Lu Xingchuan

Biodata

Feature	Information
Name	Lu Xingchuan (陆行川)
Alias(es)	Movie Emperor Lu; Best Actor Lu 1 30
Species/Race	Human
Gender	Male
Affiliation	Lu Group; contestant on This Is a Dating Show 28 32
Occupation/Role	Film actor and movie emperor; the original novel’s male lead 1
First Appearance	Chapter 1, “Crossing into a Book”

Background / History

Three years before the dating show, Lu Xingchuan’s family business was in crisis and his entertainment career had few resources. His first love, Xie Li, abruptly went abroad during this period, leading Lu to believe he had been abandoned. He later accepted Xie Li’s explanation that illness had forced him to leave and forgave him. 2

During the same three years, Lu entered a contract engagement with Shen Yan after borrowing two million yuan from him. He never publicly acknowledged Shen, exploited Shen’s industry contacts, and belittled him while his own career rose to movie-emperor status. 1 2

Shen’s past efforts also contributed to Lu obtaining the lead role in Fragrant Years. Shen was drugged and nearly sexually assaulted by a casting director while securing the opportunity; after escaping, he used a recording to pressure the director into helping Lu. The role later made Lu a Best Actor. When Shen sought acknowledgement, Lu cruelly stated that it would have been better if Shen had actually been raped. 28 30

Appearance

Lu Xingchuan is a handsome actor over six feet tall. Shen Yan recognizes him by a bump on his forehead that Shen himself caused with a punch. 35 36

• Often maintains a polished movie-star image in front of cameras.
• His face is repeatedly injured or dirtied during disputes with Shen, including a bloody nose, a forehead bump, and Shen vomiting on him. 1 6 36

Personality

Lu is initially arrogant, dismissive, and highly protective of his public image. He treats Shen’s former devotion as harassment rather than acknowledging the money, connections, and career assistance Shen provided. When threatened with recordings or public exposure, he reacts with rage but repeatedly gives in to protect himself and Xie Li. 1 2 30

His attachment to Xie Li is a major influence on his decisions. He instinctively defends Xie Li, pursues him when he appears hurt, and frequently interprets criticism of Xie as an attack. However, he also becomes increasingly distracted by Shen’s closeness with Pei Heng, repeatedly seeking Shen during the Ghost Tag game while overlooking Xie Li. 2 3 37 39

Lu is competitive and sensitive to humiliation. He tries to prove his strength during challenges, yet is easily frightened by ghosts and maggots, and becomes defensive when others outperform him. 32 47 49 After wrongly accusing Shen during the breakfast cleanup dispute, he gives Shen an awkward but direct apology—the first clear sign that he is willing to admit fault. 36

Abilities & Skills

Acting Career

Lu is a renowned movie emperor whose success accelerated after starring in Fragrant Years.

• Became a popular movie emperor after rising through the entertainment industry with Shen Yan’s connections and resources. 1
• Won the Best Actor title through Fragrant Years, a role Shen helped secure. 30
• Uses his celebrity status and fanbase to shape public reactions, though repeated scandals damage his reputation. 2 30 32

Manipulation and Evidence Gathering

Lu frequently attempts to control conflicts through threats, private recordings, and selective disclosures.

• Tries to seize Shen Yan’s recordings and repeatedly pressures him to return evidence. 1 13
• Secretly records Shen in the vehicle while offering to date him in exchange for an explanation about the villa incident; Shen discovers and exposes the recording pen. 12
• Films Shen and Pei Heng from hiding behind flowers. 13
• Invokes the Lu Group’s influence over Shen’s agency while pressuring Shen to cooperate with his agent. 28

Equipment / Items

• Recording pen — Used to secretly record Shen Yan during the villa dispute; Shen seizes it and uses it as leverage. 12 13 21
• Phone — Used to secretly film Shen Yan and Pei Heng from behind the flowers. 13

