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"I'll sign, Assistant Yuan," Chu Rong said first.

She had been given this opportunity by President Cai, and she was certain that working with President Cai would, at the very least, mean she would not get the short end of the stick.

"I want to sign too," Qiu Ziyao said.

Smart people knew how to choose.

With the champion and runner-up taking the lead, not a single person gave up on signing with Jinbai Entertainment.

Before long, Cai Jinbai bundled them off overseas for secret training.

Chapter 33

An entire floor of Jinbai Group's office building had been turned into a gym. Not only was it fully equipped, but it also had separate areas for men and women.

And since actors valued privacy, their workout area was separated from that of ordinary employees.

Of course, Cai Jinbai and Xuan Yu occupied an entire floor at the top of the building, and it was impossible for all of it to be used as office space.

Cai Jinbai did not like moving around much, but Xuan Yu loved it. That was why the top floor had a gym specially set up for him.

That day, Xuan Yu dragged Cai Jinbai along to stay in the gym with him.

One worked out while the other finished his work, watched dramas, and scrolled through videos. It was quite harmonious.

Xuan Yu wore only a black tank top on his upper body, exposing his smooth, well-defined shoulders and arms. He had been working out for nearly four hours, yet he did not seem drained at all. Instead, his eyes were even brighter with energy. Sweat covered his forehead and body, and even his hair was damp.

As Cai Jinbai watched videos, his attention inevitably drifted to Xuan Yu. He propped his chin on his palm, elbow resting on the desk, his gaze sweeping over Xuan Yu again and again until Xuan Yu could not help looking back. Xuan Yu lowered his head to inspect himself, then asked, "Jinbai, why do you keep looking at me?"

Cai Jinbai said, "You seem to have been coming here to work out a lot more lately."

His figure was already so perfect—broad shoulders, long legs, every abdominal muscle in place—yet he exercised as though it were still not enough.

Cai Jinbai had only mentioned it casually, but Xuan Yu unexpectedly fell silent, feeling a little guilty.

How could he tell Jinbai that lately, it felt as though a fire had been burning inside him, making his body scorching hot and constantly making him want to vent it somehow?

After thinking it over and over, it seemed that only exercise could release even a little of it.

Sometimes, when he saw Jinbai, the fire in his heart burned even hotter, making him uncomfortable... No, it was not discomfort. It was a strange feeling Xuan Yu could not explain, one he had yet to figure out.

He felt a little better when he was not looking at Jinbai, but when he could not see Jinbai, he felt a different kind of discomfort.

Xuan Yu became inexplicably irritated.

Both of them were extraordinarily gifted in cultivation, but they had depended on each other since childhood and had no elders to guide them.

Cai Jinbai was an orphan, while Xuan Yu was a lone dragon with no relatives and no closeness to other dragons. By calculation, Xuan Yu had only come of age not long ago.

He thought it over from every angle, then suddenly came to a horrifying realization. Put nicely, dragons were amorous and passionate by nature; put bluntly, dragons were naturally lustful. Could it be... could it be that his rut had arrived?!

No, that could not be... Xuan Yu's entire body jolted. He secretly glanced at Jinbai, his thoughts stumbling over themselves.

Then he denied it to himself. Definitely not. Absolutely impossible.

He was different from other dragons. He kept himself pure, had few worldly desires, he, he...

Cai Jinbai sat casually by the window, sunlight spilling over him as though it had added a soft golden outline to his body.

The corners of his lips were slightly raised, a smile lingering there as he looked at Xuan Yu with sparkling eyes, as though Xuan Yu were the only person in them.

A feast for the eyes.

Looking at Jinbai, Xuan Yu could not help licking his lips.

The moment he realized what he had done, Xuan Yu slapped himself. What was he doing?

Startled by Xuan Yu suddenly slapping himself, Cai Jinbai blinked in confusion. "Why did you hit yourself?"

Xuan Yu's gaze shifted away. "I worked out for too long and got lightheaded. I was trying to wake myself up."

"Oh."

"I'm going to take a shower."

A while later, Xuan Yu came out with a towel in hand and wet hair clinging to his head. He naturally sat down beside Cai Jinbai's legs.

The gym was carpeted, so he could simply sit on the floor. Cai Jinbai then took the towel and dried Xuan Yu's hair for him.

"Do we have any plans coming up?" Xuan Yu stared at the carpet, though he was actually lost in thought, carefully feeling Jinbai's fingers moving through his hair.

Cai Jinbai said, "The film Black or White has entered the review process and is expected to be released on October 1st. Recently, the old master of the Luo Family is celebrating his birthday and has invited us to a banquet. We need to attend."

Xuan Yu's heart stirred. "A banquet? Jinbai, we don't need female companions."

Cai Jinbai answered naturally, "Of course not. The two of us can go together."

Xuan Yu was immediately satisfied.

Once Black or White passed review, it would be scheduled for release. This was the first project Cai Jinbai had invested in, so Jinbai Entertainment valued it greatly and put serious effort into promoting it.

