CH 31

After the live broadcast ended, the models came out of the water and quickly went to the dressing room to take a shower and change clothes.

Because broadcasting in water is much more tiring than broadcasting in a normal environment, the models didn’t have to wait for the results themselves this time. Instead, each company’s representative went to negotiate with the representative from Ruike Gaming Company.

After taking a shower and changing clothes, Lu Jingqian came out and asked the makeup artist to blow dry his hair. After that, he sat on the sofa to rest, waiting for notification from Bediya’s assistant so that he could leave.

Lu Jingqian didn’t wait for Bedia’s assistant, but his own assistant came to him with a happy face and told him that he had received far more votes than the second-place supermodel and had ranked first. Ruike Company has already decided to endorse him, and Bediya is currently negotiating the contract with the other company’s representative, allowing them to return to their dormitory or company for the time being.

This was expected by Lu Jingqian, so he didn’t feel surprised or excited. The only thing that surprised him was Rui Yusheng’s performance, which he saw from the corner of his eye. He thought that Rui Yusheng’s performance could not be outstanding, but he never expected it to be so terrible that he didn’t even have the desire to mock him.

After getting up, Lu Jingqian walked out, ready to return to the dormitory and rest well because he knew that the upcoming commercials would be more tiring than the live stream.

As Lu Jingqian and his assistant walked in the corridor, two men approached them, one was Benjamin, the heir of the Durin family, and the other was the current president of Ruike, Dili Ruikang, whom Lu Jingqian recognized after searching his memory. Lu Jingqian thought they were just passing by and would greet him before leaving, but they stopped him and seemed to have come specifically to talk to him.

“I watched your live stream earlier, and I don’t know how you did it, but you were really beautiful in the water,” said Dili Ruikang, looking a little excited, “I don’t know how to describe your performance, but I’m really glad you’re going to endorse our latest game. I’m a perfectionist, and I put a lot of effort into this game. Now that you’re on board, I feel like this game is truly perfect.”

“Thank you for your praise, and I’m also glad to be the spokesperson for your company’s new game. I hope we can have more opportunities to work together in the future,” Lu Jingqian said with a smile, using polite words.

“Of course! We will definitely have more opportunities for cooperation in the future. I have already decided that for all games that I personally participate in producing, we will come to you for endorsements,” said Dili Ruikang. After watching Lu Jingqian’s live broadcast, he developed feelings of love for him. He realized he had fallen for the person in front of him.

Lu Jingqian felt a bit uneasy under his intense gaze. If he only had feelings of admiration for him as a fan, he could handle it. But this person clearly had developed a liking for him, so he tried to avoid him as much as possible.

“Thank you,” Lu Jingqian suddenly became at a loss for words. Right now, he just wanted to leave, “Sorry, I have to rush back to the company. Let’s talk again next time.”

“How about we arrange another time to talk?” Dili Ruikang said hurriedly as Lu Jingqian was leaving, “When are you free? I can come to pick you up.”

“I…” Lu Jingqian was a bit speechless about his direct approach and could only say, “Sorry, Mr. Dili Ruikang, I am still a new employee in the company. Without the company’s permission, I cannot go out alone with clients.”

“It’s all right. I can talk to your General Manager and get him to approve your outing with me,” Dili Ruikang urgently wanted to get closer to Lu Jingqian, “I just want to invite you to dinner and talk about the advertising shooting. He shouldn’t object.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Dili Ruikang, but I have been really tired lately due to practicing. When I have free time, I would like to rest well and work in the best conditions possible. Therefore… I hope you can understand,” said Lu Jingqian. He thought he had made it very clear, and as a CEO who managed such a large company, Dili Ruikang should be able to understand the meaning behind his words.

“Ruikang,” Benjamin put his hand on Dili Ruikang’s shoulder and said, “You scared him off. That’s not how you ask someone out.”

Dili Ruikang was a rare gaming genius, but he was completely ignorant in matters of the heart. He just thought he should pursue him directly since he liked Lu Jingqian. He had never been so fond of someone before he met Lu Jingqian, and he was worried that if he didn’t act fast, someone else might take him away. Therefore, he was eager to pursue him.

“Did I scare you?” Dili Ruikang apologized, “I really like you and want to get to know you better. I have no malicious intentions, and I hope you won’t be afraid of me. Maybe we can start by being friends. You can tell me if you have any opinions or requests, and I will respect them.”

“Thank you for liking me, but I am currently a newcomer who has just debuted, and my career as a model is also very short. So, for now, I just want to devote myself wholeheartedly to my work without any extra thoughts or energy to make friends or talk about relationships. I hope you can understand,” Lu Jingqian said seriously.

In fact, men like Dili Ruikang, who have career, ability, and good looks, and although they may be foolish in love, there is definitely no shortage of people who like this type. But he was definitely not the type that Lu Jingqian likes. Even if Lu Jingqian didn’t already love someone else, he would never like someone like him. Moreover, he has a lover he will be with for more than one lifetime. Only his lover, no matter what type, he likes. This is love, there is no reason for it, and it is not controlled by him.

Dili Ruikang wanted to say something but was stopped by Benjamin’s gaze.

“Goodbye.” Lu Jingqian nodded at them and left with several assistants and makeup artists.

Other models who had not left yet were hiding on the side, eavesdropping or peeping. Some models were jealous and wanted to scratch the wall, wondering why Dili Ruikang didn’t like them, and why they weren’t the ones being confessed to.

