Xia Chengxi looked at Chen Yue, who had stepped out of the car with him, and raised an eyebrow. “Aren’t you leaving?”
Chen Yue knew Xia Chengxi was probably still upset with him for not backing him up at the dinner the other day. “I’m your agent. I need to do my job and stick around here for a couple more days.”
“No need. You can go back. If you stay any longer, who knows who you’ll end up selling me to.”
“Come on, don’t say that,” Chen Yue replied with an awkward laugh, not pressing the matter further. “Just call me if anything comes up. Do your best with the role. The company will make sure you’re well taken care of once filming wraps up.”
Xia Chengxi didn’t even spare him a glance and walked off without another word.
Since it was a sci-fi film, most of the shooting took place indoors. The movie, titled The Guardians, was set in the future, where Earth’s resources had been depleted and human civilization had reached its peak. Humanity discovered a habitable planet in outer space and began a mass migration. However, when the advance team arrived on the planet, they were completely wiped out.
The government sent investigators to look into the incident, and the story unfolded from there.
The Guardians’ official social media account gradually released the names of all the main cast members. As fans eagerly anticipated the blockbuster, they noticed Xia Chengxi’s name sandwiched among a list of seasoned actors, which sparked some skepticism.
Online criticism grew louder, and as voices from all sides chimed in, fans increasingly called for his replacement. Various entertainment accounts began posting clips from Xia Chengxi’s past idol dramas, mocking his acting while hyping up others. His fans, fiercely protective of his looks, clashed with critics, telling them to either watch the show or get lost.
But the backlash lasted only a day. By the next day, all trending topics criticizing Xia Chengxi had been completely wiped from the internet. Marketing accounts speculated that he had powerful backing and had secured the role through underhanded means, stirring up another wave of controversy.
Still, no matter how big the scandal, public attention has its limits. Within a week, Xia Chengxi had faded from the spotlight.
In the early stages of the film, Xia Chengxi’s role wasn’t particularly significant. His character was somewhat peripheral, lurking among the main cast and waiting for the right moment to act. For now, all he had to do was play a naive, passionate young man—a role that came easily to him, given his experience in idol dramas where such upbeat characters were common.
After finishing his scenes, Xia Chengxi sat to the side, watching Shu Wenjin and Xie Yuchie act out a confrontational scene. Xie Yuchie seemed off his game, causing the notoriously demanding Director Wang to call for multiple retakes.
“Jiaojiao,” Xia Chengxi whispered to Sun Jiao, “what exactly happened between Shu Wenjin and Xie Yuchie?”
Sun Jiao’s voice shot up an octave in surprise. “You don’t know? How could you not know about something this big? Haven’t you checked Weibo?”
“I usually just watch funny videos and stuff. I don’t really follow celebrity gossip.”
Sun Jiao sighed. “Before filming started, paparazzi caught Shu Wenjin taking Zhang Wenying to meet his parents.”
“Zhang Wenying? The actress who won the award with Shu Wenjin?”
“Exactly.” Sun Jiao glanced subtly at Xie Yuchie. “It caused quite a stir. A friend of mine saw it firsthand—Xie Yuchie and Shu Wenjin had a huge fight. Looks like they broke up.”
“They broke up?” Xia Chengxi was taken aback for a moment, then rubbed his hands together gleefully, a mischievous grin spreading across his face. “That’s great news!”
Sun Jiao eyed him skeptically. “What do you mean by that? You’re not actually falling for Shu Wenjin, like Chen Yue said, are you?”
Xia Chengxi retorted with feigned seriousness, “What nonsense! How could I possibly fall for Shu Wenjin? I just admire him like the way you admire me. It’s the same kind of respect. Where did your mind wander off to?” He added with a hint of displeasure, “Couldn’t Brother Chen have talked to you about something else instead of spreading rumors about me?”
Sun Jiao’s face clearly spelled out “I don’t believe you.” Just as she was about to say more, Xia Chengxi, flustered and annoyed, cut her off. “There’s a book on my desk in the hotel. Could you bring it to me?”
Sun Jiao muttered under her breath, cursing him as a “capitalist,” but she pursed her lips and went anyway.
Xia Chengxi breathed a sigh of relief. Learning about Shu Wenjin and Xie Yuchie’s breakup felt like a weight lifted off his chest. Becoming a homewrecker? Absolutely not an option!
His phone buzzed in his pocket. Resigned, Xia Chengxi pulled it out—the exclusive phone Gu Cheng had given him.
He opened the text message.
—You have fight scenes coming up. I bought you some special-effect medicine and sent someone to deliver it.
Xia Chengxi frowned and quickly typed back: No need. It’s not time for that yet, and I have medicated wine.
—Not listening?
Holding the phone, Xia Chengxi thought for a moment and decided to yield to the “dark forces”: When are you sending someone over?
—Tomorrow. I’ll have someone come by then. I’ve been busy lately, so I won’t be able to visit you on set.
Xia Chengxi was actually relieved he wasn’t coming. The whole crew already saw him through tinted glasses. If the investor showed up to visit a minor celebrity, wouldn’t that just confirm he had someone backing him?
—It’s fine. Focus on your work.
