The Cold and Ruthless Supporting Male Lead

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhuoye Xingchen shut down the livestream at lightning speed, so fast that the fans didn’t even have time to react. Their wails of protest vanished from Zhuoye Xingchen’s screen in an instant.

The hotel’s WiFi suddenly lagged, slowing down the video upload. However, comments had already begun flooding in under the two Weibo posts, especially the discussion thread, which exploded in activity.

“It looks like it’s working pretty well.” Hai Ku had already logged in while holding his phone. The discussion thread under that Weibo post was in complete chaos, filled with all kinds of wild guesses. Some people even speculated that he was Zhuoye Xingchen’s older sister.

Zhuoye Xingchen had also been lurking in the comments. Seeing the colorful and imaginative responses, he couldn’t help but admire their creativity.

“Oh my god, my sister, my distant cousin, my long-lost little sister… Tsk, tsk, tsk. And even my new girlfriend…” Shaking his head, Zhuoye Xingchen sighed. “Looks like the kind of fans you attract reflect the kind of streamer you are. Just look at these fans; they clearly take after my intelligence. I can’t even recognize you, so it’s only natural they can’t either.”

“What does this have to do with intelligence?” Hai Ku couldn’t help but tease him, even though he knew Zhuoye Xingchen was just joking seriously.

Before they could continue chatting, Hai Ku suddenly noticed an odd comment. It didn’t have many likes, but there were plenty of replies refuting it.

[Tiantian Tianxin Baby Xiaoya: Isn’t this person Haiku Shilan?]

“No way, someone actually recognized me…” Hai Ku’s smile carried a hint of mischief. He hadn’t expected the female lead to act so quickly. “Look at this account—Tiantian Tianxin Baby Xiaoya. It’s a newly registered alt, but the naming style is exactly like Mu Xiaoya’s. She always picks these flowery, flashy names.”

No matter what name she used, she always included the character ‘Ya’ in it. This time, she probably had to make it extra-long because all the shorter names were already taken.

“Let me see?” Since he couldn’t find the comment on his own phone, Zhuoye Xingchen leaned in closer, looking at the same screen as Hai Ku.

“It really does seem like her style. But there are so many people arguing against her; her comment is probably going to get buried soon. Still, that woman… how should I put it? Her character is seriously questionable. Do you want to check if she messaged you again?”

Hai Ku shook his head, exited Weibo, and surprisingly felt at peace. After taking the first step, the following ones; whether he wanted to move forward or not, would come naturally. “The more attention she gets, the more arrogant she becomes. After everything she’s done to me, do you think I’d still give her a friendly response? The fact that I haven’t blocked her yet is already me being generous.”

Ever since arriving in this world, he had given Mu Xiaoya countless chances. Unfortunately, she never cherished a single one. Repeated tolerance only led to worse outcomes. Hai Ku had no intention of enduring any longer.

Feeling his stomach rumble, Hai Ku frowned. “I’m hungry. Let’s seduce people around outside~”

“Why did you use the word ‘seduce’?” Zhuoye Xingchen looked utterly confused. He felt like his brain wasn’t working properly. How could he, a fellow anime and gaming enthusiast, not understand what Hai Ku meant?

If we’re going out to eat, we should just say so. What did ‘seduce’ even mean? Were they going to stand on the street like a —?

“Tsk, tsk, tsk~” Hai Ku waggled his finger knowingly. “Where are we right now? A convention. Even though the event officially starts tomorrow, plenty of people are already here today. There are definitely fans who came just for you. Do you really think we can walk out of here to eat without being noticed?”

“So?”

“If the fans are going to pull some attention grabbing moves, we might as well be even more attention grabbing. This is an event, after all. We should maximize our gains; don’t you think?” Raising an eyebrow, Hai Ku revealed his plan. “We’ll create a sense of mystery around my identity. The more confusing it gets, the fewer people will guess correctly in the end.”

After all, at conventions like this, boys could be girls, girls could be boys; it was a paradise for the anime and gaming community.

Catching on instantly, Zhuoye Xingchen stood up and put his baseball cap back on. The thought of walking hand in hand with his buddy through the convention, pretending to be a couple, was oddly thrilling. That little part of his brain craving excitement suddenly sparked to life. He was already feeling the adrenaline. “Alright, let’s go wild~”

“Darling, you have to walk slowly~” Hai Ku raised his pinky dramatically and slipped into character. “If we run into fans, you have to protect me~ I’m so delicate~”

Just as they were about to step out the door, Zhuoye Xingchen heard Hai Ku’s exaggerated, high-pitched voice. He stumbled and nearly fell. Turning to look at Hai Ku, he groaned, “You’re so flamboyant…”

“Ohhh~ But weren’t all the clothes in my wardrobe bought by you? And now you’re blaming me for carrying my wardrobe around? You’re such a bad guy~” Hai Ku turned away in mock heartbreak. Channeling his inner drama queen, he took tiny, dainty steps to stand in front of Zhuoye Xingchen. “Wuwuwu~”

Zhuoye Xingchen: “…”

***

Meanwhile, Mu Xiaoya was too busy arguing in the Weibo comments to eat. She had been going back and forth with Zhuoye Xingchen’s fans for so long that her phone had to stay plugged in while charging.

