After hanging up, Liu Yu’an sees that most of the people are just behind him now, and he puts his phone away.
Wei Jiangxue teases him, “hey, look, Xiao-Liu is definitely more than just a single now, calling so soon after parting.”
Liu Yu’an chuckles in return, “yeah, it’s really agonising to be apart. I want to go back as soon as possible.”
Perhaps because he is so open about it, against the usual strictly confidential attitude the entertainment circle takes, so nobody believes it.
“Seriously? Xiao-Liu, you don’t actually have a significant other, do you?” Wei Jiangxue is about to follow-up when He Anran interjects.
Everyone else also looks towards him, including Yue Zhun, who knows Liu Yu’an is currently in a relationship, as Ren Jianzhang has told him about him marrying.
He was really shocked, because just a few days before that Liu Yu’an was so resolutely telling him that he only ever likes him. So to suddenly be told Liu Yu’an has married made him feel really complicated.
Before, he didn’t like Liu Yu’an very much, but he thought of him as a friend, but since then he thought that he should keep his distance, because Liu Yu’an appears too much like a scum.
He also feels a bit fortunate that he didn’t like Liu Yu’an, and didn’t agree to be with him. Or who knows how many extramarital affairs he’d have to deal with in the end.
While Yue Zhun is in thought, Liu Yu’an replies, “I’m serious. It’s as real as gold.”
Unfortunately the more solid his words the more everyone else thinks he’s joking.
Xu Bing chuckles and says, “An-ge, you almost managed to convince me.”
Wei Jiangxue goes, “bro, you should keep your dreaming to when you’re sleeping.”
Liu Yu’an, of course, would not waste his time attempting to convince them even more, so everyone is then convinced that Liu Yu’an doesn’t have a significant other.
When they finally reach the peak, though, Shao Yanxi is there.
As celebrities, they’re all pretty sharp on the uptake about news; while Shao Yanxi isn’t part of their circle, but his popularity is no less impressive compared to celebrities. And seeing the director and producer who’s sucking up to him with shaky legs next to him, they’re all almost certain of who he is.
Everyone is so excited their eyes almost go bloodshot. It’s the wealthiest man, live in the flesh. Just seeing him in person is enough bragging material for life.
Xu Bing pushes Liu Yu’an once, whispering, “An-ge, pinch me, I think I’m dreaming.”
The youngest Lin Xi is even yelling out, “oh my god, daddy really is as handsome as the photos are,” clearly having thought the photos online manipulated.
And Xue Junming, Wei Jiangxue, He Anran, Yue Zhun and even the old actor Mo Anping in his sixties have all lost their calm.
…
Among the crowd, the only normal person is Liu Yu’an, which contrasts significantly with the madness in the others’ eyes. Though while the production team members notice it, the other guests and regulars are still too excited to notice, until Liu Yu’an couldn’t help but start laughing at Lin Xi’s ‘daddy’ remark.
And most importantly, the man standing besides Shao Yanxi calls out to Liu Yu’an, saying, “An-shao.”
And everyone’s gaze shifts onto Liu Yu’an, as he walks towards Shao Yanxi. Their jaws drop.
Then, they hear Liu Yu’an ask Shao Yanxi, “why the sudden visit?”
Everyone feels like they’ve been dealt a critical hit – Liu Yu’an, for real?!
Meanwhile, Liu Yu’an has no idea what people are thinking, but he has an idea about why Shao Yanxi came——for Yue Zhun.
As expected, after asking, Shao Yanxi glances towards Yue Zhun, then quietly turns around and walks towards the hotel in the area.
Liu Yu’an chuckles, then asks the director, “any other parts to shoot after this?”
“No, there isn’t,” the director quickly says, “feel free to go.”
Even if there was, there still isn’t.
Besides, it’s the first day. Things can still be pushed back.
“Sure, I’ll be at the hotel I think. Call me if anything comes up,” then he quickly goes after Shao Yanxi.
