Chapter 55#
“Love-Struck” Best Actor (9)#
In the past, Kong Si basically did everything with one account, one phone number, linked to one QQ account, one WeChat account, and one Weibo account.
But after becoming the artist Yu Si, the company gave him two additional phones, with all the corresponding accounts handed over entirely to his agent to manage and craft his favorable image, preventing him from accidentally letting something slip.
One was a private number for people within the industry. For his original number, since many people knew it, to avoid harassment from irrelevant parties, he set up a phone whitelist. Only those on the whitelist—his parents and Lu Yi—could get through.
Kong Si usually didn’t bother with his main account, occasionally sneaking a peek to see what bad things fans were saying about him. Work-related contacts were all handled by his agent, so he didn’t need to worry.
When his private number suddenly received a strange message, Kong Si was startled. This number was for industry insiders, only given to people he had a good relationship with. For someone to have “sold” his number through a good friend, the person was presumably somewhat famous in the industry.
He replied: Who are you?
The other party quickly responded: “I’m He Xiao. Do you really not remember me? Eight years ago, in that alley, there was some school bullying, and you stepped in to teach them a lesson for me.”
Kong Si tried hard, digging through the depths of his memory to pull up the scene from back then. He finally had a vague impression: “Seems like it, but that doesn’t seem to be you, does it?”
When he was in school, he had a pretty lively personality. He had plenty of buddies in middle and high school and was something of a big shot on campus. Although he wasn’t the kind of Five-Dao-Brigade Captain who could promote socialist goodness all day long, he was still quite helpful to others.
He had indeed done things like encountering school bullying and stepping in to help.
He thought for a moment: “I don’t remember things from eight years ago very clearly.”
He Xiao said again: “Think about it. Rainy day, pencil case, chubby kid.”
Kong Si remembered: “There was such a thing.” Half a year ago, he was in his sophomore year of high school. It was summer break. It was about to rain, so he was in a hurry to get home and took a shortcut through a small alley.
That alley was usually off-limits by the teachers because it was quite messy. As it turned out, he ran into a few students in school uniforms bullying a chubby kid.
In an era where thinness is considered beautiful, people who are overweight are easily bullied. If they have an optimistic and cheerful personality, it’s fine, but once they become withdrawn and gloomy, they almost always become targets.
He simply couldn’t match the chubby kid in his memory with He Xiao: “Are you saying you were that chubby kid back then?”
He Xiao looked at the words the other party had typed, hesitated for a moment, and then said: “I had a period where I was on hormone medication due to illness, which caused me to gain weight. Later, I recovered from the illness and returned to normal.”
For celebrities, having been fat isn’t really scary. As long as you didn’t get it through plastic surgery but worked hard to lose weight, you can still be an inspirational heartthrob.
He Xiao was conflicted, afraid that someday these screenshots might leak out, leading to rumors about him having plastic surgery. Everyone in the industry said Kong Si had a good personality and was straightforward, but someone who could really make it in this circle? It’s impossible for them not to have some tricks up their sleeves.
He Xiao judged others by himself and didn’t dare to have too much confidence in Kong Si.
Kong Si had no idea that He Xiao had been speculating so much in just a few minutes. Hearing He Xiao say this, he also felt the other party must really be that chubby kid from back then.
Otherwise, if he hadn’t gone around promoting his good deeds, who else besides the people involved would remember such a thing?
Kong Si replied: I did help a chubby kid, that’s true.
He Xiao quickly said: You helped me so much, I don’t even know how to thank you.
Kong Si didn’t think much of it: It was really just a small thing.
Although he didn’t like to think the worst of people, He Xiao coming to him definitely had more than pure intentions. Otherwise, if he really wanted to thank him, why not do it back then? Instead, he suddenly pops up now. “You said it yourself, it was half a year ago, a very small thing. I’ve even forgotten about it. Do you have anything else? If not, I’ll log off.”
He Xiao seemed to guess what he was thinking. Just as Kong Si finished typing, the other party simultaneously sent a long paragraph: “Back then, I was very insecure, so I got bullied. But after you helped me, I worked hard to become more confident.”
