FLBOTCP Chapter 68
Full Level Bigshot Only Takes the Career Path Chapter 68
Pei Mingzhan did indeed forgot to explain this matter. The main reason was that in the days after returning, he was working during the day and having video calls with Zhao Yao in the evening. Occasionally, the two of them would even go out on dates. He didn’t really pay much attention to Brother Lao. After Zhao Yao brought it up, he suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to clarify the matter.
“I’ll talk to him about it later,” Pei Mingzhan whispered.
“Ahem.” Brother Lao suddenly coughed twice, and the two people who were whispering suddenly stopped. Meanwhile, Yao Bai who was eating fruit looked at Brother Lao somewhat puzzled. “Brother Lao, do you have a cold? The flu has been spreading a lot lately. Take care of yourself.”
Brother Lao straightened his back, appearing more confident. “No, my throat just feels itchy. Drinking some water will fix it.” He picked up the glass of water in front of him and took a couple of sips, but his gaze remained on Zhao Yao and Pei Mingzhan.
Zhao Yao: “…”
Soon, it was 8 PM, and “Mi Ying” began airing as scheduled.
The urban fantasy setting gave this web series a touch of suspense. The male lead had a secret past and possessed supernatural abilities. He accidentally met a former leader of the Supernatural Bureau and was then introduced into the supernatural world, embarking on a journey to solve current mysteries and explore his own origins.
The urban fantasy plot started similarly to other urban fantasy dramas, but in reality, the pacing was completely different from the typical supernatural drama. It had a moderate pace, not slow or fast. It has impressive camera work, and brilliant performances by the newcomers, instantly drawing the audience in its mysterious setting.
At the beginning, the male protagonist walked through a wide, deserted rural alley. An old man carrying a pole approached him. Then, the camera shifted to a high-angle shot beneath a blood-red moon. A man in a windbreaker looked down at the scene in the alley and suddenly descended from the sky…
The comments in the live chat were already filled with various discussions ——
【Damn, I’m getting some vibes from the male lead.】
【I can tell that the old man with the pole is in cold sweats. His gaze is so terrible!】
【Wow wow wow, Pei Mingzhan in the windbreaker looks amazing!】
【I feel like everyone’s acting is on point. Director Cheng is a master at training newcomers!】
【Ah ah ah, I like Feng Shi Yue1 so much. His name has such a story-like feeling, and Peipei playing this kind of role too has a flavor!】
【Pei Mingzhan truly deserves to be the best actor. Those two expressions drew me into the story.】
Zhao Yao was also watching the drama. Pei Mingzhan’s role as Feng Shiyue, looking into the camera under the red moon, portrayed a different character from his previous roles. From Zhao Yao’s perspective, he carried an air of mystery that was hard to understand, and even though he later saved the male lead in the plot, Zhao Yao had a feeling that Feng Shiyue wasn’t a good person.
He had seen some of the scenes being filmed on set and knew some of the upcoming plot twists. He knew that Feng Shiyue was actually a good character. Still, Pei Mingzhan’s ability to convey that sense of uncertainty and ambiguity in his portrayal was a testament to the effort he had put into character creation.
The living room lights were dimmed to create a suitable atmosphere for watching the drama. Yao Bai and Brother Lao were fully immersed in the plot, and even Uncle Wang, who arrived later, sat down to watch. When Zhao Yao came back to his senses, Pei Mingzhan’s character was effortlessly dealing with a few small troublemakers in the show, while the real Pei Mingzhan was gently massaging his hand.
“How do you think I did?” Pei Mingzhan asked him in a low voice.
Zhao Yao replied seriously, “I really like the character Feng Shiyue.”
Unlike his character in “Jianghu,” Feng Shiyue in this web series carried a sense of chivalry that was both righteous and somewhat bad. Zhao Yao had originally been a fan of “Jianghu,” but seeing Pei Mingzhan’s performance in this web series made him suddenly feel that the character of Feng Shiyue had more depth and backstory. It was as if all of Feng Shiyue’s past experiences were weighing on him, yet he had a detached understanding of the world.
It was a character that surprised him and he likes it.
Zhao Yao couldn’t help but think that it was a great pity that Pei Mingzhan wasn’t acting anymore.
After watching the first episode, “Mi Ying” finally began trending at the top of online searches. Not only were Pei fans enthusiastic about it, but even casual viewers who stumbled upon the drama’s introduction couldn’t help but praise the drama. You must know that in modern urban fantasy suspense dramas, special effects played a crucial role, but the budget limitations of web series often prevented them from achieving top-notch visual effects.
