Chapter 36
Over the next week or so, the production team of 'Youth Adventure' initiated a widespread online promotion. In the promotional photos, An Ye wasn't in the center, yet his presence was more pronounced than those who were.
"Considering An Ye's good looks, I'm definitely tuning into this show."
"Say what you will, but An Ye's appearance indeed outshines all other idols."
"As a passerby, I'm really attracted by An Ye's good looks."
The show's promotion also boosted An Ye's popularity. This was most noticeably reflected in the sharp increase in the comments on his Weibo account. His declining popularity in recent times swiftly bounced back.
The night the show premiered.
As a large variety show with numerous newcomers, 'Youth Adventure' was not initially expected to garner much attention. However, as soon it was broadcasted, it achieved extremely high TV ratings and online click-through rates.
The production team skillfully used filters, and all the regular guests were attractive, making the show significantly popular among young people.
The seaside city featured in the first episode even trended on Weibo within two hours of the show's broadcast, demonstrating the show's immense popularity.
If the splendid production of the show amazed the audience, then An Ye's performance in the show was a delightful surprise.
The show featured 4 male guests and 2 female guests, divided into groups to undertake challenges. Numerous pitfalls were set up by the director during these challenges, providing lots of laughs.
An Ye truly carried the show. In the first episode, he continuously helped his partner solve various problems - such as planning routes, locating clues given by the show's team, or moving heavy objects. He cast aside his idol image but did everything so naturally, as if he were this reliable person in daily life.
It's fair to say that he took Zhou Yuanzhe's advice to heart. Once the show was aired, everyone sang praises for An Ye's performance.
"An Ye is amazing. I never noticed before, but he seems to have matured a lot recently…"
"Oh my god, my An Ye is the ultimate boyfriend material!"
"How fortunate it would be to have a boyfriend like An Ye when traveling…"
At the right time, Zhou Yuanzhe helped establish a hardworking, positive, and handsome image for An Ye, laying a solid foundation for his future rise to stardom.
Just as Xing Entertainment was thrilled by An Ye's success, a surprising Weibo post quietly appeared in the trending list.
"[An Ye has a secret rendezvous with his agent? Their intimate behavior raises eyebrows! [Photo]]"
However, just as the hashtag #AnYeAndHisAgent entered the top 10 trending topics, it was quietly removed. All the photos of An Ye and Zhou Yuanzhe disappeared without a trace.
An Ye was lying on his bed at home, happily browsing through the news related to him and Zhou Yuanzhe, thinking that the paparazzi took some great shots of him and "Brother Yuan."
However, when he came back after taking a shower, he couldn't find any of the related posts anymore.
"What the hell!" An Ye widened his eyes, doubting what he was seeing. "What's going on? It was just trending at number eight! And what happened to that fanfiction about An Ye and Zhou Yuanzhe?"
On the other side, Cheng Xuyuan had already guessed who was behind this. But this also left him puzzled. The last time An Ye and Chen Mengyan were involved in dating rumors, Xiang Boyan didn't interfere. Besides, this wasn't even significant news, was it necessary to delete these articles on such a large scale?
"He must be really rich," Cheng Xuyuan sighed in amazement. "Is he afraid that something will happen between me and An Ye? Xiang Boyan's possessiveness is terrifying…"
As a result, Cheng Xuyuan decided to maintain an even greater distance from An Ye in the future.
Xiang Boyan sat on the sofa at home, his eyes filled with murderous intent. Which paparazzi was so bold as to use his own agent for a story? And who wrote that ridiculous "Forbidden Love: An An and His Agent"? Was their brain filled with bubbles? Forbidden love, what a joke!
"Delete them, just delete them all," Xiang Boyan kept ordering the PR department. "An Ye can't afford any scandals at the moment. Find a way to delete all these articles, including the fanfictions. By eight o'clock tomorrow morning, I don't want to see the topic #AnZhouCP again, understood?"
The public relations staff worked overtime late into the night, contacting marketing accounts to delete posts, drenched in sweat but not daring to utter any complaints. Everyone could tell that Boss Xiang was extremely angry about this topic.
However, in their hearts, they were utterly exasperated: This was such a trivial piece of news, with no negative implications, was Boss Xiang so rich that he had to pull such a stunt? The company's funds were being burned!
________________________
The next morning at eight o'clock.
Due to the unique nature of Weibo's super topics, the #AnZhouCP topic couldn't be completely removed, but the heat of the entire incident had significantly decreased, so Xiang Boyan didn't lose his temper again. The PR manager breathed a sigh of relief like he'd received a royal pardon.
