After Spectating Gossip, the Entertainment Industry Thinks I’m a Big Shot – CH49

Chapter 49

Although the initial encounter was a bit awkward, Gu Xingshi gradually became familiar with Sheng Yueqing.

He discovered that Sheng Yueqing indeed wasn’t very adept at conversation; often, his responses were just one or two words. Coupled with his face that gave off a sense of distance, it was easy for people to misunderstand him as arrogant.

But in Gu Xingshi’s view, although Sheng Yueqing wasn’t chatty, he always responded to each sentence, showing that he was actually a serious and sincere person.

After chatting for a while, Gu Xingshi had other work to attend to, so he left the dressing room.

In the dressing room, only Sheng Yueqing and Cheng Xin were left, along with their respective assistants.

Compared to Cheng Xin’s assistant, who was busy attending to him, Sheng Yueqing’s assistant was sitting aside playing on his phone, paying no attention to his artist.

However, Sheng Yueqing didn’t mind, as if he was long accustomed to such treatment.

Cheng Xin had been watching and couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Is your company very poor?”

“Ah?” Sheng Yueqing was taken aback. “It’s okay, I guess.”

He didn’t understand why Cheng Xin suddenly asked this.

Cheng Xin said, “It’s just that you can’t even afford an assistant and have to hire someone to pretend.”

His tone was extremely serious, making it hard to tell if he was being sarcastic or genuinely puzzled.

Sheng Yueqing’s assistant’s face immediately turned red. His lips moved, but he couldn’t find anything to say.

This assistant usually slacked off, relying on the fact that the agent and company didn’t value Sheng Yueqing. Since Sheng Yueqing didn’t bother with him, he had become increasingly arrogant. Being directly called out like this for the first time, he finally restrained himself a bit and reluctantly went to get takeout for Sheng Yueqing.

Sheng Yueqing hesitated for a moment and said to Cheng Xin, “Thank you.”

Cheng Xin was puzzled. “What are you thanking me for?”

Sheng Yueqing: “…”

Cheng Xin seemed to become interested in him. “You’re the unlucky guy that Qin Wen mentioned, right?”

Sheng Yueqing: “…………”

Cheng Xin continued, “To be honest, your vibe matches our company’s quite well.”

Sheng Yueqing’s eyes lit up. “Really?”

Cheng Xin nodded. “Yeah, after all, our company produces unlucky guys.”

Sheng Yueqing: “………………”

After chatting with Cheng Xin for a while, Sheng Yueqing finally retreated, using the excuse of going to the restroom to slip away.

Unexpectedly, at the restroom entrance, he ran into the person he least wanted to see—his former teammate, Xiang Zhelin.

Xiang Zhelin was one of the members of the group that Sheng Yueqing initially joined.

The first time Sheng Yueqing was scolded online was because Xiang Zhelin posted a long essay, saying that he had trained hard for many years, endured a lot of hardship, and finally succeeded in forming a group, thinking he could realize his dream, but ended up being bullied within the group. Although he didn’t mention the bully by name, all clues pointed directly to Sheng Yueqing.

Coincidentally, during their group’s activities at the time, the other three interacted harmoniously, while only Sheng Yueqing kept a cold face and didn’t communicate with them.

Originally, their group wasn’t very well-known and only had some traffic because of Sheng Yueqing’s stunning looks.

But because of this incident, their popularity suddenly skyrocketed. Many people related it to their own experiences in school or work, empathized with Xiang Zhelin and the other two, and angrily criticized Sheng Yueqing.

Especially since the company’s attitude was ambiguous and Sheng Yueqing’s defense only had a counterproductive effect, the public was even more convinced by Xiang Zhelin’s words.

That was the first time Sheng Yueqing experienced cyberbullying. The overwhelming abuse and curses left his mind blank and his hands and feet cold.

He realized for the first time how cruel relationships between people could be.

His teammates and agent, whom he had spent every day with, handed over the knife to kill him. Those fans who had supported him just the day before ruthlessly stabbed that knife into his chest.

This incident hurt Sheng Yueqing deeply.

On the day he was kicked out of the group, everyone cheered, but little did they know he himself also breathed a sigh of relief.

In all subsequent activities, he tried his best to avoid Xiang Zhelin and the others.

