After Bankruptcy, I Became the Film Emperor's First Love Stand-in - Chapter 2

By the time Luo Ying woke up, it was already noon. No one was beside him. Groggily, he climbed out of bed and headed to freshen up.

The person in the mirror looked weary, his hair tangled into a bird’s nest. His beautiful eyes drooped slightly as he slowly unwrapped the toiletries.

Warm water splashed onto his face. Luo Ying dried his damp hair in front of the mirror. Once fully awake after washing up, the earlier lethargy vanished. His beautiful brown eyes now sparkled with clarity, his nose bridge high and straight, the tip round and delicate. His thin lips held a faint pink hue, and his skin appeared even fairer under the light.

Lu Rang’s teasing words from last night flashed through his mind at an inopportune moment.

Luo Ying had been half-asleep then, only remembering that he had casually replied, “Just doing my job as a stand-in.”

As for what Lu Rang had whispered against his ear afterward, he hadn’t caught it clearly and couldn’t be bothered to recall.

While getting dressed, Luo Ying was surprised to find a new box of underwear placed by the bedside.

Size M—his size.

Holding the box, Luo Ying froze for a moment before a wave of embarrassment washed over him.

His sleeping posture had always been poor, and the bathrobe was open-fronted, making it all too easy to expose himself.

Even though nothing had happened between him and Lu Rang last night, the current situation felt more nakedly embarrassing than if it had.

The thought of himself sleeping bare-bottomed on the bed made him want to dig a hole in the ground with his toes.

After putting on the new underwear, he stepped out. Passing through the living room led to the open-study, where Lu Rang was in a video conference.

Luo Ying leaned against the bar counter, poured a glass of water, and peered toward the study over the rim of the cup.

His gaze was cautious, afraid of being noticed.

In front of the laptop, Lu Rang lowered his eyes, expression serious. He flipped through a booklet in his hand, responding to the other party in a calm, detached tone.

“Once you’ve settled the script changes with the screenwriter, just send them to me. We can discuss the rest when I get to the company.”

The person on the other end of the video seemed somewhat dissatisfied.

“Just to add more scenes for Xirong’s role, how many times has this script been revised already? Only you could tolerate this.”

“He’s just riding the wave of the summer season’s popularity. You’re an award-winning actor—why do you have to accommodate him like this?”

“Not long ago, he even played up the fact that you were college classmates to force a connection. How could he be like this?”

Hearing this, Luo Ying raised an eyebrow slightly, lightly setting the water glass down on the table. The glass clinked crisply against the marble surface.

No matter how little he knew about the entertainment industry, he had still heard of the status an “award-winning actor” held in this circle.

His old classmate Lu Rang wasn’t just wealthy and capable of making money—he was also an award-winning actor.

Luo Ying searched Lu Rang’s name on his phone. The first result on the webpage was his personal profile and a list of his representative works.

Clicking in, he saw over twenty films, both leading and supporting roles, with two award-winning actor titles among them. The earliest one dated back to when he had just entered the entertainment industry during college.

Wow, doing so well and still daring to keep someone like him—caught in the eye of the storm—as a kept man. That took guts.

In the study, Lu Rang remained silent. Sensing Luo Ying’s gaze, he leaned back in his chair, propped his chin on his hand, and let his eyes wander over Luo Ying.

As if recalling something, the corner of his mouth lifted, and he couldn’t help but chuckle.

Luo Ying knew he was laughing about the sleeping incident, and his ears flushed red with embarrassment.

“Brother Lu, what are you laughing at?”

“Did you even hear what I just said?”

“Oh, right, one of the schedule assistants is resigning. I’ll try to find a replacement as soon as possible in the next couple of days.”

“Got it. Handle it as you see fit.”

“I have other matters to attend to. Let’s end here.”

Lu Rang lowered his gaze and quickly ended the video call.

Lunch was delivered by the hotel. After eating, Luo Ying collapsed onto the sofa like a boneless heap, nearly dozing off before Lu Rang pulled him up.

