Luo Ding felt that the other party was everywhere, but of course, he wouldn't say it out loud. Instead, he put on a surprised and delighted expression and said, "Brother Duan, nice to see you again."

"You sang very well," Duan Xiubo said, staring at the tired shadows under Luo Ding's eyes. He slowed his pace and softened his voice. In fact, he had some regrets since entering the club. He was used to keeping a distance from most people around him and understood that following Luo Ding like this might seem abrupt. Putting himself in Luo Ding's shoes, he might have thought the same if roles were reversed.

So he decided to lighten the mood with a joke, quickly turning his purpose for coming to find Luo Ding into a coincidence. He couldn't discern any negative emotions from Luo Ding's expression, so he confidently redirected the conversation to the song Luo Ding sang earlier during the sound check: "I heard Mr. Mao was here this time too. Are you planning to release an album?"

Mao Xiaorun and Gong Liang stood shoulder to shoulder not far from Luo Ding, feeling ignored for a long time. Gong Liang weakly spoke up, "I'm here too..."

"Oh! Mr. Mao! Ah, Gong Liang!" Duan Xiubo suddenly noticed them, showing no embarrassment about not noticing them earlier. He greeted them naturally, "I was afraid of interrupting your conversation. How have you two been? It's been a while."

Mao Xiaorun paused before answering, "...We've been fine."

Gong Liang rolled his eyes, thinking that Duan Xiubo hadn't even glanced at him since entering until now. Now he was putting on airs.

Yu Shaotian stood quietly with Mi Rui at a distance, poking him with his elbow in a strange manner. "Mi Rui, who's this guy?"

"Luo Ding, Brother Duan's friend," Mi Rui thought for a moment before adding, "He's currently working with Brother Duan on filming 'Crouching Dragon.' He's an artist."

Friend? Putting that introduction before mentioning he's an artist? Yu Shaotian pondered for a moment, feeling a subtle flavor throughout the introduction. Duan Xiubo's friend? Could others not know if he didn't? This brother of his seemed easygoing, but he was actually quite proud. There weren't many people in the entertainment industry he would bother to acknowledge. A few Hollywood actors, several respected figures in the industry like Gong Liang, and he couldn't think of many more. Oh, that unreliable editor-in-chief from <<Trend>>, Ji Jia, counted as one too, although he didn't want to admit it. Still, that guy surprisingly got along well with Duan Xiubo.

Each of these people, taken individually, was not to be underestimated. Regardless of their character, at least in terms of career, they were all unquestionably successful individuals. But Yu Shaotian genuinely had no impression of this young man before him. "Crouching Dragon"... Luo Ding?

"Luo Ding?" Yu Shaotian was somewhat surprised. "Is it the Luo Ding who's been popular on Weibo lately? The one who participated in Pan Yiming's album shoot and also filmed 'Tang Chuan'?"

Mi Rui pushed his glasses up and nodded. He could understand why Yu Shaotian's reaction was so significant. Victory Media had the most complete singer industry chain in the industry. Every year, they injected new blood through talent shows and then focused on nurturing a few promising talents, continuously expanding their strength in this way. Because they followed the trend of fashionable idol culture, these singers, whether in groups or individually, had considerable fan bases. Nearly half of the mainland's album sales charts were occupied by Victory Media's singers every year. This situation had remained unchanged since six or seven years ago. This time, Victory Media's top singer Zhang Wenwei's new album had started off with great momentum, and naturally, the company had its eyes set on the top spot on the album sales chart. When they heard about the release of Pan Yiming's new album, nobody took it seriously at first, considering Pan Yiming's declining status in the music industry since she began focusing on acting. With a hot-selling singer like Zhang Wenwei, Victory Media was confident in launching the album into the market before Pan Yiming's release event.

However, reality delivered a heavy blow this time. Zhang Wenwei's album sales figures were quite impressive, surpassing the original runner-up's sales in just three days and approaching the champion's position. But just when everyone thought the champion's position was within Victory Media's grasp, Pan Yiming's album release event took place.

Then came a bombardment of news from fans, official media, and entertainment media, filling the air with all sorts of information about this album. From mainland China to Hong Kong and Taiwan, from there to Japan and then Korea, and finally even Southeast Asian countries were flooded with news about this album.

