117: You've crossed my line.

In that short amount of time, it was enough for Sun Binghe to uncover many things.

"One paparazzi escaped last night, but the trending search content wasn't released by them. Someone bought it secretly. Looking at the scale of it, they came prepared. It's currently confirmed that the Jiang family is operating behind the scenes."

Jiang Nong was standing right there at the exit.

He practically had 'guilty conscience' written all over his face.

Seeing Shen Lian, Jiang Nong stood up straight, his expression nervous and pitiful: "Brother Shen..."

Even with just those two words, Sun Binghe found him extremely noisy.

In the next second, Shen Lian grabbed Jiang Nong by the collar and slammed him hard against the iron door frame, making a loud 'bang'.

The crowd looked over in horror, but Shen Lian didn't care. His face was completely dark, and his usually clear and gentle temperament instantly became incredibly sharp. "What the hell do you think you are? Playing these kinds of tricks on me?"

Sun Binghe instantly felt like he was listening to celestial music, his ears finally finding peace.

The iron door had protruding vertical bars and patterns. Jiang Nong was first stunned, then felt a burning pain in his back. He couldn't stand pain the most, but at this moment, compared to the pain, Shen Lian's appearance filled him with fear. "Brother Shen, I don't understand, please let go of me first..."

"You dare say the trending search has nothing to do with you?" Sun Binghe said coldly.

Jiang Nong opened his mouth, his mind racing. "Brother Shen, the studio said we needed to generate some buzz. I thought it wouldn't be a big deal? I said at the time to just write about brotherhood, either with you or my brother. I didn't know they would write it like that."

"You didn't know?" Shen Lian pressed closer. "You wanted the person I like to see it, didn't you?"

Jiang Nong's pupils shrank—an uncontrollable reaction to being exposed.

"Jiang Nong, I used to think you were just childish, but now I realize you're just spoiled rotten! Even if I refuse you ten thousand times, you still don't understand the meaning of boundaries!"

"Shen Lian!" Su Niansheng stepped forward quickly, his expression tense and ugly. "Let go of my brother!"

Jiang Nong also tried to move, but as soon as he struggled, Shen Lian grabbed his collar again and slammed him against the iron door. The sound was even louder than before, and Jiang Nong couldn't help but close his eyes and let out a muffled groan.

"Hey, hey, hey, what's going on?" Director Liu Zong, Chen Zao, and several producers stepped forward, waving their hands at Shen Lian. "Let him go first, let's talk this out."

Su Niansheng: "Shen Lian, if you have any grievances, take them out on me. Don't make things difficult for my brother!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Shen Lian threw Jiang Nong aside. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, his movements were swift and his aura was cold as he raised a fist and punched Su Niansheng in the face.

Su Niansheng didn't react at all. He staggered a few steps, covered his face, and fell to the ground. The look he gave as he looked up was filled with disbelief.

"You know full well what your brother did." Shen Lian straightened his collar. "Do you think it's not a big deal? Su Niansheng, you've stepped over my bottom line."

In the entertainment industry, who matches with whom or who is dating whom—out of a hundred rumors, it's lucky if even one is true. Jiang Nong's people had bought the information and asked for his opinion when publishing it. Initially, it was set to be about his brotherhood with Su Niansheng, which fans also loved. But when Jiang Nong saw the photo of Shen Lian's handsome profile, he couldn't help himself. He thought it wouldn't be serious, harboring a somewhat dark psychological urge, thinking: 'Aren't you two supposed to have a bond stronger than gold? Surely you won't get angry over this?'

He was like a child who couldn't get his favorite toy, throwing a tantrum as he walked.

Jiang Nong felt he was almost ready to let go, so this would be the last time he'd act willfully.

Jiang Nong thought Shen Lian wouldn't bother with him at all; he didn't expect Shen Lian to explode like this.

