The Cold and Ruthless Supporting Male Lead

“But, but…” The young girl beside them was still unwilling to give up. He looks so much like him—how could he not be?

She had come early in the morning with her friends, but she hadn’t checked Weibo along the way, so she hadn’t seen the livestream. Now, she was completely confused.

“You really have the wrong person. I’m just here for fun,” Zhuoye Xingchen said, feeling a little guilty. However, he didn’t want this outing to turn into another fan photo session. Sometimes, he wanted to have his own space too.

He was just a game streamer, passionate about gaming. The recognition from his fans for his skills was his greatest sense of achievement. As for his own popularity, even he found it surprising.

“Humph!” Watching from the side for a while, Hai Ku suddenly put on an exaggerated performance. Clutching his stomach with a pained expression, he looked at Zhuoye Xingchen and said in a tragic voice, “I’m carrying your child! If you dare run off with another girl, I’ll abort this baby!”

Zhuoye Xingchen’s eyes widened in shock, his mind going blank. He suddenly had no idea what to say.

The young girl beside them was utterly terrified. Her face turned pale as she frantically explained, “No, no, no! Miss, I just mistook him for someone else! I’m so sorry, so sorry! I’ll leave right away!”

Afraid that she had ruined their relationship, the girl quickly ran off.

As the surroundings quieted down, she and her friends hurried away. Zhuoye Xingchen finally turned to Hai Ku with admiration. “It’s a real shame you’re not in the entertainment industry.”

“You flatter me; you flatter me~” Hai Ku clasped his hands together in mock humility. “Let’s rest for a bit and then go eat. You still need to scout the location.”

“Alright.” Zhuoye Xingchen nodded, but just then, his phone vibrated.

***

He found it odd. His assistant usually wouldn’t call unless it was urgent. Normally, he would just send a WeChat message.

Puzzled, he answered the call. “What’s wrong?”

“My dear ancestor!!! What do you mean ‘what’s wrong’? Do you even know that you and Haiku Shilan are being dragged through the mud right now?!” The assistant’s voice roared through the phone, loud enough for Hai Ku to hear. “Go check out Gossip Queen’s Weibo. She’s clearly trying to smear you!”

“Gossip Queen?” Zhuoye Xingchen was even more confused. “Who’s that?”

“Search her on Weibo. This woman digs up dirt on everyone and twists the truth however she pleases. Someone must have paid her to target you two. Go check it out first; I’ll try to get in touch and see what’s going on.”

“Alright, I’ll take a look.” Hanging up, Zhuoye Xingchen relayed the phone conversation to Hai Ku.

Zhuoye Xingchen rarely used Weibo. Other than retweeting giveaway posts or uploading videos, he spent most of his time on streaming platforms.

Even so, he had over a million Weibo followers. While that was far less than his streaming audience, it was still a decent number. Now, suddenly being exposed by a marketing account with 400,000 followers, he couldn’t think of anyone idle enough to pull this stunt—except Mu Xiaoya.

As he clicked on the post, Hai Ku did the same.

The Weibo post from Gossip Queen had been up for just over 10 minutes, but the discussion in the comments was already heating up. Although the post had the telltale signs of someone trying to ride a trending topic, given Zhuoye Xingchen’s recent livestream, the controversy immediately gained traction.

[Gossip Queen: SHOCKING!!!! The top game streamer Zhuoye Xingchen is actually… [Image] [Image]]

The first attached image was a well-reasoned analysis, an entire page of text. The second image was a long screenshot capturing everything from Zhuoye Xingchen and Hai Ku’s livestream together to Hai Ku’s recent appearance in women’s clothing during the stream.

The speed at which this post was made; especially including the image of Hai Ku in female attire, suggested it had been prepared in advance. If this weren’t premeditated, how could they have written such a long article in such a short time?

The text in the first image analyzed how frequently Zhuoye Xingchen and Hai Ku had streamed together over the past few days.

Zhuoye Xingchen was one of the biggest names in the game streaming world and rarely collaborated with others. However, ever since he started streaming with Haiku Shilan, he had done so multiple times in a row.

