FLME Ch90

Yu Wen wasn’t good at singing or dancing, but if he had to sing, he could still shout out a couple of notes.

The company had arranged for him to train over a month in advance, cramming a few dances and some love songs as a treat for the fans.

Yu Wen did his best to learn, and though he thought the results were average, the company didn’t seem to care much about the outcome. When Yu Wen found out that his small birthday event had a specially invited escape-themed makeup and styling team, courtesy of Xie Jiamao, he couldn’t help but marvel at his own undeserved luck.

The fans were also incredibly indulgent, mindlessly praising him no matter how he sang. During the instrumental break, Yu Wen squatted at the edge of the stage to interact with the fans. From the crowd below, a heart-wrenching shout rang out: “Heavenly voice! This is simply a heavenly voice!”

Amidst the praise of his “heavenly voice,” Yu Wen floated in euphoria, finishing his performance.

The last segment was cutting the cake. With plenty of time left, Yu Wen sat at the edge of the stage, chatting with the fans.

The view around him was a sea of blue and yellow. The colors he had casually mentioned before had been embraced by so many, becoming a symbol of their love for him.

Yu Wen couldn’t help but be moved, getting a bit sentimental as he asked, “Why do you all like me?”

One fan immediately blurted out, “Because there’s drama to watch!”

Yu Wen: “…Take that back, next.”

Another fan said, “I like your acting, and I also like your personality.”

Yu Wen nodded in satisfaction, not forgetting to tease, “Learn from this, this is the standard answer.”

Everyone burst into laughter, and the first fan made a face at him.

As they chatted, for some reason, the conversation shifted to family matters. It seemed the fans were treating him like a book of answers, asking him how to deal with various annoying situations.

At first, Yu Wen listened seriously, but soon he realized that these weren’t really problems; they were just ways to mess with him.

“Let me tell you a crazy story. My little brother has fallen for his cousin, but he doesn’t realize it. He often walks around in his pajamas in front of him, but my little brother is really pretty. The cousin might be… well, not able to handle it…”

Yu Wen: “What’s your little brother’s last name? Song? Song Mingzhu?”

The fan blushed. “You figured it out! We really are in sync.”

“Once upon a time, there was a mountain, and on that mountain were a few people. One of them wanted to steal their things…”

Yu Wen: “I’ve heard this story before, The Legend of Immortal Sect, right?”

The fan blushed again. “Teacher Yu Wen is so smart.”

He thought the fans were reluctant to part with him, so he patiently chatted for a while, but gradually, he began to suspect that they were just stalling for time. His suspicion reached its peak when one fan shouted, “Don’t turn around, look at me!”

These were his loyal fans, and he could tell right away that something was up.

He pretended to be indifferent, lowering their guard, and then, at the perfect moment, he turned around suddenly—

“…”

The large screen on stage was displaying a video. The thumbnail seemed to be from an old clip of Yu Wen. He couldn’t quite remember which event it was from, but his smile looked a bit awkward, and his movements were a bit stiff.

Chu Han and Xi Su were pushing a cake cart onto the stage, wearing half of a bunny costume, caught off guard, and he saw them dead on.

The two froze in an awkward pose.

Yu Wen guessed they had planned to surprise him by pulling off the costume headpiece during the cake cutting, intending to give him a good shock.

Unfortunately, they hadn’t put on the headpieces yet.

This was a surprise put together by the fans, colleagues… and perhaps even the company.

…Sometimes, curiosity really shouldn’t be so strong.

Yu Wen scolded himself in his mind, then turned around, pretending nothing had happened and that he hadn’t seen anything. He casually said, “Where were we? Let’s continue.”

The fans stamped their feet in frustration. “Yu Wen! Didn’t we tell you not to turn around?!”

Yu Wen felt wronged. “Don’t you all know me? The more you tell me not to look, the more I have to look.”

The fans: “…”

Well, that makes sense!

The surprise was already exposed, so there was no need to hide it anymore. The host called Yu Wen over to cut the cake.

Yu Wen, being responsible, decided to break the surprise, and he would play along.

“Oh my gosh!” Walking over to the cake, he pretended to just notice the two bunny costumes and exaggeratedly said, “Little bunnies, so cute. Are you staff? Oh, so professional…”

Xi Su glanced down at the headpieces at his feet, utterly confused. He thought, I’m not wearing it. Is Yu Wen face-blind?

He said, “I’m Xi Su.”

Chu Han: “…I’m Chu Han.”

Yu Wen was overjoyed. “What?! It’s actually my two friends from the circle! Oh my gosh, I’m so moved, I don’t know what to say, I really didn’t expect this…”

Chu Han couldn’t take it anymore.

He used the cake server to scoop a small piece of cream and directly fed it into Yu Wen’s mouth, his face expressionless as he said, “I really don’t want to see your acting outside of the set, please, just shut up.”

