Cat O, But Traveling Into The Normal World Chapter 3
byChapter 3 Photo: I Knew He Liked Me
Shi Sanlin drove Yu You to the hospital emergency room. The doctor arranged for a blood draw and a flu test.
Afterward, Yu You sat quietly on a chair waiting for the results. His long lashes cast shadows, and his cheeks were slightly pale, making him look like a fragile porcelain doll, drawing frequent glances from passersby.
The test results came back quickly, showing a slight fever and mild anemia. The doctor prescribed medication and advised plenty of rest.
Yu You held the paper slip, feeling relieved.
Thankfully, it was just a common fever. He didn’t have to worry about canceling the small role Shi-ge had worked so hard to secure for him.
Shi Sanlin drove Yu You back to his residence—a small apartment provided by the company for its minor artists, which was small but offered peace and privacy.
Shi Sanlin bagged the formal attire Yu You had changed out of, intending to send it to the dry cleaners before returning it to the brand.
As he headed out, he instructed Yu You, “Xiao Yu, rest well. I’ll pick you up in a couple of days to visit the director on set.”
Yu You saw him out, nodding obediently, and asked, “Do I need to prepare anything?”
“My sister has already smoothed things over with them. That role has two or three lines of dialogue; we can study it when we get there. Don’t rush, just focus on recovering your energy first.”
While speaking, Shi Sanlin casually took out his phone and realized he had forgotten to turn off silent mode after returning from the Banquet. The screen showed over a dozen missed calls.
He sounded puzzled: “Why did my sister call me so many times?”
Shi Sanlin called her back. After only a few words, he stopped in his tracks, gasped in shock, and instinctively glanced at Yu You.
Yu You stopped too, sensing something was wrong.
“Mhm, yes, okay…”
Shi Sanlin’s expression was grave. He quickly explained into the phone, “No, Sis, I was standing right there. It was truly an accident. I just took Xiao Yu to the hospital. I know, I’ll tell Xiao Yu.”
The call ended.
Yu You asked, “Shi-ge, did something happen?”
“Something did happen. It’s not huge, but not small either.” Shi Sanlin gave an awkward laugh. “You and CEO Jiang at the Banquet… were photographed.”
Several new search terms quietly appeared on the hot search list, quickly ranking high.
Star Sky Entertainment CEO Jiang’s Secret Relationship Exposed
CEO Jiang Publicly Declares Love
CEO Jiang Scandal Photo
Clicking in, the marketing account with the highest engagement had posted a photo.
The photo was covered in dense watermarks, and the background was blurred, focusing the visual center on the two people embracing.
Jiang Xunzhou’s profile was clear. He was looking down slightly at the young man in his arms, his sharp jawline taut, his cold, stern features somehow captured with a hint of worry.
The young man had his face buried in Jiang Xunzhou’s chest, his specific appearance unclear. His figure was slender, and his narrow waist was tightly clasped by the mature man’s large hand, a sight that made hearts race.
@BigNoodleSoupSurfingDiary: [CEO Jiang’s secret relationship possibly exposed! Overcome by emotion tonight, he publicly embraced his lover at the Banquet, declaring his affection. Does anyone know who CEO Jiang is holding?]
There were already tens of thousands of shares and comments, and the engagement was still rising.
[You’re asking me? Am I the marketing account or are you? Was I there or were you?]
[Seriously, this photo is so blurry, was it taken with a landline?]
[I remember you were the same marketing account that previously exposed CEO Jiang’s alleged secret relationship with a popular female celebrity using matching phone wallpapers, and then you were sued and had to issue a public apology, right? You’re back at it again? You really thrive on conflict.]
[Wait, I clicked in because of the “Scandal Photo” hot search. Scandalous? You call this scandalous??]
[For CEO Jiang, who has never had a scandal, this is definitely a scandalous photo, hahahaha.]
[Where’s the front view? Why don’t you release the other person’s face?]
Below, a pile of comments were taking turns guessing the identity of the other person involved, with fans joining the fray, nearly coming to blows in their excitement.
Yu You pursed his lips, scrolling through the comments. Shi Sanlin said from beside him, “A marketing account must have infiltrated the Banquet tonight and took your photo, taking it out of context. But we don’t know if they have other photos that clearly show your face.”
It was common knowledge in the industry that releasing only half a photo to expose a scandal served two purposes: first, to generate buzz, and second, to wait for the subject of the scandal to offer a price to buy the photos. If negotiations failed, more photos would be released later to gain traffic.
Yu You asked, “How is the company planning to handle this?”
Shi Sanlin said, “The PR department is probably negotiating with them right now. It’s quite rare to get a photo of CEO Jiang in a scandal, so I bet they’ll demand a high price.”
He then added, thankfully, “It’s a good thing it’s you. If it were a Minor Celebrity from another company, they would have jumped out immediately to claim the spotlight.”
Some Minor Celebrities’ companies were already getting involved, posting screenshots of ambiguous back views under the hot search topics, pretending to be bystanders analyzing whether it was the same person.
Fans would then mix into the comments, desperately posting highly edited beautiful photos while using the standardized script: [Sorry, we’re taking our XX home, not interested in this topic. Please follow the hit drama ‘XXXX’.]
It was utter chaos.
Shi Sanlin cautioned, “Xiao Yu, you absolutely must not get involved. We still don’t know if the marketing account got a clear shot of you. As long as they didn’t, everything is manageable…”
Yu You said, “They definitely did.”
Shi Sanlin’s eyes widened: “Huh?”
“You can tell where the photographer was standing just from this photo.”
