HOYSE CHAPTER 77

Chapter 77 — Overnight Sensation

Rong Jing felt his heart itch unbearably from Gu Xi's light pat.

It was like a soft, furry cat paw teasing him, scratching just enough to hook, not quite enough to satisfy.

He pretended to study the contract to distract himself. He did not want Gu Xi to see that his self-control was not nearly enough.

Like many Alphas facing an Omega they have marked, certain alluring impulses rose from somewhere deep inside.

Rong Jing picked up the revised contract and saw the part that had been crossed out replaced by a lonely “1 yuan.” His brows knotted hard.

He had just opened his mouth when a pale, soft finger pressed to his lips. He looked up into Gu Xi’s star-bright eyes as Gu Xi said, “Enough, I know what you’re going to say. Three words: I want to. That other ancestor of a contract, give it to whoever you want. I’m not playing along.”

Zhou You: wow.

A one-hit KO.

First time seeing someone shut our young master up with a single sentence.

Rong Jing pulled that finger away from his lips and silently pointed at the dozens of “don’ts” on the original draft.

Gu Xi flicked his gaze at Zhou You. Seeing that their young master had no way to handle Gu Xi on this matter and basically had no say, Zhou You silently signaled that he understood.

Gu Xi blinked, full of approval for Zhou You’s quick read of the room.

Zhou You felt his heart melting. How did their young master manage to keep his hands to himself in front of an Omega like this.

For the sake of his young master’s future happiness, and with a noble sense of mission, he hurried off to print the new version.

Rong Jing’s anger and helplessness collided. With a smack, his palm hit the door and pinned Gu Xi against it.

Looking down from above at the Omega he had caged, he leaned close to that innocent ear, nearly brushing the soft curve.

His tone turned wicked. “Was that lesson not enough for you?”

Which one?

It went without saying. That night of intoxicated dreams filled with romance.

The Omega seemed startled, frozen and looking up at him.

Good. First sign of progress. Knows to be afraid.

Rong Jing pushed further, nastier. “Do you want me to f*** you to death?”

A faint blush crept over Gu Xi’s cheeks. His eyes widened, dazed as he looked at Rong Jing.

Only then did Rong Jing feel somewhat satisfied. That should be about enough.

Just then the elevator doors opened. Zhou You came jogging over and slipped both contracts to Gu Xi in the gap between them.

Rong Jing rumbled, “If you understood me, choose properly.”

In the original story Gu Xi was not that easy to fool. Those scummy gongs did not get the better of him at the start. Was it because his butterfly wings had flapped that Gu Xi now did not even understand the word “refuse”?

Rong Jing felt he was worrying himself sick.

Gu Xi touched the still-warm paper and scrawled his name on one of the copies.

Seeing Rong Jing’s cold face, Gu Xi blinked and obediently handed the contract back to Zhou You.

Crew members had just come out and were greeted by this explosive scene.

Were they about to fight? Rong Jing looked terrifying, like he wanted to eat Gu Xi alive. Gu Xi looked so pitiful.

Their feud was the mystery of the century.

Before anyone could step in to mediate, Gu Xi closed the door.

His cool, self-possessed Omega image vanished at once. He clapped a hand over his mouth and screamed silently.

Just now Rong Jing was so manly, so domineering, nothing like usual.

He could even say things like that, even do a wall slam. Too much.

Seeing Mo Dian staring at him, Gu Xi coughed and sat primly on the floor. “What are you looking at?”

Mo Dian: “Nothing.” In all these years, I have never seen you like this. My heart can’t take it.

Humming a little tune, Gu Xi headed for the bathroom.

He had just squeezed toothpaste and glanced at the mirror.

Freeze-frame.

Huh?

Huh huh huh?

Gu Xi leaned close and saw a tiny white fleck in the corner of his eye.

“Aaah—”

Mo Dian rushed in, only to find Gu Xi hugging his knees, curled up like a ball.

“What happened, what’s wrong?!”

Gu Xi buried his face.

After a long beat, he whispered, breathy, “Eye… gunk.”

