12: rule

When Shen Lian opened his eyes again, it was the next morning.

Raindrops fell against the window with a "pitter-patter," evoking a sense of laziness deep in one's bones.

Shen Lian struggled to sit up and grabbed the phone from the nightstand to take a look. Hmm, the production team had indeed sent a notice to pause filming.

That was the good thing about live streaming; occupy a platform, spend money to buy a good spot, and you could start at any time.

The rainfall was heavy; even professionals would have to think twice about entering the jungle in this weather.

Then, Shen Lian raised an eyebrow slightly.

Suddenly, fifty thousand yuan was deposited into his salary card.

He scrolled a bit more and found a message from Qian Gao: "This is the appearance fee for the previous few times. Once the variety show filming is finished, the rest of the money will be settled for you."

There was no longer any arrogance in the words.

Did he have a change of heart?

Shen Lian had forgotten about the Feng Yueshan incident.

Creak—the door opened.

Chu Yilan paused, not expecting Shen Lian to be awake so early.

Aunt Fen squeezed in from behind, carrying a thermal container, muttering, "Oh my, look at these bruises. I stewed some bone soup, drink it while it's hot."

The blue and purple bruises at the corners of Shen Lian's mouth deepened, contrasting with his fair face, and Aunt Fen was heartbroken just looking at him.

"Be more careful when you walk next time."

Chu Yilan didn't mention that Shen Lian got these from a fight.

Upon hearing this, Shen Lian understood and replied obediently, "I'll remember that, Aunt Fen."

The bone soup was rich and savory. Shen Lian finished it in a few mouthfuls, soothing his restless stomach and instantly feeling comfortable all over.

There was nothing for Aunt Fen to do here, so after chatting with Shen Lian for a bit, she left.

Throughout the whole process, Chu Yilan didn't say a word.

Once Aunt Fen closed the door, Shen Lian leaned back against the pillow and smiled at Chu Yilan, "Thank you, Master Chu."

Chu Yilan sneered, "You're not simple yourself, beating Liu Kaisheng and his group like that."

That was light, Shen Lian thought to himself. The Original Host's physical condition wasn't great; if it were his own background and physique from his past life, he could have beaten Liu Kaisheng all the way from the hotel to the hospital.

Thinking of last night's scene, Shen Lian couldn't help but press his waist, muttering, "Don't let them break this part of me."

Chu Yilan pulled out a chair and sat down, "You want to pick and choose where you get beaten?"

"Of course? My face and this spot are off-limits."

Shen Lian said smoothly, "The former concerns how pleasing I am to Master Chu's eyes, and the latter concerns my and Master Chu's sexual happiness."

Chu Yilan's neck stiffened, and he raised his head inch by inch.

"Shen Lian, aren't you ashamed?"

Shen Lian was unbothered, "Affection needs to be expressed boldly."

At this, his expression brightened, "Master Chu, I can buy you roses again. Qian Gao has paid off a portion of my outstanding salary."

"How much?"

"Fifty thousand."

Chu Yilan spread his long legs, tilted his head slightly, and wore a faint smile, "That's not even enough for me to buy a tie."

Shen Lian replied, "We'll take it step by step."

What Shen Lian didn't know was that Liu Kaisheng had already been fired by Tianhe Advertising. Who would dare keep him after causing such big trouble?

As for Qian Gao, apart from going to the hospital to get his stomach pumped and suffering a huge fright, he was otherwise fine. As for Shen Lian, even if you gave him ten times the courage, he wouldn't dare bully him again.

Chu Yilan initially thought handling it this way was troublesome; he could have easily just brought Shen Lian to his side, as Star Opening Media could accommodate him.

But at the moment of making the decision, Chu Yilan hesitated.

In his mind, Shen Lian's cunning gaze and determined ambition suddenly surfaced.

It wouldn't be hard for Chu Yilan to keep a pet, but Shen Lian was restless. He was quite good at making big promises, talking about gifting a whole field of flowers and supporting him. Chu Yilan was curious to see how far Shen Lian could go.

If it was just empty talk, then it would be boring, and Chu Yilan wouldn't bother paving the way for him.

Shen Lian kept his word. The flowers sent to Chu Yilan's office that day were changed to red roses.

On them, there was a note the shop assistant wrote for Shen Lian: "Eternal Love."

Heaven knows how terrified and devastated Yang Bin was when he accidentally saw those four words.

Who is it? Who on earth is it?!

Chu Yilan went to the company in the evening to pick up documents. The red roses on the small counter at the entrance were fresh and vibrant, and he stared at them for a while.

That same evening, Shen Lian received a collaboration invitation from a third-tier advertisement.

Due to him still being hospitalized, the shooting time was set for five days later.

Shen Lian stayed in the hospital until the third day and then was discharged. Outside, the heavy rain continued to pour.

The variety show couldn't start filming and had to be postponed again and again.