But “Mi Ying” managed to surprise the audience. It handled its special effects very cleverly, and the action scenes had a sense of realism similar to the traditional martial arts instead of relying on flashy visual effects to showcase the characters’ abilities. It had a sense of returning to the basics, and its special effects were like the finishing touches on a masterpiece.
The netizens who originally intended to complain about the special effects felt it was not abrupt, but had a kind of amazing essence.
【After watching the first episode, I was shocked. Who is the genius who came up with this idea for the special effects?】
【The special effects aren’t at the level of a blockbuster movie, nor are they cheap-looking. They’re just right!】
【The smooth action scenes and these incredibly clever special effects… “Mi Ying” production team is amazing!】
【At first, I was going to complain about it being a fantasy drama, but when I saw those traditional martial arts scenes, I was stunned for a while. But then, when the special effects kicked in, I was on fire!】
【For a domestic fantasy drama to reach this level is really awesome!】
Brother Lao was also greatly impressed after watching. He had seen the trailer and originally thought the special effects in the trailer were just for show, but he was pleasantly surprised to find that they were even more impressive in the actual series. He slapped his thigh and said, “This show is going to be a hit.”
With his years of industry experience, he believed that not only would the show become popular, but even the two lead actors had the potential to rise to stardom.
Zhao Yao felt a bit regretful. It was a pity that the two lead actors were not artists from Huihua.
In the beginning, Huihua provided the main investment, but they only had one artist involved, Ji Heyu. It was ultimately an early project, and they hadn’t considered so many factors at the time.
Yao Bai was a fan of special effects films. After watching “Mi Ying,” he felt like reaching out to the team behind it to find out who came up with the brilliant idea. He thought it might be a good fit for their project “Li Meng.”
“This is really genius.”
Pei Mingzhan was watching the effects of the drama. When he had filmed his part, everything had been compressed into a two-week shooting schedule. He hadn’t expected the final result to be even better than he imagined.
At this moment, the screen had already moved on to the opening of the second episode, but Director Cheng called him on the phone.
While the others were still watching, Pei Mingzhan went to a quieter spot to answer the call. Director Cheng expressed his gratitude, thanking Pei Mingzhan for helping out with this project.
It was the first time in the many years that Pei Mingzhan had known Director Cheng that he had heard him speak so sincerely about his feelings. Pei Mingzhan replied, “Director Cheng, I only played a small role in this series. The main reason for any recognition I’ve received is the hard work of the entire production team and the financial support from Huihua…”
Director Cheng listened with emotion. How could he not know? He had already called Chen Xi to express his gratitude. He had thought about calling Mr. Zhao as well but was concerned it might disturb his rest in the evening.
You must know that “Mi Ying” had faced an accident early on, which was a devastating blow to the web series production team. Later, thanks to the support and continued investment from the financial side, they were able to persevere and continue filming. The later stages of production, censorship approval, and other matters, such as the subject matter getting approved, wouldn’t have been possible without the help of Huihua.
This was a humane company, which was why Director Cheng had chosen to sign with them.
“Watching this has pumped me up. Uncle Wang, do we have any beer at home?” Yao Bai asked.
Uncle Wang said, “Yes, I’ll go get them.” Ever since the young master stopped drinking beverages, the colas and beers had all been piled up in the storage room.
After finishing the phone call, Pei Mingzhan returned to sit beside Zhao Yao. He naturally arranged the blanket for him and casually held Zhao Yao’s hand.
Brother Lao watched this scene and hesitated to speak several times. These two were behaving like this in front of so many people. What was going on with Pei Mingzhan? Didn’t he say he had a girlfriend? Why was he making such a move now?!!
He hated this iron for not becoming steel, but he didn’t want to watch Pei Meingzhan go astray. While everyone was not watching the drama, Brother Lao asked loudly, “Mr. Zhao, I heard you have a girlfriend?”
As Brother Lao asked this question, Yao Bai, who had been scrolling through Weibo, looked up in surprise. “Where did you hear that? My brother stays at home all day and he has a girlfriend?2”
Zhao Yao found himself at the center of attention with Brother Lao’s question. He responded calmly, “Yes.”
Yao Bai was completely confused. What did this mean? His brother was in a relationship!?
“Wait brother. When did you start dating? Why didn’t I know?” Yao Bai wondered aloud. His brother Zhao Yao stayed at home all day, and Yao Bai had seen almost every person who came in contact with him. If any girl had approached him, how could Yao Bai not know?
