IBKAWB Chapter 43

**Chapter 43: Is This Our Girl?**

Re-translated by: Namizaki

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Sun Qi took her hands off the keyboard, thinking, Whoa, I’ve really screwed up this time.

This big shot was usually in the group but never participated in discussions. His group name card must have been changed just now. Sun Qi only knew he was in the group because Lu Yuzhou had once mentioned a hot topic in their chat: [ “What kind of girl will our Qiao Bao end up with?” ]

Sun Qi had been scared out of her wits that day, scrambling back into the group to stop the others from letting their imaginations run wild.

If she hadn’t intervened, these young “future mothers-in-law” would have cooked up even weirder topics!

From that day on, Sun Qi knew President Lu had an account in the group, though no one knew which one it was.

Being caught red-handed by the man himself—this was way too damn thrilling.

Sun Qi’s heart sank like a stone.

After a few minutes of tense silence, the Group Admin, under immense pressure, typed: [ “Is that President Lu?” ]

[ Lu Yuzhou: En. ]

The group fell silent again.

Lu Yuzhou raised an eyebrow and pushed aside the documents on his desk.

[ Lu Yuzhou: If it’s a terrible film, I’ll definitely intervene. ]

[ I Hear Your Voice in the Wind: President Lu, are you saying you don’t think it’s a terrible film? ]

Sun Qi clutched her phone: Holy shit, President Feng is so fucking alpha! He actually dared to go head-to-head with President Lu!

[ Lu Yuzhou: This wasn’t my decision. It was Brother Qiao’s. ]

Lu Yuzhou picked up his coffee and took a sip, then typed a message: [ The scripts sent to Brother Qiao are only a matter of whether he likes them or not. There’s no “must” or “must not.” ]

After sending the message, Lu Yuzhou put his phone down.

Once they were sure Lu Yuzhou wouldn’t post again, the fan group sprang back to life:

[ Group Admin: Why is President Lu even in our group? How did none of us know? I didn’t even know! ]

[ LuLuLu: The group’s full, duh. If he doesn’t post, how would we know he’s here? ]

The group suddenly remembered the awkward situation when Chi Zhongqiao had sent multiple messages earlier that no one noticed, and they fell silent.

[ I Hear Your Voice in the Wind: So, President Lu means Qiao Bao liked this script? ]

[ South Mountain, North Sea: Qiao Bao’s taste… Remember his light-up sign? ]

[ Group Admin:…Damn it, this is driving me crazy! If only Qiao Bao’s taste was as reliable as his acting! ]

[ LuLuLu: I’m just worried he’ll judge scripts based on his light-up sign aesthetic. ]

Sun Qi, ignoring the anxious chatter in the group, wrestled with her doubts before finally messaging Lu Yuzhou.

[ Sun Qi: President Lu, they’re just worried about Brother Qiao. ]

[ Lu Yuzhou: Worried I’ll mistreat him? ]

He chuckled, keeping his more affectionate thoughts to himself: I cherish him even more than you do.

[ Sun Qi: As fans, we’re so far removed from Brother Qiao. We don’t know what kind of opportunities he’s getting. You know how gentle he seems—we just worry he’ll be taken advantage of. They might be overreacting, but we all genuinely care about him. ]

Sun Qi recalled her initial anger when she first heard Brother Qiao was taking on a film like  <Campus Prince and Campus Belle>. But remembering Lu Yuzhou’s usual attentiveness and care toward Brother Qiao, she trusted he wouldn’t let him choose a bad script.

After waiting a while without a reply, a wave of bitterness washed over her. Of course, she thought, how could someone like President Lu understand our motherly hearts?

The person they adored could only be admired through a screen. Though they knew he possessed countless virtues, they could only watch from afar.

That’s why so many people misunderstood them, dismissing their passion as shallow infatuation based solely on looks, and sneering at it. Sun Qi, though employed by Lu Yuzhou, had been a Chi Zhongqiao fan long before Lu Yuzhou approached her. It was precisely her restrained fandom that had caught Lu Yuzhou’s attention.