But in the end, she simply couldn’t win. Furious, she threw her phone aside.

Still fuming, she suddenly remembered the big gossip blogger she had met a few days ago. That person specialized in spreading rumors and had even added her on WeChat.

This Weibo account had over 400,000 followers, and every post it made stirred up a storm. No matter how fierce the arguments and attacks in the comments were, this person remained steadfast, bringing up topics daily.

Mu Xiaoya had looked into their pricing before. While it wasn’t outrageously expensive, it was still enough to make someone hesitate.

But what Haiku Shilan was doing now was obviously an attempt to clear his name. Did he really think that cross-dressing at a convention would win over his fans?

Feeling disgusted by his behavior, Mu Xiaoya gritted her teeth and sent a message to the Weibo gossip account.

[Mu Xiaoya: Hi… I wanted to ask how much it costs to post a Weibo?]

[Gossip Queen: That depends on who it’s about. Who do you want to post about?]

[Mu Xiaoya: Zhuoye Xingchen and Haiku Shilan. They’ve been pulling some ridiculous stunts lately, and it’s honestly disgusting. But I don’t have many Weibo followers, so I was hoping you could help spread the word.]

[Gossip Queen: Those two, huh? If you want the full package, it’s 10,000 yuan. I’ll keep the topic trending for a whole day. If you just want a single post with no follow-up, that’s 500.]

[Mu Xiaoya: Why does the full package cost so much?]

[Gossip Queen: Because for the full package, I have to hire bots to boost the post and create some controversy so that it gains traction. If you just want a single post without any extra effort, then it’s cheaper. I’ll be honest with you; my account has 400,000 followers, but at most, only 100,000 are active. Out of those, I can’t guarantee how many will actually care about your topic.]

[Mu Xiaoya: Alright, post one for me first. I’ll see how effective it is.]

[Gossip Queen: Are you providing the content, or do you need me to write it? If I write it, there’s an extra fee.]

[Mu Xiaoya: ……]

Even though it hurt to spend the money, not paying up now would be embarrassing. Mu Xiaoya pretended to be generous and made the payment, but she couldn’t help complaining to Hai Ku afterward.

Before, whenever she didn’t have enough money to buy something and vented to Haiku Shilan about it, he would always send her some money and comfort her.

Later, when she became somewhat financially stable, she stopped doing it as often.

[Mu Xiaoya: Aaaahhh… I just bought such a beautiful lipstick! It cost me over 600 yuan in one go! My heart aches…]

[Haiku Shilan: …]

[Mu Xiaoya: I’ve been under contract for so many days and only made a little over 1,000 yuan. Now I’ve basically spent all my earnings in one shot… wuwuwu]

[Haiku Shilan: Sorry, this is Zhuoye Xingchen. Hai Ku went to the bathroom.]

[Mu Xiaoya: Ah… Master, did you two go out to eat? Where are you?]

***

After heading out, Zhuoye Xingchen and Hai Ku found the weather too hot, so they ducked into a milk tea shop and picked a more secluded spot to sit.

On the way there, some people seemed to recognize Zhuoye Xingchen, but because Hai Ku was with him, they hesitated and didn’t approach. Still, there were definitely people taking pictures.

“What are we eating later? After that, I’ll need to go to rehearsals. Do you want to come watch?” Zhuoye Xingchen yawned. Seeing Hai Ku grinning, he couldn’t help but ask, “What are you smiling about?”

“I’m pretending to be you~” Hai Ku handed over his phone, blinking mischievously. His imitation voice was eerily accurate. “I bet she’s fuming right now.”

“Ugh, don’t even bring her up. I’m already on the verge of losing my mind because of her. Honestly, I kind of admire her thick skin,” Zhuoye Xingchen said, holding his head in frustration.

He always thought girls should be soft, delicate, and cute. But this person had completely shattered his expectations.

“E-Excuse me… are you the great Zhuoye Xingchen?” A shy voice suddenly spoke from beside them.

Looking up, they saw a girl in a pink puffy dress, blushing as she held out a notebook, clearly waiting for an answer.

“No.” Zhuoye Xingchen shook his head firmly. He had already noticed the group of friends behind her. If he admitted it, they’d be stuck here for a long time.

“Huh? B-But…” The girl looked shocked, as if she couldn’t believe it.

As she hesitated, Hai Ku scooted closer and took the seat right next to Zhuoye Xingchen. With a displeased expression, he glared at the girl.

“Aiya… Darling, who is this girl? Didn’t you say you only love me? Didn’t you say I’m your heart, your liver, three-quarters of your life? Why is someone else trying to chat you up?”

“Oh… I’m sorry, wifey. She just mistook me for someone else…” Zhuoye Xingchen immediately put on an anguished expression and nodded apologetically.