Chapter Ninety-Four: Encircled

By the time Zhou Jingchen came over and took Yu Qian’s hand, it was already time to go eat.

There were too many people on set, and Yu Qian did not want to embarrass him, so she let him hold her hand.

When Xu Guangrong saw the two of them leaving hand in hand, they looked like a perfectly matched little couple from the back, and he frowned.

He only hoped they would not uncover the girl’s true identity. Otherwise, the label of predation might be impossible to shake off.

But then he thought of something else: the little girl was also about to debut as an actress.

Xu Guangrong felt a faint pain at his temples.

In truth, he was overthinking it. In the entertainment world, there were plenty who debuted in their teens, and even more who started dating at thirteen or fourteen. It was only because he had little contact with such matters and had never paid attention that he did not know.

Zhou Jingchen and Yu Qian had long since decided how to handle what came after.

The phrase “watching her grow up” alone could solve many problems.

...

The two of them, holding hands as they went out to eat, had not expected to be photographed again. Thankfully, as soon as Yu Qian came out, she put on a mask.

Seeing the crowd swell larger and larger around them, their brows were so tightly furrowed they could have crushed a fly.

“Please move aside, we’re going to eat!” Zhou Jingchen said loudly, shielding Yu Qian in his arms.

Unfortunately, very few people listened.

“Ah! You stepped on me!”

“Why are you shoving? I haven’t even gotten an autograph yet!”

“Zhou Jingchen! Zhou Jingchen! I’m a fan of your pairing—could you sign for me?”

...

The noise was deafening, and someone even reached out, trying to pull off Yu Qian’s mask.

He turned her face into his chest and held her tightly. His temper flared.

“Get lost!”

With that roar, the scene fell silent for a heartbeat before erupting into chaos again.

“Zhou Jingchen, we like you, so we came to get your autograph. And you tell us to get lost?” The girl who had first called herself a fan of the pairing spoke up first, her voice full of disbelief.

“Exactly! If we didn’t like you, who the hell would even look at you?”

“You haven’t even officially debuted and you’re already putting on airs. What are you, anyway?”

“Forget it, forget it. What a joke. Chasing after him is worse than chasing someone else—like he’s the only star in the world.”

Ignoring the shouting, he knew that real fans would never crowd around their idol and cause such a racket.

Zhou Jingchen contacted the film city’s security, and they arrived quickly.

After a difficult push through the crowd, Zhou Jingchen only let out a breath and set Yu Qian down once they had entered the hotel.

“Little one, you’ve suffered.”

He smoothed down her disheveled hair, his heart aching for her.

“It’s fine. And don’t be angry either. Those people don’t count as fans at all,” Yu Qian said indifferently. She had not been injured.

All along, Zhou Jingchen had protected her in his arms. Aside from her hair being messed up, he had blocked all the grabbing and pulling for her.

When she rolled up his sleeve and saw the scratch marks from fingernails and the bruises left by pinching, Yu Qian’s heart ached terribly.

“After we eat, I’ll put medicine on you when we get back!” Her voice unconsciously carried a touch of tears.

What was wrong with those people? If they didn’t get autographs or photos, they pinched someone? What kind of nonsense was that?

He withdrew his hand and lowered his sleeve, then lifted Yu Qian’s face with tenderness.

“Little one, it’s nothing. It doesn’t hurt. Look at me.”

With that, he made a funny face.

Watching him squint and contort his handsome features into complete silliness, Yu Qian could not hold back a laugh.

“Gently! If you keep treating the face of my future boyfriend like this, I’ll hit you!” She pulled his hand away, lightly kneaded his face, and chided him.

The moment the words “future boyfriend” left her lips, Zhou Jingchen felt light-headed with joy.

Before, Yu Qian had kept him in the stage of testing, always a little near and a little far, only acknowledging him as a friend. But now she had suddenly called him her future boyfriend. Did that mean she had accepted him?

Zhou Jingchen could not help grinning foolishly. A future boyfriend—when she grew up in a few more years, he would truly be her boyfriend.

“What are you grinning about like an idiot? Did you hear what I said?” After muttering for half a day, Yu Qian realized he had gone stupid and tugged his ear to ask him.

“I heard it, I heard it! I heard you!” With his ear being pinched, he had no choice but to come back to his senses and hurriedly plead for mercy.

“Then tell me what I said.”

“Huh? ... You said... you said...” Oh no, he had not listened at all!