“Ding—”

Her phone chimed with a new message. Sun Qi glanced down and saw a voice message from Lu Yuzhou.

She paused, finding it odd that the CEO would send a voice message.

When she played it, however, it wasn’t Lu Yuzhou’s cold voice that came through, but a far more familiar and gentle one:

“Is this our girl?”

Sun Qi covered her face upon hearing the first line, her eyes instantly reddening.

It was Brother Qiao.

The only person in the world who would call his fans “our girl.”

“I heard from Yuzhou that I’ve made you all worry. Actually, I chose all the scripts myself. No one forced me to take any roles.”

“As for the quality…” His voice carried a hint of amusement. “Perhaps not every work can be profound or high-brow, but I would never try to fool you. Do you believe me?”

Clutching her phone, Sun Qi burst into silent tears.

I believe you. Of course I believe you. I love you so, so much.

After sending the voice message, Chi Zhongqiao put down his phone. He had been waiting for Lu Yuzhou to finish work while memorizing his lines for tomorrow. Anxious not to disturb Lu Yuzhou, he had retreated to a cubicle in the office.

Focused on memorizing his lines, he hadn’t had time to check his phone and was completely unaware of the uproar in the group chat until Lu Yuzhou came looking for him with his phone.

After learning the full story, Chi Zhongqiao smiled wryly.

He pondered for a moment, then sent two voice messages to Sun Qi, first calming the young fans.

Chi Zhongqiao personally had no aversion to commercial dramas. Not all entertainment needed to convey profound meaning. As long as it didn’t promote distorted values, what did it matter if it lacked deeper significance?

If every TV series were like <Invisible Crime> and every novel were like <Notre-Dame de Paris>, what would be the point?

Humans experience joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure. Cultural entertainment should naturally flourish with diverse styles, each with its own merits.

<Campus Prince and Campus Belle> was simply a comedy film, meant for lighthearted amusement after meals. Its sole purpose was to bring smiles to people’s faces.

Chi Zhongqiao took a pragmatic view. He didn’t believe that acting in a comedy after <Invisible Crime> would diminish his reputation.

“These young girls,” Chi Zhongqiao shook his head.

Lu Yuzhou: “What’s wrong?”

Chi Zhongqiao started rummaging through his bag for his phone. Hearing Lu Yuzhou’s words, he chuckled, “They’re adorably silly.” Why do they think I’m a steamed bun?¹zaki~notice in Chats that aside from fans calling him Baby Qiao (by mother fans probably) they also called him Qiao Bao.. Bao means bun or dumplings

Lu Yuzhou leaned closer. “What about me?”

“They’re adorably silly, but you’re not silly at all,” Chi Zhongqiao replied. “Our Yuzhou is the cutest in the world.”

Lu Yuzhou fell silent. It felt strange for a grown man to be called “cute.”

He sat beside Chi Zhongqiao for a while, but when he didn’t receive the reassurance he craved, he stood up, feeling dejected.

He needed to quickly finish his work so Brother Qiao wouldn’t have to stay late with him until seven.

Chi Zhongqiao was still busy searching for his phone. When he finally found it, he quickly opened the group chat and scrolled through the history. After flipping through a couple of pages, he spotted a familiar name among the IDs. “Yuzhou?!” he exclaimed in surprise.

Lu Yuzhou, who had been heading for the door, turned back. “What’s wrong, Brother Qiao?”

Chi Zhongqiao flipped his phone around. “Is this you in the group chat? How did you get in there?”

Lu Yuzhou hadn’t expected him to check the history. His spine stiffened. “Brother Qiao, weren’t you supposed to be memorizing your lines?”

Lu Yuzhou’s heart began to race. Will Brother Qiao think I’m too weird?

“The group’s blowing up—of course I had to take a look,” Chi Zhongqiao retorted. “Don’t change the subject. How did you get in the group chat?”

