I Rely on My Versatility to Reach the Top of the Entertainment Industry [Ancient Times to Modern] - Chapter 49

Curious fans engaged with the account, asking: “How old are you this year?”

“78,” the account replied, playfully adding a tongue-out emoji.

“For real? A 78-year-old grandpa also chases stars?”

“No picture, no proof!”

A crowd egged on in the comments, until the account actually posted on its own Weibo. There were two photos: one showed an ID card placed on rice paper, with a hand holding a brush to sign. The other seemed to be a study, with an exquisitely framed character “Tranquility” hanging on the wall.

Everyone zoomed in on the images and discovered the ID card belonged to someone with the surname Lu. The name, photo, and ID number were blurred out, but the age was indeed 78. As for the other photo, the calligraphy of the character “静“ was signed by none other than Xuan Kong!!

Who is Xuan Kong? Of course, it’s Jing Yi!

Every one of Jing Yi’s short videos featured this signature!

“Wow, this really is a grandpa. @Lu Yuzhi @Jing Yi, did you know your grandpa is active on Weibo?”

“Hey, tagging Jing Yi is pointless—he’s taking the adult college entrance exam today.”

The discussion then shifted to Jing Yi’s exam, until suddenly Lu Yuzhi’s name appeared.

Lu Yuzhi: “Grandpa, why didn’t you tell me you’re on Weibo?”

This post received no reply.

Netizens cheerfully chatted with Lu Yuzhi: “Is Film Emperor Lu waiting outside the school for Yi-zai to finish his exam?”

Lu Yuzhi: “Yes.”

It was almost 11 o’clock by then.

Lu Yuzhi stood up, put on his glasses and mask, and positioned himself discreetly to the side of the school gate.

Not many people were waiting for examinees at the entrance.

When the exam ended, candidates of various ages began streaming out of the school, most hurrying away after leaving the test site.

Lu Yuzhi scanned the crowd, his brow furrowing as almost everyone had left without any sign of Jing Yi.

Just as he decided to ask the security guard for permission to enter the campus and check, Jing Yi finally emerged.

“Why are you late?” Lu Yuzhi pulled the young man close, looking him over carefully.

“Everyone in the exam hall was too enthusiastic,” Jing Yi said sheepishly, meeting Lu Yuzhi’s gaze. “They wanted my autograph, so I got held up a bit. Were you waiting long?”

“Not too bad.” Lu Yuzhi took the young man’s hand.

They found a hotel for lunch before Jing Yi returned for the afternoon exam.

The adult college entrance exam lasted two days in total. After it concluded, Lu Yuzhi took Jing Yi back to the Lu family home.

This was at the earnest insistence of Old Master Lu.

Whose child doesn’t come home for a celebratory feast after finishing exams? Even though Jing Yi is vegetarian, he deserved the finest vegetable banquet!

At the dining table, Old Master Lu cheerfully served Jing Yi more dishes, saying, “Eat up, Xiao Yi. You’ve lost weight recently. Yuzhi doesn’t know how to take care of people—why don’t you just move in with us? Don’t worry, I’ll kick Yuzhi out so he won’t bother you.”

“That’s not true,” Jing Yi replied bashfully at the mention of care. “Yuzhi is very good at taking care of me, Grandpa, no need to worry.”

He felt he’d almost grown lazy lately. If he got up thirsty, water was handed to him; if he prepared to paint, brushes, ink, and paper were all set out; after painting, he even received wrist massages.

If he hadn’t insisted on doing things himself, Lu Yuzhi might have ended up feeding him meals too.

Old Master Lu, nearly eighty years old, could tell from Jing Yi’s expression that the two shared a deep bond.

He changed the subject: “Xiao Yi, remember to follow Grandpa back later. I’ve registered a Weibo account too.”

“Really?” Jing Yi’s voice lifted slightly, visibly pleased. “The netizens on Weibo are all very nice. Grandpa will definitely like this platform.”

