The Scumbag A Really Doesn't Want to Become Famous [Entertainment Circle] - Chapter 39

Yu Youqing remained oblivious, feeling that every word she spoke in this moment was unusually quiet and clear. She didn’t have the courage to ask, “Jiang-laoshi, are you serious?”

Before her, Jiang Musheng showed a hint of uncharacteristic hesitation clearly, this wasn’t within her usual expertise. It might even be the first time she had done something like this.

Yu Youqing suddenly recalled Xu Liyu’s words: Jiang Musheng doesn’t really know how to interact with girls.

She had rejected Jiang Musheng many times already. If she refused again this time, Jiang-laoshi might actually be hurt.

But this was still in front of the cameras.

Yu Youqing’s hesitation lasted only a split second. Her gaze inadvertently flickered to the onlookers nearby, but Jiang Musheng seemed completely indifferent, waiting only for her reaction.

Water still dripped from her hands. Yu Youqing met Jiang Musheng’s eyes, and for some inexplicable reason, a reckless surge of courage overtook her. She lowered her head slightly and ate from Jiang Musheng’s hand.

It was sweet, soft and sticky.

“Thank you,” Yu Youqing said. “I’m cooking, so you don’t need to help me like this. I’ll eat later on my own.”

I’ve lost my mind.

The moment she swallowed, rationality returned, and those words flashed through her thoughts.

She knew she had just cleared up the misunderstandings her fans had about her. She had sworn she wouldn’t entertain any other thoughts about Jiang Musheng now was the time to properly distance herself.

But she just couldn’t help it.

Even if she tried to restrain herself from getting closer, the moment Jiang Musheng approached, she couldn’t bear the thought of seeing disappointment on Jiang Musheng’s face if she rejected her again.

Am I insane?

Jiang Musheng remained in the kitchen but stood to the side, not disturbing Yu Youqing’s work. She took a clean small plate from the cupboard, peeled the remaining peanuts, and placed them neatly on the dish.

“Eat them when you have time,” Jiang Musheng said. Then, as Yu Youqing looked up, she took the half-peeled garlic clove from Yu Youqing’s hand, Yu Youqing was still crouching and pulled her up with her other hand. “I’ll do it.”

Cheng Shunzhu, who had been watching from the side, finally couldn’t hold back. “Should I help?”

Yu Youqing and Jiang Musheng answered in unison: “No need.”

Cheng Shunzhu: “??”

Ji Fu sighed. “Come on, are you trying to blow up the kitchen? Jiang-laoshi and Xiao Yu are working so well together, we’d just get in the way.”

She leaned in and whispered in Cheng Shunzhu’s ear, “You really don’t know how to create opportunities for Jiang-laoshi, do you?”

[Camera! Move the camera over, damn it!!!]

[Ugh, I really don’t want to see Yu Youqing and Jiang-laoshi standing together, but when the camera cut away, I actually wanted more?]

[What’s wrong with me? Am I just letting my morals follow my aesthetic preferences? How can I ship Yu Youqing and Sheng-sheng?!]

[Fans, can we not be so biased? Didn’t Xiao Xu and Jiang-laoshi both clarify that the whole ‘stealing resources’ thing was a misunderstanding? Shouldn’t we acknowledge that Yu Youqing is actually quite thoughtful?]

[Exactly. These past two days, Yu Youqing has been keeping her distance from Jiang-laoshi, she even skipped the scheduled date on the show. It’s obvious she’s avoiding any misunderstandings because of what the fans said. She definitely saw all the hate online.]

[But Yu Youqing is still a scandal-ridden celebrity, no question. Does the internet have no memory?]

[“Is the malice towards people really that strong? All those so-called scandals about Yu Youqing you’re talking about come from online posts. Let me ask you this has Yu Youqing herself ever said a single word about it? Is there any actual evidence from others? Laughable. Isn’t it all just hearsay starting with ‘I heard from someone that Yu Youqing did this or that’?”]

[“This is beyond ridiculous. Just because she helped Teacher Jiang with a sandwich, now she’s being whitewashed?”]

[“I also think it’s absurd. Have you all been blind to Yu Youqing’s performance these past few days? Has she done anything wrong? Isn’t it precisely because of comments like yours that she chose not to go on the dating task with Teacher Jiang?”]

[“Ever since Yu Youqing left her previous agency, the scandals have been piling up. Anyone who’s been in fandom for a while knows about PR control. Let’s be reasonable here.”]

[“What’s all the arguing about? I just want to watch the show in peace.”]

