Showbiz Scandal: The Official Announcement of My Ex and Myself-Chapter 410: Broad Shoulders, Narrow Waist, Beautiful Roadblock
The intermission performance concluded, and the host returned to the stage to continue the second half.
Yu Xia smiled at them, while internally pondering whether to purchase more anklets and how to persuade Xie Qingci to wear them.
Ah, the challenges are daunting, but she’s unafraid. With a focus on results, the image in her mind of Xie Qingci wearing an anklet and looking at her was becoming increasingly vivid. She believed she could overcome all obstacles to achieve her goal for that perfect scene.
"... Now, let’s welcome our recommenders Lu Yun and Director Chu to introduce the award for this year’s most popular drama series!"
Yu Xia adjusted her posture, listening intently as her name was mentioned, followed by a sequence of exciting clips from the nominated dramas playing on the big screen.
Her clips included scenes from ’Different Paths’ and ’Burning Spring’. The selected segment from ’Different Paths’ showed her storming out of the elevator to the office, delivering a fierce slap to Yu Zhi. The costumes were perfect, the expression was spot-on, her figure was just right, and the satisfying storyline made the viewer feel refreshed.
No need to say more, ’Different Paths’ won, and she removed her coat to join the cast and crew on stage to accept the award.
Her look this time closely mirrored her character in the series. Walking all the way to the center of the stage, her silky dress flowed in black waves, revealing her fair thighs adorned with striking ruby anklets, fitting perfectly with her "queen" persona.
Listening to the director praise her during the award speech, she smiled modestly, occasionally responding with humble remarks. As her gaze swept across the audience below, she immediately spotted Xie Qingci staring intently at her.
She discreetly redirected her gaze and completed the ceremony, stepping down from the stage.
This time, she didn’t rush to put her coat back on, as the following awards were largely related to her.
"Next, we present the award for the most popular male supporting actor online, nominees include... Congratulations to Xie Qingci for winning the best male supporting actor award!"
This is loosely related to her as well.
Yu Xia joined the applause, watching Xie Qingci as he walked up from behind, passing her seat on his way to the stage steps.
The people around glanced at Xie Qingci, but didn’t forget to sneak a look at her.
She calmly watched the tall figure on stage, towering over the host, with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, long legs, boundless beauty, and a prominent derrière.
The suit fit him perfectly—the trousers were straight and uncreased, the black double-breasted blazer paired with a white shirt unbuttoned at the top, exposing a silver choker on his collarbone, giving him an enticing yet restrained aura.
As he delivered his acceptance speech, holding onto the microphone stand, his distinct fingers and magnetic voice further added to his appeal, drawing screams even from the specially invited audience seated in the back.
To avoid the negative consequences of excessive marketing, they didn’t exchange any eye contact during the ceremony. Even when Xie Qingci passed by her after stepping down from the stage, she didn’t turn her head to look at him, instead chatting with a female actor beside her.
When the "most popular actress" award was announced, Yu Xia went up to accept it as well. This award wasn’t one of the four major awards formally considered in evaluations, as it was purely audience choice, making it less significant.
However, it wasn’t over yet. The final event included the "Internet Voted Most Popular Characters", which didn’t differentiate between lead or supporting roles, nor gender, with a total of five spots. This was mainly for the investors and directors present to gauge the year’s popularity trends and understand audience preferences clearly.
Among these five winners, both Yu Xia and Xie Qingci made the list.
Even before stepping onto the stage, the atmosphere erupted with buzz, and the host knowingly commented with a few remarks.
Yu Xia pretended not to hear, stood up and adjusted her gown, and walked forward. She hadn’t taken many steps when Xie Qingci strode up, extending his arm in front of her, palm facing up.
Amid the louder clamor, she calmly placed her hand in his palm and lifted her gown with the other, stepping onto the stage.
A typical gesture, an ordinary gentlemanly behavior, frequently seen in public settings. But given their relationship, this act conveyed a slightly different sentiment.
The fellow actors joining them on stage all winked and smiled at them.
Yu Xia politely returned a smile, and just as they reached the stage, she intended to retract her hand, but as she pulled back, Xie Qingci suddenly tightened his grip, not letting it go.
Stunned for a moment, Xie Qingci soon released his grip, glancing sideways at her.
What’s the meaning of this?
Yu Xia promptly concealed her expression and walked alongside him.
The large screen behind continued to play character clips. As they settled into place, it transitioned to the scene where Xie Qingci knelt half-naked in front of her receiving a smack, his restrained grunts amplified through the speakers, making Yu Xia’s heart erratic.
If it were any other romantic scene, it would be akin to a wedding ceremony.
The host was discussing the characteristics of the award-winning role when Xie Qingci suddenly leaned down to ask her, "Can I stand here?"
Considering it was his first time on the award stage and he wasn’t familiar with the positioning, Yu Xia glanced at the others nearby and lightly nodded, "You can, but let others speak first when the time comes."
"Sure."
Their exchange naturally didn’t escape the cameras, a brief interaction, but captured by the lens, it became #YuXiaXieQingci Tender Moment on Stage - The Romantic Chemistry# on the gossip channels.
Such relentless topic bombardment unsurprisingly provoked a backlash from some.
[So showy, it’s usually not genuine, a timeless rule in the entertainment circle]
[CP fans must be blind, it’s obvious Yu Xia is helping the newbie, where’s the tender moment? Perhaps it’s Xie Qingci’s self-infatuation?] 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
[Looks very contrived, how come Yu Xia’s choices are increasingly disappointing?]
[No wonder Yu Zhi is absent today, if he showed up, wouldn’t he have been laughed at?]
[Is it really wise to be this high-profile? Constantly trending, it’s tiring to even watch]
[To be fair, Xie Qingci deliberately staged his red carpet moment, pretending to be an overbearing CEO?]
[Yu Xia pretended not to know him too, can’t tell who’s more contrived, but it’s certainly off-putting]
[Ridiculous, it’s just normal daily dating, what’s the problem with them dating? The issue lies with the paparazzi constantly filming them and the marketing accounts tricking for traffic, right?]
[If you’re dating a scholarly genius and others envy you, is it your fault? Better log off and read more books and newspapers]
[...]
Yu Xia wasn’t aware of the online comments yet.
After the event ended, she and Xie Qingci got in the car together.
This time, Xie Qingci attended the event after completing other work ahead of schedule. Having transitioned from a high-pressure state to recent leisure days, once free, he eagerly abandoned his own manager to go off with someone else.
Mr. Yang sat alone in the car, sighing continuously, like a chicken at home leaving behind the grain he worked hard to obtain and running off to lay eggs elsewhere.
Little did he know that as he sighed, He Ci also sighed.
Anyone would lose their good mood when cheerfully discussing award insights with their artist only to see a man outside the car with a fierce gaze seemingly poised to devour someone nearby.
Especially when he realized that Yu Xia, who was still clear-headed now, was about to be charmed into a daze.
He was furious; men were just stumbling blocks impeding women’s journey towards the stars and the sea!