This was simply outrageous and incomprehensible! In just a short time, the landscape had changed dramatically. Zhang Wenwei's new album, smelling of victory, was quickly pushed back by "Secret." At first, Victory Media might have thought it was just a massive promotion by Tianmei Entertainment for Pan Yiming's long-awaited return to the music scene, trying to turn public opinion towards buying her album. At least Mi Rui knew that afterward, Victory Media quickly tried to boost Zhang Wenwei's album sales by nearly fifty thousand copies to reverse the situation. But as time went on, the audience's eyes became clearer. In just over a week, the gap between the top spot and the runner-up widened to a point that was difficult to describe as simply shady dealings. The subsequent enthusiastic response from overseas only confirmed this viewpoint.

The suspiciously high sales of Zhang Wenwei's album naturally aroused many people's doubts. Many people mocked Victory Media for being unable to accept defeat gracefully. Fortunately, there was no concrete evidence to confirm these speculations. Otherwise, the company and the artists would have really lost face.

Taking such a big fall, it was already unreasonable for Yu Shaotian not to remember who Luo Ding was. Mi Rui wasn't surprised at all that the other party knew about Luo Ding.

Yu Shaotian stared at Luo Ding, his mouth twitching for a moment, becoming more convinced that his brother must have had a grudge with him in his past life.

Looking at his brother's friends, Gong Liang greeted everyone as if he were greeting a donkey, Ji Jia was flirtatious and cheeky when they first met privately, Yuan Bing, as an artist from a rival company, was fake and cold when facing him, always with the demeanor of a goddess... Now, finally, there was a new friend appearing, and he ended up taking a big hit before even showing his face.

But Yu Shaotian wasn't unreasonable. The incident with the album was partly due to Victory Media's overconfidence and lack of careful research into their opponent's strength. Blaming the company's management system's shortcomings, Luo Ding could only be considered a factor in the failure.

Combining the song he had just heard Luo Ding sing, Yu Shaotian shook his head inwardly. Those categorized as friends by Duan Xiubo, regardless of their fame, all had extraordinary abilities.

Now, Victory Media dominated the mainland music market, with unmatched hard and soft power in the industry. Compared to other media executives, he undoubtedly placed more emphasis on selecting promising talents in the music industry. Luo Ding's singing skills and voice had impressed him from the start. A qualified businessman would set aside personal grievances and consider whether a potential collaboration was worth pursuing. Luo Ding's talent made him somewhat eager.

Who was Yu Shaotian? He and Duan Xiubo were born from the same mother, both with thick skins. If his brother could lie so blatantly, claiming it was a chance encounter, then he could calmly and slowly move toward the focal point of everyone's attention.

As Luo Ding talked to Duan Xiubo about his plans for an EP, Duan Xiubo was very enthusiastic. He even offered to guest star in the MV if needed. This superstar now commanded a fee in the eight to nine figures for a film, and attending events earned him at least six to seven figures. He never touched work in the television or music industries to maintain his image. His international influence far surpassed Luo Ding, who was only gaining fame in Japan. With his involvement, the EP's value would undoubtedly increase.

Even though Luo Ding knew Duan Xiubo was skilled at winning people over, he couldn't help but feel moved at this moment. After experiencing life, one could understand that there were plenty of people who added to the splendor, but those who helped in times of need were rare. Regardless of his displayed strength, during his days as an unknown, Duan Xiubo, whose status far exceeded his own, could still sincerely express his goodwill. As the beneficiary, Luo Ding had no reason to reject his friendship.

He accepted Duan Xiubo's kindness and agreed to send him the MV script later via email. At the same time, he quietly placed Duan Xiubo's name squarely in the position of "friend" in his heart. The two of them took the opportunity to exchange all their social media accounts.

Luo Ding yawned again, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.

Seeing this, Duan Xiubo put away his phone consciously. "Tired, huh? You have to start filming in a few days, and you don't need to participate in the pre-production of the EP. It's about time to go back and rest. Are you still living near Yaxing Apartment? I know the way, I can take you back."

Thinking about the nauseating feeling of crying and vomiting in his room before leaving home, Luo Ding didn't want to go back there. "I'm moving out. I won't live there anymore, Brother Duan, you don't have to send me. Just tell me if there are any hotels near this business district. I'll go there and get some sleep."

