Since Wen Xuan and others started speaking in the afternoon, the anti-Rong Xu incident had largely come to an end. From then on, no matter how much dirt the antis and online trolls tried to throw, it was largely meaningless and only served to amuse. The final nail in the coffin for the incident was Yang Changzheng’s Weibo post promoting his album.

Yang Changzheng actually had new work?

And a collaboration with Rong Xu?!

This news spread across the entire internet within half an hour. Rong Xu’s fans were astonished, and even many casual netizens confirmed it several times in disbelief before finally believing: [Rong Xu, who just received a dual Best Actor nomination at the Golden Phoenix Awards, is actually going to release a song with Yang Changzheng!!!]

For decades, with one popular, phenomenon-level hit song after another, Yang Changzheng’s status in the Chinese music scene was so high that no one had been able to shake it. This musician and composer had written countless familiar songs. He didn’t often collaborate with singers, but when he did, it was always a masterpiece.

Since the death of his student Ling Xiao a few years ago, Yang Changzheng hadn’t released any songs. Now, he was actually producing an album with Rong Xu and had given such high praise to him. This news instantly diluted all the previous brainwashing and dirt from the anti-fans, making netizens focus their attention on this album.

[Yang Changzheng actually has new songs? And a collaboration with Rong Xu? Wait, isn’t Rong Xu a singer? I remember seeing him throughout the Golden Phoenix Awards ceremony last night. Does he sing?]

[I’ve heard Rong Xu’s “Lost Wings,” it’s very good. He’s actually going to sing? Support, support, it must be very good!]

For true casual netizens, as long as there were good songs, they were naturally happy. As for fans, when they saw Yang Changzheng’s Weibo post, they were stunned for a long while before cheering in disbelief.

[Ahhhhhh, last week I said Rongrong’s songs are especially good. I listen to “Lost Wings” a hundred times a day, a hundred times, and it’s never enough. He’s actually going to release songs ahhhhh!]

[Clap, clap, clap~ That sound of slapping faces is crisp, hahaha!]

[This afternoon, I was arguing with some antis. They said my Rongrong couldn’t win Best Actor, so he couldn’t go sing, could he? Acting well leads to singing well! How about that? Rongrong is actually collaborating with Old Yang to release new songs~ Our Rongrong’s “Lost Wings” has sold millions. Looking forward to “Rong Yan” this time! Want to hear Rongrong’s songs!]

[I’m tongue-tied, I can’t argue with antis. Buying ten albums to support Rongrong!]

[Count me in! I’m pre-ordering two albums, one to listen to, and one to slap the faces of any antis who dare say my Rongrong is over!]

Arguing with antis was a short-term thing. Rong Xu’s fans were more concerned about the album titled Rong Yan. Anyway, the antis’ faces were already swollen like pig heads, and they were hiding in dark gutters, afraid to speak. So fans couldn’t be bothered with them and quickly started asking about the album.

Originally, Yang Changzheng had discussed with Luo Zhentao and planned to publicly announce the album production in the next few days. Old Yang wasn’t an old fuddy-duddy; he understood publicity and marketing perfectly well. He had watched the incident of Rong Xu being smeared after the Golden Phoenix Awards ceremony, and when things were nearing their end, he delivered the final blow, leaving others speechless.

One could only blame these antis for coincidentally running into a brick wall.

In fact, the celebrity teams who secretly bought online trolls and marketing accounts to smear Rong Xu also knew that a single award loss at the Golden Phoenix Awards was irrelevant. There were actors who won awards on their first nomination, but they were very few. For example, Wen Xuan, she was nominated for Best Actress at the Golden Phoenix Awards five years after her debut and only won the trophy in her seventh year, yet she is still Huaxia’s most famous Best Actress.

So, as long as Rong Xu was mentally strong enough, he wouldn’t be disheartened by such a minor setback. They just wanted to seize this opportunity to dampen Rong Xu’s momentum. This newcomer’s development was simply too fast. If he continued at such a rapid pace, he might actually win Best Actor in two years.

