Capturing My Demon King Costar

MY COSTAR MAKES THINGS OFFICIAL

Filming resumes, the dust settles enough for the media to leave them alone. Faster than Yao Shen expects, they finish shooting the drama. They come up with a convoluted scene in which Rong Zi becomes disfigured to justify the mask the actor who substitutes Gao Wu uses.

Speculation online about the fate of the drama rages on, with many guessing it won't pass review after being embroiled in so many scandals.

Yao Shen has no way to guess either way, and it will be several months of post-production before that's relevant.

In the meantime, Xin Hulei announces his retirement.

He posts the announcement on his official weibo account, marking one of the first times he has written anything besides an official announcement sent over from his agency.

Yao Shen is with him as they read through the reactions of his disgruntled fans.

[I want to thank you all for your continued support over all these years. I've had a very long and fulfilling career but now I think it's time I focus on other things. Of course I want to thank everyone involved in making it possible for me to be here now, saying goodbye to all of you...]

He goes on to list the names of all the personnel in his agency, as well as a few actors he has worked with regularly.

It's as dry and impersonal as Xin Hulei's public persona, and his fans are pissed about it.

Yao Shen is in Xin Hulei's Beijing apartment reading some of the comments out loud as they roll in.

[LeiLei's wife: This can't be happening, I refuse to believe this. I'm having a nightmare, I'm going to wake up soon and everything will have returned to normal.]

[LeiLei's husband: Is this punishment because I haven't been a diligent fan? I said I would divorce LeiLei because of all those dating rumours but I didn't mean it! I didn't mean any of it! I'll always be LeiLei's husband, groveling at his feet no matter how many times he cheats on me. I only beg for the privilege of seeing his beautiful face on my screen, huge!]

[LeilLei supremacy: I think this might actually be a matter of national security. He's the most famous actor in the country, shouldn't the government have a say in this? He can't just quit.]

[Melon eater: ^ I'll pay you 1000 yuan to make that complaint and send it through the appropriate channels, really want to see how that one plays out]

[Rusty nail: ^^ don't do this, stop being crazy. Maybe this is just a publicity stunt?]

[Dog vs Cat: I don't know why, but I have a feeling this is all that Yao Shen's fault.]

That last comment makes Yao Shen laugh out loud, and Xin Hulei wrap one arm around his shoulder, reeling him in against his chest.

"They're right," he presses a kiss to Yao Shen's lips. "This is all your fault."

Yao Shen smiles against his lips, happy beyond words.

---

Xin Hulei decides that he needs to give one final interview in order to clear the air around his retirement announcement. Lots of people are still under the impression this is just something temporary he'll return form when a big director wants to work with him.

Some are calling it the 'Crimson Promise' curse.

They're convinced that both the novel and the drama are based in reality, and that overturning the stones of the past has caused ripples in the present that have led to the death of several people, and multiple arrests -- or something like that.