Signing the fantasy-like contract, and holding onto a solid and incomparable thigh. Ye Zhizhou politely refused the golden thigh and little nephew's offer to send him off with their grand car, opting to return home by public transport. When he returned home, he immediately fell on his bed, rolled into his quilt and slept like a dead fish.
Half an hour later, he woke up with a blank look. Turning on his computer to check Weibo, he logged in to his small account – he looked for the remaining dark threads from the morning and then changed the set times.
— it was a bit of a thrilling day, time to get back at society.
At 9.30 pm, fans on Weibo were as normal as usual, waiting for the day's update as they didn't want to skip out something amazing.
{I am a little account}: A blogger who works at XXX bank just uploaded something hot. He just came across the bank database updates today, and then secretly searched for several actors' names. He was shocked at a new transfer record! That aunt who keeps saying her nephew is such a thankless ingrate – the one million your nephew gave you, are you just feeding it all to the dogs?
[Picture] x9
Hot drama, nephew, ingrate. Just with these few keywords, it is self-evident who it's referring to!
Fans were stirred up and continuously opened up the picture, getting stunned by the dense transfer records – especially the most recent one million transfer. These many zeroes, simply blinding! Although the important information had sunk in, the impatient fans couldn't withstand it ah. After various of sources and hours of checking, they confirmed that the one making the transfer was indeed Yao Cheng, and the receiver was shockingly that aunt!
Damn, this reversal. More than one million ah, if this act still makes one a thankless ingrate, then what could be called filial piety?
As the screenshot flooded out, Yao Cheng's cousin's Weibo was grilled by the sharp users in less than an hour. The fans quickly summarized the main content and took screenshots.
Showy, always picking on girls, skipping classed, beating up the teacher…
The dark powder covering Yao Cheng these days were all posted by this cousin. He was also very proud of his posts and sought recognition on the internet. And the most infuriating thing was his post from a few years ago when Yao Cheng was a high school student. He triumphantly said on Weibo: "Today, I dumped a big pot for that step kid. Let him remember that making serious mistakes can get one beaten up. So happy."
The internet users were shocked to anger at seeing this. Remembering the aunt's words, Yao Cheng was beaten up by a girl's parent for supposedly harassing her.
"Today, that step kid came and asked for alimony. I let mom buckle him for 100 million, ha ha ha."
"This step kid still wants to go to college? Dream on, my mom said to just wait till he's 18 and then drive him out."
"That step kid entered first year, really annoying. I want to find someone to beat him up."
"It's the holidays and that step kid also came back. I got my punching bag back, la."
Comments like this were everywhere on this cousin's Weibo, driving users almost insane.
What kind of child is this! How can he be so evil! Yao Cheng sent money to this kind of relative? Very foolish! Is there a hole in your brain?
Then, people also dug up Yao Cheng's past. When he was in the new term of his second year, his uncle fell sick and was hospitalized once. It was found that Yao Cheng began sending money home since then.
{A small fish}: So… the reason Yao Cheng dropped out of school was because he transferred his tuition money to pay for his uncle's treatment? Later, he also sends them money every month…
The fans who saw these comments were silent. Before, they thought Yao Cheng was annoying – and now they wanted to love him dearly. How bad would it feel if your loved ones were bullying you to death? How bad would it be?
Thinking carefully, the things that aunt had said actually didn't have any evidence – they were too quick to believe it because of Yao Cheng's initial bad impression.
And what was the cause of Yao Cheng's bad impression?
The rumours.
And what did the rumours say?
That he was always late and was loathed by both the crew and the cast. Poor attitude and bad manners, antisocial and hard to get along with. Even the director said that he regretted choosing him as the lead actor…
But obviously they already dug it up ah. Those rumours came from Deng Jun's small account. And before this, they also saw Yao Cheng post dinner group photos. In the photo, he, the cast and the crew all had linked arms around shoulders – drinking and laughing, looking so happy. As if life had never been unfair to him, as if there was only goodwill and kindness around him.
Is this child stupid or what.
Some emotional fans ran back to Yao Cheng's previous post, feeling guiltier and sadder. Also seeing that he stopped posting after the dinner group photo, they couldn't help but feel awful for his grievance.
This is just an ordinary boy who likes to play game ah. Where is the black stuff saying his ugliness? Thinking carefully, Yao Cheng had just turned 21 this year – to face the overwhelming internet abuse these past few days… how could he have endured that?
Fans repeatedly refreshed his Weibo, looking at the brief introduction on it; a smiling face.
They felt pained.
If you've been wronged just say, ah. The other scolded you, but you didn't scold back. That kind of family, what are you doing by giving them money? You earned it with difficulty, why don't you just use it to buy some good food? Or to continue your study? It's also alright if you just save it.
Look at Zhang Xinran, she's obviously walking forward to be a superstar in people's eyes. How can you be so miserable? You both started at the same point, how can you just end up being bullied like this?
Everyone on Weibo was at a slump, and the drama rating ended up being much lower than the last time. Everyone just unconsciously roamed around on Weibo, just like a lost soul. They didn't know how to vent the dejected feeling in their hearts.
Near midnight, a detailed posted about Yao Cheng's aunt was posted. The full venting of the fans poured in, and then with the real hammering post, their three views were all broken, mad rage rushed!
Such a stingy, mean and greedy woman. She dared to boast as Yao Cheng's benefactor? Pei! Shameless! She also dared to go to the local TV station to smear Yao Cheng. Really, really angers one to the point their livers hurt!
After that, someone also dug up Yao Cheng's donation record. After getting payments from the drama, he traveled to S city and Y city's orphanage, donating his money and doing some volunteer works. Silently doing a lot of good things.
Fans looked at the Aunt's post, and then looked at Yao Cheng's donation record and his photos with the children at orphanage while volunteering. The last of the hesitation in their hearts finally vanished. All smashed their keyboard in guilt.
What a good child, even with that black miserable past. Damn that aunt, damn us even more!
The #weoweYaoChenganapology topic quietly rose in Weibo, irresistibly shooting straight to number one – the #beautynerd and #nationschoolgirl and so on topic were firmly left behind!
Fans flocked to Yao Cheng's Weibo and started apologizing; begging him to come back.
{A small fish}: But don't you think it's strange? Yao Cheng was smeared black tragically, and only Li Hao and the other young actor came out to speak for him. Only Zhang Xinran who was 'harassed' by Yao Cheng didn't make a sound from beginning till end. Obviously they are both the main players in this drama…
Fans who were filling the comments with apologies were stunned at seeing this post. They quickly rushed to Zhang Xinran's Weibo to go over her last few days' posts.
Nothing, not a single line mentioned about Yao Cheng. The posts were just messages of gratitude and appreciation towards the director, happiness because of some other invitation from an actor and so on. The most recent post was about celebrating the new contract with the Mu Tian label, getting a forward lottery and sending a signature photo.
Good subtlety.
The opening had been buried, this night was doomed to be tumultuous.
Ye Zhizhou turned off the computer in content after logging out from his 'A small fish' account and erasing all the traces of his secret work. After stretching his body, he climbed to bed and slept.
On the 35th floor of Mu Tian building, Ouyang Chun shut down the computer and picked up his phone to call Qing Xiao. He simply said a few sentences before hanging up. He leaned back on his chair and slowly gripped the beads to forcedly rub at it. His tone was cold, "Xiao Cheng, harassed girlfriend?"
At 8.00 am, Ye Zhizhou was awakened by the doorbell. He stumbled out of bed in a dazed, and yawned before opening the door.
"Morning." Ouyang Chun, who was dressed in a simple white shirt and black pants, slightly rose his hand to greet him. His deep looks were outline with the morning sun, the handsome looks almost making people want to throw themselves at his feet.
Ye Zhizhou's spirit who also just awakened quickly activated, eager to pounce itself on the man. His, uh, little brother who was easily excited in the morning also stood up against his will.
His mind was instantly cleared by this. His hand moved faster than his brain, directly slamming the door.
After a few seconds of dead silence, the doorbell rang insistently.
After getting back his rationality, his IQ finally resurrected. His heart thumped and the little brother finally calmed down.
Oh no! His golden thigh!
He quickly jumped over to open the door, showing the dark faced man his his flattering smile, "Boss, you came. I'm just too excited that my hand slipped. Umm… Did you already have breakfast?"
Ouyang Chun looked at him with narrowed eyes, looking at his sticking up hair to the collar revealing pyjamas, then continuing down to the round, smooth toes. With deep and serious eyes, he said "Compared to breakfast, I want to eat you more."
Bang—
The door was closed again.
Ouyang Chun's patience was finally gone, and the corner of his mouth was pulled into a straight cold line. He reached backwards, "Key."
Qing Xiao stepped forward in silence, and took out the spare key provided by the property manager. Hesitantly, he said, "Uncle, this is not a good way…"
"Disobedient children need to learn a little lesson." Ouyang Chun used the key and opened the door, looking at the scared youth inside. "You can come to me and follow me to the car by yourself, or grabbed, tied up and taken away. You choose."
The so called honorific can kill. Ye Zhizhou cracked his neck and pulled up his pyjamas, he then…chose a wise option, "That… can I go brush my teeth first?"
One hour later, Ye Zhizhou's hand was stuffed with a steamed bun and the other with a milk cup with a straw – the straw being personally inserted by Ouyang Chun. They entered B city, where outside a shooting base.
The blindingly handsome Ouyang Zhi came in. Smilingly, he walked toward them and waved, his tone was full with excitement. "Aunt, you came! Please give me some help with my next MV, I'm looking forward to our cooperation."
"Ha?"
"I saw the news on the internet." Ouyang Chun who just stood behind finally stepped forward. He touched Zhizhou's hair and then bowed down to kiss his ear. "Don't worry, I'll fix it. Now just go and have some fun." Saying this, he then gently pushed him toward Ouyang Zhi.
Ye Zhizhou took a step forward and stood still. He couldn't help but turn around, only to see a tall figure leaving.
[Ouyang Zhi and Protagonist love probability has dropped to 90%. Please make persistent effort, Host.]
[Ouyang Di and Protagonist love probability has dropped to 85%. Please make persistent effort, Host.]
"…" Ever since he was fancied by the golden thigh, the meat pie from heaven always seemed to drop for him. He stood beside the handsome Ouyang Zhi while chewing on his steamed bun – looking intently at the screen in front of him with a numb mind.
This was the fifth year since Ouyang Zhi's debut. In order to repay his fans, he – who never sang a love song before – decided to record a warm love song, planning on release it on Qi Xi Festival, as a gift for fans.
{T/N: Qi Xi or Qiqiao Festival is a Chinese Valentines Day on July 7th. It's called Tanabata in Japan}
Everything was going well at first, but when the time came to discuss who should be the leading role, they had a disagreement. Some people wanted to invite the movie queen, some wanted a newcomer, and some felt that it was best to let Ouyang Zhi himself star in it. Everyone kept quarrelling, and it was only after Director Zhang Zhu held a couple of meeting that everyone gradually calm down. Not compromising under the proposal was useless, so he let Ouyang Zhi choose. Seeing that Ouyang the Movie Emperor was sometimes unreliable, Zhang Zhu deliberately designed the basic criteria in advance, such as: sweet, adorable, young, intellectual, strong, positive image, soft, and a girl.
However, this Movie Emperor brought someone who didn't match those standards at all.
Zhang Zhu held his chest, standing still with a black face, tilted eyes and a sneer, "Young Master Ouyang Zhi, do you have hearing problems, or are you blind?
"Please believe me." Ouyang Zhi looked at him seriously, paused, then added, "Also, I'm the second son, Young Master is my big brother; you should call me Second Young Master."
The commoner Zhang Zhu almost vomited blood at the natural aristocrat air. Firmly staring at him then at Ye Zhizhou, Zhu's ruthless words got choked in his throat, and he just coldly snorted before angrily leaving.
Ye Zhizhou watched the young director run far, finally finishing his soymilk. He poked Ouyang Zhi, "Big Nephew, are you not afraid I will fail your MV?"
"Afraid." Ouyang Zhi was unexpectedly honest, tone gradually changing as he spoke, "But I'm more afraid that Uncle will smash my funding… Aunt," He turned around and held Ye Zhizhou's hand earnestly and seriously said, "For my fans, please be sure to work hard!"
"I'll try." Ye Zhizhou withdrew his hand and put the soymilk cup into Ouyang Zhi's hand. Gripping it tightly, he said with a more serious tone, "If you call me Aunt again, I'll go complain to your Uncle; said that you covet me for my charm and took advantage of me while shooting this MV."
Ouyang Zhi immediately took his hand and put it behind his body.
Mu Tian's shared team for Ouyang Zhi were the best. One hour later, Ye Zhizhou's sticking-up, disordered hair and homey clothes all disappeared – and as if he was walking out from a magazine, Ye Zhizhou stood in front of the camera.
Brown hair, a face that became even more handsome after a bit of make-up, very fine skin, a gentle air, sweet and sexy smile, also with that outstanding youthfully light sweater… Damn! So handsome, ah! How can there be this much handsomeness, ah!
Surrounded by faint female screams, Zhang Zhu forcefully coughed to press down the commotion. Stooping down to see through the lens of camera, he saw Ye Zhizhou standing in front of a small castle. His dark face eased down, and standing upright, he asked, "Have you seen the script?"
"I have." His smiling face when answering looked really cute – suppressed screams came out once again.
Zhang Zhu angrily looked at the staff, waiting for them to quiet down, then waved his hands and motioned to start shooting. There was no detail explanation, there was also no trial – as if the one on the stage was not a newcomer but a veteran actor.
Ouyang Zhi slightly frowned with worry in his heart, but it turned out to be unfounded.
With the director cueing action, Ye Zhizhou quickly entered his state. He imagined the camera as Yun Ke and automatically revealed a sweet and depending-on smile. Holding out his hands, he made an invitation gesture, and slowly, a happy and intimate air revolved. Zhizhou turned his body around, as if pulling the heart of his lover and running towards the castle in happiness.
"Cut!"
The camera stopped, and everyone who was intoxicated from Ye Zhizhou's charm finally sobered, held their faces and screamed. Aaaah! Dear, come and hold my hand! I'll follow you! Marry me, marry me!
Zhang Zhu was also stunned by this performance. He finally moved with a bit of uneasiness at the enthusiastic atmosphere, and repeatedly looked at the clip. Seeing that there really was no mistake, he held his breath, then opened up his puckered mouth, "It's over, next preparation." Where did this evil newcomer come from? It was too hard to find fault…
The crowd couldn't help but cheering. Ouyang Zhi's heart fell back down to his belly, and regaining his smiling face, he touched his chin, took out his camera and aim at Ye Zhizhou – recording a video.
At Mu Tian's building, 34th floor, He Zhenheng was flustered by Hu Zongze shouting. He threw down a document and asked, "This is the newcomer you think highly of? Just joined and finished her first drama, she dares to dig a hole in the lead actor! Her mind is very poisonous."
He Zhenheng picked up the document in confusion then turn it over, his face gradually snaking. He immediately admitted his mistake, "I'm sorry Chief Hu, it's my mistake." A poisonous spider who thought herself a hardworking white rabbit didn't need to be worried about.
{T/N: poisonous spider = someone evil and dangerous, white rabbit = someone pure and even naive}
"First, let's just give this newcomer the cold shoulder." Facing his trusted subordinate, Hu Zongze's anger was also quick to go. He kneaded his forehead, sighing, "In the meantime, don't give her any contracts, also don't let her know about this, there are other arrangements from above."
"Above?" He Zhenheng was surprised, then hesitated asked, "Is it…the Head Office/HQ?"
Hu Zongze looked at him helplessly, and nodded, "I will tell you this, after you handed over that in-the-pit-hole newcomer, Manager Zhao took him to the 35th floor and signed him an assistant contract – a special assistant, directly hired by the HQ. Towards this special assistant status, think about it yourself."
He Zhenheng gasped. This special assistant status, isn't it about the same level as the Vice President? He, he still thought that the other person was called upstairs because someone took a fancy of him, and want to keep him (as a mistress)…
"In short, you need to pay more attention to that newcomer, don't let her blindly go crazy again." Hu Zongze said with a sneer, face full of sarcasm, "Please keep the naivety to yourself, borrow someone else's hand to splash the black material – the drama has not finished broadcasting, just hold her hand on the "A" label. This newcomer's method is not like some girl who just entered the entertainment industry. Lao He, be careful not to turn over the boat in the hands of a little girl."
{T/N: 老 (lǎo) means old, it is also used to show respect, but in this context it conveys the idea of a close relationship}
{Ed. Notes: The above paragraph was a bit weird in wording, not too sure if it got the actual meaning across. It means something like Zhang Xinran is a cunning newcomer – and that they shouldn't let her have too many privileges. But also to not let her know as this as she may do something to affect broadcasting view rates}
He Zhenheng pushed down his words to thought. His heart was cold, and his back exuded cold sweat.
