Chapter 68
"Lu Xiao! Congratulations on winning the award! Please share your feelings right now!"
"Lu Xiao! Look this way! When will 'Under the Blue Sky' air?"
"Lu Xiao! And Zhuo Hua..."
Questions came flooding in. Lu Xiao maintained a polite smile, giving brief replies as he struggled to make his way to the artists' rest area, escorted by bodyguards.
Zhuohua quietly followed half a step behind him. Her presence was somewhat faint due to her deliberate restraint, but her cool, moon-white dress still stood out in the chaotic backstage.
Just then, from the shadows of the side passage, a figure burst forth like an out-of-control cannonball, breaking through the obstruction of several assistants on the outside. With a hysterical frenzy, she screamed and lunged straight at Lu Xiao's back! It was a young girl with an abnormal flush on her face, her eyes crazed, and her outstretched arms clearly aimed to grab Lu Xiao's arms and shoulders.
"Xiaoxiao! Look at me! Look at me! I love you!!" A sharp scream pierced the noise backstage.
The bodyguards and assistants reacted a second too late, their expressions changing drastically. Lu Xiao also sensed the wind and screams behind him, and instinctively tried to turn around to block.
Just as the fanatical fan's fingertips were about to touch the fabric of Lu Xiao's suit—
Zhuohua's eyes suddenly turned cold. That instant of coldness was like a gust of wind from the depths of a millennium-old glacier. Her right index finger, hanging by her side, flicked lightly in the air with extreme subtlety and seemingly casualness.
There was no light, no sound. It was as if only a tiny speck of dust had been brushed away.
Time seemed to freeze for an extremely brief moment on the girl, almost imperceptible to the naked eye.
Her forward momentum seemed to have crashed into an invisible, extremely soft wall, all her kinetic energy instantly vanishing. She remained frozen in that menacing, lunging posture, eerily still, less than an arm's length away from Lu Xiao's back.
The fanatical smile on her face and her outstretched arm froze. Only in her wide eyes remained the lingering madness and a sudden, extreme bewilderment and terror—she didn't understand what had happened, and her body felt as if it no longer belonged to her.
The bodyguards, still shaken, rushed forward and firmly supported the frozen girl on either side, quickly dragging her away from the scene. The whole process was lightning fast; the surrounding reporters and most people didn't even see what happened clearly. They only saw the fanatical fan suddenly freeze as if her legs had gone weak, and then be dragged away by security, leaving behind only a small commotion.
Lu Xiao quickly turned around, his gaze immediately locking onto Zhuo Hua. Just a moment ago, he clearly felt the sudden disappearance of the force behind him and the abruptly stopped scream.
Zhuohua met his gaze, her face remaining calm and composed, as if she had merely brushed away an annoying insect. She even tilted her head slightly, her eyes silently asking, "Are you alright?"
Lu Xiao gave her a deep look, suppressing the shock in his heart, shook his head, and mouthed silently, "It's nothing." He then turned around, his face regaining its flawless smile, and continued to face the cameras and microphones in front of him. But no one noticed that his hand, which was in his pocket, clenched slightly.
This feeling of being silently protected in those moments always made his heart flutter.
Finally escaping the backstage hustle and bustle, they returned to the VIP lounge arranged by the organizers, temporarily reserved for just the two of them. The door closed, shutting out the outside noise.
Lu Xiao let out a long sigh of relief, his tense nerves relaxing. He casually placed the heavy, uniquely designed "Golden Feather Award" Best Actor trophy on the coffee table beside him. The crystal and metal shimmered under the light.
Zhuohua walked to the small bar and poured two glasses of warm water. Lu Xiao didn't immediately take the glasses. He leaned back on the sofa, his gaze falling on the trophy on the coffee table, then slowly shifting to Zhuohua. She was walking over with the water glasses, her moon-white skirt swaying gently with her steps, like flowing moonlight.
"Zhuohua." Lu Xiao suddenly spoke, his voice exceptionally clear in the quiet lounge.
Zhuohua stopped and looked up at him, her eyes questioning.
Lu Xiao didn't speak, but simply smiled at her. That smile was different from the standard, proper one he wore when accepting an award on stage, and also different from the gentle, polite one he showed to fans. This smile was deeper, more genuine, carrying a kind of almost childlike dependence and a determined radiance that Zhuo Hua was very familiar with, a kind of radiance that she only showed in front of her.
Then, under Zhuohua's slightly questioning gaze, Lu Xiao slowly took out his phone. He unlocked the screen and tapped it quickly, seemingly editing something. His movements were composed, and a lingering smile even played on his lips.
Zhuohua looked at him, her fingers holding the water glass pausing slightly. A subtle premonition, like a pebble thrown into a lake, rippled gently across her heart.
