over and stuffed an item into his hands.
This young girl was the one who helped direct Zhong Yi when he entered the set. It was just that there was no longer any adoration on the girl's face, but instead, she uttered with disgust: "Don't forget to take away your cake. No one here can afford to eat it."
Zhong Yi tightly squeezed the cake box till the shape deformed. He was about to throw it on the ground before he heard the girl again: "Don't you dare to randomly throw things! All our prepared props are here. If you were to break something, you have to compensate it accordingly. Even if it doesn't break, it's still no good since you dirtied our floor."
Zhong Yi: "!!!"
Watching Zhong Yi's retreating back, Rong Xu's eyes slightly narrowed, quickly flashing a trace of cold light. Compared to the arrogant and despotic Han Yanghao, he didn't like Zhong Yi, this opportunist white lotus even more. Especially from the original owner's perspective, he didn't want to let Zhong Yi have an easy time.
However, everything had to be considered.
After everything was over, the crew finally regained some peace.
Han Yanghao was forced to only be able to stay as the male lead and also had to accept the new to-be-modified script by the screenwriter, while Zhong Yi left shaking with anger. When he fled in defeat, he even didn't dare to refute the ordinary interns, obviously taking into account that the other party has black material against him.
In this circle, everyone would always have some reputation when doing things down the road. As long as what you did wasn't overboard, no one would mention it and get along without much trouble. Because no one knows if they themselves would make a mistake in the future. Since the other person messed up now and you have that against them, when something happens to you later, they owe that to you and wouldn't dare to throw stones when you were down.
Unless it was something big enough to drive a person out of the industry and thoroughly shunned, otherwise, no one would act rashly.
With all said and done, nothing was filmed today so Rong Xu first went back to the hotel.
***
Walking on the empty sidewalk, Rong Xu had changed into his casual clothes. The simple light-colored pullover gave him the youthful favor of a youth. The evening breeze tonight was a bit chilly so he wore his hat and only revealed a small and exquisite face, making him look extremely lovely and charming.
Luo Zhentao had long been hauled away by the tactful Xu Jin, vaguely mumbling something like "concerned about Huaxia Entertainment managers' livelihood".
Xu Jin was one of Huaxia Entertainment's top managers and there were only three with that position within the company. He could be considered as the superior's superior of Luo Zhentao's superior. Since he had already said it like this, it wouldn't be good for Luo Zhentao to refuse, so he could only obediently go with him, letting Rong Xu and Qin Cheng return to the hotel together.
Anyhow, it should be impossible for Qin Cheng to have any improper thoughts towards Xiao Xu or do something that would hurt him, right?
——Um. You guessed wrong this time.
Qin Cheng looked straight ahead and his face appeared calm, however, even Rong Xu didn't realize that this man's gaze had been secretly pointed at him. Every time Rong Xu turn around, he would hurriedly look elsewhere with an unconcerned and nonchalant appearance, seeming as if he really didn't care about Rong Xu.
Rong Xu thought for a moment and asked the question he wanted an answer to the most: "I didn't expect that Mister Qin would come here yourself. Did you especially came to visit me?"
Qin Cheng used his utmost calm tone to reply with his long prior-prepared answer for this: "Mother asked for me to go see what you were currently doing. She requested this for a few days so I thought I would come visit you." Pausing, he felt there was something wrong with his wording and added: "…Actually, she had said that it was also okay if I didn't come see you, but I felt it was still better to visit you."
En. Please don't misunderstand! Although he did not come to visit you on his own initiative(?), he is not at all reluctant!
This must not be mistaken!
How could Rong Xu pay attention to this small detail? He helplessly smiled: "I'll give Auntie Qin a call in the evening. I really can take good care of myself, so she doesn't have to worry. It's also not good to always trouble you like this. If Auntie Qin later on requested this of you again, you do not need to come. Just calling me will be fine."
Qin Cheng: "!!!"
How can he not come see you, he definitely must come see you!
"…It's no trouble, I'm very idle."
Rong Xu shook his head: "The crew has a makeup artist meimei who also worked in your recent "The Point Where the Staircase Intersect". I heard her say that the filming that movie has taken you a full six months and had only wrapped up everything last month. Then in the next few months, you will have the roadshow promotion. You should have a good rest, no need to worry about me. To come visit me from so far… it is a bit too troublesome."
Qin Cheng: "..." The feet hurts a bit, it seems to have been smashed with a stone.
Rong Xu looked at the man who "lift the stone only to drop it on his own feet". The pair of beautiful eyes reflected the sunset's splendid afterglow. His eyes curved with his small smile, his gentle, simple, and elegant temperament showing itself.
Looking at the youth like this, Qin Cheng went into a slight daze only to hear the other say this: "Either way, thank you for your concern. Qin Cheng, thank you for standing by my side today, I am very happy."
I am very happy…
Happy…
-ppy…
His eyes widened, he relied on his absolute acting skills to suppress the hard to resist, overflowing joy bubbling up in his heart. Qin Cheng held on to his facial nerve paralysis face. Only the soft tapping from his finger inside his pocket indicated his current unbearably nervous mood.
