Chapter 32: Zeng Xu

Zhang He shook her head in frustration and complained to her superior. "It’s not that easy! There are plenty of prospects, but they’re either just a pretty face or have character issues. Finding someone with looks, acting skills, and good morals is as hard as climbing a mountain!" So, her exaggerated descriptions had become something Yu Xiaozhe was immune to. But actually, he had someone in mind; he just didn’t know if they’d be interested. He gestured for Zhang He to leave. Our beautiful, charming Big Agent Zhang felt a bit hurt looking at the tangible disdain in her boss’s eyes. She instructed Li Mu to take care of her boss well and not to contact her unless it was something urgent that couldn’t be solved independently. She turned around, leaving Yu Xiaozhe and Li Mu with an injured back view. Li Mu, with a cold expression, did something uncharacteristic for him, scratching his head and asking in confusion. "What’s up with Sister He?" Indeed, Li Mu was a somewhat simple-minded person, very capable in his work, known as the "Mr. Know-It-All" among assistants, but in reality, an honest, quiet "simple-minded youth." It was just that his appearance was a bit intimidating. Yu Xiaozhe was already used to Zhang He’s mood swings, so Zhang He didn’t realize that her hurt feelings had become just another episode to him. Their families were old friends, knowing each other since childhood. If not for their lack of romantic interest in each other, their families would probably have become in-laws. Not paying further attention to the moody woman, Yu Xiaozhe gestured for Li Mu to grab the luggage and headed toward the elevator. Li Mu was assigned a standard single room on the seventh floor, while Yu Xiaozhe was in a suite on the twelfth floor. This hotel was considered the best at Su City Film and Television Base, with decent decor and service. Since Yu Xiaozhe had brought quite a lot of stuff that needed organizing, they first went together to Li Mu’s room on the seventh floor to settle his luggage, and then took the elevator to Yu Xiaozhe’s room 1206 on the twelfth floor. Just as they were sorting and organizing things from the luggage, the door to Yu Xiaozhe’s room was knocked on, and the person outside stated their purpose. "Mr. Yu, I’m Yang Xiaotu, your younger brother in this drama, Zeng Xu." Yu Xiaozhe got up to open the door but did not let Zeng Xu in, instead looking at him with an inquiring gaze. "What’s up?" Zeng Xu raised his hand to show the things he was carrying—a gift box, which looked like a box of pastries. "My family is from Star City; this is a local specialty from there—sweet-scented osmanthus cake. I specially brought some to share with the crew. This is your share, Mr. Yu. I’ve already delivered Director Wang’s earlier." Being able to join this crew meant Zeng Xu’s appearance was certainly not to be doubted. In the script, his character is a college student, and Zeng Xu indeed had innately youthful looks, smiling with energy and exuberance. Right now, he was showcasing a vigorous smile, holding the gift—a perfect campus heartthrob look. Yu Xiaozhe wasn’t interested in such looks, but hearing Zeng Xu mention that Director Wang also accepted the gift, he didn’t reject it and reached out his hand to take it. "Thank you." Zeng Xu flashed what he considered his perfect smile and sensibly said goodbye. "Well, Mr. Yu, I’ll let you get back to work; I have other people to deliver the specialty to. I’m off then!" Yu Xiaozhe closed the door and casually placed the pastries on the cabinet near the door. Coming in, he found that Li Mu had already organized everything, with just things like his pajamas left in the suitcase. He stopped Li Mu from continuing. "I’ll handle these myself. There’s a box of pastries by the door; take it with you and don’t forget it later." Li Mu wasn’t one to ask many questions; he followed Yu Xiaozhe’s arrangements to a T. "Got it, Brother Yu." He had checked out the suite earlier and even found a small kitchen equipped with standard cooking utensils. He also tested the gas, which was functional. "Brother Yu, besides the crew meals, should I cook for us, or should we order from outside?" Yu Xiaozhe thought for a moment; he remembered Li Mu had a chef’s certificate among his qualifications. Recalling the times Li Mu had cooked before, the dishes were delicious, so without hesitating, he transferred some money to Li Mu via phone. "Cook for us; sorry to trouble you, and here’s money for groceries. Let me know if you need more." Li Mu had no objections, nodding like a machine. "Sure thing, Brother Yu." He didn’t forget to take the pastries with him before leaving. Now, in the whole suite with its three rooms, only Yu Xiaozhe remained. After the opening ceremony today, they had a script reading and took character photos. Yu Xiaozhe quickly tidied up and went to the temporarily arranged conference room on the sixth floor for the reading session. A few hours later, Yu Xiaozhe returned to his room, powered on his computer, and handled the documents his secretary sent him for review and signing. Leaning on the sofa, he rubbed his stiff neck and checked his phone for messages. No messages. He picked up the script beside him again. Five minutes later, he checked his phone again—still no messages. Yu Xiaozhe got up to wash his face in the bathroom. As he was reaching for a towel, the phone in the living room rang, and he hurried toward it, glancing at the caller’s ID. He paused—it was Yu Yue. Not in the mood to answer... He’s a bit inexplicably annoyed with Yu Yue... "Bro, do you have time now? I just can’t help wanting to tell you something." He wasn’t interested in what Yu Yue said was "great news"; he just wanted to hang up. "No time." Before his finger could press on the hang-up button, Yu Yue must have sensed the urgency and shouted. "Don’t hang up! It’s about Xingxing—urgent!" Retracting his finger, Yu Xiaozhe nonchalantly inquired. "What’s wrong with Xingxing?" "It’s about the Producer Zhang he dealt with before. I heard from my friend today that Producer Zhang learned Xingxing’s contract with the company was terminated and subtly leaked fictitious damaging rumors about Xingxing, claiming he was being financially supported, otherwise how would he afford to terminate the contract." "He even told some marketing accounts that report fake news about it, knowing Xingxing doesn’t have a company backing him now, intending to use public opinion to ban Xingxing." Yu Xiaozhe’s tone was calm, showing no emotion. "Anything else?" "Furthermore, there’s the matter I wanted to tell you this morning. Isn’t Sister Zhang He looking for an artist? I think Xingxing is quite good, and I want to recommend him to Sister Zhang He. Bro, what do you think?" Yu Xiaozhe didn’t immediately answer Yu Yue’s question but instead gave it serious thought. He knew his feelings towards Ruan Xingwen were somewhat special right now, though the reason eluded him. If he could keep Ruan Xingwen around, he’d be able to clear up the confusion. Currently, Ruan Xingwen was facing issues he couldn’t deal with, and coincidentally, Yu Xiaozhe needed to find an artist here. Ruan Xingwen’s looks were definitely in line with the current trend of the sweet and salty "little puppy" image. As for character, from their recent interactions, it seemed to be quite good. With no topics to chat about, Yu Xiaozhe took the pillow handed by Yu Yue, decisively hung up the "Yu Yue the Toolman" call, and opened WeChat. [YU: Xingxing, do you want to come to Huasheng?] The person in question, Ruan Xingwen himself, was sleeping soundly, with suspicious transparent liquid at the corner of his mouth...