Luo Qi proactively handed over her phone, and a pale-toned photo came into Rong Xu’s view.

The lighting in the photo was quite dim, clearly taken inside a room. Faintly visible in the background was a white wool carpet, and a slender, thin hand was casually placed in front of the lens, capturing the image.

The photo was heavily blurred and covered with multiple layers of mosaic censorship. Seeing the photo, Rong Xu couldn’t help but let out a soft chuckle. He looked up at Luo Qi and asked, “I thought the activity was about taking pictures of your own hand? She took a picture of her boyfriend’s hand, fine, but why did she make it look like this?”

His tone was casual, as if he regarded Lotus Paste Orange Filling as a friend.

In reality, celebrities are just ordinary people. Their work may differ from others, requiring them to frequently appear in public view, but most stars regularly interact with fans and don’t consider themselves superior.

Luo Qi, already quite familiar with this “rich fan,” nodded: “Well, it’s not like she can’t take a photo like this, but Rong Xu, who else would dare to? No one would repost, comment, or like it if it looked like this—there’s no chance to get any rank. It’s only because she’s Lotus Paste Orange Filling. If anyone else did this, they wouldn’t dare.”

After chatting a bit more, Luo Qi took back her phone.

But just as she was about to put it away, Rong Xu looked down at the photo again and suddenly said, “Wait a minute.”

Luo Qi was stunned. Under the bright lights, the handsome and clear-looking young man furrowed his brows slightly, carefully examining the photo again.

Rong Xu reached out, and Luo Qi handed the phone back to him. He lowered his head and silently studied the photo for over a minute before returning the phone to Luo Qi.

Puzzled, frowning, Luo Qi pondered for a moment and couldn’t help but ask, “Rong Xu, what are you looking at?”

After a moment with no response, she asked again.

After a short pause, Rong Xu gently smiled and looked at her: “It just feels a little strange, so I’m looking again.”

Luo Qi laughed: “Right? This photo is super weird. The way she put the mosaic, I almost didn’t recognize it was a hand at first glance.”

This time, Rong Xu didn’t answer, instead chatting about some other topics with Luo Qi.

Soon, they both went back to their own tasks. Luo Qi was busy coordinating with fan group leaders about upcoming support projects, planning a joint effort for the Ying You Het event; Rong Xu returned to his computer but, after putting on his headphones, silently took them off again.

Luo Qi kept her head down chatting with the fan leaders, not noticing Rong Xu’s actions.

The young man’s eyes flickered with a complex, strange light, his gaze unfocused, fixed at a point in the air. After hesitating for a long time, Rong Xu took out his own phone and opened “Quietly Following.”

In that section, he followed only three people, all of whom were his own fans. Two were prominent fan circle leaders who had organized support for the “Silent” crew last time. The last one, of course, was Lotus Paste Orange Filling.

Opening Lotus Paste Orange Filling’s latest Weibo post, looking at the photo so blurred that it was almost impossible to tell it was a hand, the young man’s clear eyes narrowed slightly as he carefully scrutinized it for five minutes before finally averting his gaze.

Rong Xu pocketed his phone and resumed listening to Lin Xuan’s song. However, while listening, he kept his lips tightly pressed and brows furrowed, as if pondering something unresolved.

An hour later, the two boarded the plane, which smoothly took off, heading across the ocean.

These days, to promote the film, Rong Xu and Luo Qi were both exhausted. The latter had fallen asleep soundly soon after the plane stabilized, but Rong Xu kept his eyes closed, eyelashes flickering. When the flight attendant passed by, he raised his hand and asked her to pour him a glass of water, his eyes showing no trace of sleepiness.

“Lotus… Orange Filling?”

The boy softly murmured the name, his faint voice drowned by the loud engine noise.

After much reflection and contemplation, Rong Xu finally sighed, burying his confusion deep inside as he gradually fell asleep.

Earlier in the waiting room, Rong Xu said the photo felt strange. Luo Qi thought it was because of the exaggerated mosaic, but she didn’t know Rong Xu felt… the photo had a strangely familiar quality.

At first glance, nothing seemed wrong, but the more he looked, the more inexplicably familiar it felt.

Even though the hand’s features were indistinct and unrecognizable, maybe due to the casual pose or a slight habitual movement of spreading the fingers, there was an eerie familiarity that made Rong Xu more and more unsettled, yet he could never find the answer.

Of course, Rong Xu didn’t know that during the more than twenty hours he and Luo Qi spent flying back to China, some comments were quietly spreading under Lotus Paste Orange Filling’s Weibo post.

