Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Only two people remained beside the round table.

Bai Ruxu turned his head, as if the sound of the door slamming just now still retained three parts of its force.

He tugged at the clothes on his back, only feeling the cold sweat sticking uncomfortably.

“Xing Ye agreed?” he asked.

The producer pushed the scattered cards on the table aside, equally incredulous. “Looks like he’s determined to make Pei Chuzhi famous. Really didn’t expect it. Xing Ye has been arrogant for so many years, yet he actually fell into a girl’s hands.”

Unlike the smugness in the producer’s words, Bai Ruxu sighed disapprovingly.

He still had some pride as a literary worker. He had never wanted to get involved in this kind of capital competition. Now that he had even become an accomplice using someone else’s weakness to pull resources for the film, he felt even more uneasy.

“Director Bai, don’t put on that expression.”

The producer lifted his teacup and blew away the tea leaves. “Haven’t you heard what identity Xing Ye has? Xing Zhiyuan’s only son. If he doesn’t act properly, he’ll go home to inherit billions. If he doesn’t go through Ya Film’s channels, he can directly use his family company’s name to invest in a movie to promote his girlfriend. Who would dare say anything about him?”

Bai Ruxu didn’t know much about the business world, but he had heard of Xing Zhiyuan.

Compared to him, the person behind Chu Man indeed wasn’t impressive.

After drinking tea to moisten his throat, the producer continued, “Besides, weren’t you the one insisting on using Pei Chuzhi? You both agreed Zhuo Wei must be her. I’m just helping you come up with a win-win solution.”

At this point, Bai Ruxu finally smiled.

“Don’t underestimate Pei Chuzhi.”

“This girl—look again next year—she’ll definitely shine brilliantly.”

·

In the following week, Yan City had several heavy rains in succession.

After finally waiting for the rain to clear, the days grew hotter and hotter, announcing the official arrival of the unbearably hot summer.

Proportional to the rising temperature was the discussion sparked by the second sports car advertisement filmed by Pei Chuzhi and Xing Ye.

The brand was wealthy and powerful, plastering the advertisement across streets and alleys. No matter where one went, their figures could be seen.

Some netizens complained: “Seriously enough already. I get fed dog food on the subway, fed dog food in the elevator when I go home, and even when I watch a video online I get fed dog food by ads. What did I, an innocent single dog, do wrong?”

The comments were full of laughing replies. Coconut Juice CP fans were even more excited, rubbing their hands and waiting for Secretly Falling in Love With You to air, when the two appearing in the same frame would give them another wave of sweetness.

However, the uploader Su Lizi, who previously edited videos for Pei Chuzhi, acted unusually and began posting on Weibo @Huaxing Entertainment and @Pei Chuzhi: “Half the year is already over! Zhizhi, when will your next drama start filming? I wanted to edit another video, but realized this year there are only advertisements and variety shows, boo hoo.”

It was originally just a fan’s daily complaint, but someone with ulterior motives screenshot and reposted it: “Don’t some people know what Pei Chuzhi is like? Even clinging to Xing Ye’s thigh she can only be a variety show celebrity. Film crews nowadays have sharp eyes. Who would hire an actor who only knows how to hype?”

The sarcastic tone naturally attracted large numbers of Pei Chuzhi’s fans to refute.

Xu Lei placed the tablet on the kitchen stand and flipped through a few pages while cooking. “Zhizhi, I found that the rumor incident last time actually gained you quite a few fans?”

Pei Chuzhi came over from the living room holding a script. “What?”

“After the rumor was clarified, people dug up the behind-the-scenes of the first episode of Who Is the Murderer. They noticed when Teacher Xie talked about life having ups and downs, your expression looked a bit down, so they guessed you were probably thinking about your family situation.”

Pei Chuzhi froze, secretly admiring the sharp eyes of netizens, because she had indeed thought of her family’s circumstances at the time.

“Then they praised you, saying if it were someone else, they might take the chance to play up misery for sympathy, but you didn’t say anything.”

Leaning against the doorframe, Pei Chuzhi laughed. “Gaining fans like this is too easy. I should ask Brother Tang later if he bought bot followers.”

Xu Lei turned on the faucet to wash vegetables. “It’s not just that. You also performed very well in the later episodes of Who Is the Murderer. Doing well in variety shows makes it easy to gain fans.”

She paused for half a beat, somewhat regretful. “It’s a pity there are only a few episodes left.”

Pei Chuzhi’s eyes dimmed for a moment.

To be precise, only two episodes remained to be recorded for this season of Who Is the Murderer.

Although the program team had begun discussing cooperation for the next season with Huaxing, neither Tang Dong nor Pei Chuzhi herself wanted her to rely on variety shows for exposure year after year.

Variety shows can make someone famous, but they can also ruin someone.

