The explosive point of this elimination round of Star Games was undoubtedly on Xi Nian and Su Ge. Although the show hadn't aired yet, some news still managed to leak out. After the competition, posts about Xi Nian dominating Su Ge on the field sprouted up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain, gradually turning red as the number of readers increased.

In the entertainment circle, when it came to the ability to stir up drama, Su Ge's fans could definitely be considered top-tier. At first, they didn't take the posts seriously and flocked to the comment sections to mock them profusely.

【These days, some people will really make up any nonsense just to chase clout. It's hilarious】

【Hands off our Gezi, not interested, not interested】

【Xi Nian??? Who? Never heard of him. You'd have to be delusional to post something like this. Desperate to be famous, aren't you】

【Just checked, they're signed to the same company. Xi Nian should be Su Ge's junior. Is this the legendary example of stepping on your senior to climb up? He should take a good look at himself. Disgusting】

Su Ge's fanbase was massive. They almost completely flooded the comments with their own content, flaming others into silence before leaving in satisfaction.

What a joke. What corner did this Xi Nian crawl out from? Never even heard of him. Did he even make the top three in the ranking match to dare say he crushed Su Ge? If it were the second-place Yu Fan, it might be somewhat possible. So they went back to their usual activities on their Weibo Super Topic, checking in and boosting data as usual. Except for a few fans who had been at the scene and had fallen into a subtle silence, most didn't take it to heart.

The organizers of Star Games had set up a Superstar Leaderboard, with the names of all competing artists listed. Fans could vote for the popular candidates they thought were most likely to win the championship. Putting aside events like sprinting, swimming, and gymnastics, the one with the highest votes in the men's archery section had always been Su Ge, partly due to his strength, but also bolstered by his own popularity.

However, when the fans went to vote for Su Ge as usual today, they were stunned to find their idol's name nowhere on the ranking list.

In the early hours of the morning, the data refreshed. Second-place Yu Fan rose one spot to take first, third-place Meng Qianlin moved up to second, and fourth-place Zhou Suiyun squeezed into the top three. The rankings of the remaining contestants all moved up by one.

What's going on???

Where's Su Ge???

Su Ge's fans were dumbfounded. Unwilling to give up, they refreshed the ranking page several more times, but it remained the same. They belatedly remembered the content of those few posts from before and were shocked as they finally realized what had happened.

For an artist's ranking to be cleared, aside from a system glitch, there was only one other possibility—

The contestant had been eliminated.

But how was that possible?

You have to understand, this wasn't number one PK-ing number two, nor number two PK-ing number three. It was the last place beating the first place. What kind of concept was that?

Except for the initial ranking match, almost everyone thought the explosive point would be in the final, with Su Ge facing off against Yu Fan or Meng Qianlin. The strength of these three was on par. To suddenly hear that Su Ge had been kicked out was undoubtedly as absurd as the top student in the class being crushed by a slacker.

In just a few hours, the news spread across the entire internet like wildfire. The discussion on related topics quickly surpassed ten thousand, and the post rapidly climbed to the top of the hot search.

The entertainment circle is an invisible battlefield, and there is no shortage of those who flatter the powerful and trample on the weak. Su Ge's fans had offended quite a few people. In order to boost his ranking before, they often went to belittle Yu Fan and Meng Qianlin. Now that such a huge blunder had occurred, how could everyone not enjoy the show?

【Pfft hahaha, I'm dying of laughter. Su Ge got eliminated because his skills were inferior, what face do you have to go around flaming people? I'm dead, I'm dead. The biggest joke of the year】

【You can tell Su Ge's had work done on his face just by looking, yet his fans praise it as all-natural every day. It's not the first time they've been blind, but to be so brazenly confident, I'm truly impressed】

【Serves him right. Like idol, like fan. Both bite people like mad dogs】

Su Ge's management team behind him naturally couldn't sit by and do nothing. Before long, his personal Weibo account published a "profoundly meaningful" long apology, accompanied by a picture of a bruised hand. The gist was that due to an accidental injury, he could no longer continue in the competition to compete with everyone. He had disappointed his fans and was very sorry for it. The other members of his group all liked and reposted it, comforting him and telling him to rest well.