This area was all office space, how many hotels could there be? Duan Xiubo said seriously, "The nearest hotel from here will take at least three hours due to traffic. How about this, there's a member lounge in the martial arts and combat training club nearby where I practice. You might as well go there and rest in my lounge. It's nearby."

Luo Ding was almost overwhelmed by exhaustion, so he didn't refuse anymore. "Then, thank you."

This was probably the first time Luo Ding had accepted Duan Xiubo's invitation so generously since they met. Luo Ding's attitude instantly filled him with a sense of excitement and joy, and his smile became more genuine.

As the two were looking at each other, unexpectedly, Yu Shaotian, with a blank expression, joined in. "Mr. Luo, hello."

Only then did Luo Ding realize that the person was here with Duan Xiubo. He glanced past Yu Shaotian's shoulder and saw Mi Rui standing in the distance. Without leaving a trace, he observed Duan Xiubo's indifferent attitude toward Yu Shaotian. Luo Ding suppressed his uncertainty and shook hands with Yu Shaotian naturally.

Yu Shaotian smiled and said, "Mr. Luo's singing voice is truly amazing. Have you signed with a talent agency now?"

Luo Ding nodded. "I'm with Yaxing Studio."

Oh, it's just a small studio nobody has heard of. Yu Shaotian's mood instantly improved. He elegantly took out a business card from the front pocket of his jacket and handed it over with both hands. "Mr. Luo is a capable person, and surely understands the meaning of striving for excellence. If there's a need, you can give me a call." With such looks and talent, with Victory Media's influence, as long as they put a little effort into packaging, he could be famous nationwide in no time.

"..." Luo Ding hesitated, not knowing if he should tell the other party that his talent agency's boss was standing right behind him.

With his arms crossed, Duan Xiubo glanced at Yu Shaotian and saw his shameless expression even when doing such a despicable thing. His thick-skinned behavior exceeded Duan Xiubo's expectations.

Gu Yaxing, maintaining a blank expression, floated over to Yu Shaotian's side and gently patted his shoulder. "..."

Yu Shaotian turned his head to stare at the man standing so close with a somewhat sinister expression, feeling that the other party didn't seem to want to interact with him nicely. So he asked cautiously, "Hello... who are you?"

These big companies in the industry are simply the most hated existence by studio bosses like Gu Yaxing. It's not the first or second time that their rising stars have been poached away. These hooligans throw money around like dirt when it comes to paying breach of contract fees, then take away the hard work of small studios to replenish themselves with fresh blood. Finally, with just a little effort, they elevate the visibility of small stars who have struggled to gain recognition with small companies. It's simply a surefire profitable business.

Cutting off someone's source of income is like killing their parents. Gu Yaxing has muttered about tearing apart these scum countless times. It's been hard enough for him to silently endure, and now these scoundrels are trying to persuade Luo Ding, who he has invested countless hopes in, to change jobs right in front of him?!

Gu Yaxing introduced himself softly, "Mr. Yu, my name is Gu Yaxing, the head of the Yaxing Studio. Nice to meet you."

Under his unstructured gaze, Yu Shaotian's neck was covered in countless goosebumps. It was a bit awkward to be caught digging talent in person by the head of a company, but he didn't seem embarrassed at all. He didn't even blush, maintaining a particularly calm attitude as he shook hands with Gu Yaxing. "Nice to meet you."

Gu Yaxing stared at him, feeling more and more discouraged as he looked.

He thought he had understood why the Yaxing Studio had never grown. As the heads of their respective companies, the difference in their ability to brazen things out was like the difference between a door panel and a city wall.

After bidding farewell to Mao Xiaorun and the others, Duan Xiubo took Luo Ding towards the martial arts gym. As soon as Luo Ding stepped out of the club's gate, he was surrounded by many fans waiting outside. In front of people, he quickly regained his calm and collected demeanor, smiling politely as he responded to everyone's adulation.

"Son, you're amazing!!! You'll definitely become famous!!" Amidst the noisy crowd, a voice stood out sharply, making Luo Ding startle. When he turned his head, he met the eyes of the speaker.

The other person looked no more than twenty-five or twenty-six years old, dressed in a valuable and neat office lady attire, with glamorous curly hair. Her smile was full of excitement and indulgence, making her a very beautiful... girl.

Son...