What’s more,didn’t his brother say not too long ago that he was still in the theoretical stage? How did he suddenly transition to having a girlfriend, and Yao Bai was completely unaware of it?!
Zhao Yao realized that he hadn’t also told Yao Bai about this matter. He had only briefly mentioned it to Chen Xi. Yao Bai had been busy with work and hadn’t been around much lately, so Zhao Yao hadn’t brought it up. “It happened not too long ago. I guess I forgot to tell you.”
Yao Bai spread out his hands. “This, this, this??? Whose girl is it?”
Brother Lao gave Pei Mingzhan a series of meaningful glances and told him clearly, “”I didn’t lie to you, did I?”
Mr. Zhao Yao is indeed in a relationship now, so both of you should keep a distance!
But Pei Mingzhan turned deaf ear to Brother Lao’s silent warnings and didn’t distance himself from Zhao Yao.
“It’s not a girl,” Zhao Yao clarified, and then he openly explained, “I’m dating Pei Mingzhan.”
Yao Bai was still confused by the phrase “not a girl,” but when he heard the next sentence, he was completely at a loss for words.
The most exaggerated reaction came from Brother Lao. He was in the middle of eating fruit when he heard the news, and his hand slipped, causing the fruit to fall onto the table, immediately drawing the attention of the others. He awkwardly shifted his gaze towards the two of them, first looking at Pei Mingzhan and then at Zhao Yao, but he couldn’t utter a word.
“Ah?” Yao Bai made a confused sound.
Brother Lao tapped his chest and asked again, “The two of you???”
Zhao Yao nodded calmly and then looked at Pei Mingzhan. “Why don’t you ask him?”
“En.” Pei Mingzhan replied. He had originally planned to tell Brother Lao but got distracted by other matters. “I forgot to mention it to you.”
Brother Lao felt deceived. He had been worried sick these past few days about his artist’s moral issues, even considering rushing to Y City to prevent a tragedy. But he didn’t expect that in the end, the story of these three people was actually a two-person romance. He felt like he had swallowed a mouthful of blood. What a guy! Pei Mingzhan had actually successfully pursued Zhao Yao!?
Yao Bai belatedly realized the situation and tentatively said, “Congratulations?”
Zhao Yao nodded, “Yes.”
Yao Bai was quite shocked at first, but after accepting the news, he found it rather normal. Perhaps it was because he had read too much online literature. His brother had been studying love strategies for a while now, to the extent of even consulting a feng shui master. So, learning about his romantic relationship now gave him a sense that it was only natural. After reading books for so long, he was only starting to date now???
“Then you two should be more careful in the future,” Yao Bai advised. In addition he has read too much about this kind of celebrity x CEO. “Pei Ge doesn’t take on many public appearances these days, but he’s still popular. Fans consider you guys as friends, so you need to pay more attention to your behavior when you go out. If some scandal breaks out later, Brother Lao will have a headache.”
Brother Lao remained silent and gave Yao Bai a look. This idiot, Pei Mingzhan and Zhao Yao were already quite unrestrained even before dating, and now that they are together, wouldn’t they become even more uncontrollable!?
But in response to Yao Bai’s words, he reluctantly glanced at Pei Mingzhan and said, “Yeah, you guys should tone it down a bit when you go out.”
Zhao Yao nodded in agreement.
Pei Mingzhan replied as if nothing happened, “Okay.”
Yao Bai, “En, en.”
Brother Lao, “…”
This was clearly just an appeasement!
Upon hearing this news, Yao Bai suddenly lost interest in watching the drama. He wanted to ask his brother questions, but he noticed that his brother’s hand was already comfortably nestled in Pei Mingzhan’s hand, as if they had been sitting close together since the first episode… Wait, how did he not notice how affectionate they were earlier!?
“Mi Ying” had only aired two episodes, and while everyone had been engrossed in the first episode, by the second episode, only Zhao Yao and Pei Mingzhan were fully invested in watching. Uncle Wang was occupied with other matters, and the other two seemed to have lost their focus, lost in their own thoughts.
After both episodes had finished airing, it was quite late.
Brother Lao got up to say goodbye and gave Pei Mingzhan a meaningful look. However, Yao Bai, who was sitting next to him, stood up and took Brother Lao’s hand, saying, “Well, I’ll leave with Brother Lao then. Yao Ge, don’t stay up too late tonight.”