—You’d rather I didn’t come, wouldn’t you?
Xia Chengxi’s heart skipped a beat. Frowning, he wondered how Gu Cheng could be so sharp—almost as if he could read minds. Did he know everything he was thinking?
—No, you’re overthinking it. The director’s calling me. I have to go film.
After sending the message, he stuffed the phone into his pocket and pulled out his personal phone to scroll through Weibo. Funny videos were his favorite, but his finger slipped, accidentally liking one.
The creator of the video, as if they’d won the lottery, immediately screenshotted Xia Chengxi’s like and posted it. In no time, it garnered nearly a thousand reposts and comments.
Just then, the exclusive phone from Gu Cheng buzzed again.
—Little liar. You said you were filming, but you’re scrolling through Weibo? Was the video funny?
Startled, Xia Chengxi instinctively shifted the blame to Sun Jiao and hastily replied: It wasn’t me. Sun Jiao took my phone, browsed Weibo, and liked the video.
Send.
A moment later, as if realizing something, Xia Chengxi stared at his reply and nearly choked on his phone, covering his face in embarrassment.
Could anyone be as foolish as him?
On the other end, Gu Cheng looked at the almost instant reply and couldn’t help but chuckle, shaking his head helplessly. The little guy was still as adorably clueless as ever.
Xia Chengxi sat there sighing, anxiously waiting for a reply that never came. He was too on edge to even browse Weibo anymore.
By nearly midnight, the crew wrapped up. Shu Wenjin and the others quickly tidied up, and their assistants brought over some food for them to eat together. On set, Xie Yuchie and Shu Wenjin acted like strangers, with almost zero interaction off-camera.
Watching Shu Wenjin finish his meal, Xia Chengxi sidled over, a timid smile on his face tinged with a hint of respect. “Um, Mr. Shu, thank you for your patience with this morning’s scenes and for putting up with my multiple NGs.”
Shu Wenjin looked at him, still feeling guilty about not helping him during the dinner the other day. People are often like this—regretting things after the fact.
“It’s fine, NGs are normal. Just work hard from now on,” he said, then hesitated before asking, “That day, did Mr. Gu give you a hard time?”
Xia Chengxi was taken aback, not expecting him to bring it up.
He shook his head firmly. No way he could talk about something like that. “No, Mr. Gu just had me take a break.”
“That’s good.” Shu Wenjin visibly relaxed, a slight smile curling his lips. Xia Chengxi blushed instantly at the sight, pursing his lips and averting his gaze, too shy to look directly at him.
“From now on, you don’t have to call me ‘Mr. Shu’ on set. I’m older than you, so just call me ‘brother.’ If there’s anything you don’t understand in the script or if you want to rehearse together beforehand, feel free to come to me. I’ve noticed you have quite a few scenes with me later on, and the emotional range is pretty wide. It might be challenging for you.”
Xia Chengxi said determinedly, “I’ll work hard!”
“Mm, keep it up.”
After a moment’s thought, Xia Chengxi ventured, “Um, Brother Shu, did something happen between you and Brother Xie? Why did he…”
The question seemed to hit a nerve. Shu Wenjin’s expression instantly turned cold. “Don’t overthink it. It’s nothing.”
Xia Chengxi let out an “Oh.” Just then, Director Wang came over to discuss the scene with Shu Wenjin, so Xia Chengxi had to leave. He sighed inwardly, regretting that his system wasn’t around. No one had witnessed his brilliant acting earlier. What a shame.
As he stepped outside, he ran into Xie Yuqi.
Xie Yuqi wasn’t considered the most handsome in the entertainment industry, but his features came together in a way that was captivating. The more you looked, the more attractive he became. Standing at six feet tall, he had a great sense of style, solid acting skills, and was well-liked. With Shu Wenjin’s help, he had carved out a place for himself in the acting world.
Xie Yuqi had always maintained a friendly and approachable image, but now he looked at Xia Chengxi with a defiant expression, his eyes full of sarcasm. “Xiao Xia, you did a great job in this morning’s scenes.”
Xia Chengxi wasn’t intimidated. He smiled and replied, “Thank you for the compliment, Brother Xie. I’ll work even harder from now on.”
“Just don’t drag the crew down. After all, this series is Director Wang’s passion project, and every actor was carefully selected by him. We can’t let one bad apple spoil the whole bunch, right?”
Xia Chengxi was about to retort, “Who are you calling the bad apple?” when he noticed someone sneaking photos not far away—clearly a paparazzo who had slipped onto the set looking for spoilers.
“Brother Xie, don’t worry. I’ll work hard and definitely won’t hold the crew back.”
Xie Yuqi patted him on the shoulder. “Young man, focus on honing your acting skills. Don’t spend all your time trying to climb the ladder, or one day you’ll fall. I heard that before you latched onto Mr. Gu, you were trying to get close to Wenjin?”
Xia Chengxi pressed his lips together, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.
“Now it’s perfect. You’re both in the same production crew, and I’ve already broken up with him. You can openly flirt with him, then climb into his bed, and finally use his resources to climb step by step. Isn’t that exactly what you third-rate celebrities love to do the most?”
Xia Chengxi looked up and said word by word, “I did not!”