On the way back to the city from Yuehua Temple, Su Tang remained silent all the time. Having seen through her own little feelings, she didn't know what to say to him. Everything just felt so awkward.
Ren Qingzhou suddenly asked her, "Will you still go on blind dates?"
Su Tang didn't answer.
She really didn't know what to say. Saying no would be a lie. After all, Mom Su was so persistent that she couldn't wait to make up for all the blind dates missed in the past year. Su Tang had never been a match for her. Moreover, if she refused, she would be nagged at for a long time. It was better to just go and then perfunctorily end it. But saying yes was really hard to get out of her mouth.
"I won't really be with any of them."
"I think I'm better than all those men you've been on blind dates with." This sounded a bit childish, just like when one had to compete with others for superiority when they were kids. Su Tang couldn't help but smile. Looking at Ren Qingzhou, as if to comfort him, she said, "You are."
"Then why don't you choose me?" He was still hung up on being rejected. A person who was always successful in the world of love would feel even more frustrated when faced with rejection. Just like Ren Qingzhou now, he really couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. "Do you really not like me? Then what kind of boys do you like?"
Su Tang was at a loss for words for a moment. In the past, as his fan, she only thought he was straightforward and candid. But now she suddenly realized that he had a bit of a childish nature.
That kind of juvenile determination to find the answer to a question.
"You're really great, but we're really not suitable. You're like a god in my heart, but I need someone to be my boyfriend."
"But I'm just an ordinary person, the same as everyone else, just with a special occupation."
"But we can't live away from the crowd, right? Your status means our relationship can't be made public. I can't tell the whole world openly that you're my boyfriend. Even my life will be affected."
"We can go public. I don't like secret relationships either. Not every star has a secret relationship."
"I'm also your fan. I understand how your fans feel. You're in the rising stage of your career. Going public with a relationship would be like giving up on yourself."
"You're really a talented person. I like every one of your performances and every album of yours. But I know how many girlfriend fans you have."
"Even if we go public with our relationship, I'm not ready to live under the spotlight every day. I'm just an ordinary person."
"I'm really sorry, Zhouzhou. I'm too selfish. I'm not ready, or rather, I'm not willing to face all the gossips that may come up in the future with you."
"I'm not as good as you think. I'm just an ordinary person."
Su Tang looked into Ren Qingzhou's eyes. She remembered many people saying that his eyes were the most striking part of his features.
They seemed to hold stars and the sea. But at this moment, she saw with her own eyes the broken star river in them.
Su Tang couldn't bear it. She suddenly understood that this person who was put on a pedestal by everyone also had a vulnerable side.
"It's not your fault. You don't need to apologize."
"I'll leave your life and won't bother you anymore. I apologize for my previous actions."
Ren Qingzhou left Yuncheng. For a moment, he felt like just any tourist who came to Yuncheng, just a passing traveler in this city.
Su Tang's annual leave was not peaceful either. She was constantly on the go at blind - date meetings.
Mom Su introduced many young talents to her. They came from all walks of life. Some were just a one - time encounter, while some expressed their desire to develop a relationship with her.
Although she was quiet, she had a decent job and a good family. In the blind - date market, she didn't seem so unpopular.
But whenever Mom Su asked about the results of the blind dates, she just shook her head. It must be her own problem. There were all kinds of people sitting in front of her, but somehow, a certain face always popped up in her mind.
Many times, she would log in to social media to check Ren Qingzhou's updates.
He was also on his annual leave recently, and there was no new material. In fact, since the concert, he had been quite low - key. Some marketing accounts reported that he would take on a big - budget production after the New Year, and he had been doing relevant professional training.
Fans were secretly looking forward to it. Although Ren Qingzhou had rarely taken on TV dramas in the past two years, his acting skills were obvious to all, and he had really gained a wave of acting fans.
When this news came out, the acting fans were excited.
Compared with his silence on social media, Ren Qingzhou's WeChat Moments was colorful. He would watch a movie and then post his feelings. He would have small gatherings with friends and help his mom cook.
Su Tang saw every post in his Moments. She suddenly felt that this idol of hers had a touch of earthly flavor away from the spotlight.
Su Tang admitted that her heart skipped a beat.
In fact, the moment she met him in Yuncheng, Su Tang knew she was done for.
Sometimes, a heartbeat happens in an instant. When that person stands in front of you, your heart clearly tells you that you're done for.
If she were a more emotional person, she would surely agree to him without hesitation.
