Pretending Not to Love You [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Zuo Qiu made a bowl of noodles for Xiao Baijun, but because it was too late, the portion was small. Xiao Baijun finished it in a few bites, smacking his lips, feeling that it wasn’t enough to satisfy him. He glanced at the empty bowl and then at Zuo Qiu sitting opposite him. His meaning was obvious: he needed more.

“It’s too late today, you can’t eat too much, or you’ll get indigestion.” They had work tomorrow, and no accidents could happen.

Xiao Baijun couldn’t help it; if the chef didn’t cook, he wouldn’t eat, so he reluctantly took the bowl to the kitchen to wash it.

Before entering the bedroom to sleep, Xiao Baijun remembered what his grandmother had told him before he left, so he said to Zuo Qiu: “My grandma asked you to come to my house for dinner next time.”

Zuo Qiu was startled: “Huh?” Why was he suddenly invited to his house for dinner?

“Grandma said you haven’t been home for a long time, and she feels sorry for you, so she wants you to come to our house for a home-cooked meal.” Xiao Baijun said lightly, hiding the real purpose—to go to his house to rack up good impressions.

Zuo Qiu was a little touched, “Okay.” It wasn’t a big deal for classmates to visit each other’s homes, so he didn’t overthink it.

They said goodnight and went back to their respective rooms to sleep.

The next day, after lunch, the two followed Zhao Zhixian to the magazine office.

In the car, Zhao Zhixian said to the two: “The interview later will be video recorded. They will edit it and post it online along with the behind-the-scenes photos. So, you must be careful what you say later. I have the interview script here, take a look in advance, and discuss how to answer.”

Hearing Zhao Zhixian’s words, Zuo Qiu became a little nervous. He took the interview script and started reading it seriously.

After roughly scanning the questions, Zuo Qiu felt more secure. These questions were quite common, such as the reason for debuting halfway, recent new works, and upcoming work. Private questions included what type of girl he likes, whether he has been in a relationship, etc. The questions were not sharp.

Zuo Qiu went over all the questions in his mind, and his gaze finally landed on “What type of girl do you like?” He was a bit conflicted. He definitely couldn’t tell the truth about this question now. Should he tell a small lie or give an ambiguous answer? After thinking for a few minutes, Zuo Qiu felt that all lies would eventually be exposed, so he decided to give a vague answer at the time.

Upon arriving at the magazine office, the two followed Zhao Zhixian to meet the editor-in-chief, and then were led to the studio.

Photoshoots were no longer a problem for Zuo Qiu. After the guidance from Xiao Baijun last time, he could now quickly achieve the effects the photographer wanted.

After their joint photos were taken, the photographer designed several looks for them individually. At this moment, Xiao Baijun stood by, watching Zuo Qiu under the lights. He was wearing a white shirt with the top three buttons undone, loose light blue jeans rolled up at the cuffs, and standing barefoot on the white backdrop.

Zuo Qiu’s hair was slightly damp. Under his heart-shaped fringe, the corners of his peach-blossom eyes were slightly lifted with eyeliner. His eyes were looking expressionlessly at the camera, and his right hand was holding a rose, his rosy lips lightly biting a petal. It was utterly captivating.

Xiao Baijun felt as if his own heart had been bitten in half by Zuo Qiu at that moment.

Zhao Zhixian and the editor-in-chief, standing not far away, also had their eyes light up. Zhao Zhixian had never seen such a stunning Zuo Qiu and was inwardly scoring Zuo Qiu, thinking about what style of role his potential would be suitable for next.

The editor-in-chief standing aside quietly asked Zhao Zhixian: “What’s the background of this newcomer?”

Zhao Zhixian glanced at the editor-in-chief: “What are you trying to say?”

The editor-in-chief chuckled, “Some time ago, someone asked me to help him find young boys…”

The words were only half-said, but Zhao Zhixian, who had been in the industry for many years, understood the implication: “He is a good friend of Young Master Xiao Er.” A good friend of the second young master also had backing, so naturally, there was no need for introductions.

The editor-in-chief didn’t give up: “What he himself thinks is the most important.” The implication was that Zuo Qiu might have bigger ambitions in his heart, and how would they know without asking?

Zhao Zhixian had known Zuo Qiu for some time and privately felt that Zuo Qiu was not that kind of person, but the editor-in-chief also made sense; after all, he wasn’t Zuo Qiu himself, so Zhao Zhixian didn’t refute.

