Why Is the Male Lead Looking at Me Like That [Entertainment Circle] (BL) - Chapter 8

Qi Hong was still on the other end of the phone: “Just take it easy! It is what it is. You’re not thinking of quitting, are you? Mr. Lin will really jump into the river, I’m telling you…”

Xia Xu was still dazed when he heard Director Zhang looking for him: “Where is Xia Xu?”

Xia Xu quickly hung up the phone, raised his hand, and said, “Here!”

Director Zhang and his team looked over at him.

Including Nan Qingyan next to him.

Xia Xu braced himself and walked over to Director Zhang.

“This is our Chen Liuqing,” Director Zhang said. “No need for much introduction, you should know each other, right?”

Xia Xu briefly lifted his gaze to Nan Qingyan and nodded: “I know him…”

“This is Xia Xu, playing Zhao Xuanmei,” Director Zhang introduced him to Nan Qingyan.

“I knew already,” Nan Qingyan’s voice was as pleasant as ever. What was that online saying?

A voice that makes people want to spread their legs.

Xia Xu’s face flushed slightly, but then he saw a hand extend towards him.

The fingers were exceptionally beautiful: long and straight, with distinct joints, smooth and white. The fingertips were pink, and the nails were cut to a fastidious shortness. Sister Hong was right; it was as if these hands carried a scent.

Xia Xu looked up slightly, meeting Nan Qingyan’s expressionless face.

He reached out his hand.

After four years, their hands clasped together again.

The moment their palms met, memories rushed back. Xia Xu suddenly remembered the first time they held hands.

It was the season of blooming crabapple flowers; the air was thick with their fragrance. He and Nan Qingyan walked side by side. His heart was pounding so fast. He swallowed, curled and then stretched his fingers, and finally mustered the courage to hold the hand of the Fairy Top in his heart.

He pretended to touch his hand casually, a light brush.

Everything about a first love is a first, and even the touch of fingers sent a thrill through his body. He pursed his lips, his face flushed with excitement, and then he hooked Nan Qingyan’s finger.

Hooked, wrapped, and then a light squeeze. Nan Qingyan, however, suddenly enveloped his hand, holding it firmly.

In that instant, his seventeen or eighteen-year-old body felt the arrival of spring, instantly filled with fighting spirit.

“Hello,” he said.

Nan Qingyan didn’t say anything, just lightly held his hand, and then released it.

Director Zhang then went to introduce Nan Qingyan to the other actors. Several young idols present were clearly fans of Nan Qingyan, excitedly at a loss for words.

Xia Xu stood amidst Hu Hai and the others, his ears burning. His skin seemed to have become intensely sensitive instantly, and he felt the surrounding body temperature was overly scorching.

He looked down and found he had goosebumps on his arms.

Someone tapped his hand. He flinched his finger back and looked up. It was Liu Fen.

Liu Fen looked excited, practically dying to gossip on the spot.

Who would have thought Nan Qingyan would come to act, and as Chen Liuqing? What kind of melodrama plot was this!

He excitedly stood on his toes and proactively went to greet Nan Qingyan: “Hello, Liu Fen.”

“Hello,” Nan Qingyan remained largely expressionless.

Oh my god, he’s so good-looking even without smiling! How is his skin so perfect!

In terms of looks, Nan Qingyan couldn’t surpass Xia Xu, but Nan Qingyan had a great demeanor—the nobility of a literary family, a captivating aloofness, unique in the mainland entertainment circle. He was the kind of stunning person you’d never forget after seeing him once.

“Has everyone settled in?” Director Zhang asked.

“Will the Director be staying with us?” Liu Fen asked with a smile.

Director Zhang said, “We will all be eating and living together for the next few months.”

Director Zhang led Nan Qingyan to see his room. Liu Fen immediately darted back to Xia Xu and draped his arm over his shoulder.

The moment he did, he saw Nan Qingyan look back at them as he walked.

It was a brief, light glance. For some reason, Liu Fen suddenly felt a little timid and pulled his arm back.

The most excited was Wen Yu. Looking at Nan Qingyan’s retreating figure, he whispered, “Nan God!”

Liu Fen whispered to Xia Xu: “Why did he come?”

Xia Xu was still a bit stunned, his voice full of anguish: “I want to know too!”

Qi Hong arrived shortly after, carrying her small bag, panting, her forehead sweaty.

Xia Xu knew what she was worried about. He glanced at the hesitant Qi Hong: “Don’t worry, I won’t run.”

“That’s good,” Qi Hong said. “I wasn’t lying to you; I just found out too. I heard Nan Qingyan signed the contract last night. The crew kept it confidential; they didn’t even let him on the live stream. Do you think Nan Qingyan knew he would be acting opposite you beforehand? He should have, right? We’ve sent out so many promotional drafts. So, what is he thinking, that he’s still willing?”

She looked back at Xia Xu, with some speculations she couldn’t voice.

The light had gone out of Xia Xu. He was visibly nervous, mechanically straightening his clothes.