Although in the short term it can quickly increase fame, in the long run it easily causes audiences to form a fixed impression of the actor.

Even Xie Yiqian had clearly advised her: young actors shouldn’t only look at the immediate benefits.

If she could choose, Pei Chuzhi would naturally prefer to join a production and film, but Half a Lifetime of Splendor had been slow to give any news, and the day-by-day waiting gradually made her lose hope.

Fortunately, during this time, quite a few scripts had been delivered to Tang Dong.

Although they couldn’t compare to the production of Half a Lifetime of Splendor, compared to the beginning of the year, her resources were already much better.

Pei Chuzhi glanced at the script in her hand. “It’s enough to just enjoy it. My main job is still acting.”

Xu Lei turned her head, half believing. “Are you sure you’ve already had enough? Doesn’t Xing Ye still have one episode left to record? A lot of people online are looking forward to you two joining forces again and sweeping everything.”

Pei Chuzhi smiled. “That might be a bit difficult.”

The other three resident hosts had already said that when Xing Ye comes again, they would definitely wash away their shame and vote out this extremely evil alliance of the two early.

Xu Lei had just wanted to say more when the phone ringing in the living room interrupted them.

Pei Chuzhi turned back and answered, “Brother Tang?”

Tang Dong couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice. “Zhizhi, Director Bai called me!”

·

At the same time, in a high-end apartment in Yan City, Chu Man’s eyes were red as she stared fixedly at the man in front of her.

“Why did they choose Pei Chuzhi?”

Because of the huge sense of loss, her voice was shrill, causing the man to frown in displeasure.

Startled, Chu Man switched to a coquettish tone, her body pressing softly against him. “President Zheng, who’s so blind as to not take you seriously?”

The man called President Zheng brushed her away in disgust and poured himself a glass of wine at the bar.

Some things weren’t convenient to say in front of a little lover. For this lousy movie matter, he had lost face completely.

Over the past week, several companies under him had been targeted one after another, leaving him overwhelmed.

At first he thought it was a business rival, but when someone reminded him he had offended the famous Xing family, President Zheng was stunned on the spot.

The Xing family’s foundation was far away in Yi City. Although their business map extended nationwide and even worldwide, no matter how he thought about it, there was no reason to pick on someone like him who stayed in Yan City.

But soon President Zheng figured it out.

The only son of the Xing family’s head, Xing Zhiyuan, seemed to be the actor named Xing Ye.

He could only blame himself for not paying attention to the entertainment circle. He thought he was showing off for his little lover, but he ended up clashing directly with Xing Ye.

“You knew that Pei-whatever is Xing Ye’s girlfriend,” President Zheng slammed the glass onto the bar, “and you still insisted I get you this movie. Is your brain full of water?”

President Zheng kept scolding, a string of curses making Chu Man not dare to speak.

She pressed her lips tightly, full of resentment.

She simply refused to accept it—Pei Chuzhi, who a year ago could only carry her shoes in a drama, now rising rapidly to compete with her for roles.

What angered her even more was that the web drama that had gotten her heavily criticized online was dug up again after Pei Chuzhi gradually gained fame.

They said Pei Chuzhi was pretty and acted well.

They said Chu Man’s face was stiff and her acting bad.

The comparison was as brutal as possible.

After venting, President Zheng pointed at her nose and warned, “As long as she’s Xing Ye’s girlfriend, don’t fight her. Don’t say I didn’t remind you.”

“I know.”

Chu Man clenched her teeth, thinking fiercely that in that case, she would just wait until the day they break up.

·

Pei Chuzhi signed the contract with the Half a Lifetime of Splendor production team.

The production was scheduled to start in August, just enough time for her to finish recording the last episode of Who is the Murderer.

Back home, the more Pei Chuzhi thought about it, the more uneasy she felt.

For a big production like this, industry rules usually meant locking in the main actors first, then finding others willing to support the lead roles, and only afterward proceeding with the rest of the preparations.

But she had only signed the contract in mid-June, and filming was set for August. From the tone of the producer earlier, the other actors were already chosen.

No matter how she thought about it, the path to selecting the female lead seemed full of secrets she didn’t know.

Pei Chuzhi hesitated for a few minutes, then dialed Xing Ye’s number, wanting to ask if he had participated in any of it.

Xing Ye didn’t deny it. “I did a little maneuvering, made the people backing Chu Man step back, and the remaining investment was filled in under my name.”

“You…”

Pei Chuzhi didn’t know what to say for a moment, a mix of gratitude and happiness swelling in her heart, along with a trace of unease.

After a quiet pause, she softly asked, “Are you coming to record the show in a few days?”

“Mm.”

“Then this time I’ll protect you,” she said, trying to hide her unease, her tone cheerful. “Anyway, it’s the last episode. Losing once for you doesn’t matter.”