After a whole day of fermentation, the public opinion on Weibo was completely reversed. Along with the quickly washed white Yao Cheng, Zhang Xinran's perfect reputation gradually got a layer of ash.
After flipping through all the cast and crew's Weibo, the fans found out a magical phenomenon. That even though on Zang Xinran's Weibo, she seemed to have a good interaction with the others, there weren't any pictures of her in the others' dinner group posts. On the contrary, even though Yao Cheng never showed much on his Weibo, and didn't interact much with the other cast and crew, his figure still could be seen in the background of the others' posts – clearly having a quiet and good relationship in private. The most interesting thing was that in Deng Jun's daily post, Zhang Xinran's bag and clothing appeared in the corner, and on Weibo, their interaction seem very official.
A cover up only makes things more capricious, certainly sly. This was the only idea that the fans had after reading these kinds of contrasting posts.
The popular 'Aesthetic Lord' topic still hung, but fans only felt sarcastic now. Really a top student, her scheming is also very deep. If those transfer records didn't flow out onto the internet, Yao Cheng probably would have been completely blackened away from the entertainment industry.
Although there were a variety of speculation, Zhang Xinran's helplessness and Deng Jun's cover was too good – aside from those clues on the photo's corner, they couldn't find any proof of interaction. The most frightening case was that even though fans dug deeply about Zhang Xinran, they couldn't find any dark about her, not even an ugly photo!
In this case – whether she was really kind and perfect from childhood till now, or someone erased her past history in advance – only her most perfect side was displayed on the internet.
Combined with Yao Cheng's dark past, fans were more likely to prefer the second.
Opening up her Weibo account, and rummaging through it again, fans thought that the former inspirational posts about 'appreciated by director', 'valued by agent', 'invited to XXX activities by XXX actor', and 'honoured at getting XX title' instantly became hypocrisy. The former excellent acting skill and greatly praise by media saying that she was someone born with a superstar nature also became proof of her profound mind.
Zhang Xinran was only 18, but all things were maintained and helped to create her perfect image, thinking deeply to the extreme.
Just when the atmosphere began to become awkward and delicate, Mu Tian officially issued a statement. The statement said that actor Deng Jun and Ms. Liu Chinxiu's recent improper actions toward Mu Tian staff, Mr. Yao Cheng, had caused a bad impact and serious damage to the latter. After much deliberation, the company had decided to entrust a lawyer to take legal measures against these two people. Hopefully, the two people will immediately stop all the smearing and slander against Mr. Yao Cheng after they'd seen this statement, and quietly wait for the court summons.
A stone stirs up a thousand layers of waves!
Yao Cheng also surprisingly signed a contract with Mu Tian! And now Mu Tian took the initiative for his sake! A neat and straight shot to the court, completely disregarding the public war on internet. Mu Tian was so cool! How bold!
The slightly dispirited fans cheered up, but were confused again soon after. Mu Tian sued Deng Jun and Yao Cheng's aunt, but what about Zhang Xinran? Was she really innocent?
We Fen were happy, one by one they all post that their family's Ran-Ran was certainly innocent. Otherwise, why was her name not on the list? And Ju Fen said that Zhang Xinran was certainly not white – her name was not on the list simply because they were both are Mu Tian members; the company wouldn't let them go and create an internal affair, let other companies see them as a joke. That much ugliness, surely it's the only way for an internal affair's solution.
{T/N: We Fen are solo fans who only like one person from a drama or an idol group, and Ju Fen are similar to fans who like the drama itself}
Having no place to vent out their subtle mood, fans began to vigorously fight with each other.
After finishing the shooting, Ye Zhizhou who was bored to death opened Weibo. One moment, he looked at the fan war, and on the other moment, he looked at the Mu Tian statement. He supported his chin whilst in deep thought. In the end, should he continue to use the golden thigh power to step on the protagonist and cut her off from entertainment industry…?
"What are you thinking?"
"Zhang Xinran."
The atmosphere around them suddenly sank, and realising this, Ye Zhizhou snapped out of it – looking back from his chair to see the man. *Blink, blink* That, this… why is the golden thigh standing behind his chair? Wasn't the one behind him Ouyang Zhi…?
"Who are you looking for now?"
"Ouyang…uh"
"Very well." Ouyang Chun lifted his hand onto Ye Zhizhou's forehead, brushing the bangs that covered the swelling. With his tone seriously cold, and his expression dark, "Yao Cheng, I really want to lock you up, only for me to see."
The hair on Ye Zhizhou's neck pricked up, and an alarm siren rang out in his heart.
It is risky hugging a thigh! One need to be cautious when completing this mission! One absolutely cannot take shortcuts and the like, ah!
Ouyang Chun grabbed the wanting to flee Ye Zhizhou, and dragged him to the car, locking the door.
"I read something interesting today." He raised the car window – taking off his jacket, pulling out his tie, and undoing the buttons on his sleeve. "After joining the crew for half a month, you began to pursue Zhang Xinran, hmm? You also gave presents to woo her?"
Ye Zhizhou quickly straightened in his seat, looking at the dark eyes. His heart blowing with cold wind, he carefully moved towards the car door, "Boss, you… you calm down…."
"Calm down?" He pulled up his sleeves and began to undo the button on his collar. Suddenly, he moved forward – one hand on the back of the chair as support, and the other pressing on the car door – firmly trapping that person in his arms, "I'm very calm now."
Golden thigh, you seem to have a problem with your emotional perception!
Narrow space, not a lot of distance – the always supressed spiritual force became reckless again. Zhizhou took a deep breath to calm down himself, then pushed his hands against the man's chest, attempting resistance, "Boss, move back a bit, it's too close." The spirit force was going to be released.
"Don't call me boss." Seeing him resist, Ouyang Chun's breath became even colder. He caught the younger man's hand and use the other to touch the back of his head. Ouyang Chun pulled him closer and used slight force to make him raise his head. Then, he moved toward his ear, "Remember, in the future, call my name."
With the warm breath blowing in his ear, the numbing feeling spread from his ear to the back of his head, making his sensitive body start trembling.
Not good!
He hurriedly avoided the heat near his ear. Taking back his hand with struggle, Zhizhou covered and rubbed at his ears. Damn it! Why was it that even after changing his body, his sensitive spot was still in the same deadly place!
Ouyang Chun stopped, getting up slightly and looking at the man. His hand on the back of the youth's head shifted, and he touched the earlobe with his thumb. With an ambiguous and deep voice, he questioned, "Is it here?"
"What… umph!"
His hand was pulled, and his lips were blocked. A strong mint fragrance suddenly came over him. The strong hand that keep fondling the back of his head gradually moved up and stopped at his hair whorl. Gently, Ouyang Chun began to rub it.
Familiar places, familiar strength, familiar movements.
Ye Zhizhou's mind entirely jolted up, and his struggle stopped with eyes unconsciously wide open. His intention to bite the other man also vanished immediately. He just rigidly looked at the man's closed eyes with writhing thoughts.
Why did you touch this place? Why… there?
Finding that he was no longer struggling, Ouyang Chun loosened his hands – hugging him tightly and gently patting his back, "Xiao Cheng, be good." After finishing his half-forced kiss, he leaned in and kissed the youth's earlobe. Using an appeasing and soothing tone, he said, "I will treat you right, so just look at me, ok?"
{Ed. Note: For those who are confused, Xiao is a term of endearment. Added on to Yao Cheng's name, ML is basically endearing to MC.}
Even the way of comforting people and intimacy is the same as… him. Zhizhou's consciousness blurred, and the last trace of spiritual repression finally broke, letting a huge spiritual force spread out inside the car. Surrounding the two people inside excitedly, a few uncontrolled strands began winding away towards Ouyang Chun.
… This person who's kissing him now, is he the same one?
His hand unconsciously lifted up to hold the man's body – his eyes full of hope but hesitation flashing in his heart. Whether he was Yun Ke or not… his lover had said he would wait for him in the next life… could it really be him?
Aware of the softening responses from the person in his arms, Ouyang Chun heart grew soft. He slightly retreated, touched his forehead with his own, and gently rubbed at the other's hair, "Xiao Cheng, I need to go back to HQ to deal with something, it should be done in 1 to 2 months. I'll let Qing Xiao take care of you. You obediently wait for me."
"You're going to leave?" Ye Zhizhou snapped out from his tangled thoughts in a flash. Tightening his arms around this man, his eyes filled with a scared and fierce desire, "Don't go!"
Just giving him so much hope, now you want to run away? Don't even think about it!
"Be good." Seeing the youth's overbearing dependency on him made his heart full with joy. Ouyang Chun's mouth slightly arose, his expression gentle. He pinched the youth's earlobe, and in coaxing way, said, "Don't be spoiled, I'll bring you a gift when I get back, what do you want?"
Even the way he pinched the earlobe way is the same!
The hope in his heart increased more and more, and the spiritual force also strongly wanted to defile each other's mind, "I want you!" If he really is his lover… unexpectedly wanting to run, he can't forgive!
Ouyang Chun's adam's apple moved. Deeply laughing, the act of pinching the earlobe became even more ambiguous, and he couldn't help but bow down and kiss the wide open lips with bright eyes, "Well, when I come back."
In the end, Ye Zhizhou couldn't make Ouyang Chun to stay. He looked at the taking off plane with bitter hate, and then with all the grievance in his heart, he ran back to Mu Tian – low spirit, others also don't get to be happy! In anger, he pulled out Ouyang Zhi to play games all night. After putting aside the dead asleep movie emperor, he moved towards his computer and turned it on while grinding his teeth.
Dear protagonist, prepare yourself!
Zhang Xinran flipped through all kinds of 󠇣□□□ and questions on Weibo, and the more she saw, the angrier she became. Eventually, she couldn't help but throw the mouse.
{T/N : It written like that in the raws.}
How could this be! Just one day of not looking at Weibo, and this blackened slag man who couldn't get more black was miraculously washed white! And the image she had painstakingly put a lot of effort to build had unexpectedly been criticized as deep scheme?! A bunch of mindless fans! Deng Jun and that Yao Cheng's aunt, couldn't do anything right!
After a long time, she was finally able to suppress her anger. She took out her phone and looked for He Zhenheng contact. Luckily her manager was very capable, surely he could help her solve this black water that had spilled all onto the internet.
The phone rang for a much longer time than usual before connecting, and He Zhenheng's attitude was much colder than usual.
"He Ge, you really don't care?"
"Just a bit of a rumour, no need to pay attention. Having this opportunity, you better improve your abilities. Just do it this way, your first work will soon finish, and then when it does, I'll find you some teachers to improve your acting skill."
Zhang Xinran's brain was about to explode, "I still need to improve my acting skills?" She had already become a seasoned actor after being involved in the entertainment industry for ten years in her former life. What she heard from He Zhenheng was nothing but an excuse, this was obviously the cold shoulder!
"Youngster, don't be so conceited!" He Zhenheng's tone sank down, and said in a blaming tone, "The young mind looks down on others, I tell you. This goes on again, and no one will be able to maintain you! Don't look down on the entertainment industry!"
The phone hung up, and she held her phone in disbelief, slowly tightening her hand.
Don't look down on entertainment industry? Zhenheng! I will surely make you regret doing this to me today!
One week later, 《Fate, let me love you》 finally finished with a big end. The fans' war gradually stopped, but Zhang Xinran and Yao Cheng's fans had already become an existence of fire and water – if they met, they couldn't help but tear at each other.
At the same time, the news about the adaptation of a famous ancient novel 《Fang Hua Jin》 into a drama was swarming the media and internet. The list of males and females starring in the drama was also announced in succession, triggering round after round of hot discussion on internet.
Zhang Xinran opened her Weibo, and saw there was still no-one as the second female lead in the cast list. With big determination in her heart, she got up and turned off the computer, coming to the wardrobe to dress up and catch the big fish.
In her former life, they didn't find the right actor for this role until a week later from B city movie college. The lucky freshman along with this drama leaped forward to become the screen darling, going straight to the big screen and developing a very smooth career; very different from the other second-rate cast actors. This lifetime, that second female lead role, she must take it!
On the
Seeing a head of gray hair could faintly behind the tall back chair, her face revealed a very confident smile. She tidied up her long skirt, then put on the 'just-right' smile, walking towards that table.
"Lucky to meet you today, don't worry, you'll be able to play the role of this character." An amiable and kind voice could be heard, and an old but vigorous hand extend from the chair's back, "I'm very optimistic about you!"
Zhang Xinran couldn't help but stop, doubtfully frowning, how come this director wasn't alone?
A long haired maiden suddenly stood up and appeared in her vision, slightly stooping to hold that pale hand, and the voice full of joy and solemnity, "Thank you for the appreciation, I'll work hard to live up to your expectations!"
Tang Hua! She was the one who played the second female lead in the last life. How could she be here?!
Not expecting this different scene, she couldn't help but take a step back. She accidently bumped her feet into the potted plant on the side, and stumbling, she cried out falling onto the ground.
A waiter who stood not far from her hurriedly rushed over with a concerned look, "Guest, are you alright?"
"I'm fine." She got up wiht embarrassment in her heart. She turned her head sideways while pretending to fix up her skirt to cover her face, panic after seeing Tang Hua made her become careless; just like a slap in the face, she felt burning embarrassment.
From the café corner, Ye Zhizhou put down his phone's video recording, got up and left.
The next day, 《Fang Hua Jin》 announced the name of the actress playing the second female lead. The sweet and pretty maiden Tang Hua entered the public eye, attracting a new wave of hot discussion.
Ye Zhizhou closed the hot post in joy. Opening up his own blog page, he posted the game strategy video he had worked on for all night onto Weibo. At the same time, he opened up Li Hao and Ouyang Zhi's Weibo. People who had circled as if waiting for him, quickly pressed forward to pour praises.
{Ed. Note: It really isn't clear from the MTL, but assume that Ouyang Chun also posted that game strategy video. It's easier to understand this way.}
Cheng Fen and Ou Fens were all shocked!
{T/N: Cheng Fen = Yao Cheng fans; Ou Fen = Ouyang Zhi fans}
Our family's Cheng Cheng didn't abandon us! He's still using Weibo! He still makes game strategies! He actually hangs out with big movie emperor Ouyang! He's still playing games in our grievance and guilt! Ah… doesn't it look like something's look wrong?
Ou Fans were so excited to the point they want to kill their idol.
You agree to give us a gift ne! Qi Xi festival is coming; yet you're not doing your song! Actually running off to play some games! We demand our gift ah! There's also a new movie, and you've been off for six months! We need some new food to eat!
Probably because fans were too passionate, just half an hour after big actor Ouyang updated his Weibo, a 10 second short video was also uploaded, with title "Fans' Gift Teaser."
The fans were excited! A pair of eyes full of love came onto the screen, then it blinked, and the camera was slightly drawn back. A full smile was on the handsome face, and a dream castle behind him. Lips opened up, a clear and seductive voice penetrating their brain and exciting their pounding hearts, "Want to go with me to see it?"
The video ended, and the sexy voice and handsome face disappeared. Fans unconsciously held their red face, excitedly screaming.
Damn ah! So handsome Xiao Gege. Look at him! Whatever you say, take me with you to Heaven! Aahhhh, Xiao Gege marry me!
{T/N : Xiao = little; Gege = brother; so, little brother? Xiao Gege is referring to Yao Cheng}
Cheng Fans who came over out of curiosity were even more excited! Their idol still has something up his sleeve! Beside playing games, he still managed to do proper work! Look at this small face that hooked people in! Vomiting blood and licking the screen! What Xiao Gege, that is my family's Cheng Cheng! My family! Mine!
Both fans were plunged into madness, quickly rallying together to comment like crazy on Ouyang Zhi's Weibo – we kneel down for the full version! We need Xiao Gege's comfort!
The short video become the number one hit in just an hour when it spread wildly. "Who's the handsome guy in the video?" This question filled every corner, and Weibo was lively like the Chinese New Year Festival.
Far away in Y country, Ouyang Chun close the video with a dark face, silently putting the documents on the table while emitting a cold air.
Ouyang Di laughed at this sight and asked, "Is this the Aunt?"
{T/N: The twins actually call Ouyang Chun as second uncle and Yao Cheng as second aunt, but I'll just write it as Uncle and Aunt.}
Ouyang Chun didn't reply, and he disposed the piling stacks of files to reach the phone and call Qing Xiao.
Watching his own uncle lose his calm, Ouyang Di can't help but sigh. He swept a look at the computer screen, and seeing his own stupid little brother's Weibo ID, he silently lit a candle for him in his heart. Uncle turned over in jealousy, brother you have bad luck ah!
Well, I'm very happy.
On the day of the Qi Xi festival, the full version of the MV was released –Ouyang Zhi and Yao Cheng's Weibo almost being crushed by fans. At the same time, Zhang Xinran was job-hopping and looking for a new agency.