[“Honestly, I used to be a Yu Youqing anti too, but haven’t you noticed? Everyone on the show gets along really well with her after spending time together.”]

[“+1! Everyone is drawn to her, especially our Bamboo, she’s practically smitten, lol.”]

Yu Youqing had no idea the barrage of comments had already erupted into chaos. With Jiang Musheng’s help by her side, she finished cooking quickly.

Jiang Musheng noticed her gaze flickering towards Xu Liyu for a brief moment and frowned slightly, wanting to say something but unsure of her own position to bring it up.

Should she ask why Yu Youqing was so concerned about Xu Liyu? Back at the bar, she had personally witnessed Yu Youqing hitting on Xu Liyu.

At the time, she thought it might have been a misunderstanding, but now it seemed that might not be the case.

Jiang Musheng’s frown deepened, lingering even after the meal was over.

Yu Youqing deliberately brought over the plate of peanuts Jiang Musheng had left for her and ate them one by one.

After dinner, Yu Youqing was about to head upstairs to rest when the director called her over.

The others had gone to clean up in the kitchen, so she walked over to the director. “Director Zhao, what’s up?”

Zhao Yang and the assistant director stood together, both smiling, though their expressions carried a hint of hesitation.

“Well,” the assistant director said, holding her phone, the screen still flooded with rapidly refreshing comments. She showed it to Yu Youqing, who saw her own and Jiang Musheng’s names popping up most frequently.

Yu Youqing: “?” What was going on?

“Are Jiang Musheng and I being criticized?” That was her first thought.

“No, it’s just that the audience is saying you and Teacher Jiang were supposed to have a date today, and they want us to give it back to you,” the assistant director explained. Since they were off-camera, she spoke candidly. “I also understand that you probably canceled the date because of what people were saying about you and Teacher Jiang.”

“Xiao Yu, you don’t need to worry about these things. Even if it’s just for the sake of the show’s entertainment value,” Director Zhao advised. “Right now, the fans’ demands are overwhelming, so we wanted to discuss with you, would you be willing to go on the date tomorrow?”

Yu Youqing thought to herself that refusing again would be impolite.

After all, artists do serve their fans to some extent and should listen to their feedback especially the positive ones.

“What does Teacher Jiang think?” Yu Youqing pondered carefully. After all, this wasn’t just her decision her verbal agreement alone wouldn’t suffice.

“If you agree, we’ll go talk to Teacher Jiang,” Director Zhao said. “But I’m sure she’ll agree, she always listens to you.”

Yu Youqing found the director’s words somewhat odd, though she couldn’t pinpoint why.

Yu Youqing asked another question, “Where are we going for the date tomorrow?”

Director Zhao: “That’s up to Teacher Jiang to decide. You don’t need to worry about that.”

As she went upstairs, Yu Youqing passed Jiang Musheng’s room and saw the slightly ajar door. Her hand hovered mid-air before dropping back down as she stared at her toes, exhaling slowly.

What would she even say if she knocked? During dinner, she’d noticed Jiang Musheng seemed in low spirits, but what reason did she have to show concern now?

Yu Youqing felt conflicted. While her mind was clear about what she should do, she still found herself confused at times. Around Jiang Musheng, many of her actions seemed beyond her control.

Why?

She felt lost, sensing this had already surpassed mere idol worship. An instinctive awareness of danger made her want to retreat, yet there was an inexplicable pull drawing her toward opening Pandora’s box.

Her toes twitched before she finally lowered her hand completely. Instead of knocking, she returned to her own room.

After she left, the person gripping the doorknob inside pressed their lips into a tight line, only gently closing the door upon hearing the neighboring room’s door shut.

Before bed, Yu Youqing received a message from the director confirming Jiang Musheng’s agreement to continue their two-person date tomorrow.

She asked, “Does it have to be just the two of us?”

The director replied, “You can bring others if you’d like.”

Yu Youqing sighed inwardly. While she wanted to go out alone with Teacher Jiang, tomorrow was the final day of filming, and there would be one last heart-fluttering message. Given how little interaction she’d had with Xu Liyu, it was obvious Xu wouldn’t leave her any such message.

Should she invite CEO Xu to join them tomorrow? Since Jiang Musheng and Xu Liyu were good friends, maybe Jiang would want Xu to come along?

With these thoughts, Yu Youqing slept until eight the next morning.

No specific departure time had been set yesterday, so she hurriedly got ready. Hearing no noise when she opened her door, she assumed the other guests were still asleep, only to find Jiang Musheng sitting on the sofa when she went downstairs.

Yu Youqing checked the time again: 8:20 a.m.

