After Being Scummed – Chapter 74

One glance, a thousand years

Yin Bai paused for a moment and continued speaking to Zuo Jingyou, “At that time, she almost encountered the same situation as Gu Liu. I saved her.”

Zuo Jingyou tightened her grip on Yin Bai’s shoulder and asked softly, “And then?”

“Then I…” Yin Bai’s voice was slightly hoarse, and she said with some sadness, “I… I also said that I wasn’t a good person at that time.”

“I didn’t mention anything about showing kindness without seeking anything in return. On the contrary, I knew she needed money urgently and had debts to pay off, so the next day, I had my assistant draft a contract for me… I financially supported Xiao Nian.”

Yin Bai reached this point and lowered her gaze, looking at Zuo Jingyou with deep and profound eyes. “So I’m not the cute person you think I am. I’m just a despicable capitalist who takes advantage of other people’s misfortune, an evil rich person.”

“In the end, she left me, and it was my own doing.”

“At that time, I thought it was a mutually beneficial arrangement, even felt like I was extending a helping hand to her and assisting her. But the result was only shattering her hopes, breaking her wings, crushing her self-esteem, and pushing her into the abyss.”

“I am that kind of person. I am not good, and fortunately, she didn’t love me…”

Yin Bai turned around, embracing Zuo Jingyou’s shoulders and burying her face in them. Her voice was muffled as she said, “Teacher Zuo… why was I like that before?”

Zuo Jingyou’s heart felt heavy. She raised her hand to hold Yin Bai’s head and comforted her softly, saying, “When people are young, they often make mistakes easily, missing out on the things they cherish. Yin Bai, not everyone knows how to cherish the person in front of them, cherish their own love, and know how to protect a heart from the very beginning.”

“Most people’s love stories may not have a beginning like yours, but they still hurt each other in love.”

“Some people may only learn to torment each other throughout their lives, until old age. But some people… just like you, they learn from their past experiences, become better individuals…”

Zuo Jingyou reached out and lifted Yin Bai’s face from her shoulder, gazing into her eyes in the darkness, gently soothing her, “I don’t know how you and Xiao Nian got along, nor do I know all the details of your past. The reasons why you and she missed each other, only you, as the individuals involved, know those subtle details.”

“But Yin Bai, when I’m with you, I don’t feel your arrogance, neglect, or disrespect. On the contrary, you give me everything I cherish, prefer, and desire.”

“To me, you are a great partner.”

“A person needs to experience growth, and you have already become a charming and highly dependable lover.”

Zuo Jingyou’s comforting words slightly eased Yin Bai’s uneasiness. Yin Bai leaned against her, blinked her eyes, and said somewhat insecurely, “Really?”

Zuo Jingyou nodded, “Really.”

Yin Bai pursed her lips and smiled shyly, “Teacher Zuo, let’s make a promise. If I unintentionally do something that you don’t like in the future, you must tell me.”

Zuo Jingyou raised her hand and drew circles on Yin Bai’s chest with her fingertips, softly laughing, “Haven’t I always been like that? Whenever I encounter something that makes me feel uncomfortable, I always tell you.”

She is someone who won’t tolerate mistreatment. If she feels offended or unhappy, she will clearly express her concerns.

Yin Bai nodded, deep in thought, and said, “That’s true… Teacher Zuo is a very honest person.”

Zuo Jingyou raised her hand and gently patted Yin Bai’s face. “You should also strive to be as open as me. I hope that if there’s anything, we won’t hide it from each other. And if there ever comes a day… when you want to separate from me, you should clearly explain the reasons.”

Upon hearing the words “separate” and “reasons,” Yin Bai’s heart ached. She leaned down, embracing Zuo Jingyou tightly in her arms, and whispered in her ear, “We won’t separate… In my entire life, I will never separate from Teacher Zuo.”

“I want to be with you, exploring mountains and rivers, experiencing all four seasons… I want to witness every story of yours, every performance… I want to be a part of half of your life, completing it together with you.”

“I want to become your other half.”

Zuo Jingyou smiled and leaned in to kiss Yin Bai’s ear, chuckling as she said, “Then let me forever reside in your heart, becoming the source of your life. Please let me be your other half.”

As long as you love me forever, we will never separate.

Zuo Jingyou made a promise about eternity, and Yin Bai leaned down to capture her lips, whispering “good” in response.

In the blink of an eye, it was early April. The filming of 《Dawa》, a project that Zuo Jingyou and Xu Ruofeng collaborated on, officially wrapped up. On that day, a jubilant Xu Ruofeng playfully placed Yin Bai on a tall white horse and took a photo of her alone.

Yin Bai tightly gripped the reins, sitting on the horse with a terrified expression as she looked at Zuo Jingyou. “Teacher Zuo, help!”

Zuo Jingyou stood about 1.5 meters away, dressed in Tibetan attire, resembling the most charismatic woman in the highlands. She smiled and gazed at Yin Bai. “Don’t be afraid, you won’t fall. I’m watching over you.”

Under the vast sky, on the grassland teeming with abundant water and grass, the two stood back-to-back, facing the yet-to-melt snow-capped mountains, immersed in the expanse of nature, with their eyes locked.

Yin Bai, mounted on the horse, looked as beautiful as a princess from a distant land. And Zuo Jingyou, dressed in ethnic clothing, was a Tibetan woman captivated by the princess’s charm.

That moment of admiration was precisely captured by Xu Ruofeng, frozen in the camera.