After being hunted down by the entire internet on his birthday, Yu Wen once again created a sensation, this time with his birthday event where his industry friends manually muted him on stage.

What a colorful life.

The surprise that the company and fans had prepared for him wasn’t in the event schedule. The six-minute recap video on the big screen was something Yu Wen hadn’t seen before.

Such excellent editing, he thought, couldn’t have been done by the company. It was most likely a fan-made tribute.

The video compiled every self-introduction Yu Wen had made since his debut, including behind-the-scenes footage from dramas, live streams, and variety shows… every new project was marked with a time stamp in the top-right corner.

Under each timestamp, there were cute, decorative cursive comments:

—”First drama, Xiao Yu Wen had so much fun~”

—”Oops, a brain-burning variety show.”

—”First serious drama, big production, the makeup in the behind-the-scenes is really beautiful.”

There were many other trivial clips, documenting every step of his journey in the entertainment industry.

As Yu Wen watched the time stamps on the video jump in the top-right corner, he suddenly felt a bit dazed. The experience felt both fulfilling and long, yet he realized it had been less than a year.

Xie Heyu stood to the side of the big screen, not too far, not too close, dressed in black. But Yu Wen noticed him immediately.

His ring finger twitched slightly. On that finger was a simple ring, which, even though the stylist had said didn’t match the overall style, he hadn’t been willing to take off.

Xie Heyu raised his hand to gesture near his ear, signaling him to speak into the mic. The same simple ring on his ring finger reflected a cold gleam.

Chu Han and Xi Su were fighting over the cake.

The cake was a fondant cake—beautiful but not very practical. Both of them were fighting over the jam-filled center. While Chu Han handed out two pieces of cake to the fans, Xi Su scooped out the top layer of filling.

“…” Chu Han said, “Forget it, you can have it.”

Who could resist Xi Su’s gluttony? Go ahead! Big eater!

When the video finished, the entire crowd sang “Happy Birthday.”

Yu Wen smiled amid the continuous blessings, softly saying, “Happy 23rd birthday, Yu Wen.”

The world is blessing you.

Please listen.

*

“Regarding the netizens who say you have an immersive acting style that’s unique in the industry, Teacher Yu Wen, what are your thoughts?”

Yu Wen pushed down the bottle of mineral water Xi Su had handed him, positioning it near his lips, and said, “I’m very grateful for everyone’s praise. I don’t deserve the title of immersive acting, I just like to study characters and immerse myself in the emotions…”

Xi Su: “What are your thoughts on winning the Best Supporting Actor award this time?”

Yu Wen: “First, I want to thank my parents. Without them bringing me into this world and raising me with so much effort, I wouldn’t be the Yu Wen I am today. Secondly, I want to thank the Party and the country, thank my beautiful China for giving me a platform to show myself. Finally, I want to thank the company…”

After the award speech, Xi Su responded with a storm of applause. He said emotionally, “Such a sincere acceptance speech… Alright, now it’s my turn. Yu Wen, I want to win the Most Popular Male Artist award.”

Yu Wen responded, “Teacher Xi, regarding the Most Popular Male Artist award, what are your thoughts?”

Xi Su wiped a tear from the corner of his eye, touched, and said, “First, I want to thank my parents…”

Yu Wen: “Don’t plagiarize.”

Xi Su: “An acceptance speech can’t be considered plagiarized, it’s universal.”

Yu Wen rolled his eyes.

This was the set of Gao Kaiyu’s new movie. That’s right, after directing countless TV dramas, Gao finally ventured into the movie industry, aiming for the big screen.

Yu Wen was chosen as the male lead. The movie’s script was more realistic, with the main character being an orphaned gangster. To fit the role, Yu Wen had dyed his hair yellow, and his face had slimmed down a bit, making his features sharper.

Xi Su and Chu Han, as company veterans, were brought in as supporting actors. Chu Han, with his good acting, played a major role, while Xi Su, with his weaker acting, had a cameo as a friend of the yellow-haired gangster, named Lan Mao.

It was true that when he stood on the street looking casual, he didn’t seem out of place at all.

The two were waiting backstage, discussing the recent buzz around various award nominations online. With Song Mingzhu’s support, Yu Wen was a top contender for the award. Chu Han and Xi Su had also achieved success in their respective fields. As actors, who didn’t hope for an award with real prestige? It was practically a badge of honor that fans would boast about for a lifetime.

However, Yu Wen didn’t have high hopes. He felt his acting wasn’t mature enough, and there were many senior actors in the industry who were better than him. If he didn’t win this time, he’d just try again next time. After all, he was still young, no rush.

The two of them held their bottles of mineral water, pretending to have won an award. When Chu Han came back, seeing them walking back and forth holding the bottles like emperors on a royal tour, she thought they had been scolded by Gao Kaiyu and were losing their minds.

