Chapter 3: Debt Collector Xiao Lu

Netizens had initially thought that Lu Xu was once again riding on Verse’s popularity, but the moment the transfer records were posted, the comment section completely exploded.

[Du Shao, is this Du Shao?]

[The moment I saw the transfer records, I suddenly understood the meaning of the phrase ‘rich but dumb.’]

[Didn’t someone say Lu Xu cleared his Weibo to get on the trending list? Well, that’s true—only by trending can he collect the debt.]

[…Am I the only one who thinks this is a huge sum? I wouldn’t even dare to borrow this much with my joy beans. How can anyone sleep well at night owing such a large debt?]

Yao Yuan was about to explode.

He had never imagined that the normally good-natured Lu Xu would suddenly tear his face!

Less than an hour after Lu Xu released the records, the search terms “Debt Collector Lu Xu” and “Yao Yuan owes money” rapidly climbed the trending list.

Yao Yuan, who had been trying to ride on Xie Qingyang’s trending topic, was quickly overshadowed by his own debt scandal. Just moments ago, his name had been in the top three, but now it had dropped below 30th place.

Yao Yuan guessed that it was probably Xie Qingyang’s agency, Lin Ge Entertainment, that had been working hard to suppress the trend.

Lin Ge Entertainment was known for its marketing expertise. Otherwise, even though Verse had disbanded almost a year ago, the commercial value and resources of the three members, including Xie Qingyang, wouldn’t have remained.

Of course, Lin Ge Entertainment had also realized that it would be difficult for Xie Qingyang and the others to continue relying on the old fame of Verse. Over the past year, their activity was, in a way, a result of Lu Xu’s excessive scandal. Fans inevitably became more sympathetic to the other three members of Verse.

So when Yao Yuan suggested creating a fake couple dynamic, or more specifically, showing his one-sided admiration and affection for Xie Qingyang, Lin Ge Entertainment immediately agreed.

It was beneficial for Xie Qingyang in every way—boosting his presence and increasing his popularity.

But just as the heat was building, Yao Yuan was suddenly exposed by Lu Xu for not repaying a debt, which was completely at odds with the public image of him as a carefree, charismatic figure he had been marketing.

At this point, Lin Ge Entertainment naturally had to quickly distance itself from the so-called CP.

Yao Yuan hadn’t repaid the money, but the moment he saw the chat records, his first reaction was to send a message to Lu Xu. However, he found that he wasn’t even on Lu Xu’s friend list anymore.

“He must be crazy, can’t stand seeing others doing well?” Yao Yuan cursed angrily, “It’s just this little bit of money, does he think I can’t pay it back?”

He clicked on the trending topic “Yao Yuan owes money,” and in the discussion section, someone had posted a screenshot of an interview from years ago where Lu Xu had claimed they were friends:

[Although Lu Xu isn’t that great, he really did borrow over a million from someone, didn’t he?]

[Over a million and still can’t buy the title of ‘friend’? Think about that, really think about it.]

[I just want to complain about today’s trending topic. Wasn’t that variety show pushed by Lu Xu for Yao Yuan? And yet Yao Yuan only remembers Fog Level, like, are we talking about an old person with memory loss? Or is it that just saying ‘Lu Xu’ now burns his tongue?]

“This isn’t the time to argue.” The manager glanced at Yao Yuan, “We need to solve this problem first. Do you have Lu Xu’s account? Hurry up and transfer the money.”

Yao Yuan muttered that he did, but his movements were slow as he searched on his phone. The manager subtly furrowed his brows.

After the trending topic, Yao Yuan’s appearance fee had skyrocketed, and with his current worth, paying Lu Xu back would be more than enough.

He hadn’t repaid the money, and now he had given Lu Xu leverage. This was something that never should have happened. Given the situation, Yao Yuan still hadn’t thought to quickly pay back the money to silence Lu Xu. From the manager’s perspective, that was a bit stingy.

Still, Yao Yuan was the most high-profile artist under his management, so although he felt displeased, he didn’t say anything out loud.

Yao Yuan slowly opened his phone. At first, he claimed he needed to download an app, then said his bank card had a transfer limit, and after a while, he still hadn’t shown any intention of paying the money back.

The manager’s frown deepened—just last month, when Yao Yuan bought a luxury car, he didn’t blink an eye, and the manager didn’t remember any issues with his bank card limit.

Yao Yuan sighed. “I think we should release a statement first to explain the situation.”

Manager: “…”

Since Yao Yuan insisted, the manager couldn’t refuse. After all, their company wasn’t a big agency like Lin Ge Entertainment, and he didn’t have much influence over his artist.

Thus, Yao Yuan’s agency quickly issued a statement. The statement said that Yao Yuan’s career had just started and his income was limited. It also mentioned, [Yao Yuan thanks Lu Xu for helping him during a difficult time, and he intends to pay back more interest to Lu Xu once he has saved enough money.

However, when he tried to contact Lu Xu, he discovered that his account had been deleted.]

[Isn’t it normal for a young idol to not have money? Not everyone has the good fortune of Lu Xu, who got into Verse.]

[No need to be too harsh on Yao Yuan. He wasn’t planning to avoid repaying the money.]

