Chapter 5

Proofread by Cloud Chip Cake

Two years ago, Ye Chen, at the age of seventeen, left his hometown and wandered alone in the capital city.

Ye Chen’s parents divorced when he was young, and both sides were planning to remarry and didn’t want the burden of raising him, so Ye Chen, this little football, was kicked to his grandparents by his father.

Ye Chen’s academic performance had never been good since he was young because his talent was focused elsewhere:

Firstly, it was focused on his face…

Secondly, he was good at imitating the actions and tones of characters in TV dramas. He naturally understood how to empathize with the characters’ psychology and immerse himself in it. He could easily tell which actors on TV had good acting skills and which ones didn’t. He was interested in acting and had a talent for it.

However, to apply to art school, he needed to learn some skills, which required attending training classes before exams, and there were expenses for registration fees, room and board, and transportation for exams… Everything involved expenses. Ye Chen was unwilling to let his grandparents tighten their belts for him, and he was also unwilling to seek help from his unfamiliar parents. Therefore, he never expressed his longing for art school and simply went with the flow, studying cultural courses aimlessly. But he knew he had the talent to become an actor.

Therefore, after the passing of his grandparents, Ye Chen, alone, decided to give up his studies after much consideration. He took the small amount of savings left to him by his two elderly relatives and went to the capital city to try his luck.

Life in the capital city was financially tight but also fresh and interesting. At that time, Ye Chen would carry two loaves of bread and a bottle of water every day and happily hang around outside film studios or TV production bases. Although he had a soft personality, he was also resilient. He worked as an extra on set, ran errands for the crew, and sometimes took on special jobs, such as being an enthusiastic audience member for variety shows or pretending to be a fan of a celebrity.

One day, Ye Chen took on a job as a fake fan to greet someone at the airport. The person who assigned the task knew that Ye Chen had thick skin and good physical strength, so he arranged for him to hold a bouquet of flowers, scream and chase after a car. For chasing and falling intentionally, Ye Chen would earn 150 yuan for chasing and another 150 yuan for falling, totaling 300 yuan in just a few minutes, which was quite lucrative.

Actually, Ye Chen was in a very bad condition that day, suffering from a severe cold that made him unrecognizable. But he pointed to the 300 yuan he earned and gave himself a day off, forcing himself to take on the task with high spirits.

The celebrity Ye Chen was supposed to greet at the airport that day was Shen Mofeng, who debuted three years ago and was a rich second generation. Ye Chen had watched several of his works, and the most impressive one was called 《Empty Clouds》 an avant-garde art film that was initially confusing but required patience to appreciate. Perhaps due to his wealth and wilfulness, this young master, who had been in the industry for three years, mostly starred in artistic works, which were acclaimed but not commercially successful. Therefore, despite having looks, talent, and resources, Shen Mofeng had not been able to break into the top-tier celebrity ranks. His fans were very loyal, but their numbers were not enough to make a significant impact.

Ye Chen felt he had earned his 150 yuan, so he deliberately hooked his left foot with his right, and fell hard, ensuring he deserved the other 150 yuan.

“This scene is too real; I should get an extra 50!” Ye Chen gritted his teeth in pain, sucking in the cold air, but his mind was still busy calculating. He was about to get up to collect his money when the car carrying Shen Mofeng suddenly slowed down and parked on the side of the road, flashing its hazard lights.

Then, a young man who looked like an assistant got out of the car and ran to Ye Chen’s side, helping him up and picking up the bouquet of flowers that had been messed up by the fall. He said in a friendly tone, “Are you okay? Brother Shen asked you to get in the car.”

“Get in the car?!” Ye Chen was startled, and several thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant.

—*Zi’erwu Inconsiderately shouting and frantically chasing after the car, but ultimately refusing to meet his idol, wouldn’t that clearly expose him as a fake fan?

*sound of cicadas. YC was screaming like a cicada basically

—The idol couldn’t bear to see a fan fall down, so he made an exception and invited him into the car, but it turned out the fan was just a paid fake fan, wouldn’t that be equivalent to slapping the idol’s face?

Ye Chen quickly sorted out the logic and decided to play the role of an enthusiastic fan to the end. Since the other party kindly invited him into the car, he couldn’t embarrass him. So he obediently followed the assistant to the side of the car, and with a quail-like posture, he shyly got into the car.

Shen Mofeng sat in the back seat with his arms crossed, his face showing a mysterious expression that was difficult to decipher, somewhat gloomy, yet subtly pleased.

After a short period of silence, Ye Chen nervously turned his head to face Shen Mofeng, half acting, half genuinely nervous under the pressure of the other’s aura, and stuttered, “I… I really like you…”

Ye Chen had excellent appearance, impeccable features, bone structure, and skin quality. If the entertainment industry were simply a beauty contest, he would already be in the top tier.

Shen Mofeng had long grown tired of looking at stars in the industry, but at the moment when his eyes met Ye Chen’s, he couldn’t help but whistle inwardly. And he couldn’t resist taking another look.

But the next moment, Ye Chen, who had been looked at for a moment longer, quietly took out a mask and covered half of his face.

“…” Shen Mofeng raised an eyebrow.

Ye Chen awkwardly said, “I have a bad cold, I’m afraid of infecting you.”