Xia Xu was terrible at domestic chores, and his clothes were folded haphazardly. Qi Hong couldn’t stand it and helped him refold them.

“I’ll stay with you here today. Do you have a class later?” Qi Hong asked.

Xia Xu nodded: “Mhm, I have a culture class.”

Director Zhang was known for his rigorous approach to filming. This group training, in addition to etiquette lessons, mainly involved inviting several history professors to teach them history and culture.

“I think since he’s willing to come, he definitely isn’t averse to acting opposite you. Regardless of what he’s thinking, let’s take it one step at a time. It’s too late to back out now. I don’t think he’s the type to have intense love or hate, either. Maybe he’s already let go, so he won’t make things difficult for you.”

In the morning, they had their first history lesson. The lecturer was a well-known professor from Jing University. They were taught about clothing, architecture, etiquette, customs, ancient people’s living habits, etc. Xia Xu held his notebook, diligently taking notes.

As one of the two male leads, Nan Qingyan sat next to him.

Several cameras were aimed at them in front, and two jib cameras were overhead.

Even the behind-the-scenes footage for this drama would be released simultaneously on Xinghai.net, which required them to be mindful of their words and actions in every place the camera could capture.

Nan Qingyan was also taking notes, but fewer. The corner of Xia Xu’s eye caught a glimpse of his notebook. The handwriting was so beautiful it kept sending his mind drifting back to memories.

Nan Qingyan had a handwriting as beautiful as his person, taught by his grandfather—in the Slender Gold style. Back then, he frequently swooned over Nan Qingyan’s writing. After swooning, he would grab Nan Qingyan’s hands and leer at them, sighing, “My God, my God.”

Nan Qingyan would pull his hands back and say expressionlessly, “Focus on your test, don’t be suggestive.”

Xia Xu would honestly go back to his test papers.

Nan Qingyan would say, “It’s like a chicken scratch.”

Xia Xu looked at his sprawling, unrestrained handwriting: “My handwriting is just like me—unconventional, dashing, and untamed.”

Nan Qingyan was already too lazy to tell him how important presentation marks were. He would lean in to point out Xia Xu’s mistakes.

“What did I tell you last time?”

Xia Xu could smell the faint scent of Nan Qingyan.

It was like citrus, and also like green tea—fresh, calm, and soothing to the nose. It was very subtle but smelled wonderful.

He couldn’t help but secretly try to inhale the scent.

Nan Qingyan was exceptionally perceptive. He noticed even this and asked, “Don’t you want to be in a relationship?”

Xia Xu immediately sat up straight and nodded.

“Then study hard. Pass into the top twenty first.”

Xia Xu truly didn’t expect to pay such a huge price just to pursue a Fairy.

He wasn’t meant for studying at all.

The story of the scholar boyfriend tutoring and both getting into the prestigious Jing University only happens in novels.

It couldn’t possibly happen to him.

He was a high-jumper athlete!

But he studied very hard.

Because he had motivation.

Love is a gas station for men. The perseverance and effort a man can put in for it exceed all imagination.

And Nan Qingyan was a man of his word. For over a year, there was almost no physical contact between them. It was strictly business, fair and unselfish.

Sometimes, he even suspected Nan Qingyan was deliberately stringing him along. But Nan Qingyan was clearly successful. Guarding a Fairy all day, unable to kiss or touch him, was like being fried in a pan of oil—fried on the front, fried on the back, ready to be overcooked at any moment.

He, a notorious playboy, became exceptionally well-behaved.

However, things didn’t go as planned. Even until the college entrance examination, he couldn’t break into the top twenty.

Their school was a prestigious high school. Making it into the top twenty in the class usually meant guaranteed entry into a top-tier university. In the days leading up to the exam, he was particularly disheartened.

Because even in the last mock exam, he couldn’t break into the top twenty.

At this point, he couldn’t hold it together. The day the results were announced, he ran out right after class and secretly cried outside.

Crying because he was so angry at himself. The Fairy he was so close to having was about to fly away.

When Nan Qingyan found him, he was sitting on the sports field, picking at the grass.

“You’ll make yourself bald if you keep doing that,” Nan Qingyan said.

Xia Xu turned his head, saw Nan Qingyan, and immediately wiped away his tears.

In Nan Qingyan’s words later, his eyes were glowing then, white and incredibly beautiful, which made his heart flutter.

“I wasn’t glowing; those were tears!”

“I know,” Nan Qingyan said, sniffing his neck. “Seeing you cry actually excites me.”

In any case, his tears worked. Nan Qingyan said he no longer needed to get into the top twenty.

He could start dating him once the college entrance examination was over.

“Can’t we start now?” Xia Xu asked eagerly.

Nan Qingyan said, “No. It will be a distraction.”

At that time, he didn’t know what kind of distraction, until the college entrance examination ended, and Nan Qingyan came to pick him up at the examination hall.

The exam had just finished, and the students were still celebrating, but Nan Qingyan drove him away.

He took him to a secluded, empty riverside, and kissed him until he couldn’t speak clearly.