Luo Ying leveraged his past connections within the Haidu social circles to network with several directors and screenwriters.
Although none of them were particularly prominent, Luo Ying learned a great deal of professional knowledge from them.
The “Supporting New Talents” project was progressing well under Xie Yunyu’s supervision, with intense competition across various campuses.
Early in the morning, Luo Ying received a message from Xie Yunyu, who wanted to visit each campus to observe the selection process and invited Luo Ying to join him.
Lu Rang had left for the film set at dawn, and since Luo Ying had nothing else planned for the day, he accompanied Xie Yunyu on a tour of all the campuses.
Haidu Film Academy was their final stop, as it was rumored to have produced many outstanding works. Luo Ying was looking forward to it.
As soon as they entered the campus, Luo Ying spotted Lu Rang’s photo on the electronic celebrity wall.
A little further down, Ye Xirong’s photo was also displayed.
Beneath the photos were a few lines of introduction, detailing the films Lu Rang had participated in and the various awards he had won.
This information was also available online, and Luo Ying had already seen it.
The school assigned a dedicated liaison teacher to receive them. Following the guide, Luo Ying noticed many students riding bicycles with their classmates.
This reminded Luo Ying of his own school days when Luo Xiaohe had bought him a limited-edition bicycle.
Eager to show off, Luo Ying rode it to school with his still-unpolished cycling skills. However, he failed to brake in time at the school gate and fell, scraping a large gash on his knee.
That afternoon, it was Lu Rang who rode his own bicycle to take Luo Ying home. They had only just met at the time.
Too much time had passed, and Luo Ying could no longer recall what they had talked about that day.
He only remembered the faint, fresh scent on Lu Rang’s school uniform and how he nervously clutched the hem of Lu Rang’s shirt while sitting on the back of the bicycle.
The evening breeze was gentle that day, and the setting sun cast a warm glow.
Orange-red light spilled across the land, stretching their overlapping shadows long.
The crisp sound of a bicycle bell snapped Luo Ying back to reality, and the scent of the young Lu Rang seemed to linger in the air.
Luo Ying shook his head, laughing at himself for frequently reminiscing about the past lately.
Before reuniting with Lu Rang, Luo Ying had never revisited his high school memories.
It felt like a chapter he had sealed away, and he couldn’t recall the scene of their final graduation farewell at all.
As for the recent spring dream, Luo Ying knew it wasn’t real.
Because Lu Rang hadn’t shown up at the farewell party the night before Luo Ying went abroad.
Luo Ying had sent him numerous messages and made dozens of calls, but he never received a reply, even after drinking himself to sleep.
A stone thrown into a pond at least creates ripples and echoes, but his waiting that night was met with nothing but silence.
He was even dragged onto the plane by Luo Xiaohe while still hungover, and it wasn’t until he landed and was surrounded by unfamiliar languages that he realized he and Lu Rang had truly parted ways.
Without even a proper goodbye.
“President Luo, President Xie, this is where we display the selected works.”
“Indeed, these clips are quite impressive, each with its own strengths in storyboarding. Luo Ying, what do you think?”
“Ah.”
Luo Ying snapped back to attention and looked at the dozen or so split-screen displays.
A few videos were particularly eye-catching, but for some reason, he felt inexplicably uninterested.
He nodded, putting on an expression of approval, and the liaison teacher smiled warmly at him.
Outside the exhibition hall, a commotion erupted on the street, and Luo Ying frowned in irritation.
The liaison teacher apologized and explained that today, several successful alumni representatives had been invited back to film promotional videos for the anniversary celebrations.
The timing was close to the shoot, and with the holiday, students who were fans and those who weren’t had all flocked to join the excitement.
Luo Ying felt his temples throbbing, his eyelids twitching intensely. He wondered if it was a lingering effect from his recent overindulgence.
Rubbing his forehead, he heard Xie Yunyu ask beside him, “Who’s here?”
The teacher smiled. “I heard it’s a few popular celebrities from the entertainment industry—some singers, some actors. I’m not too sure about the specifics, though. They’re filming on our sports field. If you’re interested, you can go take a look.”
Luo Ying had absolutely no interest in such things. He spent every day sharing a bed with a top-tier actor, and it was exhausting.
On top of that, after a morning of walking around, his energy was nearly drained. All he wanted now was to find a lounge to sit down.
Xie Yunyu, however, found it fascinating. His eyes sparkled like glass beads, practically glowing.
Then, he said, “Luo Ying, let’s go take a look?”
“I’m not going.”
Luo Ying looked utterly lifeless.
Seeing this, Xie Yunyu hesitated. He didn’t want to go alone.
The crowd over there was too big; he’d be nervous to death.
But he was quite curious about the filming of this promotional video and really wanted Luo Ying to accompany him.
