Pretending Not to Love You [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 65

Chapter 65

Two days later was a Saturday. To ensure Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun could film the nude swim video without worries, Ou Sheng specifically gave the entire crew a half-day off, then took the crew’s best photographer back to his home villa—he was graciously lending his private swimming pool.

To prevent any awkwardness for the pair, Ou Sheng only allowed the photographer into the outdoor pool area. Even so, Zuo Qiu, wrapped in a large bath towel, felt embarrassed when he came out. Could someone tell him if the two people lying under the sun umbrella and drinking beverages were here for a holiday? Or were they here to watch a show?

Out of respect for the owner of the villa, Zuo Qiu didn’t say anything.

Xiao Baijun, wearing only swimming trunks, was much more relaxed than Zuo Qiu. He immediately began warming up by the poolside after coming out.

The temperature today was around $30^{circ}text{C}$. Zuo Qiu, wrapped in a towel, stood aside watching Xiao Baijun warm up and started to feel hot himself.

Just then, Ou Sheng walked over with a notebook and asked Zuo Qiu, “Aren’t you hot?”

Zuo Qiu wiped the sweat from his forehead and lowered his head to defend himself, “I’m blocking the sun.”

Ou Sheng stared at Zuo Qiu for a moment, guessing that Zuo Qiu was still not used to exposing his body in front of the camera. So he said, “Just pretend you’re a diving or swimming athlete. Look at them; they’re fine facing so many cameras. What you’re doing is child’s play.” Then, he quickly changed the subject, “…Compared to diving, I prefer watching swimming competitions. Many male athletes have great physiques and perfect muscle lines. They are simply…”

“Hmph…”

A sudden, light cough interrupted Ou Sheng’s eloquent speech. Without turning around, he knew it was the immature Cheng Ye being jealous, so he quickly saved himself, “…simply just like our Brother Ye.”

Zuo Qiu was successfully amused by Ou Sheng’s quick change of demeanor. He turned his face away, struggling to suppress a laugh.

Ou Sheng didn’t mind being laughed at by Zuo Qiu. Remembering his main purpose for coming over, he held up the notebook and said to Zuo Qiu, “Look, I’ve written a script for your nude swim.”

Zuo Qiu took it. Seeing the title “Z.X Duo Nude Swim Video Filming Script,” he felt a little embarrassed. Brother Sheng, are you serious?

“I’ve heard of scripts for movies, TV shows, and variety programs, but this is the first time I’ve seen a script for shooting a video.”

Ou Sheng was unconcerned, “Don’t you know? Even internet celebrities have scripts when they live stream now. Many people who send virtual rockets are pre-arranged extras, and the live questions are all pre-prepared shills, deliberately guiding the topic. This is all very normal.” Ou Sheng gave himself a high-sounding reason to cover up his bored and gossipy inner thoughts.

Zuo Qiu genuinely didn’t know that’s how it worked in live streams. Since Ou Sheng said it was normal, he would go along with it. Zuo Qiu carefully read the script, and he laughed when he saw a certain detail.

“This is great.”

…

Two days later, Zhao Zhixian uploaded a five-minute video of Xiao Baijun and Zuo Qiu on the Z.X Weibo account. The video began with the two, wearing black and white square-cut swimming trunks, greeting netizens by the pool. After briefly thanking the fans for their support and stating they were here to fulfill their promise, Xiao Baijun walked to the edge of the pool, plunged in with a splash, creating a huge wave.

Before the audience could react, Zuo Qiu was holding an idle orange swimming ring from Ou Sheng’s house, preparing to enter the water.

At this moment, Ou Sheng’s voice appeared as a narration, “Zuo Qiu, are you serious about using a swimming ring?”

Zuo Qiu turned back to the camera and smiled shyly, “I can’t swim. Please bear with me.”

Ou Sheng: “That won’t do! If you use a swimming ring, it will cover up the parts that need to be seen. What are our fans supposed to look at?”

Zuo Qiu scratched his head, “Then what should I do?”

Ou Sheng pretended to think for two seconds and said, “How about you take off your swim trunks first, then put on the swimming ring and walk around the pool a couple of times? Hahaha…”

While Ou Sheng’s demonic laughter continued non-stop, Zuo Qiu, wearing the swimming ring, went straight into the water. The pool was nearly 2 meters deep. If it weren’t for the swimming ring, Zuo Qiu would probably sink right now, but watching an adult man rely on a swimming ring to paddle, it looked utterly hilarious.

Ou Sheng’s laughter never stopped, and the camera started shaking, clearly indicating the photographer couldn’t hold back either.

Xiao Baijun swam a lap and immediately returned to Zuo Qiu’s side, “How about I teach you?”

Zuo Qiu, sliding his hands through the swimming ring, immediately shook his head when he heard Xiao Baijun, “No.” He had tried to learn when he was little, but after choking on water a few times and nearly drowning, he completely gave up the idea of continuing. Zuo Qiu felt that being a happy landlubber was absolutely fine compared to choking on water again!

Xiao Baijun had only said that as a passing thought. Being in the water with Zuo Qiu, especially the Zuo Qiu who looked particularly stupidly adorable at the moment, made him feel aroused. Xiao Baijun thought more than once—if only the three other eyesores would automatically disappear right now.

“Hey, hey, hey! You said ‘nude swim’! What kind of nude swim is it if you don’t take off your pants!” Ou Sheng’s voice reappeared.