Then continuing on, Rong Xu's next words made Qin Cheng frozen in place with the tip of his ear thoroughly flushed red——
"It's already quite late today and there's not flight scheduled back to B-City. How about this, you can temporarily stay in my room with me for tonight and go back tomorrow. The hotels near Movie & Television City have all been full recently so you wouldn't be able to book a room. If you don't mind, then you can just squeeze in with me for a night, okay? I'll be requesting you to please reluctantly deal with it this one time. As for Mister Xu Jin, you can let him stay with Luo Zhentao for the night."
Doomed for a sleepless night.
***
When they were still in the "Ambush" crew. Qin Cheng had signed for everyone in the crew, including Director Zheng. The entire crew had about hundreds of people, yet unexpectedly, there was not a single person that was not his fan. Many young girls and aunties were afraid to even look directly at him and would only dare to ask for an autograph before scuttering away.
On their way from the studio to the hotel, there were also many passersby staring at Qin Cheng in shock before running up for a signature. Then after they return to the hotel, from the hotel security to receptionist and even cleaning aunties, they all were excitedly asking him for an autograph. Even the hotel staffs that ran over to deliver the camp bed begged for a signature with his sparkling starstruck eyes.
…En. To deliver the camp bed.
Qin Cheng stared blankly as the two hotel staff members moved the camp bed into Rong Xu's room and even especially kindly helped them(RX&QC) set up the bed. Back before when Qin Cheng entered the hotel, the reception desk had asked if he needed them to arrange for a temporary room for him but Qin Cheng calmly rejected: "After all, the rooms are already full. It would not be good to trouble everyone else."
The reception desk deeply lamented: Look at Film Emperor Qin! So amiable, not even a bit arrogant at all!
Then afterwards, they considerately sent over a camp bed.
…Considerately sent over the bed his ass ah!!!
Qin Cheng coldly glowered at that narrow camp bed. If his glare could turn into flame, then without hesitation that bed would have long been reduced to ashes.
Rong Xu smiled: "You can sleep on the bigger bed, I will sleep here."
Qin Cheng was startled when he heard him, he looked over at Rong Xu before firmly refusing: "I will sleep here."
Rong Xu shook his head: "You are taller than me by 5cm. You definitely wouldn't fit if I let you sleep in such a narrow camp bed."
Qin Cheng immediately clinged onto the most important bit: "You looked through my information?"
Rong Xu casually answered: "Yes."
Qin Cheng's eyes lit up but before he even opened his mouth, he heard Rong Xu continue with a smile: "You are Qin Cheng. Since I entered this industry, I would definitely look at your data first. But when I was casually looking through Wen Xuan's information, it turns out that you two acted in "Musheng" together. It's a pity that I was too busy and never had the time to watch this movie."
The man's low magnetic voice sounded: "I have two DVD gift packs the crew personally prepared."
Rong Xu turned around in surprise, Qin Cheng calmly smiled and earnestly said: "I'll give you a copy when you return to B-City."
Rong Xu's eyes slightly widened for a long time before he smiled and nodded, not refusing: "Thank you."
That night, the two men respectively got ready for bed. When Qin Cheng entered the bathroom, Rong Xu looked down at his script unperturbed and when it was Rong Xu's turn to enter the bathroom, Qin Cheng sat in the chair closest to the bathroom and listened to the sound of the running water. His back was perfectly upright, his eyes not blinking as he listened.
But when Rong Xu came out wearing his pajamas, Qin Cheng had long looked down at his phone appearing as if nothing was wrong.
Rong Xu didn't think too much about it and turned around to dry his hair. The second he turned around, that man's profound gaze immediately focused on his person.
The water droplets that were not completely wiped off caused the thin fabric to cling to the youth's body and hair to clustered together. A lone water droplet dripped down from his soft hair and along his slender neck, before disappearing into a place that cause people to have wild and fanciful thoughts.
This sideways position allows Qin Cheng to be able to see the youth's delicate and beautiful collarbone and a faint shadow.
…Why does this pajama have such a high collar!
Qin Cheng lowered his head and continued to look at his phone, but his fingers were tightly squeezing the phone case.
Soon, Rong Xu finished wiping his hair and started using the blow dryer. After he dried his hair, he heard Qin Cheng casually ask him: "Do you have Weibo?"
Qin Cheng never once raised his head when he asked this, seeming as if he really did just casually asked for the sake of asking, thus Rong Xu also answered so: "Yes. It's my name."
After a while, Qin Cheng said: "I followed you."
Rong Xu picked up his phone and laughed: "I'll also follow you."
The man's lip curved up into a faint, hard to detect smile.
In the next room, Xu Jin was smiling as he chatted with Luo Zhentao when he suddenly broke out in a cold shudder.
Xu Jin: "Why is today so cold?"
Why it is so cold?
——Did they follow you?
Of course he followed ah! Look for yourself if you don't believe it!
