ASPWL Ch33: Snow in July

Zhou Zijian was still on the beach not far away making a call, but he had already taken off his mic, and the crew sensibly moved the camera away to avoid picking up any sound.

The viewers in the live stream could only see the picture, but hear no sound.

The guests on site could occasionally catch a sentence or two from Zhou Zijian’s conversation, but they were too exhausted to guess what Zhou Zijian was talking about. They hadn’t even digested the shocking revelation from earlier!

Du Yueqin looked even more upset, still in the same posture as before, staring in shock at Zhou Zijian in the distance. After a long while, she finally seemed to come back to her senses, looking dejected as she returned to her seat.

No one spoke, and no one comforted Du Yueqin.

Silence spread among the guests, but the live stream chat was buzzing with activity.

As soon as they heard Zhou Zijian admit he had a girlfriend, the chat exploded.

But before the CP fans could start to collapse, they heard a “Mom” come from the phone.

CP fans and viewers alike were almost blown away by that “Mom.”

—”What?”

—”Wait, I’m so confused…”

—”????? What is going on?”

—”Zhou Zijian not only has a girlfriend but also a son?”

—”When did he have a son?”

—”It’s not his son, did you even listen carefully? This son should be his girlfriend’s son. Didn’t you hear him disapprove of his mom being with Zhou Zijian?!”

The explanation only made things worse, and the fans and viewers were even more shocked.

—”So my CP is officially over?”

—”Isn’t it obvious? He just admitted he has a girlfriend, sob sob… Let me cry for a while…”

—”I feel so complicated, even though I knew my CP was fake, learning the truth so suddenly is still hard to accept.”

Suddenly, a fan sighed:

—”Oh, now I get it! I was wondering why the data for the show was pretty good when it aired, but the two male leads showed no signs of promoting their CP at all… Turns out their teams were already in the know!”

This bullet comment quickly received many likes.

Almost all popular shows these days have some CP hype after they air, not just to attract viewers but also to bring traffic and buzz to the actors themselves.

BL dramas are no exception, in fact, they often go even further with CP hype.

But in the recent show Zhou Zijian starred in, he and his co-actor Wen Huai seemed to have a prior agreement. Besides necessary promotions, neither showed any intention of hyping their CP.

Even after the show ended, both Zhou Zijian and Wen Huai clarified on camera that they were just good friends and hoped fans would remain rational.

But because this adaptation of the BL drama was so successful, viewers got so invested that they didn’t care whether the main actors agreed or not—they just had to ship this CP!

Modern netizens are just that domineering!

So during the broadcast, Zhou Zijian and Wen Huai each gained a large number of spontaneous CP fans. Their CP even topped the trending super topics list for a week straight.

Even after the drama ended, their CP fanbase didn’t dwindle.

Now, with the sudden revelation that Zhou Zijian had a girlfriend, CP fans were seeing stars.

Just as the bullet comments were fiercely debating, Ye Leyao suddenly noticed that Du Yueqin, sitting opposite her, looked very unwell.

[I feel like she’s about to cry?]

Hearing this, Qin Yao immediately turned his head and followed Ye Leyao’s gaze.

After returning to her seat, Du Yueqin still seemed dazed, her gaze fixed on the playing cards in front of her.

After a long while, she suddenly reached out, picked up the Ace of Hearts in front of her, tore it to pieces, and threw the fragments forcefully onto the beach.

[Even if you’re in a bad mood, you shouldn’t litter!]

Ye Leyao looked up again and noticed that Du Yueqin’s eyes were suddenly red.

Ye Leyao thought:

[Oh no! Du Yueqin really seems about to cry!]

[Is the news that Brother Zhou has a girlfriend such a big blow to her?]

[What do we do now? I’m not good at comforting people!]

Isn’t it just a coincidence?

Neither is Qin Yao.

Liu Yan, sitting next to Du Yueqin, also noticed her unusual behavior and instinctively looked to Li Siyuan for help.

Is Li Siyuan the kind of person who comforts others?

If he doesn’t continue to roast people, it means he’s in a good mood today. He was more afraid that opening his mouth would upset Du Yueqin even more, so he directly turned his head and pretended to be dead.