Ye Zhizhou who had heard the news was stunned to the point that he had almost spilled the milk in his hand, "Where did she go?"
"Huang Tu." Qing Xiao handed over the napkin, before pausing and then kindly stating, "Please do not ask this question in front of Boss, he'll be angry if you pay attention to Miss Zhang." If the Boss got angry, it was a guaranteed bad day for the subordinates.
Ye Zhizhou who heard this hurriedly put down his milk, and asked, "I remember she signed the contract here – the penalty for breaking the contract is several million. Did she pay it? Also, the condition Mu Tian gave her were great, why did she change agencies?" Not even staying for months, before leaving? Directly going to her agency in her previous life, Huang Tu, to do what?
"The penalty was paid for by Huang Tu, as for the reason…" Qing Xiao looked at him, as if wanting to say something, but hesitating.
Ye Zhizhou was baffled by his look, "Why are you looking at me like that, is it because of me?"
"Not at all." Qing Xiao shook his head, though of his words and explained, "Boss didn't like Miss Zhang, and then the subordinates heard about it…"
"…So it really is because of me." His face grew stiff, a deadpan expression gradually showing.
Qing Xiao hurriedly summoned his courage upon seeing this, "Mr. Yao, you're now together with Boss, please don't care too much about this sort of thing – if the Boss know, you…"
"Good!" His deadpan face suddenly sprung up like a blooming flower, completely lacking in integrity, Ye Zhizhou stood up in high spirits. He quickly faced the Gaming Room in joy, "Let's play games to celebrate! Ouyang Zhi can come out and play with me!"
Qing Xiao's unfinished words got choked in his throat, and after his coughing fit, he just sighed. Mr. Yao's temper… as a supposedly golden assistant, he really was not capable enough.
Zhang Xinran did more than just changing agency though, as she also rode the ship of the recently hot actress, Liu Fei Fei.
{Ed. Note: riding another's ship is in reference to riding on someone's coattails – leaching off someone else's fame.}
The world was changing so fast that Ye Zhizhou found it a bit hard to adjust.
The number one hot topic on Weibo currently was Ouyang Zhi's release of the complete MV. The second hot topic was the friendly photo of Liu Fei Fei and Zhang Xinran participating in an activity together, captioned with 'My newest little sister is so cute hahaha'.
The fans were all surprised at Zhang XinRan's sudden change of agencies, and various theories began breeding like flies. No one congratulated her, and many were even questioning her decision.
Ye Zhizhou couldn't understand why the protagonist was doing this. He moved to the computer to hack into Huang Tu's system, being surprised at his findings: Huang Tu had signed a Grade A contract with Zhang Xinran, also giving her the same salary as Liu Fei Fei! Xinran was also given the same manager as Liu Fei Fei – the same manager who had helped Liu Fei Fei and Yao Cheng ruthlessly crush Zhang Xinran in the previous life.
Enemies to friends, what was the protagonist thinking?
Not waiting for him to figure it out, a phone call from Zhang Xinran came in, asking if he was participating in the recording of this weekend's variety show in S Province.
Her tone was reserved and cold, like a goddess of superiority. Hearing this, Ye Zhizhou just rolled his eyes, and stiffly answered, "I did receive an invitation for the program from Hao Ge. I'll come – after all, this is to promote the drama."
Recently, Li Hao had sold the drama's copyright to S Province's TV station. The reason they had to participate in this variety show was to create hype around the drama yet again. Because of this, he definitely had to participate.
"Yes." Getting a positive answer, Zhang Xinran's attitude immediately chilled.
With a vaguely hinting to something, she said, "Then I'll wait for you in the program. I'll introduce you to a good opportunity – no need to thank me." Then she directly hung up, as if he wouldn't be able to refuse such a deal.
Ye Zhizhou looked at his phone, dumbfounded. Was this protagonist really in the entertainment industry for more than ten years in her last life? Their fans could be said to be fire and water on Weibo – no longer contacting each other after the drama ended. Where did she find this confidence in the idea that Yao Cheng won't refuse her? She wanted to introduce an opportunity to him? Isn't it just wanting to dig a hole for him?
In the Huang Tu actors' lounge, Zhang Xinran put down the phone – tidying up her make up in the mirror. Squeezing out a simple brilliant smile, she went out to the lounge next door, and knocked. Playfully, she leaned on the door and said, "Liu Jie, the full version of the MV I showed you before came out. Do you want to see it?"
Liu Fei Fei, who was fixing up her make-up, immediately brightened up after hearing this. Putting down her lipstick, she then said, "This younger sister definitely knows me well. Where is the video? By the way, you said that you will introduce me to the actor in the video. You can't lie to me, ok?"
"Of course, I won't lie to you." Xinran smiled and took out her cellphone, a dim light flashing in her eyes. "I promise that I'll introduce you properly, and let you two get to know each other."
On Sunday, the paparazzi confirmed that last Wednesday, Sun Han Ya, the actress who was going to be starring as the main female lead in the drama 《Fang Hua Jin》, was suddenly arrested because of illegal drug. On the following day, the crew announced the withdrawal of Sun Han Ya from the set, surprisingly being replaced by none other than Liu Fei Fei. Later, according to the investigation, the third female lead was also involved in the case ––– her role was revoked and given to Zhang Xinran who immediately accepted…
After hearing this news, Ye Zhizhou finally put away his careless attitude and frowned slightly.
This illegal drug case was too timely.
Sun Han Ya was someone who debuted as a child star, developing into a national level actress very smoothly. Therefore, this person was somewhat pure. In the previous life, when the protagonist was down, Sun Han Ya empathized with her, so the protagonist was very grateful to Sun Han Ya. Unfortunately, Sun Han Ya was unlucky, and she had a boyfriend who secretly used drugs. In a police anti-drug operation, she got implicated by her boyfriend. In the original story after the protagonist's rebirth, she showed Sun Han Ya her boyfriend's true face to show her gratitude for Sun Han Ya's help in the previous life. They soon became good friends.
Now, Sun Han Ya should have just started a relationship with her boyfriend. Her boyfriend's illegal drug case should not have been blown up at this time. After thinking it over, there was only one possibility – this was the work of the protagonist.
Even her benefactor who had helped her in the previous life were dragged to the pit. This protagonist's heart… was thoroughly black!
Ye Zhizhou's mood was somewhat complicated. He could understand the protagonist's hatred for Yao Cheng and Liu Fei Fei – after all, they were the slag and the mistress, they were meant to be hated. But Sun Han Ya was really innocent… was this really the woman who was running on the front lines trying to help the suffering women and children? The protagonist?
The news of replaced cast had become unpleasant to the eyes. After careful consideration, he realised that Zhang Xinran had still gotten everything that she was meant to get in the original plot – excluding the change of agencies and her playing the third female lead instead of the second. Under such torment, the plot had still not been broken. He had thought that losing the golden thigh had blocked the protagonist's way to re-enter the entertainment industry, but there was always another road – and all roads led to Rome.
These tumultuous thoughts suddenly stopped, and an ominous feeling rose in his heart. If the protagonist was destined to rely on this ancient drama's popularity, then the following event would be…
He took a quick look at the story's plot line, and painfully rubbed his face. When the protagonist's popularity blew up due to the drama, Liu Fei Fei, who recently became a movie queen, kept Yao Cheng. Their intimate photos were immediately leaked, and Yao Cheng became synonymous with the words 'boy toy'. Due to this, he could not enter the entertainment industry ever again.
The phone call from a few days ago flashed through his mind – the protagonist said that she would introduce a good opportunity to Yao Cheng… then, thinking of the protagonist who recently got close to Liu Fei Fei, and also the case with her benefactor, Sun Han Ya, who's replacement for the first female role was Liu Fei Fei….
It seems that he was not far away from being kept for.
When Sunday arrived, Ye Zhizhou was immediately surrounded by enthusiastic fans after getting off at the appointed place. Their screams were deafening and the road was blocked. Fortunately, the bodyguard sent by Ouyang Chun was quite efficient – successfully separating the fans and creating a passage for him which to the door of the TV station.
After several waves of screaming, Zhang Xinran and the other slightly popular cast members of the crew arrived one after another. Because of the presence of the television staff, everyone acted very friendly.
Zhang Xinran stood among several actresses. From time to time, she looked in the direction of Ye Zhizhou. Not only did he not see her, he also did not take the initiative to come and say hello. She wanted to ignore him, but remembering Liu Fei Fei who was in the hotel near the TV station, Zhang Xinran frowned. Reluctantly, she took out her mobile phone and sent a message to Ye Zhizhou.
Ye Zhizhou, who was explaining some game strategies to Li Hao, felt the cellphone vibrate. He took a look and saw that Zhang Xinrain had sent a message. He did not want to delete it immediately, so he merely turned it off and returned it to his pocket.
Zhang Xinran had been observing him, and seeing his actions, she felt shocked. She dialed the phone, before realising that it was turned off. Her face immediately sank. A few months ago, he still chased after her to the brink of death, and now he just simply ignores her! What are you proud of? Sooner or later, you will kneel down and beg me!
Throwing the cellphone in her bag, she adjusted her expression and rejoined the conversation between several actors. She looked like she was immersed in the talk while looking around, her gaze falling onto Li Hao who was talking about something. As she was doing so, a thought popped up in her mind.
How dare you ignore me, it's you who'll suffer in the end, you are doomed to run away.
It was just setting up the stage and rehearsing in the afternoon, so the official recording was to be done in the evening.
After the rehearsal went smoothly, everyone went back to their hotel to rest. Ye Zhizhou took this opportunity when Zhang Xinran wasn't paying attention to invade her body with his spiritual force.
At 7pm, the recording began, and everyone performed smoothly – showing harmony and peace. The official recording was even better than the rehearsal in the afternoon, and Ye Zhizhou almost doubted that the protagonist actually had bad intentions in her heart.
Unfortunately, it just an 'almost'. After the recording ended, everyone went to the cafeteria on the fourth floor. Ye Zhizhao looked at the drink in Li Hao's hand, and raised an eyebrow. "Where are you from? I don't like to drink apple juice, didn't you know?" The original Yao Cheng actually liked this drink, but he disliked this too effeminate preference, so he never talked about it.
"Ah, you don't like it. I heard a few people say that you like this, and seeing that there was one on the table, I just brought it over." Li Hao scratched his head, pushing the juice to one side and foolishly saying, "Forget it, what would you like to drink, I'll get it for you."
"No." Ye Zizhou smiled and lifted the apple juice, getting up from his seat. "I'll get it myself. You eat first." After patting Li Hao's shoulder, he mobilised the spiritual power he left on the protagonist's body and confirmed her position before slowly walking towards her location.
At around 10.30pm, everyone returned to their respective rooms, and Ye Zhizhou lingered back for a little while. After a certain amount of calculated time, he went downstairs and mobilised his spirit to the correct position again. He walked past and wiped his trace from the CCTV along the way – easily opening the door of the 6th floor corner room, and stepping in.
"Wasn't it your idea to introduce Yao Cheng to me? How come you came up alone? Also, this devilish look!" Liu Fei Fei's looked at Zhang Xinran, who was impatiently cleaning up her things. "Really, I wasted my time, you know it's not easy for me to get a day off. I'm sick of it. You're useless. And I'm still looking for a chance to meet him."
Zhang Xinran, who had already pulled down her collar, pulled it again – feeling that the room was hot and annoying. "Liu Jie, I didn't do it on purpose. His mobile phone was turned off and there were always people around. I couldn't find a chance to bring him here."
"Didn't you take the medicine? You didn't give it to him?!"
"It was in the water, but he didn't drink at all!"
"It's useless to say you're useless! Such a waste, not even having the ability to deliver a glass of water."
Zhang Xinran only felt more and more heated, more and more irritable, and couldn't help but shout loudly. "I said that he's always surrounded by others, I cannot find the right opportunity! I'll make sure it happens next time."
Enraged by her attitude, Liu Fei Fei slammed down the baggage that was being tidied up in anger, "You still have a reason to talk back? You said that he was a good hook. As a result, people didn't care about you. Also, you said that he likes you, so he'll listen to you, all you do is be deceitful. Yao Cheng is so handsome; how could he like you? Don't overestimate yourself!"
Liu Fei Fei was childish and mean, selfish yet naïve, but also very greedy and lustful. If not for her emperor-like father who was a shareholder, she wouldn't have had such a smooth path to the position of the leading actress, and the Huang Tu agency's top actress. In the original story, protagonist succeeded in plotting against Yao Cheng, but failed to shake Liu Feifei's status – it only made her own reputation became dirtied. It was not until she embraced the twins' thighs that she completely destroyed Liu Fei Fei.
Now, Liu Fei Fei's venting words overlapped with the humiliation she had heard when she was betrayed in the last life. Zhang Xinran, who was very irritated, slammed the table and screamed, "Well then, what about you? Do you think Yao Cheng like you? He is just with you for the resources in your hands! As a third wheel you still have a reason to talk? I'll tell you, I will never let you feel happy in this life. Huang Tu's top actress? Bah! A scumbag and a slut. Sooner or later, I'll make both of you become a lowlife on the streets!"
Liu Fei Fei was so stunned at hearing her scolding – instantly rushing forwards to pull on Zhang Xinran's hair as soon as she came back to her senses. "You this slut, how dare you scold me! I'll kill you!"
"You're the slut!"
They both cursed and wrestled on the floor, not realising that Ye Zhizhou was in the corner. Probably due to the effect, Zhang Xinran's hitting movements slowly changed into a… different direction. She actually hugged Liu Fei Fei and kiss her. Liu Fei Fei's face turned green, and she hit Zhang Xinran several times with the back of her hand. When she tried to get up, she was hugged once more, and she screamed.
The current scene was very unattractive. Ye Zhizhou reluctantly recorded it for a while, then turned off the camera on his phone. Then, he gently opened the door and went out – wanting to continue the plot? Dream on!
The video was cut and edited to enhance the audio, then uploaded to the internet. Half an hour later, the link was quickly sent to Ouyang Zhi, and after thinking for a while, he also sent one to Ouyang Chun.
The love probability would reduce – Liu Fei Fei, this crazy woman, could just be left for the golden thigh to clean up. Bothersome things were for others to take care of – a good night sleep was for oneself, perfect.
Just after the end of the ad's shooting, Ouyang Zhi received his phone from his assistant, and seeing that the aunt sent a video address, he directly pressed 'play', thinking it to be just a game strategy video. The next second, a woman's quarrelling scream could be heard spreading throughout the film site.
He hurriedly paused the video – coughing and smiling an apology to the staff members around. He politely said goodbye to everyone, then tried to maintain his appearance before going into the manager car. He quickly closed the door and locked it, adjusting the volume before playing the video again.
The video was a bit dark, and one could only vaguely see that two women were arguing. After hearing the contents of the quarrel, he was surprised. Zhang Xinran and Liu Fei Fei? And they were both fighting for his aunt? This Liu Fei Fei had a crush on aunt? How bold!
The two women fought fiercely, then Zhang Xinran tore up her blouse and hugged Liu Fei Fei. Kissing her in a random manner – kissing the neck, and thighs still on either side of Fei Fei's body…
He turned off the video with a blush, feeling a little embarrassed as he rubbed his eyes.
I didn't think… the girl that aunt once liked is such a despicable person – I thought that she was just a young and not too simple-minded girl…
[Ouyang Zhi and the Protagonist's love probability has dropped to 70%, please make persistent effort, Host.]
To 70%?
The sleepiness Ye Zhizhou had brewed was promptly dispersed. After thinking about it for a while, he sent a message to Ouyang Zhi. "Big nephew, this video was taken by someone when Zhang Xinran want to secretly drug me. You have to be careful, if this girl suddenly takes a fancy of you, and then secretly puts something… she might do something when you're not sober, and end up conceiving your child. Then, with the child, she will threaten you to marry her. If you don't agree, she will abuse your child – if you agree, she'll linger on you, sticking to you every day… Aren't you afraid?"
After reading the message, Ouyang Zhi got goosebumps, then quickly replied, "Afraid! I don't want my child to have such a mother!"
[Ouyang Zhi and the Protagonist's love probability has dropped to 50%, please make persistent effort, Host.]
Ah, the effect of his one little comment was very good. He thought for a moment before adding, "And your uncle hates this girl very much."
[Ouyang Zhi and the Protagonist's love probability has dropped to 40%, please make persistent effort, Host.]
What a good boy, listening to his elders… Zhizhou narrowed his eyes and continued to send messages, "It's likely that your brother also hates such an indecent girl."
[Ouyang Zhi and the Protagonist's love probability has dropped to 30%, please make persistent effort, Host.]
Touching his chin, he added one last sentence. "I also hate this kind of girl."
He waited for quite some time before Ouyang Zhi's reply came, "I know… aunt likes my uncle ^_^"
"…To tell you a secret, Zhang Xinran likes you." Ouyang Zhi dropped his phone in fear at this terrifying text.
