Sign a Dating Agreement, Mutually Beneficial—How About It?

The manager was highly professional. Although he found the young master, who changed his mind on a whim, incredibly difficult to serve, as a qualified employee, he still suppressed the urge to complain and laid out the facts methodically.

"Taking down a trending topic costs money too. The event budget the boss approved for you has already been used up, so..."

Chu Tian's expression stiffened. His stingy nature reared its head—he truly did not want to give Weibo any more money. He even wanted to demand back what he had already spent.

But his desire to stop opposing the protagonist was genuine as well. The mistake had already been made, so he could not neglect the remedial measures.

Trusting in his all-powerful, brother-obsessed older brother Chu Maoming, he knew the promised spot would definitely be secured.

Returning the spot he had taken to Gu Shiyan and making his path to debut a little smoother might even salvage his image in Gu Shiyan's eyes... perhaps?

After sighing and lamenting for a while, Chu Tian dragged his heavy feet and took his manager to find Gu Shiyan and apologize.

The manager watched Chu Tian's bleak expression, as though he were a warrior cutting off his own arm, and truly could not fathom the young master's ever-changing thoughts.

But he knew his place well. He was the lackey the boss had hired to watch over and take care of the young master. So, without saying a word or asking any unnecessary questions, he followed behind Chu Tian.

Unlike the "harmonious" relationship between Chu Tian and his manager, Gu Shiyan's profit-driven manager, Cao Ying, was no easy opponent.

"Nothing really happened between you and that young master from the Chu family?" Cao Ying knocked on Gu Shiyan's hotel room door at once and showed him the trending topic. "He came out of your room with his clothes all disheveled. Who would believe you two have nothing going on?"

Gu Shiyan understood Cao Ying's nature all too well. The moment he heard him, he knew there was more behind his words. "What are you trying to say?"

"I think this young master Chu is deeply in love with you too." Cao Ying grinned. "If you go along with him, not only can you get the spot in Soul Shocker back, but the Chu family's company can protect and support you in the industry from now on. This is a guaranteed win-win deal. Aren't you going to think it over carefully?"

When Gu Shiyan kept a grim face and said nothing, a flash of contempt passed through Cao Ying's eyes. He gave a sinister sneer and threatened, "Don't forget the terms of the contract you're bound by..."

Knock, knock.

The knock at the door interrupted Cao Ying's unfinished threat.

"Sorry to interrupt," Chu Tian said awkwardly as he peeked through the not-quite-closed door, cautiously studying Gu Shiyan's expression. "May I come in?"

Rumor had it that the young master of the Chu family had been spoiled rotten by his family and was utterly lawless. Yet he seemed rather polite right now, completely unlike the rumors.

"Not an interruption at all, please come in," Cao Ying said, immediately piling on a fawning smile. He eagerly rose to open the door himself and invited Chu Tian inside. "Young Master, you're here to see Shiyan, right? Next time, just give us a call if you need anything. I'll bring Shiyan to your door immediately!"

The implication in Cao Ying's words made Chu Tian uncomfortable all over. He merely gave a muffled hum and did not respond.

Cao Ying did not care in the slightest about Chu Tian's cold reception. Cheerfully, he invited him to sit down, then bustled around like a lackey, pouring water and searching for snacks.

"No need to fuss," Chu Tian said, feeling inexplicably awkward. Especially with Gu Shiyan sitting nearby with such a solemn expression, Chu Tian could neither sit nor stand at ease. He simply stated his purpose directly. "I came because of the trending topic. I'm sorry for causing you trouble. Don't worry, I just called my brother and asked him to find a way to take down the trending topic and clear things up..."

"Don't!"

Before Chu Tian could finish, Cao Ying cut him off with an agitated shout.

Chu Tian looked utterly confused. As the "culprit," he had voluntarily offered to handle the cleanup. Even if Cao Ying was not overjoyed, he should not look so heartbroken, should he?