“A bad cold,” Shen Mofeng slowly repeated these three words, his voice low and magnetic, and asked, “You still came out to chase the car?”

“I just…” Ye Chen empathized with the mentality of an enthusiastic fan and passionately explained, “I just really like you. When I found out about your flight today, I couldn’t resist and wanted to see you up close…”

Shen Mofeng emitted a short chuckle, his tone unfriendly. “Do you know it’s dangerous to chase cars?”

Ye Chen hung his head low, muttering softly, “Um… I know.”

“You know it’s dangerous, yet you still chased after?” Shen Mofeng lectured in a calm tone, “You fell on the road just now, it’s easy to get into trouble, especially with no cars behind. If there were, the driver might not brake in time and run you over. Don’t you have any sense of safety?”

Ye Chen felt embarrassed by this scolding, like a child being reprimanded, and quickly apologized, “I’m sorry, Shen Ge.”

Shen Mofeng’s expression remained stern. “Will you still chase after cars in the future?”

Ye Chen shook his head vigorously. “No, never again!” Then, fearing that Shen Mofeng would misunderstand and think he was taking advantage of his kindness, he hurriedly added, “It’s not that I don’t like you anymore, it’s just that I’ve learned to pay attention to safety.”

The appearance of the little fan, with his quail-like panicked expression, was too cute. Although ninety percent of his cuteness came from his appearance, Shen Mofeng couldn’t help but soften his tone with a chuckle and a smile. “Alright… Have you had lunch, little friend?”

Shen Mofeng was naturally bent and he was indeed amazed by Ye Chen’s appearance, but he also had some cleanliness issues and disdained hooking up with fans. Besides, this little fan looked like a kid, and it wasn’t guaranteed if he was of legal age… So Shen Mofeng had no other intentions; he himself just needed to eat and decided to take the opportunity to calm down the little fan.

Chasing after cars in front of everyone was quite uncomfortable.

“I haven’t eaten,” Ye Chen admitted honestly.

“What do you want to eat?” Shen Mofeng asked naturally.

Ye Chen had been eating instant noodles for several days in a row, and his eyes lit up at the mention of food. “Anything is fine for me.”

Shen Mofeng interpreted Ye Chen’s excitement about getting a free meal entirely differently. He turned to the driver and mentioned a name, and the sedan turned the corner, heading towards a place to eat.

Then, Ye Chen had a dream-like meal with Shen Mofeng.

The high consumption of this restaurant completely exceeded Ye Chen’s expectations, so he desperately showered Shen Mofeng with flattery throughout the meal, praising his acting skills from all angles. He even boldly predicted that Shen Mofeng would win the Best Actor award within a year. Shen Mofeng listened to the mindless flattery of the enthusiastic little fan like background music, feeling relaxed and content.

This mental massage should be enough to cover the cost of the meal, Ye Chen thought to himself slyly.

After the meal, the two had no further interaction, and Ye Chen gradually put the matter behind him.

Never in a million years did he expect…

While getting his makeup and hair done, Ye Chen opened Shen Mofeng’s biography and, as if reciting ancient texts, memorized Shen Mofeng’s information from his studying days. He also meticulously read through the plots of Shen Mofeng’s films and TV shows that he hadn’t seen before, in order to avoid exposing himself when discussing works with the actor.

I don’t want to be this deceitful! Ye Chen thought in agony.

Earlier today, he had tested Shen Mofeng to confirm if he still remembered the incident of chasing after the car. If he didn’t remember, Ye Chen had intended to bury the matter and not take advantage of it. After all, playing mind games might not be worth it if he got caught. However, Shen Mofeng not only remembered but clearly remembered it very well. Ye Chen couldn’t even pretend otherwise…

One lie often needs countless follow-up lies to maintain, this was an indisputable truth.

Ye Chen did his homework as a fan, and his styling was complete. He played the role of the Fifth Prince, who lacked the talent to be emperor, being delicate and naive, only loving poetry and painting. He became the Crown Prince because the old emperor was fond of manipulating him. However, the fragility of the Fifth Prince, as shaped by the screenwriters, did not make him annoying but rather portrayed a sense of helplessness.

Therefore, the styling of the Fifth Prince exuded fragility and aloofness, with these traits in Ye Chen’s appearance enhanced by makeup techniques. The ink-like blue hair contrasted with porcelain-white skin, and the subtle elongation of the eyebrows and corners of the eyes added a touch of sheep-hair-like elegance, bringing the character to life from a mere script. Ye Chen made a few expressions in the mirror and even surprised himself.

“Teacher Ye, this way, please.” The staff led Ye Chen to take makeup photos. Shen Mofeng, who had finished his styling earlier than him, was only a few shots away from finishing. Ye Chen stood by and watched.

At that moment, Shen Mofeng happened to glance in Ye Chen’s direction.

In the instant their eyes met, Old Rogue Shen couldn’t help but whistle in his mind, just like two years ago.

The author has something to say:

Shen Mofeng: “The little fan likes me, he’s crazy about me.”

Ye Qiongqiong: “…Yes, yes, I really like you…”

Ye Qiongqiong’s account book today:

I’m about to score a free meal with Shen Ge, there must be meat, just hold on a little longer…

Si Feng is the most innocent of the Fengs, hahaha. Being showered with rainbow farts every day, it’s hard not to get ahead of oneself…