“I REFUSE TO DO IT!”
A thunderous roar erupted from the manager’s office on the fifth floor of Xingguang Entertainment Building.
Xu Zhixing sat on the sofa, his face flushed with anger. He glared furiously at his manager, gritting his teeth as he spoke. “I’d rather die than play a couple with Shen Jiyuan!”
“This time, you have no choice.” Ling Deng, who was usually gentle and rarely interfered in Xu Zhixing’s personal affairs, had finally lost his patience. “You’re going to take this role whether you like it or not. Unless, of course, you no longer intend to work as an entertainer.”
Xu Zhixing froze for a moment, staring at Ling Deng in disbelief.
“Wait, why, Brother Ling?”
Xu Zhixing frowned. “Are you telling me that if I refuse this drama, I won’t be able to survive in the entertainment industry anymore?”
“That’s right.” Ling Deng tapped the ash from his cigarette, explaining the cruel reality in the calmest possible tone.
“Two months ago, rumors surfaced that you had slept with a fan. Although the allegations were eventually cleared up, your public image still suffered.”
“Last month, you were photographed partying with young models at a bar. Your reputation took another hit, and fans started leaving you.”
“And this month has been even more spectacular.” Ling Deng continued, “You were directly accused of drunk driving, hitting a pedestrian, and fleeing the scene. Your endorsement deals were terminated one after another, and all the drama projects we had previously negotiated fell through. In just three days, you lost a million followers.”
“So, tell me, how exactly do you expect to continue working in this industry?”
Feeling Ling Deng’s murderous gaze, Xu Zhixing guiltily turned his face away. However, he soon clenched his fists and protested indignantly.
“But I really didn’t do any of those things! All of this has happened to me for absolutely no reason!”
He had no idea what had been going on lately. Ever since he narrowly escaped death in a car accident three months ago, his luck had taken a nosedive.
First, a large number of antis inexplicably appeared, deliberately exaggerating his previous statements and digging up old comments that had never been worth mentioning in the first place.
Then, he encountered a sasaeng fan who followed him to his hotel and secretly hid underneath his bed.
When he finally discovered the fan, the person became furious and retaliated by using secretly taken photographs from beneath his bed, along with several edited pictures, to falsely accuse him of sleeping with fans.
Feeling frustrated, he decided to go to a bar and blow off some steam. However, while there, he ran into a wealthy young man from the entertainment circle who insisted on dragging him into another private room.
Under the pretense of making sure he had a good time, the guy invited more than a dozen young female models.
Xu Zhixing was gay, and he already had someone in his heart. He had absolutely no interest in those beautiful, fair-skinned young models, especially since it was obvious at a glance that they weren’t his type.
In the end, he simply had a little to drink.
Who would have thought that the very next day, a trending topic would appear accusing him of partying with young models at a bar? Worse still, the secretly taken photograph circulating online showed only him.
At first, he thought the wealthy young man had deliberately set him up, so he went to confront him.
However, after investigating the matter, he discovered that the real reason was simply because of where he had been sitting.
It all started when the young man went out to use the restroom. One of Xu Zhixing’s fans happened to walk past the private room and spotted him inside. Enraged, the fan decided to expose his supposedly shameful behavior.
What shameful behavior?!
He had simply been sitting in the wrong place!
There was no way to clarify the situation without making things worse. After all, he really had been in that private room. Trying to explain himself might even expose the identity of the wealthy young man.
In the end, they could only release information about other people deliberately smearing him to divert the public’s attention.
Although the public relations team managed to achieve some results, his popularity among ordinary viewers and his credibility in the eyes of his fans began to decline.
To wait for the controversy to die down, Ling Deng gave him half a month off, telling him to stay home and rest.
He wasn’t allowed to travel or appear in public. All he could do was stay cooped up at home.
Who would have thought that after only three days at home, the police would suddenly show up at his door?
They claimed someone had reported him for drunk driving, hitting a pedestrian, and fleeing the scene. They forcibly handcuffed him and took him away, keeping him in custody for an entire day and night.
He was only released after the investigation confirmed the truth.
He was a perfectly law-abiding young man. He never evaded taxes, and whenever he drank too much, all he ever did was go straight to bed and sleep.