Until the afternoon on the following day, Ye Zhizhou still didn't receive any response from Ouyang Chun. He couldn't help but feel a bit depressed. Remembering that he was still uncertain whether Ouyang Chun was his actual lover or not – he tried to press down the feeling of sadness, then pressed and pressed… he became even more depressed.
After one night, the video had completely spread. Several friends who had also came to the recording studio had already seen the video, and seeing the dispirited Ye Zhizhou sitting in the corner, they came up to comfort him, thinking that he was sad.
Li Hao's reaction was the most exaggerated. With a pair of reluctant eyes, he handed over a small note, his voice shaking a bit, "Xiao Cheng, don't be too sad. No one thought that Zhang Xinran would be such a person! Wanting to sell you… this is my main account with five years' worth of gear. I'll give it to you! Don't be sad!"
{T/N: Just in case anyone's confused, they're talking about game accounts}
Ye Zhizhou glanced at him, then mockingly said, "My three months old account is still stronger than yours."
Getting a hard blow to his self-esteem, Li Hao was seriously injured and fell to the ground. "But I also didn't see it coming – I didn't expect this little girl, Zhang Xinran, to have such a poisonous mind. I actually had a crush on her before."
The naïve man shook his head, "One may know a person for a long time without understanding his true nature. Ah, I can't imagine how her fans must have reacted after seeing the video… the internet must be very lively now.
The internet was indeed very lively. Zhang Xinran's fans were shaken by the thunderous news, and almost couldn't shake out of it. Liu Fei Fei's character was not good, and her fans also had the same poisonous minds. Seeing that their idol was assaulted by Zhang Xinran in the video – regardless of what was right or wrong, they straight away sprayed mad words of abuse at Zhang Xinran, also insulting her fans.
Then, the angry Yao Cheng fans quickly joined the fight, with burning hatred for the two nasty women who lusted after their idol. Really wanted to beat them to death, ah!
After the Yao Cheng fans' appearance, many passer-by fans also came to join, who were then followed by the Ouyang Zhi fans.
The internet was dark and grim, and in reality, the two parties involved in the video were also in total disorder.
Liu Fei Fei and Zhang Xinran, seeing their entangled hands and feet, and also their disorderly clothes when they woke up, almost vomited in disgust. As soon as their eyes met, they were ready to fight again. At that moment, a call from their company came over – not explaining the situation, but just directly scolding them. Both women felt a bit confused at the reason they got scolded, and feeling that something was wrong, they immediately called their manager.
After listening to the brief description, they felt blank.
Yesterday's fight in the room was recorded? Who was it? They obviously locked the door!
There was no time for them to continue to wonder. The reporters who had heard the rising storm had surrounded the hotel. There were also paparazzi pretending to be hotel staff to get into their rooms. The two people who tore each other up yesterday had to unite together in this moment. The company sent people to manage the situation, and after some effort and dealing, they succeeded in leaving the hotel, sitting on the back of a B City car.
While they were struggling to hide from reporters, Ye Zhizhou had already closed the machine. He was in the comfortable suite on the 35th floor of Mu Tian with nothing to do. The small villa where he lived was also surrounded by reporters, and he didn't dare to go back.
After taking out his cell phone and looking at it, there was still no response from Ouyang Chun. The anger in his heart was gradually expanding, and though he tried hard to hold on to it, it didn't work. He sent a message to Ouyang Zhi, "Did your uncle contact you today?"
Ouyang Zhi's reply was fast, but the answer made him a bit disappointed.
After half a minute, the phone shook again. He quickly opened it, but found that the message was still sent by Ouyang Zhi. "Aunt, do you miss Uncle? Don't worry about the comments on the Internet. Uncle will help you solve it. Relax."
This was also a silly and naïve person!
He cast away his phone in extreme anger, and thinking about it again, he reluctantly replied, "Send that video to your brother. Don't forget to say that you hate the girls in the video."
Ouyang Zhi didn't doubt him and obediently sent the video to Ouyang Di.
Five minutes later, the system prompted a pop-up: [Ouyang Di and Protagonist's love probability has dropped to 20%. Please make persistent effort, Host]
Directly from 85% to 20%, How much control did the brother have on his twin!
Putting aside his phone again, he stared at the ceiling in a daze, letting his heart swell. Sure enough, Ouyang Chun didn't send the video to Ouyang Di… Where the hell did he go – it was clear that the video he had sent had already been read…
Suddenly the door was knocked. He grunted and rolled over, "I won't drink the milk. Even if I die, I won't drink it. Also, the stuff that Ouyang Chun instructed you to bring, I won't eat it." Every day, as instructed, Qing Xiao would manage his meal, watch over his bed time, and stop him to playing games at night. In conclusion, Qing Xiao was looking after him no matter what, making his crucial gaming time disappear. So hateful!
"Yao Cheng, do you want to be spanked?"
The familiar deep voice sounded at the door, and he stiffened – straightening up and turning over to stare at the doorway. Blinking and rubbing his eyes, he then finally spewed his fury. "You still know how to come back!"
Ouyang Chun's anger vanished at seeing his small appearance. Helplessly, he put down his luggage and stepped forward to sit on the bedside, pulling on the youth's hand, "I only left for how long, and you're already giving me trouble – didn't I ask you to be obedient?"
Rejecting his hand, and reaching for Ouyang Chun's face, Zhizhou fiercely gritted his teeth. "You came back just in time. I have something to confirm!"
Ouyang Chun reached out to hold the youth's waist – his face was blank, but there was a hint of a smile in his eyes, "Want to confirm what, a gift?"
"More exciting than a gift." He grinned, then quickly let out his spiritual power, flexibly drilling into the other's eardrum. He gently probed deep into the brain in a way that wouldn't harm him.
However, after exploring his brain, there was no findings at all.
He returned his spiritual power to his body in a daze, a bit lost. How could this be? If he was really Yun Ke, he should have spiritual power. Spiritual power was a type of energy similar to soul power. As long as the soul was not changed, the spiritual power would not be extinguished. Obviously, it could easily stir his own spiritual force and make it restless before… how could there be nothing now?
Could it be that… he's not Yun Ke?
This speculation made all his admittedly small amount of happiness collapse, leaving only a deep and bottomless pit of darkness and despair. The familiar breathing and movements… how could he not be? He pulled together the courage to believe in that hope. How could it not be! How could he not be!
"Xiao Cheng?"
His voice was different, but the aura was slightly familiar. "Ouyang Chun." Zhizhou held the other's face with both hands, pulling him close and shutting his eyes. "Don't hide, let me see it once again, let me take a closer look."
Ouyang Chun suppressed the urge to kiss the youth and paused. He calmed down and reached out to hold the youth's back – his lover was still young and spoiled.
After taking a deep breath to calm down, Ye Zhizhou no longer restrained his spiritual power and allowed it into their everything. After pouring out the instinct of happiness and intimacy, he calmed down his mind and begin to explore for any spiritual force again. With a more careful attitude than before, he swept through Ouyang Chun's brain.
Ouyang Chun thought that because he had left him for a long time, his had lover wanted to take advantage of himself. He sat intently, but as time passed, he gradually felt a familiar pain from the depths of his mind, and could not help but frown. What's with the headaches this time? He looked up and saw his lover close his eyes, and seeing his cute appearance, he hesitated. Finally, he just chose to sit still, not having the heart to leave to get medicine.
Inch by inch, layer after layer, there was still no trace of the awakening spiritual power. As Zhizhou gradually became desperate, a faint wave of volatility that could be the source of spiritual power suddenly emerged from the other side. He jumped in his heart, and lost control of the force in his excitement. He slammed the force down slightly, and the faint fluctuation seemed to detect the closeness of a familiar breath, and it suddenly became apparent.
This was it! That familiar attack-type spirit power! Although it was still in a state of blooming and could disappear at any time, it was definitely still there! The spirit that had been entangled with him for decades, this was really it!
His eyes heated up immediately, and the hands that was holding Ouyang Chun's face slipped down to hug the other's neck. Zhizhou's forehead fell onto the man's shoulder, and with tears falling down unconsciously, he spoke in a trembling voice. "You bastard…" The arms tightened, the body tightly affixed. "How did you become so weak…" Obviously in the previous life, it took him much effort to cultivate that spiritual power… how could toss yourself to be like this. Useless. Too useless.
Ouyang Chun endured the suffering with a pale face, and when he saw the youth finally retreat, he breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing the youth suddenly hold him and cry, he was overwhelmed, and his voice became tougher than usual. "Don't cry."
"It's still so fearful." Ye Zhizhou remembered the way his lover died in his arms, and couldn't help it anymore. He choked up and wept, no longer caring about his image, "You in this lifetime are much older than me, and will certainly die before me, you're so bad. I don't like you…"
Ouyang Chun listened with a dark face at Zhizhou's first words, but after hearing the last sentence, he couldn't help but become soft-hearted. He clumsily helped the younger man wipe away his tears and seriously said, "Don't be afraid… and I'm only 12 years older than you." He never thought that he would be so concerned about age, but ever since he took fancy of this person, every single little thing mattered… it was fate.
He held the youth in his arms and kissed his hair, promising, "Xiao Cheng, I will try to live longer than you, please don't cry."
"You're a liar!" While weeping and savouring his lover's handsome face, Zhizhou suddenly remembered something. He reached out to pull down the older man's pants, "No, I'll confirm it again." There was a birthmark on his lover's ass. Maybe there's also one in this life.
Ouyang Chun's body stiffened, and was busy catching the youth's chaotic hands. His breathing shook and began to be a little unstable, "Xiao Cheng, you are not feeling well right now, not now."
"Why not?" All he he wanted to do was confirm the birthmark, but he still dared to still ask him to wait? He forcibly wiped away his tears, and felt angry and wronged again. "Don't you like me! You, you are so much older than me, you must have already let others see! "
Imagining his lover's body seen by others, Zhizhou was angry to the point that he rushed to tear down the trousers, "I don't care! I'm going to see it now!"
Ouyang Chun's adam's apple bobbed, and he couldn't help but tighten his hand. The person he liked was in his embrace and kept shifting on top of him, boldly wanting to tear down his pants… he was not a man if he could endure!
"There's no one else." He pressed the youth onto the bed, kissed ways the tears and his breath a bit short, "There's only you."
"Don't… uh… your pants… ah! I'm the one who's going to take your pants, not the other way around!"
The next morning, Ye Zhizhou woke up, dazed. When he saw there was someone lying next to him, he was so surprised that he tried to get up immediately. As soon as he started moving, an unbearable pain came from his waist, making him helplessly fell back.
"What's wrong?" Hearing the noise, Ouyang Chun was woken up. He unconsciously reached out and pulled the other person into his arms, stroking his back and kissing his forehead. With his deep and husky voice, containing a trace of drowsiness, he said, "Nightmare?"
Zhizhou's body was gently embraced, warm and full of care. He remembered what happened last night and slowly blushed, then couldn't help but grin. He lifted his hand to hold the person in front of him, and buried his face in the other's arms.
It was him, it was really him, even the birthmark was there… He found his lover!
The rays of the first morning's softly shone through the curtain, and he curled up in his lover's arms, smiling. Really, there was no happier time than now.
The cast for 《Fang Hua Jin》 was replaced again!
Liu Feifei and Zhang Xinran's scandal was just too big. The crew's official Weibo account was turned over and over again by the original work fans and the cast fans. In desperation, they could only brave their head against the pressure from the investors, and remove Liu Feifei and Zhang Xinran!
{T/N: original work fans refer to fans who liked the original novel – cast fans refer to fans who liked the cast}
A replaced person was to be replaced, where could they find another replacement? Seeing the scheduled filming date nearing, they couldn't afford to lose any time!
Ye Zhizhou noticed this news – and remembered Sun Han Ya who had unknowing been involved in a scandal with her boyfriend. He secretly did a good job of helping her cleanse herself of the black powder – of course, all of his actions were practical. Within a few days, Sun Han Ya was confirmed to have no knowledge of her boyfriend's drug possession in her residence, and was released. He also took the opportunity to secretly split his spiritual force to instigate all sorts of insults to the original work fans. Shortly afterwards, a wave of fans on the internet called for the re-instatement of Sun Han Ya as the leading actress of the drama.
The crew quickly compromised and brought Sun Han Ya back. The completely innocent woman who was supposed to play the third female lead, had also been washed white and had returned.
After all the actors were in place, the crew was afraid that something would go wrong – they simply started to shoot in advance so that they didn't encounter any serious problem, directly finishing the shoot.
After the dust had settled and the heat cooled, the focus of attention returned to Zhang Xinran and Liu Feifei. As a result, everyone regretted the fact that the two women had actually went abroad to keep low. To think that they wanted to gossip, but couldn't, it was very lonely.
Ye Zhizhou was also feeling very lonely. He had two feelings after waking up in bed everyday; pain and happiness. The pain was due to the fact that the old virgin Ouyang Chun had finally popped his cherry. He simply did not know what the meaning of control was! Happiness was because his lover was alive. It was so beautiful. If you didn't grasp the opportunity, it would go to waste – and Ye Zhizhou had no intention of doing so.
Then, Yao Cheng's fans found that their idol, who had always been an irresponsible performer – was involved in a MV, recorded a variety show, and then disappeared again! Movie Emperor Ouyang seemed to be busy trying to become a dog. Every day, Cheng Idol worked on Weibo. Besides posting nothing about himself, his recent post was actually a video recording him achieving the game trophy for Li Hao's game circle.
Games, games, games again! Idol, don't you have to eat! Get up and make a meal! This infrequent work schedule, how do you feed yourself! The bad woman who covets you has gone abroad, it's time for you to come out and make a move!
The fans' feelings for this unreliable idol were of those from a parent to a child; they worried that he didn't eat, worried that his didn't sleep, also worried that he did not know when he was being bullied.
Idol, wake up! Look at other people's idols! Learn from them!
However, their beloved idol remained indifferent. At this time, a senior Yao Cheng fan weakly came out about this topic.
Don't you know? Cheng Cheng seems to be very wealthy… last time the reporter went to his house, he lived in a small villa seemingly located in the city's centre. Think about it, a small villa in B City, the location, the price…
An awakening!
Yes, their idol did not do anything after his debut, and they played games everyday. How did he live? And he even gave his uncle a million dollars. An idol drama didn't pay that much, right?
With doubt in their hearts about how Yao Cheng was managing to survive, the fans suddenly began to worry! Then, they were surprised to find that none of the clothes worn by Cheng Idol were cheap! His watch was limited edition, his clothes were of a famous brand, he had a special custom-made phone case. What was even more exaggerated was that a fan who accidentally encountered their idol in bus, stole a photo of their ID card, and it was inlaid with diamonds…
Damn, how did their idol have such money!
If digging for information, please dig deep.
[No Grilled Vest or Good Friend]: I'm secretly telling you, I've seen Cheng Idol in S City's stock exchange, buying some stocks – buying what's up, and throwing away what fell. It was simply god-like! I didn't know he was an idol at the time, but secretly followed him twice and saw that he made a lot of money. The one million he sent for that Aunt came from this. Now you are free to imagine.
The fans were first shocked, then delighted, then proud, then finally settled on anger.
Fry your damn stock! Idol, you signed up as a performer! It's your job to perform a song to scrape money from the fans! Yet you just play around in the stock market and play games! How could it be! If you don't feed the fans, you'll be stuck down by thunder!
Ye Zhizhou was not struck down by thunder. Though, Zhang Xinran, who had logged onto her Weibo, felt as if she was the one struck by thunder.
Downtown villas, limited watches, casually lending one million… Was this the same wastrel Yao Cheng that she knew?
Looking back carefully, it seemed that Yao Cheng had never took the initiative to contact her after the idol drama was complete. His temperament had also changed a lot. He was still covered by black powder when he entered Mu Tian, but then was quickly washed back to white. He starred in Ouyang Zhi's MV, he was even more popular now! He had struggled a lot in his past… but where was the part where he had struggled now?
Obviously, it was not the kind of work that could be done by a newcomer…
He was like a completely different person!
Wait, a completely different person? Did… Yao Cheng get reborn with her? She shook at the thought – a drop of cold sweat running down her back.
The netizens named Liu Fei Fei and Zhang Xinran's video as the "Drug Gate". Ye Zhizhou was paying attention to the progress of "Drug Gate" while painting on paper. The probability of the twins falling in love with the protagonist had fallen below the safety line, and according to his experience with the previous world, reducing this last 30% was the worst.
In the original plot, Ouyang Zhi had completely fallen in love with the protagonist after the two had sex when the protagonist was almost taken advantage of because of a scheming investor – at a critical moment, the hero saved the beauty. With the help of the aphrodisiac, the drugged protagonist forced the movie emperor to 'help' her.
