Dark Fire chapter 35
The Truth
The trending topic soon died down, and Ling Zhuo didn’t look into it further. As Zhang Jing had said, the incident was only meaningful for stirring up fans and emotions.
However, the day after the incident, Zhang Xun unexpectedly left their group chat.
Ling Zhuo looked at the number ‘4’ on the group name in silence for a moment before turning off the phone screen.
Two days later, Lu Chixie, who had been away for four or five days, finally returned to the filming crew.
When he arrived at the set, Ling Zhuo had just finished shooting a scene, watching the playback on the director’s monitor.
A hand rested on Ling Zhuo’s shoulder. “That scene was well done, no need for a reshoot.”
Ling Zhuo turned around to see Lu Chixie standing straight, smiling warmly.
“You’re back.”
Lu Chixie nodded. “Yeah, I’m back.”
Lu Chixie went back to the dressing room to change and do makeup. Despite just returning, there was no time to rest; filming would continue in the afternoon.
Ling Zhuo followed along as Lu Chixie did his makeup, leaning against a nearby chair back to chat with him.
He asked Lu Chixie, “Weren’t you supposed to be back tonight? Why are you early?”
“The crew was pushing, and I had nothing else to do,” Lu Chixie raised an eyebrow. “Are you happy to see me back?”
Ling Zhuo didn’t answer directly. “I watched your live broadcast from yesterday.”
Lu Chixie raised an eyebrow. “Oh? What do you think of it?”
After a moment of thought, Ling Zhuo said, “Your hairstyle looked good.”
“Just that?” Lu Chixie teased.
Ling Zhuo replied, “…What else did you want me to say? Um, your face looked good too.”
The makeup artist was called out temporarily, leaving them alone in the dressing room.
Lu Chixie turned slightly, lightly pinching Ling Zhuo’s earlobe. “You watched the broadcast just to stare at my face?”
Ling Zhuo turned his head slightly, closer to him, looking at him without moving.
Lu Chixie asked, “What are you looking at?”
Ling Zhuo said, “Your face looks a bit different from the broadcast.”
“In what way?” Lu Chixie smiled.
Ling Zhuo chuckled. “No filters, more real.”
Lu Chixie chuckled and took a sip of bottled water.
For the rest of the afternoon, Yang Ming could clearly feel Ling Zhuo’s mood had improved significantly, the low pressure that had lingered on him for two days seemed to have disappeared. Perhaps it was because Lu Chixie had returned?
But he didn’t dare ask Ling Zhuo about it face-to-face.
That night, neither of them had night scenes. They returned to the hotel in the evening, and Lu Chixie came to Ling Zhuo’s room to have dinner together.
During dinner, Zhang Jing called, asking if Ling Zhuo knew any random people on set. Zhang Jing sounded annoyed. “Some marketing account leaked that a top star with 40 million followers is meeting beautiful women on set and in hotels, even posting silhouettes. They almost explicitly pointed fingers at you.”
“Nonsense, of course not. How could I meet any women?” Ling Zhuo retorted.
“If you didn’t do it, that’s fine. I’ll handle it. By the way, I’m working on securing a new luxury watch sponsorship for you. It’s quite competitive, with Xu Yusen also in the mix. Probably just competitive tactics. Keep an eye on it,” Zhang Jing instructed.
“Alright.”
After a few more instructions from Zhang Jing, Ling Zhuo hung up.
Lu Chixie asked casually while eating, “What’s wrong?”
Ling Zhuo frowned, recounting what Zhang Jing had just said. He opened Weibo and searched his name; it was already trending, with several thousand reposts of the leak, featuring silhouette photos that clearly identified him. Comments were full of spectators waiting for more gossip from various fan factions.
Yang Ming suddenly realized something and reminded him, “Zhuo Ge, could it be the girl you bumped into last time, the one visiting Zhang Tianqi?”
Ling Zhuo hesitated. “Could it be?”
Yang Ming said, “Maybe? They’re probably just making things up based on something.”
Lu Chixie took Ling Zhuo’s phone, quickly scanning it, and gestured to Xiao Qian, “Check which company these popular marketing accounts belong to.”
Ling Zhuo took back his phone, feeling quite annoyed.
Lu Chixie chuckled. “Meeting women.”
Ling Zhuo asked, “What do you mean, Teacher Lu?”
Lu Chixie said, “Just think the story is absurd.”
At 7 o’clock, they had just finished dinner when the marketing account that previously leaked updated a new Weibo post, directly naming Ling Zhuo and posting two new photos.
The first photo showed Ling Zhuo and a girl standing under the studio lights. The girl was smiling and talking to Ling Zhuo, but his expression was unclear due to the angle, making them appear intimate. The second photo showed Ling Zhuo and the same girl entering a hotel elevator, their backs turned, with no one else visible in the photo.