The entertainment industry was a place full of glitz and glamour, but Ren Qingzhou's life wasn't.
Everyone who entered the entertainment industry had their own reasons, for fame, for fortune, or for real love.
Ren Qingzhou belonged to the latter. To be honest, he wasn't short of money. Although the Ren family wasn't extremely wealthy, they gave him a comfortable life. Maybe that was why he didn't get lost in this glitzy circle.
He watched countless people drift away, but he still gritted his teeth and stuck to his music dream.
He had faced criticism, ridicule, and denial, but he had always persisted.
But for Su Tang, he didn't know what to do.
It was hard to let go, but he didn't know how to keep going.
He couldn't talk to others about this, so he just kept bothering Jiang Bai. As a result, Jiang Bai had been very distressed recently. Receiving messages from Ren Qingzhou in the middle of the night was just a small thing. As soon as he saw Ren Qingzhou, his lovelorn state seemed to be written all over his face.
In order to protect his voice, Ren Qingzhou didn't smoke or drink. Jiang Bai thought that was why he couldn't relieve his depression and had become like this.
"You can't go on like this. If you like her, just chase her."
"But she's already rejected me. Stalking her would be so uncool."
"Then can't you find something else to do to distract yourself?"
"I was busy studying before the New Year. I don't know when I'll start filming after the New Year."
"Why doesn't your mom set you up on blind dates? Maybe if you meet a better girl, you'll stop thinking about Su Tang."
"First of all, my Su Tang is unique. For now, no one is better than her in my eyes."
"Secondly, since I entered the entertainment industry, my mom has given up setting me up on blind dates."
Ren Qingzhou was really worried. But he thought Jiang Bai was right about one thing. He had to find something to do, which might distract him.
So he immediately contacted Li Momo. "Momo, do you have any suitable jobs recently?"
Li Momo really wanted to complain about her boss. Ren Qingzhou had a manager, and his manager was also his business partner, so he had a lot of freedom in choosing his jobs.
As Li Momo had been growing in the past few years, his manager had basically become a nominal position. Li Momo had taken over most of Ren Qingzhou's work.
But it was the holiday time! Li Momo was on the verge of losing her temper.
"Mr. Ren, you're going to start filming after the New Year. So if you want to work now, you can only take on some variety shows with a relatively short recording period. If you're interested, I'll send you the ones that meet the requirements later."
"Okay."
Okay your head. Li Momo had a feeling that her Spring Festival holiday was about to end soon. In the assistant business, holidays were extremely unstable and life was extremely irregular. Li Momo often wondered why she had been so impulsive back then, giving up a stable job and diving head - first into the entertainment industry with Ren Qingzhou.
But now none of that mattered. The most urgent thing was to find a suitable variety show for Ren Qingzhou. Thinking that he would disappear from the public eye for a long time after starting filming after the New Year, it was indeed necessary for him to take on a variety show to increase his exposure. Li Momo secretly admired her boss's arrangement, completely unaware that the reason for her boss's diligence was his heartbreak.
Ren Qingzhou finally chose to be a flying guest on a competitive variety show. He would record it twice, and it would be broadcast in four episodes. The first recording was on the tenth day of the first lunar month, which meant his annual leave was about to end.
Su Tang didn't like any of the posts in his Moments, and she never sent him any messages again. Her Moments rarely had any updates. It was as if she had never existed.
Ren Qingzhou would sometimes open the chat window and look at it. Looking at the cute smiling corgi on her avatar, he always felt that it was mocking him.
Ren Qingzhou felt really unhappy. Su Tang was really untouchable. After all, those who were favored always acted recklessly.
So the angry Ren Qingzhou adopted a corgi. It was only a few months old and would smile just like the one on Su Tang's avatar. It looked so silly.
He specially posted a Weibo to show off his new dog. "Guess what its name is?"
The number of comments kept rising. The top - rated fan in the comments said that the little corgi should be named "Sugar".
Ren Qingzhou thought about it, but he didn't dare.
What if Su Tang was really willing to be the little corgi's mom in the future? That would be so embarrassing!
He had to plan ahead, or he would easily end up with egg on his face.
Ren Qingzhou decided to name it "Like". What a cute and endearing name.
Su Tang naturally saw the photo of Like. Ren Qingzhou's sudden decision to get a dog really shocked her. Could it have something to do with her?
Su Tang stared at her own avatar for a long time, constantly telling herself that it was just a coincidence.