“Hahaha, everyone is indeed wonderful,” Old Master Lu chuckled, his eyes crinkling. “Whenever I post on Weibo, people enthusiastically call me ‘Grandpa’ in the comments, and many even praise my calligraphy skills.”

The elderly man and the young one exchanged insights on calligraphy and painting, the half-gray-haired elder beaming with joy. Anyone could see the old man was in high spirits and excellent health.

Lu Qinhao whispered to his wife: “Should we have Xiao Yi join our family sooner? Look how happy Dad is—he hasn’t laughed like this in years.”

“I agree, but it depends on whether our son can make it happen,” Lu Qinhao’s wife replied, glancing at their younger son and murmuring, “Hurry up. I’ll have my girlfriends whisper in their husbands’ ears to push for the same-sex marriage law to pass quickly. That way, you and Xiao Yi can move back home sooner.”

Lu Yuzhi listened, amber eyes warming with a smile as he replied sincerely to his mother, “Thank you, Mom.”

After dinner, Jing Yi chatted a while longer with Grandpa Lu. Mindful of the elder’s energy, he went upstairs at 8 p.m.

Lu Yuzhi was in a remote meeting with company executives. Jing Yi paid no attention, took a shower, and emerged in pajamas to meditate.

When he opened his eyes, he found Lu Yuzhi sitting directly across from him, gaze intense with warmth.

Jing Yi averted his eyes. “You’ve seen people meditate before. Why are you staring like that?”

“Nothing,” Lu Yuzhi simply smiled. “Remember that calligraphy and painting competition you participated in? The art association called today—they want to invite you to paint live on site.”

To focus on exams, Jing Yi had handed his phone to Lu Yuzhi to manage and hadn’t checked online content.

Hearing this, confusion tinged his dark eyes. “Why would they suddenly ask me to paint? Didn’t the competition results come out long ago?”

Lu Yuzhi passed him the nearby phone. “Check the videos and Weibo mentions. You’ll understand what happened.”

Jing Yi unlocked the device, browsed for a moment, and grasped the situation.

His painting hadn’t failed to win—it had been plagiarized.

After the winners were announced months prior, the art association hadn’t displayed the awarded works.

Five months later, likely inspired by trending short-video apps, the impostor created an account to share paintings. When their content failed to gain traction, they posted “Evening Lotus,” claiming it as proof of their skill.

The video swiftly amassed over a million likes, catching the attention of traditional painting enthusiasts. Soon, one of Jing Yi’s followers noticed the lotus brushwork in “Evening Lotus” matched that in Jing Yi’s new piece “Koi.”

Jing Yi knew this follower well—they had previously messaged to discuss ink techniques.

As a fellow painting content creator with a substantial following, the fan’s exposure video drew attacks from the impostor’s hired trolls, leading to their account being suspended.

The poster also shared a video, tearfully claiming that Jing Yi, as a public figure, allowed his fans to cyberbully him.

He further accused Jing Yi of deliberately copying his lotus painting technique and challenged him to a live-streamed calligraphy competition at the Calligraphy Association.

“So that’s what happened.” Jing Yi replied to the kind fan’s private message, then looked up at Lu Yuzhi. “Perfect timing since I’ve finished my exams. Let’s go settle this.”

Lu Yuzhi was pleased to see the spark in Jing Yi’s eyes. His young partner was kinder than most but no pushover—he could still get properly angry.

What Lu Yuzhi didn’t expect was Jing Yi glancing at him only to immediately lower his head again, smiling at his phone.

With a sulky gleam in his eyes, Lu Yuzhi leaned over to see the screen.

Fans had been camping on Weibo waiting for updates about Jing Yi’s exams. Someone from the same test venue boldly posted: “I saw you, Yi Zai! Film Emperor Lu picks you up for meals every day!”

Another examinee from a different venue commented: “I decided to take the adult entrance exams after seeing Yi Zai preparing. I didn’t study hard when I was younger and my academic background isn’t great.”

“Same here! Though I’m taking the college upgrade exam!”

“Vocational college student here. I lacked courage initially, but Yi Zai’s study livestreams inspired me to strive harder.”

