CH 7

Honestly, Ning Yuntian had a very distinguished look: handsome and well-groomed with an air of innocence, wearing a simple white shirt and jeans. He was like the ‘school grass’, the most attractive person at school, leaving people defenceless. In the entertainment industry, he was a natural.

You could get a lot of goodwill from passers-by with a face like that.

That was extremely rare for a star.

Sometimes someone who clearly didn’t do anything would be hated for having an aggressive-looking face, while another person, no matter what they did, would not be hated because of their pretty face and people would subconsciously explain away their actions in their thoughts.

Shen Qi have to admit that Ning Yuntian’s agent had a great eye for talent.

Shen Qi’s looks fell into the former category. He was handsome almost to the point of being too intense. He had an aggressive-looking face, but thankfully he was a man.

It wasn’t fair, but the truth was that male celebrities were more dominant than female celebrities in every way. With the same resting bitch face, a female star would suffer a lot more than a male star.

But Shen Qi had had a young master’s temperament since childhood. Coming from him, it didn’t appear vulgar. Instead, it made him look noble. At first glance, he looked like a well-pampered rich flower.

Shen Qi, the rich flower, welcomed Ning Yuntian with a smile on the surface, but his whole body was glued to Jiang Changshen’s side.

Jiang Changshen glanced at him. The smile on his face deepened.

“Happiness value +1.”

The rise was so sudden and inexplicable, and the timing so coincidental, that Shen Qi had to suspect it had something to do with Ning Yuntian.

He’d only added five points after two days of strategy. And yet, Ning Yuntian had made a move and gotten as many points as soon as he got a look in.

That was a big difference. Was the plot truly irreversible?

He fell silent and decided he was going to observe how the two got along first.

Ning Yuntian was industrious. After all, he was a junior and showed the same hardworking persona in front of the cameras as Shen Qi did. He was a much more well-behaved and obedient person than Shen Qi, the kind that did whatever he was told, did not ask many questions or interrupt others, didn’t complain. With that and his face, he quickly won Xie Jun and Liang Yu over.

As Shen Qi watched, he wondered if Xie Jun and Liang Yu really didn’t see Ning Yuntian’s true colours, which had led to Jiang Changshen being cheated later, or if they had seen through it and told Jiang Changshen.

However, whether Jiang Changshen didn’t believe it or didn’t know remained to be seen.

In Shen Qi’s opinion, every world he walked through was real. He never underestimated anyone.

But in the end, they were being recorded. Shen Qi wasn’t the kind to be silent about the obvious, but this wasn’t like before when he could just focus on Jiang Changshen. He wanted to see how Jiang Changshen and Ning Yuntian got along, so naturally he had to leave room for that.

Yet while observing them, he didn’t notice any difference, at least not for a while.

Ning Yuntian wasn’t like him, displaying his fanboy nature as soon as he arrived. He treated Jiang Changshen, Liang Yu and Xie Jun the same way. As for Jiang Changshen, he didn’t treat Ning Yuntian particularly well and his happiness level didn’t fluctuate anymore.

Did Shen Qi misunderstand?

Halfway through the meal, Shen Qi went to the bathroom. He couldn’t handle spicy food very well. Due to the main spicy dish of the evening, he had had too much water.

He closed the door but didn’t bother locking it. After all, everyone had watched him go to the bathroom, and Shen Qi certainly wouldn’t go in if he knew someone was already there.

But halfway through, the door was suddenly pushed open.

It was Jiang Changshen!

He looked at him.

The lock clicked.

“B-Brother Jiang?!”

Shen Qi was shocked. He held up his pants. He didn’t know if he should continue or put them on.

“Shh-” Jiang Changshen held his index finger up to his lips. He came up behind him, voice low: “Even though the cameras can’t capture video, don’t forget there’s sound. Do you want everyone to know we’re here?”

Shen Qi pursed his lips off, his hands scrambling to pull down his pants.

Just kidding. How was he going to pee in this situation?

Who could have guessed that Jiang Changshen would suddenly reach out from behind him, caging him in close, his hot breath in Shen Qi’s ear, low voice amused.

“It’s okay, you go on with your business. I just came in to get something.”

As he said that, his other hand reached over the toilet. There was a small locker there, opened. He took out a pack of cigarettes.

He took a step back at the teenager’s sudden glare, taking a cigarette and lighting it.

A wink. “It’s a secret between me and Director Liang, don’t ever tell anyone.”

Holding the cigarette between his lips, he leaned against the wall, looking over with good grace, his thin lips exhaling a mouthful of smoke. The curl of smoke blurred his handsome brow, like a picture from an old movie of a man in his thirties. It was when the charm at its peak. Not youthful recklessness or middle-aged restraint.

He looked like if he wanted to, he could easily make a young boy like Shen Qi submit to his charms.

Shen Qi was so startled that he let some water leak.

He was embarrassed and nervous.

Jiang Changshen gave two short laughs and rolled his eyes. His gaze landed on a face he couldn’t wait to get close to. The smile in his eyes grew even bigger.

“Happiness value +1.”

Shen Qi’s eyes were spitting fire. He could see it clearly now. He was dealing with a scoundrel. All happiness points were based on his “pain”!

It was a shame Jiang Changshen looked so innocent.

The man flicked ash away and handed over the cigarette. “Want a drag?”

Shen Qi couldn’t stand it any longer. What kind of idol… What kind of god… ?! He angrily lifted up his pants and zipped them up, hissing at the strength of the movement.

He was so close to pulling it off. He turned away with a glare but after taking two steps, he came back up again in exasperation. He hit the flush button and stormed back out the door.

He left behind muffled laughter and another cue:

“Happiness value +1.”