Shen Lian didn't know how good the medicine he was using was; he only felt that he was recovering quickly. Aunt Fen doted on him, and the meals she made were nutritious and delicious.

Shen Lian finally didn't have to be exploited by Qian Gao anymore, and his free time increased. Listening to the sound of the rain outside, he wrapped himself in a blanket and lay on the living room sofa reading a book.

This was the scene Chu Yilan saw when he came home from work.

The young man was curled up in a blanket, and all one could see was a fuzzy top of his head. His calves weren't completely covered, and he seemed to be in a good mood, wiggling them back and forth; his ankles were as white and jade-like as could be.

"Master Chu?" Shen Lian greeted him.

Chu Yilan said indifferently, "You have no sitting posture."

After spending time together, Shen Lian knew which of Chu Yilan's words were genuine anger and which were just for show.

He accompanied Chu Yilan for a bite to eat, and afterwards, the man worked in the living room while he sat nearby reading a book. It was quite quiet.

Until Chu Yilan's phone buzzed and vibrated; a text message had arrived.

Chu Yilan opened it casually, not expecting it to be from Zheng Ge.

"Brother Lan, are you okay?"

Chu Yilan was slightly stunned.

A flicker of mockery slid across Shen Lian's eyes, and he wasn't very polite, "From the time you had your accident until now, how many times has he appeared? The injuries on your face were all left from saving him, right?"

Shen Lian sighed slowly, "Like a cat crying for a mouse—pure hypocrisy."

Chu Yilan frowned, "Go back to your room."

Shen Lian: "Delete him."

If Zheng Ge had any conscience at all, Shen Lian wouldn't be so repulsed.

Hearing this, Chu Yilan pushed the phone forward, his voice dangerous, "Try deleting him and see what happens?"

Master Chu usually spoke like this and no one dared to answer, but who was Shen Lian?

He grabbed Chu Yilan's phone, his fingers nimble, tapping and poking on the screen, and finally handed it to Chu Yilan, "Hmm, deleted."

Not only that, but there was also a message Shen Lian had sent in the name of "Chu Yilan": "Don't contact me again if there's nothing important."

Chu Yilan's pupils contracted, and then rage boiled over. He swiped the phone away, grabbed Shen Lian by the collar, threw him onto the sofa, and loomed over him like a wild beast, "You have some nerve!"

Aunt Fen happened to come out and was shocked, "What's going on here..."

"Aunt Fen." Chu Yilan interrupted.

Aunt Fen wanted to say something but held back, knowing Chu Yilan's temper very well—the more you tried to stop him, the worse it would get. She looked worried, but in the end, she returned to her own room.

Shen Lian aggravated his old waist injury, but he only frowned slightly and then looked at Chu Yilan, sneering, "For something like that, you're willing to throw away your whole life?"

Thinking of Chu Yilan's ultimate fate of burning himself to death by the sea, the anger in Shen Lian's heart flared up.

Because he liked someone from the bottom of his heart, he couldn't bear to see him being blind.

Chu Yilan said coldly, "And what are you supposed to be?"

"No matter what kind of person I, Shen Lian, am, I'm still better than Zheng Ge, who leads one person on after another."

After Shen Lian finished speaking, he gripped Chu Yilan's wrist, exerted force suddenly, and successfully broke free.

But he didn't run. Instead, he pushed Chu Yilan's chest. During the struggle, he pinned the man against the table and leaned in close, his eyes deep and shrouded in silence, yet flames flickered from within, as if he were about to turn everything upside down.

"Chu Yilan." Shen Lian leaned in closer, their lips less than half a finger apart, almost touching, "I dare to call Zhou Tangsi over and slap him twice. Do you dare to do that to Zheng Ge?"

"Someone who lied to you and is leading you on—do you dare?"

The aggression in Shen Lian's eyes was no less than Chu Yilan's.

They were like wild beasts testing each other, about to pounce and tear at one another.

The scent of blood even began to spread in the air.

There was also another emotion, seemingly ready to ignite at the slightest touch.

Chu Yilan's eyes were deep, and he stared at Shen Lian without speaking.

Shen Lian didn't get the answer he wanted, and his heart instantly went cold.

Shen Lian knelt up, then got off the sofa, and finally stood in front of Chu Yilan. His thin lips parted slightly, and he spat out two words: "Coward."

Bang!

The desk was overturned by Chu Yilan's forceful act of standing up; for a moment, the man's aura was astonishing!

Shen Lian didn't doubt for a second that he could tear him to pieces.

But so what?

When Shen Lian likes someone, holding and pampering them is one thing, but at the same time, he cannot tolerate even a speck of dust in his eyes.

Even if Zheng Ge is a tree rooted in Chu Yilan's heart, he, Shen Lian, would uproot it!

Whether it be pain or pleasure, he would have his own name carved into Chu Yilan's flesh and blood.

This is affection, and this is the rule!