Jing Yi personally replied to each of these netizens:

“Wishing you success in your exams.”

Soon, younger fans who’d taken the college entrance exams earlier wailed: “Aaaaaah I should’ve told Yi Zai during my exams too! I want Yi Zai’s blessings!”

When Jing Yi asked if one fan had gotten into their dream university, they excitedly confirmed they were admitted to Ning University, emphatically hoping Jing Yi would pass and become their schoolmate.

Another fan timidly asked what to do since they’d performed poorly in their college entrance exams and ended up in an unsatisfactory university.

Amidst the long thread of exam-related discussions, someone concerned asked: “Yi Zai, do you know your painting was plagiarized and won an award?”

“I know,” Jing Yi typed. “Thank you for your concern. I’ve arranged to visit the Calligraphy and Painting Association tomorrow to resolve this.”

Fans cheered him on, spamming determined emojis while promising to support him in the live stream.

After Jing Yi posted a Weibo thanking everyone, enthusiastic followers immediately gathered under the post begging for photos to ease their longing during his exam preparation.

Seeing Jing Yi actually raise his phone to take pictures, Lu Yuzhi protested:

“You’re going to show them you in pajamas?”

Hearing the grievance in Lu Yuzhi’s voice, Jing Yi reconsidered and agreed pajama photos were inappropriate. As he typed a response to fans, his earlobe was suddenly captured by warm lips.

A tingling sensation shot through his limbs. Jing Yi turned to Lu Yuzhi with puzzled eyes: “What are you doing?”

Lu Yuzhi declared unabashedly: “Yi Zai, I need to ease my longing too.”

Jing Yi: “I haven’t finished replying to the fans… Mph—”

His lips were sealed as Lu Yuzhi took the phone and tossed it aside.

Fans anxiously awaiting photos eventually received this message:

“It’s late, already washed up. Yuzhi and I are going to bed now. Tomorrow—”

A fan sent a crying cat meme asking: “Where are the rest of the words? Where did the following text go?”

Fans below immediately chimed in: “The missing words were probably swallowed by someone. Reporting this celebrity couple for openly flaunting their affection.”

“This isn’t something I should be seeing, wuwu. My brain’s been addled by all this public displays of affection.”

The next day at 6 AM, Jing Yi got up, changed his clothes, and as promised, posted a photo for his fans.

Fans clicked open the image with mixed feelings.

The morning sunlight was gentle. Standing before the floor-to-ceiling window in a white shirt, Jing Yi looked so pristine and handsome, as if he’d stepped right out of a painting.

“Waking up so early, Mom feels reassured.”

“Dog-head warning to the comment above! Adults all understand there’s a term called ‘underperformance’.”

“What are you all talking about? Let’s be mindful of our influence, okay? Our Yi-zi still has underage fans. Shouldn’t Emperor Lu save some face? Can we please be more considerate?”

This comment thread was flooded with dog-head emojis.

Perhaps realizing the genuine impropriety, the initial commenters took the lead in deleting their remarks.

Jing Yi woke up early because the Calligraphy and Painting Association was quite far from the Lu family ancestral home.

He arrived just in time for their 10 AM appointment.

Journalists who’d caught wind of the event swarmed, snapping photos frantically. Since this was a public matter, their reports wouldn’t be intercepted. Some, noting Jing Yi’s reputation for answering all questions on Weibo, seized the opportunity to ask:

“Mr. Jing, what are your thoughts on your painting being used by someone else and having your ranking snatched away?”

“The other party arrogantly claimed they’d teach you a lesson today. Are you feeling nervous?”

“Do you have confidence in today’s live-streamed painting demonstration?”

Jing Yi answered each query politely with a nod, then effortlessly navigated through the crowd while holding Lu Yuzhi’s hand.

The journalists stared blankly at each other: “Again? Every time Jing Yi somehow slips past us inexplicably.”

“Truly a martial arts master. Good thing we never deliberately tried to take unauthorized photos.”

“What are you talking about? Who would dare sneak photos of someone under Emperor Lu’s protection? We can only rely on news like this to scrape by.”