Last night, after Lotus Paste Orange Filling accidentally posted the photo with a shadow in it, although she deleted it within two minutes, some fast-reacting netizens had saved it. Once one netizen has the photo, inevitably some experts would appear to brighten and enhance it to see what the reflected person in the glass really looked like.

Many fans eagerly awaited the expert’s photoshopped result. When Lotus Paste Orange Filling just arrived at the capital’s airport and opened her phone, she instantly received hundreds of comments.

“QAQ Even though the expert says the face can’t be seen, I still feel Lotus must be really handsome! I want to see!”

“Why is there a light blocking the face? Sniff sniff, I just want to see what Orange Goddess’s boyfriend looks like (:з」∠)”

“Hehe, forget it, if we can’t see it, we can’t. Maybe Lotus isn’t good looking? You know the ‘back view charm’ thing, super pretty from behind but disappointing from the front. Let’s just keep a little mystery, what if Lotus’s face… cough, doesn’t suit his aura? That’d be bad~ keep the mystery 23333”

In the bright and spacious airport, the man suddenly stopped walking, staring at the photos in astonishment.

Xu Jin immediately turned and looked at him: “Qin Cheng?”

His thin lips slowly pressed together. Qin Cheng thought for a moment, started walking forward, and began contacting the “expert” netizen mentioned by others.

This expert was just an ordinary netizen, but her friend happened to have saved the photo Lotus Paste Orange Filling posted earlier. The expert was good at Photoshop and could brighten the picture, so everyone was curious to see her editing results.

After Lotus Paste Orange Filling found her and solemnly asked her not to spread her boyfriend’s photo, the netizen felt very apologetic, repeatedly apologizing. She promised never to invade Lotus Paste Orange Filling’s privacy again and would immediately ask her friend to delete the photo.

After all this, Qin Cheng calmly looked at his phone screen, then opened his Weibo private messages. He found a fan group leader he had communicated with before and straightforwardly asked for help to stop fans from spreading such photos.

The moderator didn’t immediately react after seeing the private message from Lotus Paste Orange Filling, but she quickly recalled what had happened the previous night. She immediately assured Lotus Paste Orange Filling that she would post a notice on the forum asking fans not to keep such photos. At the same time, if any private photos of Lotus Paste Orange Filling’s boyfriend appeared in Rong Xu’s fan forums, they would be deleted immediately.

These measures might not guarantee that every netizen would delete the photos they had saved, but basically, it could stop the photo from continuing to spread online.

After all, Lotus Paste Orange Filling wasn’t a celebrity, just an ordinary wealthy fan. Many Rong fans, after hearing from their fan leaders that Lotus Paste Orange Filling was very concerned about this matter, didn’t think much of it and casually deleted the photos.

So, after about twenty hours, when Rong Xu set foot on the land of Huaxia, the photo had already disappeared from Weibo and forums.

Luo Zhentao personally came to the airport to pick up Rong Xu. On the way, Luo Xi reported to Luo Zhentao about Rong Xu’s recent schedule. After hearing the details, Luo Zhentao told Rong Xu to get ready to go to City S three days later for rehearsals for a concert.

“Lin Xuan’s concert will have thirty thousand fans attending. Xiao Xu, since this is your first time participating in a concert, you might be a bit nervous. When you rehearse, communicate well with Lin Xuan and let him share some of his experience. That should help.”

The handsome and elegant young man was looking down at his phone without responding.

Luo Zhentao asked, “Xiao Xu?”

Feeling a sudden pause in his heart, Rong Xu turned off his phone and looked up with a smile, saying, “Brother Luo, I know.”

Still a bit worried, Luo Zhentao continued to remind him, “I’ll be going to City S with you this time. Since it’s your first concert, even if we don’t continue in the music industry later, we can’t completely give up this path. I actually know Lin Xuan’s manager; we’ve had dinner a few times before. When we arrive in City S…”

The image of that photo flashed in Rong Xu’s mind. He curled his lips, pushing the matter aside. After Luo Zhentao finished speaking, he smiled helplessly and asked, “Brother Luo, are you a little nervous?”

Luo Zhentao was stunned. “Huh?”

The young man’s smile grew even brighter. “Don’t be nervous. It’s just a concert. I only have to sing three songs, and Lin Xuan is experienced, so there won’t be any problems.”

Luo Zhentao stammered an answer. Rong Xu, however, smiled calmly and confidently. Watching the two, Luo Xi blinked and suddenly chuckled, “Xiao Xu, Brother Luo, you two remind me of a saying.”

Rong Xu raised an eyebrow. “What saying?”

