32: No need

Chu Yilan never doubted the professional ability of Sun Binghe, but he forgot to instruct this man not to reveal his identity.

So, when Shen Lian asked, "Master Chu probably wouldn't want me to know that Assistant Sun is his confidant, right?", Sun Binghe's smile stiffened for a moment.

This was a rookie mistake.

However, Sun Binghe also felt that it shouldn't be like this.

The Boss doesn't want Mr. Shen to know? What is he afraid of?

In Sun Binghe's view, Chu Yilan had no fear in his life; if Chu Yilan really had some interest in Shen Lian, it would be even easier to handle.

Raising a pet, shouldn't one let the other party know how much the benefactor has invested?

Sun Binghe had seen plenty of this in the industry; that was just how things worked.

But he overlooked one thing: Chu Yilan might be using true sincerity with Shen Lian.

Underneath that sincerity was tug-of-war, testing, ambiguity, wanting the other person to be well but not wanting them to know, being awkward, like swallowing a sour apricot, with a sweet aftertaste that only one could savor for oneself.

Sun Binghe had never been in love; his theories sounded fine, but in reality, facing Shen Lian's inscrutable gaze, he felt a bit intimidated himself.

"Don't worry," Shen Lian began. "Let's just pretend the conversation we just had never happened. You do what you need to do, and I'll do what I need to do."

As expected, a smart person!

Sun Binghe accepted readily.

The scene took all day to shoot, and by the end, Shen Lian had silenced everyone.

Dai Tong chewed on tea leaves, sizing up Shen Lian, feeling that the online chatter was truly complete bullshit.

This is called bad acting? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was professionally trained.

But Shen Lian's previous few films were indeed trash.

The most reasonable explanation Dai Tong could think of for this was that Shen Lian had woken up, finally stopped obsessing over romance, realized the importance of his future after being blacklisted by the entire internet, put in a lot of effort behind the scenes, and added to that, he had some talent.

Anyway, Dai Tong was extremely satisfied with this part of Li Kuan. In fact, the Li Kuan presented by Shen Lian made him realize the potential for digging deeper into this role; he was just discussing adding scenes with the screenwriter.

Shen Lian was the first to get off work; once he finished, he didn't hang around anyone, instead grabbing his toiletries and diving into the bathroom immediately.

Zheng Ge looked at Sun Binghe for the umpteenth time, always feeling he looked familiar.

Shen Lian finished his shower feeling refreshed, enveloped in steam, his hair messy, looking particularly vibrant.

"Click—"

Hearing the noise, Shen Lian turned his head to see it was Sun Binghe.

If someone else had taken the photo, Shen Lian would have demanded they delete it immediately, but if it was for Chu Yilan, that was a different story.

"Is that angle okay?" Shen Lian even immediately struck a side pose, presenting what he considered a handsome angle. "Take another one."

Sun Binghe thought to himself, 'You really know how to play the game.'

The next second, he heard Shen Lian say, "Do you need me to lift my shirt slightly to show my abs?"

Sun Binghe: "..."

No need for that.

In the industry, the pets kept by wealthy people aren't always obedient; some eat, spend, and use their resources, yet still put on an attitude of "you cannot insult my character." In Sun Binghe's view, that's being hypocritical and pretentious, and most are boring. But Shen Lian was different; the moment he heard the name "Chu Yilan," his whole body was swept by an air of seduction.

He was countless times better than that Zheng Ge outside.

Actually, Zheng Ge's feeling was correct; he had met Sun Binghe before.

After an argument and tantrum with Zhou Tangsi, he went to find Chu Yilan. Chu Yilan happened to be going to eat and brought him along. Midway, Sun Binghe rushed over to deliver a document.

At the time, Zheng Ge was heartbroken over Zhou Tangsi and didn't pay much attention to Sun Binghe.

The only special assistant of Chu Yilan he was familiar with was Yang Bin.