The TR Boy Band had first debuted in Korea before shifting their focus to the domestic entertainment circle. The seven members of the group were originally quite skilled, but because the lead singer Su Ge showed signs of going solo, they had started to drift apart and hadn't been seen together in a long time. This time, they rarely appeared together to leave comments, which invisibly attracted a lot of attention.

In fact, any normal person would have scrutinized the wording in the post. For example, when was Su Ge's hand injured? Before or after the match? Was this loss due to the injury or because his skills were inferior?

But the fans didn't care about all that. Their entire focus was on the five words "Su Ge's wrist is injured." Hearing this, they were as if injected with chicken blood, instantly changing their previous dejected state and began to frantically post to explain for their idol.

Su Ge did lose, but there was a reason. Who could maintain a winning streak with an injured wrist?

Su Ge persisted in the competition despite his injury. To have achieved this result is already very good. Everyone, please stop blaming him.

If Su Ge hadn't been injured, how could Xi Nian possibly have won?

The uninformed onlookers who saw this took it as truth and had an epiphany. No wonder Su Ge lost the match, so it was because of an injury.

A single post of dubious authenticity completely reversed the situation. To make matters worse, someone dug up a GIF from the competition, which happened to be the scene where Su Ge was smiling and encouraging Xi Nian, only to be met with Xi Nian's "cold glare." The fans, who were already heartbroken over Su Ge's injury, immediately exploded upon seeing this.

【Damn it, does he really think he's all that for beating Su Ge? So what if he won? His character is terrible, he doesn't even have basic manners】

【If Su Ge's hand wasn't injured, he definitely wouldn't have been eliminated. When there are no heroes, a scoundrel rises to fame】

【The comment above is killing me. Who the hell is Su Ge? Does he deserve to be called a hero? Just because you learned a bit of classical Chinese you come out to show off? Your Chinese teacher would be furious】

【I'm not a fan of Su Ge, but right now I feel like Xi Nian is being a little smug over a minor success. Shanxing Entertainment is entangled in lawsuits recently, what kind of monsters and demons are they signing?】

【I'm so angry, so angry!! Sob sob sob, my Gezi is just too naive. He was always bullied in the group, and he's still being bullied now. Taking him away, don't mess with us】

【Damn it, I can't swallow this insult! Otherwise, they'll really think our Gezi is a pushover!】

The fighting power of Su Ge's fans was widely acknowledged. Seeing their idol being wronged, how could they let it go? The fan club directly took the fight to Xi Nian's Weibo, with all sorts of insults and curses emerging endlessly. The main feed was slaughtered, the Super Topic was slaughtered, and almost no place was spared.

His manager, Sun Ming, perhaps having received instructions from the company's upper management, was urgently calling him. His meaning was for Xi Nian to come forward and apologize, and the matter would be over. His attitude was extremely firm, but unfortunately, the latter only replied with five words—

【To hell with you.】

Xi Nian finished editing the text, then hit send, not caring in the slightest that his Weibo had already been bombed, nor whether Sun Ming's face was ashen with anger. He crossed his legs, looking to be in a rather good mood.

The man's masked profile looked somewhat blurry under the overly bright incandescent lights of the hospital, giving off an aloof and inscrutable feeling. Only his eyes were dark and deep, as if they could suck a person in.

Lu Xingzhe's wound had been bandaged. The doctor suggested he be hospitalized for observation and have a detailed physical examination tomorrow. It was unclear if he had heard him; his gaze remained fixed on Xi Nian, like a child peeking at a toy of interest through a store's glass window.

The doctor left.

Lu Xingzhe noticed the gauze wrapped around Xi Nian's hand. "What happened to your hand?"

Xi Nian didn't answer. He rose from his chair, seeming to prepare to leave. Seeing this, Lu Xingzhe lightly tapped his fingertips on his knee. "You're leaving?"

Xi Nian said, "Going home to sleep."

Lu Xingzhe tilted his head slightly, deliberately misinterpreting his meaning. "Oh? Who are you sleeping with?"