Without thinking, Luo Xi blurted out, “It’s ‘The emperor is not anxious, but the eunuch is…’” Her voice abruptly stopped as she realized what she’d said.

Luo Zhentao twitched at the corner of his mouth. “Luo Xi!”

The car instantly echoed with Luo Xi’s pleading sounds.

Seeing one angry and the other apologizing, Rong Xu couldn’t help but curve his lips and show a warm and serene smile.

He had known Luo Zhentao for over a year. When they first met, Luo Zhentao was just an ordinary second-tier agent in Huaxia Entertainment. Now, he had become a top-tier agent and secured his position.

Luo Zhentao was never stupid. Now with more resources, he made extensive use of his connections. Not only did he find many good resources for Rong Xu and help promote and expand his influence step by step, but he also picked some good scripts for several other young celebrities under him.

A year ago, Luo Zhentao’s only top-tier star left Huaxia Entertainment, causing him a huge setback. A year later, he became Rong Xu’s agent, gaining more prominence in the industry. Besides Rong Xu, he had three or four other stars steadily rising from second-tier to top-tier.

At this moment, Luo Zhentao could be said to be riding the crest of success.

Similarly, Rong Xu was also in a phase of rapid rise. “The Lost City” was still showing in theaters, accumulating box office earnings of 6.9 billion yuan. Four days later, “Silent” would be released, which would not only bring box office revenue but also award nominations for Rong Xu.

Rong Xu was taking every step steadily, but that didn’t mean Luo Zhentao wasn’t worried. After all, this was Rong Xu’s first concert, and it was a huge one with thirty thousand people.

Even if the fans attending weren’t mainly there for Rong Xu, if he made any mistakes at the concert, it would be a heavy blow for him.

How could Luo Zhentao not be nervous and cautious? He even decided to accompany Rong Xu to City S for the concert, which led to Luo Xi’s comment about “the emperor not being anxious but the eunuch is.”

Listening to Luo Zhentao and Luo Xi talking, the young man slowly turned his head to look out the window at the towering skyscrapers. He faintly curled his lips, recalling things from many years ago.

In his previous life, Rong Xu had held concerts, more than one.

Before his first concert, just like Luo Zhentao now, he was nervous and afraid, worried about making mistakes that could cause mishaps. Although that concert went smoothly, Rong Xu would never forget how, when he stood on stage and saw ten thousand fans waving glow sticks and shouting his name loudly, his blood felt like it was boiling.

At that time, he was so nervous he almost sang the wrong lyrics, luckily the in-ear monitor corrected him quickly, or else it would have been embarrassing.

But that was many years ago.

The car soon arrived at the apartment building. This time, Rong Xu was bringing a lot of luggage after a month of promotion outside. Luo Xi wanted to help him carry the luggage upstairs, but just as she lifted a suitcase, Luo Zhentao stopped her.

Luo Zhentao looked at Rong Xu and asked, “Xiao Xu, are you… alone now?”

Rong Xu immediately understood what he meant. He looked at Luo Xi, who was completely clueless, her face full of confusion.

The young man chuckled softly and shook his head, “According to the timing, I’m probably not alone.”

Luo Zhentao instantly understood. “I’ll help you bring it upstairs. Xiao Luo, wait downstairs, I’ll be right down.”

Luo Xi wanted to say something but Luo Zhentao had already taken the suitcase into the elevator. Five minutes later, he came out from the apartment entrance and drove Luo Xi home.

In the car, the always-in-the-dark assistant couldn’t help but ask, “Brother Luo, what are you talking about? When did Xiao Xu stop being alone? Does he have some secret I don’t know about?”

Luo Zhentao raised his eyebrows, glanced at the assistant lightly, and said, “That’s Xiao Xu’s own business, why are you so anxious?”

Luo Xi widened her eyes. “I’m his assistant. I take care of his daily life. If there’s something I don’t know, of course I’m anxious.”

Luo Zhentao nodded gently. “Oh, the emperor isn’t anxious but the eunuch is.”

Luo Xi: “…” You’re holding a grudge!

But this time after going upstairs, Luo Zhentao didn’t see Qin Cheng. The house was empty and filled with afternoon sunlight. After helping Rong Xu put down his luggage, Luo Zhentao left, thinking: Is Qin Cheng still abroad, hasn’t come back yet?

Of course, Luo Zhentao didn’t notice the tightly closed door. After Rong Xu saw Luo Zhentao off, he tiptoed, changed slippers quietly, and went to Qin Cheng’s door. He carefully opened the door. With a creak, the door slowly pushed inward, letting bright light into the dim room.