Ch42 - Shameless

Since their returning flight to Beijing was at 10 a.m., the assistant came knocking on the door early in the morning to wake the members up in preparation for the flight.

Xie Zhuxing woke up, showered, and packed both of their luggage before urging Wang Chao to get up.

Wang Chao was used to sleeping on his stomach. Thus, the way he got up was different from everyone else. He would squirm a few times before propping himself on his knees and beginning to daydream. If he was not urged at this point, he would then faceplant on his pillow, returning to sleep while kneeling.

Xie Zhuxing noticed that he was dragging himself into that kneeling pose again and said: “Don’t sleep! Quickly, get up!”

Wang Chao squirmed again at his voice while still on his knees. He turned his head toward Xie Zhuxing and complained with a frown: “My butt hurts.”

Xie Zhuxing: “…Is it bad?”

Wang Chao tried to squeeze his legs close, but that made him frown more.

“It’s bad, it’s so bad.” He continued.

The flight from Guangzhou to Beijing is more than three hours.

Xie Zhuxing went to Duan Yikun and made up a reasonable excuse: “He’s not feeling well. Maybe he didn’t adjust to the local climate, so he has some bowel issue at the moment. He took some medicine but he hasn’t recovered yet. This will make the flight difficult for him. How about you all leave today, I will stay here with him for another day.”

Duan Yikun came to their room to check on Wang Chao.

Wang Chao lay sick in bed.

Duan Yikun gave a few words of instructions before leaving with the rest of the members. Though he had wanted another assistant to stay with Xie and Wang, Xie Zhuxing denied it as he saw no need for them.

Once everyone had left, Wang Chao fell asleep again.

It wouldn’t be convenient for Xie Zhuxing to leave the hotel, so he decided to sit by his side instead, listening to music and scrolling on his phone while wearing earbuds.

After a while, Ji Jie messaged him on Wechat: “We have passed the security check. The flight has been delayed again.”

Xie Zhuxing replied: “Just wait patiently for a bit. ”

Ji Jie asked him if Wang Chao was feeling better, and after that, said: “This was such a coincidence. Someone from that accompaniment band yesterday – the bass player or the keyboard player, I couldn’t recognize – is waiting for the flight here too. He greeted us a minute ago and told us that he was going to leave Guangzhou for opportunities in Beijing instead.”

Xie Zhuxing glanced at the man on the bed next to him.

Ji Jie continued: “He said he was that annoying ass’ college classmate, and even asked us why he wasn’t there. We couldn’t verify whether that was true or not, so we didn’t continue the conversation. Then Kun Ge stopped him from asking any more questions.”

Xie Zhuxing said: “They are classmates, but they aren’t friendly.”

Ji Jie said: “That’s what I thought too. Given his nasty temper, who could be close with him?”

Once those words left his mouth, he realized that he may have accidentally dissed Xie Zhuxing and thus added: “You’re different, Xiao Xie Ge. All of us know you are kind, and that you’re considerate for the sake of our group.”

Xie Zhuxing replied with a cry-laughing emoji.

Wang Chao didn’t wake up until noon. He had lunch with Xie Zhuxing at the hotel’s restaurant, and both of them stayed in their room during the afternoon. Wang Chao played his mobile games, and Xie Zhuxing watched him on the side.

Once the night fell, they headed for a stroll at the Guangzhou Tower. Since it was crowded, they couldn’t explore the tower much and could only scan around. Moreover, since they had to be vigilant about not getting recognized, they left after less than half an hour. While holding hands, the two strolled along the Pearl River for a while. Not sure who glanced at whom first, both of them paused in their track and kissed under a dense kapok tree.

The temperature of Guangzhou during November was pleasant. The dazzling tower not far away, together with the waning moon, weaved into an alluring night scene.

As soon as they landed in Beijing the next day, a company van picked them up. They had to film a show at a TV station at night.

On the way, the two of them scrolled through their Weibo and found out that their fans began to fight again.

Although Duan Yikun hadn’t confirmed with the production company, nor did he inform Xie Zhuxing of the invitation, the rumor that he was invited to guest perform in a holiday comedy movie leaked online. Furthermore, not sure which competitor of theirs hired some marketers to stir up troubles, but the latter said that the character was a singer-songwriter with a piano performance during the movie, which was obviously more suitable for ID’s Captain, Leo Wang. Yet, since the company executives preferred the more popular Tomas Xie, they gave the opportunity to Xie Zhuxing.

Their respective fans, who already despised each other, were convinced by the misinformation. Leo Wang’s fans were clearly dissatisfied by the fact that such a good opportunity was intercepted by another member. On the other hand, Tomas Xie’s fans believed that their idol deserved this opportunity; even if the company was biased in favor of him, it was because he was competent to begin with. Moreover, the biased ones were the company executives. As a signed artist, how could their idol refuse the opportunity? Toward their argument, Leo Wang’s fans commented: You and your idol are the same, such White! Lotus!

