Ch 179: The Cannon Fodder Won’t Play Along Anymore [QT]

As a xianxia drama, Seeking Immortality followed the typical pattern where every character and subplot served as the male lead’s invisible buff.

The male lead was even supposed to be taught by the little junior uncle for a while.

In the original script, these parts were brushed over—and Director Zhou had also planned to brush them over—but after seeing Mu Xing’s look in costume, he felt it was a waste. He filmed all of those scenes in full.

The junior uncle playing the qin.
The junior uncle practicing sword forms.
The junior uncle debating the Dao with the male lead.

Scenes Jiang Shengyu thought he could avoid sharing a frame in ended up unavoidable after all.

All of Mu Xing’s appearances, when cut together, amounted to nearly half an hour of screen time—not that little anymore compared to before.

With Mu Xing’s appearance, Seeking Immortality’s popularity suddenly skyrocketed.

But this wasn’t the kind of popularity Jiang Shengyu wanted.

Because all the news, all the video platform edits, were about Mu Xing—about Zhuo Qingbi.

Click on any site, and the home page was full of fan edits and “face-licking” compilations of the junior uncle, plus endless promo cuts recommending Seeking Immortality.

Many viewers who hadn’t watched the drama started tuning in just because of those videos—only to discover Zhuo Qingbi wasn’t even the male lead.

And that his screen time was very little!

They waited for days without seeing a single glimpse of him!

But even with so few scenes, his popularity kept climbing.

The key issue was this: the male lead’s storyline was mostly romance. While cultivating, he paused for romance. While on his revenge path, he paused for romance.

If Zhuo Qingbi hadn’t existed, it might have been fine.

But with a junior uncle wholly devoted to the Great Dao as contrast, the more viewers watched, the less they liked the male lead:

【Isn’t this drama called Seeking Immortality? Why does the male lead seem stuck in melodrama the whole time?】

【Can’t modern dramas just do a proper xianxia without stuffing romance into everything?】

【Seriously, now it’s campus dramas with romance, wuxia with romance, xianxia with romance. All the genres are just shells—it’s romance underneath.】

【Then this drama should be called Seeking Love, not Seeking Immortality.】

【The junior uncle is the only one worthy of the words ‘seeking immortality.’ He’s the firmest Dao-heart I’ve seen in the whole show.】

Jiang Shengyu saw the comments online and was furious: So you’re saying if there’s no romance, you’d still watch? Isn’t it just because Mu Xing looks good that you’re obsessed? If it were someone uglier, would you even remember the junior uncle’s name?

But the audience didn’t know what was coming.

They waited ten-plus episodes, finally to see Zhuo Qingbi again.

The male lead, in a secret realm, obtained an ancient inheritance. An ancient divine weapon sealed in Qingyue Sect’s Sword Tomb was awakened, drawing demonic sects from all sides to attack.

With no reinforcements coming, Qingyue Sect disciples were slaughtered in droves.

In that desperate moment, Zhuo Qingbi emerged, sacrificing his soul to activate the sect’s protective formation and save the disciples.

And that was the end of his role.

The very night this episode aired, Jiang Shengyu shot to the top of the trending list—for being cursed out.

Jiang Shengyu: ?????

What’s it got to do with me!

The script was written this way!

Besides, if the junior uncle didn’t die, the plot couldn’t move forward!

But the audience didn’t care.

They only knew their favorite character died—and died indirectly because of the male lead.

Plenty of viewers even dropped the drama then and there.

Jiang Shengyu had nowhere to vent his anger, while the production team was overjoyed.

The popularity wasn’t what they originally expected, but so what? High heat meant profit.

So, the crew began releasing behind-the-scenes footage.

All sorts of bloopers and fun clips during filming: the other leads laughing, breaking character, hyping up CPs—then Mu Xing’s clips appeared, completely different in style.

Playing the guqin, performing his own music.
Doing fight scenes, no stunt double.
Swordplay, more beautiful than the professionals.

Unless a scene partner made mistakes, his takes were almost always done in one shot.

Viewers were stunned.

【Multi-talented junior uncle, I’m in love】

【From now on, every xianxia novel’s male lead/master I read has a face: Mu Xing’s】

【Please, Mu Xing, act in more xianxia dramas! As the actual male lead, in every episode!】

【By the way, it feels like it’s been forever since we last heard anything about Mu Xing.】

Mu Xing’s fans: You’re just realizing this? We’ve already grown mushrooms waiting!

His Weibo—the last post was back when he was publicly fighting with that scumbag Qin Song.

There hadn’t been a single update since.

Fans, unable to get news from Mu Xing himself, flooded his old company’s account with questions.

After days of urging, only when Seeking Immortality finished airing did Changxin Entertainment finally post: they had already terminated their contract with Mu Xing last October.

Fans: ???

And then?

What company did he sign with?

They tried to dig, but even the most well-informed insiders came up empty.

In truth, deep down, everyone already suspected: once his identity was revealed, no one really believed Mu Xing would stay in showbiz for long.

Sure enough, his former manager Zhong Ling posted on Weibo, saying he had talked to Mu Xing before the termination, and that Mu Xing most likely left the entertainment industry entirely.

Fans: ?!

I just became a fan, and you quit right away?

This is cruel! I don’t believe it!

On every old post of his, fans squatted, waiting for his return.

By the time Mu Xing learned of all this, a long time had already passed.