Rubbing his eyes, Luo Ying mumbled sleepily, “What’s the matter?”

“Today, a brand I collaborate with is sending over their new collection. Come with me to the company and pick out some clothes you like.”

Luo Ying was still wearing the same outfit from yesterday. When he was kicked out, he hadn’t brought anything with him. Now that his keys had been taken away, he couldn’t go back to get his change of clothes or daily necessities.

Buying everything new would be a significant expense. Since Lu Rang had offered to take him shopping, Luo Ying wasn’t about to miss the opportunity.

His eyes lit up, and he agreed with a smile. “Sure.”

Lu Rang ran his own entertainment company, located just outside the Fourth Ring Road of Haidu, in a commercial park. The space was quite large.

The first floor was a shooting area with various indoor sets, where several models were posing under the lights for small product endorsements.

Along the way, they ran into nine people who greeted Lu Rang. Following behind him, Luo Ying basked in the reflected glow of the celebrities.

The brand sending the new collection to Lu Rang had also sent items to Luo Ying in previous years. Even the liaison, Casey, who was delivering the samples, was someone Luo Ying recognized.

Casey had originally scheduled a meeting with him this week to review the new collection, but after yesterday’s bankruptcy news broke, it seemed she had deleted his WeChat overnight.

Because of this, Casey and her assistant were visibly awkward and flustered during the selection process, avoiding eye contact with Luo Ying the entire time.

In contrast, Luo Ying seemed completely unfazed. Whether she had deleted him or not was trivial to him.

If it weren’t for her daily “good morning” and “good afternoon” messages, he wouldn’t even have noticed she’d removed him.

With winter approaching, Luo Ying picked out a set of cashmere sweaters for the cold season, paired with a matching coat. The official photos also featured a light blue striped shirt as an inner layer.

He wasn’t particularly interested in the rest, but Lu Rang selected quite a few outfits for him, even forcing some styles into matching couple’s sets.

“Let’s go.”

After picking out the clothes, Luo Ying stood up, ready to make a quick exit.

“Where are you going?”

Lu Rang suddenly grabbed his arm, a flicker of something unusual in his eyes.

Was he in a hurry? Afraid Luo Ying would run off?

Surely not.

Luo Ying tilted his head, staring at the hand gripping his wrist.

He couldn’t possibly stick to Lu Rang’s side every moment, could he?

If that were the case, he’d have to charge extra.

“Where else? To work,” Luo Ying pulled his hand back, reminding him. “My company hasn’t gone bankrupt yet.”

Shortly after returning to China, Luo Ying had co-founded a commercial investment company with his former roommate from his study abroad days, Xie Yunyu. In the early stages, they had made quite a profit with the support of his father, Luo Xiaohe.

Fortunately, when the company was established, he wasn’t listed as the legal representative. Otherwise, with his bank accounts frozen, his company would have been investigated too.

Lu Rang’s dark brows furrowed slightly, and he reluctantly let him go. “Then I’ll pick you up after work.”

Luo Ying raised an eyebrow in surprise, not expecting Lu Rang to be so clingy. “Do you even know where my company is?”

Lu Rang replied, “I do. I pass by it occasionally.”

Luo Ying had no choice. “Fine, got it.”

Lu Rang held out his hand. “Give me your phone. Let’s exchange contact information.”

Luo Ying: “…”

Why did Lu Rang act like they had just finished a transaction and were already planning for the next time, like a repeat customer?

Luo Ying handed over his phone, watching as Lu Rang saved their numbers and added each other on WeChat.

He and Lu Rang had originally kept in touch, but when Luo Xiaohe went abroad for studies, Luo Xiaohe changed his number and set up new accounts for WeChat and other platforms, which led to him losing contact with these classmates after graduating from high school.

Retrieving the returned phone, Luo Ying looked up at Lu Rang.