Fortunately, as a member of a popular boy group, Xiang Zhelin didn’t have much interaction with someone as obscure as him.

So Sheng Yueqing didn’t expect that he would run into Xiang Zhelin at this program.

Without thinking, Sheng Yueqing turned to leave but was blocked by Xiang Zhelin.

Xiang Zhelin wore a smile, but his words were extremely malicious: “I heard you were trending recently again because of a fight. How come after so many years, you haven’t made any progress?”

Sheng Yueqing’s face immediately turned cold.

Xiang Zhelin became excited and intensified his taunts: “I’ve always said you’re not suited for the entertainment industry. Why are you stubbornly clinging on? You don’t have any fans who like you; even your shows are only watched by haters…”

As someone who had once been his teammate, Xiang Zhelin knew exactly what mattered most to Sheng Yueqing, and every word stabbed at his sore spots.

Sheng Yueqing subconsciously clenched his fists but suddenly remembered that Gu Xingshi was also here—the only person who had spoken up for him and treated him kindly. He didn’t want Gu Xingshi to see him fighting.

The clenched fist slowly loosened. He turned his face away and tried to bypass Xiang Zhelin.

Xiang Zhelin was stunned.

In the past, as long as he said such things, Sheng Yueqing would definitely lose his temper. What was going on today?

Just as Sheng Yueqing had previously guessed, the company had ill intentions in arranging for him to participate in this program.

Originally, Xiang Zhelin’s group wasn’t particularly strong. Back then, they rose to fame because of the public’s sympathy votes due to the incident with Sheng Yueqing. But without outstanding performances to retain fans, such false popularity would eventually fade.

Moreover, not long ago, his scandal involving hookups was exposed. Although the company helped cover it up afterward, it still affected his popularity, and fans left in droves, making matters worse.

Seeing the group gradually fading away, Xiang Zhelin panicked. After enjoying the good life for so many years, how could he bear returning to his previously obscure life?

So he thought of Sheng Yueqing.

As long as he could provoke Sheng Yueqing into hitting him, he could then play the victim online, rekindle fans’ old feelings, and save the group. Maybe they could even become popular again.

To this end, he had even arranged for paparazzi to sneak in, hoping to capture photos or videos to make it more convincing.

He had calculated everything but didn’t expect that Sheng Yueqing would actually hold back.

Seeing that Sheng Yueqing was about to leave, Xiang Zhelin gritted his teeth.

Regardless of why he was holding back, today’s show had to go on.

So he blocked Sheng Yueqing again, saying even more outrageous things.

At this moment, a voice came from around the corner: “I can see your company is really poor; they can’t even afford language training for their artists.”

Xiang Zhelin was startled, and upon seeing who it was, his face turned even uglier: “Cheng Xin!”

Although they were both boy groups, their popularity was nowhere near that of Cheng Xin’s group, especially Meng Yuansheng and Cheng Xin, who were the top popular members in their group, making Xiang Zhelin and his group both envious and jealous.

Moreover, Cheng Xin, what right do you have to mock my language skills!!

But Cheng Xin ignored him, instead turning to Sheng Yueqing, who was being blocked, and said, “I told you, you’re a naturally unlucky guy. You haven’t even entered the restroom and you’ve stepped in crap.”

Sheng Yueqing: “…”

Xiang Zhelin’s face turned green. “Cheng Xin, what do you mean?!”

Cheng Xin looked at him with disdain, as if saying, “How uneducated are you?” and explained seriously, “It’s a metaphor; you’re not actually crap.”

The anger that had been boiling within Sheng Yueqing suddenly dissipated inexplicably, leaving him feeling both amused and helpless.

However, Xiang Zhelin was about to explode with anger and provoked, “What’s the point of just talking? If you really want to stand up for him, come hit me! Coward!”

Sheng Yueqing didn’t say anything. If he were alone, he would have punched him without hesitation; as for negative publicity, he was already used to it.

But Cheng Xin couldn’t; Gu Xingshi would be worried, so he absolutely couldn’t let Cheng Xin get involved.

Suppressing his anger, Sheng Yueqing grabbed Cheng Xin, intending to leave.

Unexpectedly, Xiang Zhelin refused to let go, stubbornly blocking their way.

Sheng Yueqing was both angry and anxious. He knew that Xiang Zhelin wanted to provoke them, just like he had done to him before, using Cheng Xin as a stepping stone. So he stepped aside to shield Cheng Xin, wanting him to leave first.

