The Scumbag A Really Doesn't Want to Become Famous [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 20

Yu Youqing thought to herself.

If she were bold enough, she should say right now: “Kiss me, and I’ll know if it’s real.”

But she didn’t dare because she already knew it was real.

The moment Jiang Musheng leaned in, the cramped space inside the car became suffocating. Especially when Jiang Musheng spoke, the warmth of her breath brushed against Yu Youqing’s ear, sending waves of tingling sensations down her spine.

Still dazed, Yu Youqing resignedly pulled up the friend request interface on her phone. Only then did she sense Jiang Musheng chuckle softly, and only then did she feel like she could breathe again.

After adding each other as friends, the car door finally unlocked.

Silently, Yu Youqing walked upstairs with Jiang Musheng and retreated straight into her room.

Because she knew Jiang Musheng was home, she could only scream internally, over and over again.

Ahhhhhhhh!

Even in a drama, they wouldn’t dare write something like this, a top-tier idol asking for my WeChat? And saying she wants to “give it a try” with me?

So, what kind of “try” did Jiang Musheng mean?

A casual chat kind of try, or that kind of casual try?

She wasn’t naive to the ways of this industry. She knew that if Jiang Musheng so much as crooked a finger, any omega would gladly throw themselves at her.

So after turning it over in her mind again and again, Yu Youqing could only conclude that Jiang Musheng’s words were half-joke, half-truth.

She stared at her phone.

They had added each other half an hour ago, but their chat window remained empty except for the system notification:

[Congratulations! You are now friends. Start chatting!]

Chat about, what?

Yu Youqing clicked into Jiang Musheng’s Moments. There were no personal photos, just sporadic updates every six months or so, mostly promotional posts for her dramas.

This woman’s private life was either genuinely dull or entirely consumed by work.

When her phone buzzed, Yu Youqing’s heart nearly leapt out of her chest. She quickly exited Jiang Musheng’s Moments.

Tiantian: [Sis, the statement’s been posted. Everything’s fine now! It’s a good thing Teacher Jiang didn’t make a big deal out of it. When I first arrived and saw her in the conference room, I almost had a heart attack! But turns out she’s actually pretty easy to talk to.]

Tiantian: [I think this is a great opportunity, sis!]

Tiantian: [I was worried we’d end up on Teacher Jiang’s bad side, but turns out she and President Lin are good friends. That’s some solid backing!]

Tiantian: [If you ignore the hate, this whole thing actually boosted your visibility. At least three mid-tier endorsements have reached out to us. But our main focus should still be securing that dating show.]

This was insider information.

Domestic streaming giant Orange Platform was currently preparing a new dating reality show, backed by hefty capital and, naturally, high standards. Previous dating shows could get away with casting ordinary people, scripting drama, and editing clips to keep audiences hooked. But this one aimed higher, imposing stricter requirements for guests.

The first rule was non-negotiable: only those with sufficient popularity would receive an invitation.

Yu Youqing had just made her comeback, clearly not yet qualified for such opportunities, but this wave of popularity gave her a significant boost.

In the past, she might have chatted more with Tiantian about work matters, but now her mind was completely elsewhere.

“……”

[Can I not go to the dating show?]

Yu Youqing knew it was unlikely. She had already promised the company to follow their arrangements, and backing out now would be too costly.

She let out a sigh and stared blankly at her phone screen.

Had Jiang Musheng given her too many illusions, making her want to act on impulse for once?

But she knew better, she had no right to be capricious in her current state.

Tiantian: [???]

Tiantian fired back: [Sis! Are you crazy?! That dating show’s six episodes will earn you seven figures!]

Well, that settled it. Tiantian’s words instantly snuffed out the tiny spark in Yu Youqing’s heart.

What did it matter whether she acted on impulse or not? Money was what really counted.

So she turned off her phone, took a deep breath, and tried to think rationally.

Damn it, there was no way she could calm down.

Just the thought of Jiang Musheng saying “let’s try” made her heart race uncontrollably, the kind of nervous, flustered loss of control.

She reopened her phone and, after some hesitation, sent Tiantian a message: [Uh, just asking, if an impossibly perfect alpha were to start dating someone, what do you think the reason would be?]

After sending this probing question, several minutes passed with no response from Tiantian, likely stunned by the inquiry.

Just as Yu Youqing assumed Tiantian wouldn’t reply and was about to add that it was just a joke, a flood of question marks appeared on the screen, as if Tiantian had finally snapped back to reality.