Yang Bin said Chu Yilan saw the trending search while running a high fever. Just thinking about that scene made Shen Lian's heart ache. Chu Yilan was different from ordinary people; there was a large piece missing from his core, and his sense of territoriality was almost pathological. Shen Lian would rather Chu Yilan come over aggressively to demand an explanation than have him not say a single word.

His beating of the Su brothers was truly because he could no longer tolerate them.

The film set remained in dead silence until Shen Lian left.

—

Shen Lian and Sun Binghe caught a flight and landed in Region Name two hours later.

Winter was approaching, and Region Name was freezing. Sun Binghe handed over a scarf, which Shen Lian quickly wrapped around himself.

Yang Bin came to pick them up personally. When Shen Lian saw him, his heart finally eased a little. "Has he seen a doctor?"

"He has. It's a common cold, but he hasn't been getting enough rest, plus excessive drinking." Yang Bin turned the steering wheel and glanced at Sun Binghe in the rearview mirror.

Normally, Sun Binghe was unwilling to work overtime, but this time was special.

Chu Yilan was so feverish he was incoherent, but his alertness remained. He vaguely heard the sound of the door opening and a flurry of footsteps. He wanted to open his eyes to look, but was enveloped by the scent he longed for. Someone touched his forehead, then leaned in with cheek against cheek, before saying something in a gentle voice.

He found it annoying when others spoke, but this person was different. Chu Yilan's breathing was heavy as he struggled to tilt his head, wanting to hear the content of the words clearly.

"You can leave the rest to me and Yang Bin," Sun Binghe whispered. "The Bodyguards are right outside, and Nie Sheng will arrive in about half an hour. Just let us know if you need anything, Teacher Shen."

Shen Lian: "Alright, thank you for your hard work."

Once they stepped out, Sun Binghe couldn't help asking: "Did you teach the Boss this trick?"

"Am I even worthy?" Yang Bin chuckled. "I think CEO Chu figured it out on his own. You didn't see CEO Chu this morning; he was like a child, just throwing down his work and quitting."

"Teacher Shen took action, so I'm in a good mood," Sun Binghe said. "Let's go and clean up the mess left by CEO Xu."

Ever since his mother and grandfather passed away one after another, Chu Yilan had been exceptionally resilient. But this time, it felt like a cloud was lying beside him. If he groaned even slightly, the other person knew what he needed. Warm water entered his throat, greatly relieving the internal heat. Chu Yilan's consciousness was hazy as he subconsciously called out: "Shen Lian..."

"Yeah," Shen Lian responded, only to find that Chu Yilan said nothing more.

As the sky darkened, he only turned on a small bedside lamp. The light was warm and amber. Shen Lian got out of bed and brought back a freshly wrung towel.

Chu Yilan was sweating profusely, spending most of the time frowning and huddled in the quilt, his body unconsciously moving closer to him. These were all signs of dependency.

After keeping watch until the middle of the night, Chu Yilan's breathing finally stabilized, and Shen Lian felt relieved. He didn't mind at all that Chu Yilan was covered in sweat; if the man wanted to hold him, he let him. Occasionally, when the body startled, he would pat his back like he was soothing a child.

Shen Lian was a light sleeper, so he woke up almost the moment the mattress moved.

"Yilan?"

The person beside him paused. Shen Lian opened his eyes and met Chu Yilan's deep, quiet gaze.

The sky was just beginning to brighten, and the cold wind was howling outside.

"Go back to sleep," Chu Yilan said. "I'm going to take a shower."

"What shower? You have a fever..."

"It's gone." Chu Yilan pressed him back down. "Be good."

Chu Yilan wrapped himself in a bathrobe, showing no signs of strain as he walked. Shen Lian lay on the bed with one hand over his forehead for a while. Listening to the sound of running water in the bathroom, he rolled over and got up. He couldn't sleep anymore either; they might as well wash together.

Shen Lian hadn't realized yet that this action was equivalent to offering himself up on a silver platter.