Regardless of the cause, when Yang Changzheng concluded with the album promotion, people across Huaxia gritted their teeth in anger.

Such hidden envious individuals were unavoidable. After Rong Xu talked to Old Yang on the phone, he retweeted the album promotion Weibo. At this point, there was nothing more to say about the matter. Before Rong Xu left Huaxia Entertainment, Luo Zhentao asked, “Should we continue investigating this matter?”

Rong Xu took his car keys and walked towards the door. Hearing this, he stopped and turned to look at his agent. After a pause, he smiled, “Brother Luo, this kind of large-scale smearing incident might not be from just one person. Don’t investigate it; it doesn’t make much sense anyway. They can only do such things to comfort themselves.”

Luo Zhentao thought for a moment and said, “I thought so too. It’s unlikely to find everyone, but I’ll find one or two.”

Rong Xu nodded in agreement.

The scope of this smear campaign was too wide, and unlike Ren Shuzhi and Lu Xiangbo, Rong Xu had no real dirt. It was very difficult to smear him. A small celebrity couldn’t pull off such a grand scheme, and a team capable of such a grand scheme wouldn’t do it so crudely. So, it should be many people who colluded spontaneously.

Without thinking too much, Rong Xu left the follow-up handling to Luo Zhentao and went straight home.

---

Upon returning home, a certain man had surprisingly prepared dinner, placing it on the table with unusual “domesticity.”

The young man raised an eyebrow, changed his clothes, then picked up the chopsticks on the table and secretly tasted a piece of egg. Before he could even comment, a pair of strong arms wrapped around him from behind, gently embracing Rong Xu’s waist.

With a slight curve of his full lips, Rong Xu softly asked, “Today’s dishes, they all seem to be my favorites?”

The man gently rested his chin on Rong Xu’s shoulder, his warm breath causing Rong Xu to involuntarily shiver. “Mmm, they’re all your favorites.”

Rong Xu pulled Qin Cheng’s arm, turned directly in his embrace, and leaned against the dining table. Looking at the handsome and tall man in front of him, the young man’s clear eyes were full of smiles. He softly said, “I just feel like you’re a bit off today. Suddenly so gentle, is there a conspiracy?”

Qin Cheng calmly retorted, “If there were a conspiracy, would I say it directly?”

Rong Xu: “Even if I ask you, you won’t say?”

Qin Cheng’s thin lips subtly curved upward. He calmly and composedly said, “No.”

Rong Xu: “…”

There really was a conspiracy!

Whether there was a conspiracy or not, dinner still had to be eaten. After eating, it was time for thoughts of desire. After some random teasing, Rong Xu casually put on a white shirt and went to the kitchen to get some water. When he turned around, he saw a certain man leaning against the kitchen door, staring intently at him.

His movements paused slightly. Rong Xu held the white porcelain teacup, not moving, just smiling and looking at the other person.

Neither spoke, just quietly looking at the person not far away. The bright white light illuminated the other’s striking face, as if they could look like this for a lifetime, always quietly watching.

After a long time, Qin Cheng curled his thin lips: “Today I was a beat slower than Old Yang, didn’t get to post it in time.”

Rong Xu was slightly surprised. Five minutes later, he finally understood why a certain man had been a bit inexplicable today.

Since Old Yang had already posted the album promotion Weibo, Qin Cheng naturally couldn’t stand out again. If he did, many netizens would inevitably focus on his affairs and wouldn’t completely focus on Rong Xu’s new album.

In the end, Qin Cheng was just one step too slow, missed the wave with Wen Xuan and the others, and then ran into Old Yang.

Qin Cheng spoke these words calmly, merely stating a fact, without expressing much regret. But looking at the man’s calm and composed expression, Rong Xu walked up to him, raised his arm, and couldn’t help but caress his face.

Qin Cheng’s voice stopped, and he looked at the young man in front of him in surprise.

After a moment, Rong Xu chuckled and said, “I bought the house two months ago, and the designer delivered the blueprints last month, Qin Cheng. I want to build an open-air garden there.”