Jiang Musheng, fully made-up with styled hair, was leaning back against the sofa with her eyes closed, seemingly asleep.

Had she gotten up too early?

Yu Youqing tiptoed over. Even when she reached the sofa, Jiang Musheng didn’t stir, genuinely asleep.

Not daring to sit on the same sofa for fear of waking Jiang Musheng, Yu Youqing carefully took a seat opposite, breathing softly.

When footsteps sounded upstairs, Yu Youqing saw Xu Liyu descending and raised a finger to her lips in a quieting gesture.

Xu Liyu: “?”

Yu Youqing whispered, “Teacher Jiang seems to be asleep. Let’s not…”

Before she could finish speaking, Xu Liyu plopped down beside Jiang Musheng and patted her shoulder.

Jiang Musheng hadn’t been sleeping deeply. When she opened her eyes, they were still slightly bloodshot.

The first thing she saw was the stunned expression of Yu Youqing standing before her.

Under Jiang Musheng’s gaze, Yu Youqing hurriedly explained, “N-no, it wasn’t me.”

Jiang Musheng frowned, then noticed Xu Liyu sitting beside her with an inscrutable look.

“What are you doing up so early? Just sitting here all by yourself?” Xu Liyu wasn’t the least bit afraid of Jiang Musheng’s displeasure and continued casually, “Did you come down specifically to wait for Xiao Yu?”

Yu Youqing grew even more flustered. That assumption was way too bold, she couldn’t possibly let that slide.

Jiang Musheng: “Not long.”

Xu Liyu scoffed. “Not long? You fell asleep. Did you not sleep at all last night?”

Yu Youqing, recalling how soundly she had slept the night before, suddenly felt sorry for Jiang Musheng. “Then, do you want to go back up and catch some sleep now?”

Jiang Musheng: “No need.”

“Oh my god, I get it now!” Xu Liyu’s eyes lit up as if she had just discovered something groundbreaking. “You couldn’t sleep last night because you have a date with Xiao Yu today, didn’t you?”

Xu Liyu felt like she was seeing a whole new side of Jiang Musheng, one even she, as a friend, had never witnessed before.

Yu Youqing’s expression turned even more bewildered. No matter what reason Jiang Musheng might have had for losing sleep, this one definitely wouldn’t have made her list.

She awkwardly fidgeted, unsure where to put her hands, before finally tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She had no idea what to say in this situation.

“You don’t have to say everything that comes to mind.” Jiang Musheng noticed Yu Youqing’s nervous gestures and shot Xu Liyu a warning look to stop her from making things even more awkward for the girl.

Xu Liyu made an “OK” gesture.

Now fully awake, Jiang Musheng stood and walked over to Yu Youqing, lowering her voice. “Liyu speaks too bluntly. If she offended you in any way, I’ll talk to her.”

“It’s fine, really! Just jokes, I know.” Yu Youqing quickly took the out. “Should we head out soon?”

“If you’re ready, we can leave now.” Jiang Musheng had already prepared everything.

Xu Liyu opened her mouth to tease them again, but Jiang Musheng silenced her with a single glance.

Jiang Musheng: “Breakfast?”

Yu Youqing nodded, glancing at Xu Liyu before hesitantly turning back to Jiang Musheng. “Should we invite Xu Liyu along?”

Jiang Musheng, who had been about to walk out, paused mid-step. When she turned back, she saw the cautious hesitation in Yu Youqing’s expression, as if she was afraid of being rejected. The moment Jiang Musheng looked at her, Yu Youqing immediately added, “It’s okay if not! I just thought—”

She couldn’t quite explain herself. She certainly couldn’t tell Jiang Musheng the real reason that she still had a mission to complete or she’d give herself away.

Xu Liyu, upon hearing Yu Youqing’s suggestion, didn’t seem the least bit surprised. Instead, she looked thrilled. She was more than happy to witness Jiang Musheng and Yu Youqing’s first “date.”

Countless thoughts flashed through Jiang Musheng’s mind, but the most plausible one was that Yu Youqing simply felt awkward going alone after all, it was their first time.

“That was inconsiderate of me.” Jiang Musheng nodded and turned to Xu Liyu. “Coming?”

Xu Liyu: “Of course, I’m only going for Xiao Yu’s sake, not for you.”

Yu Youqing smiled and said, “Thank you, President Xu. Come on, let me treat you to breakfast.”

Yu Youqing naturally felt more at ease when she was with Xu Liyu. She was immersed in the joy of having completed the first step of her task. Walking ahead with Xu Liyu, she suddenly realized someone was missing. Turning back, she saw Jiang Musheng lagging slowly behind.