“Holy, I actually saw the wealthiest daddy in the world,” as soon as Shao Yanxi and Liu Yu’an are out of sight Lin Xi is excitedly jumping around, then latches directly onto Xu Bing who is close in age to him, saying, “Xu Bing, I just saw Shao Yanxi, I actually saw Shao Yanxi, he’s my idol!”
“It’s almost like a dream, right?” Xu Bing is also enthused to no end. As an insignificant internet blogger it’s already massive luck that he could join the show, but to meet Shao Yanxi on that show?
The excitement spreads. And Wei Jiangxue also says, “oh, no, I forgot the ask the dalao for a signature.”
“Don’t worry, you can ask Xiao-Liu for it.” He Anran says.
The two are clearly at least familiar with each other.
“I have no idea Xiao-Liu knows Shao Yanxi,” Xue Junming is surprised.
And everyone continues chattering excitedly, except for Yue Zhun.
While Shao Yanxi isn’t exactly an idol to him, but he’s still impressed by a man who managed to become the world’s wealthiest man at age 25, and also to open hospitals all around the world by his own power and even to push at the forefront of pharmaceutical technology.
He is someone providing healthcare to countless people unable to or cannot afford or does not have access to adequate facilities, and is the one providing hope to countless people struggling with yet-incurable diseases. He really is an amazing person.
But now, Shao Yanxi is with Liu Yu’an. Though, he isn’t sure whether it is Shao Yanxi who Liu Yu’an married.
But no matter what, Liu Yu’an still has questionable characteristics, so he oddly feels a slight pity for Shao Yanxi.
Meanwhile, Shao Yanxi has no idea Yue Zhun is sympathising with him, as he is currently too busy being locked into a French kiss on the door of the hotel room.
Liu Yu’an asks while kissing and chuckling, “what did you eat for lunch? The taste of vinegar is through the roof.
“A well-down steak with black pepper finish…” Then he suddenly realises what Liu Yu’an is talking about and bites him hard, making Liu Yu’an wail, “oh no, are you trying to murder your own husbando?”
“It’s all your fault.”
“Oh? But I wasn’t wrong, was I?” After learning Yue Zhun is in the same show as him he’s immediately here. Definitely jealous here, isn’t he.
He must be an urn of well-aged well-marinated vinegar, that’s spilled over.
Shao Yanxi, though, doesn’t reply after a while. Liu Yu’an stops and asks, “what’s wrong?”
“If you don’t like it…” then I would not be so clingy in the future.
Shao Yanxi is well-aware of how flawed his personality is. He is especially dependent on people in situation like this, and possessive to a sick degree.
Liu Yu’an really hated that aspect of him before, so he never dared to actually show that before Liu Yu’an ran off on his wedding.
This time Liu Yu’an has been good to him, so he almost forgot he is still who he is before reincarnating. He still wouldn’t like clinginess.
Noticing how his mood seems to be sinking, Liu Yu’an lifts his face up to ask, “what’s wrong? Tell me.”
“Nothing.”
“Speak your mind, clearly, like I said,” Liu Yu’an decides to be a bit more forceful. Shao Yanxi hesitates a bit more before saying, “please tell me if you don’t like me being like this.”
“Dummy,” Liu Yu’an is a bit mad he’s tearing himself over something like this again and drags him onto the sofa, “I like you being like this, a lot. And I should actually be worrying if you aren’t at all jealous.”
Shao Yanxi doesn’t believe that, but decides against busting him out.
Liu Yu’an continues, “I didn’t know Yue Zhun would be here too. If I knew I would have avoided coming. He and I are unrelated strangers now, and I only have you in my heart now.”
“Jiang He told him to come, apparently,” Shao Yanxi says.
“Jiang He?” Liu Yu’an is surprised.
Jiang He likes Yue Zhun, and as far as he knows the original cannon fodder also does. So the most logical course of action should be for Jiang He to move the person he likes as far away from his rival in love as possible, but he just did the exact opposite.
