Chapter 148: Why Are You Back?

"Then let's start filming after the Chinese New Year at the latest. You'll definitely be exhausted shooting Blood Phoenix anyway, so you should just take some time off to rest," Xiao Jingxuan decided entirely on his own with a cheerful tone, earning a roll of eyes from Chu Luoxi.

Despite the back-and-forth, once they had tidied up, the two of them went out for a warm and cozy dinner.

Xiao Jingxuan had originally intended to walk Chu Luoxi all the way back to her dormitory, but she cut him off and chased him away right at the school gates.

Before long, Chu Luoxi deeply regretted her own impulsive action. As soon as she stepped onto campus, she ran into Director Fan Li, who looked at her with a mixture of wonder and surprise. "Oh, little Chu, how come you're back? Where's Heavenly King Xiao? Why are you back all by yourself?"

Chu Luoxi felt a twinge of awkwardness. It wasn't that she didn't understand the underlying meaning of those words; he was implying that she shouldn't have returned tonight at all, but rather come back tomorrow morning instead!

"Ha-ha, Heavenly King Xiao is such a busy man. It's already wonderful enough that he managed to make the trip once," Chu Luoxi offered a sheepish explanation.

With Xiao Jingxuan making such a grand and high-profile visit to the set, she was currently the only leading actor present. The important supporting cast had not yet appeared, and there were no campus scenes being shot yet, so how could anyone fail to grasp the implication? Furthermore, there was no shortage of rumors linking her and the Heavenly King in the outside world. Even if there was nothing between them, an appearance like this would inevitably lead people's minds astray. She might as well just admit to it openly; besides, things had essentially been settled today anyway.

"Oh? That kid Xiao Jingxuan is usually so socially adept. How could he be so clueless today?" Fan Li muttered, slightly flushed with alcohol, sounding genuinely puzzled. "What kind of pressing business could he possibly have late at night? What could possibly be more important than his own girlfriend?"

Shaking his head and sighing, Fan Li seemed to hold a low opinion of Xiao Jingxuan's behavior. He hadn't realized it before, but now it was clear to him that Xiao Jingxuan and Chu Luoxi were definitely in a romantic relationship.

Watching Fan Li sway as he walked away, Chu Luoxi felt a profound sense of awkwardness mixed with a mental twitch. What kind of bizarre situation was this?

As she approached the dormitory entrance, she ran into Zhang Hong and casually greeted him. Everyone lived in this dormitory building, which functioned much like a hotel without any rigid separation between male and female dormitories; as long as the rooms were assigned, that was all that mattered.

"Oh, little Xi, how come you're back? Where's Heavenly King Xiao? Why are you by yourself?" Zhang Hong asked, turning to look behind her with a puzzled expression.

Uh... Chu Luoxi came to a halt, scratching her head, feeling genuinely on the verge of a breakdown. Why, why, why? Was she really not supposed to come back? Did staying out with a man and returning the next morning somehow constitute the norm? And why was it so strange that Xiao Jingxuan hadn't escorted her inside the dormitory? What on earth was so weird about it anyway?

Orz. Senior brother, I've failed you. By not letting you walk me in, I've severely tarnished your exalted reputation. I am guilty; my crime is unforgivable... Chu Luoxi chanted silently as she returned to her room, her mind swarming with grievances.

Inside the dorm, Ding Ju was watching television on her computer. Hearing the sound of the key in the lock, she turned her head and saw Chu Luoxi entering with a dejected slump, prompting her to ask, "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing. I'm just so tired and want to sleep," Chu Luoxi limply crawled onto her bed and lay flat like a corpse.

"Huh?" Ding Ju looked completely baffled.

Moments later, driven by curiosity, she leaned over to peer at Chu Luoxi and reached out to shake her arm. "Hey, how come you're back? Where's Heavenly King Xiao? Why isn't he with you?"

Hearing this, Chu Luoxi let out a small internal spit of blood. What kind of questions were these? Were these even things normal people said?