Hearing Ou Sheng, Xiao Baijun dove into the water and disappeared, while Zuo Qiu struggled to glide toward a corner of the wall and began to earnestly take off his pants…

One minute later, viewers of the video noticed things flying towards the camera from two directions in the pool, then landing on the ground. The camera slowly zoomed in. They were one black and one white pair of swimming trunks, identical to the ones Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun were wearing before. The camera slowly panned back to the two male protagonists in the pool. The two, one genuinely swimming and the other genuinely struggling, were immersed in the clean, clear water. Every part of their body was clearly visible, except for…

“Aaaaah, why is there a mosaic? Bad review!”

“I waited for half a month, just to see this?”

“The water of West Lake, my tears~~”

A segment of fans were quite upset that the promised nude swim video had turned into a mosaic video, but the vast majority of netizens were rational.

“They promised to film a nude swim video, and they did. They never said they wouldn’t censor it, so there’s nothing wrong.”

“I’m satisfied. Before, I only saw Jun-jun’s upper body in the variety show. Now, besides the crucial part in the middle, I’ve seen both the upper and lower body. I have no regrets!”

“This is just how the domestic system is; it can only be this way. Speaking of which, this is the first time I’ve seen Zuo Qiu reveal so much of his body. His face is pale, and his body is even paler. What a creamy boy with a perky butt, ah ha ha ha ha.”

…

Due to this short video, Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun were sent to the trending topics again, and the box office of Fledgling Eagle saw a small surge just before it was taken out of theaters, ultimately closing with 2.5 billion.

That day, Daisy called Zuo Qiu again. After telling him that the TV series they co-starred in would premiere on November 11th, she started to gossip.

“Did you really go nude?”

Based on her understanding of Xiao Er’s possessiveness, Xiao Er might reluctantly accept Zuo Qiu swimming in front of the camera, but definitely not nude swimming. Although the public saw a mosaic, weren’t the photographer and Ou Sheng present at the scene? Could Xiao Er agree to Zuo Qiu being completely seen by other men?

Zuo Qiu quickly defended himself, “Of course we didn’t actually go nude! We both wore two pairs of swim trunks that day. The inner one was flesh-colored.”

Zhao Zhixian’s initial agreement with them was to use mosaics to cover the key areas, but Ou Sheng suggested they wear flesh-colored swim trunks underneath. Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun thought it was a great idea and adopted it immediately.

Upon hearing that there were flesh-colored swim trunks inside, Daisy complained bitterly, “Liars!” But then she thought that it might be criticized if it were too revealing, so it probably had to be this way, and she didn’t dwell on it anymore.

…

A few days later, discordant voices appeared online. A newly emerging director, Shi Hua, made an insinuating post on Weibo. Although he didn’t mention names, it was obvious to anyone that he was referring to Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun.

“Is this movie starring you two? Did you win any awards for it? Some so-called ‘little fresh meat’ who just debuted are always trying to get attention with sensational videos and photos. And those brainless fans of yours, a vulgar video makes you so happy? Can your taste get any lower?”

It was understandable that some people were displeased. The video released by the two accumulated over 20 million shares and more than 1 million comments in a single day. This number was still distant from the industry’s top traffic, but for newcomers, it was astonishing.

Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun were already used to some people disliking their approach, but their fans were not happy. Large groups of fans immediately descended upon the director’s Weibo to condemn him.

“Be jealous if you’re jealous, but stop rambling nonsense. You’ve ruined all your goodwill.”

“You’ve been acting for years without becoming famous and your directorial efforts have flopped. Are you now reduced to piggybacking on the popularity of newcomers you look down upon just to gain attention? How pathetic!”

“How did our sharing and commenting bother you, old man? Did we eat your meat or drink your blood?”

The Z.X fans were relatively civilized, at least they didn’t resort to insults about his private parts or ancestors, but even so, facing countless comments and private messages, the director felt a headache. He couldn’t deal with them all and couldn’t win the cursing match, so he directly called out Xiao Baijun and Zuo Qiu on Weibo.

“Are you not going to manage your own fans?”

Since ancient times, the celebrity pays for the fans’ mistakes. Although Zuo Qiu and Xiao Baijun felt that the other party was asking for trouble, given the current situation, they had to say something.

“We particularly understand and appreciate Director Shi’s intention to educate and support the younger generation of actors. We look forward to you informing us directly face-to-face or via phone next time; we would be more receptive then. Furthermore, fans have their own right to speak, and we have no right to interfere, but we believe that once the fans understand Director Shi’s good intentions, they will no longer bother you.”

This statement was drafted by Zuo Qiu, and Zhao Zhixian posted it on their behalf. Although the content didn’t contain a single word of direct accusation, it was full of subtle digs: If you have an opinion of us, say it directly to our face; don’t bring up the fans’ faults. Also, you couldn’t win the argument, so you want us to handle it, but we don’t have that authority. Of course, for your sake, we will call on our fans not to trouble you anymore.

After this subtly insulting statement was released, the fans felt very satisfied. They most feared having a spoiled idol who was clueless, helping them fight outside only to be betrayed by their own idol. Fortunately, Z.X was not like that. As a result, most of the fans subsided and stopped bothering Shi Hua. Shi Hua was furious but dared not argue back.

After this incident, Xiao Baijun gained two important insights: First, it was time for them to open individual Weibo accounts; Zuo Qiu was perfectly capable of managing his own Weibo. Second, to enrich their future life, they must find a large house with a swimming pool, after all, when they wanted to do something intimate in someone else’s pool, they had to find excuses to send away unrelated people, just like now!