[Sis, do you have feelings for Jiang Musheng?]

Yu Youqing: ?

How did Tiantian jump straight to the nuclear option?! Sure, she felt something, but to say she’d fallen for Jiang Musheng already? That was a stretch.

The chat showed Tiantian was still typing, so Yu Youqing waited.

[You absolutely, absolutely have to hold it together. Aren’t you the woman who’s all about making money? How can you get tangled up in romance?!]

[Most importantly, your AO compatibility with Jiang Musheng would probably score negative in the eyes of the entire internet. Seriously.]

[That said, if anyone actually managed to get with Jiang Musheng, they’d basically skyrocket to the top. Money would just come pouring in on its own.]

Yu Youqing pondered.

She hadn’t said anything, how did Tiantian immediately know she was talking about Jiang Musheng?

But then again, it made sense.

An impossibly perfect alpha, combined with context, who else could it be but Jiang Musheng?

As long as she wasn’t face-to-face with Jiang Musheng, Yu Youqing’s thoughts remained clear. Her fingers hovered over the screen, about to respond, when another message popped up.

Tiantian: [And don’t you remember? Jiang Musheng still has that white moonlight. You know what they say childhood sweethearts can’t beat sudden encounters, and sudden encounters can’t beat the white moonlight in someone’s heart!]

The mention of the “white moonlight” doused the tiny flicker in Yu Youqing’s heart like a downpour, extinguishing it completely.

She replied: [Just a random question. You’re overthinking it.]

Setting her phone aside, Yu Youqing let out a faint, inexplicable laugh and murmured, “Must’ve been a momentary lapse of judgment.”

She was well aware of it.

In her previous life, after her fame faded, her luck gradually ran out, and she ended up dying in desolation, forgotten by everyone. Even if her lingering curiosity about Jiang Musheng from that past life had carried over to now, it was about time to put a stop to it.

She had been given a rare second chance, and she didn’t know if she would fall ill again later. Before that, the best course of action was to save enough money and leave the industry.

Besides, wasn’t she supposed to film a drama with Jiang Musheng later? Given that, staying friends was the best option, anything else would just lead to awkwardness. No matter what might happen between them, Yu Youqing needed to keep her position clear.

Taking it a step further, as an omega, even without any emotional involvement, she and Jiang Musheng, an alpha, could easily be drawn together by instinct during certain periods. That made things even more dangerous.

Although Yu Youqing had never had the chance to experience love herself, she was a firm believer in true love. She disliked the idea of her emotions being influenced by alpha-omega compatibility or pheromonal attraction, and she certainly didn’t want to be anyone’s stand-in for a lost love.

But as she thought about it.

Before her rebirth, she and Jiang Musheng had barely crossed paths. It was only after being reborn that their interactions increased.

Still, it wasn’t enough to develop feelings. So when Jiang Musheng had asked her, “Want to give it a try?” after the initial confusion wore off and she calmed down, Yu Youqing could only conclude one thing:

Was Jiang Musheng nearing her rut? That would explain the heightened craving for an omega, or perhaps she was just looking for a convenient substitute.

Coincidentally, neither scenario was something Yu Youqing could accept. So she decided to focus on her work and keep her distance from Jiang Musheng the rest of the time. That would be best for both of them.

Before going to bed, Yu Youqing reached up to touch the back of her neck, then opened the bedside drawer to check the suppressants she kept inside. Only then did she turn off the light and close her eyes.

Her heat was approaching soon better safe than sorry.

At three in the morning, Yu Youqing woke up from the dryness in her throat.

Perhaps due to the stress and overthinking from earlier, she found herself wide awake unusual for someone who never got up during the night.

After checking the time on her phone, she tried to go back to sleep, but gave up after a few minutes and got out of bed.

She went downstairs to the kitchen for water.

At this hour, there was no risk of running into Jiang Musheng.

She filled a glass of water, moving quietly out of habit. Even though this was her rented home too, after tonight’s conversation with Jiang Musheng, she couldn’t help feeling uneasy moving around.

In fact, once she attributed Jiang Musheng’s behavior to lingering feelings for a lost love or mere biological impulses, the weight in Yu Youqing’s chest lifted.

Deep down, she never believed Jiang Musheng could genuinely like her.

That kind of preferential treatment only made her uneasy.

Yu Youqing stared blankly at her half-empty glass of water.

She came from an unremarkable background.

