Chinese Entertainment: Top-Tier Boyfriends of Young Actresses

Chapter 98 An Unexpected Confession (Bonus Chapter 2)

Although the storm has mostly subsided, Hu Lianxin, a newcomer to the entertainment industry, was still quite frightened.

She was just an ordinary art student before, but overnight, she became the female protagonist of the hottest search on the entire internet.

The comments section was full of terms she had only ever seen in gossip posts before, such as "sister-in-law," "unspoken rules," and "audience in bed."

Although the studio issued a statement immediately, the director spoke up for her, and Su Yu even personally identified the mastermind behind it all, the storm that raged for those few days was still too intense for a seventeen-year-old girl.

Today, Hu Lianxin came to the studio to sign several supplementary agreements. After signing, she didn't leave immediately. She sat on the sofa in the reception room, looking rather listless, like a kitten abandoned on the roadside.

Su Yu came out of the conference room and happened to see her like this. He paused for a moment, then walked over and sat down next to her.

"What's wrong? Still not recovered?"

Upon hearing his voice, Hu Lianxin instinctively straightened her back like a primary school student being called on by the teacher, then shook her head, her voice a few decibels softer than usual: "Brother Su Yu, is the entertainment industry all this scary? I didn't do anything, and they—"

"It's alright, you're just an innocent bystander this time. They were mainly targeting me, and you just happened to get dragged into it."

Su Yu leaned back on the sofa, his tone carrying the composure of someone who'd been there before, "You'll get used to it. I was criticized when I was at your stage, even harsher than this. Look at me now, I'm sitting here perfectly fine, aren't I?"

As he spoke, he glanced at her sideways. The office blinds cast long, thin beams of light across his face, making his captivating eyes appear even more gentle.

Hu Lianxin looked up and was met with this scene, causing her heart to skip a beat.

She had watched "A Love So Beautiful" before entering the entertainment industry and really liked Su Yu's portrayal of Jiang Chen. While watching the show, she would roll around on her bed with her phone in her hand, and her roommates would laugh at her, saying, "No matter how much you watch Jiang Chen, he won't crawl out of the screen."

At that time, her impression of Su Yu was that he was an actor with a beautiful smile. The aloofness and occasional gentleness of the character Jiang Chen accurately captured all the fantasies she had about the opposite sex at that age.

But what truly made her feel differently about this person was in the last few days.

When she was at her most helpless, Su Yu would send her WeChat messages every day, just a few simple words like "Don't be afraid," "Go to sleep early," and "Don't look at the comments section, get some rest."

These real-life interactions made her feel that Su Yu in real life was better than Jiang Chen.

The air in the office suddenly became quiet for a moment.

Hu Lianxin's mind, however, was filled with the overwhelming rumors circulating online in the past few days.

Things like "Su Yu's girlfriend is a non-celebrity," "He loves her so much," and "Su Yu chose her just because she's pretty."

Her first reaction upon seeing these words wasn't disgust, but rather a subtle, inexplicable delight.

She looked at Su Yu, who was sitting alive and well less than half a meter away from her.

She didn't know where she got the courage. Maybe the rumors had planted an unwanted seed in her heart, maybe the messages Su Yu sent her every day gave her some kind of illusion, or maybe it was just that the two of them were too close at this moment.

So she raised her head and looked directly into Su Yu's eyes.

"Brother Su Yu, do you have a girlfriend?"

As soon as she said it, she regretted it. Why did she have to say it like that?

But now that she'd already said it, she had nothing to fear.

Su Yu was leaning back on the sofa when he heard this and almost lost his balance.

His movements froze for half a second, then he coughed to ease the awkwardness.

"Uh, why are you suddenly asking about this?"

Hu Lianxin didn't look away. She tilted her head slightly, her bright eyes staring directly at Su Yu. "Do you think I'm suitable?"

This time, Su Yu really couldn't hold on any longer.

Su Yu guiltily looked away, not daring to meet the girl's gaze.