Although Luo Ding had never been close to the brink of being called a big guy, he was indeed a very tall and sturdy man. From his debut until now, he had never had the terrifying yet lovely creatures known as mom fans, and now he felt a bit complicated in his heart.

This encouraging shout from a mom fan seemed to give other shy mom fans the courage to speak up. Female fans handed over paper bags to Luo Ding one after another. "Son, remember to eat!!" "Son, you're too thin, being this thin is not okay!" "Son, look at those dark circles under your eyes!!!"

Luo Ding didn't dare accept these gifts. In fact, he had never been called "son" by anyone in his two lifetimes, so he felt a bit uncomfortable now. His ears quickly turned red, and even pretending became very difficult, and he was even a bit nervous, which was rare.

The concern of these fans really made him feel as if he had a mother caring for him.

But the fans' gifts must not be accepted casually. Once this precedent was set, the gifts from future support would only become more and more valuable. For both fan circles and individual artists, this was not a good thing. Fan circles that engaged in comparison easily burdened fans with average financial means, and in the eyes of the public, artists who casually accepted fan gifts were easily labeled as frivolous and greedy.

After bowing to the people who had accompanied him to the gym, Luo Ding followed Duan Xiubo away. The fans who stayed behind were either those who already knew Luo Ding or die-hard fans who quickly rushed over after learning about Luo Ding's singing at the Shanhai Building, and their emotions were extremely excited. After Luo Ding's figure completely disappeared from view, these people breathed a sigh of relief, and then clenched their fists excitedly, suppressing their screams and jumping in place.

"He's so handsome in real life!!! So handsome!!"

"Yes, he's ten times handsomer than on camera, isn't he!?"

"My son is simply born with extraordinary looks!"

"He just looked at me! We made eye contact!! Aaahhh his gaze is so beautiful, I'm in love!"

"He's so considerate! He even bows to us without accepting gifts! So heartwarming, that bow must be at least 100 degrees!"

"Who took pictures? Who recorded videos? The quality of my footage is so bad, please save me, gods!!"

After this wave of nationwide excitement passed, they had the energy to dig out more cute points and details from Luo Ding's brief encounter just now.

The Shanhai Building was not open to the public for sightseeing. Even the fitness clubs inside the building required a membership card for entry. Ordinary members could only go up to the forty-fifth floor, and the higher floors required swiping a work card and using another entrance. This meant that the fans who could stand here and get close to Luo Ding were all financially strong. High-quality cameras were readily available for use, and a group of people crowded together to watch frame by frame during playback, admiring and gradually noticing some anomalies in the footage.

"Huh...? Why does this person look so familiar?" Someone pointed to the person in the footage who wore a mask and stayed close to Luo Ding from beginning to end. Despite the mask covering most of his face, his handsome features and outstanding temperament could still be seen, even though he was obscured from view by being in close proximity to Luo Ding. Everyone had focused all their attention on Luo Ding earlier, so nobody noticed him, but now it was different.

"Isn't this Duan Xiubo!?" Someone who recognized him first exclaimed in surprise. Duan Xiubo's facial features were too distinctive, even though a large mask covered everything except his eyes, as long as this speculation arose, all subsequent clues followed this answer without hesitation.

"Look at this, this is Duan Xiubo's agent, Mi Rui!" fingers pointed to the man in glasses walking at the back of the crowd.

"This is Yu Shaotian, the chairman of Victory Media!" The financially strong fans also recognized this behind-the-scenes executive.

Everyone looked at each other.

In other words, their escort just now had not only intercepted Luo Ding but also encountered the ever-elusive film emperor Duan Xiubo, and even got to call out to the current most influential chairman of Victory Media all the way?!

What kind of magical fan circle was this?! Was their luck really that good? Duan Xiubo's backing team was much larger than Luo Ding's, but they had very few opportunities for close contact with Duan Xiubo. Artists of this status were usually heavily protected by their companies. They would usually bring along five or six bodyguards when traveling, let alone the risk of leaking their schedule and being followed.

A somewhat inexplicable feeling of both shame and pride spread among the crowd of fans, and their fellow comrades-in-arms' eyes sparkled. "My son/boyfriend/husband is really amazing, with friends like these, one is more impressive than the next..."

Staring at the tall man in the picture who had furrowed his brows and protectively held Luo Ding in his arms, along with Duan Xiubo's previous Weibo posts promoting Luo Ding, many imaginative people began to speculate.