Uncle Wang came out and gave Yao Bai some late-night snacks and gave Brother Lao a small gift. Yao Bai pulled Brother Lao out with him. The latter seemed a bit reluctant, saying, “Wait a moment, I need to call Pei Mingzhan…”
Yao Bai gave him a sideways glance and straightforwardly said, “Brother Lao, aren’t you being a bit inconsiderate?”
Brother Lao took a step forward as he was pulled along. “What do you mean?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Yao Bai gave him a meaningful look. “You should give the young people some time alone.”
Brother Lao, “…”
Then it’s time to go to the house and uncover the tiles!!3
After the two of them left, Pei Mingzhan turned his head and looked at Zhao Yao. “I’m staying here tonight?”
Zhao Yao nodded. “Uncle Wang, please prepare some toiletries.”
Uncle Wang quickly went to get them.
Over the course of the night, discussions related to “Mi Ying” sparked several trending topics. Chen Xi and the team were on standby at the company. “Mi Ying” was one of the high-cost web dramas that Huihua invested in last year. The profitability of web dramas largely depended on market response, so that evening, they didn;t dare to focus on anything else and could only await the feedback after the premiere.
When they saw the positive feedback rolling in, it was not only the project team staying at the company, but even the staff of the “Mi Ying” production team located in other places breathed a sigh of relief. They all called to celebrate.
For the entire team, such feedback was hard-won. “Mi Ying” was originally an ill-fated crew4. It had to deal with accidents shortly after production started. They poured their hearts into creating the drama, despite the pressure from netizens. They even took a great effort for the post-production.
Most importantly, the drama’s main investor didn’t withdraw funding even after the accidents and the public relations crisis. Instead, he continued to support them throughout the production, leading to the creation of such a successful finished product.
Upon seeing this feedback, Chen Xi addressed the hardworking staff who had put in overtime. “You all have worked hard. We have won a wonderful comeback.”
However, after the first two episodes aired, online discussions became more intense. In the beginning, it was favored by fans of suspense dramas, but with the recommendations from popular sources and the rapid spread of GIFs and video clips, even those who had little interest in this genre found themselves interested. The main reason was the highly atractive Amway scenes.
Under the nine-grid GIFs shared by various television and web drama recommendation bloggers, they mainly fell into a few categories. One was the scene where the male lead passed by the elderly man with the shoulder pole, the second was the shot of Feng Shiyue standing under the blood moon, and the third was the breathtaking action sequences.
Various intense gazes, along with cool movement… under the combined attack of handsome actors and an engaging storyline, more and more people were falling for it.
#PeiMingzhanAsFengShiyue#
【I’m dead, I’m dead! My friends just recommended ‘Mi Ying’ to me, and I can’t stop watching it!】
【I didn’t have high expectations for the new actors’ performances at first, but after watching the first two episodes, I was absolutely blown away! That scene where the male lead meets the old man was so touching. It completely established his character!】
【I was playing a game, and when I came back to the homepage, it was flooded with ‘Mi Ying’ posts??? What happened?】
【It’s an absolute rollercoaster ride throughout. I watched it with so much excitement, but why is it only two episodes per week? Wuwuwuwu!】
【I wasn’t initially interested in suspense dramas because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to sleep at night. But that GIF of Pei Mingzhan totally captured my heart!】
【Feng Shiyue is such a god!!】
Late at night, Pei Mingzhan entered Zhao Yao’s room after he finished washing up. It was his first time in Zhao Yao’s room. Generally speaking, a person’s private space in their room would reveal traces of their private life, but Zhao Yao’s room was quite simple.
Uncle Wang had just delivered a blanket to the room and wasn’t surprised to see Pei Mingzhan there. He asked, “Mr. Pei, do you need anything for the night?”
Pei Mingzhan shook his head and asked, “Has his room always been this simple?”
There were no discernible hobbies in the room, and nothing stood out as special. It seemed like the furniture was just furniture, except for a few books neatly placed by the bedside, making it look like a hotel room.
“Well, not exactly. The young master cleared out a lot of things to the storage room before,” Uncle Wang recalled. Since Zhao Yao had resigned and started living at home regularly, he had removed most of the other items from his room. Uncle Wang had asked about it, and Zhao Yao had simply said the room was too messy.
Zhao Yao’s habits had changed a lot. He appeared to have become more mature, giving up on colas and beer, and starting to break unhealthy eating habits. Even his daily routines had become more organized.