[This is hilarious. You deleted the guy’s account—how is he supposed to pay you back?]

Yao Yuan discussed with his manager, “I can pay in installments, starting with a portion, and then slowly paying off the rest. Paying it all at once would be too much of a strain.”

Manager: “…”

Thanks to his fake relationship with Xie Qingyang, Yao Yuan not only gained attention but also landed a few business deals and endorsements.

Yao Yuan appeared to be carefree and open-hearted, but in reality, he was very shrewd. He calculated his earnings carefully and would even negotiate with the agency’s boss to get a better share of the profits.

“This way, fans can see my determination to repay my debt,” Yao Yuan added.

While the agency released the statement, Yao Yuan also promised on his Weibo account that, although his current income was insufficient to repay his debt, he would work hard to pay it off as soon as possible.

[Admitting mistakes is a sign of strength!]

[During the Verse days, Lu Xu definitely earned a lot of money, but we should also understand the difficulties of the young idols. Not everyone has such good career luck.]

[Yao Yuan is awesome!! Forever the most sincere and warm-hearted Sun Yuan!]

[Watching Xiao Yao grow up has really been a journey. It’s not easy, still dealing with debt after debuting for so long. When Lu Xu exposed his debt, it was really like stepping on his pride, right? Yao Yuan might not have had that explosive rise to fame, but he will definitely work hard to become better.]

As he watched the comments under the trending topic gradually shift from questioning his failure to repay the money to encouraging him to work hard and succeed, Yao Yuan couldn’t help but smile slightly.

The debt was indeed his fault, but who could blame him when Lu Xu had accumulated so many negative reviews during the Verse days? Even if Yao Yuan didn’t have many fans, the fans of the other Verse members were speaking up for him.

Both Yao Yuan’s agency and his own statement gradually climbed the trending list. Although the “YuanYang CP” had dropped out of the top 50, this rare opportunity to trend allowed marketing accounts to highlight his personal story.

They shared how he had worked his way up from being a backup dancer to taking center stage, never giving up any opportunity to perform. He had endured the scorching heat of over 40 degrees Celsius, pushing through to give fans the brightest smile, and eventually won over a large fanbase with his cheerful, optimistic, and passionate personality.

[This is the idol most worth admiring!]

[From being unknown to shining on stage, Lu Xu took one year, and Yao Yuan took six years, but so what? The future still belongs to Yao Yuan in the end!]

Lu Xu’s comment section gradually shifted from urging Yao Yuan to repay the money to outright insults—this had become a regular occurrence for Lu Xu ever since Verse disbanded.

At this point, Lu Xu posted another Weibo update:

[Qiu Qi √]

[Ning Weiran √]

[Zhou Zhaoyi √]

[Yi Quan √]

[Yao Yuan has paid back 0 yuan.]

Note: The √ indicates the debt has been cleared.

“……”

[????? What kind of daily update is this? I’m about to die laughing.]

[Wait, are all the names checked? Anyone not named by Lu Xu at this point must be shaking in fear.]

[Lu Xu’s message is clear—stop complaining, and pay the money back already.]

[What I find interesting is that among these people, Yao Yuan probably has the best resources right now. If there’s no surprise, he also has the highest appearance fee. So why did everyone else pay off their debt right away, while Yao Yuan keeps saying he doesn’t have the money and how hard his life is? His situation should be better than the rest, right?]

[He can buy a car but can’t pay off his debt? Haven’t you seen his fans raising money for him? We can’t let our big brother suffer.]

Some marketing accounts supported Yao Yuan, while others, enjoying the drama, made the situation worse. As soon as Lu Xu posted his update, marketing accounts turned his statistics into a chart and heavily promoted it.

Some marketing accounts emphasized how hard Yao Yuan had worked to reach his current position, but they also pointed out how many of those so-called “opportunities” Yao Yuan claimed he never gave up on were actually fought for by Lu Xu on his behalf.

[It’s not that we’re denying Yao Yuan’s effort, but those variety shows aren’t something just anyone can get on, right? Lesser-known idols don’t even get many chances to appear, and if they ever get on a show at this level, they’d probably be thrilled.]

[It’s not just that Lu Xu wasn’t in Yao Yuan’s ‘struggles’—before Verse disbanded, Yao Yuan actually called Lu Xu a few times for help. But once Lu Xu got into scandals and Verse disbanded, when was the last time you heard him mention Lu Xu?]

[For the other three members of Verse, Lu Xu might be a jerk, but he definitely wasn’t like that to Yao Yuan.]

[Suddenly, I feel a little sorry for Lu Xu… and his money. Can I cure him?]

After ticking off a list of names, Lu Xu fell silent for a while without posting on Weibo. The gossiping netizens thought that his next update wouldn’t come until at least 24 hours later. But as soon as midnight passed, his Weibo homepage refreshed, and there was another new post.

—It was exactly the same as the last one.

[Yao Yuan has repaid 0 yuan (Today marks 768 days since Yao Yuan first borrowed the money.)]

[LMAO, this is the power of the daily update?]

Lu Xu specifically replied to the post: “If you are not active in asking for money, you have a problem with your thinking.”

Netizens: “……”

Okay then.

<< TOC >>

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