Unexpectedly, Cheng Xin took a step forward and directly shoved Xiang Zhelin hard.

Xiang Zhelin’s back slammed heavily against the wall. He was stunned for a moment, then a look of ecstasy flashed in his eyes.

*

Gu Xingshi was discussing rehearsal details with the director’s team when the system suddenly popped up: [Host, host, there’s some juicy news!]

Hearing the system’s excited voice, Gu Xingshi instinctively felt a jolt: [What news?]

[Cheng Xin and Sheng Yueqing’s former teammate got into a fight!]

[!!!]

He immediately paused the discussion. “Sorry, something urgent has come up. Please excuse me for a moment.”

After speaking, he hurriedly headed toward the location the system had mentioned.

Because he was focused on listening to the system recount what had happened, he didn’t notice his surroundings and brushed past a guest who had just arrived.

As soon as the guest spotted him, he immediately tugged at his agent. “Isn’t that President Gu!”

Agent: “Where? Where!”

The guest pointed in a direction. “Look, over there.”

The agent quickly pulled him along. “Come on, let’s go say hello to President Gu. Whether you can get Adam to shoot your photos depends on this opportunity.”

The trio of hosts had just come out of the lounge and curiously watched the backs of the three people. “Where are those three rushing off to?”

“No idea.”

“Did something happen? Let’s follow and see.”

“Let’s go.”

Thanks to these three, more and more onlookers who didn’t know the truth started to gather.

By the time Gu Xingshi arrived near the restroom, a long line of people was already trailing behind him.

On the way, he had learned from the system what had happened, but he still needed to symbolically ask, “What’s going on?”

When Sheng Yueqing saw Gu Xingshi approaching, he panicked. He wanted to explain but was so flustered that he didn’t know how to start.

Cheng Xin pointed at Xiang Zhelin, who was still blocking them, and said, “A good dog doesn’t block the way.”

Sheng Yueqing was about to faint.

At a time like this, instead of properly explaining, why are you adding fuel to the fire!

Xiang Zhelin wore an aggrieved expression but was internally overjoyed.

He hadn’t expected this unexpected bonus.

Not only had Cheng Xin pushed him, but he had also insulted him in front of everyone.

With such incriminating evidence, what did he have to worry about?

Cheng Xin wasn’t an obscure figure like Sheng Yueqing; this stepping stone was bigger and more solid, promising even more publicity.

Not to mention, to restore Cheng Xin’s reputation afterward, both Starshine Media and Gu Xingshi would have to come to him. He needed to think carefully about what benefits he could gain.

Thinking of this, Xiang Zhelin said with a wronged face, “President Gu, please be fair. I just wanted to chat with my former teammate, but your artist suddenly pushed me and called me names. I really don’t know how I offended him.”

Gu Xingshi’s expression was unreadable. “You say he pushed you?”

Xiang Zhelin: “Yes.”

Gu Xingshi: “How did he push you?”

Xiang Zhelin: “?”

Before he could react, Cheng Xin swiftly stepped forward, pushed him again, and then looked at Gu Xingshi with a face seeking praise. “Like this!”

Xiang Zhelin: “???”

Everyone: “???”

They then saw Gu Xingshi walk up. Xiang Zhelin thought he was going to reprimand Cheng Xin and felt smug, but instead, Gu Xingshi stood in front of him and unceremoniously pushed him as well.

Not only did he push him, but he also said bluntly, “So what if we push you? We just did! If you’ve got the guts, hit me!”

Cheng Xin immediately applauded. “President Gu is awesome!”

Sheng Yueqing: “!!!”

Others: “!!!”

Even Xiang Zhelin was dumbfounded.

What is wrong with people from your company! Why aren’t you following the usual script!!!

But at this point, he could only continue playing the victim. “President Gu, what do you mean by this? Just because I’m less popular than Cheng Xin, does that mean you can bully me and trample on my dignity?”

He acted extremely aggrieved yet stubborn, portraying the image of a small-time boy band member enduring humiliation while trying to maintain his dignity.

Even the surrounding onlookers couldn’t help but sympathize with him, casting reproachful glances at Gu Xingshi and his group.

But Gu Xingshi just impatiently dug his ear. “Tsk, it’s been years, and your acting hasn’t improved!”