The two of them walked back out again. Liang Yu and Xie Jun were laughing and talking as if they hadn’t seen anything. However, Ning Yuntian looked up at Shen Qi. Coincidentally, he was just out of shot. There was a sense that he’d discovered something, yet he behaved like he hadn’t noticed anything.

Fascinating.

Shen Qi saw it coming and gave him a smirk. He was willing to restrain his temper in the presence of Jiang Changshen and to show humility to Xie Jun and Liang Yu, but there was no need to restrain himself in front of Ning Yuntian, who was on the same level as him and technically a competitor.

Besides, it was Ning Yuntian who had provoked him first, not to mention the fact that Shen Qi had bumped into his hypocritical true self in the company.

Ning Yuntian caught a glimpse of Jiang Changshen coming over. Instantly, he hid the expression in his eyes, pursed his lips and lowered his head.

The rest of the recording session went well, full of eating and playing around. Soon, night came. Everyone packed up, took a bath and went to bed.

Ning Yuntian slept in the same room as Shen Qi. With a camera present, even if he wanted to treat him badly, he would have to refrain. Additionally, Shen Qi had something on his mind and didn’t want to be bothered.

He was leaving tomorrow, and it would be at least a month before they saw each other again. If nothing else, as things stood, it was clear that Jiang Changshen was not indifferent towards him. But it wasn’t enough. He didn’t like to be merely confident in victory, he liked to be infallible.

The next morning, Shen Qi was the first to wake up. Ning Yuntian, who had slept deeply from going through a series of appointments to record his introduction to the show, was still sleeping when Shen Qi finished washing up in the bathroom.

Shen Qi glanced at his sleeping face. He had to admit that it wasn’t bad-looking, but it was a pity that hid a bad heart. That flawless skin was wasted on him.

A person could be cruel and could also play tricks if they wanted, but the heart couldn’t be broken. That was Shen Qi’s bottom line.

In this world, it was normal to borrow someone else’s influence to get ahead. Either you kept using the person or you made a deal and got along with the person. It was a disgraceful thing to do. Ning Yuntian did more than that. He stepped on his best friend to get to the top. Who knew if the best friend who took him in and helped him regretted helping afterward.

The three people next door weren’t awake either, he noticed when he took a look through the curtain.

He went outside and into the yard for a few breaths of fresh air. A staff member was coming over. He greeted them and told them he would be going out.

The director immediately arranged for the cameraman to come over. Shen Qi shook his head.

“Don’t bother, I’m just going for a run. I’ll be back soon. You can continue filming be afterward.”

The director thought. “Okay, so we’ll film you going out and then coming back. Should I send someone with you?”

“No, I’ll just run around the house and come back.”

Shen Qi smiled brightly, looking youthful. He stretched his joints and ran away.

The farmhouse the crew had found for the show was a single-family home. It was the only house for hundreds of meters, with two schools of poplar trees at its entrance.

When the breeze blew, the leaves started to rustle.

Shen Qi ran quickly. At the last minute, he turned to give the camera a mischievous wave, then disappeared ‘round the end of the road.

When he turned at the corner, he stopped in front of a pond and fields of lotus leaves and sat down by the edge.

He pulled out a box of cigarettes from his pocket, identical to the one that Jiang Changshen had taken out of the bathroom cabinet yesterday, or rather, the same box.

An early cigarette break. This time he smoked three in a row. The fourth one had just been lit up when he heard footsteps next to him.

“Is that what you call running?”

Jiang Changshen sat down next to him.

Shen Qi took one look at him, then pursed his lips and didn’t speak.

“Still angry?” Jiang Changshen laughed lightly, thinking Shen Qi was still upset about last night’s teasing. He reached out to snatch the cigarette from Shen Qi’s fingertips. “Okay, I apologize. I was wrong.”

Shen Qi looked up at him again, hesitant to speak. His expression was burning, as if there was something he wanted to say, but didn’t dare.

Jiang Changshen held the cigarette in his mouth, displaying a hint of carelessness. “Or should I show you back?”

Shen Qi’s mind snapped back to that scene yesterday. If it had been a different one…

Instinctively, his gaze on Jiang Changshen lowered.

Jiang Changshen narrowed his eyes and smiled, taking a deep drag. Without continuing to smoke, he just crushed the rest of the cigarette and relaxed.

“You like me.”

He had said this sentence before, but this time it was a statement.

Shen Qi hadn’t recovered from his reverie and now, he choked. More importantly, the words he meant to say were taken from him.

He looked at Jiang Changshen’s expression, trying to understand the intention in saying this.

“I’m a fan. Of course I like you…”

That was what he’d said before.

“Are you sure?” Jiang Changshen didn’t laugh, but he did smile.

Shen Qi was proud and reckless by nature, but upon meeting Jiang Changshen, he didn’t know what to do in front of the person he liked.

He lowered his stance. In the end, his true nature was hard to suppress. He had intended to take the opportunity to make things clear, but now, provoked by Jiang Changshen’s expression, he just put the words out:

“Yes, I like you. I’ve liked you for a long time!”

Afterwards, he worried and didn’t give Jiang Changshen a chance to respond, panicking and saying:

“I know what you’re trying to say, I know it better than you. I’m not into you the way fans are into idols, I’m in love. I realized I like men because of you, and the first time I jerked off was to you… It’s you in my dreams. I’m not pretending to like you. It’s true. I… I can feel it. You and I are the same. If you want, we can give it a try. Oh, I almost forgot. Do you have a boyfriend? If you don’t you can consider me, but if you do then forget about it, forget about me…”

What was this all about?! This was nothing like the confession he was thinking of!

He was frustrated, but the words were out. His courage splintered.

“Anyway, that’s it, okay. You decide, whatever, I promise I won’t tell anyone else. If I say any more nonsense, then let me be red for the rest of my life!”