That evening, after the completion of the promotion for the film 《Dawa》, Zuo Jingyou posted the photo of their locked gaze along with a blog post: “Clearer than the sky of the snowy plateau is the look in your eyes as you gaze at me.”

That night, the fans of their on-screen couple (CP) went wild. They discovered that the woman who uttered those words had a gaze towards the other person that was even more moving than the words themselves.

Zuo Jingyou, standing beneath the horse, found in Yin Bai’s eyes a depth of affection as if they had fallen in love with each other countless times through their repeated gazes. It was as if they had already experienced numerous lifetimes of stories between them.

The so-called “a glance that spans a thousand years” was nothing less than this.

This photo became the most sensational image in the CP fandom during the first half of the year. Whether people knew Yin Bai or not, anyone who saw this photo, witnessing the gaze of Zuo Jingyou towards Yin Bai, was captivated by it.

The fans of the couple (CP) were satisfied and eagerly awaited an official announcement.

Thanks to this photo, Yin Bai had a great mood throughout early April. After the filming wrapped up, Yin Bai returned to Haicheng with Zuo Jingyou to assist in editing the film 《Dawa》.

To make it more convenient to accompany Zuo Jingyou, Yin Bai even stayed in her luxurious apartment.

While Yin Bai enjoyed a leisurely time, Zuo Jingyou was busy with work. After briefly handling the emails from Jin Xiangyu, she signed a few documents and then settled herself on the sofa in the living room, idly scrolling through Weibo.

As she scrolled, she came across some fresh news. It was about a recent incident involving a small, obscure male idol group under an entertainment company. One of the artists’ fathers was a notorious defaulter, owing one billion yuan to someone and being listed on the credit blacklist.

The crucial point is that this artist’s public image portrays them as a wealthy second-generation individual. They live in a mansion and wear watches worth millions… But in the end, they owe money and claim their family is facing difficulties, yet they will overcome it together with their mother…

Yin Bai was dumbfounded as she read it and took a screenshot to send it to Zuo Jingyou. She typed with frustration, “Is the entertainment industry’s standard so low now? They don’t even look good, and their parents are debtors. After being exposed, they half-heartedly apologize without mentioning repaying the money. Is that enough?”

“This is beyond shameless! Make them pay back the money! Pay it back!”

Those damned capitalist faces truly disgust people! They enjoy the fruits of the people’s labor, but do they not feel any guilt?

Zuo Jingyou didn’t reply, so Yin Bai typed with frustration, “Just think about ten years ago when Xiao Nian’s family went bankrupt. Her father ran away after donating money, and her mother even jumped off a building. They owed over two billion in debt, but she courageously entered the entertainment industry and paid it off!”

Although it was Yin Bai who first signed a contract with her to help repay the debt, it cannot be denied that Xiao Nian, who single-handedly fought off the debt, was incredibly brave.

Yin Bai became increasingly frustrated as she spoke, “Young people nowadays, why are they getting worse with each generation? They have no sense of responsibility or accountability.”

Alright, this angry young person began firing shots without aim.

After Zuo Jingyou finished her work, upon seeing the conversation, she couldn’t help but reply with a mix of amusement and exasperation, “Okay, there are plenty of people without any sense of responsibility. Not everyone is as brave as Teacher Xiao Nian. From now on, let’s just avoid working with that person.”

Yin Bai also thought it through and sent the Weibo screenshot to Jin Xiangyu, with a special instruction, “Investigate this person’s relatives, as well as their circle of friends and any projects associated with them. In the future, we should avoid collaborating with them.”

Yin Bai was worried that she hadn’t made herself clear enough, so she added, “Also, if we have him in our project team, no matter what excuse, kick him out.”

“Unless he pays back the money, don’t dirty my project.”

Faced with this stubborn request, Jin Xiangyu, as always, agreed and promised to comply.

Yin Bai casually played the role of a responsible citizen and didn’t pay further attention to the matter. It wasn’t until a few days later when a well-known entertainment marketing account commented on this artist.

The headline read, “Using XXX as an example, let’s talk about artists who entered the entertainment industry to repay their parents’ debts.”

This blog post briefly mentioned other artists but focused heavily on Xiao Nian. It emotionally wrote, “Many people feel that Xiao Nian has always had an easy and privileged journey in the entertainment industry, with outrageous resources. At the beginning, everyone speculated if she had a wealthy sponsor…”

“Later, nobody dared to report it, and now most people think that Xiao Nian is a rich girl from a wealthy family…”

“Little did they know that back then, Xiao Nian also entered the entertainment industry to repay her parents’ debts…”

“She originally came from a music academy, but in her junior year, her family went bankrupt, and her parents faced problems… Xiao Nian sold herself to a “sugar daddy” and entered the entertainment industry…”

“Behind the seemingly glamorous facade lies a cruel exchange of power and money.”

Once this marketing account’s blog post was released, it practically laid bare all of Xiao Nian’s past pains. The wounds that Yin Bai had been concealing for her were instantly exposed and brought into the sunlight.

Whether it was repaying her father’s debts or selling herself to a “sugar daddy”, these were all unknown aspects of Xiao Nian’s life. However, from this moment on, they became the topic of everyone’s conversation.

The public openly discussed Xiao Nian’s tragic past, expressing sympathy while also being curious: Who exactly is Xiao Nian’s “sugar daddy”?

LP: lmao, Yin Bai the sugar daddy!

It can also mean “financial backer” but I think “sugar daddy” is more appropriate considering the fact that Yin Bai wants Xiao Nian’s companionship in exchange… and because it’s funnier!