Qu Yanshan and Liu Zhuo, these two actors were moderately popular. The one thing they had in common was that they both had more CP fans than solo fans.
Ever since the filming of Drinking Peach Blossom Wine Began, both of their teams had decided on the strategy of hyping up their CP chemistry. Now it had been almost three years. Although neither had ever admitted it officially, the CP fans were convinced it was a real romance.
What's more, these two really had chemistry. It wasn't forced like some CPs. When they stood together, there was a very shippable vibe.
If it wasn't for relying on the Qu Zhuo CP these past couple years, neither would have gotten so many resources. So they were happy to pander, intentionally dropping hints about each other, wearing matching outfits, taking photos in the same locations, waxing poetic about each other as their ideal type.
In short, they didn't admit it, but they fed the shippers.
The CP fans absolutely loved this process of scraping together crumbs, so Qu Zhuo had remained a pillar CP in the BG category.
But recently, Qu Yanshan's team wanted to break up the CP and detach. Pushing a CP had its pros and cons. They'd eaten all the benefits they could these past three years, and there was no future in pushing it further. Now Qu Yanshan wanted to change direction and go for an image as a ruthless, loveless career woman. The first step was shaping a single image.
Originally when Qu Yanshan's team proposed dissolving the CP, Liu Zhuo's team had agreed too. Everyone defaulted to parting on good terms. As long as they didn't deliberately pander in the future, and stirred up some rumors with other opposite gender celebs, it would naturally dissolve without anyone shipping it anymore.
But Liu Zhuo's team had miscalculated. Before dissolving the CP, Qu Yanshan set them up.
When he saw the trending search terms, Liu Zhuo's manager was furious: "She's using this trick just to purity herself?! What a venomous scheming woman! And she still has the nerve to cry on livestream? It was just a hyped CP, is she really acting like she just got dumped? What a green tea bitch! Disgusting!"
After cursing, he looked suspiciously at Liu Zhuo: "What's the deal with this 'Z' celeb? How could Qu Yanshan suddenly drag someone else down? Don't tell me you really have something going on with her behind my back?"
Liu Zhuo was also furious with Qu Yanshan. He spoke through gritted teeth: "What could I have possibly done? You watch my every move! I'd like to actually have something going on with someone, if they were willing!"
Manager: "..." The implication dawned on him. "So there really is something with this 'Z' celebrity? Who is it?"
Liu Zhuo clammed up, but the stunning image from the red carpet flashed through his mind.
His first thought then had been, if only the one hyping a CP with him back then was Zhong Ruanxing instead. Maybe he really would have developed feelings if they kept up the act. He was sick of Qu Yanshan's scheming all these years, feeling disgusted every time they finished putting on a show.
Seeing his expression, the manager wasn't an idiot. After a little thought he guessed: "Zhong Ruanxing? Because of that red carpet event you walked together?"
Liu Zhuo was a little embarrassed: "We just chatted a bit. Qu Yanshan gave her the cold shoulder the whole ride there, and on the red carpet too."
The manager gave a cold laugh: "Qu Yanshan has terrible breadth of mind and vision. Breaking up the CP won't get her far either. She didn't even look into the other's background before dragging her down. Nevermind, we don't need to respond for now. Zhong Ruanxing's side will handle it themselves. We can play victim later."
Liu Zhuo's thoughts were in turmoil. He was angry that Qu Yanshan was slandering them, yet deep down, he hoped what she said was true.
Seeing his expression, the manager slapped the back of his head: "I'm warning you, don't get ideas about Zhong Ruanxing. You can't afford to mess with her!"
Liu Zhuo's expression changed slightly. He was curious: "She really landed some big sponsor?"
"You think those two endorsements with the Song company were easy to get?" The manager had only heard rumors, without actual intel. But that didn't stop him from getting ahead of things, drawing on his many years of professional instincts: "And the brand she wore on the red carpet, haven't you heard others say it? A label that only serves the nobility, not even top tier celebs can wear it normally. Yet she wore it."
Liu Zhuo's face was a little awkward. He nodded in the end.
The trending search blew up fast, and spread fast too. By the time Song Jingxing's plane landed, the 'Z' celeb tag was already top 3, and the rumors in the square that 'Z' referred to Zhong Ruanxing grew louder and louder.
Qu Yanshan's livestream was still ongoing, drawing not only CP fans but also a horde of melon-eating netizens who came to watch the spectacle. The viewer count broke past any historical record.
The Qu Yanshan on stream was dressed casually, hair loose, no visible makeup, face pale and eyes red - the image of grief and exhaustion.
"I'm fine, really, just not feeling great and wanted to chat with you all."
"Who can accompany me? Other than you guys, who else can talk to me now?"
"Mm, I'll be starting my next drama shoot next month. I don't want to think about anything now. Just want to focus on acting, on working hard, so I can deliver new projects for you all to see each year. That's all I need to be content."
"Who needs romance? Even dogs don't need romance! All I want now is my career!"
She evaded any questions asking who 'Z' was, whether Qu Zhuo was permanently over, and if Liu Zhuo really cheated. But the more she acted like this, the more everyone was convinced Qu Zhuo broke up because the male lead developed feelings for 'Z'.
Zhong Ruanxing's Weibo was soon flooded by the berserk CP fans, all cursing her as a homewrecker who wouldn't come to a good end. The gunflower behind the scenes clip from The Spy, posted on the drama's official Weibo before, was also overrun by CP fans leaving torrents of curses about scum men and cheap women, vowing to now become Qu Yanshan-only fans and support big sis's career.
Zhong Ruanxing's fans had been happily feasting their eyes before. They were thrown into confusion by this sudden misplaced blame, and were murderous after the shock wore off.
The current Zhong Ruanxing wasn't the unknown little nobody of the past. She had her own hashtag now, her own fan circle, and big fans like Zhang Qianyi who had gone through the mills of K-pop and C-pop fan wars. Although still weak in power, they wouldn't let her be bullied easily anymore.
Soon, the stars were organized in counterattack:
- One moment they allege my big sis has a sponsor, next moment they say she's wrecking CPs. My big sis is really a brick, wherever she's needed to carry she goes, huh.
- I know who the Universe Big Star is, I know what Peace of Mind is, those are my big sis's CPs. You're all welcome to ship them. Please don't bring irrelevant ships here to freeload clout.
- The actress sits in studio, blame comes from heaven. My big sis wrapped filming yesterday morning, then got on a plane back to the capital right after. She should still be in the air now. You chose to slander and malign my big sis because her team isn't around to refute you since they're literally up in the air, huh?
- Let's be real, I don't think Zhong Ruanxing sees Liu Zhuo as someone on her level. There's no way they match up in looks or popularity. Also, he's the one trying to freeload clout, not the other way round.
- Not even that popular, yet so desperate to cling onto others.
- Are there really people who ship hype pairings as real? Crying on livestream just because of a dissolved CP partnership? Laughable.
- Ms. Qu seems to have taken this pretty seriously, so I suggest you directly announce yourselves as publicly dating entertainment circle couple. I will certainly send my sincere blessings!
- Airport photos are the proof. My big sis wrapped filming yesterday and took the plane back to the capital this morning. She should still be in the air right now. Picking the time when her team can't immediately refute to spread slander and malign her image, right? Real classy.