Xi Nian sometimes felt that Lu Xingzhe was truly asking for a beating. He didn't stop walking upon hearing this, raising a hand to pull his black mask up a little higher. "Certainly not you."

Lu Xingzhe was naturally rebellious and had a roguish air. Hearing this, he casually tugged at his collar, his sexy collarbone flashing for a moment. He laughed so hard he was out of breath, not finding it strange at all to say such things to a man he had just met. "Why not me? Don't be so absolute. Maybe one day we'll sleep... Hey, where are you going?"

Xi Nian probably didn't want to listen to his nonsense. He turned and left the ward without looking back, his figure quickly disappearing beyond the door.

“……”

Lu Xingzhe stared in the direction he had left, feeling bored. Only after a long while did he retract his gaze. He lowered his head, unconsciously fiddling with his fingertips, probably feeling a bit of regret for not being able to see Xi Nian's face clearly.

For some reason, Xi Nian walked very quickly. He didn't even wait for the elevator and went straight down the emergency exit next to it. Halfway down, he suddenly seemed to realize something and silently came to a stop.

'Why leave...'

Xi Nian thought, 'Using this paparazzi Lu Xingzhe to deal with Su Ge, isn't that just perfect?'

Just like in his previous life, his mind was filled with schemes and calculations, and Lu Xingzhe was the blade he was most skilled at wielding. But as for how to use it, Xi Nian still needed to think carefully.

Lu Xingzhe was staying in a three-person room, but the other two beds were not yet occupied by patients, so he was the only one there. As it was late at night, the dense shadows of the trees outside the window were faintly visible, accompanied by the subsiding chirping of cicadas. A chill began to spread from within the room.

Lu Xingzhe took a charging cable out of his bag, plugged his phone in to charge, then limped off the bed, wanting to go to the vending machine in the hallway to buy a bottle of water. Who would have thought that as soon as he opened the door, he would run into the returning Xi Nian. He subconsciously stepped back, so startled that he stumbled and nearly fell to the ground.

Xi Nian was quick to react. He directly grabbed his arm and pulled him back with a bit of force. Seeing that the gauze on Lu Xingzhe's leg was seeping blood, he asked in an emotionless tone, "What were you trying to do?"

Lu Xingzhe didn't expect him to come back. He was stunned for a moment before he reacted, lowering his head to glance at the hand Xi Nian was using to hold him. "Didn't you leave?"

His eyes were long, narrow, and stunning, and his gaze was lively. When he deliberately lowered his voice to speak, the end of his words was raspy, giving off a mischievous and ill-intentioned feeling.

'Still the same, hasn't changed a bit.'

Xi Nian quietly glanced at Lu Xingzhe. His expression was hidden by the mask. He placed the shopping bag in his hand on the table, which contained some bread, pastries, and drinks. His voice was faint. "I came back."

After speaking, he took a bottle of mineral water from the shopping bag and tossed it to him.

Lu Xingzhe raised his hand to catch it but didn't drink. He paused for a moment and said, "Aren't we going to introduce ourselves?"

Xi Nian was very close to him. Hearing this, he leaned down slightly to look him over. The cold scent on his collar instantly enveloped all of Lu Xingzhe's senses. After a long moment, he said with interest, "Sure. What's your name?"

The bewitching words, tinged with his breath, swirled by his ear.

Lu Xingzhe's throat tightened for a moment. He felt that this man's calm exterior was full of sharp thorns, making him difficult to control. He pursed his lips and slowly uttered three words, "Lu Xingzhe."

Xi Nian glanced at the camera bag beside him and deliberately asked, "A photographer?"

Lu Xingzhe lied without batting an eye. He nodded. "Yeah."

'It's all about shooting things anyway. What's the difference what you shoot? A paparazzi and a photographer aren't that different.'

Xi Nian probably found this amusing. He passed his phone over, his tone flat, but who knew what schemes were hidden within. "Contact info."

Lu Xingzhe paused, appearing surprisingly naive at this moment. He took the phone and entered his private number. "...So what's your name?"