Yu You tapped the photo on the screen, lowering his eyes. “They were at the eight o’clock position relative to me and CEO Jiang. That area is close to the center of the Banquet hall, so it could only have been a waiter carrying a tray, possibly using a pinhole camera. If they had moved just a few steps, they could have captured my face, or even more intimate photos.”
Refreshing the hot search topic, the original post from the marketing account now showed “deleted by the author,” and immediately afterward, the entire topic was wiped clean.
Yu You backed out and noticed that the other related hot search topics were also disappearing from the list.
Shi Sanlin, standing beside him, also noticed and muttered, slightly panicked, “This must be Star Sky’s PR department taking action. It means that marketing account really did have your photo, and the two sides have finished negotiating…”
Yu You remembered what Shi Sanlin had mentioned earlier.
—The inevitable fate of those Minor Celebrities who tried to take shortcuts to climb onto Jiang Xunzhou.
“Shi-ge.”
Yu You looked at Shi Sanlin, his palms sweating, and asked, “Although it wasn’t my intention, this incident is related to me. Will I be blacklisted too?”
He had arrived in this completely unfamiliar world, his previous efforts wasted, leaving him with nothing. He only wanted to return to the place he loved and once again climb to the pinnacle of attention.
But he knew he currently held no value.
If he incurred displeasure, a single word from someone in a high position could easily turn him into a discarded pawn.
He was unwilling to accept this.
A fierce flame burned in Yu You’s eyes as he stared intently at Shi Sanlin.
Shi Sanlin stammered, “I, I don’t know. We can only wait and see. Even if you are blacklisted, the company won’t issue specific documents; it depends entirely on CEO Jiang’s attitude. Don’t worry, if you really are blacklisted…”
Yu You said, “Shi-ge, I want to stay.”
The young man’s voice was soft, but his gaze was firm and burning, flickering with bright ambition.
It was the stubbornness of someone thrown into despair who still refused to surrender.
Shi Sanlin stared blankly, as if he were seeing the person in front of him for the first time today.
The young man he had met was working at a convenience store, the cuffs of his clothes faded from washing. He agreed to enter the industry after hearing he could earn more money.
After his video went viral, Shi Sanlin leveraged the buzz to secure a few events, but the young man didn’t understand the rules of interaction in the industry. His screen time was heavily edited because he lacked “explosive content,” and the initial buzz gradually faded. The fans who had gathered quickly moved on to new idols.
That young man had once privately asked him, frustrated, “Shi-ge, am I not suited for this line of work? I originally wanted to earn more money to give back to the Welfare Institute, so the children could live better and have more choices, but this place doesn’t seem right for me…”
Now, however, things seemed different.
Shi Sanlin’s attitude also became serious. He nodded heavily: “Xiao Yu, I will do my best to help you.”
A stack of photos was scattered on the coffee table in the lounge.
“CEO Jiang, we have confirmed with the other party. They have deleted all backups and signed a non-disclosure agreement. Do you need to review them?”
The assistant asked, holding a file.
Jiang Xunzhou sat on the sofa, rubbing his temples, and said, “No need. Just handle it properly.”
Next to him sat a long-time friend, delighted to twist the knife, who was examining a photo and teasing, “Is this the first time our CEO Jiang has had a scandal backfire? No wonder you paid a hefty price to buy them. The angle is indeed tricky. It looks like you two are making out in public. If this got out, who would believe you weren’t dating?”
The two people in the photo were strikingly attractive and their figures were exceptionally well-matched, capturing the moment Yu You stumbled into Jiang Xunzhou’s arms.
The man’s face was handsome and mature, looking down in a moment of lost focus. The young man was looking up slightly, eyes lightly closed, his lips rosy and wet, looking soft and kissable, all against the blurred background.
From a distance, due to the forced perspective, it looked like lovers kissing.
Jiang Xunzhou glanced at the suggestive photo, his ear tips feeling warm, his Adam’s apple bobbing. The teasing surprisingly sparked a restless thirst in him, and he defensively picked up his water cup for a drink.
The assistant, sensing the mood, said, “CEO Jiang, CEO Xu, if there’s nothing else, I’ll step out.”
He took a step back, then remembered something and quickly asked, “Oh, right, CEO Jiang, regarding this Mr. Yu…”
He stopped at the perfect moment, waiting for Jiang Xunzhou to give direction on how to proceed.
Jiang Xunzhou said, “Since the photos weren’t released, let’s treat this as if nothing happened.”
The assistant understood his meaning and nodded: “Understood, CEO Jiang.”
His friend, familiar with Jiang Xunzhou’s usual style of handling things, raised an eyebrow: “What, are you making an exception this time because the kid is good-looking?”
“Stop talking nonsense. I had people investigate.”
Jiang Xunzhou scoffed, “The person who took the photo and the waiter who spilled on my shirt were working together. Surveillance caught them talking in the storage room. This truly has nothing to do with Yu You.”
His friend clicked his tongue a few times, then picked up the next photo that had been sent for pricing, and chuckled, “This one is also well-shot. It really looks the part.”
Jiang Xunzhou looked down.
The photo was clear, showing his back as he walked upstairs and the young man at the bottom of the stairs.
The young man was looking up at him, his profile beautiful, his cheeks flushed.
His eyes were moist and bright, reflecting the light, looking like he was gazing at the person he liked from afar.
Jiang Xunzhou’s lips curled slightly, his tone containing the subtle pride of having uncovered the truth: “I left, and he was still secretly watching me. I knew he liked me. Spraying Iris Flower perfume was his way of trying to get my attention.”