I have no face left. How do I go on living?

How long was I standing out there? I even angled my face for effect. Was it even more obvious?

Did Rong Jing see the whole time? What will he think of me? Do I even have an image left in his eyes?

Back in his room, Rong Jing told Zhou You to put the contract away.

They both knew it was a peacekeeping prop at best. They could not be lovers, but they could no longer be just friends either.

In this dangerous relationship, they had found a single point to brace against.

After a night of brewing, the trending searches finally reached Rong Jing via Zhou You.

The teaser had been out for a while. Because of the mystery, the judge known only as “bss” had held persistent popularity. Now that netizens had peeled back the layers and matched clues, the speculation from before ignited into a blaze.

It was the classic case of an overnight sensation.

On Weibo there were four related tags:

#RongJing_bss#, #ADayInAStar’sLife#, #WhyIsHeActing#, #YouThoughtHeWasJustANewbie#.

In his past life Rong Jing had been a trending-search regular, so he did not feel much. His goals had always been two: clear the original’s name, and follow his passion.

He looked at his follower count, which had risen to over a hundred thousand off the Sovereignty promo and gossip. Overnight it had crossed three hundred thousand and was still climbing fast. His latest post was a retweet of the film’s official promo, and it already had tens of thousands of comments.

Some of the top replies:

- I cannot be the only one who knows this hidden gem.

- Handsome and wild.

- bss, I finally found your lair. How about me?

- My HP is at zero. I thought you were the obedient junior type, but you’re this kind of junior.

There were a few discordant voices mixed in, doubts that had existed since his casting was announced. Those questions had only quieted after a respected reviewer said “promising,” and the original author visited set and voiced support.

Now that Rong Jing had been identified this way by all-powerful netizens, the old doubts surged back.

One post read: Isn’t being an executive good enough. Why go act?

Below it was the original host’s stage accident video and plenty of replies:

-  Just take your salary. Why switch fields?

- Now I see why GX was unhappy. The nepotism entrance really is different.

- Can Sovereignty still be watchable? Will the whole thing collapse.

…

Zhou You: “Young master, do you want me to suppress the trending a bit.”

Rong Jing: “It’s too hot. Press it down a little. Let other topics that need the traffic go up.”

Zhou You: “… Understood.”

So he just did not want to hog public resources. After enough time with him, you learned how his mind worked.

The hotel served crews and stars near the studio, so fans often came to wait.

Right now a bunch of fans stood outside in the cool wind while staff kept order.

“Do you think Jing Jing already left?”

“My chat group says his scenes are after eight these days. It’s just past six.”

“Us showing up all of a sudden, will it scare him?”

“Jing Jing’s fans are too few. He was blacklisted across the internet before. At least we want him to know he is not alone. We will dote on our own baby.”

“Sis, one question: are we Jing-fans destined to be at odds with Xi-fans?”

“Duh. They said we were riding their clout. Ha.”

“Are Rong Jing and Gu Xi not on good terms in real life?”

“Not sure. Some public accounts say they are distant. Looks like just a normal collaboration.”

“No huge conflict. With Gu Xi’s personality he would have walked. He has veto power at his level. He has to have that much say.”

“I heard there are intimate scenes. I feel bad for both if they don’t get along. To do that with someone you don’t vibe with…”

“Ah! Is that him? Is that the handsome assistant behind him?”

“It is. He is always with Jing Jing. Jing Jing is so handsome he even outshines the assistant.”

“Everyone, formation. First time has to leave a good impression.”

To be safe, Rong Jing wore a cap and mask, but as soon as he stepped out, a group of shy boys and girls, most of them Omegas, approached.

They stopped a short distance away, holding banners and chanting “keep it up.”

The photos on the banners were his. Had they printed these overnight?

Rong Jing blinked, pulled off his mask, and smiled. “How did you recognize me?”

This was how he used to greet fans, so he seemed perfectly natural.

It was their first time hearing him in person. His voice was pregnancy-inducing, and some nearly became incoherent. They pointed at Zhou You behind him.