Lu Rang was wearing a black overcoat today, paired with a half-turtleneck sweater that left a portion of his neck exposed. Following the line of sight upward, his lips were rosy and looked incredibly soft.

Recalling his somewhat impatient attitude toward his “sugar daddy” earlier, Luo Ying realized he wasn’t exactly being a good substitute if things continued this way.

After a moment of thought, Luo Ying reached out, grabbed the collar of Lu Rang’s coat, tilted his head slightly, and leaned in to plant a light kiss on Lu Rang’s lips.

Taking advantage of Lu Rang’s stunned expression, Luo Ying blinked, his fingers gently tracing the spot where his lips had just touched, and whispered in a suggestive tone, “See you tonight, boyfriend.”

Luo Ying’s company wasn’t large, with a space of less than a thousand square meters. More than half of the thirty-something employees were accountants or financial staff. At the end of the corridor, a glass-walled room served as his office.

The office had excellent natural lighting, with floor-to-ceiling windows facing south. In the afternoon, sunlight slanted into the room, casting a warm, orange glow on the clean and tidy sandalwood desk.

On the central sofa lay a person with a slightly slender face, gentle and delicate features, hands tucked under their cheeks, curled up on their side in sleep.

Hearing the sound of Luo Ying pushing the door open, the person on the sofa slowly opened their eyes.

Luo Ying skillfully poured a cup of coffee and lay down on the sofa opposite Xie Yunyu, saying, “What’s wrong? You look even more exhausted than I do.”

“Didn’t sleep well last night,” Xie Yunyu sat up from the sofa, rubbing his eyes with concern. “By the way, I heard you…”

Xie Yunyu hesitated, his beautiful peach-blossom eyes carefully studying Luo Ying. “I heard you had a rough day yesterday. Why didn’t you come to me?”

Luo Ying propped his head up, lounging like a royal consort. “No need to bother you. Isn’t there someone staying at your place? I’m afraid we’d end up fighting if we met.”

Ever since Luo Ying found out that Xie Yunyu’s boyfriend was a scumbag who played with people’s feelings, he had been at odds with him.

It was said that the scumbag had been flirting with Xie Yunyu since high school, doing all sorts of intimate things, only to disappear afterward. Years later, when they met again, he acted like he had amnesia, refusing to acknowledge their past relationship.

“He’s gone.”

Xie Yunyu’s voice was soft, but Luo Ying’s gossip-sensitive ears caught it.

“That’s good. I’ve told you before, none of those tops are any good. You should find someone who can take good care of you, like…”

Luo Ying mentally went through everyone he knew but couldn’t find a suitable comparison. He waved his hand dismissively, pragmatic as ever. “Forget it. These days, having money is enough. What’s the point of talking about feelings?”

Remembering the check Lu Rang had given him yesterday, Luo Ying took it out and placed it on the coffee table. “My cards are all frozen. Help me transfer this money to one of your empty accounts for safekeeping.”

Xie Yunyu examined the check Luo Ying had brought, holding it up to the light and inspecting it carefully. His voice was gentle as he asked, “Where did you get so much money? Is it legitimate? Planning to use it to pay off debts?”

Luo Ying ignored the first two questions and only responded to the last one. “What can fifty million do to pay off debts? It’s not even enough to fill the gaps for the bank. Let’s keep it for now. I need to think of some ways to make money. Only by making money grow can I pay off those billions sooner.”

He had no intention of truly becoming a “caged canary” by Lu Rang’s side for two years.

Maintaining a relationship was troublesome, and he dreaded trouble the most.

Besides, he was only after Lu Rang’s money. If Lu Rang was good in bed, he’d treat him as a casual fling.

Luo Ying didn’t care at all about being someone’s substitute. After all, with a monthly allowance of fifty million, there was no need for self-pity or melodrama.

He admitted his tolerance was broad, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing.

At least, if Lu Rang’s first love ever came back begging for reconciliation, he could walk away without a second thought.

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