"I don't understand. Why shouldn't I be back?" Chu Luoxi stared powerlessly at Ding Ju, harboring a silent sorrow.

"Huh? You're asking me why?" Ding Ju looked bewildered. She had merely asked out of casual curiosity, genuinely assuming that Chu Luoxi wouldn't be returning tonight. Since she had shown up anyway, she asked about it without putting any deeper thought into it. "Weren't you supposed to stay with Heavenly King Xiao?"

At that, Chu Luoxi metaphorically coughed up another mouthful of ancient blood, finding the conversation growing increasingly absurd. "Why on earth would I stay with him?"

"Eh, didn't you go out with him? What, you weren't with him? Then who else was there?" Ding Ju tilted her head, blinking with innocent little eyes as she asked, "Oh, I get it. Did big brother Leng Ji come too?"

After quietly staring at Ding Ju for a solid few seconds, Chu Luoxi buried her face in her pillow. Fine, this wasn't Ding Ju's fault; she had simply been overthinking things herself.

Plagued by lingering resentment and a sense of guilt toward the great Heavenly King Xiao, she spent a rather restless night. The next day, upon arriving at the set, Chu Luoxi discovered that the matter was far from over! She had severely underestimated the public's appetite for gossip.

First up was the makeup artist Liu Yun, who, while applying cosmetics to her face, asked with boundless gossipy enthusiasm, "Are you and Heavenly King Xiao that close?"

Fully understanding what he wanted to know, Chu Luoxi had no intention of satisfying anyone's thirst for gossip. Initially, she had felt it didn't matter since the director wasn't a talkative person, and besides, she hadn't explicitly admitted to anything—everything was merely Fan Li's speculation. Later on, while trying to sleep the night before, it suddenly occurred to her that she couldn't just say whatever she pleased. Doing so would not only harm Xiao Jingxuan's reputation, but she would also be labeled as someone trying to climb the social ladder. After all, her journey so far had been far too smooth; even if she possessed genuine strength, others wouldn't see it that way.

Public opinion was a terrifying thing, and malicious rumors were fierce. It was better for her to exercise caution. Once things blew up into a massive spectacle, she couldn't even begin to imagine how she would be portrayed.

"We're fine, it's not like you just found out about it today," Chu Luoxi said with an eye roll, offering a vague and noncommittal reply. She had plenty of experience dealing with gossip and rumors; both flat-out denials and absolute affirmations were unacceptable approaches. One had to keep people guessing so they couldn't discern the truth from falsehood. That way, opinions would remain divided, people would constantly second-guess their own assumptions, and over time, the gossip would simply fade away.

Sure enough, Liu Yun's expression paused. "Then what kind of relationship do you two actually have?" He had figured out by now that unless she gave a straight answer, Chu Luoxi would just play word games with him. What were actors, anyway? To put it bluntly, weren't they professionals at fooling people?

"What is it you're trying to ask?" Chu Luoxi wore a half-smile, looking as though she understood his intent. "He's my senior brother. Could you possibly not know that?"

Realizing he was being brushed off yet again, Liu Yun widened his eyes. "Then why did he come to see you? Was he visiting the set?"

"He had something to discuss with me and visited the set along the way," Chu Luoxi replied without the slightest hesitation, acting as though she noticed nothing amiss. "Senior Brother Xiao brought a script over for me to look at and we discussed it together. Come to think of it, I'm actually quite interested in it. By the way, Brother Liu, are you?"

"Hmm? I look at things when I have free time too, but honestly, the internet nowadays is much more entertaining than television and movies," Liu Yun took the bait, completely unaware that he had been successfully deflected by Chu Luoxi. Her facial expressions and phrasing had been so utterly natural that he was pulled right along without realizing it.

"Indeed. That's why I said I'm interested in this script; I always feel like it brings a lot of freshness..." A spark of brilliance flashed through Chu Luoxi's eyes as she continued seamlessly.

"Are you saying this script has something to do with the internet?" Liu Yun's interest was instantly piqued.

"Well, let me tell you about it..." Chu Luoxi arched an eyebrow, smiling with playful intrigue.