That's right, it was the protagonist who forced Ouyang Zhi. When he read the story at that time, he felt as if something was wrong. Now, knowing of Ouyang Zhi and Zhang Xinran's personalities – there was a feeling of shrewdness in the original plot.
Ouyang Di completely adjusted his treatment towards the protagonist. He was hell-bent on accurately imitating his brother, but he firmly stood by the fact that she was probably pregnant with his brother's children. At that time, Ouyang Zhi slowly accepted the fact that he had fallen in love with the same woman as his twin brother. Seeing this, Ouyang Di became more and more remorseful, and under the suffocating pain, he had finally decided to give up on the protagonist. But before leaving, in a state of drunkenness, he did that with the protagonist – Zhang Xinran then got pregnant with his child…
(T/N: I'm not too sure, but I think it means that when ZXR did it with OYZ, she didn't get pregnant – they just assumed that she had. However, she really did get pregnant after doing it with OYD)
Ouyang Zhi did not want to give up the protagonist, and Ouyang Di did not want to give up the child. The two did not want to give up on one another, so they compromised. They agreed on having a polygamous relationship – they confessed on being twins to Zhang Xinran, and promised to love her together.
When the protagonist found out that her boyfriend was actually two people, she was angry and drove them away. Three days later, she accidentally fell from the staircase and had a miscarriage. Zhang Xinran then got depressed and went abroad secretly, wanting to leave the depressing environment. The male leads were very anxious when they found out, and used all their resources to look for her without success.
Three months later, Zhang Xinran finally returned and took the initiative to find them. She told them that she was willing to be with the two of them. The male leads were filled with excitement at the thought of having Zhang Xinran back, and from then on, they granted all her requests and spoiled her.
With the story shown in detail in front of Ye Zhizhou, he encircled the words 'drug', 'drunkenness', 'miscarriage' and 'disappearance for three months', thinking it suspicious.
If you put aside the early feelings of foreshadowing, this story was just one of a woman who used her body and pregnancy to trap Mr. Perfect with a scandal!
First of all, she obtained a simple and sweet love story with Ouyang Zhi due to the presence of an aphrodisiac. Then, coincidentally, just after Ouyang Di decided to let her go, they partook in drunken sex and the protagonist got pregnant with his child! This exaggerated cliché! Zhang Xinran truly deserved to be the protagonist! As for the reason why she miscarried… didn't the male leads completely fall for her because of this! They were even very careful not to remind her of the supposedly 'miscarried' child, fearing that she would get too stimulated and run away.
{T/N: 傻白甜 could mean 'an old-fashioned love story which is nice and smooth, with no sadomasochistic storyline' or it could mean 'a silly, simple and very sweet appearance with slight ignorant and confused aspects}
Everything was planned!
Too many coincidences were just a conspiracy.
If this analysis was true…. Zhizhou tore the paper and threw it to the bin. He looked at his desk to concentrate on Ouyang Chun's work and sighed.
The Ouyang Family's children were raised well, ah. Ouyang Zhi was a child who though in a straight line. Ouyang Di seemed a bit stronger, but maybe that was because the contact level was too high that time – instead of realizing the girl's scheme, they inadvertently stepped into a trap.
Ye Zhizhou felt very skeptical about the existence of the protagonist's supposedly miscarried baby. He found that Zhang Xinran's character…. well, even benefactors who had helped her would be pushed to the pit, ignoring the goodwill she had received. Nothing was surprising about her faking a pregnancy.
What to do now… the probability of the twins falling completely in love with the protagonist was too low. Zhang Xinran was now abroad, and her entertainment career was finished. It is estimated that the three people would never meet again in this life. So what were the odds of them falling in love again? Where was that 30% chance from? Was it because the twins hated the protagonist so much that something would happen to make them take responsibility by acknowledging the protagonist?
After Ouyang Chun signed the last document, he looked up and couldn't help but smile at seeing his lover's wrinkled and dazed face. He got up and walked over to Ye Zhizhou, touching the younger man's hair and asking him in a warm voice, "Bored?"
Ye Zhizhou composed himself, enjoying the hand that was rubbing his head, and looked up with a smile. "No, I usually kill time like this." Look through Weibo, playing games, creating game strategies, and messing around. He spent his days happily.
It was a pity that he had a task to do…
Ouyang Chun couldn't help but smile, he reached out to kiss Zhizhou's eyelids. "Lao Da will return the day after tomorrow, and when he arrives, we'll meet. How about I let Yao Er come and play with you?"
Lao Da and Yao Er were what Ouyang Chun called the twins, and Ye Zhizhou can't help but laugh every time he heard it.
{T/N: Lao Da (Ouyang Di) means something along the lines of firstborn or captain/boss, and Yao Er (Ouyang Zhi) means something like little nephew XD}
"Good." He buried himself in his lover's arms like a lazy cat. "I just came up with a new game strategy that will put him in a hole." And along the way, he could strengthen the bad impression Ouyang Zhi had of Zhang Xinran. He could also do the same to that Ouyang Di who still hadn't met her… to pull out the flag, one must start with him first, right?
The netizens were gradually digging deeper into "Drug Gate", and the male artists that had been involved with Liu Fei Fei were successively pulled out. The most popular male artist of Huang Tu was almost implicated. The higher-ups of Huang Tu were provoked, and all had the mind to kill Liu Fei Fei's father.
Seeing this disaster, Liu Fei Fei's father hurriedly stood up, and with lots of bribing and threatening, the anger of the higher-ups finally calmed down. After stabilizing the situation, he remembered the one who had incited his daughter to make mistakes, Zhang Xinran. The fierceness and anger in his heart could not be held back – she had better not come back, or he would definitely find someone to beat her!
Overseas, Zhang Xinran heard the news and almost fainted in shock. She quickly called her manager to save the situation, but found herself being blacklist.
Her phone fell as her complexion gradually paled.
Now, she was cursed and insulted on the internet, and her fans were all gone. In order to move agencies as soon as possible, she had signed with Huang Tu for ten years…. the embarrassment from her last life's scandal leak suddenly resurfaced. She clenched her arm and cried in a low voice.
What should she do? In order to sign with Huang Tu, she had handed over almost all the chips she had known in her previous life. Without the advantages of foresight and Huang Tu as a backing, how would she go on?
Two days later, Ouyang Di arrived in B City.
Ye Zhizhou who came to pick him up, seized up his appearance and sighed. "Really, really look alike!" It was no wonder that he could substitute for Ouyang Zhi in the movie. This level of similarity could definitely fool the lenses! Had he actually misunderstood the protagonist? Did the protagonist truly not discover that her lover was actually two people?
Ouyang Di who had heard Zhizhou, gave a smile filled with elegance and nobility. "Everybody says that. Hello, I am Ouyang Di. I'm glad to meet you. Thank you for taking care of my younger brother."
The chaotic storyline information in his brain was calmed down. He rushed forward with a smile and tried to make a cheeky reply. "We are all family here, so there's no such thing as taking care of." He sat down next to Ouyang Di to take out his cellphone in order to show the video of Zhang Xinran and Liu Feifei.
"What do you think of this video?"
Ouyang Di couldn't keep up with his aunt's line of thought. He obediently glanced at the video and nodded his head. "I've seen it before, Xiao Zhi sent it to me."
"Does that mean he hates the girls in the video?" Ye Zhizhou slowly induced, and Ouyang Di nodded again. "Xiao Zhi said so."
"It takes about two hours to get home from the airport." He closed his cellphone, and pulled out an iPad whilst laughing. "Let's look at fun things to pass time." This was his chance to reconstruct Zhang Xinran's character for Ouyang Di before he got a chance to get to know Zhang Xinran.
His spirit power was in his hand, and the internet world was sideways. What the netizens couldn't find out, did not mean that Ye Zhizhou couldn't find out. He showed to Ouyang Di how the protagonist engineered her brother to miss the college entrance examinations; how she involved her stepmother in pornography gambling to get her implicated in an extramarital affair; and how she used the position of her slag father to evade taxes and a series of other things. Filled with bitterness, Ye Zhizhou said, "Lao Da, don't you think that this girl is really terrible? She's not very suitable to be a wife."
Ouyang Di's eyebrows wrinkled more and more as he thought of the fact that this kind of girl existed in the same entertainment industry as his younger brother. Continuing his line of thought, he couldn't help but make a grim face. "Aunt specifically showed me this because…. is Xiao Zhi and this girl…."
"They would have been."
Ouyang Di could not help but clench his hand, a glimmer of light flashing through his eyes. "Xiao Zhi is too simple to be suitable for such a scheming girl. I will properly talk to him."
[The probability of Ouyang Di falling in love with the protagonist has fallen to 10%, please make persistent effort, Host]
A younger brother's influence was simply the greatest!
He cheered in his heart while his face was very serious as he finished with a big gasp. "Though, it's completely impossible now – this child hates Zhang Xinran very much."
Ouyang Di was stunned, thinking of how his stupid younger brother had expressed his dislike for Zhang Xinran. However, he could not help but feel uncomfortable at the fuss he had just made. He changed his posture and composed himself, quickly changing the subject. "How come aunt picked me up today? Are Xiao Zhi and uncle busy?"
"Well, but they are very busy." One was busy playing games, and one was put to sleep by his own mental power – Ouyang Chun would not wake up until afternoon. Closing the text data, he opened the folder where the video was stored, and handed it over. "Big nephew, let's go through the video to understand what happened with Zhang Xinran – she might have something to do with little nephew!"
Failing to change the topic, and also because he was really curious about it, Ouyang Di hesitated for a while before finally choosing to abandon his aristocratic upbringing to watch the video.
After watching the video of the protagonist's failed café 'encounter with the TV drama director, they had already arrived at the Mu Tian building. Glancing at the system prompt that popped up, Ye Zhizhou was speechless. Why was there 5% left! He had already shown so much to reveal the blackened protagonist – why was there still 5%!
After awkwardly getting off the car, he waited for the bodyguard to return Ouyang Di's luggage whilst busily opening the system's data, thinking about the original plot.
"Yao Cheng!"
A familiar voice rang out in the corner of the parking lot. A white figure suddenly rushed out of the corner and moved over with lightning speed, but was stopped three steps away from him by the bodyguards.
"Yao Cheng!" Zhang Xinran tried to pull away from the bodyguard, and her eyes were filled with desperation. "You must help me this time! I figured out that we are together, you must help me!"
He turned back and looked at Zhang Xinran, slightly surprised. "How are you here?" The entrance to Mu Tian's parking lot was based on card access, which were only available for the staff. What's more, he and Ouyang Di had parked in VIP zone, with required a different method of accessing. How did the protagonist manage to bypass the several check ins?
"Yao Cheng, you must help me. I know you're very rich now." Zhang Xinran's hair was scattered in the struggle, and her dress was also a bit dirty. "Huang Tu wants to bury me. There's reporters everywhere, and I really have no choice. Look back at your previous feeling for me, and help me."
Ouyang Di was busy picking up his gift from the car, and so, he stepped out a bit late. Suddenly seeing a baffling woman, he stepped forward in front of Ye Zhizhou and spoke to the bodyguards. "Call security and send this woman out. Also, remember to check the parking lot system and CCTV footage."
"Ouyang Zhi?" Zhang Xinran stared at him, her eyes gradually brightening. She excitedly said, "Mr. Ouyang, I know you are the behind-the-scenes boss of Mu Tian. I was forced to change agenciesd by Liu Fei Fei's father! I… I would like to go back to Mu Tian – so, please give me a chance."
Ye Zhizhou was stunned – the protagonist's way of setting up people was just a little too fierce. He didn't want to know how deep her scheming ran. "Miss. Zhang Xinran." Deliberately biting out the name clearly, he tapped Ouyang Di's back and stepped forward, signalling at the bodyguards to let her go. "What is the connection between my money and my assistance? And you are an adult – when you make a decision, you have to learn to take the consequences."
Zhang Xinran didn't think that Ye Zhizhou would be so cold to her – and so, she couldn't help but feel embarrassed. "We have so many years of feelings… haven't you always liked me? I'm willing to be with you now. You can help me – just pay the penalty fee to take me away from Huang Tu, and I'll be able to start over! I don't care about the you in the past. As long as you're good to only me in the future, I could surely…"
The more he listened, the more ridiculous it became. He also faintly guessed why the protagonist suddenly sought help from him. He hurriedly rushed to interrupt her words – with a serious face, he said, "Ms. Zhang, I met you at the beginning of this year. To say that we have many feelings together is a bit exaggerated. As for me liking you, I think Ms. Zhang has misunderstood me. I already have a lover, and I would like to ask Ms. Zhang to not say such easy to misunderstood words in the future." If these words were heard by Ouyang Chun, he wouldn't be able to get out of the bed.
"You have a lover?" Zhang Xinran's voice rose up, and anger boiled in her heart. With her body trembling, she said, "Impossible!" In the previous life, she knew that Yao Cheng had betrayed her, but that was just for benefits he would have received! She knew, she always knew, that Yao Cheng would love her, it would never change!
"Miss." Ouyang Di stepped forward again to block her view of Ye Zhizhou. His brows were slightly wrinkled, and his eyes were filled with irritation and disgust. "Please conduct yourself." To think that this kind of person dared to lust after Xiao Zhi and aunt, it was simply just too overconfident.
Zhang Xinran was very embarrassed by Ouyang Di's eyes that showed disgust. She looked back and forth between the two men – and saw the baggage and gifts that the bodyguard was holding. She felt her heart twitch, and she thought of a possibility. She was shocked and disgusted at her thoughts. Looking at the two people, her mouth was wide open, and she blurted out, "You, you… Yao Cheng, you really are as sick as you were in the past life! You would actually sell yourself to a man for fame! Ouyang Zhi, today, I have lost my admiration for you – I did not think that you were actually a disgusting homosexual!"
As soon as she said this, everyone's expression drastically changed; the bodyguards stepped forward in a threatening manner – and Ouyang Di's face sank, his elegant and calm manner suddenly turning fierce, "Miss Zhang, take care of yourself – a loose mouth will always lead to trouble."
[Ouyang Di and the protagonist's love probability has dropped to 0%. Congratulation on pulling out the first flag, Host. Please make persistent effort.]
The sudden pop up surprised Ye Zhizhou, who was about to curse back at Zhang Xinran – he felt ecstatic! This was a god-like attack, ah! The remaining 5% that frustrated him was actually gone! In a good mood, he thought that the protagonist was not too annoying anymore. He smiled and patted Ouyang Di's back, then looked at protagonist in sympathy. "Miss Zhang, if you have an illness, it's better to treat it right away. Avoiding the sickness because of fear of treatment is not good. And about the last life you said, I didn't understand any of it." He broke of his comment to look at the bodyguard near her. "Please send Miss Zhang to a hospital, and remember to choose a good one."
The bodyguard obediently reached out to the protagonist.
"Yao Cheng!" She immediately dodged the guards and continued talking. "Don't you play dumb! You want to erase the past by hugging a golden thigh? No way! How long do you think you can hold it, huh? Those rich people are always the type to throw out the old and welcome the new! I'll wait for the day you are tossed aside and abandoned!"
"Then you can wait." The protagonist had completely lost reason, and it was now just a waste to keep dawdling because of her. Ye Zhizou waved his hand and signalled the bodyguard to take action. He then patted Ouyang Di on the back and pulled him towards the elevator.
After going up the stairs, Ouyang Di dropped off the baggage directly into the game room. Five minutes later, Ye Zhizhou, who was harassing his lover with spiritual power, received a system notification.
"Dropped to 15%?" He nodded at the screen and smiled happily. "Ouyang Zhi was scolded by his brother, and he really deserved it."
"Very happy?"
"Of course, the mission is…" He paused, looking down and seeing Ouyang Chun's clear and awake eyes. "You awake ah… that… Ouyang Di is already here. Um, are you hungry? Do you want to eat something?" Ye Zhizhou thought guiltily that he must have been very hungry after sleeping for over a dozen hours.
Ouyang Chun got up, and ruffled his hair. With a dull expression, he said, "Lao Da came? Did you pick him up?"
"En… eh." He looked down and weakly spoke. "I saw that you were sleeping, so I didn't call you…"
"Xiao Cheng, I'm hungry." He said calmly.
Seeing that he was not angry – Ye Zhizhou sighed in relief, and his face brightened up again. "What do you want to eat? I'll tell the kitchen staff to make it for you."
Ouyang Chun turned his eyes to the youth's laughing face, and slightly curled his lips. He suddenly reached out to hold the youth, and turned him over – pressing Ye Zhizhou into the bed. He held the youth's hand in his left, and his right hand was ambiguously under the clothing – stroking him, then gently biting his earlobe. "Eating you, disobedient children need to be punished."
"I'm not… oh! It's noon, you must not… ah…" Save me!
The devastating day soon ended, and the family dinner table, both Ouyang Zhi and Ye Zhizhou were listless.