A few seconds later, Lu Xiao finished editing. He looked up at Zhuo Hua again, his eyes focused and bright, filled with unmistakable love and a question of "Are you ready?"
Zhuohua's heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.
Lu Xiao's finger gently tapped the send button.
Almost at the same instant, Zhuohua's phone, which was in the small bag next to him, emitted an extremely short but exceptionally clear vibration notification sound.
A brief, eerie silence fell over the spacious lounge. The brand-new Golden Feather trophy on the coffee table reflected the light from the overhead lamp, and the air still carried the scent of perfume from the awards ceremony and the lingering echoes of backstage revelry.
Zhuohua stood there, not immediately reaching for her phone. She simply gazed quietly at Lu Xiao, at his eyes that were filled with starlight and her own.
Lu Xiao's smile deepened, tinged with a mischievous slyness. He then solemnly gestured with his chin toward the trophy on the coffee table and, addressing Zhuo Hua, said clearly, word by word:
"I'll give you half."
These four words are like a boulder thrown into a calm lake.
Zhuohua finally moved. She put down her water glass, the bottom of the glass making a crisp sound against the marble tabletop. She took out her phone, the screen lit up, and on the lock screen, the push notification from her specially followed Weibo account was clearly visible.
Sender: Lu Xiao.
The content consists of only a few very simple words, yet it is paired with a highly impactful image.
The picture shows the Golden Feather trophy that was just placed on the coffee table, still warm from Lu Xiao's palm. The trophy gleams under the light.
text:
"@Zhuohua, I'll share the trophy with you. Without your light, I couldn't escape that darkness."
Zhuohua's fingertip hovered above the screen, pausing for a full three seconds. During those three seconds, the air in the lounge seemed to freeze. Then, a very soft, very pleasant laugh, like the first crack appearing on the ice in early spring, escaped from her lips.
The laughter started softly, tinged with a sense of unexpected surprise, then quickly spread outwards, like ripples spreading from a pebble thrown into a lake, expanding in concentric circles. Her shoulders shrugged slightly, her brows and eyes relaxed completely, and her eyes seemed to hold the light of shattered starlight, or the ignition of fireworks dormant for millennia, dazzlingly brilliant.
The smile grew wider and wider, no longer the faint, distant curve of the past, but an unreserved, heartfelt joy. That smile illuminated her entire exquisite face, and even the cold light in the lounge seemed to instantly become warm and soft.
She scrolled through her phone, looking at the Weibo post that had instantly exploded across the internet, causing countless servers to crash and groan. She looked at the simple, straightforward yet incredibly powerful words, and at the trophy in the picture that symbolized glory. The chill she had felt earlier from the fervent fans and the impatience caused by the noise had long since vanished.
As you swipe your finger across the screen, the trending topics list is filled with eye-catching bright red "hot" characters followed by simple and direct keywords: #LuXiaoZhuoHuaOfficialAnnouncement#, #HalfOfTheTrophyForYou#, #TrueCPWithLanternInTheDarkNight#... The server crash icon flashes next to the keywords, silently telling the story of the ferocity of this storm.
Zhuohua raised her head, her gaze returning to Lu Xiao's face. He was looking at her, his eyes shining brightly, a little nervous, but mostly expectant and overflowing with love, like a big boy waiting for praise.
“Alright,” Zhuohua finally spoke, her voice still carrying a lingering smile, lazy and helpless, yet brimming with boundless indulgence. She raised her phone, the screen displaying the shattered image, then her gaze moved past the phone, locking firmly on Lu Xiao, each word clear yet tinged with a resigned, doting affection:
"I chose this top-tier boyfriend myself..." She paused, her smile deepening, her eyes radiating a warmth that could melt even the coldest heart. "No matter how busy I am, I still have to pamper him, don't I?"
Outside the window, the neon lights of this city that never sleeps still flicker and dazzle, reflecting on countless screens that are abuzz with excitement over the sudden official announcement.
In this small, quiet space, isolated from all the storms, only the starlight in their eyes shone and merged silently. On the coffee table, the golden trophy stood quietly, its cold luster seemingly softened by the warmth filling the room.
Zhuohua lazily sank into the excessively large rattan rocking chair on the balcony. The warm afternoon sun of early summer poured down, gilding the edges of her sunglasses with a layer of fine golden light. A few strands of hair were twirled between her fingers as she gazed at the carefree cluster of hydrangeas blooming in the garden below and let out a long, melancholy sigh.
"well--"
The sigh lingered, carrying a sense of languor, worn down by the bustling world, yearning only for silence, and a hint of melancholy for someone forgotten in their boudoir.
Beside my feet, on an exquisite wicker suitcase, a small, plump bird with fluffy feathers, pure white body, and only a tuft of downy feathers on its head that gleamed with an icy blue luster, tilted its head, its black, beady eyes filled with helplessness.
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