Among the eavesdroppers was Rui Yusheng. He witnessed the whole process and was almost crying with anger.

After taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Rui Yusheng walked up to Benjamin and Dili Ruikang and smiled at Dili Ruikang, “Hello, Mr. Dili Ruikang.”

“Hello,” said Dili Ruikang expressionlessly, nodding at him.

“I want to talk to you alone,” said Rui Yusheng to Benjamin.

Benjamin asked Dili Ruikang to leave first, then went with Rui Yusheng to the makeup room.

Rui Yusheng locked the door and looked at Benjamin with disappointed eyes, “Didn’t you say you would help me? Why did Wen Nan end up getting the endorsement instead of me?”

“I came here specifically to help you. If the difference in votes between you and Wen Nan wasn’t so big, I could persuade Ruikang to choose you. But your votes are far behind his, even ranking tenth. How can I ask him to choose you?” Benjamin said helplessly.

Rui Yusheng wiped his face and held back his unwilling tears, “I begged you to help me, why can’t you just speak up for me? I don’t necessarily have to be the sole spokesperson. You can tell him to choose two spokespeople, and since Wen Nan and I are from the same company, can’t I be considered an addition? You have a good relationship with him, if you have said anything, he would not disagree.”

“The problem is, even if I ask him, he won’t agree. I already know that so why bother asking?!” Benjamin felt his patience was about to run out.

“If you don’t ask, how do you know he won’t agree?” Rui Yusheng’s tears finally couldn’t be held back any longer. He felt very aggrieved, why won’t anyone help him?

Benjamin sighed and said, “Do you know what Ruikang said after seeing your performance? He said your performance was a joke, and you shouldn’t have been invited to participate in the vote-gathering competition. If Wen Nan hadn’t performed well enough, you would have almost ruined the game that he put a lot of effort into. It would have become a joke!”

Rui Yusheng was deeply shaken. He opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything. He felt so uncomfortable that even breathing became difficult, and tears kept streaming down his face.

Seeing his condition, Benjamin softened his tone and said, “Why do you have to compete with Wen Nan? Aren’t you childhood friends? You should be happy for him that he’s getting better and better.”

“I… I should feel happy for him?” Rui Yusheng was so angry that he didn’t know what to say.

“From all perspectives, he is much better than you in many ways. It’s actually a good thing for you to have such a friend. After all, being friends with outstanding people can also make you outstanding. This is something I learned since I was young.” Benjamin advised, “You should adjust your mindset and continue to be his friend. When he becomes more successful, he can mention you more in public, which is also good for you.”

Rui Yusheng stared at Benjamin with force and asked tentatively, “You also like him, don’t you?”

Benjamin felt a little guilty under his gaze, and he avoided his eyes as he said, “He is indeed a very outstanding model, but I haven’t reached the level of liking him.”

“You’re lying!” Rui Yusheng stared at Benjamin forcefully and speak, “You keep saying how good Wen Nan is. Are you saying you don’t like him? Is it because you and your best friend both like the same person, so you can’t admit it?!”

Benjamin’s heart was exposed, and he couldn’t hide his embarrassment. He said with a straight face to Rui Yusheng, “You’re really starting to make me lose interest in you. I think I need to reconsider our relationship. If there’s nothing particularly important in the future, don’t contact me again.”

Rui Yusheng slumped to the ground, feeling helpless and despair. He pounded the ground with all his might to vent his anger. His eyes were fierce and venomous. He knew he couldn’t just give up. He had to succeed, and no one could stop him. Since he had been forced to this point, he could only take a roundabout approach and take a risky attempt.

Rui Yusheng thought to himself, Wen Nan, it’s you who made me do this. Don’t blame me for being ruthless!

In the following days, Lu Jingqian received 999 roses and various gifts piled up like a small mountain, which were directly delivered to the company by Dili Ruikang every day, so everyone in the company knew about it.

Dili Ruikang was really omnipresent, expressing his admiration for Lu Jingqian in a subtle way through various means such as text messages, emails, and cards, and then persistently inviting him to dinner, coffee, tea, and music concerts.

Lu Jingqian’s only concern now was how Frederick would react when he found out about this. He couldn’t help feeling worried for Dili Ruikang.

The method Lu Jingqian used was to give a cold treatment because he had made it clear that he refused, but it had no effect. So he could only ignore, ignore, and ignore again, pretending that he didn’t exist.

However, Lu Jingqian’s ignoring did not have an effect on Dili Ruikang, and another trouble came knocking on the door.

Perhaps Dili Ruikang’s pursuit of him was too obvious. After Bairde found out about it, he also joined in the fun and started sending him flowers and gifts.

He felt unconvinced when Di Liruikang saw that Bairde, someone like him, had come out to compete with him. He couldn’t let Bairde outdo him, so he made an even bigger fuss in his pursuit.

The two of them were in a competition, trying to confess their love to him in various ways. It had gotten to the point where even the business and fashion industries knew about it, and many people were following the situation just for the sake of entertainment.

Lu Jingqian was sure Frederick must have known about this, but he hadn’t said or asked him anything. Even the company’s general manager and the vice president seemed to act as if nothing had happened. The more calm the situation was, the more uneasy he felt. He had a feeling Frederick was planning something big.

He only hoped that Frederick would only target those two men, and not turn his anger towards himself. Because you can never predict what a man might do when he’s jealous. Even gentle measures and punishments would be too much for him to handle.