“Deliberately provoking Sheng Yueqing to anger him into hitting you, so you can play the victim and trend online, right? Not only to cover up your hookup scandal but also to make your group popular again—killing two birds with one stone!”

Wasn’t Cheng Xin supposed to be snarky?

Now let’s show him what real snark is.

Having his plan fully exposed, Xiang Zhelin was shocked and could only force himself to say, “You’re talking nonsense! You’re deliberately slandering me!”

Gu Xingshi laughed. “Let me guess, since you’ve planned so thoroughly, you wouldn’t have forgotten the most crucial part—the paparazzi, right?”

This time, Xiang Zhelin’s face turned genuinely pale, hoping that Gu Xingshi was just guessing and didn’t know where the paparazzi was hiding.

However, the next second, two of Cheng Xin’s bodyguards came over, dragging a skinny man wearing a staff badge. The man was holding a telephoto camera, his expression panicked, trying to escape.

The staff immediately started discussing.

“Which department is he from?”

“Never seen him before!”

“Could he really be a paparazzi?”

At this moment, the directors and producers who had received the news hurried over. At a glance, they recognized that the staff badge was fake and that this person was not part of their crew.

The scene was suddenly in an uproar.

Cold sweat dripped from Xiang Zhelin’s forehead. He could only keep arguing, “I didn’t do anything! You’re making this up! You’re framing me…”

Gu Xingshi spread his hands. “Well, then we have no choice but to call the police.”

Xiang Zhelin: “!!!”

No more needed to be said; just by looking at their expressions, everyone could tell who was telling the truth.

Afraid that Gu Xingshi would really call the police, Xiang Zhelin didn’t dare to argue anymore and hung his head in dejection.

Unexpectedly, Gu Xingshi didn’t let him off. “Stop pretending to be pitiful; now you’re playing dead? Don’t you know how to apologize?”

Xiang Zhelin gritted his teeth but could only swallow his anger and say to Cheng Xin, “I’m sorry…”

After saying that, he turned to leave.

But Gu Xingshi blocked his way. “And?”

He gestured toward Sheng Yueqing. “Isn’t he the one you should apologize to the most?”

Sheng Yueqing was stunned.

Xiang Zhelin was even more incredulous. “Why should I…”

Gu Xingshi took out his phone, pretending to dial a number.

Xiang Zhelin could only swallow his humiliation and say to Sheng Yueqing, “I’m… sorry.”

Gu Xingshi said lazily, “Louder. You were quite energetic when playing the victim, weren’t you?”

Xiang Zhelin felt that both his dignity and pride had been stripped away by Gu Xingshi, but to avoid making a bigger scene, he could only continue to swallow his anger and loudly say to Sheng Yueqing, “I’m sorry.”

After saying that, he ran off without looking back.

Gu Xingshi didn’t pay any more attention to him, clapped his hands, and said nonchalantly, “Alright, everyone, let’s disperse. Stop crowding around and get ready for rehearsal.”

Everyone: “…”

Seriously! How can you, the one who created this scene, say such things!

So only officials are allowed to set fires, and commoners aren’t allowed to light lamps?!

Everyone grumbled internally but returned to the recording site for rehearsal.

Sheng Yueqing still felt a bit lightheaded.

Although he knew that Gu Xingshi was mainly protecting Cheng Xin, he felt that he was also being protected.

So this is what it feels like to have someone stand up for you… so… so happy.

Moreover, a secret thought arose in his heart.

Since Gu Xingshi knew that Xiang Zhelin was provoking him to trend online and cover up his own scandal, and even mocked him by saying, “It’s been years, and your acting hasn’t improved,” did that mean he had looked into his background?

Did it mean that he had at least a little interest in him?

If…

If only he could be an artist under Gu Xingshi’s management, then perhaps he could be trusted like Cheng Xin, protected by him, and firmly shielded.

Although Sheng Yueqing quickly shook his head to dispel his wishful thinking, a small seed of desire had been planted in his heart.

*

Before the recording was over, the video of Gu Xingshi confronting Xiang Zhelin had already shot up the trending topics.

[Ahhhh! President Gu is so dominant!!! So handsome!!!]

[Wow! I didn’t expect Xiang Zhelin to be such a disgusting person! Trying to bring down our Brother Xin. Luckily, President Gu was there to stop him!]

