The Movie Emperor Makes His Entrance

Si You had settled into a fixed body clock lately. He got sleepy at nine thirty, wrapped himself in the blankets, and had a lovely sleep. Tomorrow's problems could wait until tomorrow, so Si You had no idea that at eleven thirty, the unwilling production crew sent another cameraman over to gather footage. Unfortunately, Si You was wearing earplugs, and even after the cameraman's hand had gone sore from knocking, the door never opened.

At six in the morning, Si You opened his eyes right on time.

He had barely eaten any dinner yesterday, and his stomach was empty. Si You got out of bed and washed up. Remembering that filming started today, he still took a moment to fix his hair.

He pushed open the door. The hallway was deathly quiet, and the early-morning air was slightly cool but refreshing. Si You made his way downstairs to the kitchen. There was nothing ready-made, but there were ingredients in the refrigerator, so he simply cooked himself a bowl of noodles.

The directing team did not wake up until six fifty. They considered themselves quite early. While pulling on their socks, they spoke into the walkie-talkie. "Start work!"

The cameramen planned to head upstairs in batches, but as they passed the living room, they heard the sound effects from a tile-matching game. Si You had already finished washing his bowl. He glanced back at them before continuing to play. "You're up early, teachers."

Everyone: "..."

The director was still shouting into the walkie-talkie. "Little Zhang, focus on filming Si You!"

Film what? Not only was he up, he was also fully alert and neatly put together.

One cameraman, looking utterly defeated, gave Si You's profile a close-up.

Not going to lie, it looked great.

After seven o'clock, the guests gradually came downstairs. Xue Boyu was extremely surprised when he saw Si You. After all, during the previous season, Si You had been a night owl who raised hell at night and slept during the day. He did not care about his reputation at all and had tried every possible way to make Shen Chuan take care of him, just so the two of them could spend more time alone.

Xue Boyu greeted him, "Morning, Brother Si You."

Si You replied, "Morning, Boyu."

[Ahhh! My sweet little Boyu, Mommy wants to kiss you.]

[Si You got up this early? And when did he change his whole approach?]

[The commenter above doesn't know? Si You changed for the better ages ago.]

[Even if he changed, he's still a bitch. I curse him for life over driving Shen Chuan away!]

[+1]

[I have a feeling this season is going to be really interesting.]

All kinds of comments flashed rapidly across the bullet screen. Yes, filming had already begun. Spring Action did not use post-production; whatever the guests were like was exactly what got filmed. It was a live broadcast.

Soon, all the guests had arrived.

Xu Ke rubbed his stomach. He was starving, but according to the schedule, they had to wait for the new guest, and the production crew still needed to announce the task. Fei Chang noticed and pressed down on the back of his hand, giving it two gentle pats. "Soon. Then I'll take you out for beef soup."

Their CP fans immediately went wild in the bullet comments.

Seeing that everyone was present, the director walked out from one side. He first glanced at Si You. How had this brat suddenly gone from an idiot to a slippery loach? They had tried to catch him several times and failed every time.

Of course, that was not the point. The director cleared his throat, his expression turning mysteriously proud. "This time, we've invited a heavyweight new guest. We hope everyone will help one another and get along peacefully."

Everyone looked toward the entrance. Who could it be?

As the camera turned, a familiar song played in the livestream. It was the opening theme from the Movie Emperor's breakout work. With its moving melody and meaningful lyrics, it had swept the streets back then. The Movie Emperor, dressed in black, standing amid endless wind and sand, had become a classic... A tall, straight figure gradually overlapped with the image in everyone's memories. The guests and livestream viewers could not help holding their breath. Could it be...

Jiang Tingxu wore black trousers and a white shirt beneath a gray trench coat. His features were bright and clear. That face had won first place in the highly popular "Your Dream Husband" selection four years in a row. The fifth year had ended dismally after capital meddling made the contest unfair and fans refused to accept the result. He had antis, but his abilities were so formidable that even after racking their brains, they could not find much to criticize. He truly was like the moon in the sky, snow atop a peak.