“Teacher Jiang, where are we going today?” Yu Youqing slowed her pace and gradually returned to Jiang Musheng’s side. “Teacher Jiang, what do you like for breakfast?”

Jiang Musheng replied, “Anything but peanuts.”

“That’s cold humor. Stop freezing people in the middle of winter,” Xu Liyu shivered. “Get in the car.”

A car was waiting outside.

Xu Liyu scrambled in first. Jiang Musheng took a step forward, and as Yu Youqing got into the car, Jiang Musheng raised her hand to shield Yu Youqing’s head from the doorframe, then casually lowered it once Yu Youqing was safely inside.

“The date activity is pretty ordinary. When the production team came to me yesterday to choose, I picked an amusement park,” Jiang Musheng said, sitting beside Yu Youqing. “The director said most girls probably like that sort of thing. I’ve never had that kind of experience before, so I just went with their suggestion.”

Yu Youqing nodded. “That’s fine. I’m not picky.”

She had never been to one before. As a child, she had wanted to go, but no one took her. After entering the entertainment industry as an adult, she had filmed scenes at amusement parks, but the experience was nothing like going for fun.

And now she was going with Jiang Musheng, no less.

Xu Liyu muttered from the backseat, “How cliché.”

They grabbed a quick breakfast on the way. After a half-hour drive, the car arrived at the amusement park entrance.

Since they were filming for the show and the park was a public space, bodyguards immediately surrounded them as they stepped out of the car.

The moment they entered, Yu Youqing’s eyes sparkled with curiosity as she took in the surroundings. Her gaze lingered on an ice cream stand nearby, unable to tear away.

Jiang Musheng noticed immediately. Just as she was about to speak, Xu Liyu nudged her arm and said, “Does Xiao Yu want some? Aren’t you going to get it for her?”

But as Jiang Musheng was about to move, she overheard a conversation between two girls nearby.

“I want ice cream. Let’s go get some!”

“No way! Eating something that cold will upset your stomach, not to mention you know your body can’t handle it. You’ll get cramps!”

“Come on, just this once won’t hurt.”

“Not even once! You can’t have cold stuff like this in winter.”

“Just one bite! One bite!”

The two girls walked off, still arguing.

Yu Youqing couldn’t resist the sweet temptation. As they passed the stand, she backtracked two steps, looking pleadingly at Jiang Musheng. “Teacher Jiang, should we get some?”

Jiang Musheng recalled the girls’ conversation and noticed the faint pallor in Yu Youqing’s fingertips.

For the cameras, everyone wore flawless makeup, making it impossible to tell if their complexion was healthy. But Jiang Musheng could tell from Yu Youqing’s fingers that her constitution probably wasn’t the strongest.

Xu Liyu gave Jiang Musheng a push. “Go on!”

Yu Youqing thought Jiang Musheng would follow her, but instead, Jiang gently grasped her wrist. The moment her fingers touched Yu Youqing’s skin, Jiang felt only icy coldness. She frowned slightly and said, “Not now.”

“But I really want it now,” Yu Youqing shook her head, her craving for the ice cream cone instantly flaring up. “If you won’t go, I’ll go with CEO Xu.”

Xu Liyu happily stepped forward. “Let’s go, I’ll take you!” She immediately linked arms with Yu Youqing and pulled her toward the stall.

When they reached the counter, Yu Youqing instructed the vendor, “Make the swirl as tall as possible, and the tip on top extra long.”

“CEO Xu, did you bring any money?”

Xu Liyu patted her pockets, already munching on her own cone. Her expression froze for a second. “I didn’t even think about that. No cash. My phone’s from the production crew. I have a bank card will that work?”

The vendor: “We’re not that high-tech here.”

Jiang Musheng watched as the two stood frozen at the stall, each holding a cone. Without a word, she walked over, pulled ten yuan from her pocket, and handed it to the vendor.

Yu Youqing was stunned that Jiang Musheng actually carried cash. She stared blankly at her, an inexplicable guilt creeping into her heart.

Jiang sighed. “Didn’t you want it badly? Hurry up.” Even in winter, it would still melt.

Yu Youqing gave a small “oh” and brought the cone’s tip to her lips. The moment she licked it, the towering, overfilled scoop, balanced precariously on its elongated peak lost its equilibrium.

Standing so close to Jiang Musheng, she could only watch helplessly as her ice cream ball plopped onto Jiang’s clothes with a soft “pat,” then slid slowly downward.

Jiang Musheng: “?”

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