When Aunt Qin came to celebrate Qin Cheng’s birthday previously, Rong Xu had told her that it was time for them to buy a house, a home that belonged only to the two of them. There, they wouldn’t be disturbed by anyone and could enjoy many memories shared only with each other.

Although at that time it was to prevent Aunt Qin from suddenly visiting since the truth hadn’t been told to her, and that concern had now disappeared as Aunt Qin knew about their relationship, Rong Xu had already bought the house.

Qin Cheng thought for a moment: “You bought the top floor?”

Qin Cheng didn’t interfere much with what Rong Xu did. Only when his young friend asked him about things like how large an area he wanted or if he liked detached houses would Qin Cheng answer.

The two walked towards the balcony. Rong Xu nodded lightly: “Mmm, it’s the top floor. I asked the designer to design a glass solarium. But I’m a bit allergic to pollen, so I don’t plan on growing flowers. I plan to put a rocking chair in there…”

The future is always a beautiful topic.

Rong Xu spoke sentence by sentence about his future, and in that future, there was always a man’s presence. At the end, he suddenly realized he seemed to have been talking the whole time, while Qin Cheng had always been listening. He raised an eyebrow: “Are we being a bit too much like an old married couple?”

Qin Cheng reached out and put his arm around Rong Xu’s waist, saying matter-of-factly, “Isn’t it good?”

Rong Xu immediately broke free from the embrace and said solemnly with a serious face, “I’m only twenty this year, and my birthday hasn’t passed yet. You can be the ‘old wife,’ I don’t want to be the ‘old husband.'”

Qin Cheng: “I’m the old wife, you’re the old husband?”

Rong Xu was a bit surprised: “Is your focus a bit off?”

The man’s sudden kiss answered the young man: “Let’s see if we’re an old married couple or not.”

They messed around until midnight again. At the climax, the young man raised a hand to cover his damp eyes, and in a hoarse voice, said, “There are still so many years in the future…”

The man leaned down and gently kissed the young man’s swollen lips: “No matter how many years, I’ll walk with you.”

---

The next afternoon, Qin Cheng boarded a plane and left Huaxia, flying to Canada for filming. At the same time, Rong Xu and Luo Zhentao discussed and planned to film the album’s music videos in two days.

Unlike “Lost Wings,” this Rong Yan album had a total of nine songs, so it was impossible to finish filming all the music videos in just one or two days. For five or six of these nine songs, suitable new actors were already being sought, and screenwriters were writing scripts, with the intention of filming short music video films.

This type of cinematic music video was very common in the industry. The singer would objectively narrate a story without participating in the plot development, while the protagonists in the music video would perform a series of joys and sorrows, presenting the lyrics in story form.

In addition, the main track “Rong Yan” and two other songs required Rong Xu himself to perform.

Old Yang did not participate in the music video production. Luo Zhentao contacted a well-known director in the industry. This director was from Hollywood. Although young, he had been very popular in recent years and had filmed advertising campaigns for several major fashion brands. This time, with Clemens’ secret help, they were able to invite him to film Rong Xu’s album music videos.

After this young and emerging director arrived in Huaxia, he went straight to the filming set without delay to arrange the set design. A week later, all set designs were completed. The songs Rong Xu participated in were all filmed by him, while the other few cinematic music videos were filmed by another Chinese director.

Upon seeing the brown-haired director, Rong Xu stepped forward directly and said with a smile, “Hello, Lucas.”

Lucas laughed heartily, “As Clemens said, Rong, it’s good to meet you. For the next week, I’ll be filming music videos with you. I hope we have a pleasant collaboration.”

Rong Xu smiled faintly, “We definitely will have a pleasant collaboration.”

Lucas smiled even more brightly, “I like your straightforwardness.”

This young American director wasn’t as handsome and dashing as Clemens Holt in appearance, but in terms of large-scale scene shooting, he was no less capable than his friend.