After all, aside from acting well as Zhuo Wei to not disappoint Xing Ye, this was the only small way she could repay him.

Xing Ye seemed to have guessed her thoughts and asked softly, “Want to repay me?”

Pei Chuzhi blinked, unwilling to admit it.

Although that was indeed her thought, she preferred Xing Ye to see it as a give-and-take between lovers, not like a cold contract where you invest so much and I must repay exactly that much.

So she parted her red lips slightly and corrected him, “After all, you’re my boyfriend. Isn’t it only natural for me to be good to you?”

Xing Ye chuckled. “Mm, natural.”

He was silent for a few seconds, as if struggling internally, before asking again, “Then can you do me a favor?”

“You say it.”

“Tonight, if you’re free, come out and have dinner with me.”

It was probably a date.

A flicker of anticipation passed through Pei Chuzhi’s eyes. “Tonight at what time?”

“Seven o’clock,” Xing Ye said. “But you need to be mentally prepared. There will be someone else there too.”

“Who?”

Xing Ye: “Can loosely count as family.”

Pei Chuzhi: “…?”

·

Seven o’clock in the evening, the city lights were just turning on.

The dazzling city lights reflected in the dark night, spreading a scene of decadent splendor.

Pei Chuzhi sat in the car on the way to the dinner, listening to Xing Ye explain how things had gone.

It turned out that Xing Ye’s effort to secure the female lead for her had reached the ears of his father, Xing Zhiyuan.

Out of a parental mindset, Xing Zhiyuan felt that since this was the case, at least someone from the family should meet Pei Chuzhi to understand her character and how she handled things.

But Xing Zhiyuan had been busy with official duties and couldn’t make the time, so he sent a representative.

“My dad isn’t divorced from my mom?”

Xing Ye mentioned it naturally, with no sense of avoidance. “Later he married a lady surnamed Su. Aunt Su and her ex-husband also have a son. This guy happened to be in Yan City these past two days for business, so my dad asked him to come.”

Pei Chuzhi took a few seconds to piece together the relationship. “So between you two, who’s older?”

“He’s a few years older than me. What’s the matter?”

Pei Chuzhi nodded. “So tonight, the person we’re meeting is your brother?”

She couldn’t help but breathe a little easier. Meeting a sibling was far less intense than meeting the parents directly.

Unexpectedly, Xing Ye immediately frowned.

He clicked his tongue, showing annoyance. “His surname is Duan. Just call him President Duan later. Don’t call him ‘brother.’ I’m not close to him. He probably only came because he couldn’t avoid it.”

Pei Chuzhi understood. She just needed to behave gracefully and appropriately, without pretending to be his girlfriend trying to win him over.

The car stopped in front of a five-star hotel.

A doorman in uniform quickly approached and opened the doors for them.

Xing Ye walked forward half a meter, then suddenly stopped.

He turned to look at Pei Chuzhi, who had dressed up carefully, and cleared his throat. “Link arms with me as we walk.”

Pei Chuzhi asked, “Do you mean to act a bit closer?”

Xing Ye gave her a sidelong glance, seemingly displeased with the word “act.” Just as he was about to correct her, she curved her beautiful red lips into a smile and leaned toward him.

She carried a special fragrance, striking but tasteful.

It reminded one of roses on a winter night.

Pei Chuzhi reached out, loosely linking her arm through his. Through the two layers of fabric, she felt the tense lines of Xing Ye’s arm muscles.

The evening breeze outside the hotel was warm, and so was her heart.

They met each other’s gaze for a few seconds in the dim night, then instinctively looked away at the same time.

Neither noticed the same smile lingering in the other’s eyes.

The elevator went straight to the hotel’s restaurant.

Soft piano music flowed from the center of the dining area. A waiter guided them past a black grand piano to a secluded private room at the end of the corridor.

Someone was already there.

Hearing the door, the man inside looked up, his gaze carrying the natural authority of a senior, falling lightly on them.

Pei Chuzhi froze.

Having once been a young lady of the Pei family, she didn’t falter in such situations. What surprised her was that Xing Ye’s nominal older brother had an exceptionally striking appearance and demeanor.

Extremely noble features, vaguely reminiscent of young Xie Yiqian.

Not just in facial resemblance, but in that sense of aloofness and detachment.

In the past, meeting this type of man in real life would have made her heart race uncontrollably.

But now…

She curled her fingertips slightly and realized her taste had quietly changed.

Xing Ye introduced them. “This is Duan Yan, and this is Pei Chuzhi.”

Pei Chuzhi was about to nod and smile at Duan Yan when she heard Xing Ye chuckle softly.

There was a hint of pride in his voice, his words clear: “My girlfriend.”