81: Take a break from work

Chu Yilan had been nursing his anger all the way here.

He felt like if they didn't want to run this crappy show, they should just cancel it. But aside from Yu Ming, Shen Lian got along harmoniously with everyone else, and the production team's handling of the situation was reasonable. Combined with that remote bombardment of "I like buzz cuts" and "The one surnamed Chu," Chu Yilan's temper had been forcibly stripped away.

As the kiss ended, Shen Lian had no strength left. He rested his head on Chu Yilan's shoulder, feeling drowsy.

Chu Yilan took his scalded hand, examining it over and over again.

"It's fine, the swelling will go down by tomorrow."

Chu Yilan said, "It makes me unhappy that you'd even tolerate him for a second. What, do you not have a backer?"

Shen Lian burst out laughing at those words.

"Do you feel unwell anywhere after eating that mustard?" Chu Yilan asked again.

The man's sword-like brows were knit tight, his eyes filled with heartache and concern.

"I'm fine now," Shen Lian said sluggishly. "It's just that after being tossed around all day, I'm exhausted."

"What's going on with you and Chang Qing?"

"Eh?" Shen Lian's internal alarm blared. "Fans shipping a CP has nothing to do with the real people! I won't accept you settling scores with me for that."

Chu Yilan gave a soft snort.

Shen Lian had fallen asleep by the time the car reached the villa. Just as Chu Yilan was about to pick him up, the young man suddenly jerked awake. "Are we home?"

"Yes."

Shen Lian got out on his own; otherwise, it would be too embarrassing if Aunt Fen saw them.

Just as the door opened, they heard a series of 'thump-thump, thump-thump.' Shen Lian was surprised. "Are there fireworks going off in the house?"

Chu Zhumi charged out from a corner, its weight visibly plump and luscious. It had large eyes, and even the black spots at the corners of its mouth—which Chu Yilan didn't particularly care for—looked symmetrical and cute. In short, it was well-raised and not bad-looking, but there was no hiding the fact that it looked like a total nutcase. It clearly wanted to be close to Shen Lian, yet just as it approached, it skidded to a halt in a hunched-over posture, then lowered its head to look at its 'Big Dad' and 'Second Dad' from between its own legs.

Shen Lian: "..."

"There's something wrong with its brain." Chu Yilan spoke in a serious tone. "I'll have Binghe take it for an IQ test later."

Shen Lian played with the cat for a while before going upstairs to soak in the bath.

The bathtub was quite large. Halfway through his soak, Chu Yilan walked in wearing a bathrobe, his eyes dark and heavy.

When it came to *this* sort of thing, Shen Lian would beg for mercy while it was happening and feel a lingering fear afterward. Yet, if they didn't touch for a single day, he would miss it dearly. Shen Lian immediately flashed a lazy, charming smile, his left fingertip lightly dabbing at the surface of the water.

Chu Yilan stepped in.

Steam rose within the bathroom. Occasionally, a reddened hand would press hard against the blurred, hazy glass, only to be caught and pulled back a second later.

By the time Shen Lian came out, he was completely unconscious.

Chu Yilan went to the balcony to smoke a cigarette. By the dim light filtering out from inside, he seemed to be fiddling with something in his hand.

"Boss?" Sun Binghe's rational, cool voice sounded from the other end of the phone.

"Binghe." Chu Yilan spoke as if in passing. "Do you know how to preserve a radish flower?"

Sun Binghe: "?"

"Shen Lian gave me a radish flower."

Sun Binghe: "...How about you bring it to the company tomorrow? There's bound to be a way."

"Alright."

After hanging up, Sun Binghe was still a bit dazed. Wait, he called in the middle of the night just to say that?

It was for no other reason than Shen Lian being by his side; Chu Yilan was happy.

The next morning, when the sunlight shone in, Shen Lian moved his fingertips. He cracked his eyes open slightly and quickly thought about whether he had any plans for today.

None.

Shen Lian decisively closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

Chu Yilan went to the company at seven and was back by ten. Aunt Fen was watering the flowers. He asked in a low voice, "Are they all alive?"

Aunt Fen replied with a beaming smile, "They're all alive and doing well. Oh, by the way, Xiao Lian hasn't eaten breakfast."

"It's fine, let him sleep," Chu Yilan said gently.

Every time Shen Lian slept, he managed to miss the storms raging on the internet.