Huaxia Entertainment invested eight-figure funds into Rong Xu’s album. Luo Zhentao originally thought it would be more than enough, but he didn’t expect that Lucas, just shooting the first music video, would directly rent a helicopter, generously filming aerial shots.

Lucas explained this by saying, “Drones are not impossible, but Mr. Luo, they can’t capture the rhythm and excitement I want.”

Luo Zhentao didn’t understand these artistic matters and could only report the matter to the company. He never expected that the company wouldn’t condemn this “waste of money” behavior at all. Instead, they arranged for someone to inform him: “The resolution from above has been passed. If funds are insufficient, you can apply again.”

Luo Zhentao: “…”

It seemed he had underestimated the company’s regard for Rong Xu.

When an excellent director and an excellent actor combine, it’s definitely a relaxed and pleasant experience. On the first day, Rong Xu and Lucas still needed to adjust to each other, with a few key shots requiring retakes. By the second day, the two quickly found their rhythm, and by that afternoon, they had finished filming the music video for an English song.

On the third day, the MV for a love song was completed.

On the fourth and fifth days, the MV for the lead track “Rong Yan” was finished, a full two days ahead of schedule.

While filming the music videos, Luo Zhentao also arranged a publicity team to privately shoot some behind-the-scenes photos and post them online as promotion. At the same time, he contacted a top magazine for an interview next week, to build momentum for Rong Yan.

Five days passed, and by the time Rong Xu finished filming his three music videos, the other six MVs had only reached their second. The Chinese director was introduced to Rong Xu by Chu Qi. He often filmed MVs for singers and was experienced, but even a clever chef can’t make a meal without ingredients. The director’s skill and ability were strong, but the actors Luo Zhentao found were second- and third-tier actors who couldn’t immediately meet the director’s requirements.

Luo Zhentao lamented, “Actually, Xiao Xu, next time you could personally act in the MV and invite a friend from the industry.” He paused, then added, “I remember Chu Qi had a song where he invited Xia Muyan to film the MV with him, and the effect was very good.”

First-tier artists couldn’t be invited to film Rong Xu’s music video, let alone Best Actors or Actresses. But if the music video was to be starred by Rong Xu himself, then he could invite his friends to make guest appearances.

Listening to Luo Zhentao, Rong Xu just smiled faintly, “Is there a next time, Brother Luo?”

Luo Zhentao was surprised: “No next time?”

Rong Xu looked at him meaningfully: “Perhaps.”

After celebrating with Lucas, the director eagerly took a large amount of video material and returned to the United States. He would edit the three music videos in his own studio, handled personally by his private team.

---

Three days later, Rong Xu arrived at the editorial department of Muse, a top Chinese magazine, for an interview. The person in charge of interviewing him was the magazine’s deputy editor. Rong Xu was very good at controlling the conversation, causing the strong woman to occasionally cover her mouth and chuckle, and the entire interview was filled with laughter.

Another week later, Muse released the behind-the-scenes footage of the interview on its official Weibo.

A grid of nine photos showed the handsome and beautiful young man wearing a nearly transparent white shirt, leaning against a bright yellow backdrop, smiling and reaching out to the camera. His gaze was gentle, his eyes clear. Just quietly smiling, he made people feel that time was peaceful and their minds were serene.

This behind-the-scenes photo shoot sparked heated discussions among fans.

Previously, Luo Zhentao’s frequent releases of behind-the-scenes photos of the music video had already made fans highly anticipate the album. Now, Muse naming this interview feature “Rong Yan” further excited the fans.

[Actually, thinking about it carefully, “Ambush” premiered at the end of the year before last. I’ve only known Rongrong for less than two years. But I like Rongrong more and more, more and more. I really want to see Rongrong act in more movies, and I really want to hear Rongrong sing more songs!]

[Want to hear “Rong Yan” +1, these nine songs must be especially, especially good!]