After Zuo Qiu finished the photoshoot and changed his clothes, he came out and saw the photographer looking around for Xiao Baijun.

“He was just here, where did he run off to?”

Zuo Qiu looked around but didn’t see Xiao Baijun, so he said to the photographer: “Wait a moment, I’ll go find him.”

Before he finished speaking, Xiao Baijun walked in from outside.

When the photographer saw him, he immediately signaled that they could start.

Zuo Qiu walked up to Xiao Baijun and asked softly: “Where did you go just now?”

Xiao Baijun glanced at Zuo Qiu’s peach-blossom eyes and lightly coughed: “Went out for a cigarette.” How could he tell Zuo Qiu that he had just gone to the restroom to relieve some… tension!

Zuo Qiu didn’t suspect anything and accompanied Xiao Baijun to his photoshoot.

After their photos were done, the two rested for half an hour, and then a female reporter said the interview could begin.

Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun sat on one side of a rectangular table, facing the female reporter and the cameraman carrying the camera. Since they had been followed by cameras during the reality show, Zuo Qiu was very composed facing the camera in front of him, while Xiao Baijun was as expressionless as ever.

“Welcome Z.X, Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun,” the female reporter started.

Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun greeted the camera in unison, “Hello everyone, we are Z.X.”

“The two of you have debuted recently, and as far as I know, you are both third-year students at B University. Can you tell us what led you to this path as artists?” the female reporter asked.

Zuo Qiu, as the spokesperson for the group, answered: “Actually, it was a very unexpected event…”

…

“We’ve talked so much, but what fans care about most is your relationship status. So now, I’m going to ask on behalf of all the female fans. First, Junjun, have you ever been in a relationship?”

Xiao Baijun rarely spoke, but since he was asked, he couldn’t pretend not to hear, “I have.”

One sentence expressed two meanings: one, he had been in a relationship before, and two, he did not have a girlfriend now.

The female reporter then asked Zuo Qiu: “What about you?”

Zuo Qiu smiled: “No.”

The female reporter was surprised: “Really? How could Zuo Qiu have never been in a relationship?”

“Perhaps I haven’t met the right person,” Zuo Qiu replied.

“Then what type of girl do you think is suitable for you?”

Zuo Qiu frowned in contemplation, as if facing a difficult problem. After his internal struggle, he used a vague strategy: “Maybe I’ll only know when I meet her.”

The female reporter was clearly not satisfied with this answer and deliberately asked: “Do you think you would like someone like me?”

Zuo Qiu’s face flushed. This time, he truly didn’t know how to answer.

“Are you a girl?”

Xiao Baijun’s questioning remark instantly brought the atmosphere to an extreme awkwardness. Zuo Qiu didn’t know what to say, and the female reporter was questioning her own gender.

Seeing the atmosphere freeze, Xiao Baijun remained calm, as if the person who had just made an “insulting” remark to the female reporter wasn’t him. He offered an explanation, “Sorry, my eyesight is not good.”

At this moment, the camera next to the female reporter gave her a close-up: buzz cut, square face, black-rimmed glasses, black T-shirt, and flat chest.

The female reporter probably realized the reason for her neutral style and generously forgave Xiao Baijun, but she clearly couldn’t go back to the previous question, so she continued with other questions.

“I know you just recorded a reality show and made a guest appearance in a major production movie, having worked with big stars Deng Chong and Ou Sheng. Now, here’s a little game; please choose.”

“If Deng Chong and Ou Sheng both fell into the water, and you had a stone in your hand, who would you choose to hit?”

This question was not in the interview script, and it was quite nasty; answering either way would be difficult! Zuo Qiu felt speechless inside. This was probably the female reporter’s blatant revenge, right?

Indeed, women should not be easily offended!

“I’d hit myself. Both seniors are very capable people in the industry. Since I can’t swim, I can’t save them. I can only hit myself to apologize,” Zuo Qiu answered.

This was a good answer, showing high emotional intelligence. He praised the two seniors while finding a perfect excuse for himself.

“Junjun, what about you?” the female reporter asked Xiao Baijun again.

Xiao Baijun didn’t have as many scruples as Zuo Qiu. Thinking that one of them wanted to squeeze into their duo, and the other had set him up, neither of them was any good. So he replied: “Whoever saves, gets hit.”

As soon as this answer came out, several suppressed chuckles could be heard off-camera; someone couldn’t help but laugh.