Unable to resist him, Luo Ying reluctantly agreed.
The reception teacher led them along a relatively quiet and less crowded route to the filming area.
The shoot was taking place on the large lawn in the center of the sports field. Looking out, aside from the circle of people involved in the filming in the middle, the rest were densely packed students in the spectator stands.
Screams and declarations of love echoed in their ears. Luo Ying followed the reception teacher up to the main viewing platform, catching fragments of names along the way.
Scattered mentions of Qiao, Zhang, and Li—thankfully, no Lu.
Otherwise, he would have hailed a taxi and left immediately.
Luo Ying definitely didn’t want to run into Lu Rang while Xie Yunyu was around. He’d die of embarrassment on the spot.
Xie Yunyu was slightly nearsighted. Squinting, he shook his head in disappointment, as the viewing platform was too far from the lawn.
The reception teacher was very enthusiastic, telling Xie Yunyu he could also go over to the lawn to watch and mentioning that among the crew responsible for filming the promotional video were students participating in the “Fostering New Talent” project.
At the mention of the Fostering New Talent project, Luo Ying perked up.
He had invested money into it, so he wanted to see exactly who it was benefiting.
He took the initiative and suggested, “Alright, let’s go take a look.”
Crossing the rubber track, they drew closer to the filming area.
Several cameras were positioned around, capturing nearly every angle.
A drone buzzed overhead, controlled by two young, innocent-looking boys who were also monitoring the footage.
“Professor Song, what brings you here?”
The instructor in charge of the filming greeted Luo Ying’s group with a smile.
“I brought the investors of the Fostering New Talent project to see our promotional shoot.”
Professor Song introduced Luo Ying and Xie Yunyu, “Mr. Luo, Mr. Xie, this is Professor Tang from our directing department.”
Luo Ying nodded and shook hands with him in a businesslike manner.
He glanced around. In the center of the crowd stood men and women with attractive appearances and meticulously applied makeup.
Their assistants and managers waited nearby.
The weather today was much better than the previous few days, with the sun high in the sky. After a while, it even felt a bit hot.
It was rare for Haidu to have such pleasant weather in winter. Luo Ying squinted against the sunlight.
He raised his hand to shield his eyes, casting a half-shadow over his face.
The camera crew had finished adjusting the focus and filters, all waiting for Teacher Tang’s next instructions.
Since it wasn’t time to start filming yet, the invited celebrities could only stand around idly.
They were already quite delicate to begin with, and the sun had made their faces oily. Worried about how they’d look on camera, they called the makeup artists over every few minutes for touch-ups.
Luo Ying and Xie Yunyu had already met all the students participating in the “Supporting Newcomers” project. After making a round around the venue, they still hadn’t seen the promotional video start filming.
Luo Ying raised an eyebrow, guessing that someone was missing.
Who were they waiting for, with such a big attitude? Couldn’t they start filming without them?
Xie Yunyu lifted her chin to scan the crowd. “Are we still waiting for someone?”
Teacher Tang looked a bit embarrassed. “Yes. The students coordinating below made a mistake with the filming dates for two other alumni. They’re rushing over now.”
Two people?
Well, they’d have to wait then.
The sunlight was warm and gentle. Luo Ying covered his mouth as he yawned, feeling his eyelids twitch even faster.
It seemed he needed to abstain for a while. The nights with Lu Rang had been too wild lately, leaving him a bit sleep-deprived.
A wave of screams erupted from outside the track field. The crowd pressed against the railings, and the entrance to the field was barely cleared by school security to make a path.
Luo Ying turned toward the entrance at the sound. Facing the sunlight, he squinted his eyes, looking weary.
Who on earth was it, with such high popularity?
“Who is that? It looks like they even brought bodyguards.”
As soon as Luo Ying finished speaking, a tall, slender man with an outstanding and imposing presence emerged from the crowd at the entrance, escorted by security personnel.
Lu Rang wore a loose camel-colored sweater over a light-colored shirt, with a metal necklace hanging around his neck as an accessory. Paired with light blue jeans, his long legs and broad shoulders made him look graceful and poised.
As he stepped out of the entrance, the light enveloped Lu Rang. His usually indifferent face wore a rare, gentle, and composed smile. Beneath his casual and relaxed demeanor was an undeniable air of nobility that drew everyone’s gaze.
Luo Ying’s eyes burned with intensity, as if he and Lu Rang shared a telepathic connection.
Lu Rang’s gaze swept casually through the crowd before him, then locked onto Luo Ying, who was standing in the center of the field, shielding his eyes from the light.
Luo Ying and Lu Rang looked at each other across the crowd and the track.
Under the warm winter sun, Luo Ying’s beautiful eyes widened gradually, his rosy lips parting slightly as a cold breath rushed into his lungs.
Only two words flooded his mind—
Oh no!