Although the girl was indeed his type, he had just gone through a storm a few days ago. If he really had something going on with Hu Lianxin now, it wouldn't be a rumor, but solid evidence.

When he was with Wang Churan, he was still relatively unknown, with fewer eyes watching him, so he didn't need to care about so many people.

But things are different now. If he really gets involved with this girl, it could really cause trouble.

Besides, there are two other ladies-in-waiting in Shanghai!

Therefore, Su Yu had no choice but to politely decline Hu Lianxin's offer.

"You're still young, let's talk about this later."

The moment he finished speaking, he saw the light in Hu Lianxin's eyes dim slightly.

But Hu Lianxin's silence lasted only a few seconds.

She lowered her head and remained quiet for a while, then, as if she had composed herself, she raised her head again and looked into Su Yu's eyes.

"Can I call you brother from now on?"

'

Looking at her expectant eyes, Su Yu sighed.

"sure."

That evening, Su Yu and Xiao Zhou boarded a flight to Shanghai.

Of course, it certainly wasn't because he almost succumbed to the temptation of a young girl and ran away.

Instead, Huo Xiaolan had arranged a brand event for him, which was tomorrow afternoon, and he had to go there in advance to prepare.

In fact, the biggest price to pay for fame is probably freedom.

He used to be an unknown nobody, and he even thought it was unnecessary to wear a mask when he went out.

That's no longer the case. He's already a top star in the Chinese entertainment industry, and he might be recognized at any time when he walks down the street. There's always a group of people holding up their phones waiting for him at the airport.

His every move was being watched, and even when he flew and where he flew was being sold as a commodity.

This kind of thing is no secret in the industry.

Those scalpers and obsessive fans buy celebrities' flight information from airline insiders and openly sell it on WeChat Moments and WeChat groups. The prices vary. For celebrities like him and Lu Han, a single flight information can sell for eighty yuan.

For celebrities with average popularity, a domestic flight ticket costs between 15 and 30 yuan, while an international flight ticket is slightly more expensive, around 20 to 30 yuan.

Even more outrageous, some scalpers also sell celebrities' ID numbers and passport numbers in packages for prices ranging from tens to hundreds of yuan. There are even people reselling celebrities' mobile phone numbers, game accounts, and Weibo accounts, forming a complete industry chain.

Many celebrities have publicly condemned this kind of thing, but it's impossible to stop it. As long as someone is willing to buy, someone is willing to sell.

Su Yu's flight information was naturally on these scalpers' lists as well.

So as soon as the plane landed and he pushed his suitcase out of the arrival gate, he immediately saw the dense crowd outside the fence.

Some people held up light boards with his name on them, some were taking pictures with their phones, and little girls were standing on tiptoe trying to see him. Security guards put up a cordon, but they still couldn't stop the fans from surging forward in waves.

Su Yu turned and glanced at Xiao Zhou.

Xiao Zhou was also helpless, and shrugged: "I guess some staff member sold your flight information again."

Su Yu took a deep breath, flashed a professional smile at his fans, and said to Xiao Zhou, "You can file a complaint later."

"OK."

He waved to his fans.

The screams immediately rose a notch. Some people were calling his name, some were shouting "Su Su, look here!" and "Su Su, you've worked hard!" and some were even trying to crawl under the police line to deliver a message.

He took the letters, nodded to the girl who delivered them, and then cooperated by letting a few fans take some close-up photos of him. Then, urged by Xiao Zhou, he quickly got into the van.

The moment the car door closed, the screams outside were reduced to a muffled background noise.

Su Yu leaned back in his seat and rubbed his eyes, which were a little sore from the flashing lights.

What time is the event tomorrow?

"At 2 PM, at the IFC."

Xiao Zhou flipped through the itinerary, "The hotel has already been booked, it's near the event venue."

"Okay, let's go straight to the hotel then."

Su Yu's mind is now entirely focused on the hotel, because he had already sent a message to his boat girl before coming here.

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