In just two minutes, the reposts and comments on the leak had already reached tens of thousands. Shortly after, numerous marketing accounts joined in. In less than ten minutes, “Ling Zhuo meets women on set” trended, swiftly climbing the hot search rankings, followed by a “breaking news” tag.
Ling Zhuo watched helplessly; indeed, it was the girl he had coincidentally met on set that day.
This was his first celebrity gossip in three years since his debut, and it seemed quite convincing.
He texted Zhang Jing to explain the situation, then set down his phone, feeling increasingly uncomfortable.
Yang Ming cursed angrily, “Are these marketing accounts insane? There were clearly a bunch of people in that elevator; they cut everyone else out just to leave you and that girl, shameless.”
Lu Chixie looked at Ling Zhuo and asked, “Are you angry?”
Ling Zhuo sighed. “I’ve been careful, but why do these people always interpret pictures and make up stories?”
Lu Chixie said knowingly, “I’ve told you, people’s hearts are treacherous.”
Ling Zhuo muttered, “I know, I’ve been through my share of scandals these years.”
Xiao Qian quickly reported the results he found, “These marketing accounts all belong to the same company, Qingtian Culture, with major shareholders from Jiashin Media.”
As soon as Jiashin Media was mentioned, Ling Zhuo understood. Xu Yusen was associated with this company; he was the runner-up in that singing competition, heavily promoted backstage. Originally slated as the surefire winner, he was unexpectedly pushed out due to a viewer vote upset. Though Xu Yusen hadn’t achieved the same level of fame in recent years, he had good resources and had still garnered some fame. The two fan bases had deep-seated grievances and would clash whenever they met. Their relationship was extremely tense.
Ling Zhuo: “Jing Jie said that Xu Yusen from Jiaxin has recently been competing with me for the business of a luxury watch brand.”
Lu Chixie frowned upon hearing this.
Yang Ming: “But isn’t this girl Zhang Tianqi’s girlfriend? I saw netizens dig up her Weibo; she posted some inspirational quotes a few days ago, even quoting a lyric you sang in your group’s single earlier this year. Jing Jie has already deleted that post. Isn’t this early planting for deliberate cooperation in hype?”
Xiao Qian: “She’s also signed with a management company closely related to Jiaxin, a small company that cooperates for hype, whether she’s someone’s girlfriend or just a fling, she won’t admit it, and the other party won’t either.”
Ling Zhuo suddenly remembered something and asked Lu Chixie, “Teacher Lu, Xiao Qian found out about these marketing accounts so quickly. Can they help me with the batch from last time?”
Lu Chixie replied calmly, “Are you still bothered by this?”
Ling Zhuo: “I’m a bit curious. Can he check?”
Lu Chixie calmly said, “It’s already been checked. They were accounts from different internet marketing companies.”
Xiao Qian nodded in agreement.
Ling Zhuo was surprised. Who could have such great resources?
While they were talking, Zhang Jing had already prepared a clarification statement and a lawyer’s letter to post on Weibo. Without mentioning anything else, it would at least pacify most of Ling Zhuo’s fans.
But the other party had spent a lot of money, and the Weibo hot search couldn’t be removed for a while, which would still have a significant impact on public perception.
Feeling more frustrated, Ling Zhuo could only leave it for now.
After sending Yang Ming and Xiao Qian away, only the two of them were left in the room.
Lu Chixie sat on the sofa without moving, still scrolling through his phone.
Ling Zhuo wanted to say something, but noticed a message from Zhong Yiran on his phone, asking about the trending topic. Ling Zhuo didn’t feel like explaining and simply replied, “It’s nothing, Jing Jie will handle it.”
Zhong Yiran sent another message to comfort him: “That’s good, don’t read too much into online comments. It’ll blow over soon.”
Ling Zhuo felt even more uncomfortable looking at it. He knew Zhong Yiran meant well, advising him not to read them to avoid affecting his mood, but every time felt suffocating.
Finally, he replied with a simple “Thanks.”
Seeing Lu Chixie still absorbed in his phone and ignoring him, Ling Zhuo absentmindedly reopened Weibo. Upon refreshing, he saw a post made by someone he knew just two minutes ago.
Lu Chixie: “I was also here at the scene. Afraid to take a shot? Just wait for the court summons.”
Ling Zhuo was stunned. He turned to look at Lu Chixie, who had put away his phone and met his gaze.
Ling Zhuo: “You didn’t have to post that…”
Lu Chixie: “I post whatever I want. No need for your advice.”
Ling Zhuo didn’t know what to say: “Well, thank you then.”