After a night of investigation and escalation, Yu Ming had been nailed down. He was that unknown 'third party' who had come between Chen Yue and his non-celebrity girlfriend.

Yu Ming's Social Media comments were closed, and his studio began to play dead.

That wasn't even the worst part. This man had committed many sins in the past; one look at his dark history was enough to shatter anyone's worldview.

Shu Mingyue's fans spent the night making memes to ward off the bad luck. To think such a 'rotten cucumber' had been clinging to their Mingyue to hype a CP—the very thought was terrifying.

Yu Ming's fans wanted to bombard the culprit, Wei Kan, but Wei Kan's fans weren't pushovers either. Their response was: "You dare do it but not admit it? My Wei Kan isn't the one acting like a gigolo."

Liu Tang spoke up later, lamenting that if her own eight years had been betrayed like that, she would certainly need a very long time to recover.

That's right, Liu Tang and Wei Kan had known each other for a long time, and Liu Tang was well aware of Wei Kan's feelings. Chen Yue's non-celebrity girlfriend was a childhood friend to both of them. After the incident, she had resolutely gone abroad to heal her wounds. They had all been holding back their anger. Now that a god-given opportunity had arrived, if they didn't stomp Yu Ming into the dirt, he'd never realize he wasn't acting like a human being.

As for Chen Yue, drag him out to be publicly shamed as well!

—

Inside a presidential suite of a certain hotel, following a plea for mercy filled with extreme terror, came a tragic wail.

Yu Ming was curled up on the floor, his face bruised and bleeding, trembling uncontrollably from the beating.

"Damn it, you dared to cuckold me?" Not far away, on a wine-red armchair, sat a middle-aged man. He was fat with a large head and ears, and when he smiled, he had a deceptively kind and pleasant appearance. He took a puff of his cigar and signaled his subordinates to continue.

After a few muffled groans and sobs, Yu Ming went silent.

Jin Lei remained unmoved.

If it hadn't been for the online leaks, he wouldn't have known Yu Ming had cheated on him. Some people were curious if the boss behind Yu Ming was Chen Yue.

Like hell he was. Just a couple of pretty boys.

Jin Lei thought this as he looked down at the photo in his hand. He took a puff of his cigar, the lust and satisfaction in his eyes almost overflowing.

The young man in the photo had beautiful features. He was in an ancient town, and as he turned toward the camera, he wore a faint, helpless smile. He was like a cool breeze in the mountains, the bright moon over the fields. Jin Lei could even imagine the sweet fragrance emanating from him. It was fortunate that Yu Ming had brought the photo to ask him to take charge, allowing him to see someone he particularly liked.

The person in the photo was none other than Shen Lian.

Jin Lei had been developing his business in Country A and had only recently returned. However, he kept a low profile because he knew a lion was crouching in Qudu.

"Chu Changqi," Jin Lei remarked, thinking of something. "Your son is even more formidable than you."

In his dream, Shen Lian inexplicably felt like killing someone.

He didn't know where this hostility came from. Having just opened his eyes, his heart was beating a bit too fast.

Shen Lian slowly turned over and sat up, leaning against the headboard as he waited for this uncomfortable feeling to pass.

Chang Qing and Xu Jingge had said that Shen Lian possessed an extremely powerful and sharp core. This made him appear lazy, relaxed, and even invincible—after all, he even dared to hit Chu Yilan. But the moment he frowned slightly, one would suddenly realize that this person was wasting away at an extremely slow pace.

Chu Yilan pushed the door open and entered, his expression changing immediately.

Shen Lian didn't even have time to try and smile.

The medicine Ning Sixian had prescribed was right there on the nightstand. Since he'd been caught, Shen Lian didn't bother struggling. Chu Yilan brought over warm water, and he took the medicine from the man's hand without even lifting an arm. Only as he finished, his tongue lightly licked Chu Yilan's palm in a comforting gesture.

"Put your work on hold for a bit." Chu Yilan had originally wanted to say "You're not allowed to work anymore" or "Stop working," but when the words reached his lips, he felt he couldn't be so overbearing. The person before him was Shen Lian.

Shen Lian could tell. He nodded and agreed very readily. "Alright."

Chu Yilan leaned down to hug him, and Shen Lian hugged him back. He ran his fingers deep into Chu Yilan's hair; it was prickly yet very comfortable.

Shen Lian cherished the happiness before him more than anyone. Anyone who dared to cause trouble would be buried.