“What in the world is he doing?”
“Not sure,” Shao Yanxi says.
All he managed to dig up is that Jiang He is the one who sent Yue Zhun here.
“I see. And Yue Zhun’s reaction seeing me today also makes me feel like he didn’t know I’d be here either.”
Shao Yanxi ‘mm’s, seeming to fall into thought.
Liu Yu’an then recalls from the novel the segment where Jiang He finally defeats Shao Yanxi’s company – he did not do it directly.
In fact, he utilised the cannon fodder and Shao Yanxi’s siblings’ hate for Shao Yanxi, and offered them strategies and foolproof plans to successfully topple Shao Yanxi in a really smart protagonist-like way.
This scene… is oddly reminiscent of something like that.
He and Yue Zhun are suddenly together, so Shao Yanxi would be jealous – and because ‘he’ likes Yue Zhun and hates how Shao Yanxi gets more forceful the closer ‘he’ is to Yue Zhun, eventually Shao Yanxi would be angered to insanity and destroy the Liu family to get ‘him’ for himself. ‘He’ would hate Shao Yanxi down to the core, and then…
“Be careful about Jiang He,” Liu Yu’an says.
“Alright,” though he doesn’t know why, but Shao Yanxi decides to take Liu Yu’an on his word.
“Oh, by the way, assistant He said your new medicine got approved by the NMPA ?”
“Yeah, what about it?”
“It’s for psychological disorders, right?”
“Yes.”
“… You are going to see your mother, right? Can I go with you?” Liu Yu’an asks hesitantly, because he knows how much just hearing those words would hurt Shao Yanxi.
But thinking that Jiang He might have begun to make his move, Liu Yu’an is a bit worried.
In the novel, Jiang He managed to establish contact with the siblings of Shao Yanxi who are all in psychiatric institutions. Then, he… made ‘Liu Yu’an,’ who also hates Shao Yanxi as much as they did, use ‘wanting kids’ as an excuse to have Shao Yanxi get all the kids he sent abroad back then keep them around, and working together with the kids’ biological older sister from the psychiatric institution to brainwash the kids into drugging Shao Yanxi.
——The original ‘Liu Yu’an’ has done enough dumb things to make Shao Yanxi no longer trust him despite how much he loves him, so he couldn’t be trusted with drugging him.
Though this is merely the hypothetical plotline at this point, but given Shao Yanxi’s mother is in the psychiatric institute as well, when they’re there, he could try to manipulate his words into making Shao Yanxi decide to increase supervision at the institutions, so that Jiang He cannot establish contact.
As for letting them go free? That’s out of the option.
They already hate Shao Yanxi to the bone. Letting them out is just brewing trouble for the future.
If something were to happen to Shao Yanxi because of that and the world ends up collapsing that would be quite the tragedy.
Shao Yanxi quiet for a bit before saying in a muffled voice, “my uncle took away my mother.”
Liu Yu’an “?”
What?
“They don’t want to let me see her,” his older sister is killed, his mother has gone mad, and he is just fine, so his maternal relatives feel like he is just as much as monster as his father is, and does not trust him, nor do they want to let him see his own mother.
The wealthiest man in the world, but only in terms of monetary wealth.
His uncle, their families, from his maternal grandparent to his two uncles to their sons, his cousins, are all in the military.
Money is worth nothing in front of absolute authority. He would not be able to win his mother back from them.
Even if he is the son, he is the person she should be the closest to, but he cannot even go see her without sneaking around.
“I’m sorry,” Liu Yu’an embraces Shao Yanxi and gives him a kiss. He recalls again that one time Shao Yanxi came home full of scratch wounds, and again repeats, “I’m sorry.”
Shao Yanxi has dedicated so much to try to treat his mother, but from them getting married to now, neither of them have talked about going to see his mother.
“It’s alright,” Shao Yanxi says.
Liu Yu’an kisses him again.
Really, the more he gets to know him, the more pity he felt for Shao Yanxi.