“Do you want to go fight with Director Gao?” After a pause, she said, “I’ll go with you.”

Yu Wen said, “I’m an artist, what kind of fight is that? It would cause such a bad influence.”

Xi Su said, “Yeah, I get scolded every day, but I don’t harbor any resentment. Young people shouldn’t have such a temper. You’ve never been scolded, so what’s there to feel bad about…”

“I’ve been scolded,” Chu Han said flatly, closing her eyes, “Just now.”

Gao Kaiyu was quite skilled at scolding people. He was especially good at hitting the heart. Once someone performed poorly, he would scold them mercilessly, pointing out all the flaws no one dared to mention. If someone’s mental fortitude wasn’t strong enough, they might cry right on the spot.

Yu Wen sympathetically patted her shoulder, saying, “It’s okay, you can scold him back. He won’t get angry.”

One good thing about Gao Kaiyu was that, though he had a fiery temper, as long as you could talk back, you could scold him every day and he wouldn’t hold a grudge.

Chu Han said weakly, “I can’t scold him back…”

The crew was filming in a coastal city, and the weather was perfect. Yu Wen, Xi Su, and Chu Han had set up three lounge chairs around the set and would lie in them to soak up the sun whenever they had free time, becoming a beautiful sight on set.

“Senior…”

Yu Wen relaxed and swayed back and forth, not opening his eyes.

The nervous girl gathered her courage and called out, “Senior—”

Her voice was close, and Yu Wen hesitated, wondering if she was calling him.

He opened his eyes, and the new female supporting actress, who had just joined the set, was nervously standing in front of him.

Yu Wen pointed at himself, “…Me?”

Chu Han slapped his hand away.

“It must be me. With your seniority, how could anyone call you senior?” Chu Han gestured for Yu Wen to relax and said kindly, “What’s the matter?”

Yu Wen rolled his eyes and lay back down.

The girl nervously twisted her clothes, her gaze shifting between Yu Wen and Chu Han.

“I’m a new artist signed by Starlight Media. My manager told me to greet the three seniors first and ask for your guidance…”

Yu Wen immediately opened his eyes, and Xi Su sat up like a spring.

“Say that again. What did you call me?”

The girl: “Teacher Xi…”

Xi Su: “No, the one before that.”

Yu Wen solemnly reminded her: “The noun after ‘three’.”

The girl thought for a long time.

“Senior?”

Xi Su: “Ah.”

He comfortably lay back down.

Yu Wen kept his eyes open, his gaze intense.

He subtly hinted with a bit of expectation and asked, “What about me?”

The girl: “Senior Yu Wen.”

Yu Wen also happily lay back down.

The girl walked away, and the three of them rocked their lounge chairs in unison, the rhythm harmonious and synchronized, creating a nice flow.

Yu Wen said, “Our company is actually signing new talent… Seems like they’re really gearing up to expand.”

Xi Su, leisurely swaying a fan, said, “Relax, it’s not our concern. We’re the veterans here, we just need to hold the fort. Let the juniors handle the hard work.”

The sea breeze was pleasant, the sun warm, and Yu Wen lazily closed his eyes, enjoying the wonderful break.

“True… Whatever.”

*

The TV event was held in S city, and the three of them took leave from the set to attend together.

Before the event started, they ran into several familiar faces. After Moon Harbor aired, it had been a long time since Yu Wen had seen Yi Ming. Yi, a top-tier rising star, was extremely busy, so they rarely had the chance to meet privately.

As soon as Yi Ming saw Yu Wen, she opened her arms enthusiastically. “Hey, look who it is, it’s Xiao Yu!”

Yu Wen smiled and hugged her. The two exchanged a few pleasantries, and Yi Ming looked around, noticing no one nearby. She pulled a bag of sunflower seeds from her purse and handed it to him.

“These events are so boring, just listening to other people’s award speeches. It’s always the same thing. If you’re bored, just eat some sunflower seeds. I’ll get my manager to swap our seats so we’re next to each other, then we can gossip a bit.”

After Yi Ming walked away, Yu Wen stood there, staring at the sunflower seeds in his pocket.

…Who brings sunflower seeds to a TV event?

She’s really one of a kind.

He popped a seed into his mouth and walked toward the venue… Huh? Still the green tea flavor?

Pretty tasty.

The TV event was indeed boring!

After sitting for half an hour, Yu Wen came to the conclusion.

The cameras were always pointed at them, and it was a live broadcast across the internet. Everyone was sitting upright, too afraid to chat… The worst part was, every time someone won an award, they had to stand up and clap!

The constant standing and sitting…

Finally, there were a few performances in between, and seeing others relax a little, Yu Wen pulled out his sunflower seeds from his pocket, hid from the cameras, and quietly started eating.

Sunflower seeds and dance performances—what a perfect match.