Liu Yan then looked at Song Zhehan.

Song Zhehan still remembered his persona, and while he was preparing his emotions, he saw the producer and director walking over.

“Thank you all for your hard work on this episode. Our shooting ends here today!”

As the words fell, the live broadcast was cut off.

Du Yueqin could no longer hold back her emotions and stood up, turning around and heading towards the villa.

Du Yueqin’s manager and assistant hurriedly went to comfort her.

The other guests also breathed a sigh of relief.

Great.

They didn’t have to rack their brains to find the right words to comfort her anymore.

But while the guests were relieved, the viewers in the live stream were not happy. They hadn’t finished eating their popcorn, Zhou Zijian was still on the phone, and now they just cut the live stream?

—”I want to watch! If you don’t show me, I’ll make a fuss!”

—”What?! Is there any footage that I, a noble VIP user, can’t see?”

—”Hurry up and bring the live stream back online!”

—”By the way, did anyone else notice Du Yueqin’s expression seemed off?”

—,”I saw it, but right now, I’m more interested in Zhou Zijian’s gossip!”

—”Exactly, so I want to see the live stream—”

But no matter how much the netizens expressed their dissatisfaction, the production team remained unmoved.

Netizens are impatient; they couldn’t stand not having a place to discuss, so they all turned to Weibo.

Weibo was bustling.

Video clips from the “Let’s Go Traveling Together” live stream had already been edited and posted, and hashtags like #Zhou Zijian Reveals Girlfriend# and #Zhou Zijian’s Son# were trending at the top.

Zhou Zijian and Wen Huai’s CP fans in the super topics were breaking down en masse.

Fans were genuinely breaking down, and gossip-loving netizens were truly enjoying the chaos, repeatedly watching the exciting clips from the live stream.

As they watched, they soon noticed something unusual with their keen eyes—

—”Am I the only one who thinks Zhou Zijian’s son’s voice sounds familiar?”

—”+1, I think so too! Like I’ve heard it somewhere before.”

Until a CP fan of Zhou Zijian and Wen Huai posted:

—”Am I too sensitive? Why do I feel like the male voice on the phone sounds like Wen Huai?”

As soon as this Weibo post appeared, the comments were full of:

—”Don’t say it, it really does.”

—”Don’t scare me!”

—”CP fans, even if you’re leaving the fandom, you don’t have to retaliate like this, right? Who chases their best buddy’s mom? How do you even address each other after that?”

—”Zhou Zijian to Wen Huai: From today, you are my brother, and I am your dad?”

Wicked netizens burst into laughter.

Seeing this topic gaining more and more traction, soon marketing accounts started comparing Wen Huai’s voice to the male voice on the phone.

This comparison was even more astonishing; once the comparison video was made, CP fans were silent.

Netizens were so shocked their jaws almost dropped.

—”WTF? WTF! I’m losing it!”

—”Is this for real, or is it a joke?”

—”Even the super topic moderators for the CP fans have turned their avatars black… it’s probably true.”

—”So Zhou Zijian really chased his buddy’s mom?”

These few lines were explosive no matter how you looked at them.

As one scandal subsided, another arose. At this critical moment, Zhou Zijian went online on Weibo.

Ye Leyao was also startled by the sudden notification.

[Could Brother Zhou be about to respond?]

Recording was over, and the guests were free to leave.

The first to leave was naturally Du Yueqin, who walked out of the villa with red eyes, dragging her suitcase.

The other guests also left one after another.

Papa and Mama Huo hadn’t had much fun these three days, so they suggested taking Ye Leyao to have some fun before going home.

Ye Leyao agreed without hesitation.

At this moment, Ye Leyao was at one of the Huo family’s chain hotels with Papa and Mama Huo. The three of them were sitting in the living room of a suite, eating fruit. Hearing Ye Leyao’s thoughts,Papa and Mama Huo both took out their phones.

But Ye Leyao’s surfing speed was a step ahead of them:

[Ahhh, Brother Zhou posted on Weibo!]

[Oh my god! He actually admitted it directly!!!]

