Chapter 45: Dead Scumbag

Chapter 45: The Ultimate Scumbag

“It’s confirmed. Let’s see who still dares to claim Lu Zhaoyang wasn’t a knowing homewrecker. He’s probably a repeat offender.”

“As everyone knows, Han Chuming and his wife have been secretly married for eight years. Their relationship is incredibly strong, and they’re even flaunting their love on a couples’ variety show right now.”

“Interlopers deserve to die a thousand deaths. How does Lu Zhaoyang have the audacity? If I were him, I’d have quit the entertainment industry long ago instead of shamelessly appearing on a PR-rehab show.”

“Side chicks are the most disgusting. Blacklist Lu Zhaoyang!”

“Blacklist Lu Zhaoyang!”

…

As Lu Zhaoyang fled in disarray, the live stream was almost entirely submerged by a barrage of angry comments.

Immediately after, hashtags like #LuZhaoyangAdmitsToBeingTheOtherWoman, #LuZhaoyangHomewrecker, and #BlacklistLuZhaoyang quickly surged to the top of major trending lists.

It was clear, without a doubt, that Lu Zhaoyang’s single-word answer would lead to catastrophic consequences.

Chu Yan watched Lu Zhaoyang’s hasty retreat with a heavy heart. Lu Zhaoyang was likely unprepared, and Chu Yan had clearly, albeit unintentionally, made things worse.

After Lu Zhaoyang left, the live stream, overwhelmed by a flood of cursing comments, lagged to the point of nearly disconnecting. Fortunately, the show was already nearing its end.

Subsequently, the director announced the results of the first episode’s online viewer voting.

Unsurprisingly, top idol Fu Zeyu ranked first, followed by Zhou Yun; the two had always been evenly matched.

Xu Meng and Li Wenzhang took third and fourth place, respectively.

What made Chu Yan feel even more remorseful was his own fifth-place ranking, with Lu Zhaoyang coming in last.

Among the six guests, aside from the exceptions of Fu Zeyu and Zhou Yun, both Xu Meng and Lu Zhaoyang had once been immensely popular rising stars with significant fan bases. In contrast, the veteran actor Li Wenzhang had far fewer fans. However, Lu Zhaoyang’s reputation plummeted after the Q&A segment, and he was now rapidly losing followers, while Li Wenzhang, conversely, gained a large wave of fans during the same segment.

As a result, Li Wenzhang climbed to fourth place.

As for Chu Yan, as an obscure, eighteenth-tier celebrity with no notable works, there was a stark, almost unbridgeable gap between him and the other five guests.

Had it not been for the previous few trending controversies, he might have been indistinguishable from an ordinary person.

Yet, unexpectedly, after just one episode, he not only gained several million followers but his fan vote count also nearly caught up to the top two.

According to the show’s rules, the first-place winner would receive a reward in the next episode, while the last-place contestant would face a penalty.

By the time the live broadcast ended, dusk was settling. It would take another hour to travel from Puli Village to the nearest town, and the winding mountain roads were particularly challenging.

Therefore, for everyone’s safety, the production team decided to stay overnight in Puli Village and depart the next day.

As for the guests, they could choose to stay in their original villager homes or move to new accommodations arranged by the production team. This option was primarily for Chu Yan and Zhou Yun, who had been assigned dilapidated houses.

After the wrap-up, Chu Yan asked Zhou Yun to pack his belongings first, while he went to find Lu Zhaoyang.

Chu Yan found Lu Zhaoyang sitting alone on a lush green field ridge, hugging his knees, gazing blankly at the gradually setting sun in the distance.

Chu Yan carefully sat down beside him.

“Mr. Lu, I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize you weren’t ready.”

Lu Zhaoyang shook his head. “It’s not your fault. It’s my own problem.”

Unsure what to say, Chu Yan simply sat quietly beside him, letting the evening breeze wash over them. When the fiery red sunset touched the mountain peaks, Lu Zhaoyang suddenly turned to Chu Yan.

“Mr. Chu, how old are you this year?”

“Nineteen.”

Lu Zhaoyang smiled, and Chu Yan was momentarily dazzled by his grin.

Lu Zhaoyang was strikingly handsome, especially when he smiled—his smile was warm and infectious. Yet, in the two days of filming, Chu Yan had hardly seen him smile.

Seeing Chu Yan’s earnest and quiet demeanor, Lu Zhaoyang suddenly felt an urge to confide.

“I was nineteen when I met him too.”

“Our first meeting was on a variety show. I didn’t have a good impression of him at first because he never took games seriously. He was my opponent, yet he always deliberately went easy on me. I felt he was disrespecting me.”

“Later, I found out it wasn’t intentional. He just couldn’t help but be distracted by how much he liked me. He said it was love at first sight.”