The bullet screen was completely flooded by scalp-tingling cries of "Ahhh!" and "My husband!"

Jiang Tingxu's temperament was gentle yet distant. Being around him felt comfortable, but he always remained beyond an invisible line. Even so, despite having kept a low profile for nearly a year, Jiang Tingxu's popularity remained astonishingly high.

It was a glory that many celebrities' fans could never achieve, no matter how desperately they boosted the numbers.

There was only one person like him in the entertainment industry.

So what had Spring Action done to deserve this?!

"Jiang Tingxu..." Jiang Yao, Zhang Jianlin's CP partner, covered her mouth, her eyes reddening. "My idol!!!"

Zhang Jianlin clasped Jiang Yao's shoulder and pulled her closer to his side.

"Hello, everyone," Jiang Tingxu said softly.

That snapped everyone awake. They all stood, including Si You. Jiang Tingxu did not know him, but Si You had looked into this man. After My Way, Si You had rewatched Jiang Tingxu's film three more times, growing ever more appreciative of his acting.

That appreciation included respect for an evenly matched opponent and an affection above what he felt for ordinary people. It meant Jiang Tingxu was somewhat special to Si You.

Everyone shook hands with Jiang Tingxu one by one, all treating him well. Even Zhang Jianlin, the most senior among them, had no grounds to act arrogant before Jiang Tingxu.

When it was Si You's turn, he told himself, It's fine. I'm infamous. It would only be natural if he doesn't give me any face. Maybe Jiang Tingxu already reached an understanding with the production crew... Then slender fingers came into view.

Jiang Tingxu's palm was warm. He shook Si You's hand, then let go.

A faint numbness inexplicably shot up Si You's tailbone.

This man had something to him, Si You thought.

Once Jiang Tingxu had greeted everyone, the bullet screen gradually calmed down. But the livestream viewer count had broken a record high. Whose popularity was responsible went without saying.

It was only seven thirty in the morning.

"First of all, on behalf of our production team, I'd like to warmly welcome Jiang, the Movie Emperor!"

Jiang Tingxu nodded. "Just call me by my name."

The director's heart raced and his hands trembled. He knew that what came next would definitely send Spring Action soaring to the top of today's trending topics!

The director cleared his throat. "Next is the selection of Jiang... Jiang Tingxu's partner."

Sure enough, the moment the director finished speaking, the bullet screen exploded.

Bastard, Si You shot the director a glance.

The partners could have been decided before the show even started filming. Now that He Qing was absent and Shen Chuan had left, Jiang Tingxu's arrival meant that either Si You or Xue Boyu was bound to be neglected. To put it plainly, Si You's slight comeback against the odds could not resolve his current predicament. He would still be offered up as a sacrifice.

The reason they had invited him this season in the first place was to turn him into a trash can for fans and viewers to vent their emotions on.

[Jiang Tingxu and Xue Boyu... Ahhh! I ship it!]

[Ship your mom. He Qing isn't dead yet!]

[But He Qing can't come...]

The bullet comments were arguing fiercely, but someone soon noticed something was off. Where were the Movie Emperor's fans?

Jiang, the Movie Emperor's fans were analyzing and waiting. Most of them took after their idol: laid-back and calm. Honestly, they definitely did not want the Movie Emperor paired up with Si You, but the production crew had not said He Qing would not be coming. They did not want their idol forced into being the third party. As for the final choice, that depended on the Movie Emperor himself.

The production crew's stunt was about to arrive.

The director continued, "Here's the situation. We've received word that He Qing will return to filming once his injuries have healed."

Xue Boyu's eyes lit up.

[I knew it! The CP I ship will never end badly!]

But even more question marks flooded the bullet screen.

Si You gave a bitter smile inside. Fine, you win.

He Qing would be coming back, which meant only Jiang Tingxu and Si You remained.

Si You smiled through tears, feeling that a mask and hat would not be enough. Another day, he would order a set of body armor.