Of course, this was also Director Chen's first film since returning after making a flop. Not only did he personally oversee the editing, he even put aside his dignity during promotional events and worked hard to be funny.

Only then did Cai Jinbai have someone reveal the main reasons Director Chen had made that flop back then.

While this drew a wave of sympathy from netizens, he also had paid commenters stir things up in reverse, provoking everyone's rebellious streak. The more people said Director Chen had lost his touch, the more they wanted to go to the theater and see what kind of film he had made four years later.

[Director Chen did his best back then. First, the investors forced people into the cast; second, something happened at home, and he had to care for his wife and daughter; third, the producer stabbed him in the back. It was miserable. Director Chen did not explain much afterward and carried it all alone, which makes him even more pitiful.]

[Since he was the director, he had to be responsible for the movie. The film was terrible, so surely he was not completely without blame.]

[Wow, you really know how to talk. Then I hope you can say the same thing when something happens to your family.]

[I'm interested in this movie now. President Cai invested in it, so I have to go see it. Besides, there's poor Xu Yuqing. This is the first film he has appeared in after being shelved for three years. We have to support him!]

[I'm going to the theater to support my brother!]

Where there were netizens offering support, there were also netizens slandering it.

Amid the endless online arguments, the movie was finally released.

Lou Xiaoxiao bought tickets and took her parents to see it. She had not come for the director or actors, but because President Cai had invested in the film. Even if it was only a small contribution, she had to help make sure President Cai did not lose money. After all, she was a money fanatic—President Cai's fangirl.

"Hehe." Lou Xiaoxiao laughed as she took a photo of the tickets and posted it on her Moments.

[Here to support the movie President Cai invested in~]

People immediately liked the post.

Lou Xiaoxiao's mother said, "It would be nice if President Cai were acting in this movie."

Ever since they had watched the third season of The Actors together, Lou Xiaoxiao's mother had not remembered many actors' names. Her attention had been entirely on Cai Jinbai. The only other name she remembered was Xuan Yu. Honestly, how could those two young men be so handsome?

Lou Xiaoxiao was speechless. "Mom, what are you even thinking? With President Cai's status, how could he possibly act in a movie?"

"I was just saying." Lou Xiaoxiao's mother muttered, "Actors at least release behind-the-scenes content and photos every day. You're following a CEO, yet you can't even fill up a photo album."

That made Lou Xiaoxiao sigh as well.

Lou Xiaoxiao's father said, "..."

He truly could not understand people like them who chased stars—no, chased CEOs.

Lou Xiaoxiao had not actually been looking forward to the movie. She liked comedies and funny films, not police-and-gangster spy thrillers like this one. Her father, on the other hand, was quite interested and waited eagerly after they took their seats.

Lou Xiaoxiao looked around. Not bad, the theater was fairly full.

Before long, the movie began. Lou Xiaoxiao held a bucket of popcorn, but her mind drifted. The movie would end in the evening. Where should they go for dinner afterward? Right, a new barbecue place had apparently opened on the third floor...

As Lou Xiaoxiao continued thinking, her attention began to be drawn in by the movie playing onscreen.

Gradually, her grip on the popcorn bucket loosened. In the end, she stopped eating entirely and stared at the big screen with full concentration.

Lou Xiaoxiao's parents became even more immersed.

Once people were absorbed in a movie theater, they could not feel time passing. Near the end, Lou Xiaoxiao suddenly heard a sob from beside her.

When she turned to look, she saw her mother with tears in her eyes and the tip of her nose slightly red. Her mother felt around on herself and pulled out a packet of tissues.

The moment Lou Xiaoxiao's mother opened it, Lou Xiaoxiao's hand reached over.

Her mother turned to look and found that her daughter was crying too.

Neither of them needed to say anything. They shared the tissues and wiped away their tears, while everyone else in the theater looked much the same.

The film had reached the part where Zhuang Xiaowu, the third male lead played by Xu Yuqing, was exposed as a police officer and died in the protagonist's arms.

Accompanied by the tragic music in the film, the change in Zhuang Xiaowu's expression and the emotions contained in his eyes were so complicated, yet so bright. They reignited the fire in the protagonist's heart and made him continue forward with resolve.

It could be said that without the look in Zhuang Xiaowu's eyes before his death, the protagonist would eventually have sunk into darkness.

Zhuang Xiaowu's arrival was a tiny flame of light, small and weak, but once it began to burn, it broke through everything with unstoppable force.

In the end, the protagonist successfully completed his undercover mission.

The ending froze on him arriving at Zhuang Xiaowu's grave.

That bright, radiant young man with a dazzling smile had been in the most beautiful years of his life, yet he would forever sleep in a cold grave.

As they left the theater, Lou Xiaoxiao still could not stop sobbing at the thought of Zhuang Xiaowu. "Wuwu, he died so miserably. Couldn't... couldn't Zhuang Xiaowu have lived? Why couldn't it have been a happy ending?"