Lu Chixie scoffed softly, “Thank you to the captain, thank you to me—Ling, you say thank you a lot.”
Ling Zhuo: “How did you manage to peek at my WeChat messages again?”
Lu Chixie: “You weren’t hiding them. I looked openly.”
Knowing he couldn’t argue with him, Ling Zhuo sighed, “Alright, what do you want me to say?”
Lu Chixie: “Tell me something sincere.”
Ling Zhuo lowered his head and after a while, said softly, “I say polite things to others, but what I say to you is sincere.”
After saying this, Ling Zhuo felt embarrassed and avoided Lu Chixie’s persistent gaze. Lu Chixie held his face and turned him to face him, making him look at himself: “Really?”
Ling Zhuo nodded slightly, “Really, I actually want to be like this with you, to say whatever I want, but my agent doesn’t allow it, and others have always advised me not to. Now you’ve said what I can’t, I feel quite relieved. So when I say thank you, it’s sincere… Teacher Lu, you’re really nice.”
Lu Chixie smiled, “Now you realize I’m nice?”
Ling Zhuo: “Um, you’re quite nice.”
Lu Chixie: “Alright, don’t overthink it. Let me handle this for you.”
Ling Zhuo: “You don’t have to trouble yourself…”
Lu Chixie: “It’s no trouble at all.”
Ling Zhuo didn’t refuse again, holding Lu Chixie’s hand, gently rubbing his fingers in his palm.
Despite many unpleasant things, Lu Chixie, absent for five days, was back, and Ling Zhuo was genuinely happy.
Seeing him silent, Lu Chixie asked, “What are you thinking?”
Ling Zhuo turned his head and lightly touched his lips.
Lu Chixie raised an eyebrow slightly, watching him without moving.
Ling Zhuo felt a bit embarrassed under Lu Chixie’s gaze, still lowering his eyes, his gaze falling on his lips, leaning in again. Their lips met, slowly moving against each other. Lu Chixie remained still, letting Ling Zhuo take the lead. Ling Zhuo eventually stood up, sitting face to face on his lap, lowering his head cautiously to kiss him, affectionate but not deep.
Lu Chixie’s voice was slightly hoarse, “Improving, where did you learn this?”
Ling Zhuo: “Hmm? What?”
Lu Chixie’s hand rubbed his waist side and heard Ling Zhuo’s low gasp, “Why are you so proactive today?”
Ling Zhe slowly said: “Isn’t it good to be proactive?”
Of course it was.
Lu Chixie held Ling Zhuo’s waist and pulled him closer, biting his lips: “But let me do it.”
The lips and tongues entangled intimately, Lu Chixie’s kiss was deep and erotic, sticky sound, Ling Zhuo couldn’t resist, breathing hard.
When released, he buried his head on Lu Chixie’s shoulder, not catching his breath for a while.
Lu Chixie hugged him, saying in his ear: “You’re acting unusual today.”
Ling Zhuo: “Unusual? How so?”
Lu Chixie said, “Unusually enthusiastic.”
Ling Zhuo responded with an “Oh,” saying, “I can’t even be a little enthusiastic. It’s really hard to please you.”
He sat up straight, trying to stand up, but Lu Chixie pulled him back.
Lu Chixie looked at him, “Ling Zhuo, have you fallen in love with me?”
Ling Zhuo was taken aback, “Love? How can it be that casual?”
He had secretly admired Zhong Yiran for seven years, never daring to casually utter the word “love.” He always felt it was a sacred thing, not to be casually mentioned.
Lu Chixie asked again, “Alright then, let me rephrase. Do you like me?”
Ling Zhuo’s gaze wandered between Lu Chixie’s smiling eyes, his heart pounding, but he didn’t answer.
Lu Chixie pressed, “Can’t say?”
Ling Zhuo replied, “Do I really have to say?”
Lu Chixie insisted, “Mm, tell me.”
After serious consideration, Ling Zhuo awkwardly replied, “I don’t know, really don’t know. Give me some more time.”
Lu Chixie reminded him, “My patience is limited.”
Ling Zhuo nodded, “I know, I’ll try to figure it out soon, really.”
Lu Chixie seemed satisfied, and his breath fell closer to Ling Zhuo again.
As Ling Zhuo opened his mouth, he thought he might indeed have started to develop feelings for Lu Chixie. Initially, he didn’t reject him outright, and now he found himself somewhat infatuated with his presence and scent. It was the most straightforward instinctive reaction, and he couldn’t deceive himself.
However, he wasn’t sure how deep this liking was or if it could completely replace the shadow of another person in his heart.
So, before he was certain, he didn’t want to say it out loud.
Just a little longer, just a little longer would be fine.