Rong Jing understood. Looked like Zhou You would need disguises too. A handsome assistant was inconvenient.

Zhou You suddenly felt a chill up his spine. Hopefully the young master had not noticed which contract Gu Xi had signed.

“As it gets colder, do not wait outside. My call times aren’t fixed.”

“Gege, we came to tell you we will always support you. Don’t feel burdened. Please keep going.”

For a moment Rong Jing saw the loyal old fans from years past. Fan circles were complicated.

He had encountered extreme cases who tailed him home and hid under his bed, and sasaengs who had chased his car so hard he nearly crashed. That did not mean he painted them all with the same brush.

If they had rushed him, he would have left at once. They did not.

“Be careful going back. If you haven’t had breakfast, the hotel buffet is open. Put it on my tab.”

One sentence, and their enthusiasm ignited.

Were they short a meal? No. They craved that response, that warmth.

Rong Jing treated fans like old friends most of the time. But more and more people drifted over, and it started to get out of hand.

A white sedan pulled up. The windows were dark. You could not see the driver.

Rong Jing seemed to know who it was. He waved farewell and got in.

Before Zhou You could climb in, the car pulled away.

Have you forgotten something???? For example, me.

Why do I have zero presence?

Zhou You headed to the garage to get the car and give chase, when shrieks erupted around him.

“Jing Jing is so sweet. I am about to explode!”

“Worth it to catch the first bus here at dawn!”

“I declare from today Jing Jing is my ultimate bias!”

“I was so nervous I could not talk, but he was not even snarky once. He is so nice to fans!”

Zhou You: … You are not contestants. He has not neglected his job. Why would he be snarky?

Also, where did your restraint and elegance go?

Why were you all so shy in front of Rong Jing?

Gu Xi drove a short way, face cool, determined to erase the bad impression from that morning out of Rong Jing’s mind.

Once he had recovered from the blow, Mo Dian had told him about the trending searches. The spat with Xi-fans had ironically boosted Rong Jing’s name, and his fandom had grown more cohesive.

From Rong Jing’s original fan group, Gu Xi had picked a reliable person and transferred group ownership.

Even after the handoff, he still checked the groups daily. Watching new members join one after another was like seeing a carefully nurtured child grow. It was both comforting and bittersweet.

He had seen over a thousand join requests overnight. The second group was nearly full, and that was after strict screening.

The new group owner told him excitedly that Jing-fans had been buzzing all night. Some of them had been fans of the sharp-tongued “bss.” They never thought the two dreamboats would be one and the same. Double the delight. How could they not be hyped?

Gu Xi had timed his arrival and waited by the road. Opportunities had to be made.

“How was your first face-to-face with fans?”

“Exciting,” Rong Jing replied. The space felt too cramped, the person next to him far too present.

Gu Xi did not see the excitement at all. If anything, Rong Jing looked a little dazed.

Gu Xi unfastened his seat belt, turned, and moved in front of him. Rong Jing jerked back. Too close.

He had read online when he first arrived in this world that an Omega getting too close could rile an Alpha. He had thought confidently that he would never.

That had been wishful thinking. It depended who stood in front of him.

Gu Xi did not look at him. He reached for the buckle, and their bodies brushed. A streak of charged heat flashed through both of them.

In the tight space, their eyes did not meet.

A few seconds passed. Click. Gu Xi did not linger. He helped him buckle, then naturally returned to the driver’s seat. “Forgot to strap in.”

Rong Jing grunted an answer.

So light it was as if he feared startling something.

It's bad. He was about to lose it.

When an Omega whose whole body bore your scent leaned in, a lamb wandering into a wolf’s den.

An Alpha who had already claimed him only wanted to slowly take him apart and swallow him whole, to cover him again from head to toe in his own scent.

It was an Alpha’s instinct. Now it was becoming his instinct.

That contract was not giving them a step to stand on. It was the thing that made his heart begin to mutiny and grow other feelings.

“Gu Xi…”

“Mm?”

“If there’s a day I lose control, knock me out.” I might fail your trust.

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