Relationships

• Shen Yan — Former fiancé and primary adversary. Lu borrowed money from Shen, benefited from his connections and sacrifices, then attempted to end their engagement when Xie Li returned. Their relationship devolves into public scandals, physical fights, recordings, and repeated humiliations. 1 6 30 36
• Xie Li — First love and closest emotional attachment. Lu supports, comforts, and defends Xie Li throughout the show, though Xie’s manipulation and Lu’s growing fixation on Shen create strain between them. 2 3 27 39
• Pei Heng — Rival and frequent source of humiliation. Pei Heng protects Shen, refuses to return Lu’s recorder, mocks Lu’s pursuit of Shen, and repeatedly outperforms him in the show’s challenges. 13 39 49
• Song Qianshan — Date partner and critic. Song confronts Lu over his hypocrisy toward Shen and remains unimpressed by his attempts to appear considerate or brave. 26 49
• Lu Xingchuan’s agent — A subordinate used as a scapegoat after the scandal involving Shen’s leaked video and exploitative contract becomes public. 31

Story Role / Major Arcs

Broken Engagement and Weibo Scandal

Lu demands that Shen end their engagement because Xie Li has returned. Shen instead demands repayment of Lu’s two-million-yuan debt, records Lu’s words, and forces him to transfer four million yuan after kicking him in the face. 1

Lu publicly supports Xie Li’s entertainment-industry return while continuing to deny his relationship with Shen. Shen’s posts exposing payment records, engagement evidence, and the production team’s plan to use him as Xie Li’s foil destabilize Lu’s carefully maintained image. 1 2

Conflict on *This Is a Dating Show*

Lu enters the dating show alongside Xie Li and repeatedly clashes with Shen. Shen slaps him as part of a Truth or Dare task, vomits on his face during a kissing dare, forces his head toward a toilet, and later attacks him after Lu steals his game console. 3 6 18

Lu consistently backs Xie Li in conflicts with Shen and Pei Heng. His entitlement is especially visible when he demands food despite failing to collect any ingredients under the show’s rules. 4 17 19

Villa Incident and Recorder Exposure

Believing a villa belongs to him or was gifted to him by Shen, Lu attempts to enter using his birthday as the password. The villa actually belongs to Shen’s eldest stepmother, who calls the police and exposes Lu’s false claim of ownership. Lu is forced to issue a public Weibo apology. 10 11 12

He later attempts to secretly record Shen into admitting responsibility for the situation, but Shen finds the recording pen and plays the evidence aloud before the cast. 12 13

*Fragrant Years* Exposure

When a selectively edited hotel video is used to frame Shen, Lu accuses Shen of staging the scandal for attention. Shen responds by revealing the full circumstances behind Fragrant Years and releasing surveillance footage of Lu’s cruel response to Shen’s near-assault. 28 30

The exposure reveals that Lu benefited from Shen’s efforts while publicly denying their connection. Public opinion turns against him, and his fans’ attempts to defend his acting inadvertently confirm that Shen helped him obtain the role. 30 32

Jealousy, Competition, and Ghost Tag

Lu becomes increasingly preoccupied with Shen and Pei Heng’s closeness. As the first “ghost” in Ghost Tag, he repeatedly abandons opportunities to find Xie Li in order to pursue Shen and Pei Heng’s overlapping tracker signals. 37 39

During the haunted-house game, Lu attempts to present himself as capable but panics when attacked by ghost actors and recoils from searching a corpse prop covered in real maggots. 47 49 He remains determined to prove himself after Shen repeatedly calls him useless, particularly during the forced-love rescue game. 46 49 50

Notable Quotes

“End the engagement. Xie Li is back.” 1

“I never asked you to fight for it on my behalf.” 30

“What a pity. It would've been better if you really had been raped.” 30

“Show mercy when you can. Isn't it a bit much for you to keep pressing so hard?” 32

Trivia

• Lu’s attempted villa password was his own birthday. 10
• His first Ghost Tag target selection is influenced more by Shen and Pei Heng’s location than by Xie Li’s planned hiding place. 37 39
• Three early show-related trending topics centered on his humiliation rather than romance: #Lu Xingchuan Toilet, #Shen Yan Vomits on Lu Xingchuan, and #Wiping Out the Family Line. 7