"Aunt, have you been tidied up by uncle?" Ouyang Zhi quietly moved to Ye Zhizhou, who was buried in soup – and quietly whispered, "I secretly ordered for you a plate of spicy pork, no need to thank me."
He put down the spoon and looked at him with dead-fish eyes. "Thank you, big nephew." Giving a person with an injured chrysanthemum spicy pork, that was truly a revolutionary affectionate friendship.
{T/N: if you read other Chinese BL novels, then I guess you already know what this word refers to XD}
"You're welcome." Ouyang Zhi embarrassedly smiled, the with a deep expression said, "I used to eat spicy pork with my uncle and brother, eating until my worries were gone – but brother thought that eating too much of it will hurt my stomach, so I'm not allowed to eat it much anymore."
"Do you like to eat pig brain?"
Ouyang Zhi's eyes brighted up, "I haven't eaten it yet. Is it delicious?"
"Yeah." He nodded, glancing at the uncle and nephew sitting across from him who were talking about business. "It's delicious and nutritious, suitable for people like you." It was a good tonic to improve intelligence – and it would make it easier for him to pull out the flag.
The door was suddenly knocked, and Qing Xiao entered carrying an iPad. "Boss, there's suddenly a video online about second young master, and young Master Yao."
The four people simultaneously looked at him.
"Now there's someone on the internet, saying that young Master Yao is…"
Ouyang Chun slightly frowned, "Is what?"
Qing Xiao glanced at Ouyang Zhi and Ye Zhizhou who were sitting in the corner, drinking soup. Xiao paused and braced himself for what he was about to say. "Young Master Yao is being kept by second young master. It also said that the reason young Master Yao is still able to extravagantly spend money without working is because second young master is generous to his lover."
After those words were out, Ouyang Zhi jumped, scared for his life. "I did not! I am wrongly accused! I and Aunt are innocent!"
"Xiao Zhi." Ouyang Di grabbed his arm and pulled him to the side, sitting him down and holding onto his shoulder. "Calm down."
Ouyang Zhi stole a glance at Ouyang Chun, and getting in contact with his uncle's cold look – he was frightened to the point that he was holding onto his brother's arm and desperately shrinking on himself. Uncle was drinking vinegar that was completely unreasonable. He couldn't calm down!
Ye Zhizhou put down his spoon and wipe his hand after hearing this, and he reached out. "Let me see the video."
Qing Xiao hurriedly handed over the iPad.
The video was released by Guan Bo magazine, and was titled 'Breaking News: Movie Emperor Ouyang Zhi's Lover is Actually a Man'. The comments were posted to the point that the site sometimes crashed due to an influx of data. Ye Zhizhou played the video several times.
After a short period of silence, their eyes gradually adapted to the video's brightness, and they could now watch the video clearly. It was showing the scene at the parking lot, and Yao Cheng's and several other people's figures could be seen.
…It really was this scene. Ye Zhihzou looked at Ouyand Di who was pacifying Ouyang Zhi, and then leaned back on his chair to continue to looking.
The video was very short; it's length was only about a minute. In this one minute, Ye Zhizhou and 'Ouyang Zhi' had been standing close to each other, while Zhang Xinran was stopped by the bodyguards a few steps away. He could easily hear her emotional words; such as 'disgusting', 'selling one's body', and 'homosexual'. Combining these words with the three people's state and expression, it was very intriguing. At the end of the video, the excited Zhang Xinran was mercilessly dragged away by the bodyguard, while Ye Zhizhou and 'Ouyang Zhi' went 'sweetly' into the elevator.
Turning off the video, he looked up and walked over to Ouyang Chun, starting to complain. "I was ridiculed." This video, whether it was the shooting angle or the delusional intermittent dialogue, it was filled with the touch of professional paparazzi. Combined with protagonist's hostility today… life is full of holes, ah – how come she could still do something like this when she was being suppressed?
"I'll fix it" Ouyang Chun patted the younger man's hair – and with a heavy tone, he said, "It's also time to clean up those bugs in Mu Tian."
Ouyang Di looked at his terrified younger brother, then looked at his reliable uncle and cool-headed aunt – and he couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
This stupid younger brother… was really useless.
This had been the busiest day ever for Yao Cheng and Ouyang Zhi's fans on Weibo.
Just this morning, they still saw their idol's Weibo ignoring them – their idol only knowing how to play games like a single dog. And in the afternoon, they saw a video of the two men's 'closeness' when they were leaning against each other while returning to their 'love nest'.
This development was just too fast, ah! They couldn't even react!
They didn't even wait before studying the video frame by frame, quickly giving out gave out their analysis. What golden thigh providing for a pretty boy! Embracing a golden thigh, and using the unspoken rules to bully others…. in short, the main point of the video was that Yao Cheng was being provided for by Ouyang Zhi! How unpleasant!
{T/N: 小白脸 / xiaobai lian – an attractive young man/pretty boy, meant to be a derogative term}
The two fan groups were furious. It was still unknown whether the two were actually together or not, yet these guys were just making things worse by making incorrect analyses! Simply adding to the injury!
Fans and keyboard warriors fought from afternoon to evening – then at exactly 10pm, Zhang Xinran, who has been missing in action, suddenly updated her Weibo with a very aggrieved post.
[Zhang Xinran]: Yao Cheng, I have already forgotten those who have cheated me in the past. I understand that in your heart, in order to reach your dreams, you can even climb someone else's bed. You once promised me a beautiful future – but when we were finally equals, I never heard of it again. Afterwards, you got into Mu Tian, and I, into Huang Tu. From then on, we had separated ways. I wish you well.
With this post was a photo of a bride holding a bouquet of flowers, carried by the groom.
When this was posted, all three fan groups completely exploded.
How crafty! What did this post mean? Yao Cheng and Zhang Xinran were actually together? Then Yao Cheng, in order to succeed, abandoned Zhang Xinran to cling onto Ouyang Zhi's thighs?
This story got more and more dramatic!
Thinking about the video where a shrieking Zhang Xinran, who was steps away from Yao Cheng and Ouyang Zhi, was blocked by a bodyguard. Thinking again of Zhang Xinran's sudden job-hopping, and that situation together with the two's Weibo accounts, the cogs in the masses' brains started turning, beginning to make assumptions. With this, Zhang Xinran, previously the lowest of the low who was involved in a drug scandal – suddenly became a young lady who was determined to take revenge on the scumbag that abandoned her.
Some brainless fans quickly accepted this situation – and their upright backs suddenly leapt out in Weibo, lamenting Zhang Xinran's misfortune, and angrily spraying words of abuse at Yao Cheng.
Once again, Weibo was filled with fighting – and fans tore each other apart, all kinds of rumours emerging in succession. The protagonist's nearly dead path in the entertainment scene was unexpectedly rejuvenated again.
Ye Zhizhou held his chin with one hand, holding the mouse with the other. Carelessly, he browsed through the comments under Zhang Xinran's Weibo post, and yawned. This time, Ouyang Chun monopolized the whole affair. Previously, he had just observed the hustle, and appeared to be uninterested. Now, Ouyang Chun looked extremely anxious. "How does Hu Zongze manage the company, ah?! There are 8 individuals in charge of the surveillance cameras. This kind of excessive matter, and no one even bothered to investigate!"
"This individual…" Breaking the surveillance camera was merely a basic type of preparatory work for someone who was prepared to take this type of defaming video.
"Uncle must be really angry." Ouyang Zhi sat stiffly on the sofa, his eyes dispirited. "That Zhang Xinran is too hateful; how could she do this… We didn't do anything inexcusable to her, so for what reason did she spread those hideous rumors?"
[The probability of Ouyang Zhi falling in love with the protagonist has fallen to 10%, please make persistent efforts, Host.]
"Because I'm Yao Cheng." He answered casually, glancing at the screen that had just popped up. He then refreshed Weibo, discovering that Mu Tian's official Weibo had unexpectedly made a statement.
"Aren't they in the middle of a meeting downstairs? What is all this…" Ye Zhizhou's eyes were full of suspicion, and he stared at the screen then slowly opened the post. Seeing the actual post itself, he was scared to the point that he nearly dropped his mouse! "Little nephew! Your company's official Weibo is crazy, ah!"
Ouyang Zhi was shocked by his aunt's exclamation, almost falling off the sofa. After stabilizing his body, he ran up to Ye Zhizhou, asking, "What happened? The PR Department and the Advertising Department have all been told off, so the official Weibo should have no one handling it."
"But the company's official Weibo said that I was getting married." His face contorted into one of confusion, and he blankly looked at Ouyang Zhi, thinking it a dream.
"Ah?" Ouyang Zhi was also got confused. Distractedly, he asked, "With who?"
"With me." Ouyang Chun came in, papers in hand. "When Xiao Cheng comes over, we'll discuss the wedding date."
While all kinds of speculation were flying around on Weibo, Mu Tian's official Weibo account quietly made a statement: The male actor Yao Cheng already has a lover. They are each other's first love, and their feelings are very sincere – planning to marry within the year.
The netizens who saw the news were stunned, immediately exploding. Each other's first love; feelings were very sincere; planning on getting married. This was undisguisedly beating up Zhang Xinran's face and stripping down the Weibo post, ah!
Before they had even finished digesting the news, Mu Tian immediately uploaded some documents and an one minute video. In the video, several people's dialogue could be heard – the traces of editing easily evident, leaving people feeling embarrassed. They no longer had the heart to continue listening. Then, Mu Tian's Weibo uploaded a video that showed the entire underground parking lot, captioned with: "Mu Tian is a common love nest for all Mu Tian artists. They are even welcome to bring friends with them."
The so-called video of the two men returning to their 'love nest' was, of course, edited – it was actually them just going back to the company's entrance. Many on the internet could feel the metaphorical burn on their faces as if they had been slapped.
Afterwards, Mu Tian uploaded the videos taken by the eight surveillance cameras in the parking lot before they were smashed. In it, a man wearing a janitor's uniform was encircled. Zooming in, they showed this person's ID and their certificate as a reporter. The reporter and Zhang Xinran were secretly talking on the side of a road in the video. The caption shown was: "Yizhou Magazine, why did your reporter escape to my Mu Tian to become a janitor? Also Miss Zhang, is a self-directed show fun?"
The netizens were shocked! Yao Cheng and Ouyang Zhi's fans were so thrilled that they forwarded the post earnestly. Their idols' company was just too domineering! The way they washed off this black powder was too quick! We, the fans, are completely useless, ah!
In front of the truth, all rumors and guesswork were meaningless, and the popularity of the rumors on the internet dropped rapidly. Netizens finally analyzed the incident seriously – figuring out that the video on the internet was truly full of loopholes! More than one voice had been edited, and even than, the traces of editing was just too heavy. An expert compared the two videos frame by frame and found out that the edited video was merely a mosaic of the four surveillance footages in different time frames – extremely one-sided and untrustworthy.
The netizens quickly flooded the official Weibo of Yizhou Magazine, who were the first to release the video. Their sticky post was spammed over and over again, clamoring for them to post the full version of the video. Zhang Xinran's Weibo post was also filled with angry users who had been deceived – and all asking her to quit the entertainment industry!
On the phone, Liu Fei Fei was drinking while scolding Zhang Xinran. The latter had already lost control – but with a calm face, she continuously refreshed Mu Tian's official Weibo, and home page. Her hand grasped the mouse extremely tight, and her mind was filled with a buzzing noise – not knowing what she was to do anymore.
Because of the "Drug Gate" video, the development of Huang Tu's artists were obstructed; their resources snatched up by Mu Tian. Liu Fei Fei's father was targeted at the company, being dubbed as a sinner. Zhang Xinran, seeing the other person's dilemma, had proposed to help create a video that would drag Mu Tian's reputation through the mud – and in exchange, he would give her his assistance. Father Liu who was struggling, did not stop to think about her request, and agreed easily. Zhang Xinran quickly arranged everything after she told him the plan – she also had Father Liu give her half the amount of the penalty, arranging it to be transferred into her bank account to pacify her heart.
According to the original plan, she would block Yao Cheng in the parking lot while begging and kneeling. Words and phrase would be spoken between them, and she would deliberately provoke him – making Yao Cheng lose control and leak out Mu Tian's 'dirty secret' of bullying and forcing actors. After this, Father Liu would arrange a stage for her to come out to expose the 'sinister ways' of Mu Tian, letting her watch the company fall from a distance!
But then, there had been changes they couldn't keep up with. She didn't think that Yao Cheng had a bodyguard with him – stopping her from even touching his clothes! Ouyang Zhi, who shouldn't have been in the building, had unexpectedly come out of the car as Yao Cheng! She had already found out from Father Liu that the real boss of Mu Tian was actually Ouyang Zhi. This would have been their trump card! Their previously planned speeches could not be used anymore – and they might as well smash a cracked pot and let the fans interpret it for themselves. Anyways, she had already achieved her purpose, and she did not care about the video.
Fortunately, God still loved her and the video was shot. The actual happenings were way more exciting than ones planned in the original. After watching the video, Father Liu gave her enough money to pay the penalty, and promised her that she did not have to cancel the contract – the company wouldn't freeze her again. If the plan was successful, she would be heralded by everyone!
At that time, the public opinion on Weibo was already influenced. The effect was very good – and after some considering, she didn't cancel her contract. Instead, she made a speculative post out of selfishness on her Weibo – wanting to completely crush Yao Cheng.
Now, everything was over.
As the video and the circumstances behind it got clarified, the post she had previously used to step on Yao Cheng had now become evidence of her own self-directed play against Yao Cheng.
Also, Yao Cheng was getting married….
Letting go of the mouse, she was at a loss.
When she had first returned to the past, she had wanted to discard everything and work hard for her career. But now… in order to take revenge against a scumbag who had betrayed her in her past life, she gradually deviated from the goal she had set after her rebirth – which led her to this situation. The person she wanted to have revenge against had a successful career, a pleasing life, and was now getting married…. she really didn't want to accept this. She really did not want to accept it! She remembered all the sweet and painful memories, and realised that she had suffered so much – yet the other person was still so ignorant, even daring to view her as a stranger.
Why did she get reborn?
She slowly raised her hand to cover her face – and her eyes were devoid of emotion; empty.
She wanted to ask Yao Cheng if he regretted abandoning her – but how could she, when the Yao Cheng she knew now was just like a stranger? He had drunk and gotten entrapped with Liu Fei Fei in the past – but in this life, Liu Fei Fei and he did not have much contact with each other; only getting familiar because of her premeditated plan. She even wanted to ask fans on Weibo why they easily believed in other people's slander, but then refused to listen to her own defence. For what reason were they deaf to her explanations, still throwing stones at somebody who was down? In this life, she was always safeguarding from fans.
With no one to talk to about her sadness, and nowhere to vent her resentment on, her suffering could only be pushed down to the bottom of her heart. This kind of suffering, where she had to recall all her previous sufferings – why did she have to be born again?
"Zhang Xinran! You aren't listening to me! Mu Tian began their counterattack. Quickly, go online and say something. This is all your idea. You just wait, I'll have my dad completely freeze you this time!"
Xinran snapped out of her dark thoughts, and looked at the phone on the desk. Her expression gradually turned calm, and she slowly spoke. "Liu Fei Fei, even if everyone is innocent, you cannot be forgiven! You don't need to freeze me; I want to terminate the contract."
[The probability of Ouyang Zhi falling in love with the protagonist has fallen to 5%, please make persistent efforts, Host.]
While holding the documents, Ye Zhizhou looked at the system notification foolishly – tuning to look at Ouyang Zhi who was playing a game on the sofa, and Ouyang Di who was quietly reading a book.
How did this happen? How could Ouyang Zhi just play a game and have the odds of him falling in love drop? He didn't do anything, did Ouyang Zhi realize something while playing the game?
The Cold Feeling Prince and The Proud Pampered Wife
At the height of the netizen's fierce scolding, Zhang Xinran posted her goodbye letter and logged off from Weibo. A month later, she sold all of her assets and left the country by herself, vanishing without a trace.
One week after the protagonist's disappearance, a large number of Liu Fei Fei's scandalous photos were suddenly blown out onto the internet. At the time, Liu Fei Fei's father had fallen off the platform due to committing a number of mistakes regarding topics such as policy – causing huge losses to the company. This time, no one could protect her.
Ye Zhizhou put down his cell phone with a huff.
"What's wrong?" Ouyang Chun embraced him from behind, kissing the younger man's earlobe. "Do you want the wedding to be held domestically, or abroad?"
"Don't organise it yet." Ye Zhizhou looked up and gently bumped the man with his head. "Did everything work out?"
"Yeah." Ouyang Chun directly ignored the other man's refusal, and raised his hand to sort out the messy hair. "I let Qing Xiao book three VIP tickets. This time, Yao Er will also come with us – Lao Da is not. Rest assured, he will continue to stay in the country to mix with entertainment circle, preparing to let Ouyang Zhi switch to behind the scenes."
