Chapter 15: You Said You Liked Someone Very Much, His Name Is Shen Jixing
“Oh my god, Young Master Zhou!”
Zhou Yili had just stepped through the rain-soaked corridor and entered a lounge on the first floor when he heard the shrill, affected voice.
He brushed his ear lightly and responded without missing a beat.
“Oh my god, Young Master Zhou!”
The female journalist was momentarily perplexed.
Zhou Yili strode over and sat casually on the sofa, stretching his long legs. “There are reporters everywhere outside. Try using that voice again?”
He didn't mind switching to a new 'lucky duck' on the spot.
Alarm bells instantly rang in the woman’s mind. She dashed to the door in her high heels and slammed it shut.
She forced a laugh. “Just kidding. Don’t you guys all like that cutesy voice?”
Zhou Yili crossed his legs loosely, swiping his phone with one hand, glancing at the current trending topics.
As expected, Shen Jixing still dominated them all.
“Is that so?”
“Unfortunately, I’m allergic to that kind of voice.”
“…”
You’d better be genuinely allergic.
The journalist quickly set up her camera, adjusting angles and settings. She switched to her professional broadcaster tone, smiling as she introduced herself. “Hello, Mr. Zhou Yili, I’m Xiaofang from Times Entertainment Weekly.”
Zhou Yili looked up. “What’s your name?”
“Xiaofang. That’s really my name,” her voice grew a bit exasperated. “My real name is Liu Fang. Fang, as in ‘lasting fame through the ages.’”
“…”
Zhou Yili closed his phone screen and suggested offhandedly, “You should consider switching to stand-up comedy.”
“I did plan to switch careers if things didn’t work out, but then you suddenly agreed to be interviewed.”
Xiaofang hadn’t expected to land an interview with Zhou Yili.
This newly minted superstar had risen to fame at a meteoric pace. He possessed an unruly, untouchable coolness and a face that screamed trouble, not to mention his status as the heir to the richest family.
Getting an interview with him was nearly impossible.
Yet, out of nowhere, he called her personally, told her to stay put, and said the rain was too heavy—he’d come to her himself.
It made her heart flutter uncontrollably…
“Not starting yet?” Zhou Yili saw her hesitating, and with a casual, cool tap of his long fingers, said, “Are you waiting for… me to interview you?”
“…”
Her heart’s flutter died on the spot.
“Mr. Zhou, you haven’t attended any events lately, but now you’re finally willing to be interviewed. Is your new album about to be released?” Xiaofang smiled and asked.
“Yes, soon.”
“Wow, can you give us a sneak peek at the theme?”
Xiaofang stuck to questions that piqued public curiosity. Usually, singers wouldn’t reveal anything before an album’s release.
Zhou Yili sat on the lounge sofa, the rain outside blurring the floor-to-ceiling windows into a watery green.
He spoke lazily, giving just two words: “Stars.”
Xiaofang was stunned.
It wasn’t that the word itself was particularly pointed, but given the current climate in the entertainment industry, it was hard not to think of a certain superstar.
She hesitated, then paused the recording.
She lowered her voice to ask quietly, “Can you say that? Aren’t you afraid of stirring up controversy?”
“Controversy?”
Zhou Yili looked up, amused. “What, has he monopolized those two words?”
Xiaofang sensed an inexplicable fierceness from him and muttered, “Not really.”
“But aren’t you a fan of Emperor Shen?”
At her words, Zhou Yili’s expression changed.
His long, dark, almond-shaped eyes narrowed, his tone cool and unreadable. “Who told you I was his fan?”
He was agitated.
Technically, these two had little overlap in the industry—one a singer focused on music, the other an actor devoted to his craft. Their worlds didn’t really intersect unless deliberately engineered.
But Xiaofang was not easily intimidated.
“You told me yourself,” Xiaofang finally gained the upper hand, her sincerity obvious. “When you first debuted, I interviewed you.”