[Brother Xin, that mouth of yours! It’s a good thing you have baby Yuan (Meng Yuansheng) protecting you in the group and President Gu spoiling you outside. So envious!]

Some people also sympathized with Sheng Yueqing.

[Sheng Yueqing seems quite pitiful. From what President Gu said, this isn’t the first time Xiang Zhelin has used him to play the victim. Kind of sad!]

Under this comment, many of Sheng Yueqing’s critics immediately flooded in.

[Even if Xiang Zhelin is at fault, doesn’t mean Sheng Yueqing is innocent. It takes two to tango; neither of them is any good.]

[Poor Sheng Yueqing? Give me a break… Maybe he did something to provoke Xiang Zhelin first, and Xiang is just retaliating?]

[Someone trying to whitewash Sheng Yueqing? Ridiculous.]

[Why is Sheng Yueqing everywhere? So annoying. Can’t he just leave the entertainment industry!]

Gu Xingshi frowned, looking at the comments insulting Sheng Yueqing, feeling somewhat uncomfortable.

He hadn’t expected that people would have such deep prejudices against Sheng Yueqing.

He wanted to speak up for him but didn’t know where to start.

At this moment, Cheng Xin came over mysteriously. “President Gu, listen to this.”

It was an audio recording.

When Gu Xingshi played it, he realized it was the conversation where Xiang Zhelin was provoking Sheng Yueqing.

He was shocked. “How did you get this!”

Cheng Xin was a bit proud. “I’m not stupid. Of course, I recorded it to ensure I had evidence before confronting him! But I didn’t expect that before I could use it, you had already taken care of everything, and your methods were even more aggressive than mine!!”

Gu Xingshi: “…”

Gu Xingshi: “Alright, keep the recording. You can go now.”

He quickly released the recording. Those who had been insulting Sheng Yueqing were silenced in the face of this ironclad evidence.

Although some people still firmly believed that Sheng Yueqing was no good, the online public opinion was quietly shifting.

Sitting in the car, Sheng Yueqing looked at the recording that Gu Xingshi had released and the words he had said on his behalf.

He had specifically explained things for him.

So… so happy!

Sheng Yueqing couldn’t help but smile.

It was the first time he had been scolded and didn’t feel sad but instead felt a bit joyful and delighted.

He even took a screenshot of the Weibo post and saved it in his album.

After returning to his dormitory, he took out his diary and began recording his feelings for the day.

Halfway through writing, his agent called, furiously scolding him.

But Sheng Yueqing didn’t get angry, put the phone aside, and continued writing his diary earnestly.

After the agent was tired of scolding and was about to hang up, he suddenly called out to him.

The agent said impatiently, “What is it?”

Sheng Yueqing asked, “If I want to terminate my contract, how much is the penalty fee?”

The agent was stunned. “Are you crazy? Why do you suddenly want to terminate your contract?”

Sheng Yueqing didn’t explain, only asked, “How much is it?”

The agent thought that today’s incident had provoked him and said angrily, “Don’t tell me you’re getting ideas just because President Gu said a few words for you today? Get real! Who would spend so much on a penalty fee to sign someone like you, who’s full of scandals and only has a pretty face?”

“I know.” Sheng Yueqing was very calm. “Just tell me how much.”

Under his persistent questioning, the agent could only impatiently throw out a number before hanging up while cursing.

But Sheng Yueqing didn’t care about his attitude.

He immediately noted down the amount of the penalty fee in his notebook, then opened his banking app and began calculating how much more money he needed to earn.

He only had two years left on his contract. Originally, he planned to muddle along, earn some money, and after two years retire to the countryside to live a peaceful life.

But now, his thoughts have changed.

He wanted to sign under Gu Xingshi.

He knew he didn’t have much ability—not as versatile as Meng Yuansheng and Cheng Xin, who could sing and dance, nor as skilled in acting as Qin Wen. Moreover, he was full of scandals, not good with words, and the only thing he had was a decent face.

Plus, he would need to pay a large penalty fee.

Not to mention President Gu, most agents probably wouldn’t want to sign him.

But if he worked hard to earn more money and paid the penalty fee himself, and didn’t ask for a great contract…

In light of his sincerity, perhaps there would be… just a little bit of hope.