"It's all good." Ye Zhizhou shook his head to dislodge the hand on top, turning around to embraces his lover's waist. "In the future, we'll always be together."
Ouyang Chun's face was gentle, showing a happy and satisfied smile. Kissing back, he agreed. "En, always together."
Three years later, the protagonist who had changed her identity married a bookstore manager in R country. The last 5% chance of Ouyang Zhi loving the protagonist had finally decreased to zero, and the remaining soul flag was removed.
Fifty years later, Ouyang Chun – who had been in a dying state of life – refused to leave the world. Ye Zhizhou resisted his tears, helping the man with his hair. Gently, he whispered in the other man's ear. "Don't hold on, I'll be with you soon."
Ouyang Chun tightly held the younger man's hand, and with a difficult gasp of breath, he said, "I'm sorry… the next life, and the next… "
"I know." Ye Zhizhou watched the man on the bed gradually lose breath, and it was only then that he let the tears fall. "You said that in the next life… you must remember to find me, and I will as well… you must come."
The system popped up in time. [Does Host desire to go to the next world?]
He climbed into the bed, and nestled into the cold arms of his lover. Zhizhou touched the lifeless face that was no longer young, and closed his eyes – determination in his heart.
The first thing he saw after awakening was an exquisite screen decorated with patterns of flowers and birds. He moved, finding that he was sitting in a large, wooden bathtub full of warm water. There was an ornate wooden frame near the tub, and several silk robes hung on the shelves.
This time was an ancient world? He raised his hand, touching the long hair splayed across his shoulders, feeling somewhat strange at the length.
A simple hand mirror on a shelf suddenly moved, and a screen popped up. Large paragraphs of text appeared once again, seeming a little bit out of place in the ancient style room.
He picked up the small mirror, flipping it over. "By the way, you look more pleasing to the eye than the previous two versions – it also resembles the space tattoo on my wrist a bit more."
The small mirror shook and flashing lights appeared, as if it was urging him to look at the data quickly.
"Really, really impatient." He put down the mirror and wiped away the water from his face, looking at the screen soon afterwards.
The protagonist of this world was An Chengjie, who was the bastard son of the town's Zhen Guogong, An Wenhua. When the protagonist was abandoned by his mother, his life in Zhuangzi was very hard. At the age of eighteen, he unfortunately fell into the water and died; his body being taken over by a soul from the future.
[T/N: Bastard son in this context refers to a son who was born from a concubine]
[T/N: (鎮國公) Zhen Guogong is something along the lines of a duke of the state, or a city lord]
[T/N: Zhuangzi refers to a city]
"…so cliché…"
The reborn An Chengjie exhibited an outstanding ability. He first cleaned up the evil servants who had bullied the original owner, and then rectified the political order of Zhuangzi, also raising the city's harvests. By the end of the year, his name had reached the capital due to his increasingly large reputation in the poetry circle. An Wenhua, noticing his son's incredible behaviour, brought him back to the capital regardless of his wife's protests.
On An Chengjie's way back, he coincidentally rescued one of the male leads from a gangster; Lei Baofei, the only son of the Great General Lei Xihong. They journeyed back to the capital together, talking joyously and soon becoming friends.
After that, it was simply going through the usual motions; arriving at the capital, the two separated. After An Chengjie entered the government office, he began to fight with his father's first wife, his brothers, other concubines and other members of the second branch; fighting with all his family members. Then with much struggle, he opened a restaurant and a jewelry store, earning both status and money.
An Chengjie also did not forget to take part in several poetry conferences, brushing up his already extensive reputation. Eventually, his name finally reached the emperor, and was hand-picked as a study companion for the emperor's eighth son.
Up to this point, there was nothing that surprised Ye Zhizhou – at least, except for the slash world. The plot was still normal, until he saw the identity of the second male lead – the eldest son of the first wife, An Chengsheng.
[T/N: Slash world = BL world, man x man, boy x boy. The world for the rotten men and women XD]
Although the character description was very vague, An Chengsheng already had a wife and children – yet in the end, he threw away those feelings for the sake of his own brother. There was also the part about 'collecting all of An Chengjie's poems' and 'constantly reminiscing and longing for his younger brother everyday' – a crazy brother complex…
But the most important thing was that this man also had a soul flag! An Chengsheng did not have an official relationship with the protagonist, but the intimacy between the two was ambiguous – and though the wall of love was not pierced through, he indeed had a soul flag!
Even a half-brother could be included in a harem… it was no wonder that this rotten world got destroyed!
Continuing to look down, Ye Zhizhou found that he was still very naive – the original world had more than two harem members, and besides the two that had destroyed his three views, there was a man who would eventually become the third emperor – The seventh prince, Yan Mingli.
[Ed. Note: The term 'destroy the three views' is used to describe something that is incomprehensible. The 'three views' are thought to refer to one's perspective on life, the world, and values.]
Yan Mingli and An Chengjie met in a Royal Hunt. At the time, the second son of the first wife, An Chengle, felt jealous of the protagonist's talent – devising a plan that would separate An Chengjie from his hunting group. When he was lost in the jungle, Chengjie met the seventh prince who was in the same situation. They soon became acquaintances, and after getting out of trouble, Yan Mingli felt that An Chengjie had similar experiences and lives as himself. Seeing the other's quiet brilliance that enticed his heart, they became closer day by day.
At this point, all three male leads appeared, and the protagonist began his ultimate counter-attack.
On the surface, An Chengjie was still the study companion of the eighth prince. Behind closed doors, he had already taken refuge with the seventh prince.
The protagonist used gunpowder to develop weapons, and invested money in materials – whilst Yan Mingli gave An Chengjie love, care and funding. Later, the experienced Lei Baofei was also pulled to the seventh prince's faction, more than doubling the power of the seventh prince.
In the end, the seventh prince, Yan Mingli, ascended the throne, and due to his feelings for An Chengjie, refused to officially settle down. Lei Baofei also became a prominent general and become a lifetime bachelor for An Chengjie. An Chengsheng helped the seventh prince, but continued to stay in the town government, getting married and having children. But in his heart, he always longed for another king, An Chengjie.
[Ed. Note: In the era this story takes place, having concubines or consorts were not considered official marriages – at least to my knowledge. An official marriage would be an official/first wife, or an empress – which two men refused to have]
Ye Zhizhou's face numbed, and he slowly got out from the wooden tub, wiping his body and put on his inner clothes and outer robes – speechlessly gazing at the sky. This world was just too immoral! Not only was it a slash world, not only was the harem was increased by one, all the male leads technically had a wife! Even if there was no empress, wasn't an imperial concubine still technically a wife! Wasn't a concubine a wife! Wasn't a secondary wife still a wife! Moreover, they even went to brothels several times together…
[Ed. Note: They are all technically wives as they had to be first 'married' into the family to be given a title]
Why did all of them have a wife? Ye Zhizhou asked himself why they were with the protagonist behind their wives' backs.
The wet hair stuck to his body, making him very uncomfortable. He sorted out his shattered three views and broken moral integrity, pulling out a towel from his storage space and covering his hair with it. Sitting on a stool near the tub, he continued to read over the information.
The protagonist and the three men spent their whole lives together in this strange way. After several decades, the four men died one after another. Their descendants were doused in confusion, and the country was chaotic. Seeing an opportunity, other countries saw fit to invade, and a war began. The explosives produced by An Chengjie had begun to raise clouds around the world, and an increasingly large amount of countries joined the war for the chance to gain the powerful weapon. In just a few decades, the world would be blown up.
After finishing off the data, Ye Zizhou was silent for a moment, then remembered a desperate problem. "Heaven, whose body am I in now?"
[The second son of Zhen Guogong's first wife, An Chengle]
…It really was a cannon fodder.
He slowly let out a breath, standing up and putting the towel back into his space. Ye Zhizhou headed out the door with wet hair, reading An Chengle's character data while walking.
An Chengle, Zhen Guogong's second son, was two and a half years younger than An Chengjie. As a child, he was mischievous – and after growing up, he was ignorant, not learning anything nor having any skill; he could not do any poetry. He was only proficient in eating, drinking, and playing, but was sweet tongued and deceptive, so he was the family favorite. After the protagonist arrived, his limelight was taken away – so, he therefore hated the protagonist. An Chengle always wanted to hang the protagonist, but… he was stupid. All his plans could easily be seen through by the protagonist, and he was quickly splashed with dirty water. He was eventually abandoned by his father and brother – finally dying in the mouth of a beast at the Royal Hunt.
…so tragic. Why did all the original owners of the bodies he used have a hobby of confronting the protagonist? Was it that difficult to live a peaceful life?
After turning off the screen, a carved wooden door entered his line of sight, and a faint noise could be heard from outside.
"The young master hasn't come out yet. It has already been half an hour, and the water should have turned cold by now."
"Hush, young master is trying to inflict himself with an illness so he can escape tomorrow's palace entrance test. I heard Xiao Cui say that the emperor summoned all ministers' sons to enter the palace in order to select a study companion for the sickly eighth prince. Anyone knows that this is not a good life to lead, and are trying to avoid it."
"What sickly person are you talking about! Be careful with your words – after all, he is still a prince. If someone heard it, you could implicate the young master!"
The noises suddenly stopped, and the outside became quiet.
Ye Zhizhou also stopped, opening the data and starting overturn the plot and timeline.
Two days after An Chengjie entered the government office, the emperor began searching for a study companion for the barely 13 years old eighth prince. Among all the ministers' children, An Chengle's age and status were the most suitable. However, An Chengle didn't have a bright future as a companion to the eighth prince, and a day before the summons, he forcibly made himself sick. The emperor was very angry, but he couldn't attack due to a number of factors. He took advantage of the atmosphere and chose An Chengjie as the reading companion. He also decreed and raised the protagonist's position, allowing him to have the treatment and status equal to that of the first son of the first wife.
Turning off the screen, he looked at his youthful blurred image on the bronze mirror that was in the corner of the room – hating iron for not becoming steel. He glared at the distant sky; this fine specimen of a male, yet he got such a bad ending!
[T/N: To feel resentful toward someone for failing to meet expectations]
But now, An Chengle had become him, and he was just supposed to… die? No way! He wants to become a demon!
Pulling the mirror into his arms, he pushed aside his messy long hair and fixed his expression. He raised his chin and pushed the door open, looking arrogantly at the two little servants through the corners of his eyes. "Prepare a horse for this young master. I am going to go buy gifts for the eighth prince!"
Wasn't it time to be a study companion for this 13 years old kid? What could a kid hide? All he had to be was a study companion!
With the help of the servants, Ye Zhizhou readied his hair and clothes. He valiantly walked up to the gate, catching sight of a horse. Looking at the young man who was currently holding the reins to the horse, Zhizhou paused and said, "This horse…"
The little servant, Chang Shun, quivered – quickly rushing forward to win the young master's favour. "Young master, we can only get Ta Xue after two days. Zhui Feng is an old horse, but he truly is fast. He is steady and is also very formidable. How about… you give him a try?"
…what was he meant to do now? He didn't even know how to ride a horse in the first place!
Silently swallowing the words down, he threw his sleeve, pretending to look at Zhui Feng in disdain. "What is the meaning of riding on such an old horse. Not even a little bit of fierce. Scram, and give this master a carriage."
{T/N: A term used to describe an action usually used by arrogant people when they're upset}
Seeing that the young master was not going to throw a fit at not being able to ride Ta Xue, Chang Shun heaved in a breath in his heart. Hurriedly, he rushed forward to hold Zhui Feng, saying, "Young master, please wait – I will bring the carriage over." After bowing, he led the horse away.
Chang Fu suffered a hard time after receiving his assignment; remembering the Madam's warning that morning, he could only step forward and carefully ask. "Young master, the Master will be back tonight, your homework…"
The Zhen Guogong, An Wenhua, was the current Minister of Revenue. Before he was sent out to settle a corruption case by the Emperor, he had arranged a lot of homework for An Chengle. The minister had said that he would check and test him after returning. However, in the month that Zhen Guogong was away, it couldn't be said that An Chengle did any studying – he didn't even set a foot in the study room, let alone write a line or two! Not only that, Chengle also went out and made mischief. The extremely violent horse named Ta Xue that was bought a few days ago was just one of the ironclad proofs.
The system data in his brain turned like cogs – and while maintaining a disdainful expression, Ye Zhizhou stiffened for three seconds, then quickly recomposed to let out a noise of arrogant disagreement. "What are you trying to say with all these long-winded and sweetened words? What homework? I won't do it – my dad won't kill me anyway. By the way, why can I only get Ta Xue after two days? I want to ride it now!"
Chang Fu simply wanted to cry, weakly explaining the reason. "The horse was first set aside for another – so the dealer has to explain the situation to the other buyer before he can give you the horse…"
"Simply dawdling! Even buying a mere horse is so troublesome, I don't want it! Just you wait, I'm giving that horse back!" An Chengle interrupted Chang Fu's words in an impatient manner. Seeing Chang Shun park the carriage in front of him, he walked up the few steps and climbed in. "Go to West Street, I want to go to that newly opened Treasure Pavilion!"
The two servants looked at each other in dismay. Chang Shun took a quick glance at the dim-witted Chang Fu – thinking about what he had heard as he was returning, he very carefully asked, "Young master, do you really not want Ta Xue?"
"I don't want it! Just go!" Lei Baofei was really set on this horse – even if it was a very good buy, he must not buy it!
The carriage stopped in front of a small shop on the corner of West Street. Ye Zhizhou lifted the curtain of the carriage and hopped off – glancing at the tiny store and blinking. Treasure Pavilion, the first store opened by the protagonist after he came to the capital; it sold rare items that this world didn't have, and it was very much liked and sought after by the wealthy. The shop quickly became an important way for the protagonist to accumulate wealth in the early stages of the story.
Treasure? Humph, it was just some little gadgets and the like.
Ye Zhizhou stepped in and glanced at the second floor – hooking up his lips and turning to look at the waiter who had come to greet him. In a tone of 'this young master doesn't lack money', he said, "Bring out all the best and rarest items you have. If I really have never seen it, I will buy it for double the price."
The other guests in the shop were askance.
Chang Shun and Chang Fu were extremely frightened at hearing these arrogant words. This Treasure Pavilion had only recently opened, but all its items were as expensive as expensive could get, and as rare as rare could get. Everyone who had entered whilst thinking the shop a joke was ultimately slapped in the face at the end. The young master had so much money to burn, ah!
The smile on the waiter's face froze for a moment, then returned with even more brilliance. "Valued guest, please wait a minute – I will go and collect the goods for you."
"Young master." After the waiter left, Chang Shun glanced at other guests and stepped forward, speaking in a low voice. "All your money has already been spent to buy Ta Xue. The items from Treasure Pavilion are even more expensive. You see…"
"Didn't I say I wanted to return Ta Xue?" Ye Zhizhou pretended to be impatient and just waved his hand, walking to the visitor's chair and sitting down. "Gentleman do not take other people's loved ones. Ta Xue and I have no fate together, return it."
Chang Shun was taken aback by his young master. Turning to look at Chang Fu, he actually couldn't process the idea in his head.
The waiter quickly returned with a tray, confidently putting it in front of Ye Zhizhou. He smiled, speaking, "Valued guests, these are actually new items that had just arrived this morning. The owner has said that if anyone can identify these items, they will be free for the person."
Ye Zhizhou blew a whistle in his heart – An Chengjie really was here today. This trip suddenly became worthwhile! Hooking his lips, he smiled. Glancing at the tray, he picked up a cylindrical object, twisting it for a while then dismissing it with a scoff. "Isn't this something children play with in the Foreign Land? This young master believes they call it a kaleidoscope – they twist it to see a flower-like thing – how boring."
The smile on the waiter's face froze.
Ye Zhizhou then picked up a wooden box that was inlaid with various precious stones. Opening it up, he looked at it – then unscrewed the clockwork that was carved into a flower shape under the box. Pouting, he said, "It's also another Foreign Land's toy. After twisting this part, music is played – but it's just a few monotonous sounds. Boring."
The guests who were waiting to see a joke gradually crowded around the youth, whispering. The waiter swallowed his saliva, feeling somewhat panicked.
"Oh, and did you burn the transparent glass at home? This color only exists in the Foreign Land." Ye Zhizhou poked the ugly glass vial in the corner of the tray, then picked up the ancient version of the magnifying glass. With disgusted eyes, he spoke. "This glass can magnify things, but it's easy to produce. All one needs to do it curve the glass into this angle."
After putting the item down, he pointed at the remaining ones – naming each product. "That's soap, which can be extracted from heated pig oil; it's normally used for bathing. The item beside it is used to clean teeth. The rest are pencils, which also originates from the Foreign Land. It's used for writing and is erasable."
The waiter already felt foolish, and the guests were astonished.
