What, did it burn your ass?

Xiao Sheng was slightly surprised by Nan Zhou's unhesitating refusal.

But he was, after all, the vice president of a major entertainment company. He could still keep his true feelings hidden during a negotiation.

"The entertainment industry isn't as simple as you think. You're still young, with a long road ahead of you. Popularity might reign supreme right now, but if you want a lasting career, you can't focus on popularity alone," Xiao Sheng coaxed.

He believed Nan Zhou had refused so quickly because he had learned that the show was a huge hit and that his pairing with Huo Xingye had attracted enormous attention.

If he hadn't been afraid of offending Huo Xingye, Xiao Sheng would even have said something about how fame gained by hyping a pairing with an Alpha wouldn't last.

On the other end of the video call, Nan Zhou yawned. "That's your interpretation. Don't force it on me."

Xiao Sheng choked, thinking, Does this guy really believe popularity can do everything?

The entertainment industry was a mixed bag, and someone without backing suddenly receiving an overwhelming flood of attention also faced danger.

Overnight sensations weren't unheard of in the industry. But what happened afterward? Scandals followed, along with frenzied attacks that came crashing down like an avalanche. In the end, they were still in the industry, but their reputations were already ruined.

The entertainment industry seemed vast, but in reality, the pie was only so big.

No one wanted someone else taking a huge slice all for themselves. Whether rivals or artists of the same type, the teams behind them would use every means possible to tear and bite like ravenous wolves, all for a little more of the pie.

"Yes, you have Huo Xingye now, and perhaps he can help you. But you still need to think more about yourself. Standing on your own two feet without relying on anyone else is the right path. I'm saying this for your own good."

"For my own good? In what capacity, and from what position?" Nan Zhou asked.

"Of course, as someone with more experience-"

"Can you actually brainwash yourself with that?" Nan Zhou couldn't help yawning again. "Just save it for outsiders. Don't fool yourself too. A capitalist talking about feelings-isn't that a joke?"

Without giving Xiao Sheng a chance to speak, he continued, "All right, hurry up and send the money, then wash up and go to bed."

With that, Nan Zhou ended the video call himself and went back to playing on his phone.

Sign a contract? Not a chance.

Working was exhausting. Once he finished this gig, he was leaving the industry!

[He's so arrogant!]

[He's just relying on Huo Xingye. He won't listen to a word of well-meaning advice.]

[LMAO, some people just believe whatever they hear. Use your brains, okay? Saying a few nice things means he really has Nan Zhou's best interests at heart?]

[I looked this guy up. He's one of Shengle's big shots! Talking back to a big shot like that-Nan Zhou is way too bold.]

[I feel like his whole personality changed after Lu Zhou dumped him. He's gone full "the world ends tomorrow, so who gives a damn" crazy.]

[They never dated, so how could he have dumped him? Stop trying to leech attention here!]

Nan Zhou tapped away on his phone for half a minute before a message suddenly popped up on WeChat.

[Were you acting like that today just to make me angry?]

Rolling his eyes spectacularly, Nan Zhou swore, "Fucking moron."

A row of question marks floated across the live comments.

Elsewhere, Lu Zhou lay on the bed in his room, his eyes fixed on the screen as he waited for a reply in the WeChat conversation.

The Weibo posts he had browsed on the way back had sent enormous waves surging through him, leaving him unable to calm down for a long time.

Nan Zhou and Huo Xingye's pairing was far more popular than his pairing with Wen Yu.

Whether in the number of trending topics or their rankings, Nan Zhou's figures were better than his.

This made Lu Zhou deeply uneasy. When he saw clips of Huo Xingye and Nan Zhou that some pairing fans had posted in the trending topics, their intimate behavior stirred a jealousy and bitterness in him unlike anything he had ever felt.

He clearly liked him, yet he was hyping a pairing with another Alpha!

Recalling Nan Zhou's attitude toward him all day, Lu Zhou felt even more unwilling to accept it.

Nan Zhou must have done it deliberately to make him angry!

He waited and waited. Nearly ten minutes passed, but Lu Zhou still hadn't received a reply from Nan Zhou.

It was almost one in the morning. Nan Zhou had to be in the apartment at this hour. If he wasn't replying, could it mean...

Intimate images appeared uncontrollably in Lu Zhou's mind. He gritted his teeth and jabbed hard at the screen.

[I know you still like me.]

[But is it worth using your reputation and innocence to drum up publicity with a stranger like this?]

[Do you even know what kind of person Huo Xingye is before hyping a pairing with him? This is dangerous. You're playing with fire!]

Lu Zhou was about to send more, but this time, a message popped up on the screen. Nan Zhou had replied.

[Nan Zhou: What, did it burn your ass?]

Lu Zhou: "..."

[I'm saying this for your own good!]

[Nan Zhou: Talk is useless. Do something tangible.]

Sure enough, he still loves me.

He was saying these things now to make him take a stand, coax him, and break up with Wen Yu.

Lu Zhou smiled and typed into the chat box, "Baby..."

The next second, another message from Nan Zhou arrived.

[Transfer it to me. My number hasn't changed. The China Merchants Bank one.]

Lu Zhou: "..."

When Huo Xingye came out of the bathroom, he saw Nan Zhou reclining on the couch, tapping his phone screen with his eyes half closed.

He had casually tossed the towel he used to dry his hair onto the coffee table, beside the production team's microphone.

Huo Xingye walked over and bent down to pick up the towel.

Nan Zhou suddenly sat a little straighter on the couch. His half-closed eyes flew open, and his expression as he looked at him became a little peculiar.

"What is it?" Huo Xingye asked.

"Nothing." Nan Zhou quickly looked away, returning his attention to his phone screen.

Huo Xingye's gaze sharpened without betraying anything.

On the phone, messages from Nan Zhou's agent and friend Hao Jia filled the entire screen.

First, he had given Nan Zhou a rundown on Xiao Sheng over WeChat, beating his chest and lamenting that Nan Zhou had lost a golden opportunity. Then, just as Huo Xingye came out of the bathroom, he suddenly asked, "Are you really going to share that little bed with the award-winning actor tonight?"

Before Nan Zhou could reply, he added, "After marking, no Alpha would agree to sleep apart from his own Omega!"

For some reason, Nan Zhou felt as if those words burned.

Feeling guilty, he exited his conversation with Hao Jia and opened another.

"Don't go to sleep with wet hair. You'll catch a cold." Huo Xingye had found a hair dryer somewhere and walked over to Nan Zhou.

From where he stood, his superb Alpha eyesight let him see Nan Zhou's phone screen perfectly clearly.

Huo Xingye hadn't intended to look, but what he caught in an inadvertent glance still made his gaze darken slightly.

Nan Zhou was chatting with Lu Zhou on WeChat.

[Brother Zhou: When did you practice guitar? It couldn't have been easy to get that good. You did it for me, didn't you?]

Nan Zhou let out a laugh.

[Brother Zhou: Promise me you'll stop hyping a pairing with Huo Xingye.]

Mentally cursing him as a monkey, Nan Zhou leisurely replied, "Toads should stay out of human affairs. Not only am I hyping a pairing with him, I've fucked him too. You may kneel and withdraw. Don't hold us up from getting into bed."