Moreover, Haiku Shilan’s popularity was far below Zhuoye Xingchen’s. Although they referred to each other as “bros” during their streams, anyone could hear the flirtatious undertones in their banter, hinting at a deeper relationship.

At the bottom of the first image, Haiku Shilan’s alternate account was also exposed. While the pictures of him in female clothing on that account didn’t show his face, the post still presented “evidence” that seemed compelling.

Allegedly, the information came from one of Haiku Shilan’s college classmates. The second half of the long screenshot contained these photos.

According to the post, Haiku Shilan had a cross-dressing habit during college. He often relied on his good looks to deceive younger male students, behaving terribly. Supposedly, he only toned it down after confessing to a girl he liked and getting rejected.

If I weren’t Haiku Shilan, I might actually believe this… Hai Ku was dumbfounded. The post mixed truth and falsehood so seamlessly that, if he weren’t personally involved, even he would have trouble distinguishing fact from fiction.

“Whoa… this is so convincing that even I’m almost believing it. How can someone be this stupid?” Zhuoye Xingchen was about to explode. He had been a streamer for so many years without a single scandal, yet now, all of a sudden, there was one this explosive.

“Sorry,” Hai Ku felt a little guilty upon seeing Zhuoye Xingchen’s irritated expression. “It seems like I’m always the one dragging you into trouble. Maybe I should—”

“Stop!” Zhuoye Xingchen knocked on the table. “Even though I’m really mad, this isn’t your fault at all. It’s fine. I’ve never played up CP fanservice before anyway. If this is happening now, then I’ll go ahead and share it myself. Let’s see whose engagement is higher and who the real beneficiary will be in the end.”

Since the post had included Zhuoye Xingchen’s name as a topic, plenty of his fans had already commented beneath it.

Zhuoye Xingchen scrolled through the comments. Overall, they were relatively positive, but there were still a few particularly nasty ones, along with some saying they were going to unfollow him and turn against him.

But if someone could turn on him just because of a few words from a stranger, then they weren’t fans he cared to keep.

Before, he had disdained using these tactics to boost his fame. But now that his bottom line had been challenged, Zhuoye Xingchen decided to go all in. Gritting his teeth, he shared the post.

[Zhuoye Xingchen: Shocking! Do you have a secret crush on me? Is that why you’re using this method to stop me from getting a girlfriend? @Haiku Shilan, come check out this idiot. // @Gossip Queen V: SHOCKING!!! The top game streamer Zhuoye Xingchen is actually… [Image] [Image]]

“If she wants to play, then let’s play. If my 1.3 million followers can’t beat her 400,000 bot followers, then I might as well throw my dignity away.”

Feeling much better all of a sudden, Zhuoye Xingchen patted Hai Ku’s shoulder. “Since I’m already boosting your popularity, I might as well go all the way. I’ll carry you properly. Go share the post; it’ll help you gain some followers. They say controversy brings traffic, so we need to have thick skin.”

Hai Ku was suddenly moved. After all, this whole mess had started because of him. Zhuoye Xingchen had only been affected because they were hanging out together.

When he first read this novel, he had admired the male lead for his strong principles and unwavering loyalty. Back then, he had even thought the female lead wasn’t worthy of him. Now, he felt that even more.

Having someone stand behind him felt really good. Hai Ku was deeply touched. Even though he had copied the “tolerance” golden finger from the female lead, he wasn’t sure if its effects extended only to himself or also to his friends.

If it only worked for himself, then he wouldn’t just stand by and let Zhuoye Xingchen get slandered. Since the other person was loyal, he had to be loyal too. “Alright! Since we’ve come this far, there’s no point in backing down now. Let’s go to rehearsal first. Don’t you have a stream tonight? Let’s keep an eye on the comment section for now.”

After putting their phones away, everything around them felt quiet, as if they were detached from the storm raging on Weibo. They ignored the chaos online until Zhuoye Xingchen finished his afternoon scouting session and they returned to the hotel.

***

After freshening up a bit, Zhuoye Xingchen opened his stream. Hai Ku sat beside him, ordering takeout. With his head down, he didn’t notice that the stream had already started. “Do you want milk tea? Or would you rather have beer?”