Admitted what?

Admitted that he really is with Wen Huai’s mom?

Mama Huo was the first to click on Zhou Zijian’s Weibo, and the first post was Zhou Zijian’s post from a minute ago:

The Weibo post was very short, only a few words: “I love her very much.”

The attached picture was of two hands clasped together, both wearing matching couple rings on their ring fingers.

The comments section was almost devoid of congratulatory messages and filled with fans’ and netizens’ confusion:

—”So… is the girlfriend really Wen Huai’s mom?”

—”Brother Zhou, do you really have a son named Wen Huai?”

—”Are you really Wen Huai’s stepfather now?”

—”Husband, speak up, husband!”

[No wonder netizens are so ruthless! Their questions are truly piercing!]

[How is Brother Zhou supposed to answer that?]

Ye Leyao refreshed the comments section. He didn’t see Zhou Zijian’s response but did see Wen Huai’s latest reply:

“Wen Huai: So what? Is my mom not good enough for Zhou Zijian?”

That aggressive tone, that disgruntled attitude, that look of wanting to fight Zhou Zijian again.

[Ahhhhh—]

Ye Leyao screamed.

He exited and entered again, repeating the action twice, finally confirming that he hadn’t seen wrong.

[It really is Wen Huai himself!]

[Wasn’t he firmly against Zhou Zijian dating his mom? Why is he coming out and admitting it now?!]

Papa and Mama Huo were also surprised by this.

The two were scrolling through Weibo more seriously than ever.

But Ye Leyao’s internet speed was still faster:

[I see… Wen Huai just wants to protect his mom…]

[As soon as the news that Zhou Zijian’s girlfriend might be older came out, netizens and fans reacted strongly.]

[Public opinion has developed to the point where extreme fans have started digging into the true identity of Zhou Zijian’s girlfriend. Zhou Zijian’s decision to come forward and admit the relationship at this point was to protect his girlfriend.]

[Wen Huai is the same.]

[Even if he opposes Brother Zhou dating his mom, only he is allowed to oppose it. Netizens aren’t allowed to say a word against it.]

CP fans also realized that the two main actors, who hadn’t interacted on Weibo for a long time, were now interacting.

It was this interaction that left all CP fans seeing stars.

CP Fan 1: “How is this not real? My ship is a family now! A family in the legal sense! I’m so happy, hahaha.”

CP Fan 2: “I dare anyone to say they’re not real. One of them even happily became a dad; how can they not be real? If this isn’t real, then tell me what is?”

CP Fan 3: “Alright, alright, I hereby declare my ship is real!”

CP Fan 4: “So, are you so eager to admit it now because you want our blessing? Blessing Zhou Zijian for having a twenty-three-year-old son at the age of twenty-seven? Or blessing Wen Huai for having a twenty-seven-year-old stepfather at the age of twenty-three?”

CP fans were thoroughly broken.

Netizens, on the other hand, were thoroughly enjoying the spectacle!

—”I never expected it to develop like this!”

—”Thrilling, so thrilling! I really want to interview Wen Huai about how he feels right now.”

—”To the commenter above, Wen Huai would definitely tell you to get lost.”

—”Hahahaha, but on a serious note, Zhou Zijian is pretty responsible.”

Ye Leyao saw this comment and gave it a big like.

[Exactly!]

[If it were any other celebrity, with things blowing up like this, they’d definitely feel embarrassed and wouldn’t want to come forward. But Brother Zhou not only came forward but also publicly expressed his love for his girlfriend on Weibo—]

[How is that not true love!]

Papa and Mama Huo also rarely agreed.

Zhou Zijian is indeed a very responsible man.

[No, I have to support Brother Zhou.]

Mama Huo was curious about how Ye Leyao was going to show support, and the next moment, the Weibo special attention notification sounded. Mama Huo looked down:

One second ago, Ye Leyao had reposted Zhou Zijian’s new Weibo with the caption: “Wishing Brother Zhou and sister-in-law forever love!”

So your way of supporting is simply reposting on Weibo!

Mama Huo chuckled and decided to use her own Weibo to repost and show support too.