The reason she had entered the entertainment industry so early was simply to earn money quickly. Her family was ordinary; she had been raised by her grandparents and never felt secure.

So when she rose to fame, she soared fast and fell just as hard. Back then, Yu Youqing didn’t understand the rules of this industry. Charging ahead recklessly, her downfall had been inevitable.

She seemed to recall something, a faint smile curving her lips.

Back then, despite being hot-tempered and willful, her thoughts had been the purest, doing whatever she wanted without hesitation, truly childlike at heart.

Unlike now, where everything had to be weighed and reconsidered after growing up.

Yu Youshen turned around, only for the smile on her lips to freeze instantly.

The person standing by the window seemed to sense her gaze and turned around, meeting her eyes before walking toward the kitchen.

Yu Youshen had no idea how long Jiang Musheng had been standing there. There had been a blind spot when she came downstairs, so she hadn’t noticed her presence at all.

Was she unable to sleep this late at night?

The room wasn’t lit, but the moonlight spilling in made it easy enough to see.

As Jiang Musheng approached, Yu Youshen instinctively shifted slightly to the side and spoke first, “Can’t sleep, Teacher Jiang?”

Jiang Musheng nodded. “Just thinking about some things.”

That must’ve been quite a long while glancing at the time, Yu Youshen thought silently.

Jiang Musheng studied her. “You can’t sleep either?”

“Just thirsty, came down for water.” Yu Youshen shook her head, avoiding Jiang Musheng’s gaze. Looking at her expression would only make her restless, unsure how to react. Better to avert her eyes. “I’ll head back up.”

Her evasion didn’t escape Jiang Musheng’s notice. Just as Yu Youshen was about to walk past her, the woman suddenly caught her wrist.

Yu Youshen’s heart skipped a beat, and the glass in her hand slipped, shattering with a sharp crack on the floor.

“Don’t move!”

Yu Youshen blurted out, immediately crouching to gather the broken pieces. There was no way she’d let Jiang Musheng clean up after her.

But in her haste, she didn’t notice a small shard slicing her finger.

Before she could even react, she was abruptly pulled to her feet.

“You!”

The moment she looked up and saw Jiang Musheng’s stern expression, the rest of her words died in her throat.

“Let me.” Jiang Musheng spotted the cut on Yu Youshen’s finger and immediately guided her to the living room, seating her on the sofa before retrieving the first aid kit.

Watching her busy herself, Yu Youshen said, “No need to go through all this trouble.”

But Jiang Musheng had already turned on the lights, replacing the moonlight with artificial brightness and dispelling any lingering drowsiness Yu Youshen had. Opening the kit, Jiang Musheng took out antiseptic and a cotton swab, kneeling before her to disinfect the wound.

The cool touch made Yu Youshen shiver. Ignoring the inexplicable flutter in her chest, she extended her hand. “Teacher Jiang, I can do it myself.”

Jiang Musheng frowned, the cotton swab still in her grip.

“It’s just a small cut, no need to worry. It’ll heal by tomorrow.” Yu Youshen wasn’t too concerned it was just a regular glass, and the injury was minor. No need for such a fuss.

When she reached for the swab, Jiang Musheng refused to hand it over. Yu Youshen stared at her in confusion.

Jiang Musheng repeated firmly, “Let me.”

Fine, then.

Yu Youshen couldn’t hold Jiang Musheng’s gaze for long before surrendering. In this silent standoff, she was acutely reminded of the undeniable dominance an alpha held over an omega. Reluctantly, she yielded.

A little blood still seeped out. In the end, Jiang Musheng frowned thoughtfully. Yu Youqing watched as Jiang Musheng pondered for a moment before taking out gauze from the first aid kit, and a question mark slowly rose in her heart.

“Uh, that’s not necessary. Teacher Jiang, you’re not thinking of bandaging this, are you?”

Jiang Musheng: “Why not?” Her hands paused momentarily.

Yu Youqing instinctively pulled her hand back slightly, looking at Jiang Musheng with wary amusement. “It’s just a tiny cut, a band-aid would be more than enough.”

As she reached for the band-aids inside the kit, Jiang Musheng said, “Why won’t you listen to me?”

If it weren’t Jiang Musheng, Yu Youqing might not have even bothered responding. She knew Jiang Musheng meant well, but clearly, the esteemed teacher lacked some basic life experience. It made sense, someone like Jiang Musheng probably had assistants handling everything, never needing to tend to such minor matters herself.

