Seafood Feast

On the way to the restaurant, the two of them started arguing over who would pay.

"Brother Qu, you helped me a lot today. I should be the one treating you to this meal."

"But didn't you save me too? Besides, I was the one who first said I'd treat you to dinner."

"You said we'd eat together. I remember that." Xiao Ming said this expressionlessly, but Qu An could clearly see the stubbornness in his eyes.

Xiao Le, sitting in the front passenger seat, broke out in a cold sweat as he listened. What was up with Brother Qu today? This was his first time meeting this newcomer, right? Could Brother Qu be having his heart stirred? He had to tell Sister Fei soon!

Sister Fei was Qu An's manager, Zhu Fei. Since her surname was awkward to say, everyone called her Sister Fei.

If Qu An had heard that right then, he would only have thought Xiao Le was overthinking it. He had merely caught sight of something pure white for once—pure white that seemed unusual and pitiful amid all the vibrant colors and thick darkness.

Qu An did not keep arguing with Xiao Ming for long. After a while, he still agreed to let Xiao Ming pay. He had originally felt that Xiao Ming had been dragged into today's mess because of him, and that the incident at the beach had also been an undeserved disaster, so he wanted to make it up to him.

But Xiao Ming said he had earned money again, and Qu An had saved him, even helped buy him water. No matter how he looked at it, Xiao Ming could not bring himself to feel right about it.

Although Xiao Ming's whiteness had made Qu An like him a little more, it was only appreciation for that purity, not for Xiao Ming himself. He had seen far too many pure whites dyed into all sorts of colors until they finally became filthy.

After looking over the menu and asking each other about dietary restrictions, the two ordered a whole table of seafood. But it was not just the two of them—Xiao Le joined them as well. He had helped quite a bit when they were buying water earlier.

While Qu An was in the restroom, Xiao Ming asked Xiao Le about the money spent on water that day.

Xiao Le had a loose mouth, but he was simple-hearted and attentive. Buying water had been his own idea that day, and that was precisely why Qu An had kept him around as an assistant.

When Xiao Ming learned that Xiao Le had paid for it and Qu An would reimburse him later, he immediately added Xiao Le, intending to transfer the money over. Xiao Le initially refused, but after Xiao Ming said a few things, he got talked in circles. Dazed, he added him and even accepted the money.

When Qu An returned, he saw Xiao Ming and Xiao Le huddled together over a phone. The moment he arrived, they separated.

He did not feel much about it, only quietly amused himself. Sure enough, similar people always had topics to talk about. They were both like children.

Xiao Ming looked aloof and cool, but he unexpectedly loved sweets and spicy food. His tastes were similar to Xiao Le's, and the two quickly became even closer.

Qu An, whose bad stomach had forced him to eat bland food since childhood, held a glass of water and ate the lighter dishes on the table while listening to Xiao Ming, face cold and serious, explain which dishes were delicious and which were not spicy enough.

Xiao Ming's dejection had not actually been obvious while filming the commercial that day. Aside from Qu An, no one else had noticed.

Even when Qu An had called Xiao Ming into the RV, everyone had been afraid the two would start arguing—or rather, that Xiao Ming would lose his temper one-sidedly. After all, everyone knew that Actor Qu was famously good-tempered.

Yet when they came out, neither looked much different from when they had gone in. If anything, the atmosphere around them somehow seemed less oppressive.

Xiao Le had already forgotten all about Brother Qu. He kept chatting with Xiao Ming, picking out amusing stories to tell. Xiao Ming did not say much, but he listened attentively and responded every now and then.

Though his replies were mostly things like "Mm," "Oh," and "I see," it did not affect communication at all for someone as talkative as Xiao Le.

In the end, Qu An could not stand it any longer. Realizing that Xiao Ming had barely eaten, he stopped them and told him to focus on his meal.

Xiao Le looked a little reluctant to stop, but when he caught Brother Qu's gaze, he did not dare act up.

Qu An truly did have a pretty good temper and was always adept at dealing with people. But he was the typical sort who seemed warm on the outside and cold within. When Xiao Le had first graduated and come to work as Qu An's assistant two years ago, he had not known that and thought Brother Qu was the kindest person around.

After spending the next two years with him, he became convinced that Brother Qu was the scariest one of all. Sometimes Qu An would be smiling pleasantly, yet somehow make you feel like something huge was about to happen—and then, sure enough, something huge would happen.

The meal ended with both host and guests satisfied. As Xiao Le left, he kept telling Xiao Ming to try his hometown cuisine sometime. That was what truly counted as authentic.

Since Xiao Ming rarely ate with anyone other than his family, much less enjoyed such a pleasant meal, his mood improved considerably. He had also earned another payment by helping film the commercial that day. It was not much, but it was still far more than what he had previously relied on through scholarships alone.

After dinner, it was about time to leave. Xiao Ming had not brought his luggage onto the high-speed rail because some sprays and similar items were inconvenient to carry, so he had mailed it directly to the hotel there. He packed a few necessities into a small bag, slung on a backpack, and went to catch the train.