Zhong Ling said: “There are so many people who like you now. If you make a comeback, your popularity will definitely be high.”

Mu Xing answered directly: “What they like isn’t me. It’s Zhuo Qingbi, the perfect character from the drama. If someone else had my face and aura, they would like that person instead.

“I am not Zhuo Qingbi, and I will never play a second Zhuo Qingbi.”

Looking at the new tea set he had just fired, he nodded in satisfaction: “Not bad, my skills are getting smoother. Acting is nowhere near as joyful as working with ceramics.”

He went on Weibo and posted a set of photos.

Mu Xing V: Recently I’ve picked up a new hobby. I’m not acting anymore. I won’t be using this account either. Wishing everyone well. 【pic】【pic】【pic】

After he said he wouldn’t use the account, he really never logged in again. After saying he was leaving the industry, fans never saw him on any screen or variety show again.

Not even paparazzi could catch a trace of him.

This man had suddenly appeared in the entertainment circle the previous year, had a flash marriage with a film emperor, got exposed online, then divorced swiftly, joined a variety show, and filmed one drama.

All told, his time in the circle added up to barely a year.

Yet he left behind an indelible impression.

Years later, whenever viewers spoke of xianxia dramas, they could never forget that ethereal junior uncle.

Some sighed: He only filmed a drama on a whim, to experience life, and yet he stunned you all for so many years.

Later, someone posted on Weibo.

It was from an international ceramics exhibition. Among all the works, one collection stood out, completely different in style.

All kinds of little animals, anthropomorphized plants. With their round faces and plump bellies, just looking at them made people feel involuntarily happy.

The name on the works was Mu Xing.

Later, some said they encountered a group of Kunqu opera enthusiasts at a theater in a southern riverside town, and among them was a person who looked very much like Mu Xing.

*

When Mu Xing first started learning ceramics, Mu Jiangtao didn’t take it seriously. He thought it was just a passing fancy, that once the novelty faded, he’d drop it.

He waited a year, two years, then ten, then eight more.

Only then did Mu Jiangtao suddenly realize: he might never see the day his son lost interest.

But it didn’t matter. Mu Lin was capable enough; Mu Xing didn’t need to shoulder the family’s burdens. He could do as he pleased.

Anyway, between the shares of the Mu family and the assets left by his maternal grandfather, Mu Xing could easily live well even if he “burned money” on his refined hobbies.

So Mu Jiangtao began to worry about his son’s personal life instead.

Every time he brought it up, Mu Xing would say: if you have energy to worry about that, better spend it on your own health.

Mu Jiangtao’s temper was bad, his taste heavy. Even though he’d tried to live healthier in recent years, he still had a pile of cardiovascular problems.

Later, when Mu Lin had twins—a boy and a girl—Mu Jiangtao stopped bothering with his son. Compared to his son, weren’t adorable, chubby grandchildren far more fun?

*

As Mu Xing achieved small success in ceramics, he grew interested in opera. Every so often, he followed a group of enthusiasts to watch and learn, and could even sing a short passage himself.

The orb held it in for a long time, but finally one day asked: “Do you still remember Qin Song and Jiang Shengyu?”

By then, it had already been thirteen or fourteen years since Mu Xing left the entertainment circle.

He had a good memory, but it was mostly used for what he cared about, what he found meaningful.

The names sounded familiar, but it still took Mu Xing nearly a minute to recall who they were.

“Mm, I remember. What about them?”

The orb knew Mu Xing well. One look and he could tell Mu Xing had long since forgotten them to the ends of the earth.

“They’re not doing very well,” The orb said.

Mu Xing only gave an “oh,” uninterested, and continued what he was doing.

Recently, besides Kunqu, he had developed an interest in jade carving. He was practicing with a small carving knife in his hand.

There were so many interesting things in this world—why waste effort remembering two irrelevant people?

But the or insisted on telling him.

He said Qin Song’s reputation had been destroyed after that incident.

Audiences disliked him, and the quality of resources he could reach plummeted.

The good ones were out of reach, the bad ones he didn’t want.

But the industry was cruel. If you disappeared for a while, audiences forgot you.

By the time he realized, the resources he could get had dropped another level.

Now, the once-glorious film emperor could only play elders in low-quality web dramas.

Jiang Shengyu hadn’t fared much better. Qin Song at least had some professional skill, but Jiang Shengyu had little.

When young, he relied on good looks to get famous for a while. But the entertainment circle never lacked good-looking newcomers.

As he got older, he couldn’t land serious dramas. His idol dramas got criticized. Naturally, his career kept going downhill.

He even broke up with Qin Song.

Everyone had seen how much Qin Song loved him back then.

Yet less than three years after Qin Song’s decline, Jiang Shengyu left him for someone new when he saw there was no hope of revival.

Unfortunately, his eye for people wasn’t good. The new lover only liked his fresh looks. Once bored, he was dumped.

That incident lost him a wave of fans, and what remained of Qin Song’s hardcore fans, plus their CP shippers, all scolded him as heartless. His reputation was ruined completely.

Now, he was half-retired from the circle. Occasionally there was gossip news—him doing cheap appearances in backwater towns. He had aged badly, grown fat, no longer resembling the once-praised moonlike beauty.

The orb rambled on for a long while.

Then he looked up to check Mu Xing’s reaction—only to find the man had already set aside the carving knife, tilted his head on a soft pillow, and fallen asleep.

The orb: “…”

Hmph!

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