He is exactly the first one on the followers' list!
Xu Jin: "..."
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***
Filming, after all, was a very tiring affair. Under Rong Xu's repeated requests, Qin Cheng could only sleep on the big bed and let Rong Xu sleep on the camp bed. This queen-size bed was obviously not small, being 1.5 meters wide. But it would still be a bit cramp letting two 185cm and 190cm tall men sleep together.
Qin Cheng also very much wanted to strongly request that Rong Xu sleep in the bigger bed, but Rong Xu's firm manner made him not know where to start. And while he was passionate inside, he was outwardly cold and stiff so he couldn't speak up and could only hold his breath and silently lie on the bed.
However, after a while, Qin Cheng heard the youth's steady breathing.
This sort of feeling was very peculiar. Qin Cheng quietly listened for a while and stared up the street light reflected on the ceiling. After waiting for forty minutes, he confirmed that the youth was deeply asleep before he quietly got out of bed and went to gently carry the person.
The youth was not heavy and even seems to be lighter than his peers, but Qin Cheng carried him with incomparable seriousness all the same.
Rong Xu hummed softly in his arms, causing Qin Cheng's whole person to immediately stiffen. After determining that the other was still asleep, he quietly tiptoed over and laid the youth upon the bed and attentively pulled up the covers for him. In this quiet night time, the man's gentle gaze fully focused on the youth's face without reservation. The moonlight illuminated his exquisite face, appearing as a beautiful hazy scene.
Early next morning, a plane took advantage of the still dark sky, carrying Qin Cheng with it as it left.
When Rong Xu woke up, he found himself sleeping on the big bed and that the other person in the room had already left. He found a note left by Qin Cheng on the table. The penmanship was clear and each strokes was powerful. Like that person himself, it had a deep profound atmosphere.
Softly laughing, Rong Xu started getting ready. When the sky was still brightening, he arrived at the crew.
He had just arrived before he was surrounded by the crew members. Everyone excitedly looked at him and blurted out the questions they weren't able to ask yesterday: "Rong Xu, what's your relationship with Qin Shen ah? He actually came to visit you! He never went to visit someone in their workplace before, this is too unbelievable!
"That's right, that's right! That was Qin Cheng, my dream male god ah. I thought I would die from nervousness yesterday!"
"Better drop it, what dream male god. Your attitude towards Film Emperor Qin was obviously very casual!"
"Nonsense, I was extremely nervous okay! I can't leave a bad impression on my male god QAQ!"
Listening to the crew members' gossip, the smile on Rong Xu's lip deepened. When someone asked him again: "In the end, what is your guys' relationship ah, Rong Xu?"
Rong Xu paused, he appeared to think for a while, then wholeheartedly replied: "We are friends."
The author has something to say:
Rongrong: En, this person is worth making friends with XD
Qin Orangeorange: Baby slept with him in the same room, Baby slept with him for the night~ Skipping four, and going to five for red ah~ (*RQ)ツ!!!
Skipping four, and going to five for red – Skipping ahead to red → blood → Orangeorange's dream *coughcough* or refer to the story synopsis if that was too subtle
The Point Where the Staircase Intersect – I think the author made a mistake here since the only movie Qin Cheng filmed last month was "Disciple" and "Staircase" is an old movie from years back as mentioned by Dong Zheng some chapters back.
Passerby A – Someone that plays a small role but is extremely importance and necessity. They and the general supporting actors are different in that passerby A is almost forgotten. Like the the news reporter, local gossip wifes, that one person who stumbles across an incident site, etc.
Internet Water Army – A group of Internet ghostwriters paid to post online comments with particular content. In this "astroturfing" technique for public relations and media manipulation, online Chinese companies employ people to make postings on social media in order to change public opinion -Wiki
Certified as a Director – Weibo would has a user management system to show user classes. The tag is shown next to your name.
Red V means the user is a verified people
Blue V means the user is a verified institution
Star means the user use Weibo frequently
Red Star is for celebrity or talented people
Crown means the user is a premium user
Fire balloon means the user is a member of the "travel with Weibo" which is a marketing staff Weibo is doing
To eat a big pot of rice – [吃大鍋飯 – Chī dàguōfàn]
Mocking phrase of the malpractice of the "equal distribution" system. The "big pot" is an image metaphor for the egalitarian phenomenon of distribution.
Black material – scandals, negative new against a celebrity
Killing ten thousand enemies while losing three thousand soldiers – [殺敵一萬自損三千 – Shā dí yī wàn zì sǔn sānqiān] To harms one's own interests. On the surface, it looks like it's winning seven parts and losing three, but it's actually a loss. It means that if you want to win, you must pay a certain price.
Camp Bed – For those who don't know *causeIdidn't*
Translator's Corner (and slight spoiler):
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Shem: Ohh Rongrong is a military officer in Ambush, right? No wonder, he and Qin Cheng had a military uniform play o(≧∇≦o)
Vian: I finally read that chapter!! o(≧∇≦)o