Meanwhile, the buzz about the two of them online had not died down at all. Someone posted photos of Xiao Ming and Qu An eating together at noon and again that evening.

Some haters began spreading rumors that after becoming Best Actor, Qu An had started keeping newcomers. He had stayed on the trending list for so long that day and spent the entire day with a newcomer. He was probably planning to make him famous.

[What's going on? Who exactly is this Xiao Ming?! Why can he film a show with Qu An, shoot a commercial with him, and even eat with him? Twice, at that!]

[He played the junior martial brother in the recently popular hit that combines wuxia and xianxia, Only Me in the Martial World.]

[No way, is our nation's son going to turn into one of those disgusting entertainment industry maggots too?!]

[Take our Anbao away. Our Anbao is just doing his job properly. The studio posted schedules for both the show recording and the commercial shoot.]

[Shouldn't we be asking what Xiao Ming's background is? Wasn't Qu An's partner for that commercial originally supposed to be a woman?]

[An insider quietly says that Xiao Ming seems to have some connection to the producer.]

[Ugh, no way. Another one climbing to the top through a backer.]

[But that's strange. Why would Qu An help him, then?]

[Maybe he has his eye on him too. /eatingmelon.jpg]

[You know, Xiao Ming is actually pretty good-looking.]

[It's the junior martial brother! Oh my god, the junior martial brother in the drama was so innocent and pure. How can the actor be this kind of person? I can't take it.]

[What does the character have to do with the actor? Our junior martial brother is wonderful.]

[Wuwuwu, sister above, now I want to watch it again after what you said. Our junior martial brother had it so hard. He should have grown up spoiled by his sect, but then his whole sect was destroyed. He ended up wandering outside as a little beggar and starved to death in a ruined temple during a snowy day. The last snowy day, he was still pestering his senior brother to buy him a fur coat.]

As people began discussing the plot, some drama fans started talking about the show.

The role played by "Xiao Ming" in the drama did not have much screen time, but it was likable enough. Once the show became popular, the character became popular as well, and Xiao Ming gained some attention too.

But after what happened on the trending list that day, many of his new fans had left. The rest were waiting to see what would happen. He had no fan base, much less diehard fans willing to manage the comments for him. Only a few drama fans and character fans occasionally spoke up for him.

As it happened, the Only Me in the Martial World production released behind-the-scenes footage. "Xiao Ming" barely appeared in it, and even when he did, he was alone in a corner reading the script.

[He's so antisocial. Everyone else is having fun, but he doesn't join them.]

[But... isn't that being professional? He's studying the script the whole time.]

[Who knows whether he's reading the script or instructions from his backer?]

This was how rumors and slander came about. No evidence was needed. A single "Who knows," "I think," or "Maybe" was enough to convict someone.

Since he was on the high-speed rail, and had been running around all day, Xiao Ming had no time to check his phone. Besides, he was not very good at using things like Weibo to begin with.

Qu An received the news quickly enough. Their phones had been on silent during dinner, and only after turning them back on did Qu An and Xiao Le discover that Zhu Fei had sent them many messages and made countless calls.

Xiao Le practically turned into a quail, shrinking his neck as he looked at Qu An.

"It's over, it's over. Sister Fei is going to scold me to death this time."

Qu An was far calmer. Still, when he answered Zhu Fei's incoming call, he deliberately held the phone a little farther away.

Zhu Fei's voice carried loudly from the phone.

"Qu An! Did becoming Best Actor make you full of yourself? What were you doing today? I only went off to handle a newcomer, and you got yourself onto several trending topics."

Qu An waited until she had finished venting before bringing the phone back to a normal distance. He still wore that same faint smile, as though nothing could make him nervous or angry.

"Sister Fei, don't get worked up first. Didn't the doctor say you should get angry less often?"

Zhu Fei knew Qu An's mother. She had been trained by Qu An's mother's former manager, and Qu An's mother had recommended her to him because she considered her reliable. Zhu Fei had been managing Qu An since he was in middle school and had been with him for years, so Qu An was relatively close to her and could talk to her about anything.

"If you don't cause trouble for me, I won't get angry."

Outsiders all said Zhu Fei was lucky to have landed someone as good-tempered as Qu An, who was probably obedient too. Only Zhu Fei knew how many times she had tried to persuade Qu An not to do extreme challenge activities.

Every time, Qu An would claim that he needed stimulation to inspire himself and experience emotions, or else it would be difficult for him to grasp his roles.

Zhu Fei was infuriated half to death every time. Yet because of Qu An's mother's trust, and because Qu An was the sort who never yelled at people but instead spoke to them pleasantly, she had to play verbal tai chi with him for ages each time.

"There's nothing going on between me and that kid. He showed me around while we were recording the program today, so I treated him to a meal."

"Then what about the afternoon and evening?"

"The producer found him himself in the afternoon. He got a cramp in the sea, and I happened to be nearby, so I helped him out. Then he said he'd treat me to dinner to repay me."

"Is he planning to create publicity with you afterward? Tell me honestly."

"Sister Fei, he isn't. I asked. He's a top student at Peking University. Entering the industry was just an accident."