Today is a weekend, and An Ye called Zhou Yuanzhe early in the morning: "Brother Yuan, let's go out for shopping today!"
"...No," Cheng Xuyuan rolled over in bed. "Goodbye."
"Don't hang up, Brother Yuan," An Ye hurriedly said. "I've found a newly opened barbecue shop that's delicious, and there's a promotion today, a 33% discount for two people."
"An Ye, be mindful of your status." Cheng Xuyuan rolled his eyes. "Idols are not supposed to be associated with such worldly matters, let alone a 33% off promotion, understand?"
Having spent some time with Zhou Yuanzhe, An Ye had already discovered his well-hidden foodie traits, so he continued: "There's also a very generous cotton candy store next to the barbecue shop, free to add your own fruits!"
Cheng Xuyuan: "...What time?"
An Ye slightly curled his lips at the other end of the phone, his magnetic voice filled with temptation: "I'm already downstairs at your place. Come on down."
Cheng Xuyuan was genuinely impressed by this guy; despite having been reborn once, he still often engaged in such childish antics. He said, "Wait for me," and hung up the phone.
The weather hadn't warmed up yet, so Cheng Xuyuan draped a camel-colored trench coat over his body, put on black casual pants and ankle boots, and casually fixed his hairstyle before leaving.
Upon seeing him, An Ye's eyes lit up, and he said with a smile: "Brother Yuan, I'll drive today. Please." With that, he helped Cheng Xuyuan open the passenger door.
Cheng Xuyuan sat in the car with a cool expression, saying: "I haven't had breakfast. You figure it out."
"Alright!"
An Ye was in a good mood, taking Zhou Yuanzhe to a somewhat secluded breakfast shop, and said, "This shop's xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) are particularly delicious, and I also like the guotie (potstickers). Want to give them a try?"
"Fine," Cheng Xuyuan nodded indifferently, "remember to wear a mask, sunglasses, and a baseball cap, maintain a three-meter distance from me, no talking loudly, and no calling me by my name directly."
An Ye pouted and reluctantly did as he was told, following behind Zhou Yuanzhe like a bodyguard.
The aroma of the breakfast shop was very tempting. Zhou Yuanzhe chose a secluded corner and ordered three servings of guotie and four servings of xiaolongbao, with two cups of soy milk.
Moved, An Ye said, "Brother Yuan, I can't eat this much, you..."
"You go ahead and order." Zhou Yuanzhe looked up at him, "I didn't order for you."
An Ye: "...?"
Throughout breakfast, An Ye was amazed by Zhou Yuanzhe's appetite. He knew that Zhou Yuanzhe often sneaked a peek at food delivery apps during breaks, but he had no idea that the man was a bona fide foodie.
No, this had gone beyond just being a foodie. He was practically food champion.
Cheng Xuyuan ate all the food with an air of nonchalance, licked his lips, and his mood finally improved significantly. He said to An Ye, "A few days ago, I picked up a script for you. I'll send it to you tonight. If you think it's suitable, we'll arrange a time for an audition."
An Ye was lost for a few seconds because of Zhou Yuanzhe's lip-licking action. He didn't come back to his senses until Cheng Xuyuan stood up to pay the bill. He quickly said, "Yes, yes, yes, any script chosen by Brother Yuan must be a good one!"
This wasn't an act of flattery but a manifestation of his 100 percent trust in Zhou Yuanzhe. Being able to have such a good agent after being reborn was arguably An Ye's biggest boon.
"Don't sweet-talk," Zhou Yuanzhe shot him a glance as they left, "Just concentrate on your performance. Whether you'll rise to the top or not is all on you."
"Hehe, it's not up to me, it all depends on Brother Yuan's mood," An Ye cheekily moved closer to Zhou Yuanzhe.
Zhou Yuanzhe coldly responded, "Put on a mask, sunglasses, and a baseball cap, and keep a distance of three meters from me."
Taking advantage of the shopping trip, Zhou Yuanzhe bought An Ye several sets of clothes for the auditions, and also picked up some daily necessities from the supermarket. An Ye followed behind him, willingly carrying all the bags, his eyes radiating happiness.
"Why does it feel like there are so many people in the supermarket today?" Cheng Xuyuan furrowed his brows slightly, "Don't get lost."
"Wherever Brother Yuan goes, I go. I won't get lost."
Cheng Xuyuan turned around, only to see An Ye wearing a mask, slightly looking down, his smile shining through his gaze, his long eyelashes and mole near the corner of his eye particularly attention-grabbing.
Noticing that An Ye was laden with shopping bags, Cheng Xuyuan offered to help, "Let me carry some for you. These things must be quite heavy..."