"I say," He pushed away the tray and sneered, "You are a scamming, black shop, aren't you? You just use some toys from the Foreign Land to con our people. You sell a few coins worth of items for hundreds of thousands. Your heart is really black." After saying this, he straightened his back and patted his sleeves – snorting coldly. "Really, all businessmen are evil. Chang Shun, Chang Fu, let's go! What Treasure Pavilion, it should be called the Black Heart Pavilion instead!"
Chang Shun and Chang Fu were stunned at this reversal, immediately looked at their younger master and quickly followed.
The trio drove away, leaving the waiter to face the skeptical customers. He couldn't help but take a step back, heart panicking. "Ladies and gentlemen, please don't listen to that nonsense. Everything in our shop is fairly priced…"
"Black hearted shop, return our money!" No one knew who had shouted first, but the angry demand incited the other guests. Shedding their hesitation, they all surrounded the waiter – enquiringly, questioning and roaring, all kinds of angry screams filling the air.
On the second floor of the store, An Chengjie stiffened – his hands stilling and his mind filling with shock. Lei Baofei, who was sitting in the opposite chair, slowly put down his cup. The friendly smile on the handsome face faded away, and he scrutinised An Chengjie with a glint in his eyes.
[The love probability of Lei Baofei and the protagonist has dropped to 70%. Please make persistent effort, Host]
Ye Zhizhou, who was once again analysing the plot in the carriage, was stunned. However, the shock quickly turned to enthusiasm. "Was Lei Baofei also upstairs in the shop?"
This was really a pleasant surprise. He had thought that Lei Baofei's soul flag would be the hardest pull out – and that he would need a long-term plan to get rid of it. But now, it seemed that this flag was actually the easiest!
When Ye Zhizhou read over the data, he discovered that Lei Baofei's romantic feelings for the protagonist were all based on the latter's holy light. After realising this, what was there to not understand! What Lei Baofei liked was the 'truthfulness, goodness, and beauty' of the protagonist. As long as Zhizhou tore apart the protagonist's layer of 'truthfulness, goodness, and beauty'…. well, pulling out the soul flag would be just around the corner!
In the evening, the Madam accompanied him at dinner. Inquiring for news about An Chengsheng, he was told that the elder son and his friends had gone out to sightsee. Learning of this, Ye Zhizhou returned to his courtyard – satisfied and tired.
The next day, he was awakened by Chang Shun. Meticulously dressed up, Ye Zhizhou was sent to the Madam's courtyard in a daze.
"Unfortunately, your father has gotten delayed on the road and can only arrive in the afternoon." The beautiful woman took a jade pendant from the box, her eyes full with worry. "After you enter the palace, behave yourself – put away your short temper. The eighth prince might not necessarily choose you, so don't make any trouble, okay?"
Even after staying in three worlds, this was the first time Ye Zhizhou had felt a mother's love. He couldn't help but soften his heart whenever he saw the beautiful woman. "I understand, mother."
Finally, she picked up a small exquisite jade, hanging the pendant on her son's neck. After arranging it nicely, she sighed. "You must blame me for spoiling you too much… well, the imperial carriage is already waiting at the door for you. Go quickly, it's not good to delay these kinds of matters."
He meekly and respectfully bid his farewell. With a trace of warmth in his heart, he set foot in the carriage.
The emperor had summoned all youths who were known to have intellectual knowledge or scholarly inclinations to enter the palace. Therefore, all the candidates had brought a few pieces of their most famous works with them. In the garden where the feast was held, only Ye Zhizhou entered with a rattle drum in his hand. Swaying it around, he practically exuded the words 'ignorant' and 'incompetent'.
{T/N: A drum-shaped rattle mostly used by peddlers or as a children's toy}
"Pst, I think it's the An family's rubbish – so disgraceful, that one; always making a show of himself
"Pst, I think it's the An family's rubbish – so disgraceful, that one; always making a show of himself." An unrestrained sneer rose up on Ye Zhizhou's face. Looking in passing, he searched for information in the original's memory on the person who just spoke. Carelessly shaking the rattle-drum, he coldly said, "I also don't know which one of the Jun Jie was driven out from the Yihong Courtyard last night because he couldn't afford the cost. Tsk, tsk, talking out about someone else when even his own pants aren't properly worn."
{T/N: Jun Jie refers to a genius or an elite}
{T/N: Yihong Courtyard is the name of a brothel}
A strange silence spread in the garden. All the people who were talking about literature and the arts stopped to looked at Ye Zhizhou. The person in question merely grinned, 'bashfully' speaking. "I still have a lot of stories like the one I just told. Do you want to hear them?"
The crowd all turned and continued their prior actions, acting as if nothing had happened. The young boy whose scandal was exposed, pointed at Ye Zhizhou in a furious manner. His mouth just opened and closed, no words escaping. Eventually, he ran away – tail tucked in between his legs.
"I want to hear your stories." The light voice of a youth was suddenly heard from a corner of the garden. Ye Zhizhou turned his head around, seeing a pale young man in a black robe; the man was sitting in a wheelchair that was being carefully pushed by a eunuch. His facial features were exquisite and gorgeous – yet held no expression; his eyes were especially dark, and those who fell under his gaze would feel like the prey of a snake. "Your surname is An?" The man in question focused an intense look at Ye Zhizhou, emotions still yet to appear on the handsome face. He looked at the other, and stretched out a pale thin finger. "I like your eyes… give them to me."
"What?!"
[T/N: Written in English in the raw lol]
The garden was silent once more, but this time because of the youth's sudden appearance. Together with the crowd was Ye Zhizhou, who was frightened to tears.
"You don't want to?" The youth slowly withdrew his hand, and bowed his head slightly – his jet-black hair falling onto his shoulder and cascading down onto the gold trimmed black robe. "De An, push me forward."
The ordinary faced eunuch respectfully nodded – pushing the wheelchair to Ye Zhizhou.
Previously, the youth was covered by a scenery of flowers and trees – hiding his countenance. But as he drew closer, the feeling of danger increased – and Ye Zhizhou's back stiffened by instinct. His hands unconsciously clenched and unclenched, causing the rattle-drum to send out a dull sound.
The gaze of the youth in the black robe shifted to the instrument. The hand rose once again, this time in the direction of the sound. Wide sleeves slipped down, exposing a pale and slender wrist. "This drum…." The fair and slim fingers held the back of Ye Zhizhou's hand, slightly applying pressure to the hold. "Give it to me?"
The hand that was held felt cold – He couldn't help but want to move, only suppressing his desire at the last minute. Glancing at the youth's golden crown and waistband, he could feel his blood running cold. He opened his mouth, speaking with a low tone. "Eighth prince?"
"Isn't that a given?" The youth slowly withdrew his hand, looking at the other with fixed eyes. Suddenly, both hands held the wheelchair's handrail, and he tried to stand up; a morbid red was unknowingly painted on the exquisite face due to the exertion. "Why won't you come?"
Ye Zhizhou was scared senseless by this eccentric youth. Obviously it was spring, and the scenery was great – even the air was filled with warmth. Yet, the eyes and tone of the person in front of him made him feel like he was in a frozen lake during the cold winter.
The youth who stood up became more eye-catching – and though it was obviously just a heavy and sinister robe held tight with a gold belt, there was a sense of softness that was emitted. One step after another, he slowly walked towards Ye Zhizhou – those jet-black eyes staring out at him. The youth placed his hand on Ye Zhizhou's shoulders – and slowly leaned in towards the other's heart, closing his eyes. "Caught you, you're mine now."
What the hell!
He could guess the other's identity, but Ye Zhizhou did not dare to mess with him; he stood stiffly due to the spiritual force that began to scurry around his body. "This… you want this rattle-drum? You move back a bit, and I'll give it to you." The other party was only a teenager who was half a head shorter than himself – yet the youth's strange loftiness had immense pressure, making him feel weak. Shameful! Too shameful!
The force on his shoulder slightly increased, then started moving towards his neck.
….Holding even tighter! A faint medicinal scent wafted from the youth, the warm breeze its messenger. Ye Zhizhou uneasily raised his head, looking at the middle-aged eunuch standing by the wheelchair. "Eunuch De An, his Highness is…"
He suddenly felt a faint tingling sensation run down his neck. Afterwards, his body slackened, and the spiritual force surrounding his body gradually stagnated. "You…" Ye Zhizhou was stunned. His body, unable to bear his own weight, collapsed – and the last thing he saw was the eighth prince's emotionless and sinister black eyes.
The other youngsters in the garden stared blankly at the scene, watching as Ye Zhizhou was suddenly hugged by the youth in black and forced to sit in the huge wheelchair. They were then pushed by the eunuch along the flower trail.
"Ah! Ah! Ah! An Chengle was taken away by the devil!" Liu Gongzi, who was the person previously ridiculed by Ye Zhizhou, suddenly cried out in fear. The sudden shout broke the strange calm in the garden – and the other youths looked at each other. Overwhelming panic spread out, all of them at their wits end.
A wizened palace eunuch suddenly appeared with a group of imperial guards – announcing, "Today's small feast is over. We ask that the talents leave with the imperial guards. Your majesty, the emperor, has bestowed rewards upon everyone's residences. Remember, you are not to say anything about this matter, otherwise…."
The youths, inexperienced in the ways of life, were frightened by this profound manner of speaking and strange smile. They simply bowed their heads and squeaked, resembling a quail hiding in its nest.
The eunuch smiled in satisfaction, and waved to the guards behind him – whom turned around to escort the youths out.
When Ye Zhizhou woke up, he found himself at his house – his current host's mother on the bedside, weeping silently. There was a tall man standing a few steps away from the bed, but the curtains hindered him from seeing the other's facial features.
"Yan er, I am not heartless – but the imperial edict has already been decreed. Your husband is helpless to do anything ."
Zhenguo Gong's madam, Lou Yanqi, wiped her tears. With fear colouring her tone, she said, "Is there really no other way? Le Er will soon enter the palace, and once he enters…."
"It really isn't possible…" Zhenguo Gong, An Wenhua, looked at his wife – gazing at the swollen eyes and red nose. Sighing, he approached her, patting her back. "Tomorrow, I will go ask his majesty, the emperor, if he can change the candidates. As Chengjie is better than Le Er in terms of literary talent, it shouldn't be impossible…"
Eh? Change the candidates?!
"No!" He talked too quickly, and ended up choking on his own saliva. He sat up, anxiously. "I am willing to be the eighth prince's study companion! Father must not disobey the imperial edict for me!" Under no circumstances must you allow the protagonist to go to the seventh prince's palace!
Lou Yanqi assisted him through her own distress – for hearing what he had said caused her to feel worried and anxious. "What is this child saying? What is so good about being a study companion, you are even required to live in the palace! Based on your temper, you might want to today, but in the future…." Saying that, she once again got choked with sobs, tears streaming down her face.
"Mother," Holding her hand with a serious expression, he continued to speak earnestly. "The eighth prince's temperament is eccentric – if we hastily request for a change in candidates, it's sure to make him unhappy. The emperor is paying so much attention to the eighth prince right now – if we oppose his majesty's most beloved son… father, mother, after the Spring Festival is the imperial exam; I must not drag down big brother at this time!"
Lou Yanqi heard what he said, and stared back blankly. An Wenhua looked at his second son in surprise; his serious expression softened, and he lifted his hand to touch the youth's forehead, sighing deeply. "Le Er has grown, he now knows to consider his family. But it truly will not be easy being the eighth prince's study companion, can't you rethink?"
"I've already though a lot about it – and I promise that I will try my best." Ye Zhizhou looked at Lou Yanqi, tugging her hand sightly. "Mother, you can just depend on me…"
Lou Yanqi leaned in and hugged him, feeling more depressed than before. "You foolish child…."
At last, he had convinced his incessantly weeping mother and stern faced father. He laid in bed; wiping his face with his sleeves and turning over to one side of his pillow. "Heaven?"
A black and gold embroidered pouch suddenly fell down onto his pillow. Staring blankly, he reached for the item and opened it. He saw Heaven lying inside, next to a small note; the scent of ink mixed with a medicinal smell. Ye Zhizhou scrunched up his eyebrows, and brought out the slip of paper.
'When I awake, so must you – Mingyong'
Yan Mingyong was the youngest of the emperor's eight sons – the birth mother being Hui Jieyu. At the age of eleven, he accidentally drank the poison intended for the emperor by the rebels. Although he saved an imperial life, he turned into an invalid – frail enough to get blown away by the wind. The emperor, feeling extremely sorry, practically granted his eighth son everything he asked for. Inside the palace, Yan Mingyong was one of the people one should never offend!
An invalid that could be knocked down by the wind had such skilful and incapacitating agents, ah!
"Yan. Ming. Yong." Ye Zhizhou gritted his teeth, and pressed a hand onto the puncture wound on his neck. A cold light flashed through his eyes. "Thirteen years old, yet daring to dress as if thirty-three – scaring people. Just you wait, this grandfather will show you reality!"
—
Fast forwarding to the hour An Chengsheng returned home, Ye Zhizhou could see his body's elder brother hurriedly rushing to his courtyard. Seeing the servants packing the luggage, he furiously said, "I, An Chensheng, does not need my younger brother's life exchanged for my future! Stop this!"
Ye Zhizhou sized up this handsome and refined, but cheap, older brother of his. He really couldn't imagine that this concerned man had became a cold-blooded brother who didn't care for his younger brother's fate in order to support the protagonist.
"Big brother," Zhizhou motioned for Chang Shun and Chang Fu to exit, then took a step forward towards. An Chengsheng, who was glaring and spitting in anger, was pushed down into a chair. "There is no leeway regarding me becoming the eighth prince's study companion. Big brother, you should calm down."
"You still expect me to be calm!" Hitting the table with his fist, An Chengsheng's face was filled with anxiety. "You aren't aware, Le Le – but this eighth prince, Yan Mingyong, is not simple at all. Before, he rarely appeared in public – but it wasn't because his body was ill to the point he couldn't get out of bed; it was because—"
The door was slammed open, and the black-robed youth in question looked straight at An Chengsheng – his eyes full of an indiscernible emotion. "Because of what, An Shizi?"
[T/N: Shizi is a common title used for the sons of aristocrats or senior officials. Unlike Zhengguo Gong, this is not an official title.]
An Chengsheng's face suddenly changed – and he grabbed Ye Zhizhou by the shoulder to pull him behind. The refined aura disappeared and turned ferocious. "His highness, the eighth prince, this one hopes that you are well."
"As do I." Yan Mingyong held onto the handrail of the wheelchair and stood up, a smile painted on the handsome face. "Southern Jiangnan's fraud case, Huainan's private salt case, the Ministry of Justice's Fang Tong, the Ministry of Appointments' Wen Qian, the Ministry of Revenue's Yuan Chunyi, West Zuoying Army's Yang Youcai…. is this enough for you?"
[T/N: A private salt case, in Ancient China, refers to salt trafficking; which was very common due to the high costs of salt. It was a common practice for both thieves and officials.]
An Chengsheng's body froze in shock, looking at the youth in horror. His body was tense, and his palms were clenched – a thin layer of cold sweat forming on his forehead. How did the eighth prince know of the secret matters buried deep with various ministries! Don't tell me that there is a traitor on our side?!
Ye Zhizhou, who was getting more and more confused, stepped out – frowning slightly. "What are you talking about?" What fraud case, private salt case? But he didn't remember any of these mentioned in the system's data? Don't tell me that Heaven is glitching again?
[Please trust the system.]
He ignored the screen pop up, and looked at Yan Mingyong – who was outside the room. Ye Zhizhou, grinning evilly, spoke in an intimate manner. "His highness, the eighth prince, have you heard of this story?"
Yan Mingyong's eyes flashed when he saw the smile. Slowly striding forwards, it was not even after two steps that he had to stop and stoop down to cough. Then, with one hand on his mouth and the other on the door frame – he collapsed to the ground.
Ye Zhizhou's smile turned stiff. Seeing the youth on the verge of returning to the West, alarm bells began to ring in his head. Darting over, he crouched down to support the frail body of the imperial prince.
"What's wrong with you? Where do you feel uncomfortable?" Under no circumstances could he die now, ah! If he died here, then the emperor would wipe out the Zhenguo Gong Fu, ah!
[T/N: Return to the West is a Daoist term referring to death.]
[T/N: The Zhenguo Gong Fu is the Zhenguo Gong's post or the fiefdom of which the Zhenguo Gong is in charge of.]
Breathing shallowly, Yan Mingyong took his hand and grabbed onto his arm – leaning forward like before. His mouth was still full of blood, but on his face was a satisfied smile. "Caught you, again… you are mine, mine."
The scent of medicine began to invade his senses again. Ye Zhizhou looked down at the blood stains on his sleeves, and then at the youth's pale and bloody face. He frowned. What to do? The eighth prince is a mental case! Being his study companion, can he still back out now?