It was getting late, and Mama Huo and Papa Huo were very satisfied with today’s gossip.

Mama Huo stood up, preparing to return to her room with Papa Huo. Before leaving, she reminded Ye Leyao to rest early.

Ye Leyao nodded repeatedly, holding his phone.

After reposting, he didn’t check the comments on Weibo again but went straight to his room to shower and get ready to rest.

Meanwhile, the online discussions did not stop.

But with Zhou Zijian and Wen Huai both speaking up, netizens’ focus shifted from “curious about Zhou Zijian’s girlfriend’s identity” to “when did Zhou Zijian fall for Wen Huai’s mom” and “when did he get together with Wen Huai’s mom.”

Some overly curious gossip lovers even directly asked under Wen Huai’s Weibo.

Surprisingly, Wen Huai actually replied, and his reply was straightforward: “How would I know? Go ask that idiot Zhou Zijian yourself!”

The gossip lovers laughed even harder.

—”Hahahahahaha—”

—”It’s clear Wen Huai is really losing it!”

—”His mom became his buddy’s girlfriend; who wouldn’t lose it?”

—”No kidding, Wen Huai used to have a bad temper, but it wasn’t this bad, right?”

—”Good friends, bad enemies, friends and enemies (sorry, got the gender wrong)”*1

With no way to get a response from Wen Huai, the gossip netizens turned their attention back to Zhou Zijian.

As they dug deeper, it wasn’t long before an observant netizen posted: “So on the first day of recording ‘Let’s Go Traveling Together,’ the panda eyes on Zhou Zijian’s face were from Wen Huai punching him?”

A single stone stirs up a thousand waves.

Netizens instantly found their community and began to dig through the live broadcasts from the past two days together.

As they dug, they really found something interesting.

On the first day’s live broadcast, as soon as Zhou Zijian got in the car, Du Yueqin asked him about his eye, and guess what?

At that time, Ye Leyao was actually covering his mouth and laughing in the corner!

This was enough to prove that Ye Leyao had noticed something back then, but he was secretly enjoying the gossip alone!

Finally, netizens also discovered that during the beach live broadcast that night, while Zhou Zijian was on a call, Ye Leyao took out his phone, seemed to have found some video, and played it. Although the sound was too brief for netizens to hear clearly, Ye Leyao’s expression became particularly intriguing at that moment.

—“!!! Ye Leyao, could you have found out this early?”

—“I knew it! Ye Leyao definitely knows some big gossip that we don’t!”

—“Alright, alright, I got it. From now on, I’ll follow Ye Leyao for gossip!”

The direction of online discussions increasingly deviated, and some netizens shifted from gossiping about Zhou Zijian to digging into Ye Leyao’s mysterious smile.

Even Zhou Zijian didn’t expect that Ye Leyao would help shift the focus onto himself.

For this, Zhou Zijian was very grateful, even sending a big red envelope on WeChat to thank Ye Leyao.

Ye Leyao was surprised when he checked Weibo in the morning.

But he hadn’t actually done anything to help. What netizens said was true; he had indeed been secretly enjoying the gossip.

How could Ye Leyao accept Zhou Zijian’s red envelope? He returned it directly.

“I won’t accept the red envelope, but I will take the wedding candy in the future!”

Zhou Zijian’s reply was almost immediate: “Leyao, really, thank you!”

Ye Leyao quickly responded: “No, no need!”

After all, he truly enjoyed the gossip.

Over the next few days, Ye Leyao had a great time on the island with Papa and Mama Huo.

On the last day, while Ye Leyao and Mama Huo were sunbathing on the cruise ship, Mama Huo suddenly said, “By the way, Leyao, the day after tomorrow your Dad and I are going to Uncle Yang Kun’s house for his father’s 90th birthday. Do you want to come with us?”

Although Mama Huo knew Ye Leyao didn’t like socializing, she and Papa Huo still hoped that he would go out and show his face more, especially since he had now debuted and would have to face fans eventually. It would be good practice.

Ye Leyao understood Papa and Mama Huo’s good intentions, but he really didn’t want to go, so he refused without hesitation: “I don’t think so.”