“Teacher Jiang, I can handle it myself, really,” Yu Youqing said after a quick glance at her. “You’re being completely unreasonable.”

Only then did Jiang Musheng straighten up, watching as Yu Youqing retrieved a band-aid before asking, “Why won’t you let me help?”

Yu Youqing replied offhandedly, “You do your own things yourself.”

She applied the band-aid carefully.

Jiang Musheng went to the kitchen to sweep up the broken pieces, forcing Yu Youqing to halt her planned escape back to her room.

With her task taken over, Yu Youqing now found herself with nothing to do. She sat there awkwardly, preparing to thank Jiang Musheng later.

An unspoken understanding settled between them neither brought up their earlier conversation again.

After finishing, Jiang Musheng returned and studied Yu Youqing’s face. After a moment, she suddenly chuckled softly.

Yu Youqing was baffled.
“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. Let me wipe your face, then you can go back to sleep.” When Jiang Musheng returned with a damp cotton pad and a basin of water, Yu Youqing finally grew uncomfortable and reiterated, “Teacher Jiang, I—”

“‘I’ll do it myself’? How many times have I heard that tonight?” Jiang Musheng wasn’t oblivious to Yu Youqing’s guardedness, toward her, and perhaps toward everyone.

This was the most noticeable change in Yu Youqing. Gone was the willful girl from before; the past two years had clearly taken their toll. Now, she was obedient, considerate, and cooperative, even with the company’s less reasonable demands.

Yet compared to her general wariness, there seemed to be an extra layer of caution reserved specifically for Jiang Musheng.

Earlier, Jiang Musheng had been mulling over what Lin Xuqiao mentioned before leaving:

“That girl has been with the company for over a month now works hard, nothing like the difficult person rumors made her out to be. Take today, for example. She could’ve easily milked your connection endlessly for clout, but she didn’t. In fact, her first instinct was to distance herself from you.”

“Interesting. I thought she’d be the type chasing shortcuts to fame, but she actually wants to climb steadily. Though,  given how fiercely your fans despise hers, I’d say she’s got an uphill battle.”

Lin Xuqiao’s words immediately halted Jiang Musheng’s train of thought.

She had indeed considered using her connections to help Yu Youqing, but she respected Yu’s independence.

“I just don’t want to trouble people. I’ve already bothered you enough,” Yu Youqing said truthfully. After a pause, she added, “Besides, you never really lecture me or make me do anything.”

Jiang Musheng replied, “You weren’t listening when I did try to reason with you.”

Yu immediately knew Jiang was referring to their car conversation earlier. Instinctively wanting to avoid the topic, she resigned herself to letting Jiang wipe her face clean.

Jiang’s movements were gentle, and Yu didn’t dare move, frozen like a statue.

“Done.” Only when Jiang spoke did Yu blink, her lips parting before she finally voiced her thoughts: “This feels like you’re treating me like a child.”

Jiang chuckled in agreement, adding, “You do act like a child sometimes.”

“?” Yu found this remark strangely unsettling. Her first instinct was to retort: “So you were just taking care of a kid then?”

Jiang countered, “Weren’t I?”

Yu glanced at the band-aid on her hand, swallowing her words before finally standing up to leave.

At the staircase, Jiang’s voice followed her: “About what I said in the car earlier. I hope I didn’t scare you.”

Yu turned back seriously, meeting Jiang’s gaze without flinching this time: “Teacher Jiang, I understand. I won’t take it to heart. And about this incident. I’m truly grateful you didn’t make an issue of it. I’ll try not to trouble you as much in the future.”

Jiang frowned, Yu’s response was completely unexpected. “What I meant was—”

“I understand your meaning, Teacher Jiang. But I think you might just find me temporarily interesting. I currently have no such thoughts in that regard.” Yu’s tone was sincere. “Someone as smart as you must know what I’m trying to say. Goodnight.”

With that, Yu fled upstairs like a startled rabbit.

Jiang watched her retreating figure, lost in thought.

She understood perfectly well, Yu was essentially saying: I don’t like you, there’s no possibility between us.

She knew she’d frightened Yu.

Yu woke unusually early the next day.

Normally a late sleeper, she found herself awake at dawn. Sounds from downstairs, what seemed like suitcase wheels caught her attention.

A glance at her phone: barely 6 AM.

Then the front door closed. Jiang must have left with luggage, probably catching a flight.