"There's no need." An Ye shook the shopping bags to showcase his effortless holding, "My fans say I have a 'Boyfriend Strength MAX'. Choose whatever you like, Brother Yuan, I won't let you get tired!"
"..." Cheng Xuyuan twitched the corner of his mouth slightly and said, "Then you carry them." Such a narcissistic kid.
After shopping for a while, Cheng Xuyuan didn't think there was anything more to buy, so he left the supermarket. An Ye, following behind him, looked like a moving human shelf; his tall stature combined with the bags in his hands, he looked very much like a boyfriend accompanying his girlfriend on a shopping trip.
However, the person beside him was an indifferent iceberg.
The striking presence of the two attracted countless gazes on the street. Numerous girls secretly took out their phones to snap pictures and speculated about the relationship between the two.
An Ye took Zhou Yuanzhe to a barbecue restaurant, winked at the staff, and said, "I had reserved a private room earlier."
The staff member obviously had a friendly relationship with An Ye and tried to suppress her laughter as she nodded. She led them to a quiet private room and provided them with utensils and menus.
Zhou Yuanzhe's slender fingers picked up a pencil and started marking the menu.
Five minutes later, the staff member looked dumbfounded as she took the marked menu out of the room, deeply immersed in shock. Before leaving, she confirmed once again: "This is not a buffet meal. Are you sure you want to order this much?"
Zhou Yuanzhe nodded firmly and slowly.
Shortly afterward, as the barbecue platters were being served, Xiang Boyan suddenly called Zhou Yuanzhe.
"Hello, General Manager Xiang?"
Zhou Yuanzhe's voice caught An Ye's attention. He looked up without making a sound, staring at Zhou Yuanzhe as he picked up a piece of pork belly and placed it in his bowl.
"I'm eating barbecue... Yeah, yeah, I'm dining alone..."
Cheng Xuyuan thought to himself, 'I'd better not let that guy know that I'm with his future boyfriend, or else I might be the one who gets grilled.'
Xiang Boyan seemed to be in a good mood. He said to Zhou Yuanzhe, "It sounds like you're enjoying your meal. Which barbecue restaurant is it? I'll go there next time."
"It's XX BBQ at XX Commercial Plaza in the city center..." Cheng Xuyuan casually revealed his location without any suspicion.
After hanging up the phone, Cheng Xuyuan added a large pile of meat to the grill and asked An Ye, "Is that enough? We can ask the waiter to bring more if needed..."
An Ye smirked, "That's enough."
Twenty minutes later.
Xiang Boyan pushed open the door of the barbecue restaurant, and his astonishing aura instantly caught the attention of the staff. She hurriedly came over and asked, "Sir, how many people will be dining together?"
"Two," Xiang Boyan glanced at the long queue of people holding number plates at the entrance, "The other person is already waiting for me in the private room."
"Do you know which private room it is?" The waitress asked with a big smile on her face.
"I don't know." Xiang Boyan looked at the surprised eyes of the waiter without care, took out his phone, and showed Zhou Yuanzhe's photo. "He looks like this. Do you recognize him?"
The server's face lit up in realization, "Oh, I remember this customer. He's in private room 18. But..."
Xiang Boyan raised an eyebrow. "But what?"
The server looked slightly awkward and hesitated for a moment before replying, "That's a couple's private room...are you sure you want to go there?"
Doubt flickered in Xiang Boyan's eyes. According to Zhou Yuanzhe, he should be eating by himself, so why would he choose a couple's room... Well, since I'm already here, I'll see him first.
So, Xiang Boyan nodded. Led by the server, he arrived at the door of private room 18.
Just as the server was about to knock on the door, Xiang Boyan stopped her. He handed her several large bills as a tip and waved her away.
As soon as Xiang Boyan stepped into the room, he saw An Ye and Zhou Yuanzhe eating with great enthusiasm.
"Waiter, bring another plate of beef stomach," Cheng Xuyuan called out without lifting his head to the person at the door, "And settle the bill later."
An Ye, who was busy munching on a piece of grilled corn, mumbled, "I have a Valentine's Day discount coupon. If two people eat together, it's 33.4% off. Remember to calculate it for me."
"Valentine's Day coupon?" Cheng Xuyuan looked up at him in surprise.
An Ye said nonchalantly, "It's Valentine's Day today. What's wrong with saving us some money?"
Just then, a cold male voice rang out from the doorway: "When did you two become a couple?!"
An Ye and Zhou Yuanzhe turned their heads to look at the entrance at the same time.
The next second, Cheng Xuyuan found himself in a state of shock, confusion, and bewilderment.
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