Hahaha... Isn't this a perfect match? So cute...

After the gate closed and isolated them from all the noise outside, Duan Xiubo finally breathed a sigh of relief. He let go of the arm that had been protecting Luo Ding and looked down at him, scanning him with his eyes. "With so many people just now, are you okay?"

Luo Ding's head was a bit sore from the screams, but he felt very happy in his heart. He shook his head and then opened the gift box that had been unexpectedly thrown into his arms earlier. Inside was a handkerchief with delicate white fabric, embroidered with the word "Luo Ding" in crystal clear stitching, the bold strokes entwined with tender green vines, with a bright and fresh color scheme.

It was obviously a handmade gift, but he didn't know who sent it or why they hadn't come forward. Luo Ding folded the handkerchief and tucked it into his pocket, then took out the card at the bottom of the box, which read—

"Godly idol, I didn't mean to criticize you before! I spent almost a month embroidering this handkerchief and now I present it to you along with my knees, hoping you'll like it!!! —From the Fuzhu Support Team."

Luo Ding smiled. Duan Xiubo, who was beside him, leaned over to take a look, his eyes dimming slightly. "The handwriting on this is really not that good."

"As long as the sentiment is there." Luo Ding folded the paper and tucked it into his wallet, thanking Duan Xiubo, "Thank you just now, Brother Duan."

Duan Xiubo patted Luo Ding on the shoulder, and after letting go, he didn't retract his hand. His tone was very gentle, "As long as you're okay. Let me take you to the rest area first, and then I'll go see my friend."

Luo Ding had been stirred up by the farewell just now, and now he wasn't so sleepy. Hearing this, he quickly waved his hand, "No need, it's more important to handle business first. I'm not very tired right now."

Duan Xiubo seemed to think of something, squinting his eyes as he looked at Luo Ding up and down several times.

"That's fine, let's go together. It's good for you to meet more people." He said, instructing Mi Rui to take the others who came with them to the gym's reception area to drink something. Then, he kept the posture of holding Luo Ding's shoulder and led him towards the inside.

Duan Xiubo's imposing manner made Luo Ding a bit uncomfortable. Although he didn't say it out loud, he tried to shake off the hand resting on his shoulder by turning slightly.

"What's wrong?" The hand on his shoulder tightened, but Duan Xiubo seemed not to notice Luo Ding's resistance, still lowering his head to comfort him with a gentle tone, "Don't worry, I'm just taking you to meet a director. Do you know Carmen Clove? The one who directed 'Blade Warrior.' He's a bit easy to get excited, but with me by your side, I'll protect you."

"... " Luo Ding suppressed the unnatural feeling. Duan Xiubo's almost protective tone made him feel uncomfortable, but the other party's behavior now didn't seem much different from usual. Moreover, from their usual interactions, Luo Ding couldn't find any signs that the other party had any ulterior motives towards him.

Furrowing his brows, he felt it would be better to speak directly with Duan Xiubo. So he confidently held back the pressure Duan Xiubo gave him and spoke calmly and clearly, enunciating each word, "I'm not nervous. You don't have to treat me like a child."

Duan Xiubo lowered his head, his gaze deep. "Oh?"

Luo Ding didn't back down, calmly maintaining eye contact with him, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "I'm a man, after all."

The ambiguous wording and the other party's inability to see through his thoughts made Duan Xiubo vaguely sense something and his fist tightened slightly. At the same time, he quickly withdrew the gaze entangled with Luo Ding's.

"Alright, alright, you're a man now, I won't treat you like a child anymore, okay?" His smile grew even wider, teasing as he pushed Luo Ding playfully, "When I was your age, I was exactly like you."

There was no trace of embarrassment at being caught off guard after his intentions were probed, and Luo Ding also felt that he might have made a mountain out of a molehill. Feeling a bit embarrassed, he grinned and let go of the slight awkwardness and guard that had just arisen in his heart, thanking Duan Xiubo, "Thanks just now, Brother Duan."

Duan Xiubo put his hand on Luo Ding's shoulder, and they walked side by side, maintaining a distance of about a fist. He spoke to Luo Ding in an organized manner, and as Luo Ding slowly responded, his gaze stared ahead, his fist clenched in his pocket, and his mind gradually recovered from a blank state to its usual state.

Damn, that was scary.