Mama Huo looked helpless.

Papa Huo persuaded with his eyes:

Forget it, if Leyao doesn’t want to go, he doesn’t have to. His happiness is the most important.

After all, the filming in the past few days had been tough. Letting Ye Leyao rest well these few days was the best.

Mama Huo wouldn’t force Ye Leyao. Since he said so, she could only nod and say no more.

She stood up, intending to get a drink from the cruise ship, when she suddenly heard Ye Leyao muttering to himself:

[Uncle Yang Kun? Why does that name sound familiar?]

Mama Huo paused.

Papa Huo also looked over.

No way?

Could it be that they would discover some gossip just by attending a banquet?

Ye Leyao turned over, thinking that this seemed quite important. He stood up and went inside the cruise ship to get his phone.

Dad and Mama Huo stood on the cruise ship, not daring to breathe heavily so as not to disturb Ye Leyao.

Before long, they heard Ye Leyao exclaim—

[It turns out that Papa Huo was injured at the Yang family banquet!]

Mama and Papa Huo’s expressions changed simultaneously.

They exchanged glances, injured?!

Is there really gossip?

No, they were just attending an ordinary banquet, so why would Papa Huo get injured?

Ye Leyao’s voice continued:

[It seems that because of Papa Huo’s injury, someone took advantage of the situation…]

Papa Huo’s face immediately changed, waving his hand toward Mama Huo.

What’s this all about?

How did he let someone take advantage of the situation?

Mama Huo naturally trusted Papa Huo and signaled him not to worry, to listen to what Ye Leyao had to say.

[Oh—]

[So Papa Huo reunited with his childhood sweetheart at the Yang family banquet?]

Papa Huo’s pupils shook.

What childhood sweetheart?

He didn’t remember having a childhood sweetheart!

Mama Huo was equally shocked, immediately raising her eyebrows and glaring at Papa Huo.

Papa Huo felt wronged, shaking his head while explaining in a low voice: “Don’t you know who’s in my social circle? Where would I have a childhood sweetheart?!”

Mama Huo of course knew Papa Huo had no childhood sweetheart, but that didn’t stop her from being angry: “You better not have one!”

“I really don’t!” Papa Huo had a headache.

Inside the cruise ship, Ye Leyao read quickly.

[Looking at this, the Yang family really was innocent!]

[A relative’s brat came to play, not only smashing all the limited-edition figurines in Uncle Yang Kun’s son’s room but also refusing to apologize!]

Ye Leyao was furious reading this.

[Those were all limited-edition figurines! How dare that brat do that?!]

[Ahhh—if someone dared to burn my collection, I would definitely fight them to the death!]

[In the end, the brat was forced to apologize, but he held a grudge and sneaked into Uncle Yang Kun’s son’s room after the adults left, burning all the remaining figurines?!]

Ye Leyao was livid just reading this.

[Unbelievable! Too much! I’ve never seen someone so evil!]

Dad and Mama Huo felt uncomfortable hearing Ye Leyao’s description.

Whose child is this? So ill-mannered?

And then? What happened next?

The brat burned those collectibles. If no one was in the room, wouldn’t it cause a fire?

After Ye Leyao finished being angry and calmed down a bit, he continued to read, confirming Papa and Mama Huo’s guess—

[As a result, because no one was in the room and a lot of the furniture in the house was wooden, the whole Yang family villa was burned down…]

[Oh! So Papa Huo was injured protecting Mama Huo!]

Ye Leyao suddenly understood.

[Scared me! I thought Papa Huo got injured saving his childhood sweetheart…]

Papa Huo said in an aggrieved voice, “It’s snowing.”

Mama Huo: “Huh?”

Papa Huo said in a melancholy tone, “Snowing in July, I’m more wronged than Dou E!”

Mama Huo couldn’t hold back anymore, the corners of her mouth curling up uncontrollably.

At this moment, Ye Leyao came out from inside the cruise ship: “Mama Huo, I just thought about it, and I’ve decided to go to the banquet with you!”

Mama Huo nodded with a smile: “Good.”

She was already looking forward to the banquet the day after tomorrow.