Their back-and-forth arguments lasted until the night. When its heat was about to fade, however, another handful of firewood was added.

One anonymous fan submitted her story, headlined “I once hooked up with a famous idol unintentionally,” to a famous Weibo commentator. She claimed that she was a magazine model and that once, she was hit on by a member of a domestic idol group. That idol hadn’t debuted then, but he was loaded. He had gifted her a luxury handbag worth tens of thousands of yuan after a single hookup. Despite his attractive appearance, his technique in bed was the opposite of attractive. He never did any foreplay and came within a few seconds. Thus, they only had sex once. Later, after that idol debuted, out of the desire to gossip, she discussed her experience with her colleagues. Only then did she realize that several of her girlfriends had hooked up with that same idol. Their consensus was: The handbag was great, but the technique was trash.

This post was soon decoded. Member of a domestic idol group that debuted this year and was loaded – there was only one candidate.

Having their idol be ridiculed as “Xie White Lotus” for over half a day, Tomas Xie’s fans were already on the verge of their tolerance. Without a single care for whether the post was real or fake, they immediately returned the favor by crowning Leo Wang with a catchy nickname: Stud! King!

TV Station’s Waiting Room.

“This is slander! They are smearing my reputation!” Mr. Stud King himself was so indignant as he argued furiously: “Not mentioning anything else! Who the fuck has “trash technique”??? Who the fuck “comes within a few seconds”??? Who leaked this information, why couldn’t she be honest and truthful!”

Xie Zhuxing: “…” She is being honest and truthful.

Wang Chao continued to complain: “My fans too, why did they ridicule you as a ‘White Lotus’ out of no where? See, if human interactions occur over the internet, they become toxic. You’re such a nice person, but they can’t see it in person.”

Xie Zhuxing smiled: “I’m fine with that. It’s just a few words, they don’t bother me. You, on the other hand – if your brother sees this, wouldn’t he beat you up again?”

Wang Chao was not concerned: “He’s too busy, and won’t have time to discipline me.”

Cheng Yao called on them from a distance: “Xiao Xie Ge, Captain, it’s time for get on the stage.”

They have been on variety shows a few times; and over time, they’ve gained insights from the experience. Thus, they are familiar with this whole production process.

This show had a segment that discussed issues surrounding fitness. They had invited a few fitness experts that included male and female, professional and amateur, and even an office worker and a housewife.

Wang Chao was often inattentive during variety shows, not only because he was requested by Duan Yikun to act within the mold of a “quiet artist,” but also because he was too lazy to use his brain or move his mouth. While everyone else would joke around, he would stray around the edge of the group, appearing as if he was in a daze. Yet he was interested in today’s topic of fitness. When those experts shared their advice, he listened with exceptional attention.

He had occasionally worked out at the gym in the past, but those session didn’t seem to have any obvious effects. That post claiming his technique was trash, even though he rebuffed it, there was a trace of doubt in his heart. He had never seen others do it, so he assumed that he was good at it. Yet, after doing it a few times with Xiao Xie, he realized that Xiao Xie was much better than him. It wasn’t only because he was well endowed, his waist strength was insane. He secretly practiced it while aiming at the air, but got sore after thrusting for only half a minute. Xiao Xie, on the other hand, could thrust for five to six minutes without slowing down. What kind of concept is this? He’s not even human at this point. If he worked out regularly, maybe he would have a chance to top Xiao Xie?

As he fantasized about it, a suggestive smile inadvertently appeared on his face. The fitness coach who finished demonstrating an ab wheel exercise cast him an odd glance.

He hastily retracted the smile and returned to the facade of a “quiet artist” as if nothing had happened.

Once they finished filming and exited the stage, they bumped into the composer of “Summer Ice,” who was here at the tv station to instruct the overall composition for an evening gala. All of them greeted the composer with respect.

Wang Chao couldn’t interject in their conversation. The composer is quite old, and the several times that they had interacted, the former didn’t seem to be fond of him. Thus, he slipped away and sat down by himself. He grabbed a bottle of juice and drank it while waiting for the other members to finish greeting the composer.

That fitness coach walked toward him as he chatted with the on-site director. Grinning, he waved at him once he spotted him. Wang Chao scanned around in confusion: did he mean to greet him? Once he bid the director goodbye, that coach trotted over and claimed that he was his fan and wanted a selfie with him. Even after a selfie, however, he didn’t leave. He kept buttering the other man up, praising his appearance and temperament, flattering him with no reservation.

Who would say no to praises? Wang Chao was pleased and asked: “If I wanted to work out, how long would it take before there would be obvious effects?”

The coach asked: “Which area do you want to work out?”

He said: “My waist.”