"The truth doesn't matter," Cao Ying hurriedly took out his phone and opened Weibo for them both to see. "What matters is that the topic is already trending. Quite a few passersby watched the video and thought you two were an incredibly good match, and they even created a couple fan community on their own. If we clarify things now, wouldn't that be slapping the fans in the face? That's a huge taboo in fandom culture!"

Leaving aside everything else, just seeing Gu Shiyan's Weibo follower count rise by over ten thousand in such a short time showed how terrifyingly effective this trending topic had been.

Only an idiot would turn away this flood of traffic!

The only reason Cao Ying could still persuade them so politely was because Chu Tian was present. Otherwise, he would have made the decision himself and—

"Is this your manager?" Chu Tian looked at Gu Shiyan with sympathy and loudly complained, "I came to apologize and discuss things with you. What does this have to do with him? He talks way too much."

Cao Ying: "..."

Gu Shiyan looked up at Chu Tian in surprise. The faintest curve appeared at the corner of his lips, then vanished in an instant.

When Chu Tian had read the novel, he had greatly disliked Gu Shiyan's manager.

[Cao Ying is nothing but a petty villain. He'll throw away anything for profit, and he even nearly sent Gu Shiyan to a sponsor's bed. His methods are utterly despicable and infuriating. Of course, even "miserable" can't begin to describe his eventual fate.]

Lost in thought, Chu Tian did not notice Gu Shiyan suddenly lifting his head to look at him. His gaze locked onto Chu Tian's tightly closed lips, turmoil flashing in his eyes.

He seemed to have confirmed that the voice he had heard yesterday was not an illusion. But how had Chu Tian done it?

Gu Shiyan discreetly swept his gaze over Cao Ying and Chu Tian's manager. Seeing that neither of them had reacted at all, he clenched his hands tightly, an absurd suspicion rising in his heart—

Could it be that he had heard Chu Tian's thoughts?!

"Well, I already called my brother. Soul Shocker's filming schedule for tomorrow will proceed as planned, and the director will probably contact you soon," Chu Tian said after steadying himself. Ignoring Cao Ying's face, which looked like someone had overturned a paint palette on it, he looked directly at Gu Shiyan and apologized again. "I was willful before. I know I was wrong. Don't worry, I absolutely have no improper intentions toward you. Everything before was a misunderstanding!"

Hearing Chu Tian's solemn declaration, which sounded almost like an oath, Gu Shiyan—still trapped in confusion—was dazed and gave no response.

Ignoring the fact that Chu Tian had just humiliated him, Cao Ying shamelessly cut in. "This is a win-win situation. Shiyan hasn't even officially debuted yet, and his followers are already skyrocketing. It's all thanks to Young Master Chu. How could you possibly be wrong? Come to think of it, we should be thanking you. You even helped us win back a guest spot in Soul Shocker."

As Cao Ying flattered Chu Tian, he kept shooting Gu Shiyan meaningful looks, telling him to quickly add a few words of his own.

Gu Shiyan understood the hint, but he disliked this kind of behavior—being threatened and manipulated by others.

However, someone reacted faster than he did.

"Why are you still standing here?" Chu Tian glared at Cao Ying with feigned displeasure, putting on the arrogant airs of a young master as he brazenly drove him away. "What does my conversation with him have to do with you? Get out."

Cao Ying's face turned green. Before he could speak, Chu Tian's manager, who had acted as a background prop the entire time, hooked an arm around his shoulders and forcibly escorted him out.

The instant the door clicked shut, Chu Tian's arrogant rich-kid swagger vanished without a trace. He turned back into a timid little bun.

[This Cao guy is so noisy... Wuwuwuwu, why isn't Gu Shiyan talking to me? He must still be angry, right? I'm so scared. I don't want to get killed off this early, damn it!]

Chu Tian's lightning-fast change in demeanor nearly made Gu Shiyan laugh. Without realizing it, his tense nerves relaxed as well.

"Let's discuss a partnership." Gu Shiyan, who had remained silent ever since Chu Tian entered, finally spoke. His low, magnetic voice fell beside Chu Tian's ear like a heavy hammer, striking him completely senseless—

"Sign a dating agreement. Mutually beneficial—how about it?"