“You said—”
“You really admired someone named Shen Jixing.”
…
Xiaofang had interviewed many in the industry, but her impression of Zhou Yili was the most vivid. He was different back then.
Only a month into his debut, he’d swept up countless newcomer awards, a dark horse youth exactly as the industry veterans said. He had a wildness about him, like a reckless wolf crashing through the entertainment world.
On the awards stage,
The dazzling young man stood under the spotlight, golden confetti raining down for him. His dyed blue hair spiked rebelliously, a smile playing at his lips, full of youthful vigor and unstoppable ambition.
“I believe music is alive.”
“My music will live with me.”
His voice was fervent, his ambition burning bright.
The screams from the audience were deafening.
Xiaofang squatted outside the venue, unsure how long, until a voice suddenly sounded above her—
“Hey, are you the reporter who couldn’t squeeze in?”
Back then, Xiaofang was just an intern. She nodded, “I lost my press pass, can’t get in. I’m about to get fired, boo hoo…”
Without the means to support herself, even seeing a handsome man couldn’t excite her.
The exquisite, striking youth with blue hair was silent for two seconds.
He tilted his head slightly, golden confetti falling from his hair like fluttering golden butterflies, landing on the asphalt before her.
“I’m in a good mood today. I’ll give you one minute for an interview.”
He glanced at his watch, curved his lips into a smile. “Just one minute, I have a celebration party later.”
Mentioning the party, his smile only grew.
He seemed to be looking forward to something with fiery enthusiasm.
His youthful heart was barely concealed, exposed within a few words of the interview.
“Do you have any seniors you admire in the industry?”
A standard question for newcomers, some answer honestly, some for publicity.
Zhou Yili was clearly the former.
Dressed all in black under the streetlights, he smiled with a bold curve, so dazzling even his hair seemed to glow. “Yes, I really like someone named Shen Jixing.”
“So—”
Zhou Yili’s cold, ruthless voice cut off the memory. He raised his eyes, tone icy, “When did I say I was his fan?”
Xiaofang: “?”
How is that not being a fan?
But the interview didn’t cause much of a stir; as soon as it was published, rival fans claimed he was riding the coattails of a superstar.
For a newcomer, that could be fatal, so Xiaofang eventually deleted the video.
“It’s probably nothing, maybe I just remembered it too clearly.”
Back then, young Zhou was delicate. Now, Young Master Zhou is…
Zhou Yili shot her a cold look.
Xiaofang lowered her head, flipping through her notebook. “Let’s continue, I’ll keep asking.”
Once she restarted recording, Zhou Yili’s patience had clearly worn thin.
“With your questioning style, you might as well prepare to switch careers.”
Xiaofang: “…”
Before she could retort against his venomous, arrogant attitude—
Zhou Yili sneered again, “If you always meet me before getting fired, consider yourself lucky.”
“Today, I’ll give you another explosive one for free.”
…
The YC live broadcast celebration was still trending.
A superstar’s influence was staggering, elevating the entire brand’s status. It was truly a windfall for them.
Meanwhile, Shen Jixing’s negative press continued to spread.
Being abandoned was pitiful enough, but using a kind couple’s sympathy for personal gain was shameless.
Just as the trending list boiled over,
A more sensational interview shot to the top—
“Have you caught up with the latest gossip?”
The man’s lazy, nonchalant reply: “Yeah, I have.”
The long-absent Zhou Yili’s appearance set the trending square alight.
He was called the new superstar for good reason. Now, only he could rival Shen Jixing’s popularity.
And he’d only debuted four years ago.
This rock scene’s devilish newcomer was known for his wild, unconventional style.
Today, as ever—
“Isn’t that the YC brand with substandard jewelry containing carcinogens?”
Zhou Yili glanced carelessly at the camera, brows lifting with a lazy arc, his thin lips mocking, “Haven’t they shut down yet?”