While chatting with the composer, Xie Zhuxing glanced toward their direction, just to catch that coach pinching Wang Chao’s waist and the latter grinning in response.

“Hey, hey,” Wang Chao’s waist was particularly ticklish. He couldn’t help but exclaim: “Don’t pinch it, don’t pinch it anymore!”

That coach retracted his hand and said: “How about I give you my number. If you want to train later, just give me a call anytime.”

He fished out a business card. Wang Chao examined its content: titles belonging to all sorts of fitness associations were printed on the card. Given that he was invited to this show, and that he was an expert within the industry, he should be quite reliable.

Wearing a suggestive smile, the coach lowered his voice and said: “If you want to train your waist or something else, you can come to me.”

Wang Chao didn’t get the subtext of his words. He even pondered the offer before he replied: “How about next month, I’m not free this month.”

Immediately after he bade the composer goodbye, Xie Zhuxing headed toward Wang Chao’s direction and asked: “What are you two chatting about?”

The fitness coach didn’t answer; he nodded at him with a smile and left with a smug look.

Wang Chao constantly boasted about how he had slept with thousands of girls in the Chaoyang district. He would never admit that he was weak, and he was afraid that Xie Zhuxing would laugh at him. Thus, he quickly stuffed the business card into his pant pocket and made up what he thought was an amazing answer: “Nothing, you guys finished chatting with Composer Zhang?”

Xie Zhuxing: “…Let’s go.”

As soon as they left the tv station, Wang Chao dragged Xie Zhuxing to his place, demanding the latter to sleep over at his place. Since their teammates had no idea that the nature of their relationship had changed, they only thought their Captain was an oversized infant who kept pestering Xiao Xie Ge to feed him milk. Thus, they all hopped into the company van and left without caring what they were up to do.

Xie Zhuxing thus returned with him.

These two didn’t actually plan to have sex tonight. They had a flight in the morning, a rehearsal in the afternoon, and filming at night. Both of them were exhausted.

They only planned to sleep together peacefully.

Xie Zhuxing grabbed a glass of water. Yet, as soon as he returned, he spotted Wang Chao crouching over the bed, holding the business card to save the phone number.

He could still tolerate it then, so he didn’t say anything. He opened their suitcases from the Guangzhou flight, took out all the dirty clothes, and threw them into the washing machine.

Once he returned from the laundry room, Wang Chao had already friended that coach on Wechat and the two of them had even begun to chat.

Xie Zhuxing was not near-sighted, period. He could spot the half-naked pictures that the coach sent from two meters away. He could tolerate the bare chest and the abs, but he only wore underwear? How the fuck could he tolerate that?

As soon as he was about to speak, he noticed Wang Chao, who had sat upright and lifted his sweatshirt above his chest, trying different angles for a half-naked selfie.

Xie Zhuxing: “…What are you doing?”

Glancing at him, Wang Chao said: “You came just in time. Quick, help me take a picture.”

Xie Zhuxing: “…” Fuck.

Wang Chao was pinned to the bed and fucked senseless for (what he thought) without a reason. Thus, he cursed, he mumbled, and he teared up.

Even though he had fun, he didn’t feel pleased. It may be fine had this been voluntary, but it had not been, which was lame.

Xie Zhuxing asked him: “You still going to sext other people?”

Wang Chao: “…Who sexted other people?”

Even though Xie Zhuxing understood that he was only ignorant, he couldn’t bring himself to admit his jealousy. Furious, since the other man was butt-naked on his stomach, he slapped the latter on his buttcheeks.

Wang Chao already thought their sex today was close to rape, and that slap triggered him instantly. Furious, he yelled: “Xie Zhuxing! Are you crazy! Except for my older brother and my dad, no one has ever hit me!”

Xie Zhuxing said: “Continue to run your mouth. I’ll ask you again, how do you see us?”

Wang Chao’s buttcheeks were stinging with pain. Enraged, he rebuffed: “See us how? Don’t think that after sleeping with me twice, you’re now worth something! Not to mention that I wasn’t sexting – even if I was, how is that any of your business! Who do you think you are to me?”

Xie Zhuxing: “…” Even if someone did eat shit, they wouldn’t say such nasty words.

The washing machine outside had stopped a long while ago. He suddenly remembered that he needed to hang the washed clothes. Since it was November, and the central heating had not resumed, the apartment was slightly chilly. Thus, he decided to put on his clothes.

His motion, however, set off an alarm in Wang Chao’s heart. Thinking that he had gotten angry and was about to leave, Wang Chao swiftly grabbed onto his leg and asked with haste: “Where are you going again?”

Xie Zhuxing was amused and taunted him on purpose: “How is that any of your business? Who am I to you?”

Wang Chao was so afraid that he would leave that he abandoned all his pride when he opened his mouth: “Hubby, I was wrong.”