“I wasn’t always this sunny and outgoing. On the contrary, I was an introverted person, a bit socially anxious. He was the one who changed me.”

“He pursued me relentlessly for two whole years, never tiring. He kept approaching me, and even though I rejected him countless times, he never gave up.”

“He once said, ‘If there are a hundred steps between us, you only need to take one step towards me, and I will steadfastly walk the remaining ninety-nine steps towards you.’”

“I took that step… but he blindsided me.”

Chu Yan’s heart ached for him.

“He chased me for two years, and we were together for one. But at the peak of my love and happiness, I was nailed to the pillory of shame, branded as the homewrecker, the third party in his marriage, reviled by everyone.”

Lu Zhaoyang laughed self-deprecatingly, his eyes filled with an unshakeable pain.

“Can you believe it? Four years have passed since it happened, and he hasn’t even given me an explanation.”

*What a total scumbag!*

Chu Yan had suspected there was a hidden story, but he never imagined Lu Zhaoyang could have been betrayed so cruelly. For four years, he had assumed Lu Zhaoyang’s suffering was due to cyberbullying, but now it was clear that wasn’t the case at all.

Chu Yan tentatively patted Lu Zhaoyang’s shoulder.

“Brother Zhaoyang, so you… still can’t let him go?”

Even so, Chu Yan truly felt that the scumbag wasn’t worth it. A single act of betrayal should be unforgivable for life, especially from a man who concealed his marriage and cheated.

While Lu Zhaoyang had been mired in years of cyberbullying, sinking into despair and isolating himself in a world of pain, that man had conveniently disappeared when the truth came out. Afterward, he even managed to gain a reputation as a reformed prodigal son, and now he was brazenly appearing on a couples’ variety show.

It was utterly disgusting.

If Lu Zhaoyang still harbored feelings for someone like that, Chu Yan would truly…

Lu Zhaoyang let out a self-deprecating laugh and shook his head.

“No, I just can’t understand.”

“How can someone pretend so perfectly? Can love really be faked that well?”

“I was so foolish. Three years wasn’t enough for me to see through someone, but it was enough to invest my entire being, harming both myself and others.”

Chu Yan didn’t know how to answer. In his previous life, he had never been in love or felt affection for anyone. Such things were hard to explain. However, as a professional actor, love could certainly be acted out, but surely one needed to have truly felt it to portray that genuine emotion.

But regardless, Chu Yan believed one should always look forward.

In his previous life, he had no parents, only his grandmother, yet he never felt the world was dark or cold. Later, when his grandmother passed away, leaving Chu Yan alone, he still remained passionate about his acting career, never feeling that loneliness meant life was hopeless. And when he was inexplicably transmigrated to this unfamiliar world, facing a hellish start, he still maintained an excellent mindset.

Becoming a wealthy young master overnight—even one about to be disowned—was not a dead end. If he had no money, he could earn it. Being blacklisted by the Chu family didn’t matter; he still had his hands.

Truly, there was no obstacle too great to overcome.

Chu Yan hooked an arm around Lu Zhaoyang’s neck, pulling him closer, his clear and bright eyes locking directly onto Lu Zhaoyang’s lifeless gaze.

“Brother Zhaoyang, what’s trapping you isn’t the scumbag Han Chuming, nor the cyberbullying—it’s yourself.”

“You’re fixated on the scumbag’s deception, angered by the humiliation he brought you. But ultimately, it’s because you care too much—you care about how others see you and what they think of you. That’s why you feel ashamed and pained.”

“Because you care, you hate him for deceiving you. You blame yourself for being a poor judge of character. And because you care, the derogatory labels of ‘homewrecker’ have crushed you.”

“But Brother Zhaoyang, none of this was ever your fault. You shouldn’t feel ashamed because of it. You’ve always been the victim. The one who deserves to be reviled and blacklisted is the true culprit, not you.”

“At most, you were a poor judge of character, but we’re not saints, are we?”

“Why punish yourself for someone else’s mistakes?”

Chu Yan’s voice was like a refreshing summer breeze, instantly clearing Lu Zhaoyang’s muddled mind. He stared blankly at Chu Yan, feeling his stagnant thoughts gradually become lucid.

He had indeed cared too much. Whether it was being called a homewrecker or an interloper, he could never deny it, because it was the truth.

It was his own inability to guard his heart and resist his pursuit that led him to become the third party. Though unintentional, he had truly intruded upon someone else’s marriage, and the person hurt by both of them was the most innocent.

Lu Zhaoyang had once seen news of that person’s partner attempting suicide because of his involvement. Lu Zhaoyang was so consumed by self-reproach that he couldn’t sleep for days.

Overwhelmed by guilt and regret, he avoided the news for a long time, terrified of seeing news of that person’s death. If something truly had happened to them, he would be the executioner.