“You might not believe this, but after I was rescued, I really wanted to be friends with you. But you were such a dazzling presence, and I never dared to. Later on, the college entrance exam came, and we never had any contact. I only knew your name.”
“I know showing up out of the blue like this is a bit weird. If you’re not willing, just treat it as the ramblings of a boring person. Anyway… anyway, someone like me doesn’t deserve to be friends with you.”
Despite being just text, the other party’s sentences were filled with humility and grievance, giving a very pitiful impression.
Kong Si still felt something was off, but out of kindness, he took up the conversation: “You don’t have to say that about yourself. You’re excellent now; you’re my senior.”
He originally wanted to type “You’re no worse than me,” but after thinking about it, comforting someone didn’t require putting himself down, so he deleted the last line.
He Xiao said again: “I’m not as good as you say. So, would you be willing to be my friend? If you find it awkward, that’s fine too.”
He stared intently at the screen, waiting for the other party’s reply.
Kong Si felt hesitant and awkward. Although they were about the same age, in terms of seniority, He Xiao was indeed his predecessor. When the other party was popular, Kong Si was still just a struggling designer.
Even though he became the hottest newcomer on the entertainment index this year, he was still a rookie—the best among the weak. In terms of actual influence and fan count, he still couldn’t compare to He Xiao.
They weren’t in the same company, so the competition for resources wasn’t that fierce.
Besides, the other party had spoken so sincerely. Wanting to be friends with him now was probably to fill a regret from the past.
Faced with this situation, if he didn’t agree, it would seem too heartless.
But there was a big problem. When he officially entered the entertainment industry, Lu Yi had already expressed his dislike for He Xiao.
He himself had no particular feelings toward He Xiao—just an ordinary stranger, no black, no fan. In terms of looks, He Xiao was okay to look at.
But since Lu Yi seemed to really hate He Xiao, as Lu Yi’s partner, he naturally had to stand firmly by Lu Yi’s side, liking what Lu Yi liked, and hating what Lu Yi hated.
After a moment of hesitation, he replied to the other party: You are very excellent, but I currently have no plans to make extra friends.
Hearing the notification sound on his phone, He Xiao looked closely. The answer was completely different from what he had expected, and his face darkened with some gloom.
He asked further: Can I ask why?
Of course, it was because my man doesn’t like you. But Kong Si couldn’t tell He Xiao that. He typed out a few reasons, but none of them felt right. So he simply said bluntly: Because I think having a few friends is enough; more would be useless.
When He Xiao saw the reason Kong Si had sent, he nearly laughed in anger. Friends were only ever considered too few, never too many. And here was Kong Si, brushing him off like this.
He continued to send messages, but this time, the system reminded him: You are not friends with this user, and the message cannot be sent.
When he had searched for Kong Si, the other party probably hadn’t looked carefully and had just accepted the friend request. But now, it was clear that Kong Si had blocked him.
Even though he had acted humble and pitiful while chatting with Kong Si, that was just a tactic to gain sympathy.
When he sent those words, it didn’t mean he actually felt that way. When he made the request to be friends, he thought in his heart that anyone with brains would definitely agree.
But what he never expected was that the other party would actually do something he considered brainless. He had bluntly refused him without any mercy and even blocked him.
He Xiao’s face was even uglier than before, as gloomy as soot at the bottom of a pot.
His agent happened to open the door and walk in. Seeing his expression, he asked, “What’s wrong with you now? Who pissed you off?”
He Xiao said, “Nothing.”
Although the agent and he were bound by shared interests, He Xiao didn’t tell his agent everything.
The agent knew He Xiao’s temper and didn’t intend to pry into everything. He asked, “I heard you’ve been inquiring about that newcomer Yu Si lately, trying every way to get his contact information. What are you trying to do? Got a thing for him?”
He Xiao said, “Just a personal matter.”
The agent said, “Stay out of his business.”
He Xiao’s ears perked up. He sensed something unusual in the other’s words.
His voice carried a hint of excitement: “What do you mean by that? Does he have some scandal or something?”
“Reliable information: that Yu Si, he likes men.”