Xi Nian took the phone back. As their hands touched, his fingertips ambiguously slid across his palm before he put it in his jacket pocket, but he didn't answer. "You'll know in the future."

Then he added, "Rest well."

Perhaps because one is tired late at night, his voice, heard in a daze, sounded deceptively gentle.

“……”

Lu Xingzhe had grown up in an orphanage and had never had such contact with anyone. Hearing this, he silently clenched his palm, licking his dry lips, feeling something stirring restlessly inside him.

System No. 009 saw it clearly from the side. This fellow Xi Nian was clearly flirting on purpose, the kind who doesn't clean up his own mess.

Lu Xingzhe: "Then I'm at a disadvantage. Who knows if I'll ever see you again."

He didn't know his name, nor what he looked like.

Xi Nian seemed to smile, which made the corners of his eyes and brows crinkle. He took out the stack of money Lu Xingzhe had given him earlier from his jacket pocket, held it between two fingers, and waved it in front of him before placing it on the table nearby. "You're not at a disadvantage."

Xi Nian didn't want to reveal his identity, at least not now.

After speaking, he tapped his fingertips on the table, his voice low. "We'll meet again..."

Outside the window, the leaves of the branches rustled, a surging silence. A few scattered moths, attracted by the light in the ward, clung to the windowsill, gently flapping their wings, but were blocked by the glass pane, unable to enter.

Xi Nian left. The ward became so quiet it was a little unsettling.

Lu Xingzhe stumbled back onto the bed, twisted open the mineral water, and took a sip. Then he casually rummaged through the shopping bag and found a small bag of hazelnut chocolates. His eyes lit up.

Perhaps it was a food-guarding instinct developed from his childhood in the orphanage. Chocolate that others needed to savor slowly, he tore open the package and finished in two or three bites. The rich flavor spread rapidly on his tongue, but Lu Xingzhe didn't find it too sweet. Instead, he narrowed his eyes in a good mood, lying on the bed like a well-fed fox.

He liked sweets.

But when he was a child at the welfare home, he couldn't eat them very often.

The phone on the table was charging. As soon as it turned on, numerous messages popped up. Lu Xingzhe licked the inside of his cheek, seemingly still savoring the taste from just now. He reached out and took the camera from the black zippered bag beside him, then skillfully transferred the photos.

Mrs. Jian had sent several short messages to urge him, her anxiety evident in her words. Lu Xingzhe gave her a call, then lowered his head to review the photos he had taken today. "I got the stuff."

Hearing this, the woman on the other end let out a light sigh of relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted. "Good, I'll transfer the final 50,000 to you now."

Lu Xingzhe pressed the camera buttons, browsing through the photos one by one, his voice tinged with a smile. "No, no, no, you're mistaken. It's not 50,000."

He corrected her, "Mrs. Jian, it's 100,000."

Mrs. Jian paused, her voice cold. "You're raising the price on the spot? Is that according to the rules?"

Lu Xingzhe raised an eyebrow nonchalantly. What rules could there be in their line of work? It was all about money. "Suit yourself. At worst, I'll sell them to Jian Yihong. I'm sure he'd be happy to pay a high price to buy these photos back."

Mrs. Jian was not short on money; she was just disgusted by Lu Xingzhe's actions. She took a deep breath and swallowed her anger. "Fine, 100,000 it is. Send the photos to my email."

She probably never wanted to have any dealings with this despicable paparazzi for the rest of her life. She hung up the phone hastily after speaking, and a transaction notification popped up on Lu Xingzhe's phone.

Lu Xingzhe had many resources with marketing accounts and weekly magazines. He glanced at the amount received, then packaged the photos and sent them out. Only then did he habitually click into Weibo to browse the recent hot searches and trending figures. The top post happened to be the flame war about Xi Nian coldly ignoring Su Ge on the field, with a GIF prominently displayed on it.

Xi Nian's eyes were too cold and deep, extremely recognizable. Lu Xingzhe had originally just been scrolling casually, but as if he had discovered something, his pupils suddenly shrank, and he subconsciously sat up straight in bed.

It's him...