“En, thank you.” Pei Mingzhan said upon hearing some noise outside. “Could you also bring a glass of water for him?”
Uncle Wang nodded.
When Zhao Yao finished his shower and returned to his room in pajamas, Pei Mingzhan was sitting on the small couch in the room playing on his phone. Zhao Yao walked over to the bedside table out of habit and opened the drawer. As soon as he was about to pick up some pills, he noticed Pei Mingzhan’s gaze. He then pushed the drawer back in.
He casually said, “You have to work tomorrow, right? Should we sleep early?”
Pei Mingzhan smiled and replied, “Now that you mention it, I just realized I’m the only one who needs to work tomorrow.”
The two of them tacitly avoided mentioning the drawer with pills. Zhao Yao drank a few sips of warm water and sat down to play on his phone. On the other side, Pei Mingzhan reached out to hold his waist and asked, “What are you looking at?”
Zhao Yao answered truthfully, “I’m browsing your super chat. There are a lot of photos of Feng Shiyue today.”
Ever since he started browsing Pei Mingzhan’s super chat, Zhao Yao, who wasn’t good at taking pictures, had ended up collecting quite a few beautiful photos. He even created a special album on his phone to store pictures of Pei Mingzhan.
He didn’t know why he had developed this habit. In the past, when he watched characters portrayed by Pei Mingzhan, he only appreciated his acting skills and the attractive roles. But now, he couldn’t help but collect these photos.
Pei Mingzhan laughed at his words. “Zhao Yao, the real person is lying next to you.”
Zhao Yao didn’t move his gaze and continued to praise, “Your fan photos are really good.”
Pei Mingzhan saw Zhao Yao being unresponsive, so he had no choice but to take his phone and look at it. His phone was on silent mode, but he could still see the notifications on the lock screen. The trumpet he paid attention to was forwarding the nine palace pictures of his super chat.
So Pei Mingzhan clicked on each post and liked them one by one. When he finished liking them and turned his attention back to Zhao Yao, he noticed that Zhao Yao frowning. Pei Mingzhan asked, “What’s wrong?”
Zhao Yao had just realized that the mysterious online friend who had been liking his posts had come online again. This person had even liked the reposts of the posts he had just shared. He replied casually, “I encountered a strange netizen.”
He closed the Weibo app and then said to Pei Mingzhan, “Let’s go to bed.”
-*
When Uncle Wang got up the next morning he found that Mr. Pei was already awake.
Pei Mingzhan had prepared breakfast. When he noticed Uncle Wang getting Zhao Yao’s clothes ready for the day. Curious, he asked, “Is he going to the company today?”
Uncle Wang took the clothes for the day and explained, “Today, Young Master has an appointment with the doctor.”
Pei Mingzhan paused.
By the time Zhao Yao got up, Pei Mingzhan’s assistant had already arrived. Seeing the breakfast on the table, Zhao Yao immediately knew it wasn’t prepared by Uncle Wang. He looked at Pei Mingzhan and asked, “Did you wake up early?”
Pei Mingzhan already tied his tie, paused for a moment and replied, “It’s my first time staying overnight at my boyfriend’s place. I thought I should make a gesture.”
Zhao Yao hesitated for a while, looking at the breakfast on the table, feeling an indescribable emotion.
After they finished breakfast, Zhao Yao went to change clothes. When he came out, he saw Pei Mingzhan sitting on the sofa working.
Besides bringing clothes, Pei Mingzhan’s assistant had also brought his notebook. Seeing that the time had already passed half-past eight, and Pei Mingzhan showed no intention of leaving the house, Zhao Yao asked, “Aren’t you going to work today?”
Pei Mingzhan closed his notebook when he saw Zhao Yao coming out. He replied, “Uncle Wang told me that you have a doctor’s appointment today. I’ll go with you.”
The Author has something to say:
Yao Bai: It’s okay, they know how to behave.
Brother Lao: …Forget it, I don’t deserve to speak. (They don’t know!!!)
Please buy the raws to support the author if you can.
If there are any mistakes/error, feel free to comment it down below.
12
- 風似月 Feng Shi Yue: Wind like (the) Moon [↩]
- Again the pronunciation of girl/boy in chinese is almost the same, it is just when writing the character or when they say themselves that it was a guy/girl will the other person know. [↩]
- 上房 揭 瓦 Shangfang jie Wa: Go to house and uncover the tiles: Chinese idiom of being unruly [↩]
- Literally a lot of bad things are happening [↩]