How could he possibly have been involved in a drunk-driving hit-and-run?
Besides, he had spent the past three days lying at home without touching a single drop of alcohol.
Wasn’t that utterly ridiculous?
One unfortunate incident after another had caused his standing in the entertainment industry to plummet.
And now, the company actually wanted him to play lovers with Shen Jiyuan.
Seriously, why did every ridiculous thing imaginable have to happen to him?
“Wait a minute…” Xu Zhixing suddenly came to his senses.
“If no other production teams are willing to hire me anymore, then why is such a famous director as Shan Yi still willing to cast me in Great Joy?”
“Oh, apparently, Shen Jiyuan specifically requested you.” Ling Deng took his final drag of the cigarette before pressing the butt into the ashtray. He narrowed his eyes as he recalled the details.
“He said he has complete faith in your character and highly recognizes your acting abilities. He thinks you’re particularly suitable for the role of Qiu Xinyuan and wants to act opposite you.”
“Bullshit!” Xu Zhixing snapped.
“He doesn’t want to act opposite me! He just wants to watch me get toyed with emotionally and then abandoned by him, doesn’t he?”
Everyone on the internet knew that he and Shen Jiyuan were sworn enemies. They were like fire and water, completely incompatible.
But in reality, their relationship was even worse than that.
Besides being arch-enemies, they were also love rivals.
At first, Xu Zhixing and Shen Jiyuan had hardly interacted at all. He hadn’t particularly cared about Shen Jiyuan either. They were simply colleagues working for the same company, the kind who wouldn’t even bother greeting each other when they crossed paths.
However, one day, they happened to audition for the same role, and the director ultimately chose Shen Jiyuan.
Somehow, Shen Jiyuan’s fans found out about the incident. Acting all high and mighty, they began belittling Xu Zhixing while praising Shen Jiyuan.
Xu Zhixing could have tolerated the fans comparing them, but Shen Jiyuan, the actual person involved, had to personally join in.
He even posted a sarcastic message on Weibo, saying something along the lines of how directors didn’t choose actors based on whose acting was better, but rather on who was more suitable for the role.
What was that supposed to mean?
If directors didn’t consider acting ability, then what did they consider? Looks?
Was Shen Jiyuan implying that his acting was bad? Or was he suggesting that he wasn’t as handsome as Shen Jiyuan?
Besides, if Xu Zhixing wasn’t suitable for the role, did that automatically mean Shen Jiyuan was?
After Shen Jiyuan posted that Weibo update, Xu Zhixing’s fans couldn’t sit still either. They immediately began firing back.
As the celebrity himself, Xu Zhixing naturally couldn’t afford to lose face. He promptly published his own sarcastic post targeting Shen Jiyuan.
And that was how their feud began.
But that wasn’t the end of it.
After being single for twenty-three years, Xu Zhixing had finally met someone who made his heart flutter.
He had barely been pursuing that person for two days when paparazzi released photographs of Shen Jiyuan having a candlelit dinner with the very same person he liked.
Who could possibly tolerate that?!
Well, Xu Zhixing certainly couldn’t.
From that moment on, Shen Jiyuan successfully became the person Xu Zhixing hated most in his entire twenty-three years of life.
And there was absolutely no competition for that position!
To be forced to play lovers with his most hated arch-enemy and love rival…
Was there anything more outrageous and mentally devastating than that in the entire world?
The answer was no.
Damn it! Shen Jiyuan was nothing but a walking disaster for him. Every single thing associated with Shen Jiyuan was bound to go wrong.
Ling Deng watched Xu Zhixing’s face turn red with fury. Without giving him any room to argue, he delivered his final ultimatum.
“I’ve already sent you the script. Read it carefully again. Filming starts in half a month.”
“Do I really have to go?”
“You absolutely have to.”
“Fine! I’ll do it!”
If Shen Jiyuan wanted to make things difficult for him, then Xu Zhixing wouldn’t let him get away with it either.
If Shen Jiyuan could make someone’s life miserable, so could he.
Let’s see if he couldn’t make Shen Jiyuan regret the day he ever crossed him!