Chu Han poked him under the table.

“Give me some.”

Yu Wen reluctantly handed over a small portion into Chu Han’s palm.

Xi Su was different. He opened his mouth wide like a lion.

“Yu Wen, give me a pound.”

If there weren’t so many people around, Yu Wen would’ve kicked him.

He only had two pockets—how could he fit a pound of seeds in there?!

Just as the three of them were about to start a sunflower seed rivalry, the savior appeared.

Yi Ming came over with a large bag of sunflower seeds.

All green tea flavored.

She handed out a handful to everyone at the table, and when she returned to Yu Wen’s side, there was still plenty left.

Yi Ming was born to dig for gossip. As soon as she sat down, within two sentences, the conversation turned to the latest industry rumors.

Chu Han: “Is that true? That’s explosive…”

Xi Su: “And then what happened?”

When she’s not working, Yi Ming spends her time on her alt accounts, scrolling through the internet, following more marketing accounts than the company’s PR department, and knowing a lot of gossip, though its authenticity is hard to verify.

But this was exactly Yu Wen’s strength.

“No, the media just made it up…”

Yi Ming: “Tell me more, tell me more.”

Yu Wen split the gossip she shared into what could be believed, what couldn’t, and what was doubtful.

The four of them chatted excitedly, completely unaware that the performances had ended and the next round of awards was already starting.

“…The winner of Best Supporting Actor is, Yu Wen!”

Hearing someone call his name, Yu Wen turned around in confusion: “Huh?”

The camera panned to him.

On the big screen, his figure was seen looking around, holding a bag of sunflower seeds, still chewing.

Host: “Hey, Teacher Yu, over here.”

Yu Wen looked toward the stage.

He pointed at himself: “Me?”

At this moment, Yi Ming, who reacted quickly, had already learned that Yu Wen had won the award from the person sitting next to him. She immediately put on a business smile, clapped her hands, pushed Yu Wen toward the stage, and whispered in his ear, “You won, you won, go up and accept the award…”

Yu Wen turned around in panic: “I…”

Yi Ming took the sunflower seeds from his hand, gave him an “OK” gesture, signaling him to relax and go up—she would take care of the seeds for him.

Yu Wen looked back three times.

Yi Ming encouraged him with a fist pump.

Chu Han and Xi Su also showed proud expressions.

Standing at the microphone, Yu Wen resigned himself.

He wanted to ask what award it was!

“Uh…” Yu Wen stood on the stage, hesitating.

He had rehearsed this moment with Xi Su countless times during their free time, even coming up with a third version of a long acceptance speech, but standing here, none of the standard answers could come out.

It just felt… insincere.

He stood in front of everyone, silent for more than half a minute.

“…Thank the whole world,” he finally said with a relieved smile, the first words coming out.

News of Yu Wen’s win sparked widespread discussion online.

His performance as Song Mingzhu was indeed excellent, and everyone could see that. What netizens were discussing was how, at his age, he already had such achievements. As long as he continued to choose good roles, his future was limitless.

—”I don’t care about his future, I just want to know, what were they talking about during the live broadcast…”

—”Agree with the above… I’m really dying of curiosity…”

—”They even forgot they were presenting the awards…”

—”King of Sunflower Seeds! Come out for a live stream! Come out for events! Is there anything the noble ‘Chai’ can’t hear?!”

—”Yu Wen, you’ve changed… why are you secretly eating behind your fans’ backs now…”

Everyone tried to call him out, but Yu Wen had already become a master at playing dead—no matter how much they called him, he just wouldn’t respond.

Netizens lamented the betrayal of the King of Sunflower Seeds, but a few months later, at an international film festival’s red carpet, Yu Wen suddenly showed them his big hand.

The trending topic that day was #KingOfSunflowerSeedsGivesBlessings#.

The accompanying picture showed a couple with blonde hair and blue eyes kissing, very romantic and striking.

—”But where is our Melon King?”

—”Melon King is behind them.”

Shortly after, a new live photo was released. After the couple kissed and separated, they stared at each other, and between them stood a large, bold Yu Wen.

He was just standing there, his expression still somewhat awkward and reserved.

—”Hahaha, what the hell is this?!”

—”It looks like both of them are stars. When Yu Wen was wandering backstage, he ran into them arguing. He gave them a few words of advice, and they decided to go public. They even asked Yu Wen to be their witness.”

—”Apparently, when the media arrived, the King of Sunflower Seeds tried to sneak away, but the couple pulled him back. They insisted on having Yu Wen go public with them, saying he was their Cupid.”

—”No wonder they called it ‘King of Sunflower Seeds Gives Blessings’…”

—”Centuries later, archaeologists will study Yu Wen’s life and find they can’t understand Chinese characters.”

—”The drama level is off the charts.”

—”Hahaha, off the charts, I laughed like shit…”