So she was up until 3 AM last night? The thought popped unbidden into Yu’s mind.

Yu picked up her phone and opened Touchbo.

Compared to yesterday, the scarf incident’s heat had cooled somewhat, though it still lingered in the top seven trending topics. With nothing better to do, Yu bravely clicked into the hashtag.

[“I only believe it’s because our Teacher Jiang is kind and doesn’t hold grudges. Anyone can tell this scarf situation is just Yu Youqing trying to ride on her coattails.”]

[“My heart aches for our Teacher Jiang.”]

[“When will Yu Youqing finally fade into obscurity??? #FlopYuSquad#”]

[“Ugh, and how dare she ask Teacher Jiang to scoop snow for her on the variety show? Doesn’t she know his hands can’t touch cold? She’s doing this on purpose!”]

“To be fair, unless you’re a fan of Teacher Jiang, it’s hard to know that detail. Maybe it was just a coincidence.”

“There are no coincidences with her. She’s just being pretentious.”

“I actually thought Yu Youqing seemed considerate on the show, she even brought extra coats. But now everything feels calculated after this incident.”

“Becoming her fan is absolutely out of the question. Anti-fan material at best.”

“I think we shouldn’t be so biased.”

“Right? Last night, Zizi even dropped by our fan group chat and said that scarf was genuinely hers. Yu Youqing was just helping her out by not mentioning it.”

“They’re from the same company. Who’d believe that?”

Yu Youqing was surprised. She’d expected an overwhelming wave of criticism, but there were actually a few comments defending her.

Her mindset was solid these targeted negative remarks didn’t affect her. The supportive comments came from Yin Zi’s fans, who even shared screenshots of Yin Zi’s messages in their group chat.

She also discovered a dedicated anti-fan community called “The Flop Fish Squad” on the platform.

Curious, Yu Youqing clicked in.

The group was created just over twenty days ago around the time of her first red carpet appearance after returning. In less than a month, it had already amassed nearly 80,000 members.

Impressive. So many people dislike me.

[“Yu Youqing hasn’t posted in two days. Too scared to show her face?”]

[“Flop flop flop flop flop!”]

[“Would she dare post? We’d tear her apart! Just seeing her on variety shows annoys me.”]

[“Hahaha she actually had the nerve to prance around Teacher Li Rongcheng, who’s criticized her before. Who does she think she is?”]

[“From the red carpet to this scarf incident, every move she makes is piggybacking on Teacher Jiang. Can’t survive without riding coattails? Check out my comparison chart.”]

The user had meticulously documented every public appearance Yu Youqing made outfits, details, timestamps with forensic precision.

If she didn’t know better, Yu Youqing might have mistaken this hater for her most devoted fan.

She was still browsing with amusement when Tiantian messaged her:

[“Free tonight? There’s a livestream promo for that web series, you’ll be with Cheng Shunzhu.”]

Cheng Shunzhu, the male lead from her recent web drama, was a few years younger. He’d gained popularity as a campus heartthrob before graduating and was now testing the waters in acting. As an omega playing her younger brother (while she portrayed an alpha sister), he’d often chatted with Yu Youqing on set. Compared to newcomers like him, her acting skills were passable, so they’d gotten along well.

Her role had been minor, wrapping up quickly.

Yu Youqing replied with an “Understood,” and the phone immediately rang.

An unfamiliar number, but when she saw the location, her gaze paused.

Songcheng?

She hesitated for a moment before answering.

The voice on the other end was poised and confident, laced with a hint of teasing.

“I’ve got an endorsement for you.”

“?” Yu Youqing found the voice familiar but frowned. “You are…”

“Tsk, you heartless woman. I’ve only been gone a few years, and you’ve already forgotten me?” The voice continued, “Darling, you’re really breaking my heart here.”

After a few seconds of silence, a smile spread across Yu Youqing’s face. “Bulbasaur.”

The other end choked on the nickname before letting out an indignant roar: “DON’T YOU DARE CALL ME THAT!!!!”

Yu Youqing had recognized who it was by the second sentence.

Ye Miaoyi, her childhood friend. But when Yu Youqing entered the entertainment industry in her teens, Ye Miaoyi had moved abroad with her family, and they lost contact.

“I’m back, but things are a bit complicated right now. I’m still in Songcheng, but I saw you on that variety show.” Ye Miaoyi got straight to the point. “Coincidentally, I have a jewelry brand looking for a spokesperson. I want you.”