Lu Yuzhou pressed his lips together and sat down in the chair farthest from Chi Zhongqiao. “I’ve been in the group chat the whole time.”

Chi Zhongqiao patted the armrest. “Sitting so far away—are you afraid I’ll hit you? Come here.”

Lu Yuzhou reluctantly stood up and sat beside Chi Zhongqiao.

Chi Zhongqiao sighed, looking at him.

Lu Yuzhou’s heart pounded with anxiety. He had joined the fan group hoping to understand Chi Zhongqiao from a different perspective.

What was Chi Zhongqiao like on screen, the version that captivated outsiders?

How did those who loved him see him?

He had quietly joined the thousand-member group with these thoughts, and no one had noticed him in the crowd.

But Lu Yuzhou was too busy. Though he had joined the group, he rarely had time to participate. Today, Sun Qi and the others had been caught red-handed due to sheer bad luck.

Chi Zhongqiao, this magpie spirit, had actually cultivated a whole school of black Koi.

“Brother Qiao, are you angry?” Lu Yuzhou decided to take the initiative to apologize, while firmly resolving not to change his ways. If Brother Qiao asked him to leave the group, he would simply have Qi Chuyang register a new account for him.

Chi Zhongqiao remained silent for a long moment before speaking gently, “Be good, Yuzhou. The group is too chaotic. Don’t spend too much time there.”

Chi Zhongqiao currently had five fan groups, but he frequented the original, largest group the most. That group was highly active, and because it required age verification, all members were adults. The discussions were lively, with new messages flooding in every few minutes, quickly reaching 99+ .

The group was full of talented artists and writers who, when the mood struck, would push the boundaries of adult topics, even flirting with being reported.

It was incredibly explicit.

Sometimes, when Chi Zhongqiao joined the chat, he’d barely get a word in before the Group Admin kicked him out, claiming they were having a chat which was “inappropriate for minors” and promising to let him back in once they were done chatting.

Chi Zhongqiao, the actual protagonist and the Group’s namesake, had absolutely no authority.

They probably just want to talk about driving cars²sexually explicit stuff together. I’m completely irrelevant.

The first time Chi Zhongqiao was kicked out, he was completely bewildered. By the fourth or fifth time, he’d grown indifferent.

Now, Lu Yuzhou was in the group too, and the fact that he noticed today’s commotion meant he was either lurking or actively participating in the group’s activities.

My Yuzhou is still just a kid! What’s he doing in a group like this?

The thought of Lu Yuzhou having already seen all sorts of inappropriate content in the group made Chi Zhongqiao feel deeply uneasy.

Chi Zhongqiao: “Chatting in the group is distracting from work. Try to look at it less often, okay?”

Fan Group:

[ Zucchini: /Battle-Torn Car Link: Click Here/ ]

Chi Zhongqiao asked the group admin to give him admin privileges, then…

The fans, who had been clamoring for content, suddenly noticed the link message had disappeared. Straining their eyes, they nearly threw their phones in shock—

[Admin Chi Zhongqiao retracted a member’s message.]

The entire group fell silent.

[ Chi Zhongqiao: Anti-Pornography and Anti-Illegal Publications (Cute.jpg) ]

A few minutes later:

[ Zucchini: Group admin, you’ve betrayed us! How could you give Brother Qiao admin privileges?! ]

[ Gibberish: We can’t kick Brother Qiao out anymore… So sad… ]

Chi Zhongqiao calmly put down his phone: Fake fans. They’re all just fake fans.

In the office cubicle outside, Lu Yuzhou had already clicked the link. He stared at the words “Prince Yu x Young General, Battle-Torn Car/ Warning, Blade Alert” with a puzzled expression.

These were two characters from the novel <Empress of the World>. What was the point of pairing the male lead with the second male lead?

• 1
  zaki~notice in Chats that aside from fans calling him Baby Qiao (by mother fans probably) they also called him Qiao Bao.. Bao means bun or dumplings
• 2
  sexually explicit stuff