[Am I the only one who particularly wants to buy next month’s “Muse”? Just looking at these few pictures makes me crazy. I wonder what the cover looks like. I don’t care, I’m buying my husband’s magazine. Buying two copies, one to read, one to admire~ (≧▽≦)/~ lah lah lah]

Luo Xi was responsible for communicating with fans, while Luo Zhentao led the public relations team for promotional work. Muse had just started online pre-sales, and within ten minutes, it received over 20,000 pre-orders. That afternoon, Luo Zhentao discussed with Old Yang and decided to seize the opportunity to announce the release date of Rong Yan, and then have Rong Xu officially announce it through his account.

[Rong Xu: #714RongYanRongYan# What I want to say to you all is all in it. July 14, 2045, saying to you… shh, I love you. [Image][Image][Image]]

All three photos were selfies, but each photo had a different background.

The background of the first photo was Lucas’s film crew. Rong Xu took a large group photo. In the background, the young American director made exaggerated and funny poses, which was quite humorous. The second photo was a group photo Rong Xu took with several other new actors when he specifically visited another MV filming set.

And in the third photo, there was a delicate white rose.

Long, slender, fair fingers delicately held the serene, pure white rose, avoiding its thorns. The young man’s head was slightly bowed, the white rose blocking his lips, revealing only the beautiful curve of his chin. The photo only showed the lower half of his face, making it impossible to see his full features, but almost all Rong Xu fans understood immediately—

[Ahhhhhh my Rong! My Rong is so beautiful! I want to lick the screen QAQ!!!]

The fans’ anticipation for Rong Yan grew stronger with each day’s behind-the-scenes sneak peeks. Many netizens who loved music also awaited the album’s release. At that time, they might not buy the album right away, but would first listen to a portion online. As long as it was good, they would definitely not hesitate to open their wallets and buy the album.

Time slowly passed in the fans’ anticipation. Rong Xu had another short three-day vacation. In mid-June, he flew to the United States and met the long-unseen Clemens and Jennifer in Washington.

Upon seeing Rong Xu, the tall, handsome blonde director stated directly, “After returning from Huaxia, Lucas hasn’t stopped praising you to me.”

Rong Xu smiled slightly, “So Lucas always likes to praise people behind their backs? Actually, I don’t mind at all; he can praise me to my face.”

Clemens’s mouth twitched. “…”

Jennifer, on the side, laughed, “After a few months apart, Rong, you’re better than ever at making Clemens shut up.”

Rong Xu blinked innocently.

Clemens, however, raised an eyebrow, looking at Jennifer: “Many actresses say I’m a humorous and witty person. Jennifer, what makes you different from other actresses, so eager for me to shut up?”

Jennifer spread her hands, not answering the question, but only smiled at Rong Xu: “See, Rong, I was right. Actually, Clemens is easy to get along with when filming. Although he has a bad temper then, he only sees the play, and at least he won’t proudly boast all day, won’t be so narcissistic.”

Clemens scoffed, no longer retorting, but his proud demeanor was already written on his face.

---

Starting this week, 3200 Miles entered its promotional period. Five-fifths of the film’s post-production remained, and it was scheduled for release in late July. Rong Xu would follow the crew for global film promotion.

On the second day of Rong Xu’s arrival in the United States, the June issue of Muse was released nationwide, simultaneously. As of the release day, the online pre-sales for this issue of Muse reached 32,000 copies. At 8 AM, as many office workers rushed to their companies, they stopped when they passed a newsstand.

On the newsstand’s shelf, stacks of thick magazines were displayed. On the cover, a handsome and beautiful young man wore a nearly transparent white shirt, sitting on an inverted chair, looking intently at the camera with deep eyes.

His hands rested casually on the back of the chair, two buttons of his shirt unfastened, revealing his fair, delicate collarbone and a layer of alluring shadow. Between his beautiful, slender fingers, there was a white rose, a faint fragrance seemingly wafting from its layered petals. His fingernails were full and round, clear enough to appear translucent.

And upon closer inspection, one couldn’t help but be captivated by the young man’s bright and clear eyes.

Rong Yan?

Truly “Rong Yan” (beautiful face).

__

Author’s note: 

Qin Chencheng: [Soy sauce top doesn’t want to talk.]