142: Add a little heart

"No, what are you doing staying at home all day?" On the other end of the phone, Hu Kailan was in a rush, accompanied by the sound of car horns, clearly outside. "Listen, a luxury brand is moving into Jinning Building and wants you to make an appearance. It won't take long—just show up and cut the ribbon with the person in charge. The pay is good. Want to go?"

"I'll go." Shen Lian was currently leaning back on a lounge chair, soaking up the sun. The sunlight fell on the corners of his eyes, creating an aura of casual tenderness.

This face was now almost unrivaled in the entertainment industry.

"Great," Hu Kailan said happily. "Then it's a deal."

"Mm, thanks for the trouble, Brother Hu."

Hanging up the phone, Shen Lian supported himself on the lounge chair with both hands, baring his teeth slightly as he shifted positions with some difficulty. Someone who didn't know better might have thought he'd been beaten up. But the next second, once Shen Lian found a comfortable spot, he resumed that lazy and relaxed expression.

He had thought Chu Yilan could hold back more, but it turned out he was only well-behaved for that one night.

After eating the next day, Shen Lian was flipped over and over like a "fried fish." It was truly comfortable, but it was also truly exhausting.

In the middle of his heavy breathing, Chu Yilan didn't forget to ask Shen Lian, "Do you know your mistake now?"

Shen Lian's voice was hoarse, but he carried a smile. "Master Chu, you've heard me show weakness so many times only for me to keep offending you later. Aren't you used to it yet?"

These words ignited Chu Yilan. Shen Lian was sacrificing a thousand of his own to deal twenty damage to the enemy.

According to Aunt Fen's description this morning, Chu Yilan was full of energy when he left.

While a certain someone was like a dead dog.

The event was on the morning of the third day. At that time, Shen Lian hadn't fully recovered, but it didn't matter. He rushed to the studio early, got his outfit and styling done, and arrived at the building by nine o'clock.

The moment he stepped out of the car, Shen Lian was shocked.

He saw a vacuum zone surrounding his car on all four sides. The outermost layer was filled with security guards, and beyond them—while not exactly a sea of people—the crowd was still terrifyingly large. Fans held up support signs with his name on them, their expressions excited. The moment Shen Lian appeared, the screams and roars shook the sky.

It wasn't hard to hear that there were quite a few male fans mixed in.

This caused Shen Lian to feel a moment of daze.

In this life, his real-world interactions with fans hadn't been frequent. As he'd said before, he wasn't developing toward being an idol, so he had assumed his popularity would plummet. Who knew that at this moment, flowers and applause were not lacking at all.

Shen Lian took a deep breath, the corners of his lips curling up, and then he took off his sunglasses.

He handled this kind of scene very skillfully and was genuinely grateful from the bottom of his heart.

Today, Shen Lian wore a white thin jacket over a white shirt. His black trousers emphasized his long legs—under the camera, it really looked like he was all legs below the neck. His hair was in a simple, lazy middle part, and with a bit of eye makeup, his expressive eyes suddenly became sharp. Yet, when he smiled at the fans, he was as gentle as melting ice turning into rain.

For a moment, the sounds of various cameras were incessant.

Shen Lian displayed himself generously, tilting his head to have Li Yi ask how long until the start. If it didn't delay things or take up too much space, he would interact with the fans for a while.

It was twenty minutes later before Shen Lian was escorted into the main entrance of Jinning Building.

As he walked, Shen Lian took posters or photos handed over by fans and signed them rapidly.

"Add a little heart!" a fan shouted.

Shen Lian did as requested and added a little heart.

The Young Girl who got the signature jumped for joy on the spot.

"Hubby, I love you!"

A deep, powerful voice suddenly rang out. Shen Lian's footsteps paused, and his gaze as he looked toward the sound was slightly surprised.

The crowd dispersed while laughing. Hearing the voice, one would have expected a burly man, but it was actually a student-looking "little milk dog." Meeting Shen Lian's gaze, his cheeks instantly turned bright red, and he looked ready to crawl into a hole in the ground at any moment.

Shen Lian looked him up and down gently, then smiled and said, "Study hard and try to get into a top university."

The boy froze, then shouted in a pained voice, "I'm an adult!"

Shen Lian left with a laugh, not paying further attention.

It was an unexpected temporary fan meeting, but the experience was particularly good.

Shen Lian met up with the person in charge of the luxury brand. After waiting for over ten minutes, the ribbon-cutting ceremony began.

Shen Lian cooperated throughout. His fan influence was powerful; the boisterous scene left the person in charge very satisfied.

Once the event ended, the fans were gradually and politely asked to leave. Shen Lian turned and went into the store. It was huge, occupying almost half of this floor, with everything from clothing to bags. Besides Shen Lian, the person in charge also gave gifts to Jiang You and Li Yi on the spot.

Jiang You asked with her eyes, and Shen Lian nodded, indicating she could accept it.

Shen Lian had seen most luxury scenes; he was polite and calm, appearing very easy to talk to.

"Teacher Shen," someone called from behind.

Shen Lian turned around. Once he saw the other person clearly, his expression turned slightly cold.

It was the boss of Xiguang Media, Song Yuan—Chen Mu's former employer and ex-boyfriend whom he'd had the misfortune of meeting.

"Hello, CEO Song." Shen Lian nodded.

Song Yuan's chin was slightly raised. He had good bone structure and handsome features, giving him an obvious air of arrogance. But in Shen Lian's eyes, this arrogance seemed intentionally displayed, like a clear self-introduction saying, "I am not ordinary."

He must have been suppressed before, Shen Lian thought. Song Yuan was still quite far from being able to "hide his emotions."

"It's rare. This is essentially our first time chatting and meeting, yet Teacher Shen actually remembers me."

Shen Lian: "I've seen you before at industry banquets."

Song Yuan gave an "Mm." The two looked at each other, followed by a moment of silence.

Song Yuan was able to dominate Xiguang, so he had some skill. At the very least, he could tell right now that Shen Lian didn't like him.

"Teacher Shen... are you on very good terms with Chen Mu?" Song Yuan finally spoke again.

Shen Lian looked slightly surprised upon hearing this. "Chen Mu? Didn't he terminate his contract with Xiguang a long time ago?"

This sentence immediately left Song Yuan expressionless.

It was more than just terminating the contract.

Chen Mu had deleted and blocked all of Song Yuan's contact information. That person, whom Song Yuan thought he could hold firmly in his hand and who could never leave, had instantly withdrawn from his life—and with great haste.

Song Yuan used ruthless methods. His first thought was to suppress him within the industry, but only later did he find out that Chen Mu had signed with Star Opening.

He had borrowed Shen Lian's influence.

When did they cross paths? Song Yuan was completely unaware.

"Teacher Shen looks after Chen Mu so much. When did you two meet?" Song Yuan's tone was heavy. He was deliberately suppressing some kind of emotion, but Shen Lian was best at capturing subtle nuances.

"CEO Song." Shen Lian showed a playful smile. "Don't look like you're trying to catch some dirt on Chen Mu. As far as I know, you've been broken up for nearly a year. And in this year, you've humiliated and suppressed him, using every means possible. Since you hate Chen Mu so much, shouldn't you be happy now that he's gone?"

Song Yuan suddenly frowned. "Shen Lian, since you know I'm targeting Chen Mu, you still dare to help him? If you offend me, are you so sure Star Opening will definitely protect you?"

"Yes, I'm sure," Shen Lian replied. "I can even call CEO Kuang right now and have him rant at you for three minutes."

Song Yuan: "..."