But Sun Binghe knew of Zheng Ge all too well.

Yang Bin had complained about him too many times, nothing more than "clueless," "ungrateful wretch," and "something wrong with his brain."

To this, Sun Binghe deeply agreed.

Zheng Ge was the epitome of being hypocritical and pretentious. Oh, dating has nothing to do with our Boss, so why do you recognize him again when you get into trouble and need resources?

But what level was Sun Binghe at? He didn't show a hint of it. In the afternoon, Zheng Ge tried to approach him to chat twice, but Sun Binghe skillfully dodged him both times.

Shen Lian greeted Director Dai and went back to his room to rest.

Director Dai waved his hand hurriedly, busy scolding Wei Fanchen; his lines were poor, his posture was poor, and his expressions were even worse. He wouldn't be satisfied without berating him.

But in Wei Fanchen's eyes, it seemed like Shen Lian was there to show off on purpose.

Shen Lian lay on the bed, unable to focus on his script, so he made a video call to Chu Yilan.

It was answered on the third ring.

There was some shaking; it was Chu Yilan placing his phone upright on his desk. Judging by the background, he was still at the company.

Shen Lian frowned: "What time is it already?"

Chu Yilan seemed to chuckle slightly, "If I don't work, how can I support so many people in the company?"

"You still need to rest."

"I'm staying at the office tonight."

Shen Lian was not very happy: "Can you live there?"

Chu Yilan didn't waste words, turned the camera around, stood up, and held the phone to give Shen Lian a tour of the compartment.

Shen Lian: "..."

Sorry, it was my lack of respect for you as a CEO.

It turned out the compartment was a two-room, one-living-room suite with exquisite decoration, a dedicated coffee station, plenty of fine wine in the cabinet nearby, and a bathroom that was plenty large.

"Is that satisfactory?" Chu Yilan asked.

Shen Lian really looked like he was satisfied with an inspection, replying seriously: "Not bad."

"It's fortunate that you only got busy after I came to the set, otherwise, if you had left me alone in an empty room for so long, wouldn't I have been bored to death?"

Chu Yilan had already grown accustomed to Shen Lian's nonsense, but he just felt that Shen Lian had the cause and effect reversed.

It wasn't that he happened to get busy after Shen Lian left, he just... didn't really want to go home.

Actually, before Shen Lian's video call came in, Chu Yilan was quite annoyed.

"Master Chu, turn the camera around; I want to see your face."

Chu Yilan sat on the edge of the bed and waited a moment before turning it.

Acting coy.

Shen Lian leaned in closer to look, "Master Chu, the scar on your face seems to have faded a lot."

Did it? Chu Yilan hadn't noticed.

And now, Shen Lian mentioned the scar that Chu Yilan was most sensitive about so freely that the man himself didn't feel much about it anymore.

Ning Sixian had said before, "You need to rest well, keep your mood bright, and cooperate with our treatment."

But how to rest, how to keep his mood bright, Chu Yilan didn't know.

But in the days recently spent with Shen Lian, Chu Yilan was unprecedentedly relaxed. Perhaps because of this, the scar had faded so much?

Shen Lian had mentioned not caring about the scar so many times that Chu Yilan had subconsciously come to believe it, so when Shen Lian prompted him to bring the lens closer, Chu Yilan didn't resist.

As a result, when it was really close, he heard a "mua!" sound.

Chu Yilan turned his head and saw Shen Lian's puckered lips hadn't been pulled back yet.

The next second, Chu Yilan couldn't hold back and smiled, pursing his lips.

The man's slightly furrowed brow smoothed out, his aura softened, and the hostility in his entire person disappeared. The advantages of his distinct and profound features were fully visible, so handsome that Shen Lian felt a heat in his lower abdomen.

"Master Chu, don't be like that..." Shen Lian covered his face.

Chu Yilan: "?"

"You're too good-looking; I'm starting to get aroused."

Chu Yilan: "..."