Lu Zhaoyang had drifted aimlessly for four years.

He blamed himself, felt ashamed. Everyone cursed him, saying he deserved to die. But who had ever sympathized with his years of suffering? Who had ever considered that he, too, was a victim?

“Yes… he lied to me.”

Two streams of clear tears rolled down his cheeks as Lu Zhaoyang stared blankly at Chu Yan, the emotions suppressed for years finally erupting at this moment.

Lu Zhaoyang suddenly buried his face in Chu Yan’s shoulder, sobbing uncontrollably.

Chu Yan felt a pang of sympathy. He held him, gently patting and comforting him, only for a resentful face to suddenly appear next to them.

Fu Junhang had appeared out of nowhere, crouching darkly behind them, glaring at Chu Yan with a clenched jaw and an accusing look.

He opened his mouth, silently mouthing four words:

“Don’t—you—dare—hug—him.”

Chu Yan rolled his eyes, gesturing for him to keep his distance.

*Do you even see what kind of situation this is? Is being so self-indulgent appropriate right now?*

Fu Junhang, like a resentful ghost, was brimming with an inexplicable grievance. He gestured in the air, as if tugging at Lu Zhaoyang’s arm, implying that if Chu Yan didn’t let go, he would physically pull them apart himself.

Lu Zhaoyang, after years of suppression, had finally released his emotions and was still sobbing into Chu Yan’s embrace.

Chu Yan felt he wasn’t so heartless. So, he raised his hand, swatting away Fu Junhang’s eager hand, and mouthed back:

“You—dare?”

“You can only hug me.”

Fu Junhang clenched his fists, his grievance doubling.

Chu Yan simply gave him a “get lost” gesture.

“You’re telling *me* to leave—for *another man*?”

Fu Junhang looked even more wronged, his beautiful eyes staring intently at Chu Yan, as if Chu Yan were some ultimate scumbag who had committed an unforgivable act.

Chu Yan: “?”

*Seriously, does he have to be so unreasonable?*

Just then, the roar of a motorcycle echoed in the distance.

Lu Zhaoyang seemed to hear the sound and finally straightened up from Chu Yan’s embrace. He gave Chu Yan a somewhat apologetic smile, then hastily wiped away his tears.

“Sorry, Chu Yan… I just lost control there. I’m really embarrassed. Your clothes… How about I buy you a new one? Thank you so much…”

Chu Yan smiled reassuringly.

“It’s fine, Brother Zhaoyang. We’re friends now, aren’t we? Friends don’t need to be so formal.”

Lu Zhaoyang’s heart warmed again at his words.

Meanwhile, Fu Junhang, who had been ignored by the two, shot Chu Yan another resentful, accusing look at the mention of “friends.”

Chu Yan simply ignored him.

“Zhaoyang, Zhaoyang, are you okay?”

As he spoke, a man rushed over, pulling Lu Zhaoyang in front of him and examining him from head to toe. His worry was almost palpable, especially when he saw the tear stains on Lu Zhaoyang’s face. He visibly stiffened, and intense hatred flared in his eyes.

But to his surprise, Lu Zhaoyang actually smiled at him. “I’m fine, Brother Yueheng.”

Wu Yueheng froze instantly.

How long had it been since he had seen Zhaoyang smile like that after that incident? Four years.

For these four years, as Lu Zhaoyang’s manager, no one knew better than him the pain and torment Lu Zhaoyang had endured. If he hadn’t stayed by his side, Lu Zhaoyang might not have been alive today.

He had originally been left in town with the other managers, but after what happened during today’s live broadcast, he watched helplessly as Lu Zhaoyang fell into despair on camera and fled in disarray. Wu Yueheng could no longer bear it. He borrowed a motorcycle from town and rushed over.

But now… what had happened? Zhaoyang looked…

“Zhaoyang, you…”

“Brother Yueheng, you don’t have to worry about me anymore. I’ve come to terms with things. I know what I need to do now, and I won’t shut myself off again.”

“Thank you for never giving up on me all these years.”

Lu Zhaoyang’s eyes reddened as he spoke, and Wu Yueheng’s did the same. Overcome with emotion, he pulled Lu Zhaoyang into a tight embrace.

“That’s wonderful, Zhaoyang. Everything will get better from now on. I’ll always be here for you.”

Watching the two men embrace and weep, Chu Yan couldn’t help but feel happy for them. He quietly pulled Fu Junhang’s hand, leading him away from the pair.

Only when they had given the two men ample space did Chu Yan finally let out a relaxed laugh. However, when he tried to pull his hand free, it wouldn’t budge.

He tried to shake it off twice, but it was firmly held.

Looking down, he saw his hand tightly clasped by someone, who was staring at their intertwined fingers with a look of utter contentment.