Dating the Heartthrob Superstar-Chapter 33: Disheartened Singer

Chapter 33: The Fallen Singer

That evening, Meng Ke sent the profile of the celebrity he had mentioned to Meng Chao.

Just as Meng Ke had said, the person in question was a singer named Han Zhi, who had been a fleeting sensation in the entertainment industry two years ago. A song he had both written and composed had become wildly popular nationwide.

After the success of that song, given his looks that matched the current beauty standards, Han Zhi should logically have been at the peak of his career. But instead, he vanished from the limelight, completely untraceable in the industry.

Now he’s resurfaced, and he’s connected to Meng Ke? Meng Chao couldn’t figure it out.

He sent Meng Ke a message on WeChat.

Meng Chao: What’s your relationship with Han Zhi? Aren’t you the one most critical of some of the shady dealings in this circle? Why are you suddenly paving the way for a small-time celebrity?

Meng Ke quickly replied to Meng Chao.

Meng Ke: It’s just like what you’re thinking—Han Zhi is being kept by me. He’s my little lover now.

Meng Chao: What’s really going on?

Meng Ke: It’s hard to explain over text. I’ll call you once I’m done with work.

Meng Chao: Alright.

Half an hour later, Meng Ke called and succinctly explained Han Zhi’s situation to Meng Chao.

It turned out that over two years ago, when Han Zhi was at the peak of his career, his disappearance wasn’t voluntary. Instead, he was frozen out by his company.

Han Zhi had a formal background, having graduated from a prestigious overseas music academy. But upon his return to the country, he was tricked by a so-called friend into signing with a small, shady studio.

After much effort, he wrote a song that made him famous overnight. However, he caught the eye of a corporate bigwig who declared he wanted to "keep" Han Zhi.

Han Zhi, proud and talented by nature, was lured into attending a dinner party by his manager. When the bigwig made a move on him, Han Zhi punched him on the spot and stormed out. ƒгeewёbnovel.com

The bigwig, angered, got back at him by having his company blacklist Han Zhi.

And just like that, Han Zhi, who had barely started to shine, became a forgotten fleeting star. The entertainment world evolves at breakneck speed, and over the course of two years without appearing in public, Han Zhi was lost to memory.

At this point, Meng Chao realized that Han Zhi embodied the story of many in this industry—those with talent and capability who, upon confronting the moral corrosion of the entertainment world, chose to remain true to themselves, even if it meant going unnoticed. Such people deserved respect.

But Meng Chao was still puzzled. "So why did he agree to let you keep him? Because you’re handsome?"

Meng Ke denied it. "Because, well... due to certain twists of fate, I slept with him."

Meng Chao caught the slightly guilty tone in Meng Ke’s voice and mercilessly exposed him. "Let me guess, you unilaterally announced that you’re keeping him, but Han Zhi hasn’t taken it seriously?"

There was an awkward cough from the other end of the line, and Meng Ke weakly defended himself. "If I don’t ’keep’ him, he’ll probably be treated like a product for others to pick and choose in that lousy studio. I’m helping him!" Meng Ke’s tone grew more righteous the further he explained.

Meng Chao reluctantly accepted Meng Ke’s reasoning but still disapproved of his approach.

Meng Ke continued, "Anyway, when he comes over, help me take care of him a little."

"No problem," Meng Chao agreed, then added, "Should I also offer him whatever resources I have?"

Meng Ke replied matter-of-factly, "That’s pretty much the idea."

Meng Chao chuckled. "Brother, your plan is really well thought out. You sleep with someone, and now I’m the one making it up to them. You really do treat me like family."

Meng Ke laughed heartily. "What are little brothers for, if not this?"

The two brothers bantered a bit more before hanging up.

The next day.

Meng Chao went straight to the director and handed over Han Zhi’s contact information. To his surprise, the director actually recognized Han Zhi and remembered him vividly.

"Han Zhi, huh? A truly gifted young man," the director said with a sigh. "It’s such a pity—he’s too bold and proud. That kind of personality breaks easily, like a fleeting blossom."

"But I do admire him," the director added. "Although proud, it’s pride rooted in talent. He’s capable of putting his head down and doing the work; he just joined the wrong company and was suppressed too much."

Meng Chao listened to the director ramble for quite a bit before the director got to the point. "Alright, I’ll have someone contact him. I actually admire him a lot. The program still needs a theme song—Meng, would you take a look later and see if he can both write and perform it? Saves me the trouble of looking for someone else."

This director clearly liked Han Zhi quite a bit.

Although Meng Chao was an investor in the program, he usually refrained from meddling in its planning. If it weren’t for Meng Ke personally asking him, he wouldn’t have stepped in.

So when it came to the theme song, Meng Chao left it up to the director, saying he wouldn’t interfere.

The director didn’t make things difficult for Meng Chao and even personally went to contact Han Zhi’s studio in the end.

After handing off this matter to the production team, Meng Chao didn’t follow up. Whether Han Zhi agreed to join the recording or not wasn’t Meng Chao’s concern. His job was merely to fulfill the task Meng Ke had entrusted to him.

When Meng Chao returned to the villa, Lin Qin was on the beach with an easel, sketching with such focus that his cheeks puffed up like a hamster nibbling on food.

It was a rare day without visitors, giving the two of them a fleeting moment of leisure.

Meng Chao didn’t approach him immediately but instead went back inside the villa to grab his own easel before strolling toward Lin Qin.

Once he reached Lin Qin, Meng Chao put on a playful act. "Mr. Lin, I’m here to learn how to draw. Could you teach me?"

Lin Qin was momentarily confused but quickly played along, putting on a serious face. "What do you want to draw?"

"You," Meng Chao said with a smile. "I want to learn how to draw Mr. Lin into my heart."

Lin Qin’s face turned bright red at Meng Chao’s sudden corny pickup line. Unsure of how to respond, he pretended to concentrate on his sketching.

Meng Chao, sensing he had pushed far enough, set up his own easel beside Lin Qin and mimicked him, attempting to sketch something on the blank paper. If you ignored the result on the paper and focused solely on his posture, he actually looked the part.

After playing along for a while, Meng Chao realized he had no talent for drawing and grew bored of pretending. Tilting his head, he rested his chin against the edge of the easel and simply stared at Lin Qin. After a while, he couldn’t resist poking Lin Qin’s puffed-up cheek.

At first, Lin Qin tried to act like he didn’t mind, but his ears gradually turned red, followed by his entire face.

"Brother Meng Chao!" Lin Qin protested, looking at Meng Chao with wide, accusatory eyes that were more shy than angry.

Meng Chao replied with a playful "Hmm, I’m right here."

Lin Qin thought that ever since agreeing to date Meng Chao, all of Meng Chao’s hidden mischievous tendencies had fully come to light. He was a little sly, a little cunning.

Yet Lin Qin didn’t find it disappointing. In fact